LEONARDTOWN, Md. — A proposed 223-unit subdivision in Lexington Park ran into three hours of pushback Monday night, Dec. 8, 2025, as the St. Mary’s County Planning Commission declined to advance the Bradley Brooke concept plan, citing unresolved objections from Naval Air Station Patuxent River and unanswered technical issues ranging from aircraft noise exposure to traffic and emergency access. The case will return Jan. 12 after the Navy completes its formal compatibility review.
The project — 150 townhouses and 73 single-family homes on a 76-acre wooded tract off Bradley Boulevard — is the latest test of how St. Mary’s County balances surging housing demand with long-standing promises to protect the Navy’s premier aviation test base.
Navy Warns Of Safety Risks, Encroachment Pressure
Capt. Mark Zematis, commanding officer of NAS Patuxent River, delivered an objection, saying the subdivision sits immediately adjacent to Accident Potential Zone 2 and within the Navy’s updated 65–70 decibel noise contour — the area most affected by flight operations on Runway 6, which handles roughly 11,000 operations annually.
Zematis said the Navy “cannot support” residential expansion at the installation’s fence line.
“This development poses significant encroachment threats to the military mission,” Zematis said. “It exposes residents to elevated risks… and could hinder the expansion and implementation of emerging technologies and programs.”
He noted that while the site is just outside the APC2 overlay adopted in county law, the Navy’s more recent noise and risk analysis shows a higher-impact zone than the 2019 contours used by the county.
The Navy also emphasized the potential for increased noise complaints — a factor the Pentagon tracks closely — and warned that accumulating incompatibilities can influence future Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) decisions.
“We don’t want to poke the 800-pound gorilla — they could pull out at any time,” planning commission member Joe St. Clair said, recalling past BRAC rounds and county assurances to protect the base.
Developer Disputes Restrictions, Offers Mitigation
Attorney Chris Longmore, representing the developer, said the project fully complies with county law because the zoning ordinance still recognizes only the 60–65 dB contour. He said the developer purchased the property relying on the county’s adopted maps — not the Navy’s yet-to-be-adopted 2019 acoustic study.
Still, Longmore said his client is willing to add noise-attenuation construction and require disclosure statements for buyers of homes falling within the Navy’s higher noise contour.
“We’re trying to meet the Navy halfway,” Longmore said. “The zoning ordinance does not require further mitigation, but we’re offering it in response to their concern.”
The developer rejected the Navy’s suggestion to remove the 20+ homes within the 65–70 dB contour, arguing that doing so would undermine the project’s viability in an area the county has designated for growth.
Traffic Study Challenged: ‘No way This intersection Is An A’
The commission also spent considerable time questioning the project’s traffic study, which projected Level-of-Service A conditions at all analyzed intersections — a finding commissioners said did not reflect reality on Great Mills Road, a corridor that already experiences heavy peak-hour congestion.
Traffic engineer Nick Drebin said the study followed county methodology and used counts taken in November 2024, but several commissioners argued the data were outdated because the base recalled thousands of employees to on-site work in 2025.
“When we do the traffic impact study, we count the existing vehicles that are coming and going to that location and our site traffic is added on top of that in the study,” Chairman Howard Thompson said, “Getting in and out since you only have one entrance — I just see the problem with that.”
Commissioners requested an updated traffic analysis, including counts at Great Mills Road and Point Lookout Road — intersections not originally studied but likely to absorb most of the project’s 1,576 daily trips.
Debate Over One Entrance: Safety Vs. Feasibility
Another sticking point was the subdivision ordinance’s expectation of two access points for developments of this size. Bradley Brooke proposes only one — Bradley Boulevard — citing environmental constraints and a lack of connecting roads.
County attorney John Hauser said the ordinance uses the word “generally,” giving the commission discretion to determine what is “sufficient.” Past projects with topographic limits have been granted similar flexibility.
Still, commissioners pressed the developer to prove a second access point is impossible or provide emergency alternatives.
“If something happens at the entrance, that whole community is stuck,” Chairman Howard Thompson said.
The developer said they would re-evaluate alternative egress options and are willing to pursue a Board of Appeals variance if directed.
Housing Demand Vs. Mission Protection
While commission members acknowledged the county’s housing shortage — especially near major employers — several reiterated that development cannot undermine NAS Pax River, the county’s largest economic engine, employing 25,000 civilians and service members.
“If you put people there, they are going to complain,” planning commission member Joe St. Clair said. “That’s what happened in Norfolk. We promised the military we’d protect those acres.”
The commission said the decision is not simply routine land-use review but a test of long-term priorities: supporting needed housing while avoiding the kind of encroachment that threatens flight testing, national defense capabilities and local jobs.
Hearing Continued
After more than three hours of discussion, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to continue the case to January 12, directing the developer to return with:
- An updated traffic analysis,
- Additional emergency-access evaluation,
- Clarification of any allowable mitigation,
- Responses to the Navy’s compatibility concerns.
The Navy agreed to return for the continued session.
The project must receive concept approval before advancing to engineering and subdivision review. A Navy compatibility letter is expected before the next hearing.
Watch the full meeting below:
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I’m sorry, but when was the last major navy aircraft accident in or around Lexington Park in the last 60 years???
Moore needs more housing fir his thugs and illegals terrorists.
If you build it, they will come…and complain about the aircraft traffic.
Who is the Developer?
An A-3 twin jet engine aircraft crashed in Great Mills MD. in the 1980’s killing it’s flight crew and taking out several acres of woodland.