It is essential that the Planning Board have hard copies of the Zoning Rewrite available to the public.

[Meredith Wellington]

Dear Neighbors,

Here is a letter that we sent today to the Planning Board asking that it make available to the public paper copies of the draft of the Zoning Rewrite that it is transmitting to the County Council some time this month:

Chair Francoise Carrier and Planning Board Members            
8787 Georgia Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20901
January 9, 2013
 
Dear Chair Carrier and Members of the Montgomery County Planning Board:
 
On behalf of Neighborhood Montgomery, we are writing to request that the Planning Board make available (for a fee, if necessary) paper copies of the Zoning Rewrite that the Planning Board transmits to the Council.  
 
The drafting of an entirely new zoning code is a major event in Montgomery County.  No revision or rewrite of this kind has occurred since the 1970s.  The Planning Board is about to conclude its over 3-year study and drafting of a new code, and send it to the County Council for the Council’s study and review.  It is essential that all residents and all owners of property located in Montgomery County have individual access to a hard copy of the proposed new code.  
 
Not everyone has access to the internet, and one copy placed in each public library is wholly inadequate.  Furthermore, the December 21, 2013 "Preliminary Planning Board Draft" of the new zoning code is over 330 pages, and does not include Section 59-1, which will cover purposes, definitions, etc. So, even if one has access to the internet, most residents do not have the facility to print out a document that may ultimately exceed 400 pages.  And, even if one can access a copy in a library, one would have to take the time to copy it, and pay a fee per page to have one’s own copy of the document.

So let us be the first to request a copy.  
 
Thank you very much for your consideration.
 
Sincerely,
 
Meredith Wellington
Pat Baptiste
Julie Davis
Jenny Sue Dunner
 
Neighborhood Montgomery
A Neighborhood Network for Sensible Growth
http://groups.google.com/group/neighborhood-montgomery