Deep Creek marina owner ordered to cease operations
Elaine Blaisdell Cumberland Times-News
OAKLAND — The owner of Lakeside Creamery at Deep Creek Lake has been ordered to cease operations of a mini-marina located on his property until a zoning issue is decided in Circuit Court.
During a hearing in June in Garrett County Circuit Court, Judge Jim Sherbin found that a zoning amendment that allowed Bill Meagher to run the mini-marina was of no legal effect and ordered that the decision by the county’s Board of Zoning Appeals to issue Meagher a permit be reversed.
The court issued the cease and desist order on June 26.
St. Moritz Properties LLC, Bill’s Marine Service Inc. and Silver Tree Marine LLC filed recently filed a motion to amend the order that was issued by Sherbin in June to add the following sentence at the end, “it is further ordered that Meagher/ Lakeside shall immediately cease and desist from operating the boat rental business on the property located at 20282 Garrett Highway in that it is enjoined by this order from doing so.”
Meagher rents personal watercrafts and pontoon boats.
The order was amended to make it clear that Meagher shouldn’t be operating without a permit, according to Greg Skidmore of Skidmore, Alderson and Duncan of Oakland, who is representing local marinas. Meagher has until July 3 to respond to the order that he cease and desists operations.
Meagher has operated the mini-marina for over a year on an invalid permit and even after the decision was made in June continued to operate, according to Skidmore.
“Even after the order, Meagher/Lakeside continue to defiantly operate the boat rental business without a permit and is clear violation of the Zoning ordinance and should not be permitted to do so,” Skidmore said in legal documents
On June 5, 2012, the county commissioners voted to make amendments to the Deep Creek Watershed Zoning ordinance to allow Meagher to have a marina that doesn’t offer the services associated with it.
A boat rental permit was issued by the Board of Zoning Appeals on June 11, 2012, to Meagher. St. Moritz Properties LLC, Bill’s Marine Service Inc. and Silver Tree Marine LLC appealed the issuance of the permit. The Board of Zoning Appeals denied the appeal and upheld the issuance of the permit.
Contact Elaine Blaisdell at eblaisdell@times-news.com.
Posted on 07/03/2013 in deep creek lake
