Judge Orders City of Salisbury to Respond in SBY Market lawsuit

WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. — The developer behind the proposed SBY Market project is awaiting the city’s response after filing a lawsuit against Salisbury on Tuesday.

A judge has ordered the City of Salisbury to respond to the complaint by noon on Aug. 5, one day before the Board of Appeals is scheduled to meet. Developer David Layfield claims the city did not place the project on the board’s agenda.

Mayor Randy Taylor said he does not believe the Board of Appeals has the authority to approve portions of the project and explained why he is opposing it.

“I like the idea of affordable housing. We certainly need it. However, it needs to be adequately parked, and I think that’s part of the package of affordability. I mean, if you’re a single mom, with two kids at night, in the rain with groceries, if you have a 30% chance of getting a parking space, that’s not really great. I think it’s talking out of both sides of your mouth when you’re trying to do affordable housing in a very, I think, unsafe manner,” Taylor said.

Layfield argues the city’s zoning code does not require parking for the project.

“We have 23 spaces for the uses that require parking. This is an open site that requires no parking. Go to any city — there are plenty of apartment buildings that have no parking. If the planners read the Salisbury zoning code, this district requires no parking, and we are meeting our parking requirements,” Layfield said.