Planners and Planning Board will discuss recommended zoning for established and emerging districts within Downtown Bethesda
SILVER SPRING, MD –Staff from the Montgomery County Planning Department, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, will meet with the Planning Board on September 17 to discuss the district-by-district zoning recommended for established and emerging centers outlined in the Public Hearing Draft of the Bethesda Downtown Sector Plan.
Districts that will be discussed include Bethesda Row, Woodmont Triangle, Pearl and Wisconsin Avenue as time permits. This second work session follows the overview of the Plan presented to the Board in July and the public hearing about the Bethesda Downtown Sector Plan held in June.
A third work session is scheduled for October 5 to address zoning in residential and edge districts. Two additional Planning Board reviews are scheduled in October and November to focus on the high performance area, ecology, open spaces and affordable housing. The work sessions involve detailed discussions about various aspects of the Sector Plan to refine its recommendations for the final plan that will be reviewed by the County Council in 2016.
View the Public Hearing Draft of the Bethesda Downtown Plan.
Summary of the Bethesda Downtown Sector Plan:
The new Sector Plan builds on the success of Downtown Bethesda by offering ways to strengthen its centers of activity – Bethesda Row, Wisconsin Avenue corridor, Woodmont Triangle and emerging districts – over the next 20 years. Among its recommendations is a high performance area that incentivizes more energy-efficient buildings, new parks, tree-lined streets and innovative storm water management. The priority of the plan is to create a truly sustainable downtown. Other goals of the Plan focus on:
-A mix of housing options, including preservation of market-rate affordable apartments and new moderately priced dwelling units in exchange for development incentives.
-New and/or expanded civic greens at Veteran’s Park, Bethesda Farm Women’s Cooperative Market and along parts of the Capital Crescent Trail.
-Economic competitiveness within the region based on new development, public amenities and proximity to transit, including Metrorail and proposed Purple Line light rail.
-Density averaging (a planning tool that allows square footage to be sent from one mixed-use site to another mixed-use site) to create or enlarge parks, protect significant community landmarks and retain affordable housing.
Work on the Staff Draft of the Bethesda Downtown Sector Plan began in January 2014. Community participation was encouraged through public meetings and workshops, online surveys and happy hour events, which were intended to reach residents who don’t typically participate in the planning process.
The Plan serves as an amendment to the approved and adopted 1994 Bethesda Central Business District Sector Plan and the 2006 Woodmont Triangle amendment to that Sector Plan.
Since the Board’s public hearing in June, the plan is being revised through work sessions with the Planning Board before the final Bethesda Downtown Sector Plan is presented to the County Council for approval. Council action is anticipated in spring 2016.
For questions or comments about the Public Hearing Draft, please email bethesdadownplan@montgomeryplanning.org