Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Natali Fani-González unveil More Housing N.O.W. package
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, January 28, 2025
From the Offices of Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Natali Fani-González
The More Housing N.O.W. ( N ew O ptions for W orkers) takes five steps to increase the supply of housing, drive down costs, and increase pathways to homeownership for the hard-working residents of Montgomery County
ROCKVILLE, Md., Jan. 28, 2025 — Planning, Housing, and Parks Committee Chair Andrew Friedson and Economic Development Committee Chair Natali Fani-González announced the More Housing N.O.W. ( N ew O ptions for W orkers) package today to confront the county’s deep housing crisis. With the high cost of housing squeezing families and contributing to the stagnation of our economy, this package helps build more homes that are affordable to teachers, firefighters, police officers, biotech and healthcare workers, and everyone in, or striving to be in, the middle class.
“More Housing N.O.W. represents the most consequential workforce housing proposal we have ever put forward in Montgomery County to provide more housing options where they’re most needed and most likely to be built, along corridors with access to jobs and amenities,” said Councilmember Friedson. “This comprehensive approach reflects the urgency of our housing shortage with a carefully crafted consensus that’s meaningful, significant, and will make a difference.”
“I am beyond excited to lead this package of ambitious housing measures that will build more homes for the workers and their families in our county,” said Councilmember Fani-González. “Our county is getting less and less affordable to the working folks who, day in and day out, make our community go. We must act boldly to make our housing market work for more people. There is no time to wait.”
After unprecedented levels of public outreach and several months of input and feedback from housing experts and community members, the More Housing N.O.W. package takes the following five bold steps:
Building More Workforce Housing
- Workforce Housing ZTA : Allow more residential building types along corridors with a workforce housing requirement.
Converting Highly Vacant Office to Housing
- Office to Housing ZTA: Create an expedited approval process for projects that convert high-vacancy commercial properties to residential use.
- Office to Housing PILOT Bill: Establish a payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) for conversion of high-vacancy commercial properties to residential use.
Pathways to Homeownership
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- Budget: Double the County’s investment in the Homeowner Assistance Program from $4 million to $8 million in the FY26 Housing Initiative Fund (HIF).
Focusing on strategies that provide the greatest opportunities to increase housing supply while ensuring access for the county workforce, the More Housing N.O.W. approach increases housing options on county corridors and does not propose any zoning changes within residential neighborhoods. The legislative package will be formally introduced on Tuesday, February 4.
According to the Comptroller of Maryland’s 2024 State of the Economy Report, housing affordability and availability is hurting efforts to attract new residents who could fill job vacancies, noting “prospective businesses turning down potential location plans to Maryland due to insufficient workforce housing.” Between 2023 and 2024, the average sold price across all unit types increased by 6.5 percent, while wages have only increased by 1.5 percent with the average sale price for a single family detached home in Montgomery County reaching $1.02 million in 2024.
Council President Kate Stewart, Councilmembers Dawn Luedtke, Marilyn Balcombe, and Laurie-Anne Sayles are co-sponsors of the package, and it has strong support from many community advocates and housing experts.
Announcing the package today in Rockville, MD, Councilmembers Andrew Friedson and Natali Fani-González were joined by representatives and leaders from the education, public safety, healthcare, business, affordable housing, realtor, labor, faith, and community advocacy communities.
The Council staff reports on the More Housing N.O.W. package will be available on the Council’s website on January 30.
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Release ID: 25-021
Media Contact: Cindy Gibson 240-620-8571, Tommy Heyboer 269-330-3850
Categories: Andrew Friedson , Natali Fani-González
For updates and link to press release, see here: http://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/Press_Detail.aspx?Item_ID=46485