SALISBURY, Md. - A proposal to transform three downtown parking lots into new housing hub in Salisbury has hit a significant snag. The project known as Salisbury Town Center Apartments, aimed to introduce more than 200 apartments and a new parking garage to the city's core.
But on Monday, a circuit court judge denied the developer's appeal that would have allowed the project to proceed. The developer was seeking a special exemption that would allow the density of the proposal to proceed.
Brad Gillis, the developer behind the Town Center initiative, publicly confronted Mayor Taylor during a Monday night council meeting, urging him to "Do your job!"
The Mayor fired back at Gillis: "I do want to make one comment relative to Mr. Gillis, I am trying to do my job. That's what I'm here for."
Gillis says as part of the town center agreement, the city committed to freeing up funding for a parking garage. He says the City has not held up its end of that agreement.
"The two biggest hurdles we have in this project are the city fulfilling its obligation to passing the bond ordinance and to us working with the city to find the appropriate vehicle for this project to move forward with its increased density," Gillis said.
Mayor Taylor was elected in November on a platform skeptical of sacrificing parking for downtown development, has been accused by the project's developers of hindering progress. Taylor says he's not against downtown development, he just wants to do it the right way.
"I think we're at a standstill, we're looking to have meetings with the developer here in the next couple of weeks and have conversations as to what the next steps might be."
Downtown business owner Holly Worthington has been against Town Center from the start, due to the parking concerns. "My concern is that still currently, the ownership is in the hands of the developer and they have the ability to move forward in certain manners," she said.
Despite the current impasse, Gillis' crews were at one of the lots on Tuesday, demolishing a parking attendant's booth. Gillis says one way or another, the project will proceed.
"I want to be a part of those solutions, and without engagement and dialogue from the City of Salisbury I cannot be a part of those solutions," he said.
Looking ahead, the Town Center project could proceed if appealed to a higher state court or if the city council passes an amendment.
Monday night's council meeting included discussions on possibly revising the city code to eliminate the need for special exemptions for denser projects.
Council President D'Shawn Doughty emphasized the importance of reevaluating the housing code to facilitate development that benefits the city.
"We asked questions last night to actually see how development should happen in the city and how we want it to happen. So this is a great moment where we are going to take a pause, ask some questions, and you'll definitely see how development will change and always for the greater good of the city," he said.
The council also convened in a closed session to deliberate on the Town Center project, but Doughty could not reveal what that conversation centered on.