Empowering places of worship to build and expand in Montgomery County

On November 9, 2016, more than 100 members of Montgomery County ’s faith community took part in an Open House for places of worship to learn and gather information about successfully building, expanding, or relocating to Montgomery County.

The presentations provided at the session are now available for download.  

The Day’s Agenda

Montgomery County Departments provided a brief introduction to the land use, environmental, health and life safety codes in Montgomery County with a description of departments’ roles and responsibilities – a “who does what” overview.

Community participants were then invited to participate in round table discussions on the following regulatory and other topics:

1. Environmental – forest conservation, roadside trees, tree canopy and stream buffer
2. Water Resources – Sediment Control, Stormwater and Special Protection Areas
3. MNCPPC Development Process – preliminary plan; record plat; site plan; adequate public facilities
4. Building Permits and Use and Occupancy Certificates – Life safety codes; fire codes; electrical and mechanical codes
5. Road Access, Emergency Response Access, Parking and Pedestrian Sidewalks
6. Water and Sewer, Well and Septic
7. Alternatives to ownership
8. Sustainability and Energy Efficient Programs

The Panel Open House concluded with, a moderated panel discussion on how to successfully achieve a place of worship that is safe, healthy for members, the community and the environment and that meets their needs.

Participating Agencies and Departments included: Department of Permitting Services Montgomery County Planning Department (MNCPPC) Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) Community Use of Public Facilities Department of Environmental Protection Department of Finance Department of Health and Human Services Department of Transportation State Highway Administration of Maryland (SHA) Faith Community Advisory Council – Religious Land Use Working Group

Thank you to all who attended and we look forward to hosting events like this in the future.

By Jessica Fusillo, Community Outreach Manager, Department of Permitting Services