Thrive 2050 - Tell the Council to Hit Pause and Add Equity

Thrive, If enacted, would undermine our existing Smart-Growth General Plan - Thwarting our ability to repair racial and social Injustice and equity.

Thrive Fails:

→ to stop sprawl
→ to advance Racial Equity and Social Justice in land use and transportation
→ to provide a path to success in meeting the need for affordable housing
→ to protect renters from rent increases and displacement
→ to protect our urban trees and forests
→ to protect our watersheds and clean drinking water supplies from pollution
→ to protect historic sites and structures
→ to protect our Agricultural Reserve so we can grow its capacity for food production

Montgomery County's comprehensive plan, a.k.a. our General Plan, entitled On Wedges and Corridors, was last updated in 1993. The Montgomery County Planning Board is proposing to update the General Plan with “Thrive Montgomery 2050.” Last October of 2021, a Council committee approved a version of Thrive that is now under review by the Montgomery County Council, including a fast-track process for Racial Equity and Social Justice review and input. Residents countywide are encouraged to review and comment to the Council now on this draft of Thrive.

Among Thrive’s many sweeping proposed changes: Promoting widespread increases in residential density across the entire county; enabling higher densities along transportation corridors not limited to transit stations; promoting non-farming uses - recreation and tourism - in the Ag Reserve; and, deletion of a prior policy for No New Highways – keeping planned-but-unbuilt highways including M-83 in the master plans. Thrive has several laudable goals, including Housing as a Human Right, and maintaining agriculture as the primary land use in the Agricultural Reserve. But these laudable goals would be thwarted by Thrive’s policies, that would drive widespread upzoning and urbanization.

Following a series of worksessions, the Council expects to hold a final vote on Thrive by the end of October. If enacted, Thrive would undo the successes of the county's existing smart growth comprehensive plan -- to the detriment of our ability to provide affordable housing, to protect the environment and address the climate emergency, and to redress racial inequities and social injustices. A new Montgomery County Council and Planning Director will be inaugurated in early December 2022. We believe the new council should take up Thrive, after a renewed Planning Department effort including residents, community groups, and local small businesses.

Urgent: Click "start writing" to your councilmembers today! Tell them to:

(1) Hit the Pause Button on Thrive – and on all Thrive-related strategies, plans and zoning changes.

(2) Extend Thrive’s schedule to re-program a new effort to review and revise Thrive, through an inclusive process with the new council, planning director, and residents as respected partners.

(3) Hold public hearings this Fall of 2022, to enable on-the-record public review and comment on the PHED draft, including on any proposed revisions from the RESJ process.

Thank You for taking action! It Matters!

Much Much More on the Thrive's Background, Sweeping Changes, and likely outcomes.

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