Thursday, February 7, 2013
The county's zoning rewrite would allow a residential neighborhood to change, gradually, to diversify its housing stock.
The revisions in the works for Montgomery County's aging zoning code—which dates to 1977 and is more than 1,200 pages long—are meant, among other things, to help Montgomery County's residents age in place, architect and sustainability expert Carl Elefante said. In the planning department's December 2012 cable show Montgomery Plans, Elefante—who served on the planning department's advisory panel when planning staff drafted the zoning code rewrite—explained how the county's ambitious Zoning Rewrite Project would make it possible for residents to stay in their communities as they grow older. The zoning rewrite—which is entering into its final stages of revisions—is meant to allow for more variety in residence size and type within a …
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
County planners will discuss a revised zoning code draft with the county planning board on Thursday, Feb. 7.
Montgomery County's residents have spoken up about the county's ambitious Zoning Rewrite Project, and county planners have listened. After planners released a consolidated draft of the county's revised zoning code last July, residents submitted comments—online and in public hearings. Those comments have been taken into consideration in a new staff draft for the project, which will be discussed with the Montgomery County Planning Board in a work session at the board's weekly meeting on Thursday, Feb. 7. The work session is slated to start at 4:30 p.m. and end at 6 p.m., according to the agenda. Parking will be one of the issues discussed at the Feb. 7 work session. (Remaining issues will be discussed at the final work session, on Feb. 14 …
Thursday, January 31, 2013
And is being "hip" necessary to Montgomery County's future success?
Can suburban Montgomery County be made hip? County Councilman Hans Riemer reportedly believes so: "I really think that we are on the verge of a golden age in Montgomery County," Riemer said at a happy hour called "Can we make the suburbs hip? The future of White Flint," Bethesda Now reported. "The region that we are in is ... dynamic, growing, exciting... . ... But we have to and we are positioning ourselves in that region to capture that future growth," he added, Bethesda Now reported. The White Flint Sector (430 acres bounded by the CSX tracks, Montrose Parkway, Old Georgetown Road and the White Flint Mall) has been approved, so far, to be redeveloped with 2,220 residential units added to the existing housing stock of 2,321 units; 9,801 …
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
A discussion of the county's recently updated Athletic Field Use Permit Policy has been postponed to a later date.
When the Montgomery County Planning Board meets on Thursday, board members will be in for a long day, according to the meeting's agenda. In the morning, the board will consider a revision to a property plat in the Bethesda neighborhood of Bradley Hills, and a revision to a property plat in the Churchill Town Sector of Germantown. Design guidelines for the Chevy Chase Lake Sector—a large development still in the planning stages—will be presented by county planners to the board. Planners are suggesting ways to make new buildings in the sector appear smaller through design tweaks, the use of traditional materials and other design methods, Patch reported. Next, the board will discuss a preliminary plan to re-subdivide an existing 11-acre lot …
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
The county planning board discusses county planning staff suggestions for streamlining county development review and approval processes at the board's Thursday meeting.
Obtaining a development permit in Montgomery County is not always the most straightforward process. In fact, county planning staff identified 67 issues with the county's development review and approval process, and will present a summary of the issues and possible solutions to the issues to the county planning board at the board's weekly meeting on Thursday. Identifying 67 issues and solutions is—like the permitting process—time-consuming. The planning staff has been working with county departments and the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission since December 2011 on the project. "These efforts have identified numerous processes that can be simplified to reduce the time it takes for a project to move from concept to building permit," …
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Developers say a narrow vehicular street, rather than a pedestrian walkway, will make a planned White Flint development be more welcoming to pedestrians—and similar to Bethesda Row.
A development proposal for the White Flint area recently received a makeover when developers decided to give it a more pedestrian-friendly orientation. Intended for the area just south of the White Flint Metro station, the North Bethesda Gateway development "might get a vehicular road instead of a pedestrian walkway. The project’s architect said that could actually make the area more inviting to pedestrians," The Gazette reported. In place of the pedestrian walkway that had been planned to go through the property (at 5516 Nicholson Lane—one block east of Rockville Pike), architects now suggest a narrow vehicular road lined with sidewalks. George Dove, managing principal of WDG Architecture, told The Gazette that "having cars on the road …
Planning staff recommend that the board's comments on the proposed subdivision regulation amendments be sent to the county council for a public hearing on Jan. 22.
The Montgomery County Planning Board will consider three amendments to county subdivision regulations at its meeting on Thursday, Jan. 17, at the county planning headquarters at 8787 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring. All three subdivision regulation amendments will be discussed in the morning portion (approximately 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.) of the meeting, according to the meeting agenda. Planning staff recommend that the board's comments on the proposed amendments be sent to the county council for a public hearing on Jan. 22. The first amendment (SRA No. 12-02) regards platting exemptions for small parcels of land in Community Legacy Plan Areas. When small parcels of land in Community Legacy Plan Areas are developed, the platting requirements can be …
Thursday, September 6, 2012
The Montgomery County Planning Board will hold public sessions and work sessions on the zoning code rewrite.
Close scrutiny of Montgomery County's revised zoning code draft by the county planning board starts on Monday. "[An] ambitious schedule of [work sessions] and public sessions [will] consider the proposed revision of the Montgomery County Zoning Ordinance. [County planning] staff will present a consolidated draft of the Zoning Rewrite in sections to the [Montgomery County Planning] Board from September through the end of the year, with opportunities for public input along the way," according to a planning department news statement. The last time that the county's zoning code was comprehensively rewritten was in 1977. "The revised code is expected to reduce the number of zones, clarify what uses are permitted in each zone, and rethink 1950s-…
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Montgomery County residents spoke out against a zoning text amendment proposed by M-NCPPC to streamline approval for accessory apartments.
Montgomery County residents turned out in full force at two public meetings on Monday to express concerns about a proposed rule change that would eliminate the special exception process for some accessory apartments, also known as “mother-in-law” apartments. The zoning text amendment proposed by Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission staff would allow by right “attached” accessory apartments of up to 1,200 square feet that are located in certain residential and agricultural zones, and “detached” accessory apartments in specific residential zones. (See the zoning text amendment draft online for more details.) Many residents objected, arguing that the special exception proceedings keep them informed and involved in the …
Monday, April 23, 2012
Montgomery County Planning Director Rollin Stanley will leave his post next month for a position in Calgary, Alberta.
When Montgomery County Planning Director Rollin Stanley leaves his position next month, he'll head north to Calgary, Alberta, where he will head the city's planning, development and assessment department. Calgary—which, at one million residents, is Canada's third-largest city—recruited Stanley last winter after interviewing him several years ago for another position and after an international search, according to a Montgomery County Planning Department news release. "Stanley did not seek out the position, he said, but considered the offer too good to refuse because it provides the challenge of managing Calgary’s tremendous growth as well as professional opportunities for his wife, also a planner," read the statement. Stanley, who has …
Joe Galvagna
12:46 pm on Friday, February 1, 2013
Hip I donor know but more to the center or right would be great. Less giveing away the house more geared to the real working people in the county and less entitlements. Make people work for what they do not just give away the county income. Yea like that is going to happen. more ›