LA PLATA, Md. (Dec. 1, 2025) — The Circuit Court for Charles County ruled Oct. 20 that Zoning Text Amendment 22-173 is illegal and void, delivering a complete victory to the Conservancy for Charles County, Mattawoman Watershed Society and individual plaintiff Louis R. Naber, Jr. in their challenge to changes that would have gutted permanent protections in the Watershed Conservation District.
The 2016 Watershed Conservation District permanently limits development density to one dwelling unit per 20 acres and caps impervious surface at 8 percent across 37,455 acres encompassing the Mattawoman Creek and Port Tobacco River watersheds.
ZTA 22-173, approved by the Charles County Commissioners in 2023, sought to raise allowable density in certain parcels to 32 units per acre and impervious coverage to 45 percent. The court found the amendment constituted illegal spot zoning, violated state uniformity requirements, and directly contradicted the county’s 2016 Comprehensive Plan.
In a 28-page opinion, Judge Amy J. Bragunier wrote that the amendment “arbitrarily undermined” the permanent protections voters and planners established in 2016 to safeguard two of the Chesapeake Bay’s most ecologically productive tributaries.
Mattawoman Creek remains one of the Bay’s top spawning rivers for anadromous fish including yellow perch, white perch, herring and striped bass. The creek and its forested buffers also provide critical habitat for bald eagles, great blue herons and the rare sensitive joint-vetch plant.
Conservancy for Charles County President Denise Bowman called the decision “a landmark win for science-based land-use policy and the rule of law.”
“The court reaffirmed that once Charles County declares conservation protections permanent, they cannot be changed by a simple majority vote of the commissioners,” Bowman said. “This ruling protects not just Mattawoman and Port Tobacco, but every conservation district in the county.”
Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued the amendment benefited a small number of landowners while shifting stormwater, traffic and school impacts onto the broader community — the classic definition of spot zoning under Maryland law.
The county has 30 days from the Oct. 20 order to file notice of appeal. As of Dec. 1, no appeal had been docketed with the Appellate Court of Maryland.
The Watershed Conservation District remains fully intact with its original 1:20 density and 8 percent impervious cap.