Organization

Tanya Stern

Acting Planning Director

Tanya Stern is Acting Planning Director for Montgomery County, MD, its largest county with over 1 million diverse residents. She leads planning and development review for urbanized, suburban, and rural communities; the development of countywide housing, multi-modal transportation, and growth management policies; innovative studies on real estate and the economy; historic preservation; and promotion of design excellence in architecture and the public realm. Prior to this role, she served as Deputy Planning Director overseeing countywide housing policy, zoning, growth management, multimodal transportation planning and historic preservation; real estate, economic and demographic analysis; IT/GIS; and agency management services including budgeting, HR and communications. She served as an advisor for Thrive Montgomery 2050, the county’s new General Plan. Previously, Ms. Stern served for 14 years in the Government of the District of Columbia, at the DC Office of Planning as Deputy Director overseeing neighborhood planning and urban design and as Chief of Staff; in the Executive Office of the Mayor; and in other agencies. Additionally, she has 11 years of non-profit sector experience. Ms. Stern holds a master’s in city planning from the University of Pennsylvania and is certified through the American Institute of Certified Planners and as a Certified Public Manager.

Robert Kronenberg

Deputy Director

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Robert Kronenberg is the Deputy Planning Director for Montgomery Planning and oversees the Downcounty, Mid-County and Upcounty planning teams as well as the Intake and Regulatory Coordination Division (IRC). His background is in Landscape Architecture and Planning with over 19 years of service at the Maryland National-Capital Park and Planning Commission in a number of capacities, including enforcement, development review and master plans.  He has led a wide range of projects and plans that have improved the quality of life and experience in the natural and built environments, including Cabin Branch, Clarksburg Town Center, Marriott Headquarters, Park Potomac, and Downtown Silver Spring.

Prior to his career at the Commission, he spent 10 years with private engineering and land planning firms as a planner, project manager and landscape architect.  He has served on many committees and panels at the Commission and in the County related to transportation, building and site design, environment and enforcement, and is a graduate of Louisiana State University with a degree and license in Landscape Architecture.

Prior to his appointment as Deputy Director in 2019, Mr. Kronenberg served as the Division Chief of the Area 1 team, focused on urban development and master planning in Bethesda, Chevy Chase Lake,  Longbranch, Lyttonsville, Silver Spring and Westbard.

Mr. Kronenberg lives in Silver Spring and is active in local Boy Scouts.  He is a member of the American Society of Landscape Architects, the American Planning Association and Lambda Alpha International.

Downcounty Planning – Division Chief

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An urban designer and architect by training, Elza Hisel-McCoy is the Division Chief of Downcounty Planning. He leads the master plan and development review teams in the urbanizing areas of Montgomery County inside the Capital Beltway. Elza joined the Montgomery County Planning Department in 2006 after five years in the private sector designing HOPE VI neighborhood revitalization projects with Torti Gallas and Partners of Silver Spring, MD.  Prior to his current position, he led two sector plans, Chevy Chase Lake and Bethesda Purple Line Station, and reviews of numerous development applications.

Mid-County Planning – Division Chief

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Since September 2017, Carrie Sanders has been the Division Chief for Mid-County Planning in the Montgomery County Planning Department of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.  In this role, Ms. Sanders oversees a wide range of projects and plans, including development review and master planning, to improve the quality of life in Montgomery County by conserving and enhancing the natural and built environment.

Prior to her appointment as Division Chief, Ms. Sanders served for seven years in the City of Alexandria, most recently as the Deputy Director of Transportation/Transit for the City of Alexandria, where she moved forward several major projects, including the Potomac Yard Metrorail Station and the Potomac Yard Small Area Plan, and the operation and expansion of Potomac Yard Metroway.

Ms. Sanders began her career in Brussels, Belgium working in economic development.  She holds a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and a master’s degree in urban planning from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Ms. Sanders has presented at national and regional conferences on a variety of planning topics and she is currently a member of the Leadership Montgomery CORE program. Carrie lives in Montgomery County with her husband and their three children.

Upcounty Planning – Division Chief

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Patrick Butler is the Chief of the Upcounty Planning Division. He leads the master plan and development review teams within the Upcounty, which encompasses approximately two-thirds of the County and includes Potomac, Darnestown, Germantown, Clarksburg, Damascus, Olney, Ashton-Sandy Spring, Burtonsville, Fairland and the Agricultural Reserve. Patrick joined the Montgomery County Planning Department in 2007 and has been a resident of the Upcounty since 2008. Prior to joining the Commission, Patrick worked as a planner in Kittitas County, a predominantly rural and agricultural county in the State of Washington, working directly with natural resource and agricultural industries and communities. As a college student in the State of Washington, he worked multiple jobs within and related to the agricultural industry. Patrick is excited about the eclectic diversity of the Upcounty, which includes urban, suburban, rural and agricultural disciplines.

Karen Warnick

Management Services
karen.warnick@montgomeryplanning.org
Karen Warnick is the Division Chief of Management Services. She oversees the budget, procurement, human resources, training and development, and policy for the Department. Prior to joining the Montgomery Planning Department in February 2015, Karen spent 22 years working for the Montgomery County Department of Parks. Over the course of her career at Parks, she served as the Management Analyst, Administrative Specialist, Enterprise Regional Operations Manager and Departmental Budget Manager. She holds bachelor of science degree in finance, bachelor of arts degree in economics and a master of arts degree in recreation administration, all from the University of Maryland.

Communications Chief

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Bridget Broullire is dedicated to getting the word out about the valuable work of Montgomery Planning. Bridget is proud to work with a talented team of graphic designers, writers and digital media specialists who take an audience-centric approach to promoting the work of Montgomery Planning through a variety of channels. She has honed her approach to communications through her work at Hearst-Argyle Television, NBC Sports Washington (formerly Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic) and the City of Rockville’s award-winning government access channel – Rockville 11. Bridget holds a Bachelor of Arts in Broadcast Journalism from the Philip Merrill School of Journalism with a minor in Marketing from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Bridget is a member of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and has presented on engaging outreach strategies at the American Planning Association’s national conference. Bridget invites you to Connect with Montgomery Planning and get involved with the future of Montgomery County.

Caroline McCarthy

Research and Strategic Projects
caroline.mccarthy@montgomeryplanning.org
Caroline McCarthy is the Division Chief for Research and Strategic Projects, which is responsible for providing demographic, economic, real estate market, and affordable housing analysis to support master plans, development review, and land use policy decisions. Caroline joined the Montgomery County Planning Department in April 2016 from HR&A Advisors, a national real estate, economic development, and public policy consulting firm, where she was managing principal in the Washington, DC office. She has extensive experience developing market analyses and implementation strategies for master plans of complex sites, including brownfields, former military bases, downtowns, and transit-oriented development. She has also provided economic and real estate market advisory services to private sector clients looking to advance real estate development or public policy initiatives. Caroline holds a Master of City and Regional Planning degree from the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers and a Bachelor of Arts in economics from Wesleyan University. She is a member of the Urban Land Institute and Lambda Alpha International.

Jason Sartori

Countywide Planning and Policy Chief

Jason Sartori is the Chief of the Countywide Planning and Policy Division, which focuses on Montgomery County’s countywide planning efforts, including: transportation planning, transportation networks and modeling, public infrastructure adequacy monitoring (including schools), environmental resources, historic preservation, Vision Zero, zoning and housing policy. Jason joined the Planning Department in 2016, and has since helped lead two updates to the county’s adequate public facilities ordinance, known as the Growth and Infrastructure Policy. He is currently overseeing Montgomery Planning’s efforts to allow more diverse housing options in the county’s single-family zones, develop the county’s first ever pedestrian master plan, and identify transit priorities for the I-270 corridor. Jason previously served as the Associate Director of the National Center for Smart Growth at the University of Maryland. While there, he led numerous projects related to affordable housing, transportation modeling, opportunity accessibility metrics, economic development, and growth visioning and scenario evaluation.

Intake and Regulatory Coordination (IRC) Chief

Christina was a senior legal advisor to the Planning Board and the Montgomery County Planning Department.  She received her bachelor’s degree in History/Environmental Studies and Psychology from the State University of New York at Geneseo, followed by a law degree from the University at Buffalo School of Law.  She is licensed to practice law in New York, Washington, D.C., Virginia and Maryland, and has been with the Commission since 2008.  Prior to her work at the Commission, she was a site development consultant manager with Perkowitz and Ruth Architects. She has been directly involved with the IRC team in managing forest conservation enforcement cases, is the liaison for DRC meetings, and has been involved in the updates to Chapter 50 Subdivision Regulations, Forest Conservation Regulations and zoning.

Paul Mortensen

Senior Urban Designer in the Director’s Office
paul.mortensen@montgomeryplanning.org
Paul Mortensen is a Chief and Senior Urban Designer in the Director’s Office at Montgomery Planning and is leading the Design Excellence efforts within the organization.  He is a registered architect in the states of California, Washington and Maryland, is a LEED Accredited Professional, a member of the Congress for New Urbanism, and is an Architect and Urban Designer of significant talent and experience with a strong emphasis on sustainable architecture design in urban settings.  His primary focus over the past thirty years has been on master planning and urban design of residential and mixed-use communities.   Mr. Mortensen was an Associate Principle with Torti Gallas and Partners in Silver Spring, Maryland where he served as a leading principal of the Planning and Urban Design Studio and was involved in a number of large scale, award winning master planning projects and new town designs such as the Crystal City, Virginia Master Plan and the Tacoma, Washington Salishan HOPE VI development.

Atul Sharma

Assistant to the Deputy Director for Development and Design Review

Atul Sharma has been selected for the position of  Assistant to the Deputy Director for Development and Design Review. In this role, Atul will be leading the Incentive Zoning Update initiative, guiding the department’s placemaking activities through a strategic plan and assisting various divisions with the design review of development applications.

Atul has been with Montgomery Planning since 2016 and was previously a Supervisor and Urban Designer for Midcounty Planning division. Atul has 20 years of experience working in architecture, urban design, and planning in both the public and private sector. His project experience includes large scale sustainable master planning, transit-oriented development, neighborhood design, design guidelines and contextual architecture. Atul grew up in India and now lives in Silver Spring with his wife and two kids. He loves drawing, art,  and taking very long walks in great cities and nature.