Public Hearings to Follow
The first components of the City of Rockville’s Comprehensive Plan, developed from three years of community involvement and feedback throughout the Rockville 2040 process, were delivered Dec. 12 to the city’s Planning Commission.
Those components, part of an initial draft by city planning staff, consist of an introductory chapter with the draft’s vision and principles, and the elements — individual chapters on 10 broad citywide topics. The chapters include land use, transportation, environment, parks, community facilities, housing, economic development, historic preservation, water resources and municipal growth.
The initial staff draft is based on the Rockville 2040 process, which included numerous listening sessions, citywide forums, open houses and other meetings, as well as analysis and discussion with the Planning Commission.
The Planning Commission will begin its review of the draft on Saturday, Jan. 5, to determine if it’s ready for public testimony. A staff draft covering the second portion of the plan, the planning areas, involving neighborhood-level issues, will be delivered to the Planning Commission at a later date.
Once the draft plan is approved by the Planning Commission for formal release, the city will hold interactive sessions with the public so community members can learn more about the draft’s contents. The Planning Commission will also open the record for written testimony and set public hearing dates.
When public hearings are complete, the Planning Commission will hold work sessions to revise the plan based on community input. They will then submit the elements and planning areas portions of the revised draft plan to the Mayor and Council for review. The Mayor and Council are charged with approving and adopting the plan, once they have developed a final version.
For more information, visit www.rockvillemd.gov/Rockville2040 or contact principal planner Cindy Kebba at [email protected] or 240-314-8233.