(1/11) At its January 10 meeting, the Town Council unanimously approved a request, Resolution 2022-08, by Apples Church to have its property annexed into the town limits.

The church, which currently owns 4.6 acres, requested the annexation to gain access to town water and sewer services. Once Apples is connected to the municipal water and sewer services, it is not expected to use a lot of water or be a burden to the service.

In addition to the church’s 4.6 acres, an additional quarter acre adjacent to the church’s property will also be annexed. The quarter acre, which is already town property but not within the town limits, houses one of the town’s water wells and town staff wanted to use the Apples Church annexation to incorporate that land into the town limits. The annexation will provide a total 4.881 acres for the church.

Mike Mathis, President of the Council of Apples UCC, represented the church at the meeting, offering to answer the commissioners’ questions as well as any questions during the public hearing. "We would really like to be part of the Town," he said.

Mathis said that the Church will be celebrating its 200-year anniversary in 2026, which the Church hopes to celebrate with the Town while within the town limits.

In November, the Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed the church’s petition and found it consistent with the Town’s Master Plan and voted unanimously to approve it, recommending that the property be zoned ‘institutional.’

"The existing uses town well, pump station and then the church property are all uses that are permitted within the institutional zoning district," Town Planner Kelly Duty said. The church property was previously zoned agriculture.

After it was approved by the Town, the annexation plan was sent to the Frederick County and Maryland State Planning Departments for comment and recommendations. The County did not return comments.

The State Planning Department agreed with Thurmont’s Planning and Zoning Commission in their findings that the proposed annexation is consistent with the Town’s Master Plan and is within Thurmont’s municipal growth boundary. The State also commented that the proposed ‘institutional’ zoning district "is not substantially different from the current county zoning from a use perspective," according to Kelly. The State also provided protocol advice for the Town to use with the approval of the annexation resolution.

The town held a public hearing before their vote on January 10, during which no one contributed.