OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Baltimore County Council Legislative Day 6 - March 4, 2026

County Council — Wednesday, March 4, 2026
BodyBaltimore County, Maryland
SessionCounty Council
DateWednesday, March 4, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 42:08

Transcript — Verbatim
0:53

I think I stole the visitor.

1:04

I don't have that.

1:07

Oh, Santiago.

1:10

I saw Carrie Sub.

1:21

Your mic.

2:08

That was a recommendation.

2:09

All right.

2:13

Yes, sir.

2:16

Good evening, everyone.

2:18

Uh legislative day six will now come to order.

2:22

Um please uh pause for a moment of silent meditation.

2:39

Thank you.

2:40

Um, could you lead us in the pledge?

2:46

I pledge allegiance to the black of the United States of America.

2:52

States under Justice Call.

3:04

Is there a motion to approve the journal for the meeting of February seventeenth, twenty twenty-six?

3:11

So moved.

3:12

Second.

3:13

All in favor?

3:14

Aye.

3:15

Aye.

3:23

Uh bills five twenty-six and six twenty-six were passed by the council, signed by the executive, and hereby enrolled.

3:32

Mr.

3:32

Secretary, would you now read bills for introduction?

3:36

Certainly, Mr.

3:37

Chairman.

3:38

We have five bills for introduction this evening.

3:40

First is Bill Twenty Two-26, current expense budget, special supplemental nutrition program to WIC.

3:48

Bill Twenty Three Twenty Six is sponsored by Councilman Catch.

3:52

Zoning regulations, uses permitted in the MLR and ML zones, housing for the elderly.

3:58

Bill 24-26 is sponsored by Council Members Catch and Marks.

4:06

Bill Twenty Five Twenty Six is sponsored by Councilman Marks, zoning regulations, residential performance standards, panhandle lots, and Bill 26-26 is sponsored by Councilman Jones, County Charter, County Council compensation and redistricting.

4:26

Okay.

4:27

Thank you, Mr.

4:28

Secretary.

4:43

Of Miss Sheila Thomas to the Baltimore County Advisory Committee on Public School Capacity.

4:49

Councilman Patoka.

4:50

She is here.

5:00

Okay, thank you, Mr.

5:01

Chair.

5:02

So listen, I am really proud to nominate Sheila Thomas to the um uh the school uh adequate public facilities committee because she is so well qualified.

5:18

She is a principal at Summit Park element or was she recently retired, and she just has an outstanding an outstanding career as an educator.

5:26

And so I know she came before us during the work session.

5:30

I see that she's online again.

5:31

So Mr.

5:32

Chair, I'd like to um ask well, you I'll turn it back over to you for the meeting.

5:38

Thank you, sir.

5:41

Ms.

5:41

Thomas, thanks for being here again tonight.

5:44

I know you were here at the work session.

5:46

Did you want to you don't have to restate everything you said at the work session?

5:52

But if you wanted to say any words before we uh motion to confirm you.

5:59

Just that I consider it an honor and a privilege to have been asked to uh participate in such a committee um to enable me to use some of my skill set from the 33 and a half years that I worked in public education.

6:11

So um I thank you for the opportunity.

6:14

We're very excited to have you on this committee.

6:17

Um do we have a motion?

6:20

Motion I'll segment.

6:21

Okay, we have a motion and a second.

6:23

Mr.

6:23

Secretary will please call the role on the appointment of Ms.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Procedural█████████████████████████████████████37%
Zoning Regulations███████████████████████████████31%
Public Safety███████7%
Educational Equity██████6%
County Charter██████6%
Miscellaneous█████5%
Water And Wastewater Management█████5%
Gender Equity███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Baltimore County Council Legislative Day 6 - March 4, 2026

The Baltimore County Council held its sixth legislative day on March 4, 2026, at 4:01 PM. The meeting included the introduction of five new bills, confirmation of several appointments, final passage of multiple bills, approval of fiscal matters, and two public comments. All votes were unanimous except for the postponement of one resolution.

Consent Calendar

  • The council approved the journal of the February 17, 2026 meeting.
  • Bills 5-26 and 6-26 were noted as passed by the council, signed by the executive, and enrolled.

Appointments

  • Sheila Thomas was confirmed to the Baltimore County Advisory Committee on Public School Capacity. She spoke briefly, noting her 33.5 years in public education.
  • Barry Oldfelder Klein, Henry B. Peterson, and Albert Zawicki were confirmed as nominees to the Property Tax Assessment Appeals Board, to be forwarded to the governor.

Bills Introduced

Five bills were introduced for first reading:

  • Bill 22-26: Current expense budget, special supplemental nutrition program (WIC).
  • Bill 23-26 (sponsored by Councilman Katch): Zoning regulations, uses permitted in the MLR and ML zones, housing for the elderly.
  • Bill 24-26 (sponsored by Council Members Katch and Marks): Topic not specified.
  • Bill 25-26 (sponsored by Councilman Marks): Zoning regulations, residential performance standards, panhandle lots.
  • Bill 26-26 (sponsored by Councilman Jones): County Charter, County Council compensation and redistricting.

Final Passage of Bills

  • Bill 8-26 (sponsored by Councilman Marks): Zoning regulations, eco park district transportation infrastructure prerequisite. An amendment was adopted to limit the use and occupancy permit to structures when combined square footage exceeds 600,000 sq ft, and to specify road improvements. The bill passed unanimously as amended.
  • Bill 10-26: Administration bill for continuum of care (38th slot). Passed unanimously.
  • Bill 11-26: Current expense budget, smart policing initiative. Passed unanimously.
  • Bill 12-26 (sponsored by Councilman Marks): Zoning regulations, uses permitted in RC5 zone (riding stables). Conditions: stable must be >200 ft from residential property line or have existed for at least 15 years. Passed unanimously.
  • Bill 13-26 (sponsored by Councilman Marks): Zoning regulations, signs, placemaking signs. An amendment replaced "placemaking" with "regional destination" at the administration's request. Passed unanimously as amended.

Fiscal Matters

Fiscal matters 1 through 7 were approved unanimously. These include contracts with National Medical Services Inc., WGL Energy Services Inc., audio visual hardware and services, Baltimore Regional Housing Partnership, image asphalt maintenance, Arcadis U.S. Inc., and two contracts for legal services.

Resolutions

  • Resolution 7-26: Acceptance of a donation of services for the Oregon Ridge Woodland Garden Project. Passed unanimously.
  • Resolution 8-26: Baltimore County Water Supply and Sewer Plan Cycle 43. The vote was postponed to the March 10 work session and March 16 legislative session after Councilman Katch requested a delay to resolve issues in his district regarding one of the two properties (Rices Lane in Windsor Mill and 8400 Park Heights in Pikesville).

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Sharonda Hoffman (in person): Commented on Bill 47-24 regarding council composition and compensation. She criticized the lack of clarity in the bill, noting it did not specify "for compensation purposes only." She expressed concern about potential pension increases and the difficulty of accessing full bill amendments in minutes. She urged the council to consider the salary recommendation of $140,000 and noted that the fair election fund parameters are too high, limiting participation.
  • David Conrad (online): Deferred his time, stating his question was answered during the meeting.
  • Gloria Kelly (in person): Addressed zoning enforcement issues, specifically the lack of accessible, signed site plans for industrial properties near residential areas. She provided an example of her own property where a business operated without a valid site plan, leading to zoning violations. She requested a reassessment of how departments share information and ensure public access to site plans.

Key Outcomes

  • All appointments and bills (8-26, 10-26, 11-26, 12-26, 13-26) were passed unanimously.
  • Fiscal matters 1-7 and Resolution 7-26 were approved unanimously.
  • Resolution 8-26 was postponed to the next work session (March 10) and legislative session (March 16).
  • The council plans to discuss the salary issue at the next work session, as noted by Councilman Katch.

Meeting Transcript

I think I stole the visitor. I don't have that. Oh, Santiago. I saw Carrie Sub. Your mic. That was a recommendation. All right. Yes, sir. Good evening, everyone. Uh legislative day six will now come to order. Um please uh pause for a moment of silent meditation. Thank you. Um, could you lead us in the pledge? I pledge allegiance to the black of the United States of America. States under Justice Call. Is there a motion to approve the journal for the meeting of February seventeenth, twenty twenty-six? So moved. Second. All in favor? Aye. Aye. Uh bills five twenty-six and six twenty-six were passed by the council, signed by the executive, and hereby enrolled. Mr. Secretary, would you now read bills for introduction? Certainly, Mr. Chairman. We have five bills for introduction this evening. First is Bill Twenty Two-26, current expense budget, special supplemental nutrition program to WIC. Bill Twenty Three Twenty Six is sponsored by Councilman Catch. Zoning regulations, uses permitted in the MLR and ML zones, housing for the elderly. Bill 24-26 is sponsored by Council Members Catch and Marks. Bill Twenty Five Twenty Six is sponsored by Councilman Marks, zoning regulations, residential performance standards, panhandle lots, and Bill 26-26 is sponsored by Councilman Jones, County Charter, County Council compensation and redistricting. Okay. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Of Miss Sheila Thomas to the Baltimore County Advisory Committee on Public School Capacity. Councilman Patoka. She is here. Okay, thank you, Mr. Chair. So listen, I am really proud to nominate Sheila Thomas to the um uh the school uh adequate public facilities committee because she is so well qualified. She is a principal at Summit Park element or was she recently retired, and she just has an outstanding an outstanding career as an educator. And so I know she came before us during the work session. I see that she's online again. So Mr. Chair, I'd like to um ask well, you I'll turn it back over to you for the meeting. Thank you, sir. Ms. Thomas, thanks for being here again tonight. I know you were here at the work session.

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