Calvert County staff present draft updates to agricultural preservation rules; landowners raise contract, survey and tenant-house concerns

Calvert County Planning & Zoning staff held a public information session in Prince Frederick to present draft updates to the county Agricultural Preservation Rules and Regulations and to gather public feedback ahead of a Board of County Commissioners hearing now scheduled for Sept. 30, 2025.

The department’s stated objectives for the draft are to unify earlier text amendments into a single set of regulations, make the local rules consistent with the county zoning ordinance adopted earlier this year, clarify administration of agricultural preservation districts (APDs), and reopen the process for new APD designations after a moratorium that has been in place since 2013. “This is meant to be a conversation about the agriculture preservation program here in Calvert County,” said Jason Brickley, the county’s director of planning and zoning, opening the meeting.

The draft presented by Jennifer David and staff lays out multiple substantive changes. Staff said the county’s goal remains to permanently preserve at least 40,000 acres and that, to date, about 32,600 acres have been preserved through county, state and federal programs; 24,229 acres were preserved through the county agricultural preservation program, Jennifer David said. The draft incorporates the TDR reserve bank created in 2021, updates eligibility and application criteria for APD designation, clarifies when APDs are considered “permanently preserved,” and aligns program administration language with the March 2025 Calvert County Zoning Ordinance.

Key technical changes described by staff include: - Minimum acreage thresholds that vary by location: properties contiguous to an existing preserved APD and inside mapped priority preservation or rural legacy areas may be eligible with less than 50 acres (with Agricultural Preservation Advisory Board approval); noncontiguous proposals generally require at least 50 acres. Properties outside those areas would generally need at least 25 acres with AG Board approval if contiguous to preserved land, staff said. (Jennifer David) - Net acreage computation for TDRs: wetlands are deducted from gross acreage; per the March 2025 zoning ordinance, certification yields 1 TDR credited per net acre, with 5 TDRs deducted for each existing residence on the property and up to 5 TDRs added per one-acre “exception lot” authorized through March 1, 2027. (Jennifer David) - Density applied by APD (the district) rather than by parcel, and tenant houses, primary residences and buildable residential lots count toward density. Staff said this text change is meant to make the rules consistent with the recently adopted zoning ordinance and is not intended to remove existing entitlements. “We are not going to rip your houses out. We’re not going to take TDRs from you that have already been certified,” a county attorney’s representative said via staff. (Jennifer David; county staff) - New documentation requirements for applications, including current deeds, a boundary survey, title history back to June 29, 1967, and a soil-and-water-quality or forestry management plan as applicable. The draft also includes a provision to offset survey costs for first-time sellers by offering an additional up to $200 per TDR sold in the first PAR (purchase and retirement) cycle, staff said. (Jennifer David) - Administrative changes: the Agricultural Preservation Advisory Board (APAB) will draft regulations and the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) adopts by resolution; the draft fully incorporates the TDR reserve (county TDR bank) established in 2021 and expands eligibility for the PAR fund beyond original APD owners to all TDR owners of record. (Jennifer David) - Agritourism and events: the update explicitly lists agritourism uses consistent with zoning and allows up to 12 public events per APD per year with APAB approval; criteria for private-event rental facilities are referenced to the draft’s Section 13. (Jennifer David)

During a roughly 75-minute session staff outlined the program history (the local TDR program began in 1978; a moratorium on new APD applications began after a review following the 2007 recession and remains in effect) and walked through the timeline of recent work: TDR reserve in 2021, recordation-tax funding reinstated in February 2021, rural legacy area expansion in 2023, adoption of a new county zoning ordinance (effective March 1, 2025), a BOCC summary presentation on April 8, 2025, and a planning commission briefing on Aug. 20, 2025.

Public commenters repeatedly focused on three areas: whether the draft would alter existing contracts or certified rights, the cost and timing of required boundary surveys to enter the program, and changes to how tenant houses count against density.

Several landowners said the draft felt like an after-the-fact change to contracts they signed decades ago. “Contracts were signed back as far as 1978. I can’t think of any contract that has the ability to change once it’s been signed off by both parties,” said Wilson Freeland of Prince Frederick. Kathy Cosgrove, president of the Calvert County Farm Bureau, told staff the rules “cannot be more restrictive on contracts that are already signed.” Other attendees urged a multi-year grace period if new documentation or certification is required.

Staff responded that the county is not planning to strip existing certified TDRs or remove occupied dwellings and described legally nonconforming status for structures that predate new rules. Staff also said they had reviewed the issue with the county attorney and deferred detailed legal answers to legal counsel. Paige Weier of Solomons told the room the planning commission had earlier declined to recommend making the zoning-text changes retroactive, and she warned that retroactive reductions in previously awarded entitlements could prompt legal challenges.

New or prospective applicants raised practical concerns about surveys and administrative capacity. “A survey is going to be $50,000 probably. And it’s going to take me 3 years to get it before I can even get into the program,” said Ben Risley of Prince Frederick, describing costs and recruitment of surveyor resources. Staff noted the draft proposes an additional $200 per TDR (up to full cost) in the first PAR cycle to help first-time sellers recoup survey expenses and said many comparable state programs require surveys, but attendees remained concerned about timing and County Office of Aging or other agency backlogs and enforcement capacity.

Other questions included how APD protections interact with third-party rural legacy contracts and eminent domain; who would pay to rerecord deeds or contracts if the county requires rerecording; and whether the BOCC or APAB should make final determinations on APD acceptance. Longtime participants said the APAB has subject-matter expertise and objected to transferring sole approval authority to the BOCC.

Staff closed by encouraging written comments and one-on-one meetings with planners. The public comment period was announced as open through the close of business on Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, and staff said all written comments will be forwarded to the BOCC before a public hearing set for Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2025, at 10:30 a.m. in the Commissioners’ Hearing Room, 175 Main Street, Prince Frederick.

The draft rules and supporting documents are posted at www.calvertcountymd.gov/agpreservationupdate, and Jennifer David and other staff provided contact information for written comments and follow-up meetings. Staff also remained after the session to meet individually with attendees.

What’s next: the record will be open for written comment through Sept. 29, 2025; the county will hold the public hearing Sept. 30, 2025; and any adoption thereafter would occur by BOCC resolution as described in the draft.