Creating a new Sector Plan involves taking care of the details

Montgomery County planners are continuing with developing a new White Flint Sector Plan. Of course, every good plan requires a strict attention to detail. Recently, the planning board set the height limit to 300 feet in new Sector Plan. While arbitrary, this detail is an important step since such a decision is required by law.

While the height limit is arbitrary, it is important to set one and move on rather than waste time complaining about it. The planners had to address the question in response to realities in White Flint:

The discussion came about partly in response to a proposal by The JBG Companies to build a 390-foot building adjacent to the Bethesda North Marriott Hotel and Conference Center. Representatives for JBG had previously told the board that the extra 90 feet were necessary to create an “elegant, iconic” building instead of a squat one. Currently, according to county planner Piera Weiss, the tallest building in White Flint is 289 feet.

Vice Chairman John Robinson said as a matter of law, a firm limit had to be set.

In comparison, the District’s Congressionally imposed height limit effectively caps buildings at 130 feet tall. While there are concerns about office building creep, it is the result of extremely high demand. Regardless of its pros and cons, the height limit did not stifle the transition of the Golden Triangle from a quiet residential area to a high-rent office district (for better or worse), though one could easily make the argument that it encouraged it. (However, the scars from the 1968 riots on the historic downtown cannot be understated in this case.) Ironically, the height limit probably contributed to the revitalization of the historic downtown as the Golden Triangle filled up in the 1990’s.

Clearly, the height limit in the District has not prevented its urban parts from being vibrant human-scale places. A height limit that is over twice as high would not prevent White Flint from achieving similar success as neighboring Bethesda, no matter how arbitrary.

Finally, why would White Flint need an “elegant, iconic” building that is greater that 300 feet? A new walkable urban place needs buildings that engage the street by being up against the sidewalk, have plenty of varying retail, and a diversity of housing options. Whether a building is functional to a pedestrian is far more important than whether it looks nice in an aerial photograph.

It is positive that the planning board followed the law, even though they were forced to make an arbitrary decision. Time is precious. The success of this project is vital to the economic and environmental future of Montgomery County.