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Planning commission approves exception to intra-family transfer restriction for 36850 Bushwood Wharf Road
Summary
The St. Mary's County Planning Commission voted unanimously Feb. 8 to remove an intra-family conveyance restriction affecting 36850 Bushwood Wharf Road after finding a change in circumstances tied to a 2008 boundary line adjustment.
The St. Mary's County Planning Commission on Feb. 8, 2021 approved an exception from the county's intra-family conveyance restriction for 36850 Bushwood Wharf Road, allowing the property's owner to convey the lot outside the owner's immediate family.
The exception was granted after the commission accepted a staff report and a presentation by the applicant's attorney that said the restriction came to apply to the lot only after a 2008 boundary-line adjustment. The commission voted unanimously in a roll-call vote to approve the request.
Brandy Glenn, Planner IV in the county Department of Land Use and Growth Management, summarized the staff report. Glenn said the property is located at 36850 Bushwood Wharf Road in a Rural Preservation District with a Resource Conservation Area (RCA) overlay and that the request was an exception to the intra-family conveyance requirements of section 41.6.4 of the St. Mary's County Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance (CCO). Glenn noted the public hearing had been advertised in The Enterprise (Jan. 22 and Jan. 29, 2021), the project was reviewed by the Technical Evaluation Committee on Nov. 25, 2020, and certified mail notices and posting requirements had been met.
Chris Longmore, attorney representing the applicant, told the commission that the parcel now subject to the restriction predated the 1992 restrictive covenants and that a small sliver of land added to the lot in a 2008 boundary-line adjustment is what caused the intrafamily restriction to apply to the entire parcel. Longmore said the owner, Anne Pogue, has held title since before the covenants were recorded and that the owner seeks to sell to a nonrelative (her daughter is identified in the presentation as a likely buyer) because of medical and personal circumstances. "Again, we believe that the original restrictions were done in good faith," Longmore said, "and this code certainly needs to allow [relief] because there's been a change in circumstances." (Quote verbatim as spoken.)
Longmore and staff referenced recorded documents and deeds showing the history of ownership, the 1992 restrictive covenants (recorded Sept. 18, 1992), and the boundary-line adjustment recorded in 2008 that altered parcel descriptions. The planning commission's motion approving the exception stated the commission had accepted the staff report and found the requirements of section 41.6.4(a) had been met.
No members of the public testified by phone or WebEx during the hearing; administrative staff confirmed there was no remote testimony. After deliberation the commission voted by roll call; the recorded votes were unanimous in favor of granting the exception.
Votes at a glance
- Approval of minutes (Jan. 25, 2021): approved by roll call (unanimous) — motion and second recorded; all members voted Aye. - Pogue exception from intra-family conveyance (20-142-003; 36850 Bushwood Wharf Road): approved by roll call (unanimous). Motion made and seconded; vote recorded as Aye by each commissioner present. - Motion to adjourn: approved by voice vote.
The commission closed the hearing after issuing the approval and adjourned the meeting. Staff noted the project record contains the staff report and exhibits including the recorded covenants and deed references filed as part of the public hearing record.
