Serendipity 4 : Propitious Timing
In 1979 , the work program of the Planning Board was still weighted towards a County Council concern to have adequate plans in place for all the urban communities within the county that faced development pressures . Such pressures began to mount in the 1950s , peaked in the 1960s , and were still remembered in the 1970s . In short , the implicit focus of attention was on shaping the built environment , locality by locality .
After 1970 , we all became increasingly aware of the “ Environmental Imperative .” Thus , when it came time to do a plan for the existing community of Olney
The happy result of this work was the successful political adoption of a new kind of small-area , local-community plan , one that provided for a “ Transfer of Development Rights ” from areas to be retained in farmland , to nearby vacant parcels within the slightly expanded village boundaries .
( a legacy village not within the “ Corridor ” part of the General Plan ), we faced , with new sensitivity , the problem of how to deal with those significant parts of this local planning area that did not warrant development under the countywide adopted General Plan .
The happy result of this work was the successful political adoption of a new kind of small-area , localcommunity plan , one that provided for a “ Transfer of Development Rights ” from areas to be retained in farmland , to nearby vacant parcels within the slightly expanded village boundaries . The fact that the downzoned farmland was almost within sight and sound of the urban villagers turned out to be a political plus for all concerned . And a prototypical model for preserving agricultural land fortuitously had emerged .
It ’ s true that its geographic scale was larger than its NYC precedent , but conceptually it remained within the mental grasp of the necessity for “ geographic propinquity ” ( i . e . keeping a very short distance between the density sending location and its receiving location ). Common wisdom had not yet climbed the barrier that comes into play when the transfer distance is great enough that its benefits
( e . g . saving farmland ) become less than obvious to the urbanites whose faraway neighborhoods inherit the transfers of actual density .
Serendipity 5 - Propitious People
Many individuals played pivotal roles as the Agricultural Reserve moved from vision to reality . Foremost was Chairman Hanson , without whose character , enterprise , and leadership this treasure would not have survived its cradle . His book , Suburb : Planning , Politics and the Public Interest , details the political story and mentions many who also rose to occasions of courage and commitment along the way .
Numerous planning staffers deserve recognition . Art Drea , Perry Berman , Melissa Banach , Lyn Widmyer , John Carter , and Nellie Maskal played critical roles from the beginning , and many others carried the torch over long periods of time . With an inspiring chairman and a supportive planning board , we were fortunate to have such a creative and dedicated planning team .
Since 1980 , the Ag Reserve has been blessed by the generous care and feeding of many visionary citizens , especially in more recent years by the energy and dedication of Caroline Taylor and her compatriots on the Montgomery Countryside Alliance . And , just a few years ago , serendipity brought us the talent , creativity , and insight of Jane Perini and Wib Middleton , and the potential of their entertaining magazine , a bright new vehicle with which to communicate , illuminate , and celebrate the life-enhancing wellsprings of our lovely Ag Reserve .
At this anniversary , and with this history , should we not keep hope that the soft breezes of serendipity will continue to waft our way to lift up and / or anchor down the efforts of all who answer the call of the Ag Reserve ?
Richard Tustian is an architect , planner , and educator with over 60 years experience in managing the built environment . He served as Planning Director of Montgomery County , Maryland for over twenty years . During this time , he gained national recognition for the design of a comprehensive urban growth management system , whose many successful innovations are widely considered to have had a seminal influence on the field of urban planning in the USA
6 plenty I Summer growing 2020