For Immediate Release: Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Montgomery County Councilmember Marc Elrich today welcomed the Council’s adoption of the Clarksburg/Ten Mile Creek Limited Master Plan Amendment, which sets forth land uses that will protect what has frequently been referred to as one of the County’s “last best streams.”
The complete text of Councilmember Elrich’s statement on today’s adoption of the Ten Mile Creek Limited Master Plan Amendment:
Today, the County Council adopted an amendment to the 1994 Clarksburg Master Plan that respects the Master Plan’s vision, which called for protection of Ten Mile Creek, and which anticipated that land use changes might be necessary to insure achievement of that goal. While the amendment was fiercely debated, in the end, environmental science prevailed, leading to a master plan amendment that offers protection for the resource through extended buffers around sensitive seeps and streams, retention of steep slopes and forest cover, and caps on impervious surfaces, while still allowing significant opportunities for development in an environmentally sensitive context.
I have worked toward this goal for the past five years, beginning with my involvement in establishing an ad hoc working group in 2009, which recommended a limited master plan amendment to review potential land use changes needed to address evidence of a decline in stream quality resulting from development in the first three stages of development in Clarksburg. My 2012 proposal to have the Montgomery County Planning Board add a master plan amendment to their work program set the stage for the passage of the carefully crafted amendment we have adopted today.
I wish to recognize the work of Roger Berliner, chair of the Council’s Transportation, Infrastructure, Energy and Environment Committee, for allowing the science to speak and leading us through a comprehensive analysis of the environmental issues. His strong leadership helped us arrive at today’s vote. I applaud the hard work of County agencies, outside environmental scientists and consultants and concerned residents who informed our decisions. I would like to especially acknowledge the hard work of the Countryside Alliance, Livable Clarksburg, the Audubon Naturalist Society, and all of the dedicated members of the Save Ten Mile Creek Coalition.
We are fortunate to have such an informed and engaged community in Montgomery County. This is a win for Ten Mile Creek and a win for the County.
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Release ID: 14-097
Media Contact: Neil Greenberger 240-777-7939, Delphine Harriston 240-777-7931