For the 2026 election cycle, the Coalition for Smarter Growth and Montgomery for All have compiled responses from registered candidates for Montgomery County Executive and County Council, offering insight into their positions on housing affordability, zoning, transit, biking, walking, and community engagement.
Category: Montgomery County
Take action: Support affordable housing (again!) at the Chevy Chase, MD Library
In 2022, CSG, Montgomery for All, Action in Montgomery, and other organizations teamed up to rally for co-locating affordable housing with a redeveloped Chevy Chase Library—and won.
Now, in 2026, we need to speak up once again.
🌸 All Things Montgomery: March 2026 🌸
Spring is here! 🌸 And with it comes many upcoming opportunities to take action all over Montgomery County—some new, and some familiar.
Letter: US29 Flash BRT Phase 2 Capital Budget prioritization (MD)
We are writing to express our support for transportation investments that prioritize public transit and active transportation where Flash Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is planned on US29.
All Things Montgomery: January 2026
In last month’s All Things Montgomery, I recounted a very eventful 2025. Today I’d like to point you to some important work for us to undertake in 2026.
Find the list of plans taking place this year below, and learn how you can get involved to ensure the housing and smart growth wins we secured in Thrive are reflected in our county’s plans for the future!
Event materials: Does more housing make housing more affordable?
On January 22, 2026, we talked to leading housing experts about the relationship between housing production and affordability, and explored policy tools to provide stable, affordable housing across a range of incomes.
This was the third webinar in our series on our region’s housing needs, and how researchers, policymakers, and advocates can work together towards solutions.
Event materials: Maryland Housing Needs & Solutions: Why is housing unaffordable, and what can we do to fix it?
At this webinar on December 8, 2025, we discussed two recent reports offering insight into why housing is so unaffordable, what its impact is, and what to do about it with a Maryland all star cast ⭐️:
- Kathryn Howell, PhD, Director of the National Center for Smart Growth, University of Maryland College Park & Associate Professor, Urban Studies & Planning Program
- Dani DiPietro, Policy Research Director, Office of the Comptroller of Maryland
- Natali Fani-González, Council President and District 6 Councilmember, Montgomery County, Maryland
- Moderated by Scott Gottbreht, PhD, Assistant Secretary for Policy, Strategy, & Research, Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development
View the reports, presentations and event recording here:
- Presentation: Maryland Housing Needs Assessment 2025 Update
- Presentation: Housing and the Economy, MD Comptroller
- 2025 State Housing Needs Assessment, prepared by the National Center for Smart Growth for the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development
- Housing & the Economy Report, the Comptroller of Maryland
- View the event recording on CSG’s Youtube channel
Press Release: CSG Commends Council’s Approval of the University Boulevard Corridor Plan
The Coalition for Smarter Growth thanks the Montgomery County Council for voting today to pass the University Boulevard Corridor Plan.
WIN! Montgomery County Council approves the University Blvd Corridor Plan
On Tuesday, December 9, the Montgomery County Council voted to approve the University Boulevard Corridor Plan by a vote of 7-3. The plan creates a strong framework for safer streets, a wider variety of housing options, a connected bike network, and new homes and retail near transit.
Demand safe streets in Four Corners
Call on the Montgomery County Council to deliver on the safe streets that our county has promised us and that our communities need.