It is not overacting to call it a a saga - the three years invested by Frederick County farm and smart growth advocates to shepherd through the Sugarloaf Treasured Landscape Plan have been tumultuous, with moving boundaries, backroom deals with multi national companies and more. Hanging in the balance, farmland and forests that could either gain critical protection or  remain unprotected with new land-hungry uses at the door. 

After passing the plan in 2022, the non binding goals of protecting the area around Sugarloaf, the overlay that forms the teeth of the zoning change was remanded to the Planning Board last year. It was once again approved by the Planning Board with few changes and a strong recommendation to pass it. The Council took it up on December 19th and the overlay failed 5-2. 

The Frederick News Post covered the meeting. Councilmembers Brad Young, M.C. Keegan-Ayer, Kavonté Duckett, Mason Carter and Renee Knapp voted against the overlay. Councilmembers Jerry Donald and Steve McKay voted to approve it.

To the advocates in the room, the reasons given for not backing up the plan recognizing the regions unique qualities with measures to keep them protected were underwhelming to say the least. A broad coalition of regional supporters were dismissed as NIMBYs, zoning that would protect farms and forests, used by the county elsewhere to protect similar resources was called "exclusionary" and Councilmember Young even said that the area may need to be a "revenue stream" in the future.  

One part of the meeting that was particularly chilling was the lack of support for an amendment barring Data Centers from being sited in the Sugarloaf Zone. A proposed floating zone that would allow Data centers is proposed for parts of the area considered by this plan. 

Related: Maryland Matters on Data Centers: "In other words, if the data centers come to Frederick County, there could be tremendous consequences for the climate and the environment — and for millions of utility customers throughout the region."

We understand that the next part of Frederick County's Zoning re-write is the 270 corridor, an area where carveouts to this plan were floated to allow a developer to site data centers in partnership with Amazon within the plan area. This plan, bound by NDAs and backroom deals, only came to light thanks to the legal efforts of Sugarloaf Alliance. 

Data center development on the industrial Eastalcoa site is ongoing - in the words of Councilmember McKay who was seeking to prohibit Data Centers in the Sugarloaf Zone: 

"The County is moving forward with a major data center project at the old Eastalco site. We’re a decade or more from maximizing that project. We don’t need more land now. That Eastalco site has the high power electric infrastructure - Sugarloaf doesn’t. The Eastalco site has nearby water and sewer - Sugarloaf doesn’t.
Leaving open the prospect for this kind of development in the Sugarloaf area actually opens it up to even more intensive development. As far as the Council members opposing the overlay tonight, I didn’t hear them shying away from that possibility. In my opinion, that vote against the overlay was a vote in favor of future development there."

No question this is a setback, but the work continues. We stand committed to our partners across the county line. Please follow Sugarloaf Alliance for more in-depth updates.

Back in 2020 MCA co-led an effort to bring 60+ civic organizations together to engage stakeholders and craft a policy that balanced large scale solar siting and the farms and forests of the Ag Reserve, allowing large systems to co-exist with farming where they were not permitted before. 
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Since that time, a number of solar installations in the Reserve have been approved through the county's conditional use process, many others that would meet county approval standards are waitlisted as large scale utilities work through capacity issues - a roadblock outside the county's purview.

The situation is the same in other counties. Because local governments are charged with the protection of local resources many counties have put similar regulations into place to balance twin goals -  renewable energy and farmland, forest and water protection. 

However, this Fall the Public Service Commission -Maryland's regulatory body for utilities including energy and transportation - is considering preempting carefully crafted County policies and processes to approve large scale solar arrays where the state deems necessary. 

So far the PSC has held a comment period as they consider how to move forward. The new Montgomery planning director, Jason Sartori, submitted comments that succinctly explain the approval process in MoCo and the detriment to the County's 40 year commitment to the Ag Reserve that would come  from bypassing the current reasonable process. 

Read the full text of the Montgomery Planning Commission's comments to the PSC here.
​Stay tuned for more on this evolving issue. 

The drought that began this summer is still ongoing as winter sets in. Unfortunately, this drought is not a fluke event but a new trend. The scientific modeling is clear - we are in for more frequent and severe drought events. The ICPRB that monitors the Potomac said we can expect stream flows to be reduced by 35% by 2040.

As for groundwater - the picture is also dire - but gathering data about wells is more difficult than surface water monitoring. This lack of data hinders land use planning - like the updates to the master plan in the Town of Poolesville where several large developments have been proposed for the area entirely served by town wells and septic.
These wells rely on the federally designated Sole Source Aquifer - water deep underground underlying much of the Western county that is also impacted by droughts. 

We understand the Maryland Department of Environment has completed a report that details with more certainty what climate impacts will be on local water resources. This report would offer crucial insight to Poolesville and other areas considering how to plan future land use to steward dwindling water supplies responsibly. So far communications to MDE asking for this report have not yielded results.

Our partners at Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) have filed a Public Information Request to access this report and make it available to guide efforts toward resilient water systems. Stay Tuned. 

​Any season is good time to be thankful for trees but the brilliant colors of Fall are a reminder of just how much trees offer to our neighborhoods.

Montgomery County has laws to staunch the loss of street trees, forest canopy and soil. The Roadside Tree Protection Law decrees anyone granted a permit to remove a tree in the County’s right of way generally must replant and/or pay a fee into the Street Tree Planting Fund.

Similarly, under the County’s Tree Canopy Law, an applicant for a sediment control permit must plant shade trees and/or pay a fee into the Tree Canopy Conservation Account.

However - the fees developers pay into this fund have not increased in 10 years while the cost of saplings and labor has gone far higher.

The fee is currently $250 per tree, however the tree plantings actually cost on average between $450-$470 between purchasing trees, planting and aftercare. Planting the healthiest saplings and providing proper aftercare as they get established allows the trees to be of service in neighborhoods for generations.

Councilmembers Friedson and Glass have introduced bill 40-23 - Tree Canopy and Roadside Tree Requirements - Fee Revisions and all Councilmembers signed on as co-sponsors and the bill passed. 

While there are other provisions that can be taken to strengthen these laws in the future, this proposed common sense legislation to adjust the fee is straightforward and meaningful - a great step forward.

We are thankful for trees and your support - Thank You!

Our thanks to stalwart partners Heritage Montgomery for this great video featuring Ag Reserve farms, narrated by our own Caroline Taylor.