Frederick Planning Commission Meeting – September 14, 2026

The Frederick Planning Commission met on September 14, 2026 at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall, 101 North Court Street. The commission approved minutes, approved a preliminary-plat continuance, approved two final-site-plan extensions, approved an architectural review, approved an industrial site plan with conditions, and continued a group-housing zoning text amendment to gather additional case studies.

Announcements

• Staff announced the September 21 Planning Commission workshop at 2 p.m. and a citywide community outreach meeting at 6 p.m., both in the same room.

Consent Calendar

• No consent items were considered.

Minutes

• The commission approved the August 10, 2026 Planning Commission minutes, the August 17, 2026 workshop minutes, and the September 11, 2026 pre-planning meeting minutes by voice vote.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Renn Quarter extension: Rob Thompson, 806 Bond Street, said he is a member of the Renn Quarter community and encouraged the commission to grant the two-year extension so plans could move forward.
• Group Housing ZTA: Ann Ryan, Frederick Housing Solutions Task Force under Healthier Frederick, supported the amendment. She said people making under $25,000 have almost no legal housing options, referenced a recent city resolution on housing innovation, and asked the commission to move forward with regulatory and supervisory safeguards.
• No public comment was offered for East Pat Lofts, Renn Quarter Phase 3 architectural review, or AstraZeneca.

Bowers Park and Birdseye View Preliminary Plats (PC26-97PSU / PC26-98PSU)

• These two preliminary plats, located northwest of US-40, bordered by Bowers Road and Rock Creek Drive, were continued to the October 2026 Planning Commission meeting because staff lacked enough information to make a decision due to a clerical error. The continuance carried 4-0.

Renn Quarter Lots 6 & 7 Final Site Plan Extension (STF18-275FSI)

• Staff reported that the approved final site plan for 279 multifamily units at Monocacy Boulevard, East Church Street, and Monroe Avenue was expiring September 27, 2026, and that no building permits had been issued. The applicant sought a two-year extension to September 27, 2028, citing economic conditions and the need to coordinate required retail components.
• Staff recommended approval, noting that the master plan has no expiration date and that APFO certificates are valid until March 20, 2032.
• Brian Morris of Mountain Company, for the applicant, said the Renn Quarter master plan totals 1,050 units and up to 105,000 square feet of non-residential space, and that Section 417D requires about 27,000 square feet of non-residential construction before more multifamily units can proceed. He said he expected to return with about 30,000 square feet of retail plans.
• Several commissioners discussed APFO capacity, water/sewer allocation, and the importance of a walkable mixed-use neighborhood. One commissioner asked the applicant to update website imagery that appeared to advertise ground-floor retail not shown on approved plans.
• The extension was approved 4-0 to September 27, 2028.

East Pat Lofts Final Site Plan and APFO Extension (PC21-1431FSI)

• Staff presented the request for 12-month extensions for the final site plan and APFO certificates at 319 E. Patrick Street. The project includes a three-story mixed-use building with 17 dwelling units, 2,590 square feet of non-residential space, and a 29-space parking garage, plus renovation of seven existing units and office space. The approvals were set to expire October 10, 2026. Improvement plans were approved, but no building permits had been issued.
• Staff found the project was exempt from road capacity testing because it generates fewer than 50 new weekday peak-hour trips and 100 or fewer Saturday midday peak-hour trips; water, sewer, and school certificates were issued with no provisions.
• Matt Rockwell of EastPAT Property LLC said the project needs interest rates at or below 6% to be feasible; rates were 6.75% at the time.
• Commissioners discussed APFO context and asked for a future engineering overview of traffic and water/sewer capacity. Staff agreed to consider a workshop discussion.
• The commission approved the 12-month final site plan extension 4-0 to October 10, 2027.
• The commission approved the corresponding waterline, sewer, and school APFO certificate extensions 4-0 to October 10, 2027.

Renn Quarter Phase 3, Section 2 Architectural Review (PC14-913-11MU)

• Staff recommended unconditional approval of the Fuller model townhouse elevations. The applicant selected five required Class A design elements: street-facing main entrances, sidewalks serving all units, roofs with a minimum 5:12 pitch, exterior materials including cementitious siding and brick, and window/entryway design standards.
• Matt McJunkin of Renn Quarter THLC described wider townhomes with open floor plans, an optional fourth bedroom on exterior units, and fenced artificial-turf backyards. He said vinyl siding would be used only on rear elevations and fronts would be about 40% brick.
• Commissioner Robey asked about artificial-turf drainage and odor; the applicant said the system uses a filtration base and that maintenance teams inspect backyards.
• Commissioner Temple said street-facing entrances and sidewalk connectivity should be baseline standards rather than optional design elements, and suggested raising that issue in future LMC updates.
• The architectural elevations were approved 4-0.

AstraZeneca Final Site Plan (PC26-134FSI)

• The proposal was a pharmaceutical manufacturing addition at 633-636 Research Court. The agenda described it as a 24,000-square-foot addition, while staff and applicant materials described a 24,500-square-foot column-packing addition. The project would consolidate purification operations from Buildings B633 and B636 to support production of critical cancer treatments.
• Staff reported the site is zoned light industrial, the highway noise overlay does not apply, prior forest conservation obligations have been met, and no new landscaping is triggered. A full water APFO certificate was issued, the sewer certificate was provisional pending an APFO sewer study, and road capacity was exempt.
• Staff recommended approval with five conditions: water/sewer utility approval; relocation of the water meter southwest of transformer equipment; preparer signature and seal on the landscape plan; APFO certificate approval dates added to the cover sheet; and correction of setback tabulations on the cover sheet, including changing a rear setback to a side setback adjacent to lot 13.
• Applicant representatives said the two-story addition would house column-packing operations, GMP clean rooms, support spaces, and H-rated hazardous-material areas.
• Commissioner Robey noted a 234,000 gallons-per-day water demand figure for the addition and asked the applicant to provide campus-wide water demand context. The applicant said they would follow up and noted some water is evaporated through cooling towers rather than sent to sewer.
• Commissioner Montes asked about regulatory oversight of hazardous materials; the applicant cited building inspection and external agency oversight but did not provide full detail.
• The final site plan was approved 4-0 with the five conditions.

Group Housing Zoning Text Amendment (PC26-128ZTA)

• Staff summarized the proposed amendment to add a new Group Housing land use, described as personal living quarters (PLQ), to the Land Management Code. A PLQ would consist of six or more individual living units (ILUs) that do not have complete cooking facilities. Each ILU would allow up to two occupants plus a related child under 18. Shared kitchens would be required at one per nine ILUs and shared bathrooms at one per four ILUs. A designated owner/operator would be required. (The transcript contains an internal inconsistency about the exact PLQ threshold: staff initially said five or fewer ILUs are not a PLQ and later said at five it becomes a PLQ.)
• The proposal would allow PLQs by right in many residential, downtown, professional business, and mixed-use districts, and as conditional uses in R4/R6, neighborhood commercial, general commercial, and institutional districts. Parking would be required at 0.25 spaces per ILU, waived within half a mile of transit; bike parking at one per five ILUs; leases of at least four months; and site-plan review for larger PLQs.
• Commissioner Temple asked that public comments be posted going forward for transparency; staff said comments are forwarded to the applicant and City Council.
• Jessica Underwood, a for-profit developer, and City Council Vice President Katie Nash presented the amendment. Underwood said the amendment originated in April 2025 to address single-room-occupancy housing. She cited the 2026 Frederick Housing Needs Assessment showing Frederick County needs 31,000 housing units by 2035 and that 30% of the population lives alone. She said typical apartment construction costs $200,000-$250,000 per unit versus $50,000-$100,000 for group housing, and described existing group housing renting for $800-$1,050 per month compared with $1,500-$1,700 for a one-bedroom plus utilities. Nash said the city needed a test case to prove the concept before pursuing nonprofit partnerships.
• Staff recommended a positive recommendation to the City Council, finding the amendment consistent with the LMC and with housing policies in the comprehensive plan.
• Commissioner Roby expressed strong support for the affordability concept. Commissioner Temple raised concerns about the shared kitchen ratio and bike parking, and Commissioner Montes asked for evidence from other jurisdictions, warning about density, sanitation, and potential for-profit exploitation. Several commissioners noted the commission's vote would be a recommendation to the City Council, not a final adoption, and wanted any concerns included for council consideration.
• The commission voted 3-0 with one abstention to continue the item to October 12, 2026, so the applicant could provide comprehensive case studies of group housing in similar cities, including examples of both success and failure.

Key Outcomes

• Minutes and workshop minutes approved.
• Bowers Park and Birdseye View preliminary plats continued to October 2026 (4-0).
• Renn Quarter Lots 6 & 7 final site plan extension approved to September 27, 2028 (4-0).
• East Pat Lofts final site plan and APFO certificate extensions approved to October 10, 2027 (4-0 on each motion).
• Renn Quarter Phase 3, Section 2 Fuller townhouse elevations approved (4-0).
• AstraZeneca final site plan approved with five conditions (4-0).
• Group Housing ZTA continued to October 12, 2026 (3-0, one abstention), pending case-study information.