Councilmembers Host Press Conference on Initiative to Allow Affordable Housing Adjacent to Places of Worship

For Immediate Release: Friday, February 23, 2024

From the Offices of Council Vice President Kate Stewart and Council President Andrew Friedson

FAITH ZTA would facilitate the creation of more affordable housing

Montgomery County Council Vice President Kate Stewart and President Andrew Friedson will be joined by faith leaders and affordable housing advocates for a press conference on Tuesday, Feb. 27 at 11:30 a.m. at the Council Office Building to highlight a zoning measure that would allow the colocation of multifamily housing on properties used for religious assembly or private educational institutions.

Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 24-01, also known as the Facilitating Affordable Inclusive Transformational Housing (FAITH) ZTA, would remove barriers to the creation of affordable housing and provide reasonable flexibility in the development standards for multi-unit and townhouse living on properties associated with faith and educational institutions.

ZTA 24-01 has the unanimous support of the full Council. A public hearing will be held on Feb. 27 at 1:30 p.m. following the press conference.

Who: Council Vice President Kate Stewart, chair of the Government Operations and Fiscal Policy Committee; Council President Andrew Friedson, chair of the Planning, Housing and Parks Committee; faith leaders and housing affordability advocates.

What: Press conference on a zoning measure that would facilitate the creation of more affordable housing by allowing the construction of multifamily housing on properties used by faith-based institutions.

When: Tuesday, Feb. 27 at 11:30 a.m.

Where: Montgomery County Council Office Building, on the front steps, 100 Maryland Ave, Rockville, MD 20850. (Rain Location: Council Office Building, fourth floor, Capital Crescent Trail Conference Room.)

Parking: Available at the juror parking lot on E. Jefferson St. or directly across the street from the front of the Council Building on Maryland Ave.

Members of the media must RSVP by Tuesday, Feb. 27 at 8 a.m. by emailing Cecily Thorne at (Stewart) or Cindy Gibson at (Friedson).

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Release ID: 24-071
Media Contact: 301-910-0610, 240-620-8571
Categories: Andrew Friedson , Kate Stewart

For updates and link to press release, see here: http://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/Press_Detail.aspx?Item_ID=44806