A group of homeowners have formed an opposition group to the Potomac Heritage Trail.
Nancy Vyas, vice president of the Waterside Homeowners Association, was named chairwoman of the group’s steering committee. The new group does not yet have an official name.
The group has two concerns. One is
protecting the 300-foot buffer under the county’s critical area regulations.
It rings hollow to complain about a trail along the waterfront while sitting on the porch of your home on the waterfront.
The other concern is the idea of a trail running through their backyard. Some homeowners claim to be surprised.
Anne Tompkins, Daryl Tompkins’ wife, said she and her husband were taken by surprise when they learned an easement existed on their property that led to the property being devalued by 18 percent by the title company.
18%? Wow where does the trail go, through the living room? The trail has been on the county's comprehensive plan since 1975 and an easement was established in 1987, so any surprise is do to a failure to perform due diligence (or fraud on the part of the seller), but isn't grounds for stopping the trail.
‘‘It is unfortunate that they are trying to block the trail, especially since they knew, or certainly should have known, about the trail easements and plans for the trail when they bought the properties,” Jim Hudnall, a former president of the Riverbend Estates Homeowners Association and a spokesman for the Oxon Hill Bicycle and Trail Club said.
People traveling by foot or bicycle on the Potomac Heritage Trail can enjoy Prince George’s County’s wealth of destinations on the Potomac River, Hudnall said. He lists Oxon Hill Farm, Oxon Hill Manor, National Harbor, Fort Foote National Park, the Broad Creek Historic District, Harmony Hall, Tent Landing, Fort Washington National Park, Piscataway National Park and the National Colonial Farm as some of the more popular sites connected by the planned trail.
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