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Taneytown parks officials say county cleared way to advance Memorial Park expansion after planning commission objections
Summary
Parks staff told the advisory board that after planning commission objections over sidewalk alignment and ADA slope, the council authorized the mayor to sign site plans using a county zoning-immunity provision; legal counsel review is pending and an RFP and bid schedule were set, with bids due July 1 and award targeted for the July 13 council meeting.
The Taneytown Parks & Recreation Advisory Board heard an update on May 13 on the long‑planned Memorial Park expansion, including setbacks at the planning commission and a contingency plan the city says will keep the project on schedule.
Lorena, a parks staff member, said State Highway and county approvals for the connector road and associated work have been secured but the planning commission disapproved the final site plan. She said two commissioners objected: one said the proposed sidewalk along Route 194/Frederick Street would not meet an ADA slope expectation, and another recommended moving the interior sidewalk to the tree‑lined side by Cemetery Creek so it would dead end behind Field 1. "We felt that the reasons were unfounded and unreasonable," Lorena said.
Lorena told the board the council voted Monday to authorize the mayor to sign the site plans after the county granted the city a form of zoning immunity for this locally owned project. "We have obtained authorization from the county to invoke our own zoning immunity since this is our city, our own project, and bypass the planning commission," she said. She added the city was awaiting confirmation from legal counsel and expected an answer the following morning; if counsel signs off, the engineer will finalize the printed site plans.
Staff also outlined contracting and schedule details. The town has put down a nonrefundable deposit of $240,000 with Morton Buildings, which is on standby to begin permitting and construction. Arrow, the project engineer, is preparing the request for proposals; the RFP is to be released June 1 at noon, with a mandatory pre‑bid meeting on June 11 at 10 a.m., questions due June 25 at noon, and bids due July 1 at noon. Council hopes to consider a bid award at its July 13 meeting.
The board discussed implementation safeguards. Lorena said the RFP will include performance requirements for turf establishment — a 90% germination guarantee for the hybrid Bermuda grass — to avoid contractors completing work and leaving before fields are reliably established. The town must also record easement and deed conveyances for floodplain and forest conservation areas to allow county inspections.
There was no vote on the expansion at the advisory board meeting; the next procedural steps are the legal-counsel sign‑off and the council bid‑award decision. Officials said the expanded parking and fields should alleviate a number of current scheduling and parking conflicts at Memorial Park once the project is completed.
