WRS presents Lakeforest plan to Village residents

On Monday July 29, representatives from WRS, the owner and developer of the Lakeforest property, presented their Schematic Development Plan (SDP) to a virtual audience of nearly 50 residents. Kevin Rogers, Principal of WRS, and Gary Unterberg, Senior Vice President at Rodgers Consulting, reviewed the SDP and answered a number of pre-submitted and live questions.

Rogers began with a brief history of the project timeline to this point, noting that the plan is currently under review by the City of Gaithersburg Mayor, City Council and Planning Commission. He noted a number of previous meetings and public hearings as well as revisions based on comment and feedback to get the SDP to its current state. The city’s public comment period is open until 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 14; Rogers hoped to have action by the Mayor and City Council in September. He noted that this was a complicated project that involved many stakeholders, and had several components that needed input and approvals from the city, county, and state, while being attentive to neighboring communities, including Montgomery Village.

Unterberg shared that the Lakeforest Master Plan set criteria for the SDP to be developed, saying it dictated a mixed-use development with limits on retail, business and residential. He outlined the development, noting the current and proposed streets and grid pattern. He said the 5 major sections of the site envisioned are Lakeforest North, Lakeforest South, Lakeforest West, Lake District and Lakeforest Square, which includes a “central park” and other centralized amenities. To the north of the site is the dining and entertainment area, including a multi-use parking lot for special events. Mixed-used retail and residential are planned for the northeast portion of the site, with retail at street level and residential above. In the same general area, employment uses would also be stacked.

The centrally located Lakeforest Square area boasts 3.5 acres of greenspace and amenities for the for-sale residential units. Planned amenities include a playground, pool, passive recreation space, a covered area with flexible seating and a clubhouse structure. Lakeforest South (southeast corner of the property) is primarily residential, which includes 10-foot shared use bike paths around the perimeter.

The west of the site also includes mostly residential units; however, the proposed transit center will front Russell Avenue in this corridor. This will also include employment uses and a parking garage. Unterberg noted the transit center would be a 2- to 3-year county project, incorporating elements of current Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) projects.

Regarding parking for all aspects of the plan, much of the retail areas utilized concealed garages to aid in the aesthetics of the site. Residential parking would be contained at each homesite, with additional parallel parking being added to Odendhal Avenue. This will be incorporated by reducing the median strip so as to keep the two existing vehicular lanes.

Unterberg noted that according to studies, retail uses are the highest generator of traffic, primarily in the evening and on weekends. He said the Lakeforest Mall, when in operation, was 1,049,000 square feet of retail, and the SDP reduces that to 470,000 square feet, effectively cutting that traffic use by more than 50%. The residential uses add a morning traffic peak, but the additional streets should create options to move the morning traffic with minimal impact.

Unterberg also shared a plan by the State Highway Administration (SHA) to remove the free-right-turn lanes at the intersections of Montgomery Village Avenue (MD 124) and MD 355, Russell Avenue, Lost Knife Road, and Midcounty Highway. He said this was a separate SHA project that was meant to work in conjunction with the Lakeforest development, favoring more pedestrian-friendly intersections at each location. He further explained that the city planned additional road improvement projects on Russell Avenue to complement the development as well.

Resident questions

Montgomery Village Foundation (MVF) Executive Vice President Mike Conroy presented questions submitted in advance—the majority of which shared concerns of increased traffic both east and westbound along Montgomery Village Avenue from Lost Knife Road to MD 355, and the impacts of the additional vehicles on traffic flow into and out of Montgomery Village in that area. Specifically, there were questions about widening Montgomery Village Avenue near the Village Center, and/or Goshen Road; neither are within the bounds of the Lakeforest property and are not in the scope of the SDP, and would be better addressed by the county.

Unterberg noted that the grid design of the property added two new east/westbound streets, providing connections from the entrance of Cider Mill Apartments and Contour Road to Russell Avenue and MD 355, and one new north/southbound street connecting Montgomery Village Avenue to Odendhal Avenue. Rogers said these new roads are designed to help move traffic in and around the site, versus the only current way being a “long drive around the perimeter of the entire property.” Both said these new connections gave motorists several options to move through the area.

Residents attending the virtual meeting also inquired about the logic behind removing the free-turn lanes in favor of pedestrian-friendly intersections. There was additional concern about how this proposal could back up vehicular traffic on Midcounty Highway, creating unintended pedestrian safety issues. There was also no information regarding alternatives for pedestrian traffic, such as bridges or underpasses. Unterberg noted these concerns would best be addressed by SHA, though the proposed work is currently not funded.

In relation to the transit center, Unterberg answered a question about walkability to the new location, noting it was almost identical in length from the entrance to the Cider Mill Apartments. The SDP would install a new traffic signal at the entrance to Cider Mill, which would align directly to the street leading to the transit center. He added the current transit location would be converted into a regular RideOn stop, and bus routes would be redirected to the new transit center location. Unterberg also said the county is expecting multi-modal transportation to move residents to the transit center, and hoped to include BRT and other electrical components, though no plans were finalized yet.

Regarding the makeup of retail and residential, Rogers noted the sketch plan allows for large retail/big box stores, and although that type of store is possible, there have been no confirmed retailers as of the presentation. Unterberg said the master plan for the site prohibited single-family homes and capped townhouses at 10%, with the remaining residential area to be filled by multi-family (apartments), townhouses and GAP (affordable) housing.

Finally, regarding the project timeline, Unterberg said once the SDP was approved by the city (on track for September), demolition would take at least 6 months, then permitting and site plans, long before any construction would happen. Roughly, he estimated it could be 2 to 3 years before the infrastructure and roadways were complete. He also said some of the larger retail buildings could take up to 18 months to build, noting that total build on the site was likely a 5- to 10-year project.

The full SDP and all previous project submittals can be found on the City of Gaithersburg’s project page at www.gaithersburgmd.gov/government/projects-in-the-city/lakeforest-mall-sdp-9736-2024. The Index Sheet notes which exhibit corresponds with each number; of particular interest were the items relating to the traffic study (labeled with “TIS” in the title). Residents interested in submitting comments to the city should follow instructions on the website. The presentation slides are available online at www.montgomeryvillage.com.