The Anne Arundel County Council is considering CB 75-24 which would make changes to mixed-use zoning districts that could have major implications for uses permitted in existing buildings and in new construction.   

The bill would administratively rezone parcels currently designed as mixed-use and apply the requirements of new mixed-use zoning districts. That may result in disallowing uses that are currently permitted and changes to design standards. An unofficial draft markup of the use table is linked here. 

A NAIOP working group submitted comments on a pre-introduction draft of the bill raising specific issues within five areas of concern. From the NAIOP comments 

In particular, the following issues may have significant unintentional and unpredictable consequences for the MXD zones: 

  1. The need for MXD zone purpose sections to differentiate the character of development intended for each MXD zone and to inform potential locations for those zones;  
  2. The need for design and bulk regulations calibrated to the purpose and location of each MXD zone;  
  3. Use table changes, which disallow uses in zones where those uses are currently permitted; 
  4. The need for changes in the adequacy of public facility requirements, which are inconsistent with the goals and provisions of the new MXD zones, and;  
  5. Grandfathering language changes to ensure that existing mixed-use developments are undisturbed while encouraging the adoption of the new standards. 

NAIOP members with interests in Anne Arundel County are urged to evaluate the impacts of CB 75-24 in advance of the public hearing scheduled for October 21st 

For further information and to connect with NAIOP’s working group on this issue, please contact Tom Ballentine at tom.ballentine@naiop-md.org.