January 29, 2008 Meeting

White Flint Advisory Group Summary

• The plan will promote affordable housing, sustainability, and design excellence.
• Density incentives to provide desired features/facilities will only work if there is enough financial return to the developer. Otherwise, redevelopment will not occur.
  
• The TOMX zone can reference the sector plan which can set caps on development.
  
• It is unlikely many trees in Wall Park will be removed.
  
• The plan will include design guidelines to promote design excellence.
  
• The land use concept shows general areas designated for each level of FAR 3, including sites such as the Nuclear Regulator Commission,, which is not likely to redevelop. Iin the actual traffic analysis such an area is shown staying as it is today, at less than FAR 3.
  
• The goal is to create a plan that is clear to understand and easy to use, with detailed analytical information in an appendix.
  
• The most important period for estimating traffic generation is weekday evenings. The recommendations are based on how to size the transportation system for traffic at this time of day.
  
• The Rockville Pike Boulevard concept includes a wide landcaped median, wide sidewalks, 3-4 through lanes in each direction, parking on street, and street trees. The roundabout concept will not work with traffic volumes. Adding streets parallel to Rockville Pike will help with north-south traffic flow.
  
• M-NCPPC has a Countywide Bikeway Plan that informs the work on this plan. Pedestrian priority streets will be easy to bike.
  
• A MARC station is recommended for White Flint instead of Twinbrook.
  
• Phase II of the White flint plan may be the more appropriate time to consider bus service.
  

Advisory group comments

• Is industrial the best use for the land along Nebel Street? Nebel Street will not be walkable if it’s surrounded by industrial development.
• consider extending mixed use zoninh Z(TOMX)to the land currently recommended for industrial use along Nebel. .
• Consider the interface between pedestrians and vehicles at major intersections, Hillery Way and Golf Lane.
• What happened to the “Urban Village” concept?
• Cars should not be parked on Rockville Pike.
• The industrial concept is good.
• Concentrating buses on the Pike is good.
• Where will the funding come from? It is hard to comment when this is unclear. .
• The overall vision of the plan needs to be articulated.
• Viable transportation alternatives need to be emphasized.
• Traffic concerns are taking over the plan. The plan is not meeting its promise of being groundbreaking and innovative enough to attract national attention.
• The MARC station should be south next to Nicholson Ct.further from Metro, so that it would spread out transit access.
• What are the non-negotiables? excellent public transportation.
• The vision is good but does not go far enough. The density should be higher.
• Smaller blocks and shorter distances between intersections does not necessarily create gridlock.
• Left-hand turn lanes are a potential problem.
• Consider addressing height, bulk and design by using form based code.
• This democratic planning process is good.
• Consider creating an artists' quarter in the industrial area.
• The plan looks very good.
• Consider Glatting Jackson’s recommendations more when working out the transportation problems.

Date of last update: July 30, 2008