The Charles County Board of Appeals has announced a public hearing on Tuesday, January 27, 2026, at 6:30 p.m. to consider three zoning matters involving properties in Waldorf, including a special exception request for a mini-warehouse facility and two variance requests for Heritage Memorial Cemetery.
The hearing will take place in person only at the Charles County Government Building Auditorium, 200 Baltimore Street, La Plata, Maryland 20646, with no virtual attendance option available. Public testimony is encouraged, and each registered speaker receives three minutes to address the board. Registration to speak or submission of comments is available online at https://charlescountymd.info/BOAPublicComment. If a registered speaker is absent when called, the board may move to the next speaker. Written comments submitted online are included in the official record only if the individual appears in person to provide testimony.
A full recording of the hearing will be available for viewing the following business day at https://reflect-charlescountymd.cablecast.tv/CablecastPublicSite/?channel=1. For questions on public participation, contact the Clerk to the Board of Appeals at BoardofAppeals@CharlesCountyMD.gov. Citizens with special needs may reach Lisa Cureton, Clerk to the Board of Appeals, at 240-776-6686 or Maryland Relay Service TDD at 1-800-735-2258.
The first docket, SPEX-250004 (Docket #1479), filed on June 20, 2025, by Sage Ventures, seeks special exception approval under Article XIII, §297-212, Use #7.02.230, and Article XXV, §297-415 of the Charles County Zoning Ordinance for a mini-warehouse facility. The proposal includes a three-story, 6,310-square-foot self-storage building with elevators and outdoor RV storage at the rear. The site is at 10191 Berry Road, Waldorf, designated as Tax Map 7, Grid 10, Parcel 28 (Parcel ‘D’ per plat in P.B. 45, P. 70), totaling approximately 2.6909 acres in the Business Park (BP) Zone.
Associated documents, including staff report, location map, zoning map, adjacent property owners map and list, aerial map, and statement of justification, will be available for inspection in the Department of Planning and Growth Management, Planning Division, at the Charles County Government Building or online at https://charlescountymd.info/Docket1479 on or after January 12, 2025. Supplemental documentation and written comments will be posted no later than 5:00 p.m. on January 12, 2025.
The second and third dockets, both filed on June 30, 2025, involve Heritage Memorial Cemetery, LLC, represented by Eric Lundy, at 13472 Poplar Hill Road, Waldorf, designated as Tax Map 16, Grid 4, Parcel 2, approximately 79.84 acres in the Rural Conservation (RC) Zone. Heritage Memorial Cemetery is a family-owned perpetual care facility offering traditional burial, mausoleum entombment, and cremation services, with the property spanning a large rural tract used for cemetery operations.
Docket #1481 requests variance approval under Article II, §297-182, and Article XXV of the zoning ordinance to allow disturbance in the Resource Protection Zone (RPZ) for compliance, as the site is currently used as a gravel lot storage yard.
Docket #1480 seeks variance approval under §297-29 Accessory uses and structures, C (1), and Article XXV, §297-416, to permit encroachment of 10 accessory structures and a concrete block wall into the rear building restriction line.
Documents for Dockets #1480 and #1481 will be available at https://charlescountymd.info/Docket1480 and https://charlescountymd.info/Docket1481, respectively, on or after January 12, 2025, with supplemental materials posted by the same deadline.
The full agenda for the meeting is available at https://www.charlescountymd.gov/government/boards-commissions/meeting-agendas-minutes. These hearings address local land use in Waldorf, a growing community in northern Charles County with commercial corridors like Berry Road and rural areas along Poplar Hill Road. Mini-warehouse facilities require special exception approval in certain zones due to their impact on traffic, aesthetics, and surrounding development, while variances for cemeteries often relate to site constraints in protected zones. The Rural Conservation Zone prioritizes preservation of natural resources, and the RPZ protects sensitive environmental features.