The Eastern Shore town of Trappe nears a transformation 20 years in the making, despite concerns about sewage, growth

Two decades ago, the town of Trappe voted overwhelmingly to grow. As a wave of suburbanization spread across Maryland’s rural Eastern Shore, the tiny community annexed more than 900 acres so a developer could build some 2,500 homes — five times more than still stand in Trappe today. Now, that vision of Trappe is just starting to become reality. Banners along what is otherwise a quiet stretch of U.S. Route 50 invite passersby to look at new homes, for sale and lease, at Lakeside at Trappe. There’s no lake just yet, but nearly a dozen homes have begun to rise from the dirt.