Planning Board will hold last work session for Thrive Montgomery 2050 General Plan, County Council will hold public hearing for the Ashton Village Center Sector Plan, and more opportunities to get involved
WHEATON, MD – The Montgomery County Planning Board and the Montgomery County Planning Department, both part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), have announced their March 2021 calendar of online meetings. For more details, review the list of events below and visit www.montgomeryplanning.org.
During this time of social distancing in response to the COVID-19 crisis, the Planning Board will continue to hold public meetings online while Montgomery Planning’s new headquarters (2425 Reedie Drive, Wheaton, MD) is closed to the public. Community members may sign up to testify and provide comments to the Board, during the meeting, on specific agenda items through Microsoft Teams or phone. Written testimony may be submitted in advance of the meeting. The March schedule of events is subject to change based on the ongoing response to the COVID-19 virus.
There are many ways to participate in Planning Board meetings:
- Watch the Planning Board meeting live online and on demand.
- Listen live over the phone to the Planning Board meeting by calling: 866-774-0898 Password: 24252020
- Sign up to testify via phone during the Planning Board meeting. To testify, fill out the Sign Up to Testify form by 12 noon on the day before the Planning Board meeting. On the afternoon before the meeting, you will receive an email with a phone number to call during a designated time to provide your testimony for a specific agenda item. Submitting this form online by the deadline is the only way to testify on meeting items.
- Email your written testimony with comments on specific Planning Board agenda items to mcp-chair@mncppc-mc.org by 12 noon on the day before the Planning Board meeting.
- If you have questions, send an email to mcp-chair@mncppc-mc.org or leave a message at 301-495-4605 and a staff member in the Planning Board Chair’s office will contact you.
March 2 – The Montgomery County Council will hold a public hearing for the Ashton Village Center Sector Plan. The Plan evaluates land use, zoning, transportation, environment, design and other relevant issues in Ashton, a historic crossroads community east of Olney. Visit the Council’s website to learn more about the hearing and how to get involved.
March 4 – The Planning Board will hold its meeting online as well as its final work session for the Thrive Montgomery 2050 plan. During the work session, the Board will approve final recommendations, review the remaining revised chapters, and discuss the “Recommended Actions List” for the draft plan. The Board also will receive a briefing on the Missing Middle Market Study in support of the Silver Spring Downtown & Adjacent Communities Plan. Consult the Planning Board’s agenda, posted 10 days before the meeting for more information. Watch the meetings online via live stream or review previous meetings on demand.
The Planning Department will hold a Virtual Historic Preservation Tax Credit Open House (7 – 8:30 p.m.). Montgomery Planning staff will provide an overview of the county’s tax credit program for improving historic properties. They will also provide an update regarding upcoming historic preservation policy changes. A brief question-and-answer session will follow the presentations. RSVP for the online meeting.
March 10 – The Historic Preservation Commission will hold its meeting online. Consult the HPC meeting webpage for agenda information. Watch the meetings online via live stream or review previous meetings on demand.
March 11 – The Planning Board will hold its meeting online. Consult the Planning Board’s agenda, posted 10 days before the meeting for more information. Watch the meetings online via live stream or review previous meetings on demand.
March 16 – Montgomery Planning will hold a virtual event in support of the Silver Spring Downtown & Adjacent Communities Plan on Missing Middle Housing (7 – 9 p.m.). Missing Middle Housing is a range of smaller units in multiunit or clustered housing types, compatible in form and scale with single-family homes that help meet the growing demand for walkable urban living, respond to shifting household demographics, and meet the need for more housing choices at different price points. This event will feature Tony Perez from Opticos Design who is a Missing Middle Housing expert in working with communities to establish and translate policy direction into clear and implementable development standards. Tony is a leader in advancing the practice of Form-Based Codes, and has authored or co-authored over 25 zoning codes and peer-reviewed or contributed to over 20 others, ranging in scale from small to citywide. RSVP for the online meeting.
Montgomery Planning and the Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) will hold a virtual community meeting to share updates for projects and proposed transit improvements in the Great Seneca Science Corridor Master Plan area (7:30 – 8:30 p.m.). The area includes neighborhoods and employment centers surrounding the Shady Grove Adventist Hospital, the western Quince Orchard neighborhood, National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the Universities at Shady Grove. RSVP for the online meeting.
March 18 – The Planning Board will hold its meeting online. Consult the Planning Board’s agenda, posted 10 days before the meeting for more information. Watch the meetings online via live stream or review previous meetings on demand.
March 23 – Montgomery Planning will host the first of five community virtual Visioning Sessions for the Silver Spring Downtown & Adjacent Communities Plan (South Silver Spring; 7 to 8:30 p.m.). This initial stage of sessions will be organized by “Visioning Districts” to help focus the discussion on each of these areas, with this session being for South Silver Spring. All of these sessions will be interactive to ‘sketch’ a plan and gather virtual sticky notes full of ideas for different areas of the plan. The work from these sessions will be pulled together into one cohesive vision for the plan area. Because of the interactive format, attendance will be capped at 40 people for each session. RSVP for the online meeting.
March 24 – The Historic Preservation Commission will hold its meeting online. Consult the HPC meeting webpage for agenda information. Watch the meetings online via live stream or review previous meetings on demand.
March 25 – The Planning Board will hold its meeting online. Consult the Planning Board’s agenda, posted 10 days before the meeting for more information. Watch the meetings online via live stream or review previous meetings on demand.
March 30 – Montgomery Planning will host the second of five community virtual Visioning Sessions for the Silver Spring Downtown & Adjacent Communities Plan (Metro Center/Ripley District; 7 to 8:30 p.m.). This initial stage of sessions will be organized by “Visioning Districts” to help focus the discussion on each of these areas, with this session being for the Metro Center/Ripley District. All of these sessions will be interactive to ‘sketch’ a plan and gather virtual sticky notes full of ideas for different areas of the plan. The work from these sessions will be pulled together into one cohesive vision for the plan area. Because of the interactive format, attendance will be capped at 40 people for each session. RSVP for the online meeting.
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