Comprehensive Planning
PLANNING COMMISSION
The Garrett County Planning Commission is composed of nine members appointed by the Garrett County Commissioners. A primary duty of the Planning Commission is the development of the County’s Comprehensive Plan. The Planning Commission ensures that the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan are carried out by serving in an advisory role in the development and implementation of all County land use ordinances, regulations and policies. The Planning Commission provides advisory opinions concerning the Deep Creek Watershed Zoning Ordinance and, along with Planning & Land Development staff, administers the Garrett County Subdivision Ordinance by reviewing all major subdivision applications and waiver requests.
The Garrett County Planning Commission meets on the first Wednesday of every month. The August meeting has been cancelled. The next regular meeting of the Planning Commission will be held on September 1 at 1:30 in the Commissioner's meeting room. To view the agenda please click the link.
Planning Commission minute archive:
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
The current members of the Garrett County Planning Commission are:
Troy Ellington, Chairman Ruth Beitzel George Brady Tim Schwinabart Jeff Messenger
Frederick Holliday, Ex Officio Gary Fratz Joe McRobie-Alternate Tony Doerr-Alternate
MARYLAND'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
The information below provides a link to the Maryland Department of Planning's effort to develop a statewide comprehensive plan. Garrett County is providing this link in order to keep our citizens advised of the activities and work program of MDP.
Over the next 25 years, there will be nearly 1,000,000 more people, over 400,000 additional households and over 600,000 new jobs in Maryland.
- Where will all these people live and work, how will they get to their jobs?
- What benefits and impact will this have on our existing communities, our natural resources and our transportation systems?
- What role will the State and local governments have and how will a wide array of public, private and non-profit organizations all work together to plan for a sustainable future?
PlanMaryland, the State’s first comprehensive plan for sustainable growth and development, is intended to answer these and many other questions.
Those who are interested in the PlanMaryland process can have input in a number of ways. A series of community forums are being held across Maryland through spring 2010. A number of collaborative tools will be added to the State's website, including a visioning questionnaire. The Maryland Department of Planning will be engaging Marylanders through popular social media outlets. For more information go to the State's website at http://plan.maryland.gov.
2008 GARRETT COUNTY COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
The 2008 Comprehensive Plan was adopted on October 7, 2008 and can be downloaded by clicking here. The Comprehensive Plan serves as the policy guide and framework for future growth and development in Garrett County. The Plan looks at land use, water resources, transportation, public facilities, economic development, housing, environmentally sensitive areas, mineral resources, and other natural resources. The Plan also includes a detailed plan for the area around Deep Creek Lake.
To view the Land Use map found in Chapter 3 separately please click here.
2008 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN DEVELOPMENT HISTORY
The following section provides some details regarding the development process of the 2008 Comprehensive Plan. Click on any of the highlighted links for more information.
A public meeting was held on June 26, 2006. ERM Consultants made a PowerPoint presentation.
The Maryland Department of Planning shared a PowerPoint Presentation at the November 1, 2006 Planning Commission meeting.
On November 30, 2006 a second public meeting was conducted to present the DRAFT Garrett County Development Capacity Analysis & Growth Projections.
As a result of public comments submitted regarding the draft growth projections a revised memo was prepared titled Revised Growth Scenarios and Non-Residential Development Estimates. The Planning Commission endorsed this revised memo on February 7, 2007 as the basis for moving forward on the analyses to be performed for the Comprehensive Plan.
Click here for the News Release about the February 26 & 27, 2007 public meeting conducted by the Planning Commission at Garrett College in McHenry. A Summary of Comments Regarding the Visioning Process was compiled after the February 26th meeting. During the February 27th meeting a DCL Water Quality PowerPoint Presentation was shown
Click here for the News Release about the March 27, 2007 meeting conducted by the Planning Commission regarding rural issues. A Rural Issues PowerPoint Presentation was shown and a questionnaire was distributed. Click here for the Rural Issues Questionnaire Results
Click here for a News Release about the May 4 & 5, 2007 public workshop focusing on the future of McHenry sponsored by the Planning & Land Development Office & ERM.
Click here for the final draft of the May 2007 Garrett County Deep Creek Lake Assessment of Water Quality Impacts from Potential Land Development
During the June 2007 Planning Commission meeting, ERM shared a Rural Issues Presentation
Click here for the DCL Land Use Scenarios document prepared by ERM.
During April 2008 a Summary of State Comments on the Comprehensive Plan was reviewed.
To view changes from the April 2008 draft plan click Track the Changes
Citizens Correspondence was very important to the successful completion of the Comprehensive Plan.
OTHER PLANS
The 2005 Land Preservation, Parks and Recreation Plan was officially adopted by the Commissioners on January 31, 2006. The Plan focuses its attention on three types of County land resources: parks and recreation, agricultural, and natural resource. The planning process for the plan included identifying where these resources are located, how effective current implementation programs and funding sources are in protecting and conserving them, and whether or not these programs aid the County in achieving its land preservation goals and objectives. Ultimately the Plan identifies and recommends changes needed to overcome shortcomings and close gaps, achieve goals, and ensure good return on public investment. A copy of the plan can be viewed by clicking here.
The Garrett County Heritage Plan is the latest effort to describe the county's rich heritage and move toward a strong, ongoing program to preserve local heritage. In January 2002, the Garrett County Commissioners, through the Garrett County Heritage Committee, retained the consulting firm of Urban Research and Development Corporation of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to help document what many people in the county had known for years: Garrett County has a story to tell! The Garrett County Heritage Plan presents the feasibility of establishing a Recognized Heritage Area in the county. The plan is the first step toward gaining statewide recognition, technical and financial assistance in helping to tell Garrett County's story to the state...the nation...the world. The plan can be viewed by clicking here.
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