Calvert County Opens Call Center to Assist Residents with Scheduling COVID-19 Vaccination
Calvert County Government has reopened an information call center to assist eligible residents who wish to register for a booster or third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine through the Calvert County Health Department. For questions or assistance scheduling an appointment, residents may call 410-535-0218, Monday, Wednesday or Friday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Residents age 16 or older, who have received either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine, are currently eligible for a booster or third dose. In addition, anyone 16 and older who works in one of the following prioritized job classifications is strongly encouraged to take advantage of the increased protection of a booster dose:
- Nursing home and assisted living staff
- Healthcare workers
- First responders
- People who work or live in congregate residential facilities
- Public transit and school bus drivers
- Teachers/classroom staff and daycare staff
To view the schedule of upcoming vaccine clinics, including mobile clinics, and to schedule an appointment online, residents may visit CalvertCountyCovid19.com/Vaccine.
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Online Inspections and Permits Portal Adds Convenience for Citizens and Businesses
Citizens and businesses can pay for, manage and print permits from the comfort of their own home or office through Calvert County's Encompass online portal. Citizens can visit Encompass.CalvertCountyMd.gov to register for an account.
The online system allows for residential building, electrical, plumbing, gas and grading permits, along with utility permits, with more capabilities to be rolled out in the future.
Online credit card and eCheck payments are accepted through the portal. A convenience fee of 2.7% will be applied to credit card payments and $2.25 for eCheck payments.
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Planning & Zoning: Historic Preservation
Report a Cemetery or Burial Ground on Your Property
Planning & Zoning seeks information from citizens regarding cemeteries or burial grounds that may be located on private property in Calvert County. Many cemeteries on private property go unreported, especially in rural areas, and county staff are working to identify, protect and document these properties for historic preservation purposes.
Citizens are encouraged to notify Planning & Zoning staff if it is believed that there is a cemetery or burial ground located on private property that does not appear on the property’s plat.
Historic Tobacco Barn Owners Encouraged to Apply for Historic District Designation
Planning & Zoning also encourages Calvert County residents who own historic tobacco barns to consider applying to designate the barns as Calvert County historic districts. To help save these treasured resources, designated historic districts may be eligible for a 25% tax credit for certain repairs and upkeep expenses that retain the barn’s historic character.
For more than 13,000 years, people have lived in the area of present-day Calvert County. To honor and preserve the region’s history, owners of properties with historic structures, such as barns or houses, are welcome to apply for official designation as a Calvert County historic district.
For more historic preservation information or to learn how to apply for one of the above designations, contact Historic Preservation Planner/Planner III Chris Sperling at [email protected].
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REMINDER: WE MOVED!
The Department of Planning & Zoning (P&Z), including the Office of Inspections & Permits, moved from the County Services Plaza at 150 Main St., into the Courthouse Square building at 205 Main St., Prince Frederick. These offices are located on the first and second floors of the building. The mailboxes at the County Services Plaza have been removed. The mailboxes for drop-off and pick-up are located by the entrance of Courthouse Square.
Staff continues to provide services by email, phone, drop box and in person. All phone numbers and email addresses have remained the same. For best in-person customer service, please call and make an appointment.
The P&Z Department is open Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Inspections & Permits hours are Monday through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Department of Public Works has moved to 100 Skipjack Road. Administrative and utility billing services for the Water & Sewer Division is now located at the Community Resources Building at 30 Duke St. All phone numbers and email addresses remain the same.
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Staff Changes and New Hires
Please see recent staff updates below for the Department of Planning & Zoning and the Department of Public Works.
Planning & Zoning
Administrative Aid - Lisa Shepard, Temporary
Zoning Enforcement Specialist - Charlene Johnson
Promoted to Office Specialist II - Theresa Maslanik
Environmental Planner II – vacant
Rural Planner III - vacant
Inspections & Permits
Promoted to Permit Technician - Katie Strauss
Plumbing Inspector - John Vitale
Department of Public Works
Public Works Inspector - Rob Helms, Temporary
Enterprise Funds Deputy Director - James Ritter
Project Management Division Chief - Matt Tettimer
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County Administration Building
A conceptual plan for the new County Administration Building to be located at 150 Main St. in Prince Frederick was approved by the Planning Commission on
Sept. 15, 2021. The new building will house all county agencies associated with development, along with two state agencies, Calvert County Environmental Health and the Soil Conservation District. This will provide convenience for the citizens to have all these departments in one location and to be near the county and state courthouse buildings. The building will replace the existing County Services Plaza that is currently in the beginning stages of demolition.
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Tolling Information:
The Maryland State of Emergency was proclaimed on March 5, 2020 (signed March 12) and Calvert County’s on March 17, 2020. The Maryland State of Emergency ended July 4, 2021 and tolling ended 30 days after on Aug. 4, 2021.
The applicant or engineer will need to determine the expiration date of the plan or permit that is under review or approved (see Calvert County Zoning Ordinance Section 4-2 for site plans, Section 7-1.07.B.8 for subdivisions and Section 105.3.2 of the County Building Code for permits) to calculate the remaining time the plan was valid from the date of the initiation of tolling, March 5, 2020. This number of days will be added, starting with Aug. 5, 2021, to calculate the new expiration date. Please reference this for all applicable projects and permits with any submittals in chart form for staff to review and approve. For questions please call Planner III Olivia Vidotto at 410-535-1600, ext. 2379 or email [email protected].
Example:
- BBQ Bob’s site plan – approved Jan. 1, 2019 with an expiration of Jan. 1, 2021
- Calculate the number of days from March 5, 2020 to Jan. 1, 2021 = X
- Add X number of days starting on Aug. 5, 2021 = new expiration date based on tolling
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Maryland Planning Commissioners Association Conference
In response to concerns over the COVID-19 delta variant, the Maryland Planning Commissioners Association Conference has been converted from in person to a virtual format. This year’s conference theme is “Let’s Get Back to It!” because the goal is to get back to normal and continue planning for the future. For more conference information, to register, submit a session proposal or learn about sponsorship opportunities, click here.
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Planning Commission Meetings for 2021:
The Planning Commission meetings will continue through Zoom until further notice.
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Board of Appeals
The Board of Appeals (BOA) meets monthly to consider variances, special exceptions and decisions on alleged error cases. The 2021 BOA schedule, agendas and information may be accessed on the Board of Appeals webpage.
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TEG/SEG Dates and Information
The Technical Evaluation Group (TEG) and the Subdivision Evaluation Group (SEG) reviews site plans and subdivisions to ensure proposed and existing commercial development complies with all county ordinances and state regulations.
TEG meetings are held on the fourth Wednesday of each month (except for November and December, due to the holidays). The meetings begin at 8:30 a.m. and are held virtually. Visit the Calvert County Government website for the schedules and additional information.
As staff move forward with upgrades to existing processes, the process for TEG/SEG meetings are being modified as follows:
Beginning with the next scheduled meeting date, Oct. 28, 2021 (on the fourth Thursday of the month for October due to a conference):
- All TEG/SEG agenda items will be consolidated into one meeting and onto one agenda;
- The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. instead of 8:30 a.m.; and,
- Agendas will be organized by volume, company, type, applicant or agent, at the discretion of the Planning Commission Administrator.
This is to eliminate the down-time between meetings, content repetition, and allow staff to move more thoughtfully and efficiently through the materials.
If you have any specific questions on this process, please contact the planning commission administrator after participating in a few meetings under the new format. Feedback is greatly appreciated.
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Town Center Master Plan and Zoning Updates
Prince Frederick
The county and consultant staff hosted a virtual public meeting on March 31, 2021 and presented a preferred land use scenario. The Department of Planning & Zoning have been networking additional CCG staff and the consultant team to prepare a draft for the Prince Frederick Town Center Master Plan. Staff presented a working draft of the master plan to the Planning Commission on June 16, 2021. Once the remaining few draft chapters are complete, the full draft plan will be released to the public for comment. Check the Town Center’s project webpage for the latest details.
Dunkirk
The Dunkirk Town Center Master Plan Update Survey Results Workshop was held on July 15, 2021. This workshop was held as a hybrid meeting with people attending virtually or in person. In addition to discussing the results from Dunkirk survey #1, survey #2 was announced. Survey #2 was open from July 16-29, and posted to the Calvert County Dunkirk Town Center Master Plan update page.
Survey #2 asked for feedback about what topics citizens would like addressed in the updated master plan. At the close of the survey, 120 citizens had participated.
Based on the public’s responses from survey #1, input from participants at the meeting on July 15, and the public’s responses from survey #2, the Planning Commission and county staff found the following three topics were of particular interest:
- Land use (how manage future growth)
- Roads, traffic and public walkways
- Economic vitality (improved shopping and dining options)
Planning for future meetings and workshops for the Dunkirk Town Center Master Plan Update are underway and will be announced later this fall.
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Updates to the Calvert County Zoning Ordinance and Official Zoning Maps are Underway
The ordinance rewrite and map revisions are being completed following the adoption of the Calvert County Comprehensive Plan. As required by the State Land Use Law, the ordinance must be consistent with the adopted comprehensive plan. Additionally, the ordinance is being reorganized and reformatted to be more user friendly for citizens to look up the county’s zoning regulations. Ordinance chapters are being combined for ease in finding information. Keep watching the Calvert 2040 webpage on the County’s website for updates including schedules for citizen participation to provide input on the draft ordinance and map.
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Upcoming Holidays
Veterans Day: Thursday, Nov. 11
Thanksgiving and the Day After Thanksgiving: Thursday, Nov. 25 and Friday, Nov. 26
Christmas: Friday, Dec. 24
New Years Day: Friday, Dec. 31
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410-535-1600, ext. 2379, if there are topics of interest or information
you'd like included.
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Carolyn Sunderland, AICP
Deputy Director of Planning & Zoning
410-535-1600, ext. 2380
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Olivia Vidotto
Planner III
410-535-1600, ext. 2379
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