Board agrees to lift open-space designation on 2-acre sliver at Canard Elementary

The Queen Anne's County Board of Education voted May 6 to join a developer and the town in terminating an open‑space designation that affects about 2 acres at the southern edge of the Canard Elementary School property.

Daryl Barericlo, the district's supervisor of facilities and design, told the board the two‑acre sliver was conveyed to the board with the same open‑space restriction that covers the larger Providence Farm parcel. Attorney Joe Stevens, who represents the property owner, said the remainder of the farm was annexed by the town in 2024 and that both the town and the county planning commissions recommended removing the open‑space requirement for the larger parcel to allow future residential and mixed‑use development as sewer capacity becomes available.

Board members asked what the change would 'buy' the district and whether it would affect ongoing maintenance or create near‑term development pressure adjacent to the school. Stevens and Barericlo said the two acres are remote from the school site, remain subject to a separate forest conservation easement and that the change would not immediately trigger development: "We're not giving land away," Stevens told the board; the request is to change the legal designation only.

A board member moved that the board approve joining the termination agreement so the restriction is removed from the board‑owned parcel; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote. The presenters said the county commissioners will consider the related county action in coming months and that the district and the owner will sign the termination agreement and file the necessary documents.

Next steps: the county commissioners will consider the broader termination and, if they approve it, the county will finalize deeds and regulatory steps tied to the property's annexation and future development approvals. The district said it will return with any deed language or other documents for board review.