The Navy’s efforts to turn the former Naval Academy Dairy Farm in Gambrills into a renewable energy farm recently took a step forward.

The project, which the Navy began exploring in February 2024, is now reviewing phase two proposals from potential developers. The next step is to — or to not — select a developer whose proposal will be vetted for its effect on the environment.

“There’s a plethora of hoops that need to be jumped through before we move forward from the step of exploring proposals,” said Madelyn Flayler, a public affairs officer for Naval Support Activity Annapolis, which oversees the former farm. Under the National Environmental Policy Act, the Navy is required to complete an environmental assessment of the project’s impact on natural resources. Once that process is concluded, a developer can sign a lease.

There is a possibility that no developer is chosen, and the project is discontinued, according to Flayler.

The 857-acre farm operated as a tobacco plantation throughout the 1700s and 1800s. The Navy purchased the farm in 1909 and used it as a dairy farm until 1997. The Navy began leasing the property to Anne Arundel County in 2008, which in turn sublet to farmers and other businesses. As of 2023, the county pays $240,000 a year in rent, according to a county lease document released last March.

Federal statute requires that any lease of the former dairy farm maintain its rural and agricultural nature. But the prospective energy plan has drawn criticism from neighbors and agriculture advocates and been a cause of concern for Anne Arundel County Council and County Executive Steuart Pittman.

Pittman has been lukewarm in his support of the project, neither opposing nor supporting the Navy’s plan in a 2024 statement that his administration reissued Friday. Pittman encouraged NSA Annapolis’ commanding officer, Capt. Chris Schwarz, to increase public access to the land and respect the federal mandate that it remain in agricultural use.

“We’re kind of in this period right now where we don’t have any information to share,” Flayler said.

Questions left unanswered

Both the number of final proposals and the names of developers remain undisclosed as the details are “procurement sensitive.”

The renewable energy source has not been finalized. The request for proposals did not limit developers to one type of energy source like solar panels or wind turbines. Rather, the proposal asked developers to feature renewable energy generation that would help meet the Department of Defense’s carbon free electricity goals.

How much energy will be created by the project is unclear.

The project’s timeline remains unknown. Flayler said it is reasonable to assume that the project’s construction could be years away.

What will come of current leases and businesses on the property remains unknown.

With the uncertainty, businesses on the former dairy farm have an unclear future.

The Anne Arundel County branch of the University of Maryland Extension program’s office is located on the property. The program offers agriculture-focused education programs like Anne Arundel County 4-H, the Master Gardener Program and agriculture classes to the local farm community.

“If the county no longer holds the lease, then I anticipate that we’ll have a lease operation somewhere else,” Dave Myers, the program’s agricultural extension educator, said. “We probably won’t be part of this property if it becomes a private entity.”

As a county entity, Myers said the program faces less uncertainty than other private tenants on the land. De Novo Farm, a horse farm and riding center on the property, has a lease that expires in July 2026. Maryland Sunrise Farm and the Maryland Corn Maze are also tenants. The farms weren’t available for comment.

“We love the location. I regret the fact that they’re going to take this lovely property and maybe put a solar project out there,” Myers said. “I’d rather see agriculture for the county here. … But it’s Navy property and the Navy is going to do whatever it wants to do.”

Have a news tip? Contact James Matheson at jmatheson@baltsun.com, 443-842-2344 or on X @jamesmatheson__.