Residents of quaint Maryland neighborhoods are outraged after county officials proposed plans to add a sprawling parking lot to their so-called 'private playground.' The 28-acre Valentine Creek Park, which is technically open to the public, is the subject of a contentious, years-long Anne Arundel County development project.
Currently, the area has no public parking lots, bathrooms or access to trails and nearby water. Hundreds of homeowners in three surrounding neighborhoods have created pathways to the park through the forest, but they are the only ones with easy access. They have vehemently opposed development, citing concerns over crime, deforestation and traffic.
County water access advocate Chip Walsh told the Baltimore Banner that neighborhood residents just want to 'keep [the park] as their own little private playground.' A proposal announced by County Executive Steuart Pittman in November would turn the secluded area into a ten-space lot behind a locked gate. Pittman also suggested a widened trail to allow kayak access to Valentine Creek, which leads into the picturesque Severn River.
The development of Valentine Creek Park was originally proposed eight years ago when the county acquired the land. Resounding disapproval held up the process until Pittman made headway last year. Glenn Pollard and Ted Sensenbrenner, the heads of the Valentine Creek Community Association, have led the charge against the county's project.
'We're not trying to prevent people to access this,' Pollard said. 'We're just trying to prevent the development of the woods.' Their opposition to the development is, in part, because of the children who ride their scooters and bikes in the cul-de-sac nearby. Sensenbrenner noted that the hill leading up to the creek may be too steep for kayakers anyway. He argued that the project may end up being a waste of county resources.
County Councilwoman Lisa Rodvien, who represents the district, said her constituents are ever-resistant to change, even when it involves expanding public access. 'The fear of change and the unknown is so strong,' she told the Banner. 'Always, the arguments are that there will be crime. And people will be parking here, and we don't know who they are. And the reality is they are people who want to go to the water, like you.'
Comments recorded at a November 2025 council meeting announcing the project to expand access to the park recorded dozens of concerns. 'I am against this. My concerns are safety, the added traffic it will bring to the area, the destruction/disruption to wildlife and the waterway,' said resident Ashley Avrett. 'I think it will encourage more cyclists in the area where we already struggle with them riding recklessly in the area on winding roads with blind corners and no shoulders.'
'My question is why the county is spending critical resources on a project that will benefit a very small number of county residents, is opposed by all the homeowners associations that surround the area, have grave environmental and traffic safety issues and it is not even funded,' added Rosana Gilmore. 'With today's economic issues impacting county residents, I'm sure there are better projects where the money being wasted in this ridiculous project can be better spent.'
'This plan does not seem to be well researched or informed,' added Rebecca Cagle. 'Everyone in the communities surrounding the site seems to be against it, and it seems to be cost-prohibitive... not only in monetary cost to the county, but in ecological and social cost as well.' Others alleged that development projects were 'ruining' the area with 'overdevelopment,' emphasizing the pristine nature and wildlife that may be affected.
Protestors have sent pointed emails, written scathing comments and some have even made threats against county workers. However, water-lovers and kayakers who live outside of the neighborhood said that more public access to the county's water is a necessity. Anne Arundel County features more than 500 miles of shoreline with little public access.
Paula Hubbard, who acts as the coordinator for the Chesapeake Paddlers' Association, told the Banner she advocated for the county to add even more parking spaces than originally planned. 'The public does not just include the neighbors — the public is all of us,' she said. 'The residents want to maintain it almost as a private, for their use only, recreational area. But it does not belong to their homeowners' association. They did not buy it.'
County Executive Pittman has yet to make a public comment on the hordes of disapproval. 'It makes no sense to spend public dollars to benefit a small number of people and to exclude others,' he told the Banner. 'If it's public money, there must be public use. Period.' The Daily Mail contacted Pittman, Rodvien and the Valentine Creek Neighborhood Association for comment.
