UPDATES
WE NEED YOU, please attend!!!
OZAH HEARING --DAY 5 & Day 6!!! ------- Apr 13 & TBD ---- 9:30 AM ---- PLEASE JOIN in person or ZOOM (links below)
(Office of Zoning & Administrative Hearings)
What: This hearing is conducted as a trial with witnesses & experts before a pseudo-judge, the Hearing Examiner (Khandikile Sokoni). The Developer/Applicant has the burden of proof. The Developer put on their case during Day 1 and Day 2 of the OZAH Hearing (Nov 6 and Dec 2, 2025).
THE DEVELOPER CONTINUED TO ARGUE HOW THEIR PROPOSAL FITS COLESVILLE...it is clear they do not understand our community & this is our chance to have a voice so the judge understands our objections of density, traffic, not fitting the character of the community, the heavily paved over green space and the impact on the environment & the neighboring homes with stormwater and pedestrian crossings on their private property due to lack of parking--and the overall impact on the Colesville infrastructure etc.
NOW, it is our turn.
Day 3 took place on Jan 15, 2026. More than 75 Neighbors attended in person or on zoom. 27 neighbors testified in opposition of the townhouses (only person testified for them). You showed our diversity and spoke eloquently and passionately. Neighbors stuck to facts based on experience; some called out the “affordability” claims of the townhomes; others talked about safety on Notley road and increased traffic; some showed pictures of stormwater flooding in their yards; others raised concerns over overflow parking in Petwyn Court and Greenspring Street; some demonstrated on maps just how the cut-through traffic on Sherwood Forest Drive would flow; still others explained how different the Morningside Townhouses are; parents talked about schools capacity realties; each person added on to the next – it was a great unifying effort and we should be proud of our neighbors who spoke up for all of us.
Day 4 took place on March 16, 2026. 2 new community members testified, and 2 other neighbors finished their testimony from January. In total, 29 neighbors have testified against the Notley Townhouses as proposed at OZAH hearings – THANK YOU TO EVERYONE! Also, in cross-examination, our attorney used Exhibit 68 - Slide 8 to show the width of the current homes on Notley Road -- some homes as small as 42 feet and 47 feet-wide. Next, she used Exhibit 82 to show that the townhouses can be up to 100 feet-wide. Finally, she got the Developer’s witness to admit that the Developers did not give the Hearing Examiner an accurate comparison of what 100 foot-wide townhouses would look like across from the neighbors with 42 and 47 foot-wide homes because they did not provide an exhibit showing the 100-foot townhouses across from the smaller current Notley Road homes drawn to scale!
Day 5 & 6 are scheduled for April 13 and To be determined.
When: Monday, April 13 & To be determined -- 9:30am
Where:
Davidson Memorial Hearing
1ST FLOOR - Room 200
Council Office Building
100 Maryland Ave
Rockville, MD
Zoom info: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88306890987?pwd=MLcqzZinLSacQBYFuRKUsuJXFcQWz2.1
Meeting ID: 883 0689 0987
Passcode: 358654
What you can do:
-
Attend and WEAR YOUR “No Notley Townhomes” TSHIRT! (or yellow) LET'S PACK THE ROOM! Your attendance is VERY IMPACTFUL & IMPORTANT!
-
Submit a signed letter by email. The Hearing Officer has continued to accept letters.
E-mail letter as an attachment to ozah@montgomerycountymd.gov
Snail mail letter to this address:
Re: LMA H-159
Khandikile Sokoni
100 Maryland Avenue
Room 200
Rockville, MD 20850
Your signed letter will only become a part of the official record when the OZAH Office receives it in a signed document.
5. We want people to attend- the more the better! But if you really can’t, watch on zoom: see link above
More info here:
https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/OZAH/Hearings/H-159.html
WHAT'S NEXT:
OZAH Examiner Recommendation/Report (45-75 days after) --- Mid-June 2026 (earliest)
After all of the OZAH hearings, the Hearing Examiner will make a recommendation 45-75 days after the final hearing date. Her recommendation could occur in mid-June or later depending on additional briefing.
District Council Oral Argument - After OZAH Rec/Report - Summer 2026
After the Hearing Examiner makes her recommendation, then the District Council (this is the same as Montgomery County’s County Council) will hold a VOTE to approve or deny the rezoning application. We can ask for oral argument where our Attorney can make an argument in front of the County Council before the vote. WE WILL NEED A HUGE TURNOUT FOR this COUNTY COUNCIL ARGUMENT. More to come as we get closer.
**** NOTE 3 members of the County Council are running for County Executive -- Primary Election is June 23, 2026 ****
Members At a Glance - Montgomery County Council, Maryland
