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A Glossary of Community Based Planning Terms

Master Plan Status Report

The Master Plan Status Report is prepared every other year by planning staff and is presented to the Planning Board and the County Council for their review and comment. This report provides a brief overview of the positive steps that have been taken over the past year to implement master plan recommendations. It highlights those areas, where there has been a lack of progress or where significant community concerns still remain, and highlights those high-priority, short-term measures still needed.

The findings from this Report help the Planning Board and the community-based planning teams develop future work programs to address the outstanding master planning concerns within their respective communities. By monitoring the actual implementation of master plan recommendations, planning staff and the community can have a better understanding of why recommendations are not always implemented (e.g., they are unrealistic, conditions have changed, there is inadequate funding, plan recommendations conflict with agency policies, or agencies are unaware of their mandates). Once the impediments to implementation are identified, the necessary steps can be taken to make master plans more implementable.

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Capital Improvements Program (CIP)

A six-year comprehensive statement of the objectives of capital programs with cost estimates and proposed construction schedules for specific projects. The CIP is submitted bi-annually to the County Council by the Executive.

The CIP is the tool through which locally funded public facilities, such as sewers, local roads, storm drains, schools, libraries, parks, etc., can be scheduled and built, in coordination with, and guided by, the Annual Growth Policy and area Master Plans. It is used in conjunction with the Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance in terms of programming for public facilities needed to service subdivisions.

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The General Plan

The General Plan, originally adopted in 1964 and most recently updated in 1993, indicates in broad terms those areas suitable for residential purposes, business or industry, agriculture, open space, transportation, recreation, and community facilities. The General Plan is based on a "wedges and corridors" concept, which calls for development to be concentrated along the major corridors of growth radiating out from the District of Columbia on major transportation spines. In Montgomery County, this includes the I-270 Corridor and the I-95 Corridor, most of which lies in Prince George's County. The wedges are the spaces between the corridors, for which the General Plan proposes predominantly low density residential and rural-type development, with the exception of certain satellite towns such as Damascus and Olney. For more detailed information on the General Plan, refer to The General Plan (...On Wedges and Corridors) for the Physical Development of the Maryland-Washington Regional District, and the 1993 General Plan Refinement of Goals and Objectives which are available at the Park and Planning Department's Information Counter.

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Local Map Amendment

A change of zoning, normally sought by a property owner or other person having a proprietary interest. Applications for local map amendments may be filed anytime and are considered according to procedures specified in the Zoning Ordinance. A local map amendment can include more than one tract of land. Land can be combined for the purpose of rezoning. Local governments receive notice of zoning cases abutting their boundaries, but have no veto power. They provide advisory testimony as do other abutting property owners. Approval of a local map amendment normally requires the affirmative vote of a majority (five members) of the County Council. If the proposed rezoning is contrary to the zone recommended in a master plan, however, approval requires an affirmative vote of six Council members, unless the Planning Board has recommended in favor of that approval, in which case a five-vote majority of the Council is sufficient for approval.

Maryland law permits the use of two types of zones, Euclidean and Floating zones. There are important distinctions between the two that affect the manner in which they can be employed.

  1. Euclidean Zones
    A Euclidean zone contains fixed standards. Certain uses are permitted in these zones, but they are subject to fixed requirements such as: lot size, front, side, and rear yard building setbacks; and maximum height. Application for a Euclidean zone may be made either by the property owner, contract purchaser, or by the government, and thus it may be applied by local map amendment or sectional map amendment. For a local map amendment, the County Council must determine whether there has been an unanticipated change in the character of the neighborhood since the last comprehensive zoning, or whether a mistake was made when the comprehensive zoning was applied.
  2. Floating Zones
    A floating zone is more flexible and similar to special exceptions in that the County Council must find that the proposed zone is compatible with the surrounding area and meets the purposes of the zone. Findings of change or mistake, required for granting a Euclidean zone, are not required for a floating zone. Some floating zones require master plan recommendation and are interpreted individually at the time of application.
    All floating zones require Planning Board approval of a site plan for development of the property prior to the issuance of a building permit.

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Mandatory Referrals

Public agencies at the Federal, state, or local levels may implement projects such as schools, libraries, parks, or roads which are considered to be in the public interest. As such, these projects are not subject to the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance. Before being implemented, however, such projects must be reviewed by the Montgomery County Planning Board pursuant to Article 28, #7-112 of the Maryland Code. One of the major purposes of this review authority is to assure that public land acquisition and development are compatible with surrounding development, both existing and planned. Mandatory referral recommendations are not binding on the public agency but do provide an opportunity to encourage the agency to modify its proposals, where necessary, in order to improve their compatibility with the surrounding land uses.
Uniform Standards for Mandatory Referral Review (pdf, 36KB)

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Master Plans

Master Plans are comprehensive plans for the future development of generally one or more planning areas within the County. They are more detailed and contain more specific land use recommendations than the General Plan, but build upon its broad land use framework. Master plans typically include a statement of planning policies, goals and objectives, and a description of the planning area. Master plans generally address such community concerns as housing, storm water management, historic preservation, and pedestrian and trail systems, as well as such environmental factors as air, water and noise pollution, and preservation of agricultural lands. Plans also include maps outlining recommended land uses, zoning, transportation facilities (mass transit, roads, and other facilities), and recommended general locations for such public facilities as schools, parks, libraries, and fire and police stations.
All master plans are prepared by the Planning Board in cooperation with appropriate agencies and in consultation with the County Executive and citizens; approved, after a public hearing, by the County Council; and adopted by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission. Adopted master plans are incorporated as amendments to the General Plan and are designed to implement the spirit and intent of the General Plan.

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Special Exceptions

Most zoning classifications include a set of "permitted uses" (by matter of right) and a set of "special exception" (or conditional) uses. The latter are uses that, because of the level or nature of the activity associated with them, must be carefully reviewed before being allowed to be developed on land in that zoning classification. In addition, they must satisfy additional standards beyond the basic standards of the zone. In residential areas, for example, special exception uses include, among others, child day-care facilities for more than eight children, medical clinics, and horticultural nurseries. Gas stations are almost always special exception uses in the commercial zones. Special exception uses and the standards for their review are located in Chapter 59-G of the Zoning Ordinance.

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Variance

Relief granted by the Board of Appeals to a property owner from the requirements of the Zoning Ordinance regarding frontage, setbacks, and in certain circumstances, building height limits. The property owner must demonstrate that strict application of the zoning regulations would result in unusual practical difficulties or undue hardship because of exceptional conditions of shape, topography or other situations peculiar to the property.

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Date of last page update: January 3, 2008