Rockville 2040 Planning Areas Draft Information

 The Planning Commission has set October 7 as the deadline to submit written testimony on the Planning Commission's draft Planning Areas portion of the Rockville Comprehensive Plan update. They will also hold a final public hearing on September 23 to accept oral testimony on the Planning Areas draft.

 

The Planning Areas draft is available for review online at www.rockvillemd.gov/Rockville2040.
 

Submitting Written Testimony

The Planning Commission opened the public record for the Planning Areas draft in March 2020. Written testimony will continue to be accepted until the close of business (COB) on Wednesday, October 7, 2020, after which the public record will close on the Planning Commission's Planning Areas draft.

Written testimony may be emailed to planning.commission@rockvillemd.gov, mailed to Rockville City Hall, or submitted through an online form. Additional details for submitting written testimony are available at www.rockvillemd.gov/Rockville2040.

 

About the Final Public Hearing

The final Planning Commission public hearing date will take place on Wednesday, September 23, 2020, starting at 7:00 p.m. Due to continuing directives for social distancing to slow the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus, the hearing will be held as virtual meetings via the Cisco Webex platform.
 

Pre-registration to participate in the public hearing is strongly encouraged.

 
Details for registration and participation in the public hearing are available on the Rockville 2040 webpage at www.rockvillemd.gov/Rockville2040.

Next Steps

After the public record closes on October 7 for testimony on the Planning Commission's Planning Areas draft portion of the Comprehensive Plan update, the Planning Commission will hold a series of work sessions to review the testimony received and determine what changes to make to the Plan as a result.

Once the Planning Commission has finalized changes to the Planning Areas draft, they will consider forwarding both the city-wide Elements and Planning Areas portions to the Mayor and Council. The Mayor and Council will then have the opportunity to consider further changes and seek public input prior to final adoption of the Comprehensive Plan update.
 

About Rockville 2040

Rockville 2040 is the city's initiative to update the Rockville Comprehensive Plan, which sets the vision, goals, and policies that will shape the city over the next twenty years. The Planning Commission's draft of Volume II: Planning Areas consists of policies and recommended zoning changes and city projects for each of the city’s 17 neighborhood-scale planning areas. The Planning Area draft builds on citywide policies from the draft Volume I: Elements — which the Planning Commission reviewed in 2019 — by focusing on issues and opportunities unique to each planning area. Both of the Planning Commission's draft volumes derive from feedback gathered throughout the Rockville 2040 process, which included numerous listening sessions, citywide forums, open houses and other meetings, as well as analysis and discussion by the Planning Commission and city staff.
 

Questions?

For more information on the Rockville 2040 Comprehensive Plan update, visit www.rockvillemd.gov/Rockville2040 or contact Principal Planner Clark Larson, AICP at clarson@rockvillemd.gov.

 As I mentioned last night, the Planning Commission will be holding a public hearing for the planning areas of the Rockville 2040 Comprehensive Plan update tonight, Sept. 9 and Wednesday, Sept. 23.  Both meetings start at 7:00 PM and will be held via Webex.  Testimony on the planning areas, East Rockville is Planning Area 2 (starting on document page 16), can be provided live at the public hearing, by mail, or by email.

The Planning Areas document can be reviewed here:  https://www.rockvillemd.gov/DocumentCenter/View/38255/Comprehensive-Plan-Volume-II-Planning-Areas-Public-Review-Draft---spread-view?bidId=

Below are the ways to provide testimony.  We are asking the Planning Commission to keep the record open for 2 weeks after the Sept. 23 public hearing (Wednesday, Oct. 7, 5:00 pm).  

How to Submit Testimony

Written Testimony
Written testimony is encouraged and should be submitted to the Planning Commission, in addition to oral testimony provided at the public hearing. There is no limit to the length of written testimony, though clarity and concise language is preferred. Written testimony may be submitted now and until the Planning Commission closes the public record for the Planning Areas component of the Comprehensive Plan update.

Written testimony may be submitted in any one of the following ways:

1. By email, to planning.commission@rockvillemd.gov;
2. By completing an online comment form; and/or
3. By mail to: City of Rockville Planning Commission, c/o Larissa Klevan, 111 Maryland Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20850

Please include with all written testimony: Your name, address, and the organization on behalf of whom you are submitting (if applicable). We also ask that you identify all written correspondence as testimony on planning areas draft and, if applicable, on which planning area(s) or page you are providing comments.

Oral Testimony at the Virtual Public Hearing
The Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the Planning Areas draft over the course of two meetings. Members of the public are invited to speak once during the public hearing. Individuals will have three minutes to speak while representatives of organizations will have five minutes. The hearing will be held online through the Cisco Webex video conference platform.

Virtual Public Hearing Dates

• Wednesday, September 9, 2020, starting at 7:00 p.m. - pre-register by 9 a.m. on Sept. 8
• Wednesday, September 23, 2020, starting at 7:00 p.m. - pre-register by 9 a.m. on Sept. 22

Instructions for the Virtual Public Hearing:  https://www.rockvillemd.gov/203/Rockville-2040-Comprehensive-Plan-Update

If you have any questions, just let me know.

Take care,

Andrea