Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1962-05-03
Planning Rally
Continued from Page One)

mission.
Another candidate, Mrs. Rose
Kramer, who seeks the County
Council seat from the Fifth Dis
trict, said until such time as
we get better coordination be-
tween the Council and Park and
Planning" the Council might
exercise its budget power over
the commission ito be sure it
gets little more coordination"
with Council policies.
And William Sher, candidate
for one of the two at-large
Council seats, criticized the
Council for its Ambiguous and
inadequate" influence on the
commission, and said he favored
a breakup of the planning
group into individual agencies
related specifically to Montgom-
cry and Prince Georges Coun-
ties and the District.
Mrs. Schweinhaut'S reference
was to former County Council
William F. Hickey, who heads
the local Democrats for Pro-
gress ticket opposed by her
County Democrats slate.
She criticized Hickey for
issuing a minority opinion on
the Councils 5.2 vote to re-
turn master plans for the
Rock Creek, west
Branch and Rockville Gath
ersburg areas to the planners
because they were inadequate.
Hickey, at the time, declared
that Park and Planning is "the
proper controlling agency for
the master plans and that its
adopted plans have legal effect"
Mrs. Schweinhaut, who favors
strong County Council control
of land use planning, recalled
that in 1857 she introduced bill
in the State Legislature to dis
solve the Park and Planning
Commission and make the
Montgomery County Planning
Board a separate arm of the
county government.
Mrs. Edna Cook, a candi-
date for the House of Dele
gates on the Democrats for
Progress ticket also quoted
from the states platform ad-
vOcating Improvement in the
planning process" in the cOun-
ty.
IF this improvement is not
forthcoming, we will move to
give the County Council greater
direct authority over the plan
ming process" she read.
Strong opposition to this view
point came from Independent
Council candidate ]. Robert
Tucker, who questioned whether
1--WE want to submit our plan
ming to politics"
ANY planning group" he
declared, SHOULD be kept out
from under political influ-
ences which might be brought
upon it by an elected County
Council"
Even Mrs. Schweinhaut con-
ceded that "one of the soundest
reasons for Independent plan
ming agencies is that they are
kept free of political pressures. I"
Candidates on both the Coun-
ty Democrats and Democrats
for Progress tickets were
strongly represented at the
meeting, attended by about 100
members of the citizens plan
ming group and other area resi-
dents.
Although Republican primary
candidates and spokesman for
the United Democrats for Tawes
were also invited, none were
present.
Most agreed on the need for
adopting and sticking to a basic
master plan for land develop
ment - although two, independ-
ent County Council candidates
Joseph Anastasi and Tucker
strongly suggested flexibility in
carrying it out.
mo matter how well you
plan for the Year 1000, when
you get to 1899 you may real
ize it's not the plan for 1000
after ALL" commented Ana
stasi, while Tucker declared
fatty:
1.-THE Year 1000 Plan is more
a map of the past rather than a
plan for the future"