Finksburg Corridor Plan - Carroll County Government

Finksburg Corridor Plan
To create opportunities for non-motorized travel in the community and to provide additional
recreational opportunities for all age levels
Environmental Sensitivity
To recognize and respond to the essential need to protect water quality in Liberty Reservoir
and its tributaries
To create development that limits adverse environmental impact
Gateway and Design
To establish a visually appealing gatewayGateway that welcomes residents and visitors to
Carroll County
To provide incentives for redevelopment within the Finksburg corridor that createscreate
community assets
To provide flexibility in regulations and design standards to allow for the creation of the
concepts desired in the community’s core
To create usable and friendly public spaces and community gathering spots
To locate the appropriate needed public facilities in the corridor
To enhance the feeling of public and personal safety
Major Concepts & Intended Accomplishments
In examining the study area for this update (the 1981 planning area), a clear contrast was
discerned observed between higher intensity uses focused on the gatewayGateway area and
historic Finksburg community, and the lower intensity uses and associated zoning just beyond
this area. Within the gatewayGateway area is found a concentration and intensity of
transportation issues, aesthetic concerns, and environmental concernsconsiderations related to
the reservoir and its headwaters not found elsewhere in the study area. Much of the land covered
by the 1981 plan that lies outside of the gatewayGateway area already has been developed as
low-density residential subdivisions, though some concentrations of agricultural and resource
lands also existremain, particularly around adjacent to the reservoir. Outside the
gatewayGateway, transportation concerns and aesthetic issues related to commercial and
industrial uses are more isolated. Additionally, environmental concerns here are mitigated
somewhat by the much lower intensities of land uses and zoning. Because of the highly
differentiated character of these two areas, the Finksburg Corridor Plan culminates in the
creation of a much smaller plan area that is focused on urban development and redevelopment
issues. Lower density areas of the 1981 planning area are now proposed to be addressed in the
countywide Countywide master Master planPlan.
The Finksburg Corridor Plan represents changes in the policy of land use development
that have taken place in the Finksburg area since the 1970’s. The elimination of the Community
Planning Area (now referred to as “Designated Growth Area”) designation for the land outside of
the Corridor boundaries affirms the concept that this portion of the countyCounty is best suited
for lower intensity land use. The Finksburg Corridor area that remains is a mix of historic
residential areas, contemporary retail uses, light and heavy industrial development, and scattered
community institutions and uses. The urban nature of this corridor area and the need to focus
redevelopment and revitalization efforts within it make the corridor suitable to
remaincharacterization of the corridor appropriate for continued identification as a Designated
Growth Area.
Approved by Carroll County Planning & Zoning Commission - October 2010Revised Draft – November 2012 ♦ 7
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