Resources and Tools

Maryland’s Affordable Housing Resource Database: A Brief Users’ Guide

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Resources and Tools

by Sarah Lipkin Sularz, Regional Planner and Kristen E. Humphrey, MLA, Local Assistance and Training Planner

On June 16, 2020, the Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) published a webpage for our new Housing Element Models and Guidelines (M&G), developed in response to House Bill 1045 (HB 1045 [2019]) to support local governments in planning affordable housing with their jurisdictions. 

In every region of Maryland there is a great need for additional affordable housing and communities from across the state have sought out funding sources and assistance for new and proposed housing of all kinds and for every type of household.

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Housing Planning is Both a Process and a Practice

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Resources and Tools

By Joe Griffiths, AICP, Local Assistance and Training Manager

While the requirement to include a housing element in all new and updated comprehensive plans in Maryland may have only become effective on June 1, 2020, many planning methods and practices for implementing affordable housing are well established.

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Self-assessments Help with Planning for Housing

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Resources and Tools 

by Joseph Griffiths, AICP, Local Assistance and Training Manager

The Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) believes that addressing affordable housing begins with earnest local dialogue and focused visioning.  Nationally developed data, state resources, and comparable best practices and examples are key inputs to a housing needs assessment and action plan, but planning for the housing needs of existing and future residents also calls for internal reflection involving a wide range of stakeholders. 

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New! Planning Launches Solar Facility Siting Guidance Webpage

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Resources and Tools

by Jason Dubow, Manager, Resource Conservation & Management

In response to the recommendations of the Governor’s Task Force on Renewable Energy and Development, Planning developed the Solar Facility Siting Guidance webpage. The webpage provides information and tools to facilitate the development and adjustment of local land use plans and of recommendations with respect to solar facility siting to achieve local goals and objectives, including:  

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Pandemic-Related Transportation Data Tools:

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Assessing How The COVID-19 Pandemic is Affecting Traffic, Transit Service, and People’s Travel Patterns

Resources and Tools 

by Bihui Xu, AICP, Lead Transportation Planner, with Kristen E. Humphrey, MLA, Local Assistance and Training Planner 

As Maryland navigates through sheltering in place, reopening, pausing, and slowly reopening, we have seen traffic on major highways drop dramatically in March and April, bounce back in May and June, and stay largely flat July through today. In the meantime, although not shut down, public transit has been scaled back in most places and continues to struggle to attract riders; similarly BWI’s passenger traffic is still more than 80% below its normal level.  

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