Dear Brad:

I want to thank the Shady Grove Civic Alliance for all of your time and involvement in the Shady Grove Sector Plan.  The Alliance leadership and members devoted countless hours on this Plan, and focused us on the key issues for the surrounding neighborhoods and for the future of this part of Montgomery County.  I believe it is a stronger Plan because of your efforts.  

Working together, I believe we can change the area around the Shady Grove Metro into just the kind of mixed use community we should have around a Metro station.  That is the way we will be able to protect our Agricultural Reserve, limit sprawl development, and address some of our terrible traffic congestion.   

We know that these new homes and apartments, retail and offices will result in additional traffic in an area that is already highly congested.  To make this Plan work, we must take stronger steps to make sure that a significant number of those new apartment dwellers and employees get out of their cars.  That is why this Plan has probably the toughest traffic mitigation requirements of any land use plan in the entire Washington region.  And in the “trust but verify” category, we will not just hope that people get out of their cars, we are staging the development in the Shady Grove Plan.  In that way, if we find that the traffic mitigation requirements are not being met, then we call a halt to additional development until the standards are met.  In addition, as you know, congestion at the intersection at Gude Drive and Route 355 must be addressed before development in Stage Two can be approved.  

This is a Plan that can create a new, attractive community and also provide significant benefits to existing nearby neighborhoods.  We are going to have a wonderful library that will anchor the new community and existing communities.  It will be a public gathering place and will include additional space for the community, including at my suggestion, a kitchen and smaller scale recreational space.  This building is the government’s obligation so it is up to us to make sure it is a great looking building that will serve as a strong focal point.  Jeremiah Park will also be a central outdoor gathering place, so that there can be outdoor concerts, or Halloween parties or the like.  I really believe these civic places are what helps a place become a community. 

As for the school site at Casey Mill Creek, I realize that we are on a very tight time frame for decisions on a school site location, given the end of the reservation period for this site.  We have tools that can and will be used to make sure that we retain all of our site options until a final decision is made as to where an elementary school will be located.  

I think one of the strengths of the Plan is that a portion of the new housing will be workforce/ middle class housing, so that people with a range of incomes can live there.  As you know, I have proposed legislation mandating a 10% workforce housing requirement in virtually all Metro station areas in Montgomery County.   

Finally, this Plan lays out a 20 year vision and zoning requirements.  But it will require an extraordinary amount of tenacity, stamina, hard work, and funding to make this Plan a reality.  We need to pursue a range of options for relocating the County Service Park facilities.  And most of all, we need the continued involvement of your communities in the implementation of the Plan.  I was very pleased to support your proposal to create a Citizen Advisory Group to help assure continued community involvement in implementation of the Plan.   

I am convinced we can turn the area around the Shady Grove Metro into a community we will all be proud of.   

Sincerely, 

Steve Silverman, Councilmember