Montgomery County Planners to Host Community Open House for New East County Science Center Master Plan

Montgomery County Planning Board Press Release:


SILVER SPRING, MD – Planners, starting work on a new master plan for the East County this fall, are going into the community on Wednesday to solicit ideas and comments for what the plan might encompass.

The plan, called the East County Science Center Master Plan, will encompass the White Oak area east of New Hampshire Avenue and Colesville Road, including the Cherry Hill Road area and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) site. At the June 30 open house, planners want to hear from residents, workers, landowners and anyone interested in the future of eastern Montgomery County as they begin to develop a scope of work for the project.

The plan will create a new vision for the area that features a mixed-use life sciences center building upon the presence of the FDA campus in White Oak. It will address the land use, urban design and transit access issues related to the future growth of the Cherry Hill area. That includes the FDA, the proposed Washington Adventist Hospital, County’s Site 2 (formerly a Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission site) and the Percontee property.

At the open house, planners will discuss the upcoming project and solicit input from the community on issues that should be addressed. Residents are asked to drop in anytime between 4:30 and 8:30 p.m. to learn about the purpose of the plan, the approximate boundaries of the planning area and proposed study area, demographic research, and the basics of master planning.

Learn more at www.montgomeryplanning.org/community/ecsc

After the open house, planners will develop a scope of work that they will present to the Planning Board this fall.

Who:
Montgomery County Planning Department

What:
East County Science Center Master Plan Open House

When:
4:30-8:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 30 (drop in anytime)

Where:
Eastern Montgomery Regional Services Center
3300 Briggs Chaney Road
Silver Spring, Maryland 2090

For more information, contact:

Valerie Berton
Communications Manager
Montgomery County Planning Board
301/495-4600

The Trachtenberg Office Staff Attends East County Citizens Advisory Board Meeting

Naomi Bloch, representing the Trachtenberg office, attended last night’s meeting of the East County Citizens Advisory Board.

The Board meets the first Monday of every month at the East County Regional Services Center which is located at 3300 Briggs Chaney Road in Silver Spring.

Citizens in attendance last night expressed concerns about crime rates and traffic safety.

This was followed by presentations from:
Steve Silverman, Director, Department of Economic Development
Jonathan Genn, Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Percontee, Inc. and
Robert Jepson, Associate Vice President, Washington Adventist Healthcare

They presented information of the FDA's important role to the area and how that adds positively to the development plans for a Science Village in the East County. A very lengthy and in-depth discussion took place concerning this project as well as other types of development in Eastern Montgomery County especially with regard to jobs creation.

County Executive, Ike Leggett will be at the East County Regional Services Center on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 from 7:00 to 8:30pm to conduct a budget forum in order to seek input from residents about the challenges facing the County in the upcoming Fiscal Year 2011 Operating Budget. The public is encouraged to attend.

For more information about upcoming meetings and events: www.montgomerycountymd.gov/content/RSC/EASTCO/Newsletters/2010
Or call: 240.777.8400