LA PLATA, Md. — The Charles County Board of County Commissioners on June 24 voted to schedule a public hearing on a proposed amendment to the county’s Comprehensive Plan that would update the land use map near Maryland Airport to match zoning decisions the board previously approved.
The public hearing is scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, July 21, and will give residents an opportunity to comment on the proposed amendment before commissioners consider final action.
The proposal does not approve new development or rezone any property. Instead, county planning staff said the amendment is an administrative change intended to eliminate an inconsistency between the county’s Comprehensive Plan and zoning map.
Maryland Airport is a privately owned general aviation airport in western Charles County, about four miles east of Indian Head and approximately 20 miles south of Washington, D.C. The airport was designated by the Federal Aviation Administration in the 1990s as a general aviation reliever airport for Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, making it eligible for federal funding to improve safety and expand capacity. Over the years, the county has explored aviation-related business and industrial development around the airport to support future economic growth.
The amendment affects approximately 351 acres surrounding Maryland Airport.
In 2021, the county amended its Comprehensive Plan to redesignate approximately 565 acres from Watershed Conservation District land use to Employment and Industrial Park District. The change was intended to support a future rezoning request for Airport Business Park or Light Industrial uses.
However, when the Board of County Commissioners considered the rezoning request in 2024, it approved only a portion of the proposed area. As a result, about 351 acres remained zoned Watershed Conservation District while the Comprehensive Plan continued to identify those same properties as Employment and Industrial Park District.
The proposed amendment would return those 351 acres to a Watershed Conservation District land use designation in the Comprehensive Plan, bringing the county’s planning documents into alignment with the existing zoning.
During the June 24 meeting, planning staff emphasized the proposal does not change zoning, authorize new development or expand industrial uses. Instead, it updates the Comprehensive Plan to reflect the zoning decision previously made by the Board of County Commissioners.
According to the Charles County Planning Commission, the amendment is intended to “reconcile the land use designations and base zoning” for the affected properties and “will not add any additional uses or expand any business park or light industrial zoning.”
County Attorney Wes Adams told commissioners the proposal had undergone legal review and described it as an administrative correction that reflects the board’s previous zoning action.
Before discussion began, Commissioner Thomasina Coates recused herself because the matter involved property near land owned by members of her family.
Commissioners unanimously voted on June 24 to schedule the public hearing for 6 p.m. Monday, July 21, at the Charles County Government Building, 200 Baltimore St. in La Plata.
Watch the full June 24 Board of County Commissioners meeting on CCGTV.
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Why not have a meeting on cleaning up Waldorf and 925 SOUTH, TRASHED YARD ,JUNKED CARS , ILLEGAL MAKING HOME OUT OF BUILDING….
Wow… how honorable that Coates would recuse herself in this case. Shame she doesn’t do that for all county business.