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Planning commission approves La Plata Public Library site plan with conditions
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Summary
The commission approved the major site plan for the La Plata Public Library (MJSP06562023) at 208 Washington Street, subject to conditions including securing water allocations and pursuing multi-jurisdictional traffic improvements involving the State Highway Administration.
The La Plata Planning Commission voted to approve the major site plan for the new La Plata Public Library (MJSP06562023) with staff-recommended conditions, after a presentation from town staff, county project representatives and traffic consultants.
Presenters said the site at 208 Washington Street was assembled over several parcel acquisitions and that the town entered a 99-year lease with Charles County for the library's development. The proposed building footprint is about 28,000 square feet, with a maximum occupancy of 471 persons and a minimum of 157 parking spaces across two lots. The county will construct key frontage and parking-lot work as part of its project scope, and the town has proposed a capital-improvement plan (CIP) to complete sidewalk links from the southern parking lot to Charles Street before the library opens.
Traffic consultants said most nearby intersections operate at level of service D or better, but identified some movements near MD-301/Route 6 and Washington Avenue that could operate at level of service E. Recommended mitigations include signal-timing updates, extending a left turn lane on Maryland Route 6 to Washington Avenue, stop signs at parking-lot exits, and a raised sidewalk across Talbot Street. Because Route 6 and parts of Washington Avenue are state roads, town and county staff said the project requires multi-jurisdictional requests to the State Highway Administration (SHA) rather than a unilateral town condition.
Britta Hertling, deputy director for capital project management for Charles County, spoke in favor of the project and thanked town staff for collaboration: "I think this is a great project," she said. Town staff told the commission that water allocation must be resolved before service for the library can proceed, and that the applicant must show bike racks and other final site-plan details on the approved construction drawings.
Commissioners emphasized the project's potential to connect La Plata's downtown core, the nearby bike trail and approximately several hundred nearby housing units, but also signaled concern about traffic impacts if SHA does not approve state-road improvements. Staff said their approach is to send multi-jurisdictional requests to SHA and to coordinate with county contractors building the frontage work to complete sidewalk connections to Charles Street concurrent with the library construction.
The commission adopted the staff resolution approving MJSP06562023, subject to the suggested conditions of approval (including resolving water allocation prior to final approvals and implementing the listed pedestrian and bicycle accommodations).
