Montgomery News

City of Gaithersburg Planning Commission met January 3.

Here is the minutes provided by the Commission:

1. Call To Order

The Regular Session of the Planning Commission was called to order at 7:30 pm with Chair John Bauer presiding.

Attendee Name; Title; Status; Arrived:

John Bauer; Chair Present;

Matthew Hopkins; Commissioner Present;

Lloyd Kaufman; Commissioner Present;

Ruthzaly Weich; Commissioner Present;

Danny Winborne; Commissioner Present;

Philip Wessell; Alternate Commissioner Present;

Staff present: Assistant City Attorney Frank Johnson, Planning Division Chief Trudy Schwarz, Housing & Community Development Chief Louise Kauffmann, Planners Greg Mann and Ray Roakes, and Administrative Technician Myriam Gonzalez.

2. Record Plats

A. RP-7695-2017: Parcel F, Block B (MCCW Gaithersburg LLC) - Subdivision Plat

Motion was made to approve Record Plat RP-7695-2017.

Result: Passed [Unanimous]

Mover: Lloyd Kaufman, Commissioner

Seconder: Danny Winborne, Commissioner

For: Bauer, Hopkins, Kaufman, Weich, Winborne, Wessell

3. Recommendations To Mayor And City Council

A. CTAM-7748-2017: Zoning Text Amendment to modify the affordable housing ordinance by amending the MPDU pricing formula, extend the control period for rental units, require compliance when properties convert to residential housing, include housing for the elderly, add a new definition for high-rise residential construction and strengthen the language as to the requirements for materials, appearance and distribution of the affordable units

Housing & Community Development Chief Kauffmann stated this application was the subject of a joint public hearing with the City Council on November 20, 2017, with no testimony from the public. She discussed the purpose of the proposed ordinance and noted a revision was made since the public hearing in response to concerns regarding the distribution of units. That change resulted in replacing “generally” with “evenly” dispersed throughout the development in the Draft Text Amendment.

She voiced staff's recommendation for adoption of the text amendment and answered questions regarding the policies of other jurisdictions policy. Commissioner Winborne agreed with the revision and commented favorably on the new ordinance. Commissioner Hopkins voiced strong support for the text amendment. Chair Bauer noted it is consistent with the Council's Strategic Direction and the City Master Plan.

Motion was made to recommend to the City Council adoption of CTAM-7748-2017.

Result: Passed [Unanimous]

Mover: Lloyd Kaufman, Commissioner

Seconder: Danny Winborne, Commissioner

For: Bauer, Hopkins, Kaufman, Weich, Winborne, Wessell

4. Election Of Officer

A. Chair

Lloyd Kaufman and Matthew Hopkins nominated John Bauer as Chair. There were no other nominations.

Motion was made to elect John Bauer as Chair of the Planning Commission.

Result: Passed [5 To 0]

Mover: Lloyd Kaufman, Commissioner

Seconder: Matthew Hopkins, Commissioner

For: Hopkins, Kaufman, Weich, Winborne, Wessell

Abstain: John Bauer

B. Vice Chair

Lloyd Kaufman and Matthew Hopkins nominated Danny Winborne as Vice-Chair. There were no other nominations.

Motion was made to elect Danny Winborne as Vice-Chair of the Planning Commission.

Result: Passed [5 To 0]

Mover: Lloyd Kaufman, Commissioner

Seconder: Matthew Hopkins, Commissioner

For: Bauer, Hopkins, Kaufman, Weich, Wessell

Abstain: Danny Winborne

5. From Commission

Danny Winborne-

•Thanked his fellow Commissioners for electing him as vice-chair.

Lloyd Kaufman-

•Congratulated John Bauer and Danny Winborne on being elected Chair and Vice-Chair of the Commission.

•Reported receiving an invitation from the Maryland Department of Planning about a listening session relating to Smart Growth. The session for the Planning Commission will take place on January 8, 2018, at 5 p.m. at MNCPPC, 8787 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring.

Matthew Hopkins-

•Thanked John Bauer and Danny Winborne for accepting the nominations.

Ruthzaly Weiss-

•Invited all to the 2018 Lecture Series sponsored by the Kentlands Community Foundation and the City, on Tuesday, January 9, at 7:30 p.m. in the Arts Barn. The featured speaker will be Marina Khoury, Kentlands Town Architect, of Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company. It was noted the lecture will be preceded by a wine reception at 7 p.m.

6. From Staff

Planner Mann-

•Announced the next Planning Commission meeting will follow the regular schedule. Also, a joint work session with the City Council, on the Kentlands Apartments, is scheduled for January 22, 2018,

•Referenced a memorandum from Long-Range Planning Manager Robinson, included in the informational package for this meeting, as a follow up to comments at the previous Commission meeting regarding the relevance of the City Master Plan to site plan review.

Planning Division Chief Schwarz-

•Thanked the Commission for their flexibility with the new meeting management system and asked them to forward any concerns or questions to staff.

•Provided a status update on the implementation of the Kentlands Boulevard improvements project.

7. Adjournment

There being no further business, the session was adjourned at 7:50 pm

http://gaithersburgmd.iqm2.com/Citizens/FileOpen.aspx?Type=12&ID=3391&Inline=True