the third place

Profile of women in Montgomery County by the numbers

Posted by & filed under Research.

By Bhavna Sivasubramanian

In honor of Women’s History Month, the Research and Strategic Projects Division at Montgomery Planning developed a profile presenting key demographic, economic, and employment characteristics of the female population in Montgomery County. Gender disparity is a national and global topic of study, and this research aims to highlight such differences in the county. Considering the unique characteristics and challenges faced by females in the county helps planners, local government decision-makers, and the public develop equitable, diverse, and inclusive communities for all. All data for this research come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates. Data are from respondents who answered “Female” to ACS’s question “What is your sex?”

In 2022, women … Continue reading

Priorities for Parks: Helping Visitors Get Active, Make Friends, and Care for Nature

Posted by & filed under Public spaces.

By Miti Figueredo, Montgomery Parks Director

The good news about running a large park system is that everyone loves parks—hikers, bikers, equestrians, soccer players, bird watchers, kids looking for slides and swing sets, their parents, conservationists, and historic preservationists. All of them can find something that gets them excited about visiting a park.

The bad news is that the demand for parks and amenities exceeds Montgomery Parks’ available resources. Everyone wants and needs something different from parks, whether it’s a new athletic field or pickleball court, a renovated playground, or more land for conservation. Our parks have something for everyone, but in the competition for limited resources, not every popular program or facility can be expanded or upgraded—at least … Continue reading

Herstory: Celebrating M-NCPPC Leaders

Posted by & filed under Design.

In honor of Women’s History Month, three Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission leaders tell their inspiring stories of how they reached the top echelons of the planning profession and offer advice for other women looking to be trailblazers of their own. We spoke with Montgomery County Planning Board Commissioner Mitra Pedoeem, Montgomery Parks Director Miti Figueredo, and Prince George’s County Planning Director Lakisha Hull.

 

“As a young girl in Tehran, I dreamed of being a civil engineer despite all the odds for a woman to have an engineering career in Iran. I had to study hard to compete in a male-dominated society that generally provided a much more inferior education for females. With focus, determination, and hard … Continue reading

Progress on Process – An Update on the Development Review Process Workgroup Recommendations

Posted by & filed under Planning.

By Robert Kronenberg, Montgomery Planning Deputy Director

A central focus of Montgomery Planning’s work plan for 2024 is housing. Like many places across the country, Montgomery County’s housing shortage has meant rising rents and housing prices. We’re committed to collaborating with our county and state government partners, the development community, and residents to find ways to expand our housing supply and make the county a more affordable place for everyone to live. A major part of making that happen is streamlining the review and approval process for new development in the county to become a reality quicker.

Last year, under the leadership of Maryland Delegate Lesley Lopez (District 39), representatives from Montgomery Planning, Montgomery Parks, Montgomery County government, developers, … Continue reading

Montgomery Planning: A national and regional industry leader

Posted by & filed under Planning.

By George Lettis

In October 2023, Montgomery Planning showed why we continue to be a thought leader in the Washington, DC region and the nation for our independent, innovative, and inclusive community planning. The American Planning Association (APA) – the largest membership organization of professional planners and planning leaders and experts – consistently recognizes our expertise and work products that exemplify the best in planning principles, creativity, and effectiveness and solidify Montgomery County’s status as Maryland’s economic engine and a national model for enhancing quality of life for current and future generations.

Two cases in point: Montgomery Planning won a prestigious national Award of Excellence from APA’s County Planning Division and the National Association of County Planners (NACP) and was honored to … Continue reading

Kids in Tow

Posted by & filed under Places, Public spaces.

By James Hedrick, Commissioner, The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

Montgomery Parks Summer Adventure Challenge with Kids

I don’t know anything about parks.

I’m a Commissioner on the Montgomery County side of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), and I really don’t know anything about parks.

My background is in affordable housing and development – the planning side of the Commission. Most of what I know about parks is limited to about a decade of taking my kids to parks hoping that they will wear themselves out before bedtime.

Given my need to expand my knowledge of Montgomery County’s parks system, the Commission’s August recess offered a good opportunity to become more familiar with at least … Continue reading

Steady growth projected for Montgomery County over the next 30 years

Posted by & filed under Research.

By James Lee and Benjamin Kraft

Latest data reflect county’s status as a populous, maturing suburb

Montgomery Planning’s Research and Strategic Projects (RSP) Division is responsible for developing Montgomery County’s long-range forecasts for employment, population, and households as part of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government’s (MWCOG) Cooperative Forecast Program. The Round 10 forecast was recently completed, and new numbers show over the next 30 years the county is projected to experience growth in population, households, and jobs. The growth rate, however, is estimated to be at a slower pace than previous forecasts, reflecting the county’s status as a populous, maturing suburb. The forecast estimates the county will add 143,000 jobs (up from 493,600 in 2020 to 636,500 in … Continue reading

Montgomery Parks proposes a road diet for Little Falls Parkway

Posted by & filed under Public spaces.

By Miti Figueredo

This content was originally posted as an opinion piece by guest contributor Miti Figueredo in Greater Greater Washington on March 28, 2023 and is posted to The Third Place with permission.

Around the country, some pandemic-era changes have been widely accepted and made permanent, while others have been abandoned or scaled back. On Thursday, March 30, the Montgomery County Planning Board held a public hearing on whether to keep a half-mile road diet on Little Falls Parkway or end the closure of two lanes to car traffic that made space for walking, biking, and play.

Testing out a road diet on Little Falls Parkway

Last summer, Montgomery Parks implemented a pilot project to study whether Little Falls Parkway … Continue reading

Walkable City: A call for safer streets

Posted by & filed under Planning.

By Paul Mortensen

Montgomery Planning is working on their new Pedestrian Master Plan to be presented to the Planning Board this spring. One of the greatest books on walkability and the creation of safe streets is Walkable City: How Downtown can Save America One Step at a Time, by Jeff Speck. This entertaining, informative, and most relevant book celebrated its 10th anniversary this past year. To help achieve Montgomery County’s Vision Zero goals of eliminating pedestrian fatalities through safe streets, Speck’s book provides a vision for creating streets that are safe, comfortable to pedestrians, and interesting—the primary criteria that supports walkability.

In our cities, towns, and neighborhood centers, streets occupy between 20% and 45% of the land. In the … Continue reading

Parking lots to livable spaces: Infill development and its impact on housing in Montgomery County

Posted by & filed under Planning.

By Lisa Govoni and Jason Sartori

One of Montgomery Planning’s mantras of late has been this idea of turning “parking lots to places.” In other words, let’s make better use of underutilized developed land and transform it into something more vibrant with multiple uses for residents and visitors. Inherent in “parking lots to places” is the thought that the “easier” parcels to redevelop – like surface parking lots – will be developed first, given the complexity and time involved in redevelopment of sites with existing uses.

Turning a parking lot into a place is infill development, which takes place on vacant or underutilized developed parcels within an area that have access to existing services. Infill development is beneficial to … Continue reading