Friday, April 5, 2013
The county planning department's next featured speaker will talk about linking transportation policies with bicycle use. The free public lecture takes place at 7 p.m. on April 9.
As bicycling becomes a more popular form of transit, planners must look for ways to incorporate safe bicycle routes into existing urban fabric. The Montgomery County Planning Department's next featured speaker, Virginia Tech Professor Ralph Buehler, will address the topic Tuesday, April 9. Buehler's talk, "Making Cycling Irresistible: Lessons from Europe and North America," will link transportation and land-use policies with bike use, according to a planning department news release. "Co-editor of the recently published book City Cycling, Buehler will report on cycling trends and policies in North American, European and Australian cities and tie those to how planners and local government officials can promote cycling in their communities," …
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
The county planning staff will make recommendations to the board about future bus rapid transit systems at the meeting on Thursday.
Discussion about the implementation of dedicated bus lanes or bus rapid transit systems in Montgomery County will continue at the Montgomery County Planning Board's next meeting, on Thursday, Feb. 21. The county planning staff will update the board on its recent work on the Countywide Transit Corridors Functional Master Plan. A public hearing for the plan will be held on May 2, according to a planning department briefing. The planning staff recommends that Maryland State Route 355 "is the best candidate for pursuing a high-quality BRT treatment to serve future planned growth," and that U.S. Route 29 "is the best candidate for implementing dedicated bus lanes in the near term," according to the briefing. There is a concern, however, that …
Monday, July 30, 2012
The traffic disasters on Rockville Pike and I-270 were enough to make you wish for an ATM that dispenses cupcakes.
If you weren't caught in massive backups on Rockville Pike or I-270 last week, consider yourself lucky. If you were –– heads up –– Montgomery County planners would like to change your usual view of the ubiquitous strip malls on your commute. It started Wednesday during rush hour when a fire at Marlo Furniture closed the Pike at Wootton Parkway and forced traffic into downtown. Flames were seen shooting through the roof of the giant box full of kindling in the form of mass-produced home furnishings. Then Thursday, a truck hauling thousands of gallons of Budweiser rolled over and hit a guardrail near the Old Hundred Road exit on I-270. Crews spent nearly seven hours cleaning things up, perhaps while crying over spilt beer. Where would …
Monday, June 4, 2012
The planning board will discuss the ZTA this Thursday.
The special exception process already in place sufficiently regulates gas stations in Montgomery County, the Planning Department staff wrote last week in a memo to the Planning Board on Zoning Text Amendment 12-07. ZTA 12-07 would prohibit the construction of gas stations that dispense more than 3.6 million gallons annually within 1,000 feet of “any public or private school or any park, playground, or hospital, or other public use, or any use categorized as a cultural, entertainment and recreation use.” If the county council enacts the ZTA, Costco will not be able to build its proposed 16-pump gas station at Westfield Wheaton, next to the Kensington Heights neighborhood. The special exception process already underway for the Costco gas …
Friday, May 25, 2012
Westfield is repairing a stormwater outfall.
Danila Sheveiko returned to his home on Mt. McComas Avenue Thursday morning to find bulldozers working among the trees that separate the Kensington Heights neighborhood from Westfield Wheaton. Westfield had resumed a stormwater maintenance project that began last week, but was delayed due to rainy conditions, Westfield spokesperson Katy Dickey said Thursday in an email to Patch. She added that the work is expected to last approximately two weeks. As workers repair the outfall, they will line the side slopes and base with stones to prevent erosion, Dickey said. Plans for the stormwater outfall repair have been in place for months, with a scheduled construction in late spring or early summer. But Sheveiko told Patch that he was frustrated …
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Glenmont residents can learn more about the recommendations at a community meeting Wednesday night.
Montgomery County planners will present their preliminary recommendations for the Glenmont Sector Plan Update Wednesday night. The public meeting will take place at 7 p.m. at Saddlebrook Headquarters, 12751 Layhill Road, Silver Spring. Planners held three community visioning workshops this spring to solicit public input. Their final report is available on the planning department website, including a detailed draft vision. Planners are scheduled to present their recommendations to the Planning Board on June 7.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Community members can learn more at public meetings Monday afternoon and evening.
The Montgomery County Planning Department for the Maryland-National Park and Planning Commission has proposed a zoning text amendment that would make it easier for county residents to operate accessory apartments without always going through an extensive special exception approval process. What is an accessory apartment? The county defines it as "a completely independent living facility with separate cooking, eating, sanitation and sleeping facilities that is either in or added to an existing single-family dwelling or in a separate accessory structure on the same lot as an existing dwelling." Community members can learn more about this proposed ZTA at two public meetings today, from 3-4:30 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. Both meetings will be held in …
Monday, April 23, 2012
Stanley will be managing 800 employees in Calgary, Alberta.
Rollin Stanley is resigning as planning director for Montgomery County and crossing the northern border to Canada. He will lead the planning, development and assessment department in Calgary, Canada's third largest city. Read more on Chevy Chase Patch.
Charles Roberts
1:03 am on Sunday, April 7, 2013
we used to make fun of people on bicycles-=and streetcars and--- more ›