The Ellendale Farms neighborhood, a proposed development that has created controversy since it was introduced nearly two years ago, has evolved into a plan that gained unanimous approval from the Queen Anne’s County Planning Commission.

At its regular February meeting the panel unanimously approved an amended sketch plan and granted a favorable recommendation for water and sewer allocation.

The Ellendale concept now moves on to the County Commission, which will make the final decision on the Critical Area growth allocation as well as water and sewer.

This concept plan is the result of reviews by the Critical Area Commission and the County Commission that began in April 2001 and concluded in January 2002.

In what could be regarded as the third stage of evolution for this neighborhood, developer John Dixon and Lane Engineering principals presented several major changes to the neighborhood itself as well as a consensus solution for access to the 89.7 acres currently owned by Charles T. Breeding and Janet B. Yost.

The revised plan on the parcel east of Kent Manor Road and south of the Kmart shopping center will now total 285 units composed of 179 townhomes and 105 single-family dwellings.  Previously 171 units, the majority of them single-family lots, had been proposed.

Planning department development review chief J. Steven Cohoon said this mix will produce homes that could be priced from $115,000 to more than $225,000 utilizing some traditional neighborhood development (TND) concepts.

He also said access problems to the neighborhood had been resolved more in line with the Route 8 Corridor Study recommendations.  This would necessitate construction of a portion of the proposed Thompson Creek Connector Road across an adjacent parcel on the west side of Kent Manor across property owned by Bryce Inc/McKee Group.  

The alignment for this connector, as shown on the site plan presented to the commission on February 14, will first create a full intersection at Route 8 and the entry to the Bay Bridge Airport.  It will curve to the northeast, crossing Kent Manor Road onto the Ellendale property, then curve to the east and then again to the northeast behind Kmart.

A second entry road to the Ellendale neighborhood will connect the proposed Thompson Creek connector and the north side of the new development.  The developer had proposed remodeling the Kent Manor Route 8 intersection as a temporary alternative for access to Ellendale.

The main entry to Ellendale will be south of where the proposed connector will cross on Kent Manor Road.  According to the staff report, the Ellendale developer will make agreements with the State Highway Administration and the county for their share of these improvements.

Other key general changes in the Ellendale concept include reduction of the number of acres in the Critical Area growth allocation request (25.73 acres from the 34.14 acres) and the entire shore buffer on Thompson Creek has been increased to 300 feet.

In general, the new design for Ellendale offers townhomes along Kent Manor Drive and angling east.  The single-family portion of the development will flow toward the shore buffer on Thompson Creek.

TND elements now included in the neighborhood include:

• Narrower streets lined with trees.
• Alleys to access garages at the rear of lots, except on one street at the south side of the development.
• An interconnecting road system.
• Community open space for recreational use by residents.
• A mix of housing types and lot sizes throughout the entire development.
• Pedestrian access inside the neighborhood that will also connect to the county trail system.
• A central village green and community center within easy walking distance of all homes.

The staff report also noted a portion of this property could be utilized for public athletic fields.

In a condition already established, the developer must notify all residents of the potential impacts of living near an airport.  New commission member Scott Jacobs, a career airline pilot, noted that even with that warning “you will always get complaints”.

Another condition involving the airport is that all building heights must conform to FAA glide path regulations, which would affect structures primarily on the northern side of the development.

This version of Ellendale Farms shows a $5.1 million positive impact to the county, a condition required by the southern portion of the Stevensville Community Plan.  The Ellendale developers have also made a commitment for an “appropriate financial contribution” to the Kent Island Volunteer Fire Department.

The Ellendale developer will also enter into afforestation and landscaping agreements with the county in the Critical Area buffer zone.

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