PRINCE FREDERICK, Md. — After conducting a survey and town meetings in each of the towns — Huntingtown, Owings and St. Leonard — Calvert County’s Planning and Zoning team recommended eliminating the option to rezone the town centers to Rural Commercial District (RC) to avoid creating nonconforming uses. The recommendation was presented to the Planning Commission at the Nov. 19 meeting.
There was no vote on these recommendations at the Wednesday, Nov. 19, Planning Commission meeting. The recommendation was for informational purposes as part of the town master plan update process that’s been ongoing since earlier this year. The county will continue to explore other options: remain a Town Center (TC) zoning district; re-establish and rezone to a Minor Town Center (MTC) zoning district; or create a new zoning district for the nonresidential and mixed-use properties, rezone the residential properties to the Residential District (RD), and rezone expansion areas based on public, agency and department comment, as recommended by the Planning Commission and approved by the Board of County Commissioners.
Planner Tay Harris presented the findings from the outreach the department conducted, which included social media posts, community events and mailing thousands of postcards. Harris said residents had some confusion about the different designations and were concerned about overdevelopment but overall supported more walkability and small businesses.
The zoning designation affects what kinds of businesses or residences can be built on the properties. The debate over town centers stems from resident concerns about growth and a desire to maintain the small-town character of these communities. Traffic concerns and reluctance about high-density housing also factored into residents’ feedback.
Harris said Planning and Zoning will present the findings at the Dec. 2 Board of County Commissioners meeting and will continue gathering public opinion in the new year.
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