Resources and Tools

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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New! Open Parcels Notice:

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Updated Parcel Points and Parcel Polygons Now Available at GIS Download Site 

Resources and Tools

The latest parcel points and parcel polygons are now available for download either by county (and Baltimore City) or for the entire state of Maryland.

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New! Maryland Department of Planning Launches Housing Dashboard

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Resources and Tools 

By Victoria Olivier, AICP, Central Maryland Regional Planner  

‘Dashboard’ has been trending as one of the top five government jargon terms for the past few years. Many have turned to this data visualization tool to make information more accessible, and to directly and spatially communicate the complicated analytics related to a particular topic. As part of its Housing Element Models and Guidelines (M&G), which we highlighted in last month’s Planning Practice Monthly, the Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) jumped on the dashboard wagon with housing planning.  

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