Business & Tech

CSX Bridge Continues to Elude Cafritz Developers

Though Calvert Tract is in conversations with UMD, there has been no formal agreement.

Less than three weeks before its next appearance before the Prince George’s County Planning Board, Calvert Tract LLC has not secured property for the bridge over the CSX tracks that is required before construction can begin.

Developers have been in conversations with the University of Maryland in an attempt to secure property for the crossing but have yet to receive a commitment, according to Larry Taub, a lawyer for Calvert Tract.

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“There is no letter,” Taub said.

Initially, Calvert Tract approached the American Center for Physics with an offer to purchase land from its campus for the bridge, but that proposal was rejected in March.  

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And while Taub and his colleagues were adamant that they had not secured commitment from UMD, they did reveal a new proposal for a crossing at the north end of the property during Wednesday’s Mixed-Use Town Center Committee meeting in Riverdale Park.

Moving from west to east, the new route—referred to several times in the meeting as “the worst kept secret in Prince George’s County"—would flow out of a traffic circle on the planned extension of Van Buren Street, cross over the CSX tracks, jog south to run parallel to the railroad, and finally connect to Lafayette Avenue at Rivertech Court, forming a “T” intersection.

The new plan would present some challenges, including the crossing radius dictated by the county and the necessary reconfiguration of the south part of the parcel of the land, according to Mark Regulinski, one of the project managers.

No drawings or specs for the new proposed location were presented at the meeting.

The Preliminary Plan of Subdivision (PPS) for the Cafritz property is scheduled to be heard by the planning board on May 16. In January, planning board staff recommended disapproval of a previous PPS for failing to meet several of the conditions of rezoning, including plans for the bridge.

Planning board staff member Susan Lareuse, who attended Wednesday’s meeting, made it clear that staff approval of the current plan was not guaranteed.

“You should reread the staff report for the first one and expect the same comments if the issue has not changed,” Lareuse said.  

The bridge is one of several conditions negotiated by Riverdale Park and University Park in advance of last year’s zoning change from residential (R-55) to Mixed-Use Town Center (MUTC). 

Calvert Tract hopes to turn the 37-acre parcel of land at the north end of Riverdale Park into a mixed-use residential and retail community, including hundreds of units of housing and a Whole Foods grocery store. 

See also: 

  • Cafritz Back Before the Planning Board in May
  • Funding the Cafritz Bridge: TIFs and Taxing Districts
  • ACP Rejects Cafritz CSX Bridge Proposal
  • Cafritz Developers Announce Intent to Refile
  • University Park Mayor Wants Cafritz Apology
  • Cafritz Team Withdraws Preliminary Plan
  • Planning Staff Recommends Disapproval of Cafritz Preliminary Plan


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