For Immediate Release: Tuesday, April 25, 2006
The city of Gaithersburg has asked the County Council for our approval of the annexation of the Crown Farm property, just outside the present city limits.
The Crown Farm property will be developed whether the property is annexed or remains in the unincorporated portion of the County. The 1990 Shady Grove Study Area Master Plan called for intensive development at the site and annexation into the city of Gaithersburg. Under the Master Plan, approximately 2,000 dwelling units and 50,000 square feet of commercial/retail space could be constructed. A minimum of 12.5 percent of the residential development would have to be constructed under the MPDU standards.
About 94 TDRs would have to be purchased to accommodate a density increase above the base zone for about 53 % percent of the site. Now, we do not know precisely the number of TDRs. In order to know that, the developer would have to have submitted his preliminary plan to the planning agency (either in the County or the city) for approval – and that hasn’t happened yet. Today, though, we are trying to pin the developer to a firm commitment on this before annexation.
Also, the price paid for the TDRs depends on the market – and on how many TDRs are applicable to this site.
The developer feels the city of Gaithersburg has a better track record on the kind of “New Urbanist” approach he envisions for the project. Examples of this approach in Gaithersburg include Kentlands and Lakelands. In the County as a whole, Clarksburg.
Under the annexation proposal, the property would be rezoned to allow mixed residential and commercial uses. The number of dwelling units to be constructed on the site is 2,250 and consists of a variety of dwelling types. Approximately 320,000 square feet of commercial/retail development is proposed. A 30-acre site is proposed to be donated to the County by the developer for construction of a public high school.
The annexation proposal provides for: (1) the purchase of TDRs or a multi-million contribution to the Agricultural Land Preservation Easement Fund in lieu of a purchase of TDRs to support the County’s agricultural preservation efforts and our farmers; (2) 12.5 percent of the residential dwellings being constructed under the standards and requirements of the County’s Moderately Priced Dwelling Unit (MPDU) program (Gaithersburg does not have such a requirement at present); and (3) a 30-acre for a public high school, including improvements on the site to enable construction of the high school.
The school system has estimated the value of the site to be donated for the new high school at $30-$40 million. The developer paid $33,135,894 for those 30 acres. The appraised “raw” value of the land was $42,042,000 in September 2005. High density development on the site, according to the developer, could make the site worth $80 million.
For our purposes, say the school site is, conservatively, worth $40 million.
This land has been envisioned to be developed and annexed for the past 16 years. It’s in our Master Plan. It has never been a question of whether, but rather when and how.
If this were developed under County aegis, there would be no donated high school site – a value of at least $40 million. We will still get the MPDUs we would garner if it were not annexed. The only question outstanding really are the TDRs or payment in lieu thereof.
Our job as County Councilmembers is to achieve the outcome most in the public interest. On the merits, this is a good deal for the County. We are getting affordable housing, support for agricultural preservation, and a school site worth at least $40 million.
Release ID: 06-047