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Carroll County

Legislative and Regulatory Issues Impacting Carroll County

CARROLL COUNTY MASTER PLAN
Carroll County Commissioners Propose Extending Deferral on Self-Storage Projects 
The County Commissioners of Carroll County will hold a public hearing on Thursday, April 9, 2026 at 9:00 a.m., to consider extending the current deferral on final approval of self-storage facilities in the Freedom Designated Growth Area for an additional six months, through October 9, 2026. Late last year, our association opposed the original deferral and we are actively organizing our opposition to this proposal. We will share more information on how you can get involved ahead of the hearing in the coming days. March 25, 2026
Carroll County Commissioners Pass Deferral Ordinances
Yesterday, the Carroll County Commissioners passed ordinances that place deferrals on four different types of development projects in the Freedom District. New cluster subdivisions will be paused for six months, though projects already in the approval process are exempt. Retirement communities and self-storage facilities may continue moving through review, but final permit approvals will be delayed six months for retirement communities and three months for self-storage. Planned commercial centers will not be allowed to begin the permitting process for eight months. MBIA testified against the deferrals at the public hearing Tuesday night and held meetings with the County Commissioners prior to the hearing. Our Carroll County Chapter members will continue to hold internal meetings to figure out the next steps. Please reach out to Alex (aandelsman@marylandbuilders.org) if you have any questions or concerns. December 19th, 2025
Fill the Room Plan for Proposed Carroll County Deferral Ordinances
Last month, the Carroll County Commissioners introduced ordinances that place a temporary moratorium on development projects. At the December 16th public hearing, we are looking to fill the room with as many speakers as possible to show our strong opposition to the ordinances. If you are available next Tuesday, we ask that you please show up to the hearing and testify in opposition. Our hearing guide is attached and the meeting details are below:
The Carroll County Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing to receive public comments on amending Chapter 158 of the Code of Public Local Laws and Ordinances of Carroll County. The hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, December 16, 2025, at 6:00 pm, at the South Carroll Senior and Community Center, 5928 Mineral Hill Road, Sykesville, Maryland 21784.
The Board is considering proposed amendments imposing a deferral on the processing, reviewing, and approval of site plans, development plans, or applications for the following project types defined in Ch. 158 of the County Code.
Additionally, the Board may consider language exempting certain projects that meet specified criteria from the proposed deferral.
The Notice of Public Hearing can be read in its entirety here. The proposed amendments may be reviewed by clicking the links above. Please reach out to Alex (aandelsman@marylandbuilders.org) if you plan to attend or have any questions. December 12th, 2025
Carroll County Commissioners Direct Staff to Write Up Deferral Ordinance
Yesterday, the Carroll County Commissioners discussed a possible ordinance to impose a 6-month hold on the submittal, acceptance, review, processing, application for, approval or decision of any pending site plan, zoning certificate, development plan or application for any project in the area subject to the Freedom Community Comprehensive Plan. MBIA testified against the Deferral Ordinance at the hearing. The motion to direct staff to write up the ordinance passed on a 3-2 vote. We believe this is an indicator that they have the votes to eventually pass the ordinance once formally introduced. Our Carroll County Chapter will hold another meeting at 10:30am on Wednesday November 12th to go over the next steps in our effort to shut down this ordinance. Please reach out to Alex (aandelsman@marylandbuilders.org) if you would like to join the discussion. November 7th, 2025

Carroll County Commissioners Approve Amendments to Chapters 155 and 156
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The Carroll County Commissioners approved recommendations from the Planning and Zoning Commission to amend Chapters 155 and 156 of the Carroll County Code. The amendments remove the 25 lot recordation limit, increases the building permit limit to 50 permits per year in subdivisions (previously 25 per year) and increases the building permit limit to 100 per year for multifamily (previously 50 per year). The Waiver Process will now be applicable to both subdivision and multi-family and it eliminates the requirement of age-restricted for multi-family and the 3-year limit. MBIA submitted written comments to the County Commissioners and testified in favor of these changes at the Planning and Zoning Commission hearing and the County Commissioners' public hearing. We would like to thank the members from our Carroll County Chapter for their help in getting these code changes passed. March 27, 2025