“Keep Bowie a COMMUNITY, where people stay for a lifetime, not a 12 month lease.”
Bowie is my home, this is an emotional issue for me because I have lived here all my life - 25 years.
When I think of Bowie, I know it as an established, multi-generation community where young couples move to raise their children - attracted by the quiet, established neighborhoods - and end up staying for a lifetime.
The area surrounding Marketplace is referred to as "Bowie Main Street" - the area through which we welcome visitors and residents to the haven that we call home - Bowie, Maryland.
This proposed development of 288 apartments will destroy the integrity of our community - permanently.
Residents in the surrounding area will be subject to their new apartment neighbors looking out from balconies, into their back yards, watching their children play. At night, the lights from the parking lot, balconies and apartments will disturb sleep - causing many homeowners to already purchase blackout curtains.
Bowie has already seen an increase in traffic, with the opening of Harris Teeter, making the area difficult to navigate during after-work hours. Adding these apartments will only lead to more congestion, frustration and accidents.
Property values will decrease, senior citizens relying on the equity of their homes to support them through retirement and young couples with newly purchased homes will see their property values plummet - shackling them financially. I have heard multiple times, that these apartments will lease for 3,000 dollars a month. I do not believe this to be true.
A cape-cod home, on Savoy, in Bowie, about a mile from the development - has been for lease for two months. The owners cannot find new tenants for a 1,700 sqft, four bedrooms 2 baths home for $2,100/ month. Simply put, these 2-3 bedroom apartments will not lease for 3k a month, this city cannot sustain that price point.
Property values of the current residents, will absolutely suffer, irreparably destroying homeowners finances. The increase in supply leads to a decrease in price - this is Economics 101.
For the aforementioned reasons I encourage you to vote against the proposed apartments.
We have one chance here to either maintain or destroy the unique character of Bowie.
Marketplace is NOT an appropriate location for apartments in Bowie. The heart of Bowie is single family housing in a beautiful, wooded community. We cannot do this to Bowie residents. We must protect the integrity of our community. Keep Bowie a COMMUNITY, where people stay for a lifetime, not a 12 month lease.