St. Mary’s County commissioners approve grants, landfill waiver, dredge-site lease and zoning change; final decision set on 41 tax-sale parcels

Leonardtown, Md. — The Commissioners of St. Mary's County on April 8 approved a package of grant applications and county agreements, adopted a zoning map amendment for a Hollywood property and granted a one-time landfill fee waiver for the local Christmas in April program. The board also held a public hearing on the proposed disposition of 41 county-owned tax-sale properties and set a final decision for its April 22 meeting.

Why it matters: The votes authorized state and federal grant applications that will affect county funding for jail-based medication for opioid use disorder, a day-reporting/reentry case manager, a gun-violence prosecution analyst, senior transportation and other programs. The board also approved an easement renewal for a dredge material placement site and a zoning change that will allow limited commercial uses on a parcel on Notch Road in Hollywood. Together the actions shape near-term county budgets, grant-funded services and land-use decisions that affect residents in multiple districts.

The most consequential approvals were grant-related. The board authorized submission of a FY 2026 Performance Incentive Grant Fund (PIGF) application seeking $398,094 to support the detention center’s jail-based medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) program, which covers two registered nurses, two peer recovery specialists and medications. The board also approved a modification to an existing day-reporting grant (US-2548) to convert one grant-funded full-time offender reentry case manager position to a temporary part-time hourly position; officials said the change preserves the program while reducing the county personnel roster exposure and produces an $8,412 savings that will not be expensed. The county approved an application to the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy (GOCPP) for a gun-violence reduction grant request of $87,552; county staff noted an expected local fringe obligation of roughly $16,006 that would bring the total cost to about $103,558 if the award is made.

The board approved $35,864 in FY 2026 senior transportation ("Senior Rides") grant funding from the Maryland Transit Administration with a required county match, and accepted a $555,627 community-partnership notice of funding availability from the Maryland Governor’s Office for Children that will be passed…