A chart showing how many seats are available in Anne Arundel schools could leave more senior housing and less available housing for incoming federal workers.
The AnneArundel Base Realignment and Closure Task Force is concerned that by withholding the school utilization chart, developers may end up building more age-restricted housing around Fort Meade.
“This could very well affect the available housing stock in west county,” said task force member Doreen Strothman at a recent task force meeting.
Age-restricted housing does not depend on school capacity, and officials said. About 775 new units have come online in the pipeline.
Western Anne Arundel has become a hub for senior housing. Communities in northern Prince George?s, which has a deficit of senior housing, are complaining many elder residents are moving to Crofton, Gambrills and Waugh Chapel.
However, Fort Meade could see 22,000 new jobs as a result of BRAC, and many of those employees may live near the fort.
The chart is being held by the county school board, which is not releasing it until a lawsuit by a developer challenging the validity of the chart is settled, said Tyson Bennett, the board?s attorney.
The latest school chart, issued in April 2006, showed several schools in the Arundel and Meade High school feeder systems were closed to more students.
Bennett said the Court of Special Appeals could reach a verdict within six months. However, it could last longer if the appellate court remands the case back to the Circuit Court, or if the case is appealed again.
Until then, developers have to wait. More then 1,000 units are on hold as of 2006 because of school capacity, according to the county planning department.
“It?s the chicken-and-the-egg situation,” said county BRAC coordinator Bob Leib. “We just want a level playing field.”
