Montgomery launches climate-action plan and seeks public comment on bike-ped and zoning updates

Mayor Steven Reed told the council Montgomery is developing its first climate action plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, protect public health and build resilience, and he invited residents to a virtual public meeting at 5 p.m. on July 17 to review the plan framework and provide feedback.

Reed said the plan will address energy, transportation, land use and waste management and that the community’s input will shape priorities. After the virtual meeting the city will launch a citywide survey open through July 30, 2025, to gather further comment. “It will be shaped by the voices of our residents,” he said.

At the same time the mayor urged public comment on the Montgomery Metropolitan Planning Organization’s update to the city’s bicycle and pedestrian plan and said the city is updating zoning and planning codes — the first comprehensive update since the 1960s — to improve safety, signage, crosswalks, speed limits and other measures intended to reduce pedestrian injuries.

Reed linked the planning work to a recent pedestrian safety crisis: he said the city recorded another pedestrian fatality “in the last week and a half,” and he told the council “I think that makes 20, in the recent past, and that's 20 too many.” He urged residents to use parks, libraries and community centers on extreme-heat days and to participate in the bike-ped planning survey.

No ordinance or vote on the climate action plan, the bicycle-pedestrian update or the zoning rewrite was taken at this meeting; the mayor announced upcoming public engagement events and encouraged councilors and neighborhood groups to promote participation.