Planning commission delegates final approval for Fisher Amish School concept plan

On Sept. 3, 2025, the Carroll County Planning and Zoning Commission voted to delegate final approval of the Fisher Amish School concept site plan (S2500155) to the commission chair.

Staff presented the concept plan for a one-room Amish school to be located at 2444 North Old Bachman Valley Road on a 109-acre parcel in the agricultural zoning district. Amy Barcroft of the Bureau of Development Review told the commission that the developer proposes a 1,320-square-foot schoolhouse and a 520-square-foot toilet building on a one-acre lease area, anticipates about 35 students, and intends drop-off by buggy or van. Barcroft said the project is a conditional use and noted that the board of zoning appeals had approved the overall conditional use and the request to use the existing 12-foot gravel driveway.

The plan calls for one standard parking space plus one ADA-accessible space; staff recommended the commission affirm that parking tabulation given the limited trip generation and restricted public access. Barcroft said the proposed school building height of 19 feet complies with the zoning code, that forest conservation would be handled via off-site banking, and that concept stormwater approval had been granted. She also said the project was outside the Bureau of Utilities jurisdiction but had received reviews from emergency services, site compliance and the health department; Department of Public Works was reviewing two variance requests related to commercial entrance and bypass-lane standards at the driveway.

Linda Alexander of CLSI reported that the Maryland Agricultural Land Preservation Foundation (MALPF) had approved the use with contingencies: county approval of the site plan and board of zoning appeals approval of the school. Alexander added that the MALPF approval included a condition requiring that if the school is later decommissioned the building may revert to a farm building and not be used for commercial purposes. She also explained that the approved toilet facilities will rely on holding tanks (pumped when full) rather than pressurized water, and that COMAR provisions allow privies/holding tanks where no pressurized water is provided.

Commissioners asked questions about the easement, the location of the one-acre lease within the larger parcel, driveway and emergency access, and whether a written MALPF approval letter was on file; staff said a MALPF letter exists and would be provided with the final submittal. After discussion the commission moved, seconded and approved delegation of final site-plan approval to the chair. The roll-call vote recorded six yeses and one abstention (Mister Gordon abstained); names recorded as voting yes included Hough, Kane, Lester, Robertson, Smith and Swayeson.

Barcroft said staff would address minor technical comments from grading, zoning and Water Resources on the final plan and invited commissioners to indicate any desired changes to the parking tabulation prior to final plan submittal. With the commission’s delegation of authority, the next procedural step is submission of a final site plan package and administrative review by the chair per the commission’s direction.