Planners will engage the community to provide feedback about the update to the county’s General Plan at events held in August, September and October
SILVER SPRING, MD –The Montgomery County Planning Department, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC), has launched Thrive Montgomery 2050 to update Montgomery County’s General Plan for the future. The General Plan is Montgomery County’s long-range policy framework for guiding land use and growth. Montgomery County’s existing General Plan was last comprehensively updated in the 1960s.
Through Thrive Montgomery 2050, Montgomery Planning is asking for the community’s help to ensure that, over the next 30 years, the county can be a vibrant, welcoming and economically healthy place where all can thrive.
This effort was launched through Thrive Week, a series of five community events between June 26 and June 30, 2019, each held in a different location within the county. About 1,000 people participated and their ideas were recorded in words and pictures by a graphic artist to help inform the update to the General Plan. More Thrive events are planned for August, September and October.
“Thrive Montgomery 2050 is our chance to work together with the community to shape how we can address future opportunities and challenges in the county,” says Planning Director Gwen Wright. “Together, we will determine what we want our county to be in the decades ahead so that we can create the future we want. This is an important effort that will influence the quality of life for generations to come.”
The result of Thrive Montgomery 2050 will be a living and breathing General Plan that guides future planning and decision-making and helps secure resources to ensure Montgomery County is a place where everyone can be successful, have opportunities and enjoy a high quality of life in a beautiful and resilient environment.
Upcoming Thrive Montgomery 2050 Outreach
Meet Montgomery Planning staff at the following events to learn more about Thrive Montgomery 2050 and share your ideas about the future of Montgomery County:
- Tuesday, August 6 – National Night Out, a community event focused on raising awareness about crime and drug prevention, 5 to 8 p.m. at the Mid-County Regional Services Center (2004 Queensguard Road, Silver Spring, MD).
- Friday, August 23 – Beer and Wine Garden Party, 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Sandy Spring Museum (17901 Bentley Road, Sandy Springs, MD). Register online for the event.
- Sunday, September 15 –FutureFest, from 12 noon to 5 p.m. at the Silver Spring Civic Building (1 Veterans Plaza, Silver Spring, MD), will feature hands-on activities, cutting-edge innovations and immersive cultural exhibits — all designed to inspire kids and adults alike.
- Friday, September 20 – Park(ing) Day was started in 2005 to re-think the use of public space by converting metered on-street parking spaces into temporary parks. This year, Montgomery Planning will transform a parking space at Fenton Street and Ellsworth Drive in downtown Silver Spring. The event will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
- Friday, September 20 through Friday, September 27 – The Thrive Montgomery 2050 planning effort will be part of Long Branch Festival Week, held to reimagine a livelier and friendlier downtown in Long Branch. The community will be asked for feedback and volunteer hours to create a temporary civic green. This transformed outdoor space will host food and retail vendors, Montgomery Parks activities and features, and a fun and inviting place for residents during a public celebration drawing residents and visitors. The event will take place at Flower Avenue Urban Park (8746 Flower Ave, Silver Spring, MD) and the shopping center across the street.
- Saturday, September 21 – Poolesville Day Festival, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Whalen Commons Park (19701 Fisher Avenue, Poolesville, MD).
- Saturday, September 21 –Montgomery Hills Street Festival, held from 3 to 7 p.m. on Georgia Avenue from Columbia Boulevard to Seminary Road.
- Sunday, September 22 – Wheaton Arts Parade and Festival, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Wheaton Veterans Urban Park (11200 Amherst Avenue, Wheaton, MD).
- Saturday, October 5 –Taste of Bethesda food and music festival, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., held along Norfolk, St. Elmo, Cordell, Del Ray and Auburn Avenues in Bethesda’s Woodmont Triangle.
- Saturday, October 5 and Sunday, October 6 – The Burtonsville Placemaking Festival, co-sponsored by Montgomery Planning and the Dallas-based Better Block Foundation, will bring together residents, visitors, local business owners and representatives of civic associations to demonstrate ways of improving this neighborhood setting. The event will be held from 4 to 9 p.m. on October 5 and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on October 6 at the Burtonsville Crossing Shopping Center (15701 Old Columbia Pike, Burtonsville, MD).
In addition to talking with Montgomery Planning staff at these community events, community members also can share their comments online or take the Thrive Montgomery 2050 Quiz.
Learn more about Thrive Montgomery 2050.
What is Thrive Montgomery 2050?
What does your future look like? And how does the community where you live, work and play support your vision for your future—and that of your family?
Montgomery County has seen significant and rapid social, environmental, technological, demographic and economic shifts since the 1964 General Plan, and more changes are anticipated over the next few decades. It is necessary to update—together—the county’s long-term guiding framework for growth and development, the General Plan, to determine how to proactively manage change in the future and address the challenges and opportunities from technological, social, environmental and economic change.
Thrive Montgomery 2050 is our chance to figure out—together—how Montgomery County can be an inclusive, prosperous and resilient community over the next 30 years. It’s about how we respond to future opportunities and challenges in the county. Together.
Through Thrive Montgomery 2050, we’ll identify and examine the changes occurring, consider what we want for tomorrow, then develop a shared vision that allows us to keep what we love about Montgomery County while taking the actions needed to thrive over the next 30+ years.
The plan will draw on your vision, ideas and care for your community, best practices, expert analysis and innovative responses.
We are starting out with three core themes for the General Plan Update:
Economic health: We want to ensure a vibrant, strong and competitive economy by supporting small businesses and business innovation, and attract and retain a high quality, diverse workforce.
Community equity: We want to create a place where all residents have equal access to affordable housing, healthy foods, employment, education and more.
Environmental resilience: We want to preserve our natural and built resources and use the best strategies to fight climate change and mitigate the impact of development on the land.
Let’s ensure a vibrant economy, equity for all residents and a healthy environment through 2050 and beyond.
Let’s plan to thrive. Together.