Brian Shane

Staff Writer

A local couple will be able build on their land after having successfully petitioned county leaders to rezone a portion of protected acreage.

The move will allow property owners Chris and Shelley Mason to set aside 18.54 acres of their 80.95-acre property off Purnell Crossing Road as agricultural. The remaining 62.41 acres will stay zoned as a Resource Protected.

They propose to subdivide the area into three “farm-ette” lots, in a cluster near the road, on that rezoned land. The couple already has an application pending with county planners for the three buildable lots.

“There’s this sprawl from people that move here and want to change what it is that we kind of already have,” said Kristina Watkowski, an attorney representing the Masons, at an Oct. 1 public hearing before the Worcester County Commissioners.

“And, while I think Worcester County (offers) a wonderful opportunity for growth, I think slow, smart, and steady is probably the best way,” she said.

Zoning regulations impose limits on development in property zoned as Resource Protected. To subdivide the land, or to build a house or agricultural structure, a special exception is required. Agricultural land, however, does not impose such restrictions.

Previously used for timber harvesting, the acreage in question does not receive public water or sewer service. There are five approved sewage reserve areas and three well-water locations identified in the petitioned area.

The Masons will make no changes to the still-protected portion of their acreage, which is forested.

“We’re not really asking to do anything with that other than preserve it,” Watkowski said.

The land had been zoned agricultural since 1964. Additional county zoning efforts in both 1978 and 1992 maintained that ag status. However, in 2009, the property ended up being rezoned by the county as a Resource Protection District.

Watkowski noted that the zoning designation in 2009, which she characterized as “a mistake,” was as accurate as it could be, given the available resources.

At the hearing before the commissioners, Watkowski called up veteran land surveyor Frank Lynch Jr. to support this argument.

Lynch explained how the 2009 re-zoning relied on guidance from wetland maps to determine which land would be best suited for a Resource Protected zoning status.

“But that big term, guidance – it was probably wetlands, but maybe not,” Lynch said. “And that’s what happened in this particular case. They thought the site was a majority non-tidal wetlands, they zoned it as resource protection. In fact, a larger portion almost 19 acres adjacent to the road was all uplands.”

Worcester’s planning commission already had sent the zoning request to the County Commissioners with a favorable finding. The Maryland Department of the Environment also has reviewed and verbally approved the wetland delineation, according to Watkowski.

District 6 Commissioner Jim Bunting made a motion to approve the re-zoning request, followed by a motion to second from District 4 Commissioner Ted Elder. The motion passed with unanimous approval without discussion.

The Masons are long-time Worcester County residents. Shelley has worked for the Board of Education, and Chris is part of a generational farming family, according to their attorney.