Sykesville Planning Commission hears concept plan for Schoolhouse Road Apartments accessory building

The Town of Sykesville Planning Commission on Feb. 3 heard an initial site-plan presentation for an accessory building at the Schoolhouse Road Apartments and discussed accessibility, parking and dumpster logistics before asking applicants to return after county review.

Commissioners were shown a concept plan that includes a roughly 672-square-foot, two-story accessory structure with a rear patio, a small playground and accessible walkways to adjacent accessible parking, according to the project engineer. The plan also reconfigures and consolidates handicapped parking near two accessible units and replaces an existing speed bump with a flat-top speed hump to improve accessibility between the apartment area and Schoolhouse Road.

The proposal “is about 672 square feet, 2 story,” engineer Frank Manlinson said when introducing the plan. He described accessible ramps and routes between the accessory building, accessible units and the dumpster area so residents with disabilities can reach refuse and recycling without steps.

Town staff noted an operational detail with refuse collection. “The town currently picks up the dumpsters down there, but we only have the capabilities of picking up 3 yard dumpsters,” Kevin (town staff, name not provided) said, referring to the town’s collection equipment; the applicants said they plan to move to a private service if larger (6-yard) dumpsters are used.

Developers and staff said they have re-signed and relocated handicapped spaces to place them together adjacent to the most grade‑favorable units and expect a net gain of one designated handicapped parking space as part of the reconfiguration. The applicants also plan to regrade an internal entrance (McCallum Entrance Road) and add a retaining wall to increase turning radii for larger vehicles.

Commissioners did not take formal action on the concept plan. Staff and the applicants said the project team has re-submitted the concept to Carroll County and is more than halfway through county review; the commission asked the applicants to return for the town’s concept-plan approval after the county issues its final comments.

Applicants and town staff said they will coordinate timing to avoid duplicative approvals and to minimize changes after approvals are issued. The developer present identified himself as Scott Lang of PAX Development and said coordination with county final-plan timing would help satisfy lender timelines.

Questions from commissioners focused on dumpster sizing and collection, accessibility connections between the accessory building and the accessible units, and whether the revised parking layout met setback and code requirements; staff confirmed the applicants had met with county reviewers and town staff earlier in the process. The commission provided no vote and deferred formal town approval until a subsequent meeting following county sign‑off.