Planning Commission Staff Report
MEETING DATE: August 14, 2024
REPORT DATE: August 7, 2024
FROM: Jim Wasilak, AICP, Chief of Zoning
SUBJECT: Discussion and Approval of the Planning Commission’s 2023 Annual Report
SUMMARY: The State of Maryland Land Use Article requires local jurisdictions to submit an annual report to the Maryland Department of Planning, covering the previous calendar year of activity by the Planning Commission.
DISCUSSION:
The Annual Report of the Planning Commission is the document by which the Commission reviews its performance during the preceding year, with focus on its zoning and development activities during that period and the major planning projects and issues considered by the Commission. The Report is submitted to the Maryland Department of Planning, in compliance with the State’s Land Use Article annual reporting requirements for local jurisdictions.
This year’s Annual Report also includes a report on the City’s Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance (APFO) and Standards (APFS). The requirement for a biennial APFO report was introduced in 2011; however, the Commission provides this information each year, covering significant actions and restrictions that occurred with respect to the APFO and APFS during each reporting year.
Summary of 2023 Planning Commission Actions
The 2023 Annual Report describes actions taken by the Planning Commission from development applications to zoning text amendments. Several development applications were reviewed and approved by the Planning Commission in 2023 and are described and mapped in the full Annual Report. These applications were generally located along the city’s commercial and transit corridors as significant residential or mixed-use projects on vacant and urban infill sites.
The anticipated workplan for the Planning Commission in 2024 is described as a conclusion to the Annual Report, highlighting the work staff expects the Planning Commission to accomplish by the end of the current calendar year.
Staff Recommendation:
Staff recommends that the Planning Commission review, make any edits and approve the 2023 Annual Report for submission to the Maryland Department of Planning. The Mayor and Council have asked for each of the City’s boards and commissions to provide an annual report to the Mayor and Council at an upcoming meeting in the Fall.