Development Management

Information associated with the following records is available:

• Development Review Committee (DRC) Actions
• Limited Exemption Plans, Refinements and Amendments
• Major Subdivision Plans, Refinements and Amendments
• Minor Subdivision Plans, Refinements and Amendments
• Planned Unit Development (PUD) Plans, Refinements and Amendments
• Pre-Concept Meetings

Depending on project status, the following documents may be available:

• Preliminary written comments from reviewing agencies
• Community Input Meeting minutes
• Concept Plans
• Development Plans

Note: Planned Unit Development (PUD) applications are posted on the County Council website.

Administrative hearings are scheduled before the Baltimore County Administrative Law Judge, who has final approval authority on development plans submitted for consideration. 

• The hearings are quasi-judicial and are held during the day at the government complex in Towson.
• Notice of the hearing is made to those who identified themselves as "contact persons" at the Community Input Meeting (CIM).
• The property is posted for 20 working days prior to the hearing.
• Zoning relief or special hearings, if required, can be scheduled as part of the development plan hearing.

View upcoming virtual hearings on the calendar. 

Developers are required to hold a Community Input Meeting (CIM) following the Concept Plan Conference (CPC).

• A CIM is scheduled at a handicapped accessible public location in the vicinity of the project being proposed, or in Towson, if none is available.
• The developer is required to give written notice of the meeting to adjacent property owners as well as those community organizations identified during the CPC by the Department of Planning.
• The property is posted for a period of 21 calendar days prior to the CIM.
• Minutes of the CIM are prepared and then become part of the record.

Find information about how to participate in upcoming virtual CIMS.

The Concept Plan Conference is the first step through the full development process in Baltimore County.

• Once a developer has submitted to Baltimore County a concept plan for development, the plan is preliminarily reviewed by County agencies responsible for development approval.
• At the Concept Plan Conference, the developer receives written agency comments.
• The Concept Plan is not approved by Baltimore County.
• At the CPC, the developer is provided names and addresses of community organizations to be invited to the CIM.

Find information about how to participate in upcoming CPC meetings.

The County Review Group (CRG) process was the process for reviewing and approving proposed development in Baltimore County between 1982 and 1992.

• The process consisted of a developer submitting a concept plan to Baltimore County for consideration of approval.
• Within 10 days, a pre-CRG meeting was scheduled where the agencies of the county who review development, primarily the departments of Planning, Zoning, Environmental Protection and Sustainability, and Public Works and Transportation, provide written comments on the plan's general compliance with the development and other pertinent regulations.
• A CRG meeting was then scheduled approximately 10 days later where the developer received written comments and a recommendation of approval or denial of the plan.
• At the CRG meeting citizen have the opportunity to provide testimony on the proposed development.
• The CRG is co-chaired by a representative of the Department of Planning and the Department of Public Works.
• Since March, 1992, the only CRGs held are ones that are proposing material changes to the previously approved plan. No new CRGs have been filed with Baltimore County until recently.

The Development Plan Conference (DPC) is where written comments by county agencies are submitted to developer's and their engineers.

• The developer has submitted his actual development plan to be considered by the Administrative Law Judge by the time the DPC is scheduled.
• Those written comments are forwarded to the Administrative Law Judge for his consideration of approval of the proposed development plan.

The Development Review Committee (DRC) is comprised of representatives of the Baltimore County departments responsible for reviewing and approving development in the County.

• Members are appointed by their respective department heads and act at the behest of the department head.
• The DRC meets weekly to determine which projects meet the requirements for limited exemptions to the development regulations or whether changes to previously approved plans meet the requirements of refinements to those plans. View the meeting schedule.
• A representative of the Department of Permits, Approvals and Inspections (PAI) chairs the DRC.

The actions of the DRC hearings are published by Baltimore County.

For additional information about the DRC, contact Lloyd Moxley at lmoxley@baltimorecountymd.gov or 410-887-3321.

A Pre-Concept Plan Conference (PCPC) is where individuals interested in development explain their proposal to the six major reviewing agencies: 

• Development Management
• Zoning Review
• Development Plans Review
• Department of Planning
• Department of Recreation and Parks—Landscaping
• Department of Environmental Protection and Sustainability—Development Coordination

General Information will be provided to help guide you through the development process. These meetings are informative but nonbinding.

The PCPCs are held by appointment only on Monday mornings excluding holidays. Each applicant is allotted 45 minutes to meet and discuss their proposal with the County representatives. Requests are required to be submitted by noon the Thursday before the PCPC to be considered for the upcoming conference. There is a $75.00 fee for the meeting. 

Please download the Pre-Concept Plan Conference Form to view the requirements.