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Calvert County planners outline sweeping zoning‑ordinance update and set December public hearing
Summary
County planning staff presented a draft zoning ordinance that revises density definitions, residential lot rules, industrial uses, accessory‑dwelling limits and event/park uses; the board set a tentative public hearing for Dec. 17 and invited further written and oral comments.
County planning officials presented a consolidated update to the Calvert County Zoning Ordinance at the commissioners' work session, laying out dozens of changes staff said align rules with current practice and state law while providing new tools for economic development.
"We are close to the finish line," Mary Beth Cook, the county's director of planning and zoning, told commissioners as she introduced the August 2024 draft and a redline showing substantive edits. Cook said the draft changes the definition of density to use net acreage (excluding non‑title and state wetlands) rather than gross acreage to match how density is calculated in practice.
Planners described multiple changes across district use charts: removal of a previously proposed 3‑acre maximum lot area for clustered subdivisions in some rural districts, revisions to setback rules for lots over three acres, and a reduction in transfer‑zone density in the residential district from four units per acre to one unit per acre. The draft also updates the zoning map in the county's south end and adds new industrial designations.
On process, Cook said the planning commission will review the draft next week and the board is likely to hold a public hearing on the ordinance during its evening session on Dec. 17; if adopted, the ordinance would become effective 10 days after adoption. "We will include any comments received up to the date of the hearing in your public‑hearing package," Cook said.
Commissioners and staff agreed to keep the public comment window open and encouraged residents to submit written comments in advance of the December hearing so those remarks can be included in the hearing package.
