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RESOLUTION 1-2010 A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF TRAPPE ADOPTING THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR THE TOWN OF TRAPPE WHEREAS, pursuant to Article 66B § 3.05(b) of the Annotated Code of Maryland, the Trappe Planning Commission determined that the Comprehensive Plan for Trappe should be updated and amended; and PY WHEREAS, in accordance with Md. Code Ann. Article 66B, § 3.07(b) after duly advertised public hearings, an updated Comprehensive Plan for the Town of Trappe has been approved by the Trappe Planning Commission, duly certified and recommended to the Council of Trappe for adoption; C O NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of Trappe, that the Comprehensive Plan for Trappe, Maryland, dated April, 2010, a copy of which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference herein, be and is hereby adopted as the Comprehensive Plan for Trappe, Maryland. ED AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this Resolution be affixed to and be made a part of the Comprehensive Plan for Trappe, Maryland. U N C ER TI FI ADOPTED this _______ day of ______________________________, 2010. __________________________ Robert Croswell __________________________ Walter Chase __________________________ Norm Fegel __________________________ Rosalee Potter __________________________ Richard Dorbin I hereby certify that the foregoing Resolution Number _________ of the Town of Trappe was duly read and enacted in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Charter of the Town of Trappe. U N C ER TI FI ED C O PY Attest: _______________________ Joedy Cecil, Clerk/Treasurer Town of Trappe Resolution 1-2010 Trappe Comprehensive Plan 2010 Page 2 U N C ER TI FI ED C O PY Town of Trappe Comprehensive Plan April 2010 THE TOWN OF TRAPPE 2010 COMPREHENSIVE PLAN TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION I. AUTHORITY ..................................................................................................................1 II. PLAN PURPOSE ...........................................................................................................1 PY III. TWELVE VISIONS .....................................................................................................1 O IV. SCOPE ..........................................................................................................................3 C V. PLANNING AREA .......................................................................................................3 U N C ER TI FI ED CHAPTER 1 - Background Element ...............................................................................4 1.1 Introduction ...................................................................................................................4 1.2 Regional Setting ...........................................................................................................4 1.3 Some History ................................................................................................................5 1.3.1. Early Exploration ..............................................................................................5 1.3.2. Roads.................................................................................................................5 1.3.3. Steamboats/Shipping .......................................................................................6 1.3.4. Railroads ...........................................................................................................6 1.3.5. Automobiles ......................................................................................................7 1.3.6. Sewers ...............................................................................................................7 1.3.7. Water .................................................................................................................8 1.3.8. Storm Drains .....................................................................................................8 1.3.9. Public Facilities ................................................................................................8 1.4 Soils ..............................................................................................................................9 1.5 Existing Land Use .........................................................................................................9 1.6 Population ...................................................................................................................10 1.7 Sewer System Considerations .....................................................................................10 CHAPTER 2 – Goals and Objectives .............................................................................13 2.1 Goals ...........................................................................................................................13 2.2 Goals Summary .........................................................................................................14 2.3 Objectives ...................................................................................................................14 i Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 2.3.1. 2.3.2. 2.3.3. 2.3.4. 2.3.5. 2.3.6. 2.3.7. 2.3.8. Land Use .........................................................................................................14 Transportation .................................................................................................16 Public Services ..............................................................................................16 Natural Resources ...........................................................................................17 Intergovernmental Cooperation ......................................................................17 Aesthetics ........................................................................................................18 Fiscal .............................................................................................................19 Implementation ...............................................................................................19 N C ER TI FI ED C O PY CHAPTER 3 – Land Use Element .................................................................................21 3.1 Land Use Changes in the Town since the 2002 Comprehensive Plan ........................21 3.1.1. Changes in the Town’s Land Use Regulations Since 2002 ............................22 3.1.2. Annexations Since 2002 .................................................................................22 3.1.3. Downtown Revitalization .............................................................................24 3.2 The Land Use Districts ...............................................................................................24 3.2.1. Village Center .................................................................................................24 3.2.2. Neighborhood Conservation District ............................................................25 3.2.3. Planned Neighborhood District.......................................................................26 3.2.4. Commercial and Industrial Areas ...................................................................28 Village Center Commercial Districts ..............................................................28 General Commercial Districts .......................................................................28 Regional Commercial Floating Zone District .................................................28 Highway Commercial Mixed Use Floating Zone Districts ............................29 Light Industrial................................................................................................29 3.2.5. Greenway ........................................................................................................30 3.2.6. Annexation and the Planning Areas................................................................30 U CHAPTER 4 – Municipal Growth Element .................................................................32 4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................32 4.2 Past Growth Patterns of the Town of Trappe..............................................................33 4.3 Future Growth Patterns and Build-Out Analysis ........................................................33 4.3.1. Newly Annexed Areas .....................................................................................33 4.3.2. Additional Infill Areas-Build-Out Analysis.....................................................34 4.4 Population Projections ................................................................................................35 4.5 Character of the Population .......................................................................................38 4.6 Future Growth Needs – Growth Area ........................................................................39 4.7 Public Services and Infrastructure Needed to Accommodate Growth Within the Town and the Growth Areas ....................................................................39 4.7.1. Assessments of Impacts on Infrastructure and Sesrvices ................................40 ii Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 4.7.2. Public Services and Infrastructure Required for Lakeside Development ........43 4.7.3. Public Services and Infrastructure Required for White Marsh Development Area ...........................................................................................45 O PY CHAPTER 5 - Transportation .......................................................................................46 5.1 Transportation .............................................................................................................46 5.2 Roadway Inventory .....................................................................................................46 5.3 Level of Service ..........................................................................................................47 5.4 Transportation Policies ...............................................................................................48 5.5 The Transportation Plan .............................................................................................50 5.6 Town Street Classification System .............................................................................50 5.7 Transportation Requirements Within New Development...........................................51 N C ER TI FI ED C CHAPTER 6 – Community Facilities ............................................................................52 6.1 Overall Objectives ......................................................................................................52 6.2 Sewer System Improvements ......................................................................................53 6.3 Water System Improvements ......................................................................................54 6.4 Stormwater Management ............................................................................................54 6.5 Community Recreation ...............................................................................................55 6.6 Police Protection ........................................................................................................56 6.7 Fire Protection .............................................................................................................56 6.8 Public Buildings and Facilities ...................................................................................57 6.9 Cultural .....................................................................................................................57 6.10 Technology Infrastructure .........................................................................................57 U CHAPTER 7 – Water Resources Element.....................................................................58 7.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................58 7.2 Goals and Objectives ..................................................................................................58 7.3 General Background ...................................................................................................59 7.3.1. Topography and Geology ...............................................................................59 7.3.2. Soil Types .......................................................................................................61 7.3.3. Drainage ..........................................................................................................61 7.4 Water Sources for the Town of Trappe.......................................................................64 7.4.1. Piney Point Formation ....................................................................................64 7.4.2. Magothy Formation ........................................................................................65 7.5 Town of Trappe Existing Water System and Service Area ........................................65 7.6 Future Planning for Water Services ............................................................................66 iii Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 PY 7.6.1 Old Town (Existing Service Area). ..................................................................67 7.6.2. Lakeside PN District – Water Services .............................................................68 7.6.3. White Marsh Development Area – Future Water Services ..............................69 7.7 Town of Trappe Existing Sewerage System and Service Area ..................................69 7.8 Future Planning for Sewer Service .............................................................................74 7.8.1. Old Town (Existing Service Area) ..................................................................75 7.8.2. Lakeside PN Development ..............................................................................75 7.8.3. White Marsh Development Area .....................................................................77 7.9. Point Source Nutrient Loads ....................................................................................78 7.10. Non-point Sources ...................................................................................................79 7.11. Total Nutrient Loading ............................................................................................80 FI ED C O CHAPTER 8 – Sensitive Areas .......................................................................................82 8.1 Overall Objectives ......................................................................................................82 8.2. Threatened and Endangered Species Habitat .............................................................82 8.3 Streams and Stream Buffers........................................................................................82 8.4 Nontidal Wetlands .....................................................................................................83 8.5 Critical Areas ..............................................................................................................83 8.6 Agricultural Land .......................................................................................................83 TI CHAPTER 9 – Mineral Resources Element ..................................................................84 U N C ER CHAPTER 10 - Implementation ....................................................................................86 10.1 Implementation .........................................................................................................86 10.2 Future Goals ..............................................................................................................87 iv Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 TABLES, FIGURES AND MAPS Tables U N C ER TI FI ED C O PY Table 1 (A) Town of Trappe Existing Land Use and Zoned Land Use .......................................9 Table 4(A) Talbot County Population Figures and Projections ...............................................35 Table 4(B) Population Projections – Town of Trappe .............................................................36 Table 4(C) Average Annual Growth Rates (Ten Year Periods) – Town of Trappe ...............37 Table 7(A) Inventory of Community Wells – Town of Trappe (Public) ................................65 Table 7(B) Town of Trappe Existing Water Plan ...................................................................66 Table 7(C) Town of Trappe Future Old-Town Water Demand Forecasts ..............................67 Table 7(D) Trappe Existing Wastewater Treatment Plant Design Discharge Criteria ....................................................................................70 Table 7(E) Existing Trappe Sewage Treatment Plant ............................................................70 Table 7(F) Wastewater Treatment Plant Permit Performance ...............................................71 Table 7(G) Wastewater Treatment Plant Flows (MGD) .......................................................72 Table 7(H) Inventory and Summary of Existing Pump Stations ...........................................73 Table 7(I) Trappe Current and Projected Future Wastewater Flow.....................................78 Table 7(J) Trappe Current and Projected Future Point Source Loading ...........................................................................................78 Table 7(K) Current and Projected Future Land Uses .............................................................80 v Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 Table 7(L) Current and Projected Future Nonpoint Source Loading ....................................80 Table 7(M) Current and Projected Future Total Nutrient Loading .........................................81 Figures ED C O PY Figure 1 Town of Trappe in Relation to the Geologically Defined Terraces in Talbot County, Maryland ...................................................................................60 Figure 2 General Soil Map, Talbot County, Maryland ................................................................. 62A Figure 3 Chesapeake Bay Region with the general location of the Choptank River Basin..........................................................................................................63 Figure 4 Surface Mine Location.......................................................................................................85 Maps FI Map 1 TI Land Use Plan, Trappe, Maryland ................................................. End of Chapter 3 Map 2 ER Annexation Plan, Trappe, Maryland .............................................. End of Chapter 3 Map 3 Map 4 C Transportation Plan, Trappe, Maryland – Street System ............... End of Chapter 5 Map 5 U N Transportation Plan, Trappe, Maryland Alternative Interchange Location Concepts........................... End of Chapter 5 Transportation Plan, Trappe, Maryland Pedestrian Systems................................................................ End of Chapter 5 Map 6 Community Facilities Plan, Trappe, Maryland Long Range Planning Water Service Areas........................... End of Chapter 7 Map 7 Community Facilities Plan, Trappe, Maryland Long Range Planning Sewer Service Areas .......................... End of Chapter 7 vi Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 PY O C ED FI TI ER C N U vii Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 Introduction I. AUTHORITY Article 66B of the Annotated Code of Maryland, entitled Zoning and Planning, delegates basic planning and land use regulatory powers to the Town of Trappe. Accordingly, this Comprehensive Plan for Trappe was prepared in compliance with Sections 3.05, 3.06, 3.07 and 3.08 of the statute. Sections 3.07 and 3.08 address procedures for the Plan’s review and adoption. II. PLAN PURPOSE ER TI FI ED C O PY The purpose of this Comprehensive Plan is to ensure coordinated and harmonious development in the Town and its environs, while preserving the natural and traditional village settings so central to its character. The Comprehensive Plan is the primary guiding document for all decisions pertaining to the orderly development and conservation of the Town of Trappe. The Plan is also the repository of goals and objectives for the future. It is the basis for the subsequent development of land use laws, ordinance, and regulations. The Plan’s recommendations, policies, goals, objectives, principles, and standards are to be carried out through these land use laws. The Plan’s geographic descriptions and delineation of recommendations and policies are to be carried out through the administration of our zoning ordinance, including our zoning map. The Plan shall be used for making findings of fact concerning project/plan consistency when reviewing applications such as special exception requests, variance requests from the strict application of ordinance standards and requests for rezoning. C In order to qualify for state and federal funds, all projects must demonstrate consistency with the Comprehensive Plan, as specified in our adopted project review procedures. U N In pursuit of these purposes, the Plan seeks to promote health, safety, order, convenience, prosperity, minimum taxes and the general welfare, as well as efficiency and economy in the development. Our goals include adequate provisions for light and air, traffic, utilities, and other public requirements. The Plan also promotes the healthful and convenient distribution of population, good civic design and arrangement, conservation of natural resources, reduction in resource consumption, prevention of environmental pollution, and wise and efficient expenditure of public funds. III. TWELVE VISIONS The content, focus, and thrust of the Trappe Comprehensive Plan are guided by the following twelve visions identified in Article 66B, Section 1.01, which provide the framework for growth management and sound planning within Trappe and its environs: 1 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 1) We will strive to achieve and maintain a high quality of life through universal stewardship of the land, water and air resulting in sustainable communities and protection of the environment. 2) We will continue to encourage public participation in planning, community initiatives and local government. 3) We will concentrate development in suitable areas, and we will work with Talbot County to ensure growth is directed to existing population centers and that resource areas are protected. PY 4) We will continue to adhere to community design that embraces the core of Trappe, and ensure that new development and redevelopment is compact, includes a mixture of uses, where appropriate, and includes a walkable design consistent with the existing community character, including open spaces and recreational areas, while maintaining any historical, cultural and archeological resources. C O 5) We will ensure that the Town’s growth areas have water and sewer resources and infrastructure to accommodate population and business expansion in an orderly, efficient and environmentally sustainable manner. ED 6) We will work within Trappe and the Eastern Shore to ensure a well-maintained, multi-modal transportation system that facilitates the safe, convenient, affordable, and efficient movement of people, goods and services within and between population and business centers. TI FI 7) We will encourage and promote a range of housing densities, types and sizes to provide housing options for citizens of all ages and incomes. ER 8) We will encourage appropriate economic development that promote employment opportunities for all income levels, including public services and public sectors. U N C 9) We will continue a universal stewardship ethic for the Chesapeake Bay and our land, and will protect our sensitive areas and ensure that our land, water and natural resources are utilized appropriately. 10) We will balance the conservation of forests, agricultural areas, open space, natural systems and scenic areas with growth and development. 11) We will encourage stewardship within the public sector, businesses, and residence to promote sustainable communities. As part of this vision, we will work to reduce resource consumption and promote conservation and recycling. 12) We will work on implementing our goals and objectives, and work with Talbot County, and the State of Maryland to achieve these visions. As part of the implementation, we will actively seek out funding mechanisms to achieve these visions. 2 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 IV. SCOPE The Comprehensive Plan deals with growth and development of the Trappe planning area for the next ten to fifteen years. Many of the issues and opportunities addressed by the Plan may be valid beyond this time horizon. Specific determinations, additions, refinements, and amendments may be undertaken from time to time, as needed. However, state law requires that at a minimum, a comprehensive review of the Plan be undertaken at regular six-year intervals. PY Our Comprehensive Plan is not intended to be a rigid set of specifications forcing specific development projects. It is intended, rather, to be a practical guide to assist development decisions and provide continuity of vision about the character, location, and types of future land uses. It also establishes the “big picture” of community needs. The Plan provides the basis for housing, economic development, and other public policy initiatives that may be developed in further detail by our Town leaders. ED C O The Trappe Comprehensive Plan was last revised and updated in 2002. In preparing this Plan, the Town reviewed the Talbot County Comprehensive Plan, adopted in February, 2005, as well as the Talbot County Comprehensive Water and Sewerage Plan, 2002 Report of the Review. In comparing the Town’s Comprehensive Plan and the Talbot County Comprehensive Plan, the Town’s planning area has not increased significantly since 1973 and is illustrated within this document to demonstrate the history of Trappe’s growth area. FI V. PLANNING AREA U N C ER TI We have established a planning area of about 710 acres. It extends beyond Town limits to include parcels that we think will have an effect on our growth management strategies and priorities (for example, lands which may be considered for future annexation and growth). Maps showing the planning areas are included in the Land Use Element. The planning area has been significantly reduced as two areas in the Trappe planned growth area – the White Marsh Village Planned Annexation Area and the Trappe East Planned Annexation Area, now known as Lakeside, have been annexed by the Town since the adoption of the 2002 Comprehensive Plan. The planning area in the 2002 Trappe Comprehensive Plan, consisting of 2,665 acres, was established by the Town after discussions with the Maryland Office of Planning. These discussions took place after a thorough review of the Town’s 1973 Comprehensive Plan and Talbot County’s Comprehensive Plan. The Maryland Office of Planning and the Talbot County Planning Office both concurred in the designation of a planning area that extends beyond the town limits and with the boundaries proposed for our planning effort. Our planning area corresponds closely with the County’s designated growth area for the Trappe region. Our Plan is intended to provide elaboration and specificity for the area and focus development priorities and our preferences for the future mix of land uses. 3 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 CHAPTER 1 Background Element The Background Element provides a general overview and summary of our Town, its residents, and how we grew. It provides a context for planning. 1.1 Introduction O PY This Background Element presents an overview of our physical setting, some insight on our past, and a summary of current conditions. It includes statistical information about residents of our town and the surrounding area we have identified as our “planning area.” The planning area includes parcels that have the potential to affect our growing management strategies and priorities now and in the future. Our current land use pattern, our available public services and community facilities, and our environmental constraints are also discussed. This information provides a context, or framework, for our Comprehensive Plan. ED C An understanding of who we are, how our town evolved, and what our strengths and opportunities are provide the people of Trappe with a foundation for a commonly shared vision of our future. That vision comprises the heart of our Comprehensive Plan. It is the basis for our goals for the future and specific objectives we want to realize to help us achieve our goals. Regional Setting ER 1.2 TI FI The Background Element provides a helpful starting point for thinking about such issues as growth management, economic development, infill development of vacant lots, municipal expansion, the character of our community and the quality of life our residents want. U N C The Town of Trappe is located in Talbot County within the Atlantic coastal plain region on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. We straddle US Route 50 about six miles south of the Town of Easton, which is the county seat. Cambridge, the county seat of Dorchester County is about seven miles further south, across the Choptank River. Our location provides us a convenient commute to these two regional employment centers while our residents can enjoy the benefits of small town living. We live within about an hour and a half drive of both Baltimore and Washington, D.C. and are about two and a half hours south of Philadelphia. Our region includes the southern part of Talbot County, which is rural and mainly agricultural in nature. Neighboring communities of Easton and Cambridge have relocated their shopping districts away from US Route 50 to a designated area on their bypass or within a commercial redevelopment area. The typical “Gas and Go” industry supported by commuters and transients continues to occupy a place along the primary highway US Route 50 in both Easton and Cambridge. Our county seat, Easton, has become a regional shopping center. Of our county’s boundary, about 600 miles is waterfront shoreline. The Chesapeake Bay, the Choptank River, and its many small tributaries continue to influence the character and lifestyle in the region. 4 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 1.3 Some History 1.3.1. Early Exploration O PY Traders from William Claiborne’s fort on the southern shores of Kent Island explored the Choptank River in the 1630’s. For nearly 30 years after Claiborne’s traders made their initial forays, settlement of what is today known as Trappe District was blocked by politics and Indian problems. However, by 1659 large land grants were being made in the area. “After 1662, when Talbot County was established, the trickle of settlers and land speculators became a flood. Almost all the land along Island Creek, Dividing Creek and the choicer parts of the Choptank was patented within the next few years…. Henry Alexander was first owner of the land on which the village of Trappe later grew, at the “head of Dividing Creek” – an indication that the inlet now named LaTrappe Creek was navigable much farther upstream than it is today.” Dixon Preston, Trappe, The Story of an Old-Fashioned Town, 12-13 (Economy Printing Co. 1996) (1976). C 1.3.2. Roads ER TI FI ED “Before 1687, Trappe District had no roads except the old Indian foot paths. Nearly all travel was by water.” Preston, supra, at 12. In 1690, a simple Anglican church was built at a place called Whitemarsh in the northern part of what was to become the Trappe District. The ruins of this church, which burned in 1897, are about three miles north of Trappe near modern Hambleton. Today, the ruins of Whitemarsh Church appear to be located in a rather strange spot far from any real concentration of people. However, in 1692, its location made perfect sense. U N C In the seventeenth century, British ships unloaded some of their cargo on the upper Choptank River. The nearest town to their anchorage was a Talbot County town called “Dover” where a ferry crossed into what is now Caroline County. This town was the original destination of Dover Street and Dover Road leading eastward from Easton. Dover no longer exists. British captains sometimes preferred the small port of Dover because, as they unloaded their cargo, the fresh water in the upper Choptank would kill the saltwater ship worms that attacked the hulls of their ships. In those early days, the principal road in southern Talbot County was from Dover on the upper Choptank to Oxford on the Tred Avon. The halfway point on this road was at a small settlement, now Hambleton, where Whitemarsh Church and infamous “Hole in the Wall” tavern were located. Tradition has it that smuggled goods from Britain changed hands through a small hole in a wall between rooms to preserve the anonymity of the lawbreakers. The goods then found their way to Oxford and beyond. The church and the tavern were sensibly located in a small population center with a solid, however nefarious, commercial base. 5 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 In the mid 18th century, two roads gradually achieved importance in the lower part of Talbot County. One led from Talbot Court House (Easton) to the church at Whitemarsh and then south to a ferry landing at the tip of Chancellor’s Point on the Choptank across from Cambridge. The other connected the plantations on the southern shores of Island Creek with Abott’s Grist Mill located on Miles Creek, which had been an important destination since at least 17 and possible earlier. The Abott Mill, later called Wright’s Mill, increased in importance as wheat gradually replaced tobacco as the chief cash crop of the Trappe area. By the 1760’s, a few houses, stores, and a tavern had located at the crossroads of these north-south and east-west travel routes. By 1776, a blacksmith shop, a silversmith, and a tailor were commercial additions. Some time during the Revolutionary years the name “the Trap” began to appear in land records that referred to this crossroads hamlet. Numerous colorful legends explain the origin of the name, and the village was alternately referred to as Trap, the Trap, Trapp, The Trappe, Trapton or simply Trappe. TI 1.3.3. Steamboats/shipping FI ED C O PY Those early roads were expanded and improved, and new roads were added to serve the growth and development that occurred over time. Today Trappe is split by a divided dual lane highway (US 50), also known as Ocean Gateway, which is classified by the State Highway Administration as a Major Arterial. MD 565 (Main Street) also serves our planning area and is classified as a Secondary Collector. Barber Rd., Howell Pt. Rd., Island Creek Rd., and Piney Hill Rd. are the principal County roads that serve the planning area and feed into our system of town-owned streets. These County roads are classified as “major collectors” by the Talbot County Roads Department (since they serve more than 50 housing units). Since 2002, a portion of both Barber Road and Piney Hill Road have been annexed into the Town of Trappe. U N C ER Steam boating on the Choptank was part of Trappe life beginning in 1823, when the sidewheeler Albemarle started trips to Cambridge with a stop at Howell’s Point for Talbot County passengers and freight. “After Dividing Creek, renamed the LaTrappe River, was deepened with the help of federal funds, a company was formed by local businessmen to build a steamboat wharf at Trappe Landing. In 1884, Kirby’s Wharf was built stretching 800 feet out into the shallow Choptank to reach water deep enough for steamboats. Soon after completion, three steamboat companies were using the two landings and competing for Trappe customers with 16 trips weekly. Besides carrying passengers, they brought down mail and manufactured goods from Baltimore, and took back fish, crabs, oysters, potatoes, tomatoes, peaches, apples, melons and livestock. It was the Trappe area’s chief shipping center for nearly 40 years. The Kirby’s Wharf Company was disbanded in 1922, when auto and truck transportation ended the long reign of the steamboats.” Preston, supra, p. 83. Trappe Landing was used as a commercial grain shipping port until the early 1970’s when Trappe Landing Grain was moved to Route 50. 1.3.4. Railroads The Maryland and Delaware Railroad, completed to Oxford in 1872, skirted Trappe District’s northern edge. The depot that served Trappe was about four miles to the north and was 6 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 first called Melson’s stop before being changed to Trappe Station. It provided three deliveries of mail daily and provided passenger and freight access to Baltimore by way of Delaware. However, the lack of direct in town access was a disappointment to area boosters and placed Trappe at an economic development disadvantage compared to other spots on the rail line. 1.3.5. Automobiles FI ED C O PY The early 1900’s saw the first automobile owned by a local resident. “It was 1909 before the Trappe Commissioners even got around to establishing an automobile speed limit of eight miles an hour, the same as that applied to horses, on the town’s streets.” Preston, supra, p. 80. Things remained relatively quiet in Trappe until 1935 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt personally inaugurated the Choptank River Bridge by sailing through its draw in his yacht, Sequoia. Officially called the Emerson C. Harrington Bridge, it ended Trappe’s importance as the hub of a peninsula bounded by the Choptank River and Island Creek by linking the upper and lower eastern shore. The increase in traffic through town was not necessarily to Trappe’s advantage. Changing traffic patterns brought mixed blessings. While business prospered, Red Star Line buses and “big” interstate trucks, which had formerly crossed the Chesapeake Bay via ferries on the lower shore, now rumbled through town day and night. Speeding traffic, parking conflicts and accidents led local citizens to complain about the changes in their quality of life. The bailiff, “empowered to enforce the traffic laws, was authorized to keep all the fines he could collect, but the Board made it clear that the town ‘shall not be responsible in any way for anything he might do’.” Id. at 118. The official town speed limit (of eight miles per hour) was not repealed until 1948. C ER TI Enforcement was no real solution, and over the protests of the business community plans for a new federal highway, to be called U.S. 50, with a bypass around Trappe moved forward. Route 50 was completed as a two-lane highway in 1947 and later widened to four lanes. Merchants interested in truck and tourist trade immediately moved out to the bypass, the town relaxed, and Main Street once again belonged to the residents of Trappe. N 1.3.6. Sewers U Another controversy that paralleled the end of World War II was the question of a sewer system for Trappe. Favored by 17 of 19 town leaders, townspeople voted 64 to 26 against central sewers in 1949. Ten years later, Talbot Delegate Thomas Hunter Lowe was able to pass a law that enabled Talbot County towns to change their charters and issue bonds without resort to referendum. The Town Council adopted a new charter in December 1960 by simple voice vote and promptly began work on the sewer system again. A bank loan of $30,000, a federal grant of $65,000 and a bond issue of a little over $125,000 financed the town’s first major infrastructure project. This bond was retired in 2002. In 2002, the treatment system was upgraded to a Biolac® treatment system with chlorination/dechlorination and sand filtration. This treatment occurs prior to discharging the treated effluent into a tributary of LaTrappe Creek. The 2002 upgrade included an influent 7 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 screen, an extended aeration basin, a clarifier, sand filters, and a sludge holding pond. The effluent screen is sized for 1000 gpm. The existing wastewater system has a design and permit limitation of 200,000 gallons per day (.2 mgd) per day average daily flow and a design capacity of 200,000 (0.2 mgd), gallons per day of domestic wastewater with a peak flow capacity of 277 gallons per minute (400,00 gallons per day rate). The plant has a reserve capacity of approximately 64,000 gpd (0.064 mgd). Sludge was removed from the primary pond in 2002. The citizens of Trappe are obligated to repay $3.5 million of debt associated with the upgrade of the existing systems. The Town owns and operates the wastewater plant, and seven pumping stations. 1.3.7. Water C O PY The Town of Trappe also owns and operates the existing water and sewer facilities. The County government has provided no support or services in connection with those systems, which are supported exclusively by the Town of Trappe and its citizens. The original water system and an original water tower were installed in 1927. The aquifers that underlie the Town of Trappe and Planning Area are generally the Piney Point, Aquia and Magothy aquifers. The Town of Trappe currently has two wells in the Piney Point aquifer, and a single 250,000 gallon elevated storage tank. ED 1.3.8. Storm Drains C ER TI FI Trappe’s storm drains consist of roadside ditches and pipe culverts that convey storm water runoff into streams that drain to La Trappe Creek and Miles Creek. Inadequate drainage exists due to dependence on other government agencies to maintain their systems. The Town of Trappe requires all developers to pay for, and implement acceptable stormwater management techniques. The crossings under U.S. Rt. 50 have been inadequate to handle several storms, resulting in flooding of lawns and low-lying properties. That situation was improved by cleaning the ditch on the East side of Rt. 50. In addition, other areas of Town are subject to periodic flooding, especially Harrison Circle. N 1.3.9. Public Facilities U The Town of Trappe offers its residents curbside trash pickup, a full time municipal police department, 24 hour/7 day a week trained ALS station, volunteer fire department, four municipal parks, a post office, town hall, and municipal water/sewer system. Children of Trappe attend Talbot County Schools, and have convenient access to White Marsh Elementary located within the town which serves pre-k through fifth grade. Enrollment at White Marsh Elementary is currently 246 students and is projected to remain constant. Additionally, residents of the area are served in part by the University of Maryland Shore Health System, and those desiring higher education are within an easy commute of Salisbury University and Chesapeake Community College. DSL, Cable, Broadband, Wi-Fi and cellular phone service is also available as is limited bus service. 8 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 1.4 Soils Existing Land Use O 1.5 PY The soils of Talbot County have been analyzed and described in considerable detail by the Soil Conservation Service. Soils of the Trappe Planning Area were surveyed in 1969, and the results have been published in the Soil Survey of Talbot County, Maryland, William U. Reybold, United States Department of Agriculture, Soil Conservation Service, Washington D.C. The soils maps applicable to the Trappe Planning Area are set forth on Figure 2. With respect to recent sediments, the primary soil association in the immediate Trappe area is the SassafrasWoodstown association. These soils are generally level, deep, and well drained. Much of the land in the lower portions of Talbot County is very productive agricultural soil. Two agricultural parcels, totaling about 300 acres, that extend into the west side of town, have agricultural district status. An additional 2,200 acres are also in agricultural districts in the areas immediately adjacent to our planning area. Of these lands, 1,350 acres have been protected through sales of development easements. An additional 86 acres off Howell Point Road within Trappe’s Planning Area are within a MALPF district but not permanently preserved at this time. ED C The “Existing Land Use and Zoned Land Use” (Table 1(A)) summarizes the existing and zoned land uses within the Town of Trappe: FI Table 1(A) U N C ER TI Town of Trappe Existing Land Use and Zoned Land Existing Land Use Zoned Land Land Use Acres Percent Acres Percent Single Family Residential 177 10.8% 365 22.2% Multi-family Residential 8 0.5% 18 1.1% Mixed Use 1 0 0.0% 998 60.6% Commercial 41 2.5% 78 4.8% 2 Industrial 22 1.3% 42 2.6% 3 Agriculture 1,266 76.9% 25 1.5% Park & Open Space 25 1.5% 25 1.5% 1 Includes a mix of residential (e.g., single family attached and detached, townhouse, multifamily), commercial, civic, recreation and conservation uses. Includes industrial land uses that are located in the C-2 Zone as well as land that has recently been zoned in the Industrial (“M”) District. 2 3 912.61 acres of the agricultural land is within the Lakeside PN District. 9 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 Public 4 Semi-public 5 Vacant Right-of-Way Total 25 6 17 62 1,647 1.5% 0.3% 1.0% 3.8% 100.0% 6 0 28 62 1,647 0.3% 0.0% 1.7% 3.8% 100.0% Population O 1.6 PY Like many small towns on the Eastern Shore, agriculture is the single most significant land use within our planning area. Agricultural use comprises 86% of the area next to town, and is still the single most prevalent use within town limits at 76.9%. Low-density (single family) residential use is the next most significant land use in town covering 177 acres or 10.8% of our land. Vacant land, which is unbuilt and unfarmed, includes 17 acres within town limits. There are approximately a dozen commercial or industrial businesses within the town not including home occupations. A handful of these businesses have clustered along U.S. 50 in a linear strip pattern. Sewer System Considerations C 1.7 ER TI FI ED C The land use maps of Trappe and of our planning area show the physical relationships and patterns between these land uses and provide a framework for understanding the land use proposals included in our land use and municipal growth elements. We respect the need to encourage development that is compatible with our town’s character, is located in suitable and appropriate areas, and also our responsibilities to protect the environment, improve wildlife habitat, and foster the universal stewardship ethic necessary to restore the health of the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. We have demonstrated our commitment to responsible stewardship by adopting design guidelines and regulations for new development that protect the character of the town, encourage density in appropriate areas, and facilitate new commercial activity that enhances the lives of existing, and future residents. U N In May, 2005, the Trappe Town Council adopted a Water and Sewerage Subsidiary Plan, which is intended to memorialize the current water and sewer planning for the Town of Trappe, and to establish a water and sewerage plan that is consistent with the boundaries of the Town of Trappe, the Comprehensive Plans of Talbot County and the Town of Trappe, and the current status of the Town’s existing planned water and sewer service. The Water and Sewerage Subsidiary Plan, like the Trappe Comprehensive Plan, is a planning document of the Town of Includes publicly-owned lands, e.g., town, county, and county agency owned land located in a variety of zoning districts. 4 Includes churches, schools, town facilities, fire department and public parks and other such public and semi-public uses located in a variety of zoning districts. 5 10 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 Trappe. The Town, various planning agencies, its citizens, and developers should read these planning documents together in considering land use matters affecting the Town. The current sewerage treatment facility has a permit limitation of 200,000 gallons (0.2 mgd), per day average daily flow and a design capacity of 200,000 gallons (0.2 mgd) per day of domestic wastewater with a peak flow capacity of 277 gallons per minute (400,000 gallons per day rate). As of this writing, Trappe’s sewer facility is one of the most current, up-to-date sewerage facilities in Talbot County, with one of the most stringent discharge permit limits for minor wastewater treatment plants in the Choptank River watershed. The updated sewerage plant has been in operation since the spring of 2001, and the Town has met its discharge permit parameters since the plant upgrade. The goals with respect to the current sewer facility, which operates at an average daily flow of 98,000 gallons per day. 6 ED C O PY As set forth in the Water Resources Element and Community Facilities Element, the Town will continue to adhere to its long-standing policy that the existing treatment system’s excess capacity be reserved, for planning purposes, for infill parcels located within the existing Town boundary. Within the area served by the existing facility, there are 26 undeveloped infill parcels, one substantial infill parcel of approximately 104 acres, and a couple of parcels that are eligible for highway mixed use development. In addition, there are 32 lots located on the perimeter of the Town that are still served by individual septic systems. ER TI FI With a design capacity of 200,000 gpd (0.2mgd), after deducting its reserve capacity for infill development and for White Marsh Elementary School growth (as outlined in more detail in the Water Resources Element), the Town has available capacity of 64,000 gpd (0.064 mgd) for planning purposes. With the recent changes implemented at the wastewater treatment plant, which allow the Town to use treated wastewater instead of potable water for plant operations, the Town should have an additional 30,000 gpd of capacity. This number could increase slightly when a portion of inflow and infiltration is improved. U N C It is projected that over time, most of the 26 infill lots will be improved and require sewer service. The Town will also reserve capacity for the 32 properties served by septic systems when those properties request sewer service and pay all extension and connection fees. These projected population increases can be easily served by the excess capacity in the existing treatment plant. No development plans have been proffered to the Town with respect to the 104 acre parcel, which is in agricultural use. Until a specific plan is presented and accepted, that property has been designated by the Town in the Water and Sewerage Subsidiary Plan for no planned service in the long range planning. As for the Lakeside PN District, the Town has required that the Lakeside developer design and build a wastewater treatment system within the PN development area with sufficient capacity to serve the mixed uses in that PN District. The Town has secured the necessary permits from the MDE for the construction of the system and the related land application disposal. 6 Computed for the period January, 2007 through December, 2009. 11 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 As set forth in more detail in the Water Resources Element, the Town has determined that it may be more beneficial from an operational and an environmental standpoint to require Lakeside to use the Town’s excess capacity in the short term for the initial phase of development, followed by a phased upgrade and expansion of the current wastewater treatment plant, including replacement of adequate reserve capacity for infill development. The phased expansion would include upgrades to meet discharge criteria for land application. Treated wastewater will be applied by land application on the designated primary application area, which consists of 85 acres. An additional 22 acres immediately west of the initial area has been designated as a reserve area. U N C ER TI FI ED C O PY With respect to the White Marsh Development Area, which was annexed by the Town in 2004, the Town’s existing treatment plant presently has insufficient capacity to serve the proposed development of the White Marsh Development Area. As set forth in more detail in the Water Resources Element, that service in this area will require an expansion of the existing plant and approval for discharge by MDE. 12 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 CHAPTER 2 Goals and Objectives This section supports and addresses all Twelve Visions of the Planning Act, which provides the philosophical framework for this Comprehensive Plan. Our principal goal is to manage our growth and remain a closely-knit town with primarily single family housing and commercial development. 2.1 Goals LAND USE Master planning of annexation and growth areas to ensure compatibility with existing community, and efficient utilization of land, while protecting and enhancing our residential “village character”; and taking steps to ensure choices are rooted in environmental sustainability. • TRANSPORTATION Provide for the safe movement and parking of vehicles. Provide safe and easy pedestrian and bicycle access to all parts of the community. • PUBLIC SERVICES Provide the public services needed to support compact and efficient land use patterns and the maintenance of public health and safety. • NATURAL RESOURCES Protect and improve the environmental quality of our planning area and the Chesapeake Bay through the implementation of green/sustainable practices. • INTERGOVERNMENTAL COOPERATION Foster cooperation and mutual support between Trappe and other government entities, and encourage public attendance at Planning Commission and Town Council meetings. • AESTHETICS Create and maintain a neat and attractive village encouraging input from service, historic and faith organizations. • FISCAL Maintain a favorable balance between town revenues and the expenditures required to meet community needs. Support the infrastructure necessary to create sustainable employment opportunities. U N C ER TI FI ED C O PY • 13 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 2.2 Goals Summary Our overall goal is to keep Trappe a town that its citizens are proud of. We will continue to encourage our close-knit and diverse community through cultural interaction and promoting various community, civic and religious relationships. We are dedicated to retaining the oldfashioned charm which has characterized Trappe from the beginning. Our aim is to keep our town a place which welcomes a broad cross-section of people from all walks of life. Trappe has a uniquely diverse yet cohesive populace who work together to make our Town a safe, comfortable place to live for people of all ages, races and religions. We aim to do everything in our power to keep it that way. C O PY We recognize, however, that any of our comprehensive planning is strongly influenced by a major consideration that seems to be beyond our control. That consideration is the increasingly disruptive, dangerous, and divisive influence of US Route 50. Adequately buffering US Route 50 with its associated noise and high speed is a priority as is creating safe routes for connectivity between the east and west sides of town. ER TI FI ED Our land use strategy is to promote an appropriate mix of medium and low density residential opportunities with some compatible commercial development and limited high density residential units within specific locations through the application of a Planned Neighborhood (PN) District floating zone. This normal growth and development should occur as small scale developments, primarily on the west side of Route 50, to promote a cohesive development pattern, encouraging safe walking, bicycling, and general community interaction. U N C The Lakeside District, which is located on the east side of Route 50, will be developed over time in accordance with the PN District and associated PUD that has been applied to the property within that District. As is more fully set forth in the floating zone district and associated PUD plan for that area, this development will promote the Town’s goals by ensuring that the east side of Town is developed in a series of neighborhoods in a cohesive development pattern, with good traffic patterns, promoting safe walking, bicycling, and general community interaction which contribute to making Trappe an economically viable small town. 2.3 Objectives 2.3.1. Land Use Through the planning process and application of the PN Floating Zone District, the Town has approved a plan for future growth to ensure that the development is compatible with the existing town and uses within the town. Any new additional development should be coordinated so that new uses are compatible with each other and with existing uses. The following objectives should yield compatible and efficient land use: 14 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 Conserve existing residential neighborhoods by protecting them from the incompatible land uses that could adversely affect property values and destabilize existing neighborhoods. • Encourage concentrated commercial development, served by limited, safe, and convenient access to Route 50. Discourage frequent curb cuts and focus on the immediate commercial needs of Town residents providing those services within easy walking distance of residential centers. • Discourage any residential growth along the Town’s borders in the Town’s growth area that has not been annexed and that is not served by municipal water and sewer. Such development along our borders is inefficient to serve with public facilities, is inconsistent and incompatible with our goal to protect and preserve existing community character, and will be an impediment to future annexation and controlled growth within our planning area. • Require annexation as a condition of extension of public services. • Encourage new development only in areas which can be economically served by Town water and sewer and incorporated into existing Town pattern and character. • Provide adequate open space and park areas within Town, and preserve the farms and prime agricultural soils beyond Town within our planning area giving special attention to the passage of farm machinery through Town. • Encourage development of a high tech park to provide skilled mid level employment opportunities within Town. • Discourage the development of mobile home sites. • Develop workforce housing within neighborhood centers, and residential housing for elderly within walking distance of parks and commercial areas. • Maintain the core of the Town including the post office, town office, and essential services in the area adjacent to Main Street creating a unified community. • Review the Town’s ordinances and regulations to ensure that any sexually oriented businesses are located in a manner that do not create secondary effects upon the Town or its citizens such as an increase in crime or an adverse effect on surrounding property values. U N C ER TI FI ED C O PY • 15 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 2.3.2. Transportation Both local and inter-regional traffic must be accommodated in a manner that maintains the physical unity of our Town. Efficient, safe circulation throughout Town for both automobiles and pedestrians is necessary. US Route 50 divides the Town into eastern and western parts, and heavy highway traffic makes east-west circulation difficult and dangerous. Our transportation objectives seek to improve current conditions: Support the development of alternative routes to the ocean beaches. • Maintain the high quality of our Town road system and implement planned development of access and feeder roads. • Improve pedestrian safety by providing safe routes for pedestrians that do not include walking on the shoulders of high traffic volume roadways by extending sidewalks and incorporating new trails. • Maintain low traffic volumes and speeds on local streets through the use of narrow streets in residential areas. • Encourage alternatives to single occupant automobile traffic such as park and ride facilities and bicycle routes particularly those that link Trappe to Easton, Oxford and Cambridge. • Encourage public transportation stops in Town. • Adequately buffer US Route 50. ER TI FI ED C O PY • C 2.3.3. Public Services U N Our Town government is heavily involved in the provision of public services to Trappe citizens. These services include central water and sewer services, police protection, street lighting, solid waste disposal, parks and recreation. Other organizations and governmental bodies also offer public services, including fire protection, twenty-four hour paramedic service and ambulance service provided by the Volunteer Fire Company and the medical facilities of the University of Maryland Shore Health System (Memorial Hospital) at Easton. Our public services objectives focus on maintaining and improving those services we currently provide. Community groups and the faith community assist Town government in providing opportunities for cultural gatherings and diversity awareness. For any annexations in the Town’s growth area, the developers or property owners proposing annexation and/or Town growth in the annexation areas should be economically 16 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 responsible for all adequate public facilities, including public services, for those areas. For any annexations considered by the Town, the Town will consider the following public facility goals: Maintain adequate water, sewer and storm water systems to meet Town needs as it grows. • Maintain an adequate level of police protection. • Maintain an adequate level of fire protection and ambulance service. • Provide adequate facilities for community recreation including the arts, library, and meeting center functions. • Reserve existing water/sewer capacity for infill development. PY • 2.3.4. Natural Resources C O Our most important resource is land. Lands within our planning area are mainly farms and woodlands. Future use of these parcels is also important to our citizens. To preserve and enhance these resources, the following objectives are established: Coordinate with State, County, and other bodies on all significant actions affecting unique wildlife habitats. • Give preference to preserving agricultural or other low intensity land uses, especially in areas of existing forest cover and on fields that contain prime agricultural soils. • Protect and improve the water quality of streams and waterways that drain to the Chesapeake Bay. • Promote a universal stewardship ethic toward our land, water, air and other natural resources. • Work with Talbot County to establish greenbelt areas adjacent to the Town. • Encourage a town wide recycling program. U N C ER TI FI ED • 2.3.5. Intergovernmental Cooperation As an incorporated municipality, Trappe interacts with other governmental jurisdictions and local groups. Our small size and limited fiscal base prevent us from being entirely selfsufficient and make us dependent upon other governmental bodies and agencies for some services. Accordingly, we should: 17 Trappe 2010 Comprehensive Plan April, 2010 Coordinate closely with the County in decisions affecting the use of land within our planning area, including development projects adjacent to the Town. • Provide State Highway Administration with input regarding the future of Route 50 and our need for safe east-west vehicular and pedestrian traffic. • Explore ways in which we can avail ourselves of the technical ability of other government staffs. • Coordinate closely with the County on stormwater management planning. • Support the establishment of a buffer area/greenbelt in rural areas adjacent to Town, and work to ensure the permanent protection of the greenbelt through tools such as conservation easements. • Actively invite county, state, other town officials, employees and citizens to attend meetings and events in Trappe. C O PY • 2.3.6. Aesthetics FI ED Trappe is, on the whole, neat and well maintained. A quality residential area necessitates pleasant, well-kept structures and grounds. This can be accomplished if we: Encourage the generous use of landscaping in all new development, and the use of additional landscaping where needed in areas of existing development. • Encourage open or forested vistas between neighborhoods to separate high-speed traffic from adjacent land uses and to screen the rear of commercia