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Maryland Unveils Sustainable Growth Implementation Guide
Creating a Pathway for Thriving Communities
BALTIMORE, MD – December 9, 2025 – Following the signing of new legislation by Governor Wes Moore in spring, 2025, which established the eight Sustainable Growth Planning Principles, the Maryland Department of Planning today announced the release of the Sustainable Growth Implementation Guide (Guide). The Guide provides a flexible framework that enables preparation for, rather than reaction to, market changes, ensuring Maryland can meet the needs of its people and the planet while also advancing economic growth and opportunity.
“Our new eight Sustainable Growth Planning Principles provide a simplified regulatory framework for planning policy, and this Implementation Guide serves as the companion user manual for applying the Principles to varying purposes such as comprehensive plans, projects and policy development,” said MDP Secretary Rebecca Flora. “This Guide is a hands-on resource that is intended to foster the growth of thriving communities through improved access to best practices and models that are more adaptable to fast changing conditions; thereby, reducing barriers created by often overly prescriptive and outdated, hard to change regulations.”
The new unified regulatory framework provided by the Principles and applied through the resources contained in the Guide support growth of a more competitive economy that requires flexibility to capture the benefits of innovation. This Guide builds on the foundational work of Maryland’s Smart Growth legacy by expanding toward a Sustainable approach to managing land use and development that addresses Maryland’s priorities while balancing economic, social, and environmental factors in its measures of successful growth and development.
The creation of the Guide was a collaborative effort, involving more than 80 staff members from 14 state agencies including the Sustainable Growth Subcabinet, chaired by Secretary Flora. Local jurisdictions were engaged through MDP hosted Regional Planner Roundtables, who identified their most pressing needs and approaches to successful implementation strategies.
“The Sustainable Growth Planning Principles provide clarity and priorities for land use, development, and sustainable growth in Maryland, integrating economic growth with environmental stewardship and social well-being,” said Montgomery Planning Director Jason K. Sartori. “This Guide will help us embed the principles into local planning efforts as we ensure growth is equitable, resilient, and sustainable for future generations.”
The Sustainable Growth Implementation Guide is available now on the Maryland Department of Planning website at planning.maryland.gov/SustainableGrowth
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