VOL. 2, NO. 3 | MARCH 4, 2023
Frederick City and County News of Interest
- Linganore Area Development and Impact on Roads, Schools, etc.
- Digital Centers
- Urbana Development
- Sugarloaf Overlay
- City Charter Review
- BYOB Update
- NAC Update
- Form-based Code and Brickworks Update
- Tax Credits for Veterans and Seniors
- Upcoming Events
Citizens
for Responsible Growth (CRG) is a grassroots coalition of Frederick
residents who strongly favor development to accommodate the projected
increase in the County’s and City’s population, but want to ensure it is
undertaken in a way that considers the cumulative impact on our
infrastructure, i.e., housing (market-driven and affordable/workforce),
green space, schools, traffic, and the environment. Current practice is
to consider each project as it — alone — affects its immediate
surroundings. We contend that each project must be considered as an
integral part of multiple land uses that work together to protect public
safety, provide accommodation, minimize congestion, and guarantee easy
access to a functional natural environment that surrounds our built and
arable lands.
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Linganore Area Development and Impact on Roads, Schools, etc.
In
2014, the Frederick County Board of Commissioners (the County’s
governing body before the current Charter Government was enacted)
established three development areas (2608 units in Gordon Mills, Casey,
and Calumet properties) surrounding Lake Linganore. These DRRAs
(Development Rights and Responsibilities Agreements) waived many of the
requirements of the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (APFO) that
address developer responsibilities for roads, schools, stormwater, etc.
As a result, these developments, now coming online and having already
submitted preliminary site plans for construction under the old regime,
have modest requirements for local school and road needs in the coming
years.
Many County schools are currently over-enrolled but per Maryland State
Department regulations schools are not considered “over capacity” until
they reach 120% of State Rated Capacity (SRC). According to the FCPS
(Frederick County Public Schools) master plan, enrollment projections
for September 30, 2023 indicate that 24 (of 43) elementary schools (ES)
are “closed to out of district transfers”. Of those, 21 are at 100% or
more capacity. Three (of 17) middle schools (MS) are closed to
transfers, one of which is over 100% enrolled, two are at 99%. Four of
the six “closed” high schools (HS, of 12 schools) are more than 100%
enrolled and 2 are between 95–99% full. As charts below show, by 2031, enrollment at 22% of ES will be over the SRC as will 6% of MS and 30% of HS.
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In
the Linganore feeder area, 5 of 8 elementary schools, 1 of 2 middle
schools, and 2 of 2 high schools are “closed to transfer”. As a step
forward, the FCPS Plan indicates that 2 schools are under construction
or renovation and one is in planning which might alleviate some of the
future overcrowding for this feeder area, but will that be sufficient
for children from 2608 units? Moreover, roads and intersections in the
Linganore area are already congested. For the first project (Gordon
Mills), development is dependent on construction of the New Market
By-pass with no definite funding currently in place. Even with >20
residents requesting rejection of the 2014 contracts, the County
Planning Commission is obligated to follow the 2014 contracts, supported
by the MD Court of Appeals in 2015 (https://thedailyrecord.com/
We are now about to pay the price for these poor decisions from 8+ years
ago with children surrounding Lake Linganore attending very overcrowded
schools and a dim future with only limited construction planned for the
next decade (within 8 years, one school will be over 200% capacity).
For the Gordon Mills development (https://www.
Digital Centers
Quantum
MD LLC has received County Planning Commission support for subdivisions
within its Eastalco site, expected as the company has provided
extensive reforestation plans for its 2100-acre property. Several County
residents continue to discuss Quantum plans for the site, focusing on
stormwater, power, neighbor impacts, and company collaborations with
Adamstown just south of the area. An adjacent 223-acre property to the
west has received County Planning Commission rezoning from Agriculture
to General Industrial, thereby setting up future data center development
directly adjacent to the Eastalco site. The County Board of Appeals
will also review Quantum’s request for laying its 42 mile fibre conduit
from Virginia to the Eastalco site and its return. Based on the extent
of the centers and fibre in the southwestern portion of the County (https://www.
Urbana Development
The
Urbana developer Natelli Communities has submitted several applications
to complete construction planned when the community was initially
established (https://www.
It appears that many residents were unaware of the long-term
construction planned for the Urbana Villages (Villages), reflecting poor
communication from the developer or lack of buyer understanding at the
time of sale for many properties. In the City of Frederick, there is no
requirement that a seller must notify a buyer of requirements of living
in the Historic District of the City, putting the burden on the buyer to
read at settlement the >50 page Historic Preservation Guidelines on
what can and cannot be done in this area. Is that the same process for
the Villages, with a buyer notified of documents detailing future
long-term construction on the settlement date? What buyer, after months
of exploring the area, selling their other property, finding schools,
moving from another locale, etc. is going to delay signing at the very
last minute so he/she can read the long-term Village development plan?
Perhaps a local if not state option is a requirement that all future
construction in a community, particularly a planned community, must be
identified on initial property inspection? That would at least minimize
unexpected new construction threats for homeowners. That type of buyer
notification is now under consideration by the state legislature for
developments around contaminated sites like Ft. Detrick. Will it be
adopted? Development keeps rolling, but early notification on future
construction planned for an area might be an option to at least have
informed property purchases, “knowledge of what you’re getting into”.
Having answers to these questions would help current and prospective
residents make better decisions about one of the largest investments in
their lifetime.
Sugarloaf Overlay
The County Planning Commission (PC) held a Commissioner-resident-
City Charter Review
The City’s Charter Review Committee (https://www.
BYOB Update
We
want to thank Senator Karen Lewis Young and Delegate Kris Fair for
drafting and sponsoring a comprehensive bill that would have had a major
impact on how BYOB establishments in Frederick County are regulated and
would contribute to the safety of City and County residents and
visitors. Unfortunately, their hard work was unsuccessful as the
County’s delegation to the Maryland General Assembly voted 8–4 along
party lines against supporting the legislation (with the District 1, 2,
3, and 5 representatives voting against and District 4 representatives
voting in favor).
This disappointing decision along with the City of Frederick’s
reluctance to support the legislation — despite support from the
Frederick Police Department (FPD) — were the main factors that
resulted in the bill being pulled at the last minute. Undeterred,
Senator Young and Delegate Fair have vowed to start again and intend to
reintroduce the bill in 2024 with a focus on BYOB establishments in the
City of Frederick. Here’s hoping our various officials across all
channels can work together for the good of the people who elected them.
NAC Update
The City established an 11-member Ad Hoc
Neighborhood Engagement and NAC Committee with a first introductory
meeting on February 28. As stated in the last newsletter, the CRG
believes this is the City’s last opportunity to remake a functioning
resident body to work collaboratively with the City on neighborhood
concerns as well as learn of City ideas on future policies under
consideration for improving infrastructure and quality of life of its
nearly 80,000 residents. NACs (Neighborhood Advisory Councils) were
first established in September 2002, clarified in December 2002, and
updated by Resolution 12-05 in 2012. The stated purpose of the NACs is
to “…serve in an advisory and partnership capacity to:
- Bring neighborhood issues and concerns to the attention of the appropriate City staff and elected officials.
- Propose responses and solutions to address these issues and concerns.
- Work collaboratively with existing government agencies and other civic and community organizations; and
- Provide City staff and elected officials with advice and feedback on City initiatives, proposals, and policies, as well as land development and other private proposals affecting neighborhoods.”
CRG
believes that these responsibilities have largely been minimized with
the most important — #4 — completely lost as official City
implementation of NAC-suggested options on “…initiatives, proposals, and
policies, as well as land development and other private proposals
affecting neighborhoods” no longer exists. At the first meeting, the
committee members suggested that it’s very likely that more than the
initially proposed 5 meetings would be needed for the deliberations and
submission of a final report. The big question remains: can an effective
NAC structure and its responsibilities be re-created and implemented?
Fingers and toes crossed…
Form-based Code and Brickworks Update
Support
in the community is strong for Form Based Code (FBC) and the need for
the Brickworks project to comply with the code’s principles among City
planners, elected officials, residents, and others who have weighed in
over the past several weeks and months.
Form Based Code (FBC): The City has been reviewing a
draft of the FBC since late December and a revision, incorporating
comments from City staff, may be completed and then made available to
the public for review in approximately one month. Advocates strongly
recommend that the City support a series of classes on FBC to educate
residents and other stakeholders on how the code can be used to
guide/control building design quality. These lessons will be invaluable
in preparing the public for making an informed response to the code that
will guide development for decades to come. At this time the FBC is
planned for two corridor small area plans in the City: East Street and
the Golden Mile. In the long-term, it is understood that a small area
plan based on FBC principles will be executed for all sections of the
City. There will be transition issues to work through between the FBC
and the existing Land Management Code (LMC) as it is anticipated that
the FBC will supersede the LMC over time.
For a first complete review of the FBC, follow the presentation on March 8, 3 PM at City Hall (https://cityoffrederick.
Brickworks Development: As noted above, while the FBC
has not been finalized and adopted by the Mayor and Board, it is hoped
that the Brickworks development will follow the intent of the code in
the Master Plan now under review and comply with the code, should it be
adopted prior to submittal of site plans for this large project that
will serve as a major gateway into the City’s unique downtown. Watch
this space for more clarity on the topic as, currently, much discussion
is occurring behind the scenes and decisions are yet to be made.
Tax Credits for Veterans and Seniors
To
the dismay of many County residents, recently released tax assessments
for many properties increased 20–30% indicating a substantial increase
in property taxes will follow shortly. These large increases may be
major financial calamities for home/property owners, particularly those
on fixed incomes. To potentially ease this burden, the County held a
February 28 workshop on veteran and senior property tax credits as a
prelude to eventual hearings to revise fiscal impacts of the tax
increases. If you know of veterans or seniors, please share with them
this growing effort to help reduce the fiscal impact on these groups of
valued citizens.
Upcoming Events
City Charter Review Committee: March 16, 1:00, City Hall
Contributors: S. Jacubczyk, R. Robey, M. Rosensweig, K. Sellner
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Many
Frederick residents want to know — but cannot find — information about
how to participate in discussions of important local issues. The City
and County generally hold meetings from 3–10 p.m., making it impossible
for most of us to attend meetings or weigh in on issues of interest. Our
mission with this monthly newsletter is to highlight City and County
activities so you can learn more and, with your limited time, weigh in
on areas of growth and development, City and County policies, and other
local activities. Occasionally, opinions or longer stories will be
offered by knowledgeable experts/readers. We welcome suggestions for
articles focused on specific topics. Contact Kevin Sellner (kgsellner@gmail.com), Marge Rosensweig (marjorierosensweig@gmail.com)