The Maryland Court of Special Appeals ruled yesterday that two environmental groups can appeal David Clickner's plans to build a house on Dobbins Island.

The decision reverses a 2007 ruling from the county Board of Appeals that kept the Magothy River Association and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation from challenging a county finding that he could build on the island.

It also potentially sets an important precedent, giving environmental groups the right to challenge local zoning decisions, lawyers for the foundation said.

The court, the state's second highest appeals court, ruled that the board based its decision solely on property ownership and disregarded the groups' activities and investment in the river.

"The board ... did not make findings sufficient for us to determine whether or not appellants have a personal interest that will be affected personally and specially in a way distinct from the general public," Judge Christopher Kehoe wrote in explaining the court's unanimous decision.

The case will now be sent back to the board for a new hearing.

MRA president Paul Spadaro said he was thrilled with the ruling.

"I think at the end of the day, getting above local politics, (Clickner) doesn't have a buildable lot," Spadaro said. "It was just a matter of time before we got the courts to look at this case on its merits."

Clickner, of Glen Burnie, said yesterday that he is waiting to speak with his attorney, Harry Blumenthal of Annapolis, before deciding his next step. He could appeal to Maryland's highest court, the Court of Appeals.

"Our plans will still be to keep people off the main part of the island," Clickner said. "It's never been our intent to chase boaters away."

The battle over Dobbins dates back to 2004, when Clickner and his wife bought the 7-acre island for $850,000. They had to apply for special variances from the county to build a house because it's in the Critical Area. Development is restricted in these waterfront areas.

The county granted the variances in late 2006, but the MRA and CBF immediately went to the Board of Appeals. Blumenthal argued that the groups didn't meet the legal definition for standing, which gives a party the right to appeal. He argued neither group owned property within a half-mile of the island.

The board sided with the Clickners in a 4-3 decision in 2007. The MRA and CBF went to the county Circuit Court, where Judge Pamela L. North agreed with the board.

In this latest decision, the three-judge panel ruled that the board and North failed to acknowledge the groups' strong ties to the Magothy River.

"Appellants presented evidence to the board that they have invested substantial amounts of volunteer time, as well as money, on various submerged aquatic vegetation and oyster reef restoration projects in the Magothy River," the judges wrote.

At the original board hearing, MRA members testified that volunteers have been planting oysters since 2000 on eight different reefs, a project that could cost $1 million if done by a private company.

The MRA and CBF have licenses and permits from the state for these projects, which the board refused to accept as evidence.

"On remand, the board must determine whether these investments of time and money and the permits the appellants hold are sufficient to satisfy the first prong of the test for aggrievement," the opinion states.

MRA attorney Ann Fligsten said the ruling is good news for all volunteer groups.

"If these groups don't have a special interest, then nobody does," Fligsten said.

She said the MRA and CBF now can focus on arguments against the Clickners' building plans.

"Before we only got to argue whether we had standing," she said.

Erik Michelsen, executive director of the South River Foundation, said he hopes the court's ruling sets a precedent for future cases.

"We've been denied standing in some legal cases as well. That's really one of the first things opponents will try to do," Michelsen said.

Amy McDonnell, the CBF attorney handling the case, predicted the ruling will have an impact on future cases in Anne Arundel County.

"We're pretty excited that the court found that the board applied the wrong standard in determining standing," McDonnell said.

The MRA also has sued the Clickners over their rights to use the island's beach. That case is still pending.

Dobbins Island is next to Little Island on the Pasadena side of the river. The county is currently suing the owner of that island, Daryl Wagner, for building a home in 2004 without proper permits.

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