Plan for Adoption Consideration is Ready for Review

The snow was no match for Rockville as the Mayor and Council concluded their third work session on the Town Center Master Plan during a virtual meeting on January 6. Previous work sessions on the Plan took place on December 9 and December 16. Recordings of all Mayor and Council meetings, as well as meeting packets and staff reports, may be viewed on the city’s website.

Over the course of the three work sessions, the Mayor and Council have directed staff to make many edits to the Plan. The major changes made to the Plan since the September Planning Commission approved draft include:

The net new housing unit goal has been increased from 2,000 units to 3,000 units.
A new character area has been added to the Planning Area, called the 355-Corridor, with a base height limit of 235 feet. This character area generally includes properties within a ½ mile radius of the Rockville Metro station and with frontage on MD-355.
The base height limit for the edge character area has increased from 75 feet to 85 feet.
Qualifications for the bonus height program have been revised to include only affordable housing, specifically 20% or more moderately priced dwelling units or other deed restricted affordable housing. The Planning Commission approved draft allowed additional moderately priced dwelling units and/or additional green space improved with climate resiliency features to qualify for bonus height.
Bonus height has been revised to 100 additional feet of permitted height for properties within the MD-355 corridor and core character areas, and 50 additional feet for properties with the edge character area.
Minimum off street parking requirements have been eliminated within ½ mile of the Rockville Metro Station and within ¼ mile of any future BRT stations. The Planning Commission approved draft called for the elimination of minimum off-street parking requirements throughout the entire planning area. Existing requirements for accessible parking, as required by state code, remain.
Property owners will be required to submit a “parking plan” along with their other development review documents when developing in Town Center. In this document, property owners must outline the number of parking spaces they will provide as a part of a development, as well provide a statement of justification explaining how the proposed amount of parking will meet demand from the development’s users.
Action 5.1.1, referring to the location of the Rockville Metro Station BRT stop, has been modified to reflect the latest engineering and design drawings on station location.
A new action, Action 9.2.6, has been added calling for a public park along the future extension of Maryland Avenue.
Several small clerical edits have been made throughout the plan to correct typos, clarify language and update unit/ridership counts.

The Mayor and Council are scheduled to consider adoption of the Plan at their next meeting on Monday, January 13. The Maryland Land Use Article requires legislative bodies to review and take action on a pending Comprehensive Plan amendment within 90 days. January 13 is the last Mayor and Council meeting within this 90-day period.

In addition to the high-level summary above, the staff report for the January 13 meeting has been updated to include a summary of changes made to the Plan since the Planning Commission approved their version in September. The final Draft Plan for Adoption Consideration, which is what the Mayor and Council will be voting on during the January 13 meeting, is available to review here.

The Mayor and Council are keeping the record open until the adoption of the Plan for any additional comments from the public. If you have not provided your thoughts on the Plan but would like to do so, please send your comments via email to mayorandcouncil@rockvillemd.gov and carbon copy comprehensiveplan@rockvillemd.gov. Alternatively, any member of the public may sign up to speak during the public forum section of the January 13 meeting.