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Next Steps

This article is the seventh and final in a series of articles to ensure that Greenbelt residents are aware of the development and redevelopment proposals that are being considered for Greenbelt West. Greenbelt West is that area of the City west of Kenilworth Avenue, east of the Metrorail tracks and between the Capital Beltway and Greenbelt Road.

This week’s article is about the next steps in the process. As was pointed out in one of the earlier articles, the City of Greenbelt does not by law have planning and zoning authority. However, State law does require that in matters of planning and zoning, any plans that deal with property within Greenbelt, the City must have the opportunity to review and comment on those plans. In the case of Greenbelt Station, the City has negotiated that it has approval over site, landscape and other plans.

As readers of this newspaper know, the Greenbelt Station project, AIMCO’s plan to rebuild Springhill Lake, and the future of Greenbelt Middle School are active matters. Plans are in various stages of consideration. With Greenbelt Station, the City expects detailed site plans for portions of the South Core to be submitted in the very near future. Detailed site plans will detail how specific parcels will be developed with buildings, roads, sidewalks, landscaping, recreational amenities, etc. Site plans are not ready for all of the South Core but very well could be in the next twelve months. Plans for the North Core have not progressed nearly as much, though it is expected that conceptual plans, which are the initial ones to be reviewed, could be submitted for review by the end of the year.

Plans for Springhill Lake are slightly behind the South Core of Greenbelt Station. Preliminary plans of subdivision have been filed but review by the city has not begun yet. Plans of subdivision indicate what portions of the property will be developed, and it is during this step of the review process that the adequacy of public facilities (schools, public safety, recreation, parks, roads, etc…) is addressed. These are then followed by detailed site plans.

All these plans must be filed with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (MNCPPC) as the official planning review agency. When this is done, the City will receive a copy for its review and consideration. In progression, all these plans will be reviewed by City and MNCPPC staff, the City’s Advisory Planning Board (APB) and possibly other City boards, the City Council, the County Planning Board, and possibly, the County Council, though in this role, it is called the District Council. Each of the reviews by the APB, City Council, Planning Board and County Council are open meetings which are publicly advertised.

Anyone interested in staying abreast of these plans can monitor the agendas of the APB and the City Council in the Greenbelt News Review, on the City’s cable station, Channel 71, and on the City website @ www.greenbeltmd.gov. The agendas of the Planning Board can be found on the web at www.mncppc.org by looking under Prince George’s County and clicking Planning Board. One can also be notified of the progress of plans by registering with MNCPPC to become a person of record. For more information on how to become a person of record, contact MNCPPC. The agenda of the County Council is available at the County website by clicking on Legislative Branch, then Agenda, and then District Council. As is apparent, the planning review process is extensive and open to the public at many steps. Given the scale of these projects, the planning process will likely be going on for at least a couple of years, though the earlier one gets involved the better.

Hopefully this series of articles have been useful. The changes being planned and considered for Greenbelt West are exciting and challenging. In many ways, Greenbelt West can be viewed as a small community unto itself. What is being discussed is the building of a new community. The original planners of Greenbelt faced similar challenges 70 years ago and today we benefit from their work. With an informed and involved citizenry, we can be as successful.

If there are questions about this article, please forward them to the Planning Department at 301-345-5417 or email pcd@greenbeltmd.gov.