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Planning commission approves removal of interfamily restriction for Old Anchor Farm lots
Summary
The Calvert County Planning Commission approved conveyance of interfamily Lots 3 and 4 at MSDFP 138189 Old Anchor Farm to non-family members, accelerating a seven-year covenant expiry by two years and requiring purchase of five TDRs or payment into the county's purchase-and-retire fund.
The Calvert County Planning Commission voted to approve removal of interfamily-transfer covenants for Lots 3 and 4 at MSDFP 138189 Old Anchor Farm, subject to staff-recommended conditions. The motion was adopted by voice vote with one dissenting vote from Commissioner Gadway.
Planner Jay Cousinow said the subdivision was recorded in 2021 and that the house is located on Lot 3 while Lot 4 is undeveloped. Jay told the commission that the interfamily covenants would automatically cease seven years after creation, so the petitioners were requesting a two-year acceleration of that schedule. Staff said owners electing the acceleration must either "purchase 5 TDRs or pay the equivalent to the purchase-and-retire fund," a requirement staff described as a significant cost to the owners.
Property owner Randy Williams testified about family changes that prompted the request, saying, "the family subdivision is just not gonna work anymore," and explaining his daughters had moved away and his son no longer intends to build without them. Commissioners asked whether the parcel could be reverted to its pre-2021 configuration by replatting; planning staff and counsel said replatting would require agreement from multiple owners and would be a months-long process the commission could not compel.
A commissioner who reviewed the record said Lot 3 "clearly meets" the criteria for removal based on changed circumstances, while Lot 4'which is unoccupied'was disputed as not obviously meeting the exception standards. After deliberation, the commission approved conveyance of Lots 3 and 4 to non-family members "subject to the conditions recommended by staff." The motion passed with a 5-1 tally; Commissioner Gadway opposed the motion. The approval accelerates the end of the interfamily covenants and leaves the TDR (transfer-development-rights) or payment requirement in place as the mechanism to offset the early conveyance.
Next steps: staff will finalize the conditions and record the action. The commission's written summary for the record will note the qualification of changed circumstances and the vote outcome.
