Planning Commission unanimously approves Galleria at Carroll Creek final site plan
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Summary
The Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve the final site plan for the 210‑unit Galleria at Carroll Creek, a seven‑story, mixed‑use building that staff found consistent with the Land Management Code; residents raised concerns about height, design, parking and an older MDE cleanup plan.
The City of Frederick Planning Commission on Oct. 13 unanimously approved the final site plan for the Galleria at Carroll Creek (PC24‑934 FSI), a proposed seven‑story building with 210 multifamily units and 4,000 square feet of nonresidential space.
Planning staff entered the final site plan into the record and recommended approval, finding the proposal complies with Articles 4, 6, 7, 8 and 12 of the Land Management Code and is consistent with the 2020 Comprehensive Plan and the approved master plan. The 1.741‑acre site is in the DB downtown commercial‑residential zone and within the Carroll Creek and historic preservation overlays. Staff recommended approval subject to conditions including a completed MPDU agreement, APFO certificate dates, stormwater approval, clarification of the parking table and required payments (including a $5,096.52 fee‑in‑lieu of forest conservation and a $210,000 parkland contribution).
The applicant’s representative, Mike Wiley of Piedmont Design Group, said the project team agrees with the staff recommendations and can meet the conditions. Wiley described parking calculations and said the project will provide 251 parking spaces, which lies within the staff‑calculated minimum (185) and maximum (616) ranges when density bonuses are considered. Owner Ed Wormald said gated access and a card‑reader system will be used to allocate resident parking and that surplus spaces could be rented to retail tenants.
Residents who testified during public comment voiced mixed views. Jill Fitzsimmons, who lives on East 3rd Street and said she is directly impacted by the site, argued the seven‑story massing threatens Frederick’s historic skyline and clustered spires and called the design too contemporary. Bob Reby questioned whether the negotiated Transportation Mobility District fee is adequate for the higher density and asked about the status of the voluntary cleanup plan and MDE oversight. Roberta Huber raised questions about square‑foot figures in the staff report, the age of the MDE approval (2005), and the sufficiency of parking to meet likely household needs.
Wiley responded to public concerns, saying the proposed height and massing are within the limits of the Carroll Creek and historic preservation overlays and noting the project received Level 1 historic preservation approval in 2024. He said the mobility fee calculation for the project totals roughly $81,000 and that the site’s voluntary cleanup plan will be resubmitted to the Maryland Department of the Environment for permit prior to land‑disturbing activities; mitigation will rely on excavation and capping where appropriate. Wiley and Wormald also reiterated their plan to encourage pedestrian use given the site’s proximity to the MARC station and downtown amenities, and to specify energy‑efficient appliances and some electric building systems.
After discussion and questions focused largely on parking management, Commissioner Lewellen moved to approve the final site plan with the ten staff recommendations; Commissioner Valencia seconded the motion, which carried unanimously.
The action approves the project to proceed to final permitting steps subject to the conditions read into the record; the applicant and the public were advised to participate in the Historic Preservation Commission Level 2 review for detailed façade, materials and landscaping decisions.
