Planning commission approves concept site plan for 140-townhouse Pembroke infill in Lexington Park with conditions

The St. Mary's County Planning Commission on Feb. 10 approved the concept site plan (CSP 24-0304) for a 140-unit townhouse development in the Pembroke neighborhood of Lexington Park, subject to conditions including the purchase/use of one Transferable Development Right (TDR), a permit from the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) for wetland impacts and a variance from the Board of Appeals for stream-buffer impacts. The approval was unanimous on roll call.

Staff described the parcel as approximately 27.83 acres on the east side of Willows Road at the end of Meadow Creek Drive in the Lexington Park growth area, zoned RM (Residential Medium). The staff report, entered into the record, concluded the concept plan meets applicable sections of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance (including section 51.3 and related development standards), functional plan consistency, public-facility adequacy, design objectives and open-space requirements with the conditions identified by the commission.

Applicant representatives — including attorney Steve Scott and Gregory Hosendorf of Soltez Companies — described the project as an infill completion of the larger Pembroke community. The developer proposes 140 townhouse units arranged in 26 buildings (buildings of four to six attached units), with units three stories tall, end-unit widths of about 22 feet and interior-unit widths of 20 feet. Each interior unit is proposed with a single-car garage and driveway; many end units include dual driveways. Staff and the applicant presented dimensional compliance (lot depths and yards), sidewalk and public-road layouts, stormwater plans, forest-conservation locations and recreational/open-space features including a playground, village green, walking trails, bus shelter at the entrance and a dog park.

The applicant's engineer reported approximately 18 Environmental Site Design (ESD) stormwater-management devices and said post-development runoff was designed to match existing conditions. The team identified on-site wetlands and stream buffers; the planned roadway alignment affects small portions of expanded buffers and a low amount of wetland area (described in the presentation as under the standard mitigation threshold). The applicant confirmed it would pursue MDE permitting and a Board of Appeals variance for buffer impacts if the concept plan is approved.

Traffic consultant Michael Lenhart presented a traffic-impact analysis prepared to county scope. He said the required study intersections — including Willows Road at Meadow Creek Drive and the project access — operate at level-of-service A under existing, background and total conditions; the development district standard requires LOS D or better. The study was accepted by county staff.

Commission deliberations focused on parking sufficiency, wetland/buffer impacts and required follow-up approvals. The applicant said the zoning-ordinance parking standard requires 2 spaces per dwelling unit (280 spaces for 140 units). The plan provides 336 on-lot spaces and shows on-street parking opportunities on one side of local/minor-collector streets, producing an estimated 336 total spaces (56 over the ordinance minimum); the commission discussed practical concerns about on-street parking and emergency access but accepted that increasing paved parking further would create trade-offs with required open-space and landscaping standards.

Planning Commission member Jeff Sinclair moved to approve CSP 24-0304 with conditions requiring one TDR, required state and county road improvements to be completed prior to certificate of occupancy as applicable, Board of Appeals variance for the stream buffer impacts per CZO 71.4, and an MDE permit for wetland impacts. The motion was seconded and passed by unanimous roll call vote.

Votes at a glance: Concept Site Plan CSP 24-0304 (Pembroke, 140 townhouses) — motion by Jeff Sinclair; second (not specified); vote: 6 yes, 0 no, outcome: approved with conditions. Follow-up permits and appeals will be required before grading or construction permits are issued.