La Plata, MD – With a new chairman and several new members in the fold, the Charles County Planning Commission met Monday, March 9 knowing full well they have their work cut out for them in the months ahead.

Chairman Buddy Bowling began his new tenure as chairman by thanking previous members Steve Bunker, Bob Mitchell, Joe Teager and Kenneth Smith for their service.

“They served the county well,” Bowling said.

“We as planning commission members are an advisory body to the county commissioners,” Bowling told the new members. “We need to be aware of what we say and how we say it. We also need to recognize each other’s right to say what they feel and agree to disagree, if necessary.”

Bowling also emphasized, “To the public I would say, you need to show respect to planning commission members. In order to get respect, you need to show respect,” he said.

He warned that citizens who have issues with members of staff would not be allowed to bring those grievances before the board.

“These types of matters do not need to be brought to this body,” he said. “If it looks like we’re going down that road, I will ask them to move on.”

The first matter brought before the commission dealt with a public hearing on the Elrod property located just north of Hughesville, which the applicant, James Elrod Jr. was seeking to change from Agricultural Conservation designation to neighborhood commercial.

Charles County Planner Kirby Ross told the commissioners that the community has seen a substantial change in the character of the neighborhood where the two tracts of land, one 1.8 acres and another 0.5 acres, exist.

Because the neighborhood has seen significant changes since it was zoned AC in 1992, the property owner felt keeping the property in its present designation was outmoded.

“He felt the greater benefit would be to a commercial use,” Ross stated.

Bowling asked if there would be habitat protection and what would happen if endangered species were found at the site.

Ross replied that any such procedures would be under the purview of the state of Maryland. He replied to staff concerns about ingress and egress as well as thoughts that the proposed businesses looked “more like a strip mall than cluster development.

A shopping center or a strip mall was not what was being considered, he pointed out, adding that the feeling is the new designation would be used to provide a “low-density” type of business such as an office or dental practice. He said access to the new office, whatever it turned out to be, would be off Foster Road, not Route 5.
“We’re looking at a small doctor or dental office,” he said. “We’re not going to have heavy traffic going in and out.”

Local resident Lakisha Bailey told the commission she lived directly opposite to the property being discussed.

She said there was a daycare for children on the street, and she was concerned about traffic with the number of children standing on the corner on a given day to be picked up or dropped off by school buses.

“Right now, we know who is coming and going in our neighborhood,” she said. “We would be concerned about that.”

She said neighbors are aware that the new community college is being built nearby.

“It’s a couple of blocks down,” she said. “It’s not directly next to our neighborhood, and we know we have no control over the college being built, but we definitely have some concerns.”

While member Wayne McGoon suggested a Wa Wa to serve the college population once the new facility is built, consultant Steve Scott adamantly stated that is not what is being considered here.

“It would probably just be office buildings,” he told the board.

Planning commission members decided to hold the record open for 14 days for any comment residents wish to make on the issue.

Contact Joseph Norris at joe.norris@thebaynet.com