Montgomery County Planning Board Approves MOU with Development Partner, Request for Council Appropriation

 

MONTGOMERY COUNTY PLANNING BOARD APPROVES MOU WITH DEVELOPMENT PARTNER, REQUEST FOR COUNCIL APPROPRIATION

 

SILVER SPRING, MD – The Montgomery County Planning Board voted unanimously to adopt an agreement with its private development partner to lay the groundwork for SilverPlace – a project slated to include a new Park and Planning headquarters, condos, rental units, retail and open space at Georgia Avenue and Spring Street.

 

The non-binding agreement (formally known as a memorandum of understanding) establishes the roles and responsibilities of the Planning Board and the development team in the project’s initial stages, which involve developing a design concept for and working out the details for moving forward. More detailed and substantive agreements are expected later.

 

The Board also voted to request a special appropriation from the County Council to begin the design phase and convene the charrettes with stakeholders. The funding request may be up to $4.9 million and will cover the cost of the project’s schematic design.

 

“The most important element is the requirement for a fresh look at the design of the entire public-private project through a series of charrettes,” explained Planning Board Chairman Royce Hanson.

 

“The charrettes will match design talent with public perspectives to produce a concept that meets the Commission’s need for a headquarters and sets a new standard for public buildings and urban open space. We also want to provide an exemplary housing development that accommodates a wide range of incomes, respects and fits well into the neighborhood while exceeding environmental standards.” 

 

At the charrettes, architects will begin putting ideas to paper and obtaining input for initial design proposals from outside experts, community members and staff who will eventually move into the headquarters. The community charrette portion of the design is expected to take up to four months. The total design of the project is expected to take 10 months.

 

Under the proposal, the Park and Planning Commission will negotiate a future agreement to sell part of its property to the private development team to build the residential and retail components of the project. Another agreement will spell out the range of costs and fees associated with design and construction.

 

To address the lack of affordable housing in the county, SilverPlace will include a minimum of

30 percent affordable residences. Like all new or proposed public projects in Montgomery County, SilverPlace will meet “silver” or higher environmentally friendly standards set forth by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).

 

In 2005, Park and Planning officials released a competitive request for proposals for the SilverPlace project. Among the three development teams who responded with a proposal, SilverPlace, LLC was ranked the top contender. During the competition for the project -- for illustrative purposes only -- development teams submitted conceptual architectural renderings for the site. The Board has made no decisions on the design or placement of buildings.