For Immediate Release: Tuesday, July 25, 2006
The Montgomery County Council today chose seasoned veteran Royce Hanson as chairman of the Montgomery County Planning Board, which advises the Council on critical issues of land use, planning, growth, and transportation, and which, as part of the bi-county Maryland-National Capital Park & Planning Commission, runs the County’s parks system.
Hanson, who lives in Montgomery Village, previously served as Planning Board chairman for ten years, from 1972 to 1981, and was appointed to the Planning Board in 1971. He was chosen from a field of eight candidates interviewed by the Council for the job, which pays $150,000 a year.
“We have a tradition of good planning and good land use management in Montgomery County – and Royce Hanson’s past leadership has contributed mightily to that tradition,” said Council President George Leventhal. “County residents deserve – and expect – good government and good management. They expect stability and predictability. They expect there to be a clear set of rules and regulations and someone to make sure they get followed to the letter.
“Royce Hanson’s work as advisor to the Council as we strengthened our laws and procedures in the wake of the Clarksburg violations was exemplary. This is not a guy that pulls any punches on what he thinks is right. And we know he can handle the job of Planning Board chair because he’s done it before – and because he’s one of America’s leading experts on sprawl, growth management, and open space preservation.
“I said that this critical appointment would be the result of an open, transparent process – and it was. We had a strong pool of applicants. I want to thank all of those who applied. I want to thank the hundreds of County residents who communicated with us about the appointment.
“I want to thank outgoing Planning Board chair Derick Berlage for his service. He has given the job all he had and leaves the agency in a very strong position.”
Hanson currently works as Research Professor and Director of the Center for Washington Area Studies, George Washington Institute of Public Policy at the George Washington University. He earned a BA in economics from the University of Central Oklahoma, an MA and PhD in government and public administration and a law degree from the American University.
Under his previous leadership at the Planning Board, he provided leadership for establishment of one of the nation’s most comprehensive and effective growth management systems, which included the area’s first adequate public facilities ordinance and the establishment of the County’s Agricultural Reserve.
He has written widely on land use, sprawl, and politics. He chairs the Maryland Environmental Trust and the Citizens Advisory Committee for the Legacy Open Space program.
Release ID: 06-081