Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Despite the Montgomery County Council's unanimous decision to restrict 'mega' gas stations, it is still unclear how Costco will be affected.
The Montgomery County Council passed stricter regulations for "mega" gas stations yesterday, but how exactly those changes will affect Costco’s plans for a gas station at Westfield Wheaton remains to be seen. Zoning Text Amendment 12-07, which received unanimous approval, requires a 300-foot buffer separating gas stations that dispense more than 3.6 million gallons a year from schools, parks, playgrounds, day care centers and other outdoor facilities. The Costco gas station is projected to pump 12 million gallons a year. Jeff Ishida, vice president of real estate for Costco’s East Coast Division, said that Costco’s special exception application “does not comply with the ZTA as approved,” and that Costco will need to re-submit its paperwork…
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
The Kensington Heights Civic Association shared some of its correspondence with the Maryland Department of the Environment at a news conference Monday.
Frustrated with what they perceive as a non-responsive county government, opponents of the proposed Costco gas station at Westfield Wheaton are trying to convince state and federal authorities to support their case: That a gas station located so close to a community is a serious public health hazard. “The county doesn’t want to know,” said Larry Silverman, who teaches environmental law at Johns Hopkins University and has been advising the Kensington Heights Civic Association. “They think the way to win is to keep themselves ignorant.” Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett has come out against a zoning text amendment that would make it impossible for Costo to site its 16-pump gas station next to the Kensington Heights neighborhood. …
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
The Planning, Housing, and Economic Development Committee voted Monday against supporting Zoning Text Amendment 12-07.
The future looks uncertain for a zoning text amendment that would restrict “mega” gas stations in Montgomery County. Last week, County Executive Isiah Leggett accused the bill’s sponsors of unfairly targeting Costco, which would be unable to build its proposed gas station at Westfield Wheaton if ZTA 12-07 passes. This week, Councilmember Marc Elrich, who introduced the bill in April, found himself outnumbered at Monday’s meeting of the county council’s Planning, Housing, and Economic Development Committee. His fellow committee members, councilmembers Nancy Floreen and George Leventhal, both voted against the bill, which must still come before the full council for a final vote. Follow Wheaton Patch on Facebook and Twitter. The bill’s …
39.08212
-77.15116
Montgomery County Council
100 Maryland Ave, Rockville, MD
/articles/costco-gas-station-bill-struggles-along
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/locations/7401256
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Montgomery County residents spoke out against a zoning text amendment proposed by M-NCPPC to streamline approval for accessory apartments.
Montgomery County residents turned out in force at two public meetings on Monday to express concerns about a proposed rule change that would eliminate the special exception process for some accessory apartments, also known as “mother-in-law” apartments. The zoning text amendment proposed by Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission staff would allow by right “attached” accessory apartments of up to 1,200 square feet that are located in certain residential and agricultural zones, and “detached” accessory apartments in specific residential zones. (See the zoning text amendment draft online for more details.) Many residents objected, arguing that the special exception proceedings keep them informed and involved in the process. “…
38.99902
-77.03138
Montgomery County Government National Park Planning Commission
8787 Georgia Ave, Silver Spring, MD
/articles/proposed-rule-change-for-accessory-apartments-meets-opposition
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/locations/7071376
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
The board discussed Wheaton redevelopment, the recently introduced zoning text amendment for large gas stations, and budget concerns for Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services.
The Mid-County Citizens Advisory Board meets the third Tuesday of every month at the Mid-County Regional Services Center from 7-9 p.m. Meetings are open to the public. Here are some of the highlights from the April 17 meeting: Wheaton Redevelopment At its first meeting since the county council’s momentous April 10 vote regarding Wheaton redevelopment, MCCAB expressed its frustration and disappointment, but adopted a more muted tone than displayed by members of the Wheaton Urban District Advisory Committee. With no councilmember attending -- Hans Riemer showed up to WUDAC’s meeting last week -- board members directed their questions to Tiffany Ward, staff member for Councilmember Marc Elrich. MCCAB members seemed to feel snubbed that they …
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
An online tool gives first place to Councilmember Nancy Navarro, whose district will include Wheaton starting March 7.
Of all the members of the Montgomery County Council, Nancy Navarro has the most social media clout--or at least according to Klout, a popular online tool that analyzes data from social networks such as Twitter. A Klout Score “measures influence based on your ability to drive action.” The Klout score considers three things: the number of people you influence, the degree of influence, and how much influence your network exerts. Navarro, who is now vice president of the council, weighed in at 26, narrowly beating Councilmember (and now Council President) Roger Berliner, whose Klout Score is 25. Councilmember Hans Riemer is close behind, with a Klout Score of 24. Adam Fogel, Navarro's chief of staff, said that open communication with …
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Elrich's presentation showed examples from Eugene, Oregon, Columbus, Ohio and Adelaide in Australia.
Councilmember Marc Elrich (D-At Large) estimates that he's given the Bus Rapid Transit presentation at least 100 times in the past five years. His latest presenation was at Brookside Gardens Wednesday morning, for a Wheaton-Kensington Chamber of Commerce meeting. It appears that his efforts have paid off, as Parks and Planning is studying the proposed BRT lines in the Master Plan of Highways, the State Highway Administration has encouraged Elrich to look into using the medians on state highway roads for dedicated lane on some routes, and a County task force is studying implementation. "We're done road building in Montgomery County," Elrich said, saying that BRT would use existing roads to create a system that brought people north and south…
Bill Hussein O'Stalin
11:23 am on Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Anything big frightens the county council. You see, they are afraid if it's too big, it's too big for them to keep their collective foots on its neck. more ›