Planners will provide details about proposed zoning changes, parks and open space preservation, and transportation recommendations
Silver Spring, MD – The Montgomery County Planning Department, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, is holding the last of the MV Matters community meetings on Tuesday, July 7 to present the staff recommendations for the Montgomery Village Master Plan. The event will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Montgomery Village Middle School at 19300 Watkins Mill Road, Montgomery Village, MD 20886. (Please note the change in the meeting location from the Watkins Mill High School, which is currently being renovated.)
Residents and property owners are invited to offer input about the Master Plan’s recommendations for land use and zoning, transportation networks, parks and open spaces. Planning Department staff will also provide an overview of the Draft Montgomery Village Overlay Zone, explaining its purpose and intent.
The Working Draft of the Montgomery Village Master Plan is scheduled to be presented to the Planning Board on July 23, 2015. The tentative date for the Planning Board Public Hearing on the Montgomery Village Master Plan is Thursday, September 10, 2015, and a public notice will be sent when the date is confirmed.
Past PowerPoint presentations and other materials from previous MV Matters meetings are posted on the Montgomery Village Master Plan webpage.
What is MV Matters All About? MV Matters is a series of outreach events meant to engage the community in the Montgomery Village Master Plan. Village residents are invited to learn about specific subject areas, such as urban design, land use, parks, environment and transportation at the sessions. Through the meetings, planners have received initial feedback from residents on what they view as the most valuable places in the village. For more information on the Scope of Work for the Montgomery Village Master Plan, go to www.montgomeryplanning.org/mvp
Stay Connected: Sign up: for the Montgomery Village Master Plan eNewsletter Call: the MVPlan Hotline for updates on upcoming planning events: 301-495-4723 Follow: updates on Twitter using #MVPlan and learn more by visiting www.montgomeryplanning.org/mvp
Master Plan Background: Montgomery Village has not been part of a Master Plan review since the 1985 Gaithersburg Vicinity Master Plan, nor has it been the subject of a discrete County master plan in the past. Although Montgomery Village was within the boundaries of both the 1971 Gaithersburg Vicinity Master Plan and the 1985 Master Plan, neither plan contains recommendations or guidance for this community because the Village fell within the Town Sector Zone, which did not allow the rezoning of properties for a 50-year period that comes to a close in 2015. When the Planning Department initiated an update to the Gaithersburg Master Plan in 2007, Montgomery Village was originally included within its boundaries. However, with large swaths of land on both sides of I-270 presenting different planning issues and challenges, the Planning Department realized the area was too big to be analyzed effectively.
In 2008, the Planning Department divided the large Gaithersburg Master Plan area into two planning efforts – one for the west side of I-270, which became the Great Seneca Science Corridor Master Plan (GSSC) – and one for the east side of I-270 – Gaithersburg East. In 2014, the County Council directed the Planning Department to further refine the Gaithersburg East Plan to have one plan for Montgomery Village and one plan for the remainder of Gaithersburg East. The Council also directed the Planning Director to work efficiently on the Montgomery Village Plan, with the goal of having a draft plan transmitted to the Council within 14 months of the plan start date, because it wanted the zoning to be reassessed holistically before the prohibition on piecemeal rezoning of Town Sector property expired in 2015.