Selby Community Association
On October, 24 1930, Selby on the Bay Properties Co. sold parcel #189; of Lot 27, Block K of Selby on the Bay to Howard Robey and his wife, Frances. The Robey's received a plat from the sales company when they made their purchase that showed the "Community Beach and Park" explicitly marked off in bold print, which supported what the salesmen had stated . The Selby on the Bay Properties Company had sold many lots up to that point, but none would have such a lasting impact on the Selby on the Bay community. Mr. and Mrs. Robey built a fine summer cottage on their lot that overlooked the cedar trees growing by the beach and looked out at the captivating Selby Bay. They enjoyed the exclusiveness of the private beach-community and the view of our Community Beach and Park, which in those days ran from Selby Bay Yacht Basin, down the beach and around the point facing Turkey Point, and included some of the land where Holiday Point Marina is now built .
The original developing company of Selby on the Bay, Selby on the Bay Properties Co. Inc., Executive Office, 1104 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington D.C. closed in September of 1935, after being open for business since July 1930. The partnership of Alvin G. Branham and Otis L.Williams, Jr. sold building lots to prospective buyers as summer vacation plots, on which a person could build a cottage and enjoy the quiet exclusiveness of a private beach community in a very rural setting. The salesmen of Selby on the Bay Properties Company gave "Lunch and Lecture" sales promotions under a pavillion located where the Clubhouse parking lot is today. These sales pitches were explicit in descibing that the Community Beach and Park area would always be for the private use of the property owners of Selby on the Bay. Graphical plats showed the new owners the location of their lot and the large open space area at the beach marked off as the owner's "Community Beach and Park". The prospective clients ate lunch and listened to the salesman's promotion speeches, all the while the invited guests were staring out over the beautiful undeveloped waterfront surrounding Selby Bay. The promise of the Clubhouse, Beach and Park ammenities were truly the selling point in this very undeveloped area of the country away from the nearby cities of Baltimore and Washington.
In 1932, Branham's and William's company built a Clubhouse at the beach that was also said to be for the exclusive use of the property owners. It contained sales booths for the salesman to use to close property sales and lockers for visitors to use when enjoying the water. Clients could put on their swimming trunks in the newly built bathhouse (a portion of today's Clubhouse) and enjoy a dip in the Bay while they visited and hopefully made the purchase of a building lot.
Sales were reasonably good at first, with most of the "charter" buyers acquiring the property that lined the "Community Beach and Park". But as sales slowed down, Mr. Branham's interest took him away from the Selby on the Bay Properties Co.'s business. Mr. Branham and Mr. Williams parted ways in 1935 and would not get back together until the spring of 1938. In the meantime, Otis L. Williams transferred all of the Selby on the Bay lot sales to his new real estate company, Williams Realty Company, incorporated in Delaware in October 1935. Mr. Alvin Branham sold all of his interest in Selby on the Bay Properites Co.to Williams Realty. Only his name remained, recorded in time on a street sign in North Selby.
The trouble began in 1936, when Mr. Williams tried to commercialize the Selby Beach by letting outsiders (non-property owners) in for a fee. Mr. Williams also leased the Clubhouse out to someone who used the property as some form of restaurant/ nightclub. Mr. Robey contested that he had been promised that the Community Beach and Park was exclusive to the property owners only and claimed his plat showed that fact.
Mr. Williams, denied ever pledging permanent rights to property owners and instead claimed that property owners only had a courtesy or special privilege to use his property.
The straw that broke the camels back was when Mr. Robey learned that Mr. Williams had recorded a plat (dated 1932) with Anne Arundel County, showing the subdivision of the Community Beach and Park in May 1937.
Mr. Williams filed his lawsuit for Injunction on July 31st, 1937. After testimony and review of the record a Perpetual Injunction was granted to the property owners of Selby on the Bay by the Circuit Court of Anne Arundel County on March 30, 1938.
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Last updated 8/18/01.