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Frederick County agrees to further study Middletown Business Park plan change
Summary
The Frederick County Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission agreed to send a proposed comprehensive-plan amendment for the Middletown Business Park (42.49 acres) forward for further study and public hearing; staff will seek agency comments and additional analysis before any rezoning or approvals.
The Frederick County Board of Supervisors and Planning Commission on Oct. 26 agreed to forward for further study a proposal to change the comprehensive-plan land-use designation for two parcels totaling 42.49 acres at the Middletown interchange.
The action, taken after a joint work-session presentation by county planning staff and the applicant, authorizes staff to pursue agency review and schedule public hearings at the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors. Chairman Josh Ludwig, Board of Supervisors chairman, reminded the public at the start of the meeting that “we are not approving any particular project tonight. That’s not how this process works.”
Why it matters: forwarding an application for further study does not rezone property or grant development rights. It clears the way for detailed technical review — including transportation and utility analyses — and for the public to weigh in during later public hearings.
Staff and applicants said the application seeks to change the long-range land-use categories on two adjacent parcels from highway commercial and mixed-use industrial-office to general business/industrial transition (B2/B3). Wyatt Pearson, Planning Director, told the joint panel that comprehensive-plan amendments “are in and of themselves, not rezoning applications,” and that two of the county’s three applications this cycle have concurrent rezoning planned, which staff supports so technical impacts (water, power, traffic) can be evaluated together.
The applicant’s representative, Chris Myers of Walsh Colucci, said the contract purchaser intends to pursue plan text and map amendments to permit general commercial and industrial transition development, and that potential future users would be recruited through a forthcoming rezoning application. Dan Veil of Equis Capital Partners said the initial concept is for two relatively modest industrial/warehouse-class A buildings to supply jobs and support the region’s manufacturing base.
Planning commissioners and supervisors questioned likely uses, infrastructure availability, and potential historic-resource impacts. Commissioners noted part of the parcel is currently zoned B2 from earlier zoning adoption and that the site abuts planned transportation improvements. Staff said water and sewer service would be coordinated with the town of Middletown under an existing interlocal agreement, and that any capacity upgrades would be the applicant’s responsibility.
The board recorded a five-vote majority to forward the application for further study and authorize staff to begin agency review and advertise the plan amendment for public hearings. Staff said the typical follow-up timeline would include agency comments, referral to advisory committees, a planning-commission work session and public hearing (tentatively in September), and then the Board of Supervisors’ public hearing process.
What’s next: If the board formally authorizes public hearings after further study, the application will move to rezonings or conditional-use permitting if the applicant chooses to request development rights. Those formal land-use changes would be the stage at which specific mitigation — for traffic, utilities and historic resources — would be required and publicly debated.
