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Board unanimously approves variance for Hollywood waterfront property after owners pay bond and record planting agreement
Summary
The Board of Appeals approved a variance to allow replacement in kind of unpermitted walkways and a patio at 446893 Coves Road (Hollywood). The applicants paid a bond, executed a planting agreement and are required to complete mitigation; the board vote was unanimous.
LEONARDTOWN, Md. — The St. Mary’s County Board of Appeals on March 13 unanimously approved a variance for 446893 Coves Road in Hollywood to allow replacement work and to address unpermitted lot coverage that county staff said resulted from prior, unpermitted improvements.
The owners, Michelle and Michael Ring, requested a variance (VAAP 24‑1624) to replace a gravel patio, walkways and decks and to reconstruct steps and other waterfront access where prior unpermitted features existed. Staff reported the property is 1.09 acres in the Rural Preservation District (limited‑development critical area) and that the county determined unpermitted work had occurred under a previous owner. The Critical Area Commission directed that mitigation and any civil penalties be addressed.
Staff and the applicant said the site was required to provide mitigation at an established ratio for prior violations plus the variance ratio. Land use staff described a total mitigation requirement in staff materials of 13,234 square feet of plantings; during the hearing the project team used a figure of about 13,020 square feet. The record therefore contains two mitigation totals; the board relied on the mitigation and planting agreement in the record and on evidence that the applicants had posted a bond and recorded a planting agreement before the hearing.
Why it matters: staff said the applicants paid a bond to cover the assessed violation, executed a recorded planting agreement and proposed plantings to reduce overall lot coverage and stabilize the waterfront; the board framed the decision as allowing a replacement in kind while ensuring mitigation for prior unpermitted work.
Contractor Andrew Moore of McHale Landscape Design and homeowner Michelle Ring told the board the Rings had voluntarily planted native and ornamental species in fall 2022 to stabilize a hillside (species listed in the hearing record include ligularia, hydrangea, astilbe, carex, sea oats and black‑eyed Susan). Moore said the applicants will remove roughly 1,462 square feet of unpermitted features and, with required removals and plantings, would bring the parcel into compliance with the county’s 15 percent lot‑coverage rule; he said the post‑work lot coverage would be about 7,106 square feet, under the 7,122‑square‑foot maximum cited in the presentation.
Michelle Ring told the board, “we had no idea what was there existing,” and said she and her husband immediately engaged county staff to correct the permit record once they learned that prior owners had installed the unpermitted work. The Rings submitted a bond of $14,460 and a recorded planting agreement before the hearing, staff said.
Board members discussed the equitable issue of current owners bearing responsibility for prior owners’ work; the county attorney explained that the critical‑area enforcement system generally holds the current property owner responsible for compliance while noting the county’s enforcement practices and discretion in individual cases.
The board voted 5–0 to approve the variance. Staff will prepare an order for signature within 60 days; the order’s signature triggers a 30‑day appeal period.
