March 2019

A proposal Who could force large commercial and residential properties in the county to have fewer parking spaces in a bid to force greater use of public transportation and get cars off the road is being questioned by business groups.

County Executive Marc Elrich is pushing for an update to regulations that would require building owners across the county to have a ‘traffic mitigation plan’ designed to get more people to use transportation or carpooling by reducing the number of parking spaces for commuters. Currently, five county areas — Bethesda, North Bethesda, Friendship Heights, Silver Spring and Shady Grove — require businesses with 25 or more employees to have plans, which also mandate designated parking spots for carpoolers and van services. Each of the areas also sets a target for the number of employees who do not drive to work, which ranges from 18% in Shady Grove to 46% in Silver Spring.

Last week, the county council’s transport and environment committee began considering the proposal, with council members agreeing that more study and public input was needed. The Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce is among groups opposing the change, which it says places additional restrictions on developers and homeowners.

“The chamber appreciates the streamlining of processes to facilitate business relationships with the county; however, doing business in the county should be equally important,” according to a letter sent to the council committee last week. “As the County Executive and County Council want to remain competitive with our surrounding jurisdictions and not have additional requirements, please note that CTs are not required in areas of adjacent jurisdictions such as Frederick and the Prince George’s County.”

Stacy Silber, board member of the regional chapter of the Commercial Real Estate Development Association, wrote to the council in December, saying the change could stifle economic growth. “Economically, as an example of potential unintended consequences, this bill would allow the Director to regulate commercial lease negotiations and limit a landowner’s potential income from parking by prohibiting the consolidation of spaces parking lot that the owner built in accordance with County Code,” Silber wrote.

Nicola Whiteman, senior vice president of the Apartment and Office Building Association of Metropolitan Washington, said she’s concerned about new multifamily developments that previously didn’t need to comply with parking requirements. Having public transit nearby, she says, isn’t always enough.

“You can have a situation where you can have the bus, and they do what they can [to comply with commuting standards] but they may not be able to do more,” she said of some properties.

Whiteman said members of his organization own more than 20 million square feet of commercial office space and more than 60,000 multi-family apartments. While transportation alternatives are important, she said lawmakers need to assess how realistic it is to increase transportation targets in the county.

“Where people can, they provide alternatives, but it’s a balance…but we also have residential communities where they don’t work during traditional subway hours, and they need a car,” said she declared.

Council member Tom Hucker said he was concerned that developing tougher parking standards, while noble, would not achieve the larger goal of increasing the availability of public transit in some areas, such as parts of its district which include Eastern County.

“Built into this is the assumption that everyone has good public transit options… there’s nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t put buses on the street anymore, it doesn’t take the subway where it doesn’t go,” he said.

The plan the council is considering was formulated by former county executive Isiah Leggett and amended by Elrich, whose amendments require every building with a transportation management plan to “demonstrate progress” toward its goal of commuting, otherwise the County Department of Transportation would then have the authority to limit the availability of parking lots for use by employees who commute during peak periods. Chris Conklin, deputy director of the Department for Transportation, said when Elrich took office in December, he expressed a desire to prioritize getting cars off the road.

“He felt some of the limitations were too lenient and asked us to consider the goals to be achieved,” Conklin said.

A separate element of the bill that would levy an additional charge on all existing non-multi-family residential and commercial developments has been recommended by council staff. Council member Andrew Friedson, who is not on the committee but represents an area that includes Bethesda’s central business district, wrote in a memo that he was “alarmed” by the recommendation.

“This is a radical policy change proposed after the public hearing on this bill and with extremely limited, if any, opportunity for the public to review or comment. I am particularly concerned that this would amount to a new tax on residents of multi-family buildings throughout the county,” he wrote. “Dramatic policy changes like this should be discussed publicly, transparently and openly. In this case, I do not think that those who will be affected by this new tax have had enough opportunities.

Dan Schere can be reached at [email protected]