Mo Co Planning Board Recommended Notley Rd Zoning Change on 10/30

10/30 Planning Board Hearing: At the 10/30 Planning Board Hearing, our community’s efforts convinced one member to oppose the townhouses, a 2^nd member to abstain because she was afraid this would be a slippery slope, and a 3^rd member said the 130 units were too many even though he voted yes.  The 24 community members who testified against the zoning change and the more than 150 members in the crowd and on Zoom wearing yellow shirts were a SHOW OF UNITY! 

Montgomery Planning Board Live Stream: 10/30/25 - YouTube (Fast forward to 5 hr 36 min)

Planning Board Member Shawn Bartley made three important points when rejecting the rezoning:

1.      The Developer tries to make the proposed development “fit on paper,” but “it doesn’t fit in the community.”  

2.      Zoning is a promise that the land will support the neighbors and that the government should be compliant with the zoning for the community that chose to live there.

3.      He later emphasized that these townhomes will not help the housing crisis in Montgomery County because he’s “just not sure that these homes will be less” but instead nearly all will be market rate and just as expensive as those around it.

(View his comments at 8hr 17 min 30 sec to 8:25)