Township manager outlines ordinance to rezone 24-acre 'paintball' parcel to PED, correct Sturgeon zoning and widen R1 lot widths

John Barr, Township Manager, reviewed a proposed zoning ordinance on June 25 that would (1) rezone a roughly 24-acre parcel commonly called the 'paintball parcel' from R1 to PED to encourage mixed-use development near the Southern Beltway; (2) correct an anomaly in the Sturgeon neighborhood by changing parcels currently zoned C-1 back to residential to reflect surrounding single-family homes; and (3) amend Chapter 240 to raise the R1 minimum lot width from 110 feet to 125 feet.

"The ordinance in front of you accomplishes two things: there's a rezoning involving two different parcels and there's also an amendment to the zoning ordinance," Barr said. He tied the proposal to the township's new comprehensive plan and the goal of focusing economic development opportunities around the Southern Beltway.

On the paintball parcel, Barr said the property is "24 and change acres" with good access to the Southern Beltway and would be a logical place to begin implementing the comprehensive plan's targeted growth area. He said there was no specific prospective user yet; the parcel recently changed hands and was purchased by Burns and Scalo. "We have not talked to them about what they'd like to do with that property," Barr said, adding that staff had communicated the proposed rezoning to the owners and believed they would support it.

Regarding the Sturgeon neighborhood, Barr said the parcels now zoned C-1 are surrounded by single-family homes and staff views the change as a cleanup to reflect existing conditions and to allow a property owner to assemble lots for a single home.

The proposed text amendment would increase R1 lot width from 110 feet to 125 feet, a change Barr said is intended to promote larger lots and dwellings following earlier action removing open-space options in some R districts. Commissioners raised technical questions about how "lot width" is measured — whether as frontage along the right-of-way or at the building line — and how cul-de-sac lots would be treated. Commissioner Jason Palovich said the current ordinance language "leaves it open for interpretation" and that enforcement typically references the building line.

Staff said adjacent property owners have been identified and notifications are ready. The proposed ordinance was submitted to Allegany County for comment; staff requested a commission recommendation at the July meeting and scheduled a public hearing for August with parcels to be staked and notices advertised. Barr provided commissioners with a redline copy of the ordinance and asked them to return questions at the next meeting.

Next steps: commission review at the July meeting, county comment expected within the county's review period, then a public hearing in August before the board could adopt the ordinance.