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Judge dismisses Garrett marina complaint

Elaine Blaisdell Cumberland Times-News

OAKLAND — An attempt to have a Garrett County marina decision overturned was dismissed Monday by Circuit Court Judge Jim Sherbin.

Sherbin granted a request by County Attorney Gorman Getty III to dismiss the action. St. Moitz Properties LLC, Bill’s Marine Service Inc. and Silver Tree Marine LLC had sought a judicial review of the county’s decision to amend text in the Deep Creek Watershed Zoning Ordinance.

The ammendment to the zoning ordinance allows Bill Meagher, owner of the Lakeside Creamery, to create a mini-marina for boat rentals, according to attorney Greg Skidmore of  Skidmore, Alderson and Duncan of Oakland, who represented the marinas.

The decision whether or not to grant the motion to dismiss came down to whether or not the text amendment was considered spot zoning, applying to just one small area of land  or comprehensive zoning, applying all land.

Both Sherbin and Getty agreed that the amendment pertained to comprehensive zoning.

“The change in the text ordinance applies to every parcel at the lake, not just one parcel,” said Getty. “This is not spot zoning.”

The commissioners followed the correct procedures in making the text amendment to the ordinance, by providing a study, holding a public hearing, soliciting public comment and by obtaining a recommendation from the planning commission, according to Sherbin.

“It would be different if the commissioners made this decision during a private meeting,” said Sherbin.

Skidmore argued that the amendment to the ordinance pertained to spot zoning and in particular Meagher’s property.

Meagher petitioned the Deep Creek Watershed Board of Zoning Appeals for a variance to the ordinance and then, about a month later, before a conclusion could be reached, withdrew his petition, according to Skidmore.

Meagher then took his request to the commissioners and a public hearing was held and the public comment period was extended.

During a June 5 meeting, upon the suggestion of the planning commission, county commissioners approved the text amendment to the ordinance to add a new category for boat rentals as a separate service that would not offer any of the other services associated with a marina.

Commissioners Gregan Crawford and Robert Gatto voted in favor of the amendment, with chairman Jim Raley opposing it.

During a May public hearing, Raley said he had concerns about Meagher’s decision not to offer services on-site.

Sherbin also granted Skidmore’s request to consolidate two separate appeals pertaining to the mini-marina.

St. Moritz Properties LLC, Bill’s Marine Service Inc. and Silver Tree Marine LLC  have also filed a interpretive appeal in opposition of the zoning administration’s decision in June to grant Meagher’s request for a boat rental permit.

Meagher planned to offer 12 personal water crafts and four pontoon boats as rentals as well as offer guided tours. He would use local marinas for services.

“We didn’t want to do sales. We didn’t want to do repairs. We didn’t want to do a lot of the things that the marina does,” said Meagher during the public hearing. “The only thing we wanted to do was a boat rental business.”

The aforementioned businesses filed the petition because they felt like they have been “specially and adversely affected” by the commissioners’ decision, according to the petition.

Contact Elaine Blaisdell at eblaisdell@times-news.com.

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Jay Ferguson

Who I Am My name is Jay Ferguson, and I am a lifelong resident of the Deep Creek Lake area. I am also co-owner of the real estate side of Taylor Made. I have been in the real estate business for 21+ years now and I LOVE what I do! I have to say, my career really took off when I co-founded the real estate side of Taylor Made in 2014. Its been an amazing experience, building a real estate company from the ground up and achieving so much so quickly! In August 2016, we purchased Long & Foster Real Estate Deep Creek, where I had started my career in 2000. In 2018, we on-boarded virtually every agent from Coldwell Banker Deep Creek Realty as they closed up shop and the real estate family grew even more! We now have over 40 sales agents and have expanded to West Virginia and Pennsylvania, as well. Taylor Made is the #1 vacation rental company at Deep Creek with over 475 vacation rental homes, and over one hundred thousand yearly visitors. Its amazing what we have accomplished using the principles of honesty, teamwork and customer service! Personally, my wife Jessica and I enjoy traveling and especially spending time in the outdoors, hiking and exploring the many diverse areas that Garrett County is naturally blessed with. We have raised two wonderful children here, Kayleah (22) and Noah (13). In the summer, we love spending time on the water with friends & family and enjoying the lake life! We are both active in our church, our community & local school activities, and we fill our schedule with plenty of volunteer efforts. I currently serve on the board of directors for Habitat for Humanity. I am proud to say that I was named Deep Creek Time’s Favorite ‘Community Champion’ in 2019. I was also named Garrett County Realtor of the Year in 2018-19, as well. I really enjoy promoting my hometown. I am very proud of the resort area that has developed over my lifetime and look forward to growing the area even more! Deep Creek Lake has been described as ‘The Lake Tahoe of the east', and I think that speaks volumes about the potential to own property here! Deep Creek Lake isn't really a town or city by itself; it's comprised of three towns: Oakland, Swanton & McHenry, Maryland. I am very passionate about my hometown and am impressed with how many people know about it as we travel around the country. Deep Creek Lake is an amazing place to visit and even better place to live! During the pandemic in 2020, our market exploded and more and more people left their primary residence in the city to live here permanently. With distance learning in schools and tele-commuting becoming the ‘norm’, many more people were drawn to the area to ‘live where they love to play’. Why You Want Me Working for You: In addition to being an owner, I am consistently one of the top-producing agents in the entire area and the Associate Broker of record for Taylor-Made Deep Creek Vacations & Sales. I have 21+ years of experience and I am a problem solver. There aren’t many situations that I have not encountered and I have a strategy for almost every scenario that you may encounter. I have extensively trained in all areas of real estate & emerging technologies, and also have trained as an appraiser, as well as served as a full-time Broker. I have a strong knowledge of the industry, as well as many trusted local contacts & affiliations that allow me to perform at a very high level and deliver results. I have a great deal of respect for my peers in this industry and have strong working relationships that I would love to put to work for you. Call me to discuss your situation - I know I can be of great service to you & others you care about! Honesty. Integrity. Results.