Hundreds of Residents Attend Clarksburg Town Hall (Video)
The Montgomery County Council hosted a Town Hall meeting in Clarksburg on Feb. 26. The hour-long meeting covered an array of topics, but for some, it wasn’t long enough to discuss the key issues for Clarksburg’s future. MyMCMedia’s Valerie Bonk reports.
“We didn’t get a chance to talk about the issues in depth that most people wanted to hear us talk about which was the great controversies over Clarksburg development and it’s because we intended to hear from a variety of different people on a variety of different issues,” said Montgomery County Councilmember Hans Riemer.
Development was the topic on the mind of many in attendance as more than 300 residents came out to speak their minds.
“I’m very concerned about the County Council’s plan to severely limit the impervious development of the Clarksburg Town Center in the Ten Mile Creek Area because they took the planning board’s plan and they threw it out the window,” said Bette Buffington, owner of Benningans in Clarksburg.
“I can see that Clarksburg is going to turn out very close or if not similar to Bethesda,” said Clarksburg resident John Webster. “We’re very close to the ag reserve of which needs to be protected by the people of this area and the State of Maryland because it’s the last that we have.”
For many, they felt that this conversation was long overdue.
“The Council now I think has heard loud and clear from the citizens of Clarksburg and frankly it’s the first time in ten years they’ve been to Clarksburg to hear anything from us,” said Clarksburg resident Rob Shapiro.
As the official town hall ended, the conversation continued as residents tried to make sure their voices were heard.
And one of the hot topics circled around M-83, the proposed highway between Clarksburg and Gaithersburg.
“I was hoping that we’d have more discussion on the long planned road M-83 Mid County Corridor. It’s been on the books since ’64, it was promised to the people of Clarksburg,” said nearby Goshen resident Rosemary Arkoian.
Council President Craig Rice agreed, saying that the road needs to be completed as originally planned.
“It’s really important for us to make sure that we’re continuing with our promise. We can’t build a community and then say oh we’re not going to give you the road infrastructure to get to it,” Rice said.
But the road continues to be a topic of debate with not everyone agreeing that it’s the answer for Clarksburg.
“I think M-83 is mistake and I’ve always felt that it’s an environmental problem,” said Montgomery County Councilmember Marc Elrich. “It’s another road cutting through the middle of the woods next to a school next to housing and I think that’s the kind of project that we shouldn’t be building.”
“I want to see us study a transit alternative for that road and we’ll see, that will happen through the 355 North transit study,” Councilmember Riemer said.
County Cable Montgomery’s Susan Kenedy moderated the event. For more information on the event and to see the full video when it’s posted, visit their website here.
Related:
Council Holds Clarksburg Town Hall (Photos)
The Montgomery County Council met with residents at a Town Hall meeting in Clarksburg on Feb. 26 at Rocky Hill Middle School and there was not an empty seat in the room. Topics included the continued development of Clarksburg, efforts to protect the Ten Mile Creek area, schools, transportation needs, public safety, and the upcoming process […]
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