Commissioners' smart growth dreams take off

Study approval begins urban area rezoning effort

Friday, July 24, 2009

The commissioners gave their enthusiastic approval to moving ahead with the legislative process of changing the face of urban Waldorf.

The long awaited Waldorf Urban Design Study was presented to the commissioners on Wednesday, and whether you're a federal employee looking for an alternative commute to work or a local consumer eager for fewer strip malls, the recently released study has something every county resident can look forward to .

"I'm certainly excited about the project, and I've been struck by the positive comments I am hearing from the community," said Commissioner Reuben B. Collins II (D). "The establishment of an urban center is paramount to continuing the development of the county overall and preserving the outlying areas of the county via smart planning and smart growth."

"I think this study will take Waldorf into a new direction. It's a new kind of future for Waldorf," said Clive Graham, a consultant with Environmental Resources Management, who presented the study to the commissioners. "This is a pretty compelling vision that will provide the realistic framework to actively come about a regional transit and light rail system."

ERM prepared the study for county planners.

While the design study includes the vision of a new Waldorf, the plan for reaching that goal is far from novel.

In 2006, a Waldorf Citizens Advisory Committee worked with county staff in organizing public meetings and gathering feedback on changes to the Waldorf subarea plan, a process one commissioner wanted to confirm was as transparent as possible.

"The study … it's fantastic, very inclusive and very detailed," said commissioners' Vice President Edith J. Patterson (D).

"But all too often citizens will say, ‘We didn't have input' or ‘We don't understand.' I need to know their level of involvement as a result of the meetings and studies that were done."

Graham said there were three public meetings, and despite the small number of hearings, there was not a lack of quality to those discussions.

"The presentations we had were very detailed, and I think the comments we got were similarly detailed and we did end up revising the plan," Graham said.

"I think if you compare the first document presented … you would see a significant difference. A lot of that was public input."

Out of those work sessions came the vision for two activity centers that would cut in half roughly a mile of property in Waldorf bordered by Acton Lane, Leonardtown Road, U.S. 301 and Popes Creek railroad tracks.

The county spent most of 2008 planning and designing the future of that mile for the study presented this week, the results of which come in the form of two new zoning districts for the area: Waldorf Central Zone and Acton Urban Center Zone.

Both districts would allow for mixed use, but while the Waldorf Central area will be planned with traditional architecture and minimally elevated buildings in the southern portion, the more modern Acton Urban Center to the north will make room for up to 10-story buildings.

"What we're envisioning is for [visitors] to park one time, and walk throughout the area," Graham said. "But to make that happen it will take a lot of effort from the public sector, and the public sector's investment in roads, [sewer and ] water systems and parking."

The opportunity for establishing a light rail system in the development district had the commissioners talking, and in fact, is a point of agreement for their advocates and foes alike.

Commissioner Gary V. Hodge (D) explained after the meeting that the proposed rail line would run parallel to the Popes Creek tracks which are already laid in an industrial zone and would have the least amount of impact on the area.

"It‘s the path of least resistance," Hodge said.

But unlike an established rail line and urban center which build upon each other, getting the first tracks laid takes much more than the desire for a new transit system.

"We can't have a viable rail line connecting us with the Washington area unless we have the potential ridership to support that rail line," Hodge said.

"Our efforts to focus future growth, our efforts to redevelop the core of Waldorf and our efforts to bring new investment to Charles County to create a quality of life that doesn't exist today in the core of Waldorf … are all goals that are interlocked with each other."

Those efforts have already gained some ground, Hodge said, as the county is currently working with U.S. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.) to prepare comprehensive requirements for funding — roughly $22 million — to conduct preliminary studies on a rail system through Waldorf.

With the commissioners' nod of approval — Commissioner Samuel N. Graves Jr. (D) was absent from the vote — the legislative package for the design study will now be forwarded to the county's planning commission.

Per the concern and request of Hodge and Collins, the county's planning department will review the development guidance system, which is a checklist of sorts for the department when completing the approval process for a proposed project.

Collins also voiced his concern for the property owners who are already established in the urban design area and who might not fit the new zoning requirements. New county Planning Director Steven Ball said he would look into the status of those existing businesses.

msomers@somdnews.com