Calvert County Begins Review to Reverse Industrial Zoning on 1,352 Lusby Acres
Calvert County has begun a required 60-day review to reverse heavy-industrial I-2 zoning on 1,352 acres in Lusby near the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant. Residents support restoring forest and agricultural buffers, while Constellation Energy says the change could limit future energy projects; the proposal will eventually go to the county commissioners for a final vote.
The Calvert County Planning Commission voted to begin a state-required 60-day review of a comprehensive plan amendment that would remove I-2 heavy-industrial zoning from 1,352 acres in Lusby. The land was rezoned in 2025 and includes forested property near the Calvert Cliffs Nuclear Power Plant. The proposed amendment would restore the parcels' former rural, farm-and-forest or lighter industrial classifications and revise the county's future land-use map.
Residents argued that the rezoning occurred with inadequate notice and removed a buffer between homes and the plant property. Constellation Energy defended the industrial designation, saying it supports potential future power-generation projects, although its representative said the change would not affect upgrades at the existing plant tied to its power purchase agreement with Amazon. Amazon Web Services previously filed a site plan for a data center campus on Constellation land but has since abandoned that plan.
After the review, the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing and make a recommendation before the Board of County Commissioners makes the final decision. The vote may fall to the incoming county board because the current commissioners' term ends in December.