As plans for a 10,000-person regional event stadium between Route 144 and I-70 beside the Monocacy River move through the remaining planning and approval process, we are asking the Frederick City Council to put public safety and the surrounding community ahead of economic-development ambitions.

On August 6, 2026, the Frederick City Council approved the rezoning needed to move forward with plans for a 10,000-person Special Events Center on 24.33 acres of the larger Gateway Property beside the Monocacy River.

For perspective, Frederick's existing professional baseball venue, Nymeo Field at Harry Grove Stadium, has a capacity of approximately 5,400.

The proposed site sits within a historically significant landscape associated with the 1864 Battle of Monocacy and the historic Route 144/National Road corridor.

A regional event stadium of this magnitude at this location raises serious questions about flood risk, public safety, emergency evacuation, traffic, and infrastructure.

Those of us who live and work near this property value its history and know its flood and traffic patterns firsthand.  Here are our concerns:

FLOODING:

Rivers are powerful forces of nature.  They flood, cross their banks, and do not care about zoning classifications or economic-development projections.

In September 2021, the remnants of Hurricane Ida caused major flooding on the Monocacy, producing the river's highest crest near Frederick in 25 years.[1]  The river exceeded flood stage again during a major rainstorm in January 2024.[2] And looming over that recent history is the Monocacy’s flood of record during Hurricane Agnes in 1972, when the river crested at 35.9 feet –more than 20 feet above flood stage.[3]

Yet City records confirm that much of the proposed site lies within the Monocacy River floodplain, with development plans that involve filling portions of that floodplain.[4]

Why increase the intensity of development in a place where history has repeatedly demonstrated the power of the river?

TRAFFIC:

Anyone who regularly travels this area knows how congested Route 144, I-70, and the surrounding intersections can already become. The City Council itself found that the proposed development has the “potential to generate significant impacts on the present and future transportation patterns in the vicinity.”[5]

The site has only one vehicular access point from Route 144, requiring vehicles to pass through the SHA Park and Ride and onto Old National Pike before reaching the property. With limited on-site parking primarily designated for ADA and VIP use, the transportation plan relies heavily on buses bringing thousands of attendees from remote parking areas, including the Frederick Fairgrounds, onto roads and intersections that are already strained.

Adding a 10,000-person regional event venue dependent on a single access route and remote transportation to an already congested corridor raises the stakes considerably.

EMERGENCY EVACUATION:

Imagine 10,000 people gathered at the property when a flash-flood warning, tornado warning, or severe thunderstorm warning is issued. How will they evacuate or shelter? And how will nearby residents, motorists and emergency vehicles use those same roads while responding to the same emergency?

These are basic public-safety questions, yet a comprehensive emergency evacuation and sheltering plan capable of answering them has not been publicly demonstrated to the community.

LOUD NOISE, BRIGHT LIGHTS & LATE NIGHTS:

The property has been rezoned as a Special Events Center, with large events throughout the year bringing amplified noise, stadium lighting, increased traffic and late-evening activity.

Research has established that these impacts aren't simply matters of preference: excessive environmental noise can disturb sleep and well-being, while artificial light at night can disrupt wildlife behavior, including foraging, reproduction and navigation.[6, 7]

ONLY THE BEGINNING:

The 24.33 acres rezoned for the Special Events Center represent only a portion of the larger Gateway Property. The applicant's own rezoning justification describes this application as “Phase I” of its intention to eventually redevelop the larger property as a mixed-use development containing residential, commercial and institutional uses.[8]

Future development will replace even more of this natural landscape with buildings, roads, parking areas and other impervious surfaces.

As this project moves through site-plan review and other remaining approvals, we ask the Frederick City Council to use every available opportunity to address these risks and protect the surrounding community.  If these impacts cannot be responsibly addressed at the proposed scale, the project should be substantially reduced or a more appropriate location considered.

Frederick can grow without sacrificing the safety, character and quality of life of our community.

There is still time to get this right!

Please sign this petition to show the Frederick City Council that our community expects them to put public safety first and ensure responsible development.

FOOTNOTES
[1]    National Weather Service, Baltimore/Washington, Remnants of Hurricane Ida – September 1, 2021 
[2]    National Weather Service, Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center, January 9–18, 2024, Preliminary Flood Summary
[3]    National Weather Service, Middle Atlantic River Forecast Center, Historical Crests: Monocacy River at Jug Bridge near Frederick, MD
[4]    City of Frederick, Planning Commission Staff Report and Attachments — Gateway Property, July 14, 2025
[5]    City of Frederick, Draft Ordinance G-26-7, Gateway Property Rezoning, August 6, 2026, p. 3
[6]    World Health Organization, Guidance on Environmental Noise
[7]    U.S. National Park Service, Synthesis of Studies on the Effects of Artificial Light at Night
[8]    Applicant's Justification Statement, Application to Rezone 24.33 Acres to the IST Floating Zone, p. 2, City of Frederick