MEMORANDUM

J. FREDERICK MOTZ, District Judge.

Plaintiff has filed this action alleging various constitutional violations stemming from the enactment of an ordinance which substantially reduced the number of sewer permits that can be issued to plaintiff's property located in Royal Oak, Talbot County, Maryland. The action was removed to this court.

Defendants have filed motions to dismiss. The action will be dismissed on the ground that the issues raised by plaintiff are not yet ripe for adjudication. It is beyond the province and competence of this court to make zoning decisions. Rather, the role of the court is mainly to assure that the body making such decisions has acted constitutionally. The record does not suggest that the Talbot County Council has yet denied any of plaintiff's constitutional rights.

Plaintiff's concern about the substantial reduction in sewer permits that it might obtain is entirely understandable. It appears, however, that the Talbot County Council was required to take the action it did so that it could properly consider changes in the environmental conditions in the area where plaintiff's property is located, as well as changes in Maryland state law. The county council apparently has not yet reached any final decision but will do so by the end of this year when it enacts a 2015 comprehensive plan in accordance with Maryland law.

Against this background, it would be premature for a federal court in Baltimore to second guess decisions that are properly made in the first instance by the Talbot County Council, in accordance with state law. Of course, if defendants make decisions that improperly have an adverse effect upon plaintiff's property rights, judicial review of the Council's decision would be appropriate.1