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State delegate and HOC urge council to streamline process for assisted-family housing (Bill 18-24)
Summary
At a public hearing the council heard support for Bill 18-24, which would remove a county requirement for an additional Housing Opportunities Commission public hearing on assisted-family housing proposals; state Delegate Julie Polakovich Carr and HOC representative Ken Silverman said the change would speed development without removing other transparency rules.
Montgomery County held a public hearing Oct. 8 on Bill 18-24, a proposed amendment to the county’s housing policy and procedural rules that would remove a county-level requirement for an additional Housing Opportunities Commission (HOC) public hearing on assisted-family housing projects.
State Delegate Julie Polakovich Carr testified in strong support, saying recent state legislation eliminated the duplicate hearing requirement at the state level and that removing the county’s additional hearing would reduce delays and costs for affordable-housing development. "Having a fourth public hearing really was not adding anything to the process besides slowing things down," Polakovich Carr said.
Ken Silverman, representing the Housing Opportunities Commission, told the council removing the requirement would not exempt HOC from other public processes: HOC board meetings remain open to the public, are live-streamed and include public comment periods. He said modest streamlining "will definitely help us to be able to do more" affordable housing projects by saving staff time and shortening project timelines.
The public hearing closed with no registered opponents. The council scheduled a Planning, Housing and Parks Committee work session on the bill for Oct. 21, 2024; the council noted interested parties may submit materials by Oct. 14.
