Anne Arundel County Council voted unanimously Monday night to allow distilleries of varying sizes to operate in the county.

Under the approved measure, distilleries making spirits and liquor will be allowed in specific districts and will be classified based upon how many gallons of spirits they create.

Councilmen Andrew Pruski, a Gambrills Democrat, and Jerry Walker, a Crofton Republican, had sponsored the legislation.

Pruski previously said he put forth the bill to expand business growth and jobs in Anne Arundel. He compared it to the council’s previous approval of legislation allowing beer breweries — two breweries recently opened in the county, Crooked Crab Brewing in Odenton and Chesepiooc Real Ale Brewery in Crofton.

Like craft breweries, distilleries have been an expanding industry in Maryland. Several have opened in recent years, including Sagamore Spirit Distillery and Old Line Distillery in Baltimore, Blackwell Distillery at Kent Island and Lost Ark Distillery in Columbia.

Lost Ark is co-owned by Crownsville resident Brad Blackwell, who also serves as an officer of the Maryland Distillers Guild, “a community of craft producers” that promotes the industry and sponsors events across the state, according to its website.

Also this past week, the council approved legislation creating a “payment in lieu of taxes” — or PILOT agreement for the Annapolis solar park.

The solar park, built on the city’s old landfill, would be subject to county property taxes since it is land leased to a third party for a commercial purpose. County auditor Jodee Dickinson estimated the county would forgo about $6,300 in real property taxes each year and, instead, receive $100 a year as part of the agreement. The agreement will expire in 2039.

Currently the county collects $0 in property taxes since the land was under a municipal exception while it sat as a vacant landfill.

The county has three purchase agreements to get power from the solar park. Those agreements were approved last year, and estimate that the county will save up to $3.47 million over the 20-year term if Baltimore Gas and Electric’s pricing strategy and net-metering continue, according to the auditor’s report.

In other business, County Executive Steve Schuh requested three bills and a resolution be introduced and included as part of a package of zoning legislation he announced Feb. 5.

One of the bills would freeze administrative zoning changes for all types of zoned properties until the county’s General Development Plan is submitted to the council in December 2019. This plan guides the county’s development and zoning decisions over eight years, after which a new plan is drafted and approved.

A freeze would mean developers and landowners couldn’t petition the county to increase or decrease the allowable density of construction on their properties.

Another bill introduced would require applicants for special exceptions to prove their project is consistent with the county’s general plan. This change would make the plan a key part of decision making in the county’s special exception process, so that work doesn’t go to waste, said the county’s Planning and Zoning Officer Phil Hager.

Since the bills were introduced Monday, their first hearing will likely be held April 2.

ccook@capgaznews.com