The Montgomery County Planning Department is pleased to announce its events calendar for February 2015. From a movie screening to a community meeting, these public sessions offer ways to engage with planners and Board members, and help shape the future of Montgomery County. Review the full list of events below and go online to www.montgomeryplanning.org for more details on projects and plans.

Black History Month continues to be an important vehicle for understanding our past so we can build the foundation for a future. As part of Black History Month and the History in the Parks programming, Montgomery Parks' own archaeologists and volunteers will provide free guided tours at Josiah Henson Park every Saturday in February. Also on display every Saturday will be PBS' Time Team America documentary, "The Search for Josiah Henson," which will be shown on the hour starting at noon. The month-long festivities at the park conclude on Saturday, February 28 with a spoken word poetry event, "Lyrical Rhythms: The Sounds of Freedom." Click here for more event information.  

Celebrate the wondrous water birds that call Little Seneca Lake home in winter. Activities include decoy carving, making a bird bonnet and guided bird hikes. Free, no registration required.

The Montgomery County Planning Department invites you to attend the White Flint Sector Plan Implementation Advisory Committee meeting at Wall Local Park/Shiver Aquatic Center on February 9 at 7 p.m. View the agenda here.

Transportation planners are reviewing and revising the county's Master Plan of Highways [PDF], an effort that classifies each Montgomery County road in the transportation network, in the first comprehensive update to the plan since 1955.

The plan will update the road network with current classifications, incorporate road changes, and align it with the County Road Code, which was comprehensively updated in 2007. The update will consolidate all roadway amendments that have been approved as part of Master Plans as well as limited functional Master Plan of Highways amendments. The new plan will also include transitways, rail stations, and other transit centers. To reflect the greater scope of the plans, the name will be changed to the Master Plan of Highways and Transitways. Learn more.

Meetings times and locations are:

*  Monday, February 9, at Silver Spring Civic Building, 7 pm 

*  Tuesday, 2/17 at Mid-County Regional Services Center, 7 pm

*  Monday, 2/23 at B-CC Regional Services Center, 7 pm

Montgomery Parks is proposing to construct two solar farms on park property by the end of 2015 in South Germantown Recreational Park and Rock Creek Regional Park. The public can provide input on this proposal in person at the Upcounty Citizens Advisory Board meeting on February 9 at 7 p.m. and the Montgomery County Planning Board meeting on March 5. Visit ParkPlanning.org for more information and to Tell us what you think!

Discussion will focus on new zoning categories and future uses of former golf course.

The Montgomery County Planning Department, part of The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, invites business owners and residents to attend a meeting to discuss the Montgomery Village Master Plan on Monday, February 9, 2015 from 7-9 p.m. at the Watkins Mill High School cafeteria (10301 Apple Ridge Road, Gaithersburg, MD).

This session will focus on the commercial centers, open space preservation and connections, and the former golf course. County planning staff will provide an overview of each topic and opportunities for participants to comment on those areas they would like to see revitalized, preserved or connected to, and discuss concerns and suggestions regarding the properties. Since the meeting scheduled for January 26 was cancelled due to snowy weather, planners have combined topics originally scheduled for discussion on that date with those on the agenda for February 9.

The PowerPoint presentation and other materials from the last MV Matters meeting on January 12 are posted on the MVMatters webpage. The purpose of that session was to explain how the existing Town Sector zoning for the residential sections of Montgomery Village will be translated into new zones that will accommodate the variety of housing found in the community.

Learn more here.

The Montgomery County Council will hold a worksession to discuss the Sandy Spring Rural Village Plan at their next meeting held on Tuesday, February 10, 2015, at 2 PM. The full agenda can be found online.

The worksession is scheduled to convene in the Council Hearing Room, 100 Maryland Avenue, Rockville, Maryland 20850. The main phone number is: (240)777-7900 , Fax (240)777-7989, MD Relay Dial 711 or 800-201-7165 and website is www.montgomerycountymd.gov/council. Please remember that the Council's Agenda is subject to change any time after printing or during the meeting. Please contact the Council Office or visit their website to obtain daily updates. Learn more here.
 

The Montgomery County Planning Department is hosting the fourth session in its Winter Speakers Series on Wednesday, February 11 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the Planning Department Headquarters (8787 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, Md.). The series is called "A Once and Futurew County: Lessons on How Planning Politics Shaped Montgomery County" and is hosted by Royce Hanson, former chairman of the County's Planning Board. Find out more about the event here.

Montgomery Parks invites the public to a community meeting on February 19 at 7 p.m. to learn about a proposed reuse of the Colesville Park Activity Building by Delta Alumnae Foundation, Inc.

The organization intends to use the park activity building for meeting space and as a center to support the organization's community service activities. Questions or comments please contact Daniel.Hertz@MontgomeryParks.org 

Gwen Wright, Director of The Montgomery County Planning Department will present the County's ongoing planning efforts at a conference to be held on Thursday, February 19 at the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center ( 5701 Marinelli Road, North Bethesda, MD 20852) from 7:45-10 a.m.

Wright will join local real estate developers and public officials at "Montgomery County -Revitalizing its Suburbs" to explain how the new County zoning ordinance and master plans encourage mixed-use, pedestrian-friendly and sustainable communities where residents can walk and bike to homes, stores, offices, parks and transit. She will highlight current plans for White Flint, Downtown Bethesda, Westbard and other areas to illustrate the ways in which suburban revitalization is being encouraged throughout the County.

The February 19 conference is sponsored by Bisnow and requires online registration.

Join experts to learn why it is of critical importance to protect our pollinators. Registration is open for this year's Green Matters Symposium taking place on February 27 at the Silver Spring Civic Center. www.BrooksideGreen.org

The 2015 Montgomery County Recreation and Parks Camps and Programs Guide is here! Registration is open and we have early bird specials to save $25 on select camps. www.MontgomeryParks.org/camps

During inclement weather conditions you can find the latest information about the status of park and program operations at www.MontgomeryParks.org/weather. Learn more on our pilot snow removal program on the Capital Crescent Trail at www.MontgomeryParks.org/CCT. #CCTSnow

The Montgomery County Planning Department is accepting applications from county property owners seeking a financial reward for faithfully restoring the exteriors of their historic structures. To be eligible for the Montgomery County Historic Preservation Tax Credit, the property must be listed in the Montgomery County Master Plan for Historic Preservation. Watch the short video here.