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Consultants recommend separating single‑story drive‑up storage from multi‑story 'big box' units and adding design standards
Summary
Michael Baker International told commissioners that Carroll County’s code lacked objective design standards for self‑storage and recommended differentiating drive‑up facilities from multi‑story indoor storage, with clearer siting, buffering and access rules to protect adjacent neighborhoods.
Michael Baker International consultant Troy Trucks presented the consultant team’s Tasks 1 and 2 analysis on Aug. 5 and told the commission the county’s current definition and placement rules for "self‑service storage facility" have resulted in unintended consequences.
"Differentiate them as a single story drive up facility and then also a multi internal, use facility," Troy said, recommending the code explicitly split the use categories and apply different district permissions and objective design standards for each. The consultant noted gaps in Carroll County’s code on architectural quality, building modulation, landscaping buffers, separation from residential zones and controls on outdoor operations.
Trucks and commission members cited best‑practice examples in other jurisdictions (Bellevue, Nashville, Duvall and South Middleton Township) where standards address height, separation distances (150‑foot examples), facade treatments and operational limits to avoid contractor‑bay uses or heavy trucking in storage facilities. The consultant said draft code amendment language (Tasks 3) would be presented to the commission on Aug. 18 for review.
