Changes Coming to Twinbrook

The Planning Board this week sent the draft Twinbrook Sector Plan to the Executive and County Council. This is the first in our series of community plans to guide the future of the MD 355/I-270 area – the county’s most-traveled corridor. 

Looking comprehensively at the 27-mile swath connecting Bethesda and Clarksburg is one outgrowth of the Planning Board’s recent discussion of Centers and Boulevards. Building on that report, the board just approved a MD 355/I-270 Corridor Study that identifies ways to unify and improve communities in its path. 

Twinbrook is just the beginning. We will review and approve sector plans for the Germantown Employment Center, White Flint and Gaithersburg West/Life Sciences Center later this year. 

The Twinbrook Sector Plan covers just 154 acres next to the City of Rockville and the Twinbrook Metro Station.  Its most prominent existing feature is the Parklawn Building, which houses the U.S. Public Health Service and the Federal Drug Administration.  While there are a few new offices and laboratory buildings in the area, most of the land is occupied by small industrial businesses.

Because of its proximity to Metro and existing health- and science-oriented uses, Twinbrook is well-positioned to redevelop into a mixed-use center – a combination of homes, office and retail – complementing the development planned or already underway in the City of Rockville. 

Therefore, the sector plan recommends redevelopment of the northern part of Twinbrook in mixed uses.  This will introduce a substantial amount of housing in an area that currently has none, enabling new residents to walk to work or to transit.  That’s good for the economy and the environment.

Studies that informed the plan suggest that the area is suitable for businesses and agencies connected to the National Institute of Health, the Walter Reed Medical Center, and the health science and information technology activities that line the larger corridor. 

The plan recommends strong design standards, including a street grid, ground-floor retail and pedestrian-friendly streets. The plan also envisions substantial new and green urban open spaces, and pedestrian/bike linkages to the Rock Creek trail system and across the railroad track and Parklawn Drive. 

The plan recommends that the remainder of the planning area retain its industrial uses, which provide an important resource for down-county residents and businesses. It also recommends live-where-you-work housing.

The plan places a strong emphasis on high-quality, well-designed, environmentally sustainable public areas and private buildings, affordable housing, and use of transferable development rights to help protect the Agricultural Reserve.   

The Council is expected to hold a public hearing on the Twinbrook Plan in May, followed by committee work sessions leading to council approval. 

Please let me know what you think about our direction in Twinbrook – and the corridor as a whole. I look forward to hearing from you.