Planning Commission Meeting, July 14, 2025
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Planning Commission Meeting - July 14, 2025
The Frederick Planning Commission met on July 14, 2025, at 6:00 PM at City Hall. The meeting covered routine approvals, continuances, and major decisions on the Frederick Health master plan and the Frederick Gateway cricket stadium rezoning and annexation amendment. Public comment was extensive, especially on the cricket stadium proposal. The commission voted on recommendations to the City Council for the Gateway projects and granted a continuance for the Frederick Health master plan.
Consent Calendar
- Approved minutes from the June 6, June 9, June 16 (workshop and hearing), and July 11, 2025 meetings.
- Approved the ALDI Warehouse parking expansion final site plan (PC25-92FSI) for 245 additional spaces at 8751 Gas House Pike. Unanimous.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Frederick Health Master Plan: No public comment.
- Frederick Gateway Annexation Amendment and Zoning Map Amendment (Cricket Stadium): Numerous residents spoke in opposition, citing concerns about traffic congestion on MD 144 and I-70, inadequate on-site parking, environmental impacts to the Monocacy River floodplain and wildlife, noise and light pollution, safety for pedestrians and emergency vehicles, and insufficient public notification. Many urged the commission to deny the rezoning or find a different location. A few speakers supported the project, emphasizing its economic potential and the applicant's commitment to a park-like setting. The applicant responded, highlighting the events management plan, shuttle system, and that the rezoning is only the first step.
Discussion Items
- Continuances: The commission granted continuances to August 11, 2025 for PC25-187ZMA (Historic Preservation Overlay at 27 Franklin Street) and PC25-55ZTA (Text Amendment for MU Districts Phasing) after hearing from property owners and applicants.
- Fence Modification (PC25-159PCM): Approved modification to Section 821 of the LMC to allow a 3-foot iron fence at 111 E 2nd Street on top of an existing retaining wall, with a condition that no portion exceed 6 feet in height. Unanimous.
- Frederick Health Master Plan (PC24-662MU): Staff presented the proposed redevelopment of the former State Farm campus (93.2 acres) for up to 750 dwelling units and 1,260,394 sq ft of non-residential uses, including a potential hospital, helistop, and parkland. Traffic analysis showed six intersections requiring mitigation and seven intersections for which staff recommended a finding of adequacy under Section 4-14. Commissioners expressed concern about the seven inadequate intersections and lack of certainty on regional road improvements. The applicant requested a continuance to explore phasing options. The commission voted unanimously to continue the case to September 8, 2025.
- Frederick Gateway Annexation Amendment (PC24-983ANX): Staff recommended amending the 2009 annexation resolution to modify parkland dedication (from 16 acres to a public amenity space along the river) and increase regional transportation contributions from $500,000 to $1.5 million. After public comment, the commission voted to recommend approval with conditions including payment terms, no credits for APFO contributions, and a requirement that if FEMA/MDE do not approve the river park, the applicant must still provide a public amenity space on the southeast portion of the property. Unanimous.
- Frederick Gateway Zoning Map Amendment (PC24-984ZMA): Staff recommended rezoning 24.33 acres from General Commercial to Institutional (IST) for a special event center (cricket stadium with up to 10,000 regular capacity) with conditions including an events management plan. After extensive public comment, the commission voted to recommend approval with the staff conditions and an added condition that large events be subject to Chapter 18 (Special Events) of the city code. Unanimous.
- 300 Scotty's Bus Lane Zoning Map Amendment (PC25-186ZMA): First hearing for rezoning from General Commercial to Institutional (IST) to establish a recreation/social service center. Staff and applicant presented. No public comment. No vote taken; the case will return for a second hearing.
Key Outcomes
- Approved consent agenda items (minutes and ALDI parking expansion).
- Granted continuances for 27 Franklin Street HPO overlay and MU Districts Phasing text amendment to August 11, 2025.
- Approved fence modification at 111 E 2nd Street with a maximum height condition.
- Continued Frederick Health Master Plan to September 8, 2025, to allow the applicant to address road adequacy concerns through phasing or other options.
- Voted unanimously to recommend to the City Council the Frederick Gateway Annexation Amendment with conditions: $500,000 within 30 days, $1 million within two years; no credits for APFO improvements; parkland dedication revised to require a 10-foot-wide river trail and contingency if river park is not feasible.
- Voted unanimously to recommend to the City Council the Frederick Gateway Zoning Map Amendment to IST for a cricket stadium, with conditions including an events management plan for all events and an addition that events exceeding a threshold (to be defined) require compliance with Chapter 18 of the city code.
- Heard first presentation for 300 Scotty's Bus Lane rezoning; no action taken.
Meeting Transcript
Before beginning tonight's hearing, I'm going to give a little background on the planning commission and the procedures that we're going to follow. Members of the planning commission are all residents of the city and volunteers appointed by the mayor and the city council. The commission is made up of five regular members and one alternate. Its powers and duties are assigned by the charter of the city of Frederick and described in section 202 of the land management code. All of the cases tonight have been appropriately advertised pursuant to section 301 of the land management code. And cases are going to be presented tonight in the following format. We will first have an introduction of the case. At that point, we'll have commission questioning of the staff and we'll do a roll call for that. Following questions to the staff, we will have the applicant or authorized agent come up and make their presentation regarding the case. We will then give the commission a chance to ask questions of the applicant. Following commissioner questions to the applicant, we will then open the case up for public comment. And following that, we'll give the applicant a chance to respond to public comment. We'll bring it back up to the table here, have commission discussion and questions amongst ourselves, and then we will take action. So in support of the planning commission tonight, we have staff members from cities planning and engineering departments as well as the legal department. And everybody, including members of the public who want to be who want to speak tonight before the hearing, before the commission needs to be sworn in. You will see there's a the clock over there will be a time clock. You will see it count down your three minutes. When it gets to your last 30 seconds, the light will turn green, and then when your time is up, it will turn red, and we will ask you to just wrap your questions up at that point. At this point, I will do a group swearing in. If everybody who wants to make statements today will stand and raise your right hand. Do you solemnly swear and affirm that the responses given and the statements made in this hearing before the planning commission will be the whole truth and nothing but the truth? If so, answer I do. Thank you. At this point, I will turn it over to Gabrielle for announcements. Thank you very much. Good evening, everyone. Um our two standard announcements uh for our next week's uh items. We have a planning commission workshop on September, September, July 21st. Uh that's at 2 p.m. at City Hall in this room, and those packets will be online tomorrow. The workshop uh is for items that will be coming before the planning commission in future months at a public hearing. So it's a good opportunity to see what is um coming through the pipeline. That same evening at 6 p.m. We have the citywide planning department community outreach meeting, and that's also held at 6 p.m. in this room. And that's an opportunity to see projects even earlier on in the process. These are the latest submittals that have been filed with the current planning section of the planning department. Uh this is purely an informational meeting for the public to come, learn about new projects, ask questions of both staff and the applicants on those. That meeting is also streamed online and on channel 99, uh, so you can watch that even if you're unavailable to attend. Uh the third announcement I had this evening regards uh is regarding some of the order of items on our agenda tonight. Uh since publishing the agenda, we've received some additional information and requests pertaining to a couple of tonight's items and are asking the planning commission to consider a motion to revise the agenda as they see fit uh to address the following. First, to consider moving agenda item G to immediately following our consent agenda. This is the Historic Preservation Commission's application for the placement of the historic preservation overlay at 27 Franklin Street. The property owners legal council is here with us this evening and has contacted us with a request regarding the timing of the commission's consideration and future meetings with the council moving forward, and we would like to afford them the opportunity to make this request to the commission and accept any other public comment on the item at this time. Um after discussing that, should the commission want to move the agenda item up. The purpose of that would be just briefly to have a conversation about the timing. Uh, if the commission does not want to move the agenda item up then and wants to hear the full conversation, uh then we would recommend keeping it at the end of the agenda as it's currently scheduled. The second request is related to the timing of uh items E and F for the gateway project. Item E on our agenda is the annexation amendment, and F is the rezoning. Uh first before the annexation amendment, uh, in light of the public testimony we've received, most of it seems related to the future land use of that site, which is all attached with the rezoning, so um it may be more efficient and effective to hear the public comment um regarding the land use with that rezoning item.
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