At the September 28 Montgomery Village Foundation (MVF) Board meeting, Yovi Sever of Monument Realty provided a presentation on the current state of the plans for development of the former golf course property.
Sever reviewed the development process, noting the Master Plan was adopted in summer 2016 and the project moved into the formal entitlement and initial engineering phase. He explained the goal was to submit the Preliminary Plan of Subdivision and Site Plan concurrently in order to also hold the hearings concurrently. The Preliminary Plan was submitted in January 2017 and the Site Plan was submitted in September 2017. Sever reported that, assuming approval of both plans, the next step is record plat followed by building permit. He carefully reviewed the six areas of the plan, noting the changes from the original concept plan that the MVF Board had reviewed and approved in 2014. It was always recognized that the concept plan would change based on further engineering of the site, as well as the Master Plan and other direction from county planning staff.
Sever reported that the current plan shows 494 homes, including moderately priced dwelling units (MPDUs). He noted the homes range from 16-foot wide to 22-foot wide townhomes to detached single-family homes. The concept plan for Area 1 includes 300 apartments, but the MVF Board requested that Monument consider townhomes instead. Sever noted that the site plan currently includes 111 units; 14 of the units are MPDUs. He explained that the zoning for Area 1 is different compared to the rest of the site and allows for more density, which is not being utilized.
Sever reported that Area 2 was contested by the county planners and had to be reconfigured at the request of the planner due to concerns over floodplain constraints. He noted the county requested that a cluster of townhomes on the south side of the proposed Stewartown Road extension be moved further to the north and east and replace a cluster of detached homes planned for the south side of the proposed Stewartown Road extension. He added that Monument Realty kept its promise to surrounding communities and kept planned detached single-family homes adjacent to existing detached single-family homes.
Sever noted that Area 3 did not change much from the concept plan; however, access from Meadowcroft Lane will not be possible. Instead, access will be provided from Montgomery Village Avenue. He noted they hope to have a sidewalk to connect new and existing neighborhoods so all residents can access the new park areas. He added that Area 4 remained largely unchanged. He noted they hoped to have duplexes in the plan, but there isn't an interested builder.
Sever reported that Area 5 was difficult to engineer because it was the most complex in terms of contour. He noted this section has a lot of roadway and open space, but not a lot of homes. He explained that every linear foot of infrastructure is paid for by the new homes in this area; thus Area 5 is more expensive to develop on a per unit basis. He noted they added homes to the eastern portion of Area 5 as far away from existing homes as possible in keeping with the guidelines set during the concept plan process of 2013. A central portion containing the floodplain is planned to be protected by a conservation easement.
Sever noted nine units were added at the entrance to Area 6.
The MVF Central Park was designed with direction from the Long-Range Facilities Planning Report. Sever noted they would like to protect a portion of the park with a conservation easement. He added that they plan to daylight a creek in order to provide a habitat for wildlife. He noted most of the paved paths are existing paths that will be rehabbed.
Sever reported the 47 acres planned for dedication as a county park is still in the planning process. He noted there will be fewer paths, and all ponds within the park area will be breeched since none are storm water facilities. Most of these ponds may be converted to natural wetland providing more wildlife habitat. He reported they discovered some of the ponds are fed by creeks that were channelized underground. He noted they plan to daylight the creeks and reroute them to the appropriate places in order to create wetland conservation areas.
Sever added that the M-NCPPC Parks Department has a long wish list of things they want to accomplish, but the development project cannot afford much of what the Parks Department is requesting. However, he reported that a third party conservation group has been engaged and is in talks with Monument and the Parks Department as a potential source to accomplish the much needed and requested environmental work. It was noted that parking will not be available in the new county park area; however, at MVF’s Central Park, there will be a parking lot for visitors.
A planning board hearing is scheduled for November 2017. Monument hopes to have a certified Site Plan in February 2018 and the Record Plat submission by fall 2018. The Permit Applications can then be submitted in fall/winter 2018 and potential ground breaking in summer 2019. Sever noted the development of the county park could move ahead of that schedule based on what they can achieve with the Parks Department and conservation partners.
A link to the presentation can be found online at www.montgomeryvillage.com under “About MV,” “Development & Projects,” “Bloom Montgomery Village Site Plan Update.”
For more information, e-mail EVP Dave Humpton at