On Tuesday, June 10, Charles Rice, Planning Director, Cathy Thompson, Assistant Chief of Planning, Amy Blessinger, Planner III, and Evelyn Kasongo, lead consultant of Michael Baker International, provided updates on the Charles County 2026 Comprehensive Plan process. The comprehensive plan is a long-range planning document that outlines policies for housing, land use, transportation, natural resource protection, and economic development. The plan is updated every 10 years. Community education and engagement activities will begin this summer and all members of the community are encouraged to participate. The draft plan and adoption of the comprehensive plan are expected between Summer 2026 and Spring 2027.

 

Commissioners also voted 4-1 to pass Proposed Bill 2025-04: Revisions to Recordation Tax. The bill increases the recordation tax by $2 per $500, making the new rate $7 per $500, for home sales or recorded titles. The recordation tax does not impact county-wide property or income taxes. The increase was approved to raise additional funds to support the County’s Fiscal Year 2026 funding towards Charles County Public Schools and provides a funding source for affordable housing initiatives without impacting renters or non-transacting homeowners

Mozambique Delegation Visit

Charles County Government welcomed a distinguished delegation from Matola, Mozambique on Tuesday, June 10, for the official signing of a Sister City Partnership Agreement between Matola and Charles County, Maryland.

The signing ceremony, held at the Charles County Government Building in La Plata, marked an important step forward in international cooperation. A Sister City Partnership is a formal agreement between two communities in different countries to build meaningful connections and promote collaboration through cultural, educational, and economic exchanges. This partnership represents a shared commitment to fostering global relationships and creating new opportunities for mutual growth.

Throughout the week, the delegation will be touring local businesses in Charles County alongside the Economic Development Department.

Briefings

• Kirby Blass, Planner III, and Charles Rice, Planning Director, briefed Commissioners on Proposed Bill 2025-06: Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 24-186 Master Sign Plan for Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Properties. If passed, the proposed bill would add new text to the Charles County Zoning Ordinance to allow signage for projects in the Transit Oriented Development Zone to comply with a Master Sign Plan. The plan would govern the location, height, illumination features, and other design aspects of a sign. Commissioners voted to introduce the bill and schedule a public hearing for Tuesday, July 22, 2025 at 6 p.m.

 

• Deborah Hall, Acting County Administrator, introduced a briefing to commissioners on the 2024 Charter Education Campaign performed by PPR Strategies. Sandy Dubay and Sophie Smith of PPR Strategies presented the results of their campaign to provide neutral information on a potential charter form of government to Charles County voters. The campaign included radio and newspaper ads, social media posts, and a live website. The campaign was credited with increasing voter turnout and reached over 820,000 people during its lifetime.

 

• Wes Adams, County Attorney, updated commissioners on work towards a Fire Suppression Task Force. The county attorney advised that the task force believes that the goals set forth by the commissioners can be met through the Board of Fire and Rescue.  A meeting with the volunteer fire department leadership is scheduled for June 16, followed by a meeting with the individual station leadership at a later date. The county attorney further advised that the task force will provide an update in September.

 

Commissioners’ Goals and Objectives.

 

Periodically, commissioners receive an update on the county staff’s work to further the Goals and Objectives set out by County Commissioners. On June 10, commissioners heard updates on staff’s efforts on Emergency Preparedness, Response and Safety. Within that objective were several goals:

 

           Goal 1: Coordinate and collaborate with response partners

 

• The Charles County Department of Emergency Services hosts a number of opportunities to increase collaboration and coordination, including bi-weekly public safety leadership meetings, quarterly Public Safety Leadership meetings, and other trainings and exercises with local response partners.

 

Goal 2: Equity-focused recruitment, training, and retention

 

• The Department of Emergency Services has partnered with public schools and volunteers to enhance the high school career and technical education program. New trainings were also created, including Community Paramedicine and Tactical Emergency Casualty Care.

 

• Animal Care & Control Officers also received pension enhancements and doubled staffing for increased safety and service to residents. Staff also provided an update on the future Animal Care Center facility.

 

Goal 3: Provide high-quality service during emergent and non-emergent times of need.

 

• Construction of the new Pinefield Emergency Medical Services Station is almost ready for procurement to request construction bids. A feasibility study is also underway on the use of the La Plata Armory building by the department of emergency services. The former Sears Auto Center was purchased last month with the intent to renovate it for an EMS station.

 

• The department of emergency services has a new Emergency Preparedness-related podcast. “Ready, Set, Prepare: Emergency Preparedness in Charles County” is a podcast series designed to inform residents on what to do in the event of an emergency.
• The Emergency Services Dashboard is live on the County webpage. The Dashboard contains data from Emergency Services and Volunteer Fire & EMS response and training data.

 

 

Annual Reports

Commissioners received updates on the following county boards and commissions:

 

• Charles County Board of Electrical Examiners
• Charles County Library Board of Trustees
• Charles County Interfaith Commission

 

Actions on Boards and Commissions

Commissioners took the following actions on county boards and commissions:

• Appointed Aaron Reid as an Electrical Examiners General License Member to the Board of Electrical Examiners.
• Appointed Triverr Gray and reappointed Denise Joseph as Citizen Members to the Board of Social Services.
•  Reappointed Melissa Gilpin as a Veteran Business member, Ayana Moore as a Business Associate member, Troy Smith as a Finance/Banking member, Natonya Thomas as a Business Services Member, and appointed Jessieca Montgomery as a Marketing Member to the Business Development Loan Fund for Women, Minorities and Veterans.
• Reappointed Joseph Barnette, Rhonda Bello, Ramona Jones, Lawrence Moses, James Wade and Joan Sabree as Citizen Members to the Commission for Veteran Affairs.
• Appointed Anbrea McCoy as an Alternate Member to the Ethics Commission.
• Reappointed Patricia Vaira as a Citizen Member to the Library Board of Trustees.
• Appointed Jacob Dyer as a County Executive Leadership Team Member to the Resilience Authority of Charles County.
• Appointed Timothy Wells as a representative of Charles County and appointed Christina Davis as a representative of Charles County Department of Public Works to the Southern Maryland Resource Conservation & Development (RC&D) Board.

 

Public Hearings

• On June 10, Commissioners held a public hearing on Proposed Bill 2024-16: Zoning Text Amendment 24-182 Driveways  and Parking for Agritourism Projects. The bill would exempt smaller agritourism and ecotourism projects with fifty or fewer parking spaces from certain requirements regarding widths of parking aisles and driveways, and to widen their driveways to accommodate two-way traffic. Commissioners unanimously passed the bill.

 

 

 

Approval Items

Commissioners approved:

• A Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Transfer of $40,000 in contingency funds to prevent a lapse in essential services in the “Healthy Families Home Visiting Program.” The program is state-grant funded. However, the state funder has not yet released the Fiscal Year 2026 application, which would result in a two-month delay in receiving grant funding. Once the funding is received, the Department of Community Services will reimburse the County.
• An Application for the Fiscal Year 2025 Community-Oriented Policing Services (COPS) Program grant. If the funding agency approves the grant application, funding would support five positions at the Charles County Sheriff’s Office starting in Fiscal Year 2027. The grant period is proposed to be over three fiscal years. The grant requires a 25% match by the county, which would cost $1.3 million over the life of the grant.
• Updates to the Memorandum of Understanding with the Charles County Charitable Trust to define grant programs funded directly by Charles County. Additional updates were made authorizing the Trust to administer grants funded by state, federal, or other agency sources on behalf of the County.
• The commissioners approved a resolution authorizing staff to proceed with condemnation of an easement to facilitate construction of a water line along Mill Hill Road.
• A letter of support for the Pomonkey High School Application for the African American Heritage Preservation Grant.