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Board approves home‑based FFL at 1275 Hodge Road over neighbor objections, with conditions
Summary
After extensive public comment expressing safety, traffic and waterfront‑access concerns, the Board of Appeals voted unanimously Sept. 4 to grant Renee L. Ward a Class A home‑occupation special exception to operate an FFL at 1275 Hodge Road with conditions limiting visitors, requiring signed deliveries and barring ammunition sales.
The Calvert County Board of Appeals approved a special exception Sept. 4 permitting Renee L. Ward to operate a Class A federal firearms license (FFL) business from his residence at 1275 Hodge Road, Lusby, while imposing several conditions intended to limit neighborhood impacts.
Ward testified his business is primarily online, conducted by appointment and limited to friends and family — estimating “1 to 6 a month” and saying some transactions do not require the firearm to come to his residence. He told the board that every delivery requires an adult signature and that firearms awaiting pickup would be stored in a safe he described as weighing about 650 pounds.
Neighbors and area residents urged denial during a lengthy public‑comment period. Diana Craft, who lives on Hollage Road, described tight roads and hazards for pedestrians and schoolchildren: “Hollidge Road is a 10 foot wide single lane dead end road without any turnaround areas,” she said, and argued that additional traffic and waterfront access raised safety concerns. Other neighbors described misdelivered packages, concerns about the applicant’s seasonal absence from the property, and the possibility that an approved FFL could expand beyond the stated hobby‑level business.
Board members reviewed ATF/State inspection regimes and debated criteria including enjoyment of adjacent properties and effects on community services and infrastructure. The motion to grant the special exception included multiple conditions: the exception is valid only for Renee L. Ward at 1275 Hodge Road (nontransferable); all deliveries must be signed for; a limit of six visitors/vehicles per month; no sales of ammunition from the property; and the exception would be revoked if Ward ceases to be a Maryland/Calvert County resident. The board voted unanimously to grant the exception under those conditions.
The decision prompted vocal public reaction at the hearing and will be followed by a written order and administrative monitoring per board practice.
