Hearings before the Planning Commission on the Ten Mile Creek Area  Limited Master Plan Amendment were held on September 10 and 12 with a long list of speakers, most of them expressing consistent concern over the environmental impact of proposed development on the watersheds feeding Little Seneca Reservoir, particularly Ten Mile Creek, a biologically superior reference stream considered the 'last best creek' in Montgomery County. 

At  the close of second hearing,  three work sessions were set for  Sept. 26, Oct. 10 and Oct. 19.  A Planning Commission decision will conclude the last work session.  Chair Carrier directed Planning staff to review any new technical issues raised by experts at the September hearing, reach out to the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) to elicit input on the safety and security of the region's back up water supply in Little Seneca Reservoir and asked staff to meet with property owners and stakeholders to explore any new information that might affect the Staff Draft. Once the Planning Board decision is rendered , the Draft Report is submitted to the County Council who will make final decisions on the future of Ten Mile Creek.

Why all the fuss over Ten Mile Creek? Because the 1994 Clarksburg Master Plan vision recognized the unique nature of  Ten Mile Creek and  provided a pause after Stages I - III triggers were met to revisit the Plan before moving into the pristine Ten Mile Creek watershed with additional development projects.  It's  20 years later and we know a lot more about what harms watersheds. The County Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has data from a water quality monitoring program that didn't even exist in 1994 and we've heard over and over now from developers how 'state of the art' stormwater management techniques will protect water quality while County streams still  continue to degrade over time. What we know for sure is the higher the imperviousness in a watershed. the greater the impact to stream quality. Do we want to take a chance on the last best stream? The only one which is still relatively untouched  while sister streams Little Seneca and Cabin Branch are being developed with impervious projects upwards of 24%?  When the current residents of Clarksburg do not have the community amenities promised 20 years ago? A town center with grocery, library, restaurants and gathering places? 

The Save Ten Mile Creek Coalition, consisting of 16 member  organizations both environmental and civic and includes Montgomery Countryside Alliance, Audubon Naturalist Society, Conservation Montgomery, Clean Water Action, Sugarloaf Citizens Association and the Sierra Club. At the hearing, all raised concerns about retaining the condition of the watershed, the future of our drinking water  supply and the sole source aquifer relied upon by residents on wells  in the area. 

Former Planning Chair Hanson

In a letter to Chair Carrier, former Planning Board Chair Royce Hanson expressed a unique perspective  on the decision before the Commission as one 'who has walked in [their] shoes'.  He  noted that, "The Clarksburg amendment is one of those rare occasions when [the Planning Board] is called upon to make a legacy decision -- one that will characterize your reputations as trustees of the future of the county."  He cited creation of the stream valley park system and the County's nationally heralded Agricultural Reserve as two such decisions.

To express your views, write to the Planning Board Chair, Francoise Carrier at MCP-Chair@mncppc-mc.org   For more information:  Click here.          

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