preserving the quality of life in Olney, Maryland

County Council Hearing on RNC Zone Amendment & Environmental Overlay Zone -- Tuesday, September 14

Your letters and attendance are needed!

Politicians know we have busy lives and your letters and attendance at the hearings speak volumes. We will be testifying. Please come to listen and support our testimony with your applause. If you would like to testify, call 240-777-7931 to sign up. The hearing is on Tuesday, September 14th at 7:30 pm at the County Council building located at 100 Maryland Avenue in Rockville, Maryland. Send letters addressed to President Steve Silverman to county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov. Letters need to be received by September 23rd.  This hearing can be watched live on Cable Channel 6 and again on 9/17 at 8 pm and 9/18 at 9 am.

RNC Zone Background

The Rural Neighborhood Cluster (RNC) zone was created during the Ashton/Sandy Spring Master Plan update in 1998. The zone was designed to preserve open land, environmentally sensitive resources, and rural community character by requiring 65 – 85% of the parcel to remain as open space. However, the developments that have been built in Sandy Spring under this new RNC zone (e.g. Dellabrooke, Ashton Preserve) have not produced the desired results. Large, cookie cutter homes on small lots clustered near the roads have not achieved a rural feel. Before the County Council rezoned most of the large parcels of land in the neighboring Upper Rock Creek Master Plan (which includes the Freeman/Pulte Property), they mandated that the Planning Board staff propose changes to the zone to correct the problems. The purpose of this hearing is to discuss these changes.

Changes Still Needed

• The large open spaces must remain as open space in perpetuity. This is the intent of the zone and the language needs to be added to clarify that intent.
   
• Athletic fields and equestrian facilities should not be permitted as part of the calculation of open space.
   
• The rural open space must be permanently preserved and limitations on its use established in the land records.
   
• Management of the open space is necessary to prevent violations and other problems such as invasive plants taking over. Therefore, the land should be deeded to a trust that has the resources to monitor and enforce regulations, such as Maryland Land Trust.
   
• The spirit of the zone is to have a variety of lot sizes and house sizes which has not been realized. Olney Coalition proposes that the Planning Board must evaluate plans and find that a range of housing choices is included.
   
• Any development on RNC properties must be evaluated for conformance to its master plan.

Environmental Overlay Background and Issues

During the discussion of the Upper Rock Creek Master Plan, the County Council approved a Special Protection Area for the North Branch of the Upper Rock Creek with an environmental overlay zone containing an 8% impervious cap. This means water quality will be monitored before, during, and for 10 years after development. The 8% impervious cap restricts the amount of area of the ground that can be covered by a building, road or other impervious surfaces. This is one of the most effective ways to control storm water run off and to protect the quality of the headwaters. Olney Coalition fully supports this overlay zone.

Letter Writing Guidelines

The impact of your letter is 75% the fact you wrote a letter and 25% content. Writing to a government official sends a very important message: you care enough about what is happening to take a few moments of your time to let them know you are concerned. So the essence of your letter should be just that: who you are, what you are concerned about, and what you want done.

The letter can be two to three paragraphs (1 – 3 sentences each).

1. First paragraph: Explain who you are, such as:

• I have lived in Olney for…
• I moved to Olney because…
• I am deeply concerned about the environment…..not easy/cheap to restore once destroyed….

2. Second paragraph: Explain why you are writing, such as:

• I am writing in reference to ZTA 04-17, an amendment to the RNC zone
• I am writing in reference to ZTA 04-18, an Environmental Overlay Zone for the Upper Rock Creek. .

3. Third paragraph: Explain what you want the recipient to do, such as:

• I want you to consider….
• I want you to include/exclude….
• Choose from items listed above as Changes Still Needed section. Pick the one or ones that mean the most to you. Do not list them all.

Maximize Your Impact!

• Always include your name and address.
• Letters can be sent via email or through the post office.
• The same letter signed by two people counts as one letter. Therefore, have each member over 18 in your household write a separate letter (first paragraph will be different).
• Letters with factual mistakes are disregarded as uninformed resident – no matter how trivial the fact. If you are not sure of a fact, leave it out. Less can be more.

Addresses to send your letter

E-mail:
county.council@montgomerycountymd.gov
This email is sent to ALL Council members. You can address it to President Silverman.

Regular mail:
Montgomery County Council
100 Maryland Avenue
Rockville, Maryland 20850

Directions to the Public Hearing

Head South on Georgia Avenue
Turn Right onto Route 28/Norbeck Road
Turn Right onto Viers Mill Road
Cross over 355
The second intersection is Maryland Ave, but for parking:
Turn Left at the first light onto Monroe Street and then take an immediate right to enter a parking garage.