LEONARDTOWN, Md. — The St. Mary’s County Commissioners voted Tuesday to schedule a public hearing on proposed amendments to the long-delayed Stewart’s Grant Planned Unit Development (PUD), a 400-acre residential project in Great Mills expanding Bay Ridge Road and developing homes behind Great Mills High School and around two sides of George Washington Carver Elementary School. The public hearing will be held the evening of June 24, 2025, in the Chesapeake Building, located at 41770 Baldridge St. in Leonardtown.
The proposed changes would reduce the total number of residential units from 1,125 to 1,084, increase open space, and reserve public school capacity for the full 10-year build-out period, which is expected to begin in 2026 or 2027.
According to Deputy County Attorney John Houser, the amendment would also formalize a phased construction schedule of approximately 108 units per year and modify internal road design standards for safety, reducing proposed travel lane widths in coordination with the Department of Public Works and Transportation.
The development team behind Stewart’s Grant has requested a long-term reservation of school seats, citing financing requirements that depend on guaranteed capacity. County staff confirmed that adequate public facilities currently exist, estimating 10 years of availability based on current allocation rates and student yield models.
Several commissioners expressed concerns about tying up school capacity for a single development over an extended period, raising questions about fairness and the use of outdated student yield data. Houser noted that any deviation from the phasing schedule could trigger revocation of the PUD, freeing up those reserved school seats.
“This reservation is atypical,” Houser acknowledged, “but the PUD mechanism itself is also uncommon.” He referenced past examples like Wildwood and Hickory Hills, both developed under PUD zoning.
The amendment also proposes that all 224 planned apartment units be rentals, while the remaining townhomes and single-family dwellings would be privately owned, with sale prices projected between $350,000 and $499,000.
St. Mary’s County commissioners agreed that the evening hearing would be best for public participation. Written comments will be accepted for seven days after the hearing before a final vote is held.
The Stewart’s Grant PUD was originally approved in 1997, with the most recent amendment passed in 2004. The project has not moved forward since, but a new development team received Planning Commission approval in 2023 and now seeks commissioner approval to proceed with the major residential development.
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Why not build some condos or actual high density housing? Prices ranging from $350k to $500k? Cool so no younger person can afford to buy this unless you have a high paying job on base or a high paying job for one the local gov contractors.
To afford a $350k home you need to make around $90k a year and be able to put down $70k in cash. That is for the cheapest home they are thinking about building…