Germantown
The update to the 1989 Germantown Master Plan focuses on a new, exciting vision for the upcounty community, including:
- Strengthening Germantown as a county employment hub
- Visualizing a series of neighborhoods connected by the proposed Corridor Cities Transitway
- Establishing Germantown as the cultural center of northern Montgomery County
- Creating the main downtown for northern Montgomery County
- Creating neighborhoods with a mix of housing, retail and public space with access to transit
- Encouraging high-quality design
Planners have put the finishing touches on the Germantown draft plan, which envisions a vibrant downtown for surrounding residential communities.
The Planning Board will be consider the draft at a July 28 public hearing in Germantown. (View directions). Sign up online to testify at the public hearing.
Download the draft plan (1 MB)| View the background (16 MB). Request a copy on CD-ROM.
Background
The Germantown Citizen Forum, held May 31, 2006, kicked off the revision of the 1989 Germantown Master Plan.A panel of community leaders led residents and business and government representatives in discussing Germantown issues and their desires for its future. In December 2006, the Planning Board appointed a Community Advisory Committee to guide staff in developing the draft plan. Germantown Forward includes a calendar of meetings, the results of work to date, and more.
Germantown is maturing into a thriving community! More than three decades since first conceived as a "new" town, Germantown now features six residential villages with their own schools and Village Center, a Town Center, and a growing Transportation/Employment Corridor.Montgomery College and its biotechnology center, the Black Rock Arts Center, a new library, and a greenbelt of parks help create a quality place for Germantown residents.
Timeline
- 2008
The draft Master Plan proposes to emphasize growth and development of Germantown’s Transit/Employment Corridor to boost the community’s economic base, enhance the Town Center, and help residents find jobs closer to home. - 1989
The revised Germantown Master Plan refines the vision of the town, which grew to about 35,000 residents. As common for new towns, the residential section of Germantown grew much faster than the employment portion. Thus, the originally planned residential areas of the community are nearing capacity, while the planned employment lags. - 1974
The Germantown Master Plan provides the blueprint for a new town, one of several Corridor Cities proposed along I-270 - 1970
Germantown continues to be identified as a farming town with a population of about 2,000 - 1964
Germantown identified as one of the I-270 Corridor Cities in the General Plan
Project Schedule
May 2008: The Germantown Master Plan draft is released, available on CD-ROM. (Request a CD-ROM)- July 28, 2008 - 7:30 p.m.: Public Hearing on draft master plan. Globe Hall, High Technology and Science Center, Montgomery College-Germantown campus, Germantown, MD 20874. View directions.
- Fall 2008: Planning Board Worksessions
- Late Fall 2008: Transmit the Planning Board Draft to the County Executive and County Council
Germantown projects and development activity
- Proposed projects
- Projects approved by the Planning Board
The Master Plan Process
Planners develop master and sector plans to create a framework for each community designed to last 15 to 20 years. Those visions help planners and policy-makers – such as the Planning Board and County Council – make policy and decide on proposed development. Each plan includes an inventory of land uses and an analysis of zoning, transportation, community facilities, environmental assets, and historic structures, among an inventory of land uses and an analysis of zoning, transportation, community facilities, environmental assets, and historic structures, among many other elements.
Created nearly 40 years ago, Montgomery County’s General Plan defined the land use concept "Wedges and Corridors,” a regional plan that envisioned growth corridors radiating from Washington, D.C., like the spokes of a wheel. In between each spoke, wedges of open space, farmland, and residential areas prevail. Areas served by transit – such as Germantown with the proposed Corridor Cities Transitway – provide opportunities for vibrant, compact, walkable communities.
M-NCPPC Staff Contact
Sue Edwards, Germantown planner and I-270 Team Leader
Sue.Edwards@mncppc-mc.org
301-495-4518
Date of last page update: July 16, 2008
