Snag your tickets for our 25th Anniversary celebration on May 12th from 6-8pm! We’ll be on the rooftop at the Capitol View at 400 with stunning views of the Capitol and Union Station. We’ll take a look back and a look ahead, celebrate and catch-up after two years apart!
Category: Resources
Letter to MDGA Leadership re: the proposed suspension of the Maryland gas tax
On behalf of the Transform Maryland Transportation Coalition (formerly Save MD Transit), we thank you for your support of the Transit Safety & Investment Act during the 2021 General Assembly. The bill will help assure MTA’s current maintenance needs will be addressed over the next five years.
TESTIMONY re: Strathmore Square (Support)
March 16, 2022
Montgomery County Planning Board
2425 Reedie Dr
Wheaton, MD 20902
Item 6 – Strathmore Square: Preliminary Plan Amendment No. 12019018B & Site Plan No. 820220070 (Support)
Testimony for March 17, 2022
Jane Lyons, Maryland Advocacy Manager
Thank you, Chair Anderson and Planning Commissioners, for the opportunity to provide testimony on the Strathmore Square project. My name is Jane Lyons and I’m speaking on behalf of the Coalition for Smarter Growth, the leading organization advocating for walkable, bikeable, inclusive, transit-oriented communities as the most sustainable and equitable way for the DC region to grow and provide opportunities for all.
We support the application by Fivesquares Development and are excited by the vision of Strathmore Square. This project will bring much needed activation to the Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro station, including 220 units of housing (33 MPDUs), jobs, a 1.2 acre park, shared street, bike amenities, public space, and other improvements to the area. This is an opportunity to turn a parking lot into a vibrant community.
It is our hope this project will serve as an example of what can be achieved with transit-oriented development in the county. Projects like Strathmore Square are needed to provide the public benefits that contribute to making the county a more attractive, inclusive, and sustainable place to live. By concentrating more housing, retail, and jobs at a Metro station, Montgomery County will be making it easier for more residents to be less reliant on a private vehicle and bring additional business to destinations like the Music Center at Strathmore and Pike & Rose in North Bethesda.
Thus, we urge you to support the plan amendment and site plan for Strathmore Square. Thank you for your consideration.
MoCo Better Buses FY23 Budget Letter
The Montgomery Better Buses coalition strongly urges you to support bus riders and transit workers in the FY23 operating budget, FY23 capital budget, and FY23-28 Capital Improvements Program (CIP). Our coalition consists of nearly 30 groups, including labor, climate and transit advocates, service providers, and community organizations.
Montgomery County Better Buses: The Platform
The platform for the Montgomery County Better Buses Coalition.
CSG News: We also have lots of news about housing, transit, and ways to be involved!
Thank you to everyone who participated in our electric scooter raffle by becoming a monthly donor to CSG! Congratulations to Ron Basumallik who won the scooter and thank you to King Scooters!
CSG Testimony to County Council on Silver Spring Downtown & Adjacent Communities Plan
We support the draft of the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan, although we believe there is room for improvement to think more strategically, creatively, and boldly about certain elements, such as affordable housing.
![Joint Statement on OLO Initial RESJ Review of Thrive 2050](https://smartergrowth.net/wp-content/themes/guten/images/blank_blocks_img.png)
Joint Statement on OLO Initial RESJ Review of Thrive 2050
The Coalition for Smarter Growth, Montgomery for All, Audubon Naturalist Society, Montgomery Housing Alliance, and the Washington Area Bicyclists Association believe in the overarching vision of Thrive 2050, which promotes equity and sustainability through affordable housing, more housing options, improved transit, walkable communities that improve access to jobs, and more.