Meet the Planning Board Members
The Montgomery County Planning Board plans for livable communities by developing large and small scale plans, providing guidelines for the pattern and pace of future development and preserving historic resources throughout the 323,000-acre county.
The Planning Board implements plans through its review of development applications and its subdivision decisions. The Board is also responsible for the development and management of Montgomery County's nationally recognized 32,900-acre park system.
The Montgomery County Planning Board, together with the Prince George's County Planning Board, comprise The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
Françoise Carrier
Planning Board Chair, The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission
Françoise Carrier became chair of the Montgomery County Planning Board in June 2010. Ms. Carrier was a director and hearing examiner with the Montgomery County Office of Zoning and Administrative Hearings. She had worked for that office since 2001, carrying out the functions of an administrative law judge in land use and human rights cases decided in trial-type hearings. In some 20 cases each year, Ms. Carrier issued detailed recommendations for the County Council or other agencies. She also issued final opinions for a few cases each year. A graduate of Stanford Law School with a background in economics and land use law, Ms. Carrier previously worked for three Washington, D.C., law firms for nine years.
Marye Wells-Harley
Planning Board Vice Chair and Commissioner
Marye Wells-Harley was appointed to the Planning Board in July 2009. A Silver Spring resident, Harley is a retired director of the Prince George’s County Department of Parks and Recreation, where she was instrumental in the agency receiving an unprecedented five top awards from the National Recreation and Parks Association. Her long tenure of public service brought her the distinction of being named one of the Maryland’s Top 100 Women by the Daily Record newspaper in 2004. Wells-Harley holds a bachelor’s degree from Winston-Salem State University and is a graduate of the Executive Leadership Institute and Leadership Washington.
Joe Alfandre
Planning Board Member and Commissioner
Joe Alfandre, a self-described new urbanist, was appointed to the Planning Board in June 2008. A developer of the Kentlands project in Gaithersburg, Alfandre has worked on land use issues since 1997, focusing on master plans and zoning ordinances for local governments throughout the country. Alfandre is president and CEO of The Kentlands Co., a developer, builder and consulting team specializing in smart growth alternatives.
Amy Presley
Planning Board Member and Commissioner
Appointed in June 2008 to the Planning Board, Amy Presley is president of Synergies, Inc., a marketing, strategic planning and business development management company. Founding member of the Clarksburg Town Center Advisory Committee (CTCAC), Presley has been involved in numerous planning-related initiatives, including helping draft our Development Review manual and serving on an M-NCPPC-hosted growth policy panel.
Norman Dreyfuss
Planning Board Member and Commissioner
Appointed to the Planning Board in February 2010, Norman Dreyfuss, is executive vice president of IDI MD, the developer of Leisure World and many other developments throughout the Washington, D.C., region. Dreyfuss, who has worked in all aspects of community development, is a champion of affordable housing and serves as Commissioner on the Montgomery County Housing Opportunities Commission and co-chairs the County’s annual Affordable Housing Conference. A resident of Potomac, Dreyfuss holds a J.D. from American University and a B.S in Mechanical Engineering and a B.A. in Fine Arts from Rutgers University.
Mission of the Montgomery County Planning Board
Read the board's semi-annual reports
For more information, please call the Planning Board's Commissioners' Office, 301-495-4605.
The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission