Charles County Planning Commission Meeting – September 21, 2026

The Charles County Planning Commission convened on September 21, 2026, with Kevin Wedding, Jeffrey Bossert, Samaya Hackett, Ryan Sekretarski, and Britt Toku present; Denard Earl was absent. The commission adopted the agenda, approved the August 17, 2026 minutes, deferred the August 3, 2026 minutes after a quorum issue was identified, heard a resident's questions about the Falcon Ridge appeal, received a Potomac Chase project update, and held a public hearing and work session on the draft Forest Conservation Ordinance update. The meeting adjourned at 7:01 p.m.

Administrative Approvals

• The agenda was adopted as written by voice vote.
• The August 17, 2026 minutes were approved, with an attached summary of August 3, 2026 planning commission decisions. Britt Toku recused from this vote because she was not in attendance on August 17.
• The August 3, 2026 minutes were initially approved, but were later deferred after the commission determined there was not a quorum of members who had attended that meeting; Samaya Hackett and Ryan Sekretarski noted they were absent for the August 3 meeting.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Nancy Shirtler, 14725 Bank City Road, Newburgh made her third personal appearance about the Falcon Ridge appeal. She said the de novo appeal (docket 1489) of the commission's denial of a further extension had been postponed at the appellant's request from July to September 22, 2026, and then to January 12, 2027 — three weeks shy of the plan's 28th birthday. She reported that the appellant asked staff to keep processing applications while the appeal is pending and that Mr. Rice confirmed staff would do so. She cited approvals after the plan's April 17, 2026 expiration: final forest conservation plan FC 25007 for phase four was approved June 29, 2026, with two conditions, and forest stand delineation plan FC 26002 passed review September 1, 2026. She asked the commission to direct staff and the County Attorney's Office to answer in writing whether the developer can record 25% of the lots and complete substantial improvements during the appeal, whether that would moot the appeal, whether an appeal creates a vesting path not provided in regulations, and whether approvals issued during the appeal will be conditioned on its outcome.
• Rob Swam, Rogers Consulting and member of MBIA's environmental committee, thanked staff, but recommended the county keep state-consistent one-to-one replacement for forest clearing rather than the draft's two-to-one replacement below the afforestation threshold, given that no planted banks currently exist in Charles County. He asked for one-to-one credit for planted banking, two-to-one for off-site qualified conservation, a clear or codified fee-in-lieu process, and explicit full one-to-one mitigation credit for planted green infrastructure.
• Steve Allison, chair of MBIA's Environmental Committee and Rogers Consulting, said the update is needed after 20 years, but urged the commission to avoid an unintended, overly restrictive or unpredictable process, particularly in the county's growth areas. He questioned the proposed two-to-one replacement below the afforestation threshold on top of the 15–20% afforestation percentage, noted there are no planted banks, and argued the 50% cap on qualified conservation may push projects to fee-in-lieu. He recommended reviewing DNR's biannual forest conservation metrics before going beyond state requirements.

Discussion Items

Potomac Chase Preliminary Subdivision Plan (PLREV2500007) Update

• The agenda was reordered at the applicant's request for this briefing. Steve Scott of Scott Law Group and Matt Hurston of Potomac Chase Property Owner said they had no request and no extension ask. The commission had granted an extension from August 2026 to August 2027 and requested this update.
• Hurston stated that to vest the site plan, the project must record a plat for the first 25% of lots (46 lots), install water and sewer pipe, and commence construction. He said the prior obstacles — contractor bankruptcy, a federal shutdown delaying wetlands review, and Prince George's County ownership of the Indian Head Highway right-of-way — were resolved. The vesting work was being rebid after a March permit was issued, and the plat was expected to be signed off by the end of the year. He reaffirmed they would not request another extension. There were no questions.

Draft Forest Conservation Ordinance Update

• Lynn Nags, Kyle Redden, and Caitlin Clue of planning staff presented the draft update, driven by state law changes from House Bill 723 and Senate Bill 526 effective July 1, 2026, as well as the county ordinance not having been updated since 2004. Staff described prior outreach, including a workshop, meetings with the Maryland Building Industry Association, and an environmental stakeholders event.
• Key staff presentation points included: solar photovoltaic facilities are exempt from afforestation requirements but still subject to conservation; qualified conservation is limited to no more than 50% of required mitigation, potentially 60% after state approval; 100% of mitigation can be met through off-site planting; the county has no planted mitigation banks; priority forests now include forest interior dwelling species, tier two and tier three watersheds, urban forests, and other features; buffers must be fully planted unless exempt; and clearing priority forests requires adjacent property owner notification and public comment through the planning commission. The conservation threshold is replaced by a default one-to-one acre replacement, with afforestation thresholds and partial or full exemptions still applying.
• Staff also presented changes to fee-in-lieu administration, county comment procedures, and off-site ratios. Fee-in-lieu would move to the annual fees and charges list because the current fee — roughly 30 and 34 cents per square foot inside or outside the priority funding area — has not been updated in more than 20 years. Charles County would allow verbal and written comments for all priority forest clearing, using the planning commission as the forum, while state code requires such comments only for projects with net tract area greater than five acres when 75% of priority forest is to be cleared. Off-site qualified conservation outside the development district or priority funding area would require a four-to-one mitigation ratio, and two-to-one generally.
• In response to commissioner questions, staff said the no-net-loss clock began July 1, 2026, but the baseline acreage was still being calculated by Maryland DNR. Staff confirmed private planted bank or single-project planting agreements are possible and said they would review the ordinance's mitigation bank language. Staff also clarified watershed definitions use eight-digit sub-watersheds. The DNR clarified that the federal facility exemption for facilities with at least 2,500 employees was intended for the FBI building in Prince George's County.

New Business and Director's Report

• Commissioner Jeffrey Bossert requested a future briefing on the Falcon Ridge project's decision points and pending appeals, following Ms. Shirtler's comments.
• A request was made to bring forward the FY28 capital budget or CIP summary, with staff noting the county considered CIP proposals in early November last year.
• Director Rice reported that Zoning Text Amendment 26190, concerning retail sales over 1,000 square feet and parking, was approved by the county commissioners on September 1, 2026, after a public hearing, even though the planning commission had recommended denial and wanted it considered with the comprehensive plan update.
• Staff previewed the next meeting: an affordable housing update from Mr. Binkley and a site development plan for a Parklands parcel; the following meeting's work sessions are scheduled for October 19, 2026.

Key Outcomes

• Agenda adopted; August 17, 2026 minutes approved; August 3, 2026 minutes deferred to the next meeting.
• The public hearing on the draft Forest Conservation Ordinance was closed, and the commission moved into a work session. The record was kept open for 30 days, through Thursday, October 22, 2026, at 4:30 p.m., to allow consideration of written comments and any proposed changes.
• No vote was taken on the Forest Conservation Ordinance itself; it remains in draft form for future action.
• Potomac Chase was received as an information briefing; no motion or extension was requested.
• The commission directed staff to schedule a Falcon Ridge process briefing and to identify the appropriate time for FY28 CIP or budget consideration.
• The commission adjourned at 7:01 p.m.