Carroll County Planning & Zoning Commission Meeting - May 19, 2026

The Carroll County Planning and Zoning Commission met at 9:00 AM in the Reagan Room in Westminster, Maryland. The commission established a quorum, approved the agenda and the April 21, 2026 minutes, heard reports, approved the Zepp Estates residential lot-yield transfer on a roll-call vote, gave concept-plan direction on the Liberty Exchange amended site plan, and received presentations on the Education Facilities Master Plan and Carroll County Transit. It also discussed the HB 1466 accessory dwelling unit (ADU) text amendment. No final action was taken on informational or discussion-only items.

Call to Order, Approvals, and Reports

• The meeting was called to order, a quorum of five members was confirmed, and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited.
• The commission approved the agenda and the April 21, 2026 meeting minutes by voice vote.
• Commission Chair report: The chair noted approval of the River Run final site development plan (S-22-0004) and the Summerfield three-lot subdivision (M-25-0025).
• Ex-officio report: The Board of County Commissioners did not adopt the proposed off-premises billboard sign amendments, leaving current sign provisions in place; a future planning commission review of off-premises signs and digital sign provisions was requested. The planned commercial centers recommendation to remove second-story residential uses is scheduled for a public hearing on May 28. The BOCC voted to hold a public hearing on extending the retirement home/retirement village deferral; staff later corrected that the self-storage deferral had already been extended, while the clustering deferral was not acted on. A consultant was selected for the Freedom area small-area plan amendment, and solar energy applications were noted as an increasing trend.
• Administrative report: No extensions were granted. Two Board of Zoning Appeals cases, both for commercial kennels of 10 or more dogs, were reviewed and found generally consistent with the master plan.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Zepp Estates: William Wance of 1337 Pleasant Valley Road, owner of the adjacent 19.12-acre wooded parcel, supported the lot-yield transfer because consolidating the old road wedge would preserve his only right-of-way into his property off the realigned Halter Road. Mark Stillman of 1330 Stone Road raised concerns about well-water reliability, noting that three people within a mile on Stone Road had already had wells go dry, and about stop-sign enforcement and traffic safety at the Stone Road/Halter Road intersection.
• Liberty Exchange: Mike Myers of 5805 Artisan Drive, secretary of the Sumner's Hollow HOA, supported the new retail uses but asked St. John Properties to again post no-construction-traffic signs and keep construction traffic off residential streets; he also described existing backups between Exchange Drive and Garaway. Lisa Masano of Ronsdale Road said the three-way stop problem is mainly compliance, not volume, and requested rumble strips, flashing stop-sign lights, or additional signage, warning that buildout of Liberty Exchange 2 could worsen conditions. Laura Thorpe of 708 Conservatory Drive, HOA member at large, also requested rumble strips, a four-way stop at Old Liberty Road and Exchange Drive, and a three-way stop at the Gera/Garaway and Old Liberty Road intersection, and said repeated requests had received only under-discussion responses.
• No public comments were made on the Education Facilities Master Plan, the transit presentation, or the ADU text amendment; there was no general public comment.

Special Report: Zepp Estates, Section 2 - Residential Lot Yield Transfer

• Staff and applicant requested a determination under Carroll County Code Section 155.033(B) to transfer one residential lot yield from an approximately 2.2-acre parcel on the east side of Halter Road to the west side in the Agricultural District. The old Halter Road alignment, realigned in 1965, left the east-side wedge with the right to build one house. Under the proposal, the east-side wedge would be consolidated into the adjacent wooded parcel, and the moved lot yield would be recognized through a minor subdivision on the west side.
• Staff explained that the code generally requires the transferring tract to retain at least one residential building right or be combined with another tract; in this case the east-side parcel would be combined with the adjacent parcel.
• The applicant stated the proposed transferred lot was sized around 2.6 acres to avoid creating a small wooded remnant and to accommodate well and septic placement; further details would be handled through the subdivision review process.
• Following public comment, the commission voted 4-0 to allow the transfer under Section 155.033(B), with the transfer to proceed through the regular minor subdivision process.

Concept Site Plan: Liberty Exchange (S-23-0019)

• Amy Barcroft presented the first amended concept site plan for two new retail buildings on undeveloped Lots 1 and 3 of the Liberty Exchange business park at 5954 and 5955 Exchange Drive, Eldersburg. Building G would be about 9,500 square feet and Building I about 9,472 square feet, each with outdoor seating, with access via Old Liberty Road and Exchange Drive.
• The property is zoned light industrial and is inside the Freedom Growth and Priority Funding Area, served by public water and sewer. The proposed buildings are about 29 feet high; photometric levels at property lines are zero; landscaping would be enhanced; and a 30-foot freestanding monument sign has been constructed.
• The original business park traffic study included more intense uses, such as a sit-down restaurant and a convenience store with fuel pumps, so the lower-impact retail uses did not trigger additional traffic mitigation under the engineering review. Stormwater, forest conservation, and landscape concepts were approved; grading and utilities comments remain for final site plan.
• The existing three-way stop at Old Liberty Road and Exchange Drive was a citizen concern. Staff stated the concerns were forwarded to the State Highway Administration, which submitted a design request. The commission noted that Old Liberty Road is county-maintained while Exchange Drive is private and controlled by St. John Properties.
• Commission direction: the county and developer should work together on specific mitigation for the three-way stop, such as rumble strips or other measures to improve stop compliance, without creating a four-way stop that could back traffic onto Liberty Road. The developer should also study the westernmost access point of Lot 1 near Garaway, including considering a right-turn-out-only option, and report back at the next review. St. John Properties representatives committed to maintaining pavement markings on their private property.

Education Facilities Master Plan (Introduction)

• William Caine presented the annual update of the 10-year Education Facilities Master Plan. It had been presented to the Board of Education the previous week, is scheduled for Board of Education approval in June, and is due to state agencies by July 1 as a requirement for state capital funding.
• The Freedom Elementary addition and Sykesville Middle addition were removed from the plan because updated enrollment projections are lower than previously expected. Enrollment grew by about 800-850 students from 2017 to 2023, but the district declined by almost 400 students over the last two school years.
• No school is projected to exceed 120 percent capacity in the next six years. Freedom Elementary is projected at about 114-116 percent and will continue to be managed with portables; Sykesville Middle is projected above 110 percent in three of the next six years before declining.
• Phase one of the pre-kindergarten expansion will add 10 classrooms and about 200 seats, with classrooms opening this summer and next summer; phase two and three are recommended to be pushed out two years due to slower-than-expected Blueprint enrollment growth.
• Liberty High School renovation is in the plan and was included in the county proposed capital budget. A feasibility study will begin this summer on replacement versus renovation, with results expected around December-January. The Career and Technology Center, completed in 2024, was described as highly utilized, with most programs full and some waitlists.
• Next steps: the electronic plan will be shared with the commission, and a draft letter of consistency will be brought back for commission review at the June meeting.

Carroll County Transit (Informational)

• Brian Boge and Stacey Graham from the Department of Public Works presented an overview of Carroll Transit System, which has provided transit service for over 50 years. Current service is operated by Ride With Us under the Butler Medical contract; the system was formerly known as CATS.
• Services include seven Trailblazer fixed routes in Westminster, North Carroll, and Taneytown that converge at the Workforce Development Center; a demand-response door-to-door service; and a veteran shuttle to VA facilities, which is the only service leaving the county.
• Trailblazer fare is $2; demand-response fares are mileage-based up to $9 one way, with discounts for seniors, dialysis clients, and college students. Fares were last increased in 2011.
• Ridership is recovering after COVID; the county is on pace for over 85,000 riders in FY26, with about 40,000 trips per year by disabled riders. South Carroll has the second-highest demand-response use; a previous South Carroll fixed route was discontinued in 2021 due to underutilization.
• The fleet includes 31 demand-response vans, 8 Trailblazer buses, and 3 veteran shuttle vehicles. Deviations are available for $1 within three-quarters of a mile of fixed-route stops, and free deviations are provided to certain libraries.
• The Transit Advisory Council meets the second Monday of each month; the Transportation Development Plan is scheduled to be presented to the Board of County Commissioners the following week. Grant funding has been essentially flat, fuel is a county expense, and the buses are county assets.
• The presentation was informational; no action was taken.

Accessory Dwelling Unit Text Amendment (Discussion)

• Staff introduced a draft new ADU section needed to respond to HB 1466. An internal county workgroup includes legal, development review, zoning, permits, and health department staff.
• Clarifications provided to the commission: sprinklers are required for exterior new construction, including new structures and additions; stormwater and forest conservation may apply depending on site conditions; attached ADUs may require septic expansion depending on the existing system, while detached ADUs automatically require an additional septic system and replacement area. Water supply review, adequate public facilities, and age-restricted housing questions remain under review.
• Draft provisions include: owner occupancy of either the primary dwelling or the ADU; one ADU per lot; compliance with building and health regulations; direct exterior access; a parking provision reflecting state limits; HOA/covenant language stating that approval does not eliminate or modify private restrictions except as provided under Maryland law; and a prohibition on subdividing, selling, or conveying an ADU separately unless the property is lawfully subdivided.
• The state definition of an ADU caps it at no greater than 75 percent of the size of the primary single-family detached dwelling and requires that it remain subordinate in use. The 75 percent calculation method was not resolved; staff will bring visual examples using different methods, such as finished/livable floor area versus building footprint.
• The commission agreed to keep the two-bedroom limit in the general provisions. Staff recommended, and the commission did not object to, removing the three-acre minimum for detached ADUs in Agricultural and Conservation districts and removing the subdivision-rights prerequisite for detached ADUs in residential districts to comply with state law.
• The commission leaned toward making ADU height limits consistent with underlying district heights, subject to further discussion, and generally keeping existing bulk and setback requirements unchanged for now.
• No text amendment was adopted; staff will return with a revised draft, utility and infrastructure options, and size-calculation examples.

Key Outcomes

• Approved the meeting agenda and the April 21, 2026 minutes.
• Approved the Zepp Estates residential lot-yield transfer under Section 155.033(B) by a 4-0 roll-call vote, to proceed through the minor subdivision process.
• Gave concept-plan direction on Liberty Exchange requiring further traffic-mitigation work on the three-way stop and the Lot 1 western access point; the concept plan will return for the next review.
• Received the Education Facilities Master Plan introduction; the commission will review a draft consistency letter at a future June meeting. Upcoming meetings are June 3 and June 16, 2026.
• Received the Carroll County Transit overview as informational only; no action was taken.
• Continued the ADU text amendment discussion; staff will bring a revised draft, 75 percent size-calculation examples, and utility/infrastructure recommendations to the next meeting, with further discussion planned.