The County Commissioners made a series of changes to the proposed St. Mary’s 2050 Comprehensive Plan, including revisions involving housing, infrastructure, economic development and county policies, as they prepare to consider the plan’s adoption next month. The commissioners held a work session on the proposed plan September 15. A public hearing is scheduled for October 6 at 6:30 p.m. at the Chesapeake Building in Leonardtown.

Jessica Andritz, director of the Department of Land Use and Growth Management, told commissioners at the beginning of the work session that the county’s projected population in 2050 has been revised downward. The Maryland Department of Planning previously projected that St. Mary’s County would have a population of about 154,000 in 2050 based on 2020 census data. Updated 2025 data, which also incorporates population estimates from the Federal Reserve Economic Data, lowered that projection to about 145,000, Andritz said.

The commissioners spent significant time discussing the relationship between policies contained in the plan and the actions the county would take to implement them. In several instances, commissioners changed language requiring the county to take specific actions to language that would only suggest those actions.

For example, commissioners removed a requirement for a housing study and replaced it with language stating that they “will consider” taking action. A housing workgroup would have overseen the proposed study. Andritz noted that the Planning Commission supported retaining the requirement.

As currently drafted, 84 policies in the plan do not have corresponding action items.

Commissioners also agreed to soften language directing the county to complete an inventory of public rights-of-way and roads in older neighborhoods. The recommendation for additional action came out of community engagement sessions in which residents identified aging neighborhood roads as a concern.

Additionally, commissioners agreed to identify solar generation as a threat to agricultural lands. They also removed “green design and construction” from a list of potential high-wage industries the county could pursue as part of its economic diversification efforts. Further, Commissioners added a goal to implement zoning regulations for industries that “do not fit St. Mary’s County, like cannabis and data centers.”

Infrastructure was another focus of the discussion. Commissioner Scott Ostrow asked how the county would ensure that infrastructure keeps pace with development. Andritz said development is regulated through the county’s Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance. The ordinance establishes the county’s existing framework for determining whether public facilities can accommodate proposed development, and is part of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance that hasn’t been completely updated in well over a decade.

At one point during the discussion, Commissioner Ostrow asked what would prevent infrastructure from being extended into protected areas thereby pressuring those areas to develop.

“Elections,” Colvin responded, to light chuckling in the room.

Commissioners agreed to remove a policy for the railroad right-of-way that limited the number of road crossings for potential light-rail use in the future. The right-of-way has been preserved for decades and is used as the Three Notch Trail in portions of the county. Commissioner Mike Hewitt questioned the reason for limiting road crossings, citing property he owns at the corner of Chancellor’s Run Road. Hewitt said two parcels he owns cannot be connected because of the existing limitation.

The commissioners also agreed to add language supporting regional transportation options, including consideration of a passenger ferry, developing transit opportunities with tourism in mind and evaluating the need for an air traffic control operation at the St. Mary’s County Regional Airport.

Throughout the work session, commissioners also called for changes to language that they said more accurately reflected what county government is already doing. The issue came up repeatedly as commissioners reviewed the approximately 200-page document, with several asking that policies be revised to reflect a continued focus on existing county programs or practices.

No changes to the proposed land-use or town center designations were made during the work session.

The changes requested by the commissioners will be incorporated into a memo that will accompany the draft plan for the Oct. 6 public hearing. Four additional memos addressing feedback from the Planning Commission and the public are also part of the record.

The public hearing will begin at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 6 in the Commissioners Meeting Room at the Chesapeake Building in Leonardtown. The public record will remain open through Oct. 13 for written comments submitted by mail or email to the commissioners.

The commissioners are scheduled to make a final decision on whether to approve or deny the St. Mary’s 2050 Comprehensive Plan on Oct. 20.

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