Analysis of Gas Prices in Howard County, Maryland
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- 4.1 Zoning Considerations
4.0 Land Planning AnalysisThe regulation of gas stations in Maryland dates back to the mid-1960s when Spiro T. Agnew, as county executive, declared a moratorium on construction of new stations due to their proliferation. He directed the planning board to establish criteria for service stations. Although the moratorium was declared unconstitutional, the planning board developed its recommendations, which were made into law. The law essentially called for the establishment of districts where new gas stations could be located versus those where a public hearing was required.5 Almost fifty years later, gas stations face the same level of regulatory scrutiny in Maryland counties, where both the siting and operation of gas stations are regulated. As RESI will illustrate, Howard County, with its rapidly growing population, has several examples of gas station approval decisions and the accompanying public review process, indicating the ongoing control of their use. 4.1 Zoning ConsiderationsPut simply by William Fulton—author, urban planner, and politician—“planning is the process by which our society decides what gets built where.” 6 Zoning is one of the regulatory tools afforded to local government to regulate the use of land within its boundaries. Other examples include subdivision regulations and design review guidelines. The constitutionality of zoning was granted by the 1926 Supreme Court case Euclid v. Ambler, resulting in what is now known as Euclidean zoning, or “the division of all of the municipality’s land into use districts.”7 Zoning, as an exercise of the local police power, regulates the location of businesses and uses of land, which is justified on the grounds that it provides for the protection of public health, safety, and welfare. As a result, zoning’s effects on development patterns and property values are well documented. Academic studies and regulatory findings make up a large portion of the body of knowledge on how zoning can or has impacted the location of specific land uses, including gas stations. Academic Studies With rapidly fluctuating gas prices, academic research has centered on the influence of local and regional market conditions on the price of gas at the pump. A study authored by Barron, Taylor, and Umbeck in 2004 provides predictions of the effect of the number of competing gas stations on market prices and the variation in price across sellers of retail gasoline.8 The study suggests that price variation can result from “standard monopolistic competition,” or from consumers lacking knowledge on the location of the lowest price.9 Taking it one step further, and compounding international factors, the authors found that zoning laws allow some cities to build more stations per square mile, and with fewer restrictions, than other cities. About ten years ago, Barron, Taylor, and Umbeck, conducted a study of gas stations in three California cities over a three-month period to determine why retail gas prices varied geographically. More gas stations and higher prices were witnessed in Los Angeles, which possesses more relaxed zoning laws, which in turn decreased sales volume more significantly because consumers were able to drive shorter distances to buy competitor’s gasoline. The authors found the inverse to be true in San Francisco, where more restrictive zoning resulted in fewer stations. Consumer behavior was less price elastic, thus less price sensitive, with consumers being more willing to purchase gas at higher prices than drive greater distances between stations. Not too surprisingly, gas station owners in Los Angeles were less likely to increase their prices than station owners in San Francisco.10 A study released by the U.S. Government Accountability Office in 2005 also found that higher per capita incomes, hence less price sensitivity, in San Francisco as compared with Los Angeles may have been a factor in explaining why gasoline prices were higher in San Francisco.11 Regulatory Factors Because of the traffic and safety concerns generated by gas stations, they are heavily regulated, and consequently subjected to additional oversight. The two most common methods for approving a gas station in areas where they are not permitted outright are rezoning and conditional use permits (CUP). A rezoning takes place when an amendment is made to the zoning map to reclassify a property or parcel within a district and often involves a public hearing conducted by a regulatory body such as a zoning board. Decisions of zoning boards to grant or deny applications constitute quasi-judicial decisions of municipal administrative agencies. A CUP can provide flexibility within a zoning ordinance, allowing a city or county to consider special uses that may be essential or desirable. Conversely, it can also enable a municipality to regulate certain uses that could have detrimental effects on the community. Conditional use permits allow for specific and public considerations of each business development proposing to sell gas. In Howard County, the CUP process entails applying to the Planning and Zoning Department, whereby the agency comments and provides a staff report with recommendations. The case is then heard by the Hearing Examiner. If no one appeals, the case is considered final. If appealed, it goes to the Board of Appeals, which consists of five members.12 Alternatively, gas stations and other uses can be regulated through Special Exception, which allows for additional considerations and regulations surrounding their use (residential, commercial, industrial, etc.), bulk (how much of the parcel the use takes up), and performance (what the impact of the use has on the property and surrounding properties, such as emitting smoke, noise, or odor). Some communities have even enacted the required spacing of gasoline stations along busy highways in an attempt to reduce traffic accidents. For example, the City of Elk Grove, California, south of Sacramento, permits a maximum of two service stations at any single intersection; stations must also be separated by a minimum of 500 feet.13 Muskego, Wisconsin, maintains a 1,500-foot separation requirement unless a special exception is granted by the Plan Commission.14 Providing a source of relief from evolving zoning ordinances, gas stations can continue to operate as nonconforming uses in zoning districts where they are no longer permitted.15 When new zoning is established, the ordinance cannot eliminate structures already in existence. For instance, if a district is zoned residential, a preexisting gas station becomes a nonconforming use. This is the case throughout the study area, particularly in residential districts, and zones dedicated to accommodate population and economic growth. As long as the property containing nonconforming use status does not change, through expansion or a change in the nature of business, its status is protected. Other regulatory and market considerations may influence the price of gas. Costs and barriers to entry such as taxes, labor, and environmental compliance play into business owners’ decision making and are assumed to be fixed costs for the purpose of analysis. Many jurisdictions require gas station owners to acquire licenses to conduct business, including licenses for the operation of retail sales, cigarette sales, liquor sales, underground storage tanks, and fuel hoses, as well as Environmental Protection Agency licenses and public health permits, all of which may influence the price of gas. Market Implications A Canadian study by Eckert and West in 2005 documented that property values may influence the likelihood of a gas station to succeed, as well as influence gas prices, in a location on the urban periphery versus the urban core.16 Supporting those findings, a recent article in the Washington Post discusses the influence of rising property values on gas stations in Montgomery County.17 Demographic trends, fuel-efficient vehicles, and the economic downturn also play a part in the national decline in gas stations. The long-term implications for automobile owners living and working in the area are apparent. When gas profits can no longer keep up with rising real estate values, gas stations owners have sold their business in cities and inner suburbs near Washington, D.C., allowing them to be redeveloped for more profitable uses. Following this trend, at least two gas stations in Bethesda have stopped selling gas or closed in recent years with plans to be replaced with a high-rise apartment building and a new bank.18 On Wisconsin Avenue, Eastham’s Service Station’s lease expired in 2012 and a developer who purchased the land plans to replace the station with a large apartment complex. An owner of a BP station at the corner of Wisconsin and Highland Avenue recently that was losing money signed a twenty-year lease with TD Bank to build on the site.19 Community Character and the Planning Process Numerous jurisdictions cite traffic, safety, and community character as considerations in denying or approving gas stations in specific areas. Policies surrounding land use and community character are found in the municipality’s Comprehensive Plan. In Maryland, State law requires consistency between comprehensive plan recommendations and zoning. Howard County’s most recent plan update, PlanHoward 2030, contains policy recommendations for the treatment of gas stations. For example, Policy 5.4 deals with the Route 1 corridor revitalization strategy and implementing actions to reduce the strip commercial development by directing automobile-oriented uses away from the main road and residential areas. Policy 10.4 involves the County’s responsibility to respond to changing market conditions and update conditional use regulations accordingly, and reads as follows: The regulations should reflect current best practices and policies to minimize the impact of development on the environment. For example, the regulations regarding gasoline stations needs to reflect changes in the gasoline industry in the last decade and the challenges of blight and environmental mitigation required for redevelopment of abandoned gas stations.20 Howard County has a history of public involvement in the regulation of new gas stations within its borders. In December 2012, the Howard County Independent Business Association, Inc., filed a Zoning Regulation Amendment Request to amend Section 131.G and 131.N.25 of the County’s Zoning Regulations. The petitioner requested that the conditional use regulations for gas stations applicable in the B-2, SC, M-1, and PEC zones be amended “to reflect current land use policies, to incorporate reasonable regulations that reflect changes in the gasoline industry, and to establish reasonable standards to address the environmental impact and potential blight.”21 The summarized requested changes by the petitioner are as follows:
The petitioner justifies the requested changes on the basis that they are necessary to mitigate the potential harmful impact that a concentration of gas stations can have on the environment, and are consistent with Policy 10.4 of PlanHoward 2030, which stipulates updating the conditional use regulations for gas stations. Although whether the petitioner will be successful on the whole or in part has not yet been determined, the application proposes additional regulatory oversight of gas stations in Howard County. Directory: Media Media -> Applications to Drill Media -> Unicef voices of Youth Chat Theme: Children and aids nigeria and Zimbabwe 13 October 2006 Background Media -> Tsunami Terror Alert: Voices of Youth Media -> Biblical Eschatology Presentation by: D. Paul Beck May 4, 2016 Ground Rules Media -> Guide to completing the collection using the Omnibus system Media -> The milk carton kids Media -> Events Date and Location Media -> The Gilded Age: The First Generation of Historians by H. Wayne Morgan University of Oklahoma, April 18, 1997 Media -> Analysis of Law in the United Kingdom pertaining to Cross-Border Disaster Relief Prepared by: For the 30 June 2010 Foreword Media -> Cuba fieldcourse 2010 Download 0.59 Mb. Share with your friends:
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