Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Land Use topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning staff present revisions to Agricultural Preservation rules; board directs staff to schedule public hearing
Summary
Planning and zoning staff presented proposed 2026 updates to agricultural preservation rules and regulations, including removing the mandatory sealed boundary survey requirement (deed plots accepted), a 10% initial TDR reduction for deed-plot-only APDs with recertification options, clarified multiple-easement certification rules, and an increased PAR survey reimbursement to $500 per TDR; the board directed staff to schedule a public hearing.
Planning and zoning staff outlined proposed 2026 revisions to Calvert County's Agricultural Preservation District (APD) rules and regulations during a July 7 work session and asked the board to direct staff to schedule a public hearing.
Planner Jennifer David and Director Jason Brinkley summarized the changes: the 2026 draft removes the earlier requirement for a sealed boundary survey at application and allows deed plots or recorded plats to be submitted; APDs initially recorded by deed plot without a sealed survey would receive a 10% reduction in certified Transferable Development Rights (TDRs) with a pathway to recertify the remaining 10% if a boundary survey or acceptable plat is later submitted; the draft clarifies that acreage encumbered by state easements cannot be certified for local TDRs; staff proposed raising the PAR survey reimbursement for first-time sellers to $500 per TDR (up from a prior $200 per TDR proposal) to better offset survey costs.
Staff also discussed residential-density and accessory-dwelling-unit alignment with state law (HB 1466) and proposed treating tenant houses as accessory dwellings consistent with the zoning text amendment under consideration. The board reviewed family conveyance concerns and staff said a related zoning text amendment on family conveyance lots would be scheduled in approximately three weeks.
After discussion, staff requested direction to schedule a public hearing on the draft rules and regulations; commissioners signaled consensus and staff said it would proceed to the public hearing process.
What happens next: Planning and zoning will prepare the public-hearing advertisement and required legal review; the board will hear public testimony at the scheduled hearing and then consider adoption or further amendment.
