Carroll County commissioners said yesterday they will take steps to avoid tearing down five Littlestown Pike homes near the flight path for the expanded runway at the county airport.

"It's a shame to demolish them. They are structurally very sound," Citizens Services Director Jolene G. Sullivan said.

The county and the Federal Aviation Administration purchased the homes several years ago as part of an expansion project at the Carroll County Regional Airport.

Mrs. Sullivan had hoped to use the bungalows and ranchers for the Sunrise housing project, which would provide lodging for families who have exhausted their stays at homeless shelters.

The plan was to move the houses to a 5-acre site on Kreiders Church Road, but a study found that would be too expensive.

The county has been renting out the homes for the past year, Mrs. Sullivan said. Unless the FAA makes an exception, the houses will have to be torn down, she said. She added that the agency has made similar exceptions in other counties.

The commissioners agreed to write to Carroll's congressional representatives about the situation. They did not decide how they might use the buildings.

Commissioner Julia W. Gouge suggested that the houses could be moved. Mrs. Sullivan said the county might be able to continue renting them because they offer inexpensive housing.

The commissioners plan to write to Maryland Sens. Barbara A. Mikulski and Paul S. Sarbanes and 6th District Rep. Roscoe G. Bartlett.

The Sunrise project is scheduled to proceed. The county plans to construct seven buildings, with a total of 15 apartments, on Kreiders Church Road.

The state Department of Housing and Community Development gave the county a $674,000 grant for the project.

Westminster developer James Ryan Jr. of Rylea Homes Inc. donated the 5-acre parcel for Sunrise.