<body><div><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=34V0On_0vkT4lZd00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=34V0On_0vkT4lZd00" width="1500" height="844" >BETHESDA, Md. (7News) — Hundreds of Montgomery County residents packed a high school auditorium Wednesday night for the last of five in-person listening sessions on a proposed rezoning plan.By a show of hands, the crowd appeared to be predominately against the proposal that would allow owners to replace single-family homes with multi-unit buildings.The zoning changes were prepared by the Montgomery County Planning Department and recommended to the County Council by the Planning Board in June as a way to address what county leaders called a severe housing shortage.PREVIOUS |Montgomery County considers replacing single-family homes with multi-unit buildingsHowever, opponents said the proposal lacks substantial data and the community input that the listening session sought to gain."If you as public servants do not change course the question will not be, 'How can people live here, but 'Why would anyone want to,'" said a resident calling for the county to scrap the plan.County leaders clarified several times Wednesday that the proposal does not provide affordable housing, but rather more attainable housing options often called the "missing middle."There is no current legislation for the proposal and county leaders said they were looking for input from the community before they decide on the recommendations.Those in support of the proposal believe that current zoning is outdated and needs to change to allow more people to live in the county, and before more residents are forced to leave."If you think about yourself as someone who values justice and you're trying to keep people out of your community, I think that's something that you really have think about," said one resident in support of widening the kinds of housing that can be built.Some of those who spoke out against the proposal argued that it would change the character of their neighborhoods, negatively impact traffic and schools, and does nothing to address affordable housing."There are big spaces that are open," urged another opponent of the plan. "What about some of the shopping centers that they've talked about? Don't invade already established single-family neighborhoods."“This plan is urban renewal 2.0 it’s about gentrifying out people who have been living in low-income communities,” said Kim Persaud, founder of a zoning watchdog group called Epic of Moco. “Once again you’re seeing Black lives and brown lives don’t matter in Montgomery County because what we’re talking about is displacement.”Montgomery County Council President Andrew Friedson said he is listening to everyone.“We hear the passion on both sides of that issue,” Council President Friedson said.With just one more virtual listening scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 2, Friedson said the process of crafting a final proposal is just beginning. There is no timeline, no rush, and the plan is not etched in stone.“I don’t think this is one direction or another. I think this has been framed as a binary choice between doing nothing and doing everything the planning board has proposed I think the reality is that is not how the legislative process works,"Friedson said.Find more information on the listening session HERE.After the meeting on Wednesday, Greater Greater Washington and the Coalition for Smarter Growth issued a joint statement in response to the listening sessions."Montgomery County’s zoning status quo isn’t working anymore. The facts are clear: Montgomery County has underproduced housing for decades, which has led to rising prices that prevent households from moving to, or remaining in, Montgomery County. The county needs 60,000 new homes in the next 20 years, and based on demographic projections, over 80% of those homes need to be attached homes like townhomes and apartments. Neighborhoods once considered affordable, and that have good access to transit, jobs, and services, are becoming increasingly cost-prohibitive.While many of the neighbors who spoke out in Bethesda on Wednesday night rejected the reality of fellow residents’ struggles with housing costs, those comments do not alter the reality of the facts above. Nor do those comments relieve our elected officials of their duty to serve their constituents fairly, which includes taking action to address our housing crisis, as recommended by the Attainable Housing Strategies Initiative.Multiple studies show that attendees at public meetings are not reflective of the diversity of the broader public: they skew whiter, wealthier, and older than the population as a whole and opponents of new proposals are over-represented. Today, a majority of Montgomery County households live in attached homes, like townhomes and apartments, and over one-third of county households rent. These voices weren’t heard during the listening sessions. When members of the public make claims that renters and apartments are “destroying single-family neighborhoods,” they disparage the majority of this county’s residents.Montgomery County voters want something done about high housing costs, and they support solutions like those in the Attainable Housing Strategies Initiative. In 2022 polling from Data for Progress, 55% of Democratic voters in Montgomery County said they support allowing “a mix of housing types” in single-family neighborhoods, such as duplexes and triplexes, and 61% said that they support the “construction of new homes, including duplexes, townhomes, and/or apartments” in their neighborhoods. Support is especially high among residents under age 45 and renters. These findings align with findings from statewide and national polls that show broad support for zoning reforms to boost housing affordability.It is far past time for the County Council to take bold action to address our housing crisis. Montgomery County is a national leader in innovative strategies to fund affordable housing production and preservation—and we now have the opportunity to become a national leader on undoing outdated zoning restrictions and making our county a more welcoming place.We are a county that values our diversity; values our schools, small businesses, and service workers; and values being a place that offers opportunity and open arms for all.We urge the Council to take into account the needs of all their constituents, and urge Council President Andrew Friedson to introduce a zoning text amendment based on the Attainable Housing Strategies recommendations as soon as possible."</div></body>

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Montgomery Co. proposed solution to 'missing middle' housing met with public opposition

BETHESDA, Md. (7News) — Hundreds of Montgomery County residents packed a high school auditorium Wednesday night for the last of five in-person listening sessions on a proposed rezoning plan. By a show of hands, the crowd appeared to be predominately against the proposal that would allow owners to replace...