Maryland’s second-highest court began weighing Thursday an emotionally charged dispute over whether a developer can purchase a Montgomery County apartment building where a historic Black cemetery is buried beneath a parking lot.
has been fighting for more than six years to preserve and honor the dead interred next to Bethesda’s Westwood Tower Apartments. It sued last year to halt the $51 million sale, arguing that state law required a court to approve the transfer.
The hearing revolved around a 1924 Maryland law that seeks to offer protections for gravesites in cases where someone wants to repurpose a burial ground. The law states “the court shall order” a review and notify the public in such instances. The attorneys spent much of the hearing sparring over whether “shall” means a court review is mandatory or discretionary.
Frederick Douglas, an attorney for the commission, said there were no plans to disturb the graveyard and that the commission had discretion about whether to seek court approval before selling the apartment building. Douglas also said area residents would have the ability to weigh in on any redevelopment project when it goes before the county’s planning commission.The three-judge panel appeared skeptical of the commission’s position at times, but it did not issue a ruling Thursday.
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