Frederick County kicks off multi-year comprehensive plan rewrite; three amendment applications submitted

Frederick County staff told the Planning Commission June 4 they will begin a multi-year overhaul of the county's comprehensive plan, a state-code-required document that guides land use and infrastructure, and reported receipt of three private comprehensive-plan amendment applications submitted at the start of the process.

Why it matters: the comprehensive plan establishes long-range land-use policy, growth targets and implementation measures that shape rezonings, capital investments and infrastructure decisions. The five-year update process described by staff will influence housing, transportation, water planning and the county's approach to large development proposals.

Staff said the update will be a broad rewrite rather than a minor amendment. Key components under way or contracted include a community profile (Berkeley Group), a housing and market assessment (Partners for Economic Solutions or similar consultant described in staff remarks), and a land-use cost-of-service analysis to estimate ongoing operations and maintenance costs associated with different development types. Staff identified that the county's existing appendix demographic material is slim and that a stronger evidence base is needed for policy choices.

On transportation, staff said the county plans to apply the regional VDOT model in mid-process so technical testing aligns with draft land-use recommendations; that modeling will help test scenarios such as the future of Route 37 and legacy projects like the Exit 307 relocation or proposed flyovers. Staff emphasized the plan's transportation testing would be iterative, with public input informing land-use options that are then evaluated in the model.

Staff also outlined a public participation plan that will run through multiple phases and engage stakeholders across the county. The timetable presented anticipates a roughly 26'to'27-month process beginning in July, with a stakeholder interviews/reconnaissance phase through about November 2025, topic-based community events, draft plan development, and additional rounds of public feedback. Staff said the timeline assumes an adoption around August 2027 if the schedule holds.

Staff noted several background constraints and ancillary efforts: county staff are not planning a new groundwater-capacity study as part of the comp-plan rewrite but said the Northern Shenandoah Valley Regional Commission and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) are coordinating a regional water-supply plan due to DEQ in 2029; county staff said that regional study is the appropriate forum to address groundwater-supply questions affecting the comp plan.

On fiscal issues, staff said they will produce a land-use cost analysis that estimates both tax and spending impacts of prototype land uses (rural lots, suburban lots, townhouses, apartments) to inform whether the county's target balance between residential and nonresidential development remains appropriate. Staff and commissioners discussed that an explicit, countywide fiscal constraint or strategic financial plan is typically handled outside the comp-plan process and would need separate, iterative coordination with capital improvement planning.

Applications received: staff reported three comprehensive-plan amendment applications submitted at the June 1 deadline and accepted June 2. The projects are:

- Meadowbrook Technology Park: a roughly 650-acre proposal southwest of Stephens City, described in the application narrative as a technology/data center park and noted as sitting between existing solar developments (Foxglove and Bartonsville Phase 1). The applicant (identified in staff remarks as Tract) seeks concurrent processing of the comprehensive-plan amendment and a rezoning.

- Winchester Gateway / Bridal Road (Apple Valley): an application by parties who previously rezoned adjacent parcels; the new request would allow data-center-style uses on properties on the inside of Route 37 and on land adjacent to Bridal Road/Apple Valley.

- Reliance Road (Exit 302, Middletown area): an application to change a planning-area designation now shown as mixed-use industrial-office to B-2/B-3 commercial designations; the application narrative indicates potential warehousing and commercial uses but specific uses were "not specified" in the staff summary.

Staff said they will distribute application materials to commissioners (packet target June 11) ahead of a June 18 joint work session with the Board of Supervisors, where the board will decide whether to accept the amendments for further study. Staff noted fees for the amendments had not been accepted at the time of the June 4 meeting and would be requested if the Board orders further study.

Public participation plans include targeted outreach to schools, minority groups and non-English-speaking residents; staff specifically flagged school-based outreach, parks-and-recreation users, and stakeholders such as Frederick Water, VDOT, the Airport Authority and the Economic Development Authority. Staff also said they will host community meetings across the county and produce a project website and ongoing check-ins with both the Planning Commission and the Board of Supervisors at the end of major phases.

What happens next: staff expect to conclude the background studies and stakeholder interviews in the first phase, then use those inputs to draft land-use alternatives for technical testing. The three submitted amendment applications will be considered at the June 18 Board work session to determine whether they proceed to full review.