Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1962-08-02

The toUou0iag is statement prepared for the
Sentinel By Montgomery County Citizens Planning As
socidtion Which long has been in the forefront of log
ical, orderly planning IN Montgomery County:
Land is our precious and irreplaceable
Yet Montgomery County still has general plan for con-
serving this resource
present policies permit development almost all over
county in halfacre lots At increasingly rapid pace
all the upper county being into houselots
large patch here and small patch there srngng out in
ribbons along existing roads, eating farmland and bring
ing in their wake problems perhaps minor but larger
later of soil erosion and pollution problems of costly
road Improvements and public services.
PATCHWORK DEVELOPMENT SEEN
As the population Of the outward farther
and farther this Of patchwork development will take
place faster and faster 1t on for quite while II
leave alone there will be plenty of space for some
time.
Should allow this process continue, however with
any attempt to plan or guide it?
we do we will pass to children countryside
cut UP into scattered subdivisions abandoned farms with
patches Of unusual and unusabe land in between On the
other hand attempt during hfetmes to manage
development of this land economically using only much
we need at any given time trying to put the proper uses
in appropriate places preserving what is not needed
for the unforeseeable needs of the future.
All development needs of the county until the year
1000 (ncuding plentiful supply of lots ranging through
quarteracre haacre and two szes can be
accommodated in approximately onehrd of land
Harland Bartholomew consuan to the Planning Commits
son urged that instead scattering this development
all the open land of the county should try guide
development into the served by Route 70S and the
corridor to Baltimore and into the neghborhood of existing
upper County towns He urges that attempt to
the rest of the land both for and for future de-
velopment
The Planning Association joins in urging such policy
MUST MODIFY POLICIES
accomplish such goal present growth policies
be modified Above all need to plan We need to
begin different to which should be de-
veloped in various ways and which should be conserved
We should begin to fit such subdivisions
them in where other appropriate
If public funds needed to irreplaceabe
of land should begin discuss whether is
worthwhile spend those funds and begin to investigate
what it might cost We must try to estimate the cost to
and to children of not planning of not managing
land provdenty We be surprised at which
cost is the greater.
The Adoption the proposed Rural with its 5acre mini
losize will be first step toward the sorting out Of
which take place under any plan This will
do the whole job 1t should not be applied blanketwse
the whole County 1t cannot effectively be used to con-
true land which will be needed
for intensive development in the future For these
other must be found probably including public
purchase
USE OF PROPOSED ZONE
The proposed be used however proposed
by Planning Commission staff protect
tain rural semiural which threatened with
premature and wasefu scattered development 1t would
not disturb existing uses.
The Commission staff has suggested particular
where this property be applied right away:
in the upper Rock Creek watershed where dense de-
veopmen would threaten both the rural character of the
upper watershed and longesabished conservation goals
The actual coming of this land is before council
the the staffs proposal gives
this might be used.
We favor adoption of the amendment creating
and would support its application in the Rock
watershed 1t is the whole answer beginning
of recognition OF ruseeshp in the land gen
erations