ZONING/LAND USE

Although not many members of the Howard County community are aware or knowledgeable about what is going on with land use it affects them EVERY DAY.  See more details below about how to get involved, learn and be a voice for our community on this important issue.

overdevelopment in Howard County MD has been a big problem for decades

HoCo By Design

Have you weighed in yet?

The county’s General Plan is currently being updated and has been taking public comment.  This plan update is critical , and will decide how much density is added to the county over the next decade.  Check out our analysis

Priority issues in land use:

1. school overcrowding in howard county

If anyone has kids in the school in the Howard County public school system, they know that overcrowded schools is a serious problem.  Trailers behind school buildings, too many students per classroom, and overwhelmed teachers are commonplace in the county’s educational system.  So how do we fix the problem of overcrowded schools?  It will take a multi-faceted approach that includes:

  1. Better Planning- the HoCo By Design Master Plan set to be released soon MUST include some real considerations for school capacity.
  2. Smarter Growth- while healthy growth that accomodates for housing needs is a must, green space, environmental considerations and better planning has to be a cornerstone of that growth.
  3. Infrastructure building- Howard County needs to allow for the infrastructure to catch up with the massive amounts of increased density Howard County has experienced in the past few decades.

Want to get involved in the Howard County land use issues and see what you can do to help Howard County thrive?  Join PDHC, attend our meetings, help us advocate on this issue. 

2. Hoco by design

HoCo By Design is an update to the county’s General Plan and typically occurs every ten years.  The current draft plan has several gaps and deficiencies that we think should be addressed:

  1. There is no chapter for schools in the Plan.  This is a glaring and obvious problem since school capacity is already a critical problem in the county.

Other Current Issues:

Erickson Limestone development, expansion of the Public Service Area (PSA), increased protection for trees against development, affordable housing

Our podcast, hosted by Hiruy Hadgu & Jake Burdett, frequently covers this issue

Our land use/zoning committee has been very busy with meetings and testimonies