SILVER SPRING, MD – Montgomery County planners have long eyed the land surrounding Route 355 and
Interstate 270 and as an area for growth. On Thursday, the Montgomery County Planning
Board will discuss ways to link the communities that stretch along its 27-mile length
through a coordinated approach to job development, transit, parks, the
environment, arts and entertainment, and a mix of housing types.
Planners are nearing
the final stage of a detailed study of the MD 355/I-270 corridor that identifies
innovative strategies to connect Bethesda, White Flint, Twinbrook, Rockville,
Gaithersburg, Germantown and Clarksburg under a common vision and identity. The
study sets the stage for master plans in progress for many of those
communities. Each master plan forecasts approximately 15 years of land use and other improvements in a more detailed look at
each community.
The Planning Board’s MD
355/I-270 corridor study recommends ways to bring more consistency to MD 355,
which changes from an eight-lane expanse in White Flint to a two-lane former
country road in Clarksburg. The study looks at how to improve the road’s
functionality and design as well as how to ease transitions between population
centers.
It also suggests economic
development strategies centered on science and technology, reflecting the influx
of high-tech jobs along the I-270 corridor. Researchers from Johns Hopkins
University, which owns land along the corridor, and the University of Maryland
are participating in the study process.
The large-scale study
also identifies common approaches to combat environmental concerns, like
reducing the amount of paved parking lots to improve water quality and offering
alternatives to driving through mass transit and an integrated trail network to
raise air quality.
Finally, the MD 355/I-270
study looks at health and lifestyle issues for current and future residents. By
creating opportunities for people to live near employment and retail centers, planners
envision walking and mass transit to replace driving, improving the health of
both people and the environment.
The board will consider
the concept study at a work session on Thursday. While work sessions are open
to the public, the board uses its work sessions to interact with and get
background from staff, and public testimony is limited.
However, as the board reviews
upcoming master plans in the corridor, they will include aspects of the study
in each discussion. Residents have ample opportunity to get involved in master
plans, starting with meetings scheduled in the community and culminating with a
public hearing before the Planning Board. The Twinbrook Master Plan public
hearing has been set for Nov. 15.
WHO:
Montgomery County Planning Board
WHAT:
Work session on I-270/Route 355 concept study
WHEN:
Thursday, Oct. 4, 2007 – approximately 7:30 p.m.
WHERE:
Park and Planning Headquarters
8787 Georgia Avenue
Silver Spring, Md.