The Review Process
One of the most important duties of the Planning Commission and the Planning Office is to review all development proposals within the city. These projects could range in size from a large industrial site to a small addition to an existing business.

Generally, the development review process is broken into two categories: site plans and subdivisions. There are then different levels of review for each project depending on the size, location, etc. The Planning Office is the coordinating office for all the various review agencies that look at the plans or plats. When the review process is complete and all required revisions have been made to the plans, the project is either approved at the staff level or placed on the Planning Commission agenda for consideration at their next meeting. In general, the review process from submittal to approval for staff approved projects is two to three weeks. For larger projects that must be approved by the Planning Commission, the normal review time is approximately one month.

Application Submission
All submittals must be accompanied by the appropriate plan review application and filed with the:
Planning Office
1 East Franklin Street, Suite 300
Hagerstown, MD 21740-4987

Note: A CD containing all of the development review applications can be purchased from the Planning Office.

Scheduling Consultations
If the project you are proposing is large in scale or involves controversial issues, it is highly recommended that the Planning Office be contacted so that a preliminary consultation can be scheduled to deal with these issues as soon as possible.

Contact Us
If you have further questions or need additional information please contact the Planning Office at (301) 790-4163 extension 138.