Saying a zoning dispute does not create a constitutional crisis, a federal appeals court ruled Friday the Rockville City Council did not violate a self-storage company’s due-process and equal-protection rights by enacting an ordinance barring the construction of a facility near an elementary school.
In its published 3-0 decision, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected Siena Corp.’s constitutional challenge as “yet another attempt to circumvent the state’s legitimate interest in zoning law and land use policy.”
The ordinance, spurred by local opposition to the planned facility, prohibits self-storage buildings from being constructed within 250 feet of a public school lot. Siena argued the ordinance was unconstitutional because it was targeted specifically at the company, which was the only one planning to build such a commercial storage facility in Rockville.
But the 4th Circuit said Siena had ample opportunity to protect its interests as the ordinance was reviewed and debated before city agencies amid safety concerns about having one of the company’s ezStorage facilities near Maryvale Elementary School...
Ventriloquism, circumlocution, circumvention and convolution.
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