Got a Stake in Lexington Park?
In the next two years everything you have ever known about Lexington Park, MD, could change. So, particularly if you’ve got a stake in the place, now is the time to take a look at the proposed Lexington Park Master Plan.
This latest, and very possibly the greatest Lexington Park plan to emerge from St. Mary’s County Planning Commission is the biggest yet in scope and the finest in detail. If it’s set in motion, the change won’t be right before your eyes, which is why now is the time to see how it may impact you. Looking now at the plan and the maps could avoid surprises down the road.
Speaking of roads, they’re a big part of the plan. Citing crime reduction as well as development enticement, the plan draws where roads need to be connected to make Lexington Park more accessible and its property more valuable. The plan presents maps showing where 14 road segments should connect and complete a traffic network. The maps show what properties would open up for development, potentially what structures might need to go. The roads are not merely sketched in, but are prioritized. The planners advise that county government build these roads, even if there isn’t a developer in the wings to pay for them. They say the same about public sewer.
As with most master plans, there are plenty of wishes and visions. Dense maps and succinct narrative depict vibrant mixed-use communities that are pedestrian friendly complete with accessible light retail and environmentally delightful pocket parks. There will be housing for all and good traffic flow. These are standard visions for master plans. And if these plans materialized in the way and the order they are visualized, Lexington Park will no doubt increase in vibrancy and attractiveness.
By their very nature, plans are about what we want to have happen, they don’t in and of themselves make things happen. Zoning rules following a master plan control how development will look, but only when and if development occurs. The 2015 Lexington Park plan tries to fill in that missing piece: How to get private investment enticed to build when and where the plan wants development.
The plan calls for infrastructure investments from county government to attract development where it is sought, provides various programs to help county government offset the infrastructure costs, and identifies tax and grant incentives to draw investment to Lexington Park. The details are extensive and bold, blending the physical needs of Lexington Park into the social needs of the district, such as calling for reconfiguration of streets for the reduction of crime and return of neighborhood circulation.
There’s a lot going on with this plan. It is on its way toward consideration and adoption — or not — by St. Mary’s County commissioners. Now is the time to find out how it can impact you.
Jeffrey Jackman, Senior Planner with St. Mary’s County Department of Land Use and Growth Management, oversees the development of the Lexington Park plan recently completed by the St. Mary’s County Planning Commission. 301-475-4200 ext. 1541 [email protected]
