City staff unveil Build Gaithersburg 2040 priorities, seek council guidance on 355 nodes, Kentlands and Old Town

City planning staff on March 23 presented the early framework for Build Gaithersburg 2040 — Gaithersburg City’s decennial master plan update — and asked the Mayor and Council and Planning Commission for feedback on engagement findings, a proposed sector map, and high‑level recommendations for land use and transportation.

Mike Hayes, long‑range planning manager, told the joint work session that the master plan is the city’s “official policy” guiding development, capital projects and coordination with state and county partners. Staff said they completed three outreach phases since May 2025 — awareness, targeted surveys and stakeholder meetings, and interactive focus groups and drop‑in sessions — and had nearly 300 people signed up for project updates.

That outreach produced consistent priorities: respondents ranked reducing traffic congestion and improving safe, connected walking and biking as top transportation needs, and pointed to more attainable homeownership and better access to good‑paying jobs as top land‑use goals. Staff also said survey results and a market analysis conducted by Camoin Associates informed their recommendations to preserve and modernize employment nodes while targeting reinvestment opportunities along the Frederick Avenue (MD‑355) corridor.

In the presentation staff proposed organizing policies at two scales: citywide policy guardrails and smaller geographic “sectors” to focus recommendations where land‑use patterns and redevelopment potential cluster. The planners proposed a tiered approach for the 355 corridor that concentrates higher density at northern BRT‑station areas such as Lake Forest Boulevard and Cedar Avenue while limiting changes near single‑family neighborhoods.

Staff also proposed updates for two district plans: removing references to the Corridor Cities Transitway in the Kentlands Commercial District plan and aligning street typologies with the city’s 2019 road code; and simplifying overly prescriptive design details in the Old Town plan while emphasizing connectivity across the railroad tracks and strengthening the civic core.

Council and commission members broadly supported the sector approach but focused questions on implementation and coordination. Councilmember John pressed staff to emphasize inter‑sector connectivity rather than treating sectors as isolated islands; several members urged prioritizing shared‑use paths over on‑street bike lanes where state roads make protected lanes infeasible. Councilmember Neil asked whether staff had a contingency if the proposed 355 Flash BRT does not proceed, noting earlier regional projects were scaled back; staff replied that the plan’s guiding principles and targeted redevelopment focus would remain useful even without the transit investment, though the corridor would lose some catalytic benefit.

Other council comments included requests for stronger emphasis on safety as a planning principle, more explicit integration of environmental and tree‑canopy protections into land‑use decisions, expansion of public EV charging and high‑speed chargers, and additional wayfinding to connect motorists and visitors to Old Town.

Staff said next steps include additional joint work sessions on potential comprehensive rezonings and building‑height policy, drafting plan elements with continued public engagement, releasing draft elements for a 60‑day public comment period, and moving into formal hearings with the aim of adopting the plan in early 2027. Staff asked interested residents to sign up for updates at the project web page or email build2040@gaithersburgmd.gov.

The presentation included multiple community comments from residents who urged more direct outreach in Old Town, better east–west transit connections, and proactive city action on signage, pedestrian safety and redevelopment readiness.