Taneytown commissioners press McDonald’s on employee parking, signage and facade after BZA variance

The Planning Commission reviewed a concept plan for a redeveloped McDonald’s at 520 East Baltimore Street and pressed company representatives for clarity on parking, signage and the building’s frontage toward the street.

Planning staff said McDonald’s previously appeared before the Board of Zoning Appeals on Oct. 22, which approved parking and sign variances, and reminded the commission of code sections to consider (including setback and orientation rules). “The board took all evidence into consideration and voted to approve the parking and sign variance requests,” staff reported.

Residents and commissioners questioned whether McDonald’s employee parking had been fully counted and whether employees currently use the adjacent shopping‑center lot for overflow. “There’s no formal agreement between McDonald’s and the shopping center owner, and the McDonald’s employees are not supposed to be using that parking,” Adam Baker, land‑use counsel for McDonald’s, told the commission. He said McDonald’s conducted a three‑day parking study that recorded a peak of 15 spaces in use during the sampled periods and that the company will encourage shopping‑center owner contact if spillover is occurring.

Commissioners also pressed McDonald’s on façade and orientation choices for the East Baltimore Street frontage; counsel said the company revised signage in response to feedback and removed mobile‑order‑reserved signs to free spots for customers. Commissioners asked staff to obtain agency comments and, where appropriate, to request a memo from special counsel about the BZA decision and its implications for the commission.

No final acceptance or denial of the McDonald’s concept plan is recorded in the transcript; staff and commissioners discussed next steps including confirming lot coverage and building height for compliance, verifying whether an easement exists for pedestrian access, and obtaining missing agency comments.