Worcester County, MD Building Setbacks & Zoning: Lot Coverage Limits (2026)

The limit comes from the Worcester County Critical Area Law, Subtitle NR 3:I, adopted 7-2-2024 by Bill No. 24-05. It applies to Limited Development Areas, which are land in low- or moderate-intensity uses that, at initial mapping, met at least one test such as housing density from one dwelling unit per five acres up to four dwelling units per acre, or having public sewer or public water, or both (§ NR 3-107(a)).

Under § NR 3-107(c)(6), lot coverage is limited to fifteen percent of the site. A lot or parcel of one-half acre or less that existed on or before December 1, 1985 in the Chesapeake Bay, or June 1, 2002 in the Atlantic Coastal Bays, is limited to twenty-five percent of the parcel or lot. A parcel greater than one-half acre and less than one acre that existed by those dates is limited to fifteen percent. For an individual lot of one acre or less in a subdivision approved after those dates, coverage can exceed fifteen percent on that lot, but the total for the entire subdivision cannot exceed fifteen percent. A table in subparagraph E summarizes the limits by lot size in square feet.

The A and B limits can be exceeded only if all five conditions in subparagraph D exist: new coverage is minimized; for a lot of one-half acre or less, total coverage stays within twenty-five percent or five hundred square feet over the A limit, whichever is greater; for a lot greater than one-half acre and less than one acre, total coverage does not exceed the B limit or five thousand, four hundred and forty-five square feet, whichever is greater; water quality impacts are minimized through site design or best management practices; and the owner performs on-site mitigation. Under subparagraph F that mitigation takes the form of plantings, and if site constraints block stormwater treatment and plantings, the County can require a fee in lieu set by resolution of the County Commissioners.

A lot or parcel legally developed as of July 1, 2008 can be treated as legally nonconforming for lot coverage purposes (§ NR 3-107(c)(7)). Section NR 3-102 defines lot coverage as the percentage of a total lot or parcel occupied by a structure, accessory structure, parking area, driveway, walkway or roadway, or covered with a paver, stone, shell, impermeable decking or other man-made material.