Even as the landscape of COVID-19 protective measures continues to evolve and the state moves toward reopening, the Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) is adapting to the pandemic to ensure that every Marylander is counted by:

• Closely coordinating with local Complete Count Committees (CCCs) to identify and reach their most hard-to-count populations;

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Maryland’s public school enrollment increased in 2019 by 11,319 (1.3%); this increase was the highest in the last 11 years (see Chart 1). Statewide, public-school enrollment has grown by 57,174 or 7.3 percent between 2009 and 2019. With gains over the last 11 years, Maryland’s 2019 public school enrollment of 876,810 is its highest since 1976.  

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It is fitting that yet another of the planners we have been asked by readers to profile in this series on female planners in Maryland, also served as Secretary of the Maryland Department of Planning. Harriet Tregoning was appointed in 2000, and later became Maryland’s first Special Secretary for Smart Growth. One of the accomplishments of her tenure involved siting a new branch of the University of Maryland in Washington County. 

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June is American Housing Month! The Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) believes every Marylander deserves an opportunity for a safe and affordable home to share with family and friends. On June 16, 2020, Planning published a new webpage, called the Housing Element Models and Guidelines (M&G), to support jurisdictions planning for affordable housing in response to House Bill 1045 (HB 1045 [2019]). The M&G has four parts: 1) Housing Planning; 2) Housing Data; 3) Housing Practices; and 4) Affordable Housing Resources.  

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Created in 1990, the state’s Certification of Local Agricultural Preservation Programs (CLAPP) allows certified counties to retain 75% of locally generated agricultural land transfer tax instead of the default rate of 33%. To become certified, a county must meet a variety of regulatory requirements that demonstrate that the jurisdiction has developed a strong agricultural preservation strategy, is successfully implementing the strategy, and is periodically analyzing its approach to identify needed improvements.

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The Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT) is examining ways pedestrian and bicycle traffic data are collected across the state - currently done in a variety of methods and used to evaluate project effectiveness, variations in overall volumes, and crash data analyses. To understand the various practices and uses, MDOT has created an online survey to learn how bicycle and pedestrian traffic data are collected, used, and stored and looks at reasons why data may not be collected. The survey is open to all, with a focus on transportation planners, traffic engineers, and other practitioners.

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Tidally-driven nuisance floods are happening with more frequency. While nuisance flooding may not pose a serious threat or result in major damage, these events can interrupt and impact daily routines and negatively impact commerce. In accordance with Maryland House Bill 1427 (2019), §3-1018(b) and (c), on or before October 1, 2020, a local jurisdiction that experiences nuisance flooding shall develop a plan to address nuisance flooding. 

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The Maryland Planning Commissioners Association (MPCA) thanks everyone who submitted a session proposal for the 38th Annual Fall Conference. We will be reviewing the proposals over the next few weeks and contacting those who submitted proposals by mid-July. Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, the MPCA has decided to forego its normal in-person conference, originally scheduled for November 9 and 10 in Westminster, and to instead partner with the Maryland Department of Planning to conduct a digital conference this fall. 

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Randall Nixon has served as Planning's Associate Director of the Maryland Census since 2018. Randall oversees engaging the business and faith-based communities throughout the state to ensure every Marylander is counted in the 2020 Census. COVID-19 has brought unexpected challenges to this role, as to Census efforts in general, but Randall says, “having also been a businessman throughout most of my career, it has been rewarding working with such diverse companies and faith-based organizations across Maryland in getting the word out about the importance of the U.S. Census to both commerce and our communities.

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In each newsletter, we highlight the most relevant and timely upcoming events. Our website does include many additional events, so please visit it regularly for updates. Listings are searchable by subject.

Seeing the Forest for the Trees: Webinar #5 Biomass Energy Systems - Economics & Finance
Tuesday, July 7 @ 11:00 a.m.
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Pedaling Through Pandemic: How (E-)Cycling Can Keep Post-COVID Cities Movine
Thursday, July 16 @ 1 pm
AICP CM Approved
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Urban Agriculture and Innovation Production (UAIP) Competitive Grants Program
U.S. Department of Agriculture - Deadline: July 6
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Fair Housing Initiatives Program - Education and Outreach Initiative (COVID-19) 
U.S. Department of Housing and Community Development - Deadline: July 8
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