ACCESSORY APARTMENTS: Issue heard on Nov. 6, regarding Subtitle D: Residential House (R) Zones: Allow one accessory unit in single family residential zones; Allow accessory apartment in owner-occupied home or existing accessory building (e.g. carriage house or garage) with access through alley or side yard, special exception for any construction or additoin
Author: acustis
Maryland DOT letter to Virginia rejecting Potomac Bridge Crossings
Dear Secretary Connaughton: Thank you for the opportunity to clarify our position on the proposed study of the Potomac Crossings for Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. Based on the draft press release you shared with my office, it appears you may have misconstrued former Secretary Swaim-Stanley’s letter regarding our position on new crossings of the Potomac River.
Zoning Over Pizza
If you’ve signed up to speak in front of the Zoning Commission at the public hearings on the zoning update this November (we need more supporters to sign up!), this workshop is for you! Over snacks, we talked about what the Zoning Commissioners will be looking for when you speak, and what you can say to best show your support for the zoning update. We’ll break into small groups and brainstorm what we can say.
RELEASE: Don’t Waste our Money, Don’t Destroy our History
Under pressure from Secretary of Transportation Sean Connaughton and Governor Bob McDonnell, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is rushing to approve a highway that would slice through Manassas National Battlefield Park and its surrounding National Historic District. This new highway would open the door to an Outer Beltway, cutting a 45-mile swath through Northern Virginia at a cost of $1 billion or more. The Bi-County Parkway has sparked broad and deep opposition from local residents, state legislators and preservation groups.
Rapid Transit System for Montgomery County Earns Support from Diverse Coalition of Over 30 Environmental, Civic & Business Leaders
ROCKVILLE, MD – Advocates representing over 30 environmental groups, civic associations, businesses, and grassroots organizations alike gathered outside the Montgomery County Council building Tuesday evening to announce their support for a proposed new high quality Rapid Transit System (RTS) based on successful bus rapid transit networks around the nation and across the globe.
ANC Smart Growth Summer Camp
At Smart Growth Summer Camp on August 21, 2013, Matthew Bell of the University of Maryland, School of Architecture and David Fields of Nelson\Nygaard discussed urban design, transportation, and the role ANC Commissioners can play in enacting positive change using smart growth principles. We brought together ANC Commissioners from across the city to meet, learn more, and share their stories.
COMMENTS to MWCOG on Regional Transportation Priorities Plan (RTPP)
We appreciate the work that has gone into the Regional Transportation Priorities Plan (RTPP) and your public outreach efforts. We commend the focus on Near Term and On-Going Strategies, which include a number of important priorities including first and foremost the maintenance of the existing system. We also strongly support and urge the TPB to adopt Scenario B, transit and TOD, as the long-term strategy for the region.
Largo site is front-runner for new hospital in Prince George’s
Prince George’s County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D) is backing a selection committee’s recommendation that a Largo site be chosen for a new, $654 million state-of-the-art regional hospital.
The board of directors for Dimensions Healthcare System, the nonprofit organization operating four hospitals in Prince George’s County, will discuss the recommendation during its meeting today.
“The selection committee will recommend the Largo site officially at the Dimensions board meeting,” Baker spokesman Scott Peterson said Wednesday. “This is the selection committee recommendation, not the county executive’s. Mr. Baker concurs with this recommendation.”
The proposed 280-bed hospital would replace the aging Prince George’s Hospital Center in Cheverly.
Dimensions Healthcare also operates Laurel Regional Hospital, the Bowie Health Campus and Glenridge Medical Center in Lanham.
On Tuesday, a selection committee comprised of members from county government, Dimensions Healthcare, the University of Maryland Medical System and the Maryland Department of Health and Human Hygiene recommended the Largo site, located next to the Largo Metro station. The other contender for the hospital was the site of the former Landover Mall.
The Coalition for Smarter Growth, a Washington, D.C.-based organization promoting walkable, transit-oriented community development in the Metropolitan area, issued a statement Wednesday morning applauding the recommendation.
“Prince George’s County took a big step forward toward a more sustainable economic and environmental future with the decision to place the new regional medical center at the Largo Town Center Metro station,” Cheryl Cort, Coalition for Smarter Growth policy director, said in the statement.
The Largo site is comprised of 70 acres of land owned by Oak Brook, Ill.-based Retail Properties of America, and several adjoining properties under private ownership. It is adjacent to the Boulevard at Capital Centre shopping center and the Largo Metro station.
The site is within close access to Interstate 495.
“A Metro-accessible regional medical center helps Prince George’s catalyze transit-oriented economic development and capture a larger share of the region’s growth,” Cort said in the statement. “Locating this major new medical facility at a Metro station brings both healthcare and thousands of jobs to a significantly more accessible location for county residents.”
Dimensions Healthcare announced in July that the search for the new hospital had been narrowed to two sites, the Largo site and the site of the old Landover Mall, which was demolished in 2007.
The Landover site provides bus service to the New Carrollton Metro, nearly three miles away. The Largo Metro station is somewhat closer to the Landover site, at 2.5 miles walking distance, but not directly accessible by bus.
The hospital construction is being funded through state and county government, as well as Dimensions and the University of Maryland Medical System.
STATEMENT on Prince George’s Regional Medical Center Location Decision
Coalition for Smarter Growth Policy Director Cheryl Cort issued the following statement commending Prince George’s County Executive Rushern Baker for his decision to place the new regional medical center at the Largo Town Center Metro Station:
“Prince George’s County took a big step forward toward a more sustainable economic and environmental future with the decision to place the new regional medical center at the Largo Town Center Metro station. We congratulate County Executive Rushern Baker, his partners at the University of Maryland, and the state in this wise decision. Locating this new state-of-the-art healthcare complex at the Largo Metro station fulfills the Executive’s often stated intention to leverage the value of the county’s 15 Metro stations. We applaud County Executive Baker and his team for negotiating this exciting deal on behalf of county and area residents.
A Metro-accessible regional medical center helps Prince George’s catalyze transit-oriented economic development and capture a larger share of the region’s growth. Prince George’s Metro stations are among the county’s most important assets for attracting new businesses and residents. Locating this major new medical facility at a Metro station brings both healthcare and thousands of jobs to a significantly more accessible location for county residents. We welcome the new regional medical center at the Largo Metro station and anticipate it will anchor a vibrant new mixed use health district, or maybe even a downtown for the county.
In addition, building the medical center at Largo means more transportation options for employees, visitors and patients which also means less traffic for Prince George’s residents.
Along with the clear economic development benefits of a Metro station site, this decision shows that county leadership is listening to its residents. Through emails, petitions, and call, thousands of residents told county officials that the Largo Metro station was the preferred site while hundreds came out to a community meeting in February to express the same thing. We commend the County Executive for making this a true community decision.”
About the Coalition for Smarter Growth
The Coalition for Smarter Growth is the leading organization in the Washington D.C. region dedicated to making the case for smart growth. Our mission is to promote walkable, inclusive, and transit-oriented communities, and the land use and transportation policies needed to make those communities flourish. To learn more, visit the Coalition’s website at www.smartergrowth.net.
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CSG Chat: The Future of Metro – the Momentum Plan
WMATA’s Momentum program could be one of the most important transit initiatives for our region in decades. What does the plan include? How will it help Metro to become more reliable? What obstacles do we need to overcome to succeed? How are we going to pay for it? Watch the full video from this live interactive webchat with WMATA’s Shyam Kannan.