Note that the background materials document here does again contain a fair number of materials beyond just the specific work session topic. There are several memos and letters both to and from the City. One letter is of particular interest: On December 1, County Executive Ike Leggett wrote to Mayor Katz expressing great displeasure over the recently-discussed Municipal Growth Element. In that letter, Mr. Leggett says (transcribed from the OCR’d PDF):

The Master Plan Element, once approved, will pave the way for the City to annex properties in the Maximum Expansion Limits (MEL) shown throughout the document. Some properties depicted in the MEL represent enclaves of development, which for a variety of reasons, may make sense for the City to want to annex. However, I remain extremely concerned about the inclusion of prime commercial and institutional assets in the MEL which comprise the heart of the County’s technology corridor, most notably the Shady Grove Life Sciences Center, the Belward campus. the campuses of the University of Maryland and the John Hopkins University, the Center for Advanced Research in Biotechnology, the Maryland Technology Development Center, the Human Genome Sciences headquarters complex, and the Public Services Training Academy site.

and

For all of these reasons, I strongly encourage the City of Gaithersburg, at a minimum, to remove the following tracts of land from the Maximum Expansion Limits in the draft Master Plan Element: the Shady Grove Life Sciences Center, the Belward campus, the campuses of the University of Maryland and The John Hopkins University, the Center for Advanced Research in Biotechnology, the Maryland Technology Development Center, the Human Genome Sciences headquarters complex and the Public Services Training Academy site. The investment we have, and will continue to make in these properties and the enhancement of this life sciences hub dictates that these parcels remain within the County’s boundaries.

As made clear in the public hearing last week, the Maximum Expansion Limits as identified in this document are a formality; the City is required by the State to identify any land that the City could theoretically annex over the next several years. None of the identified properties could be annexed by the City unless the owners of those properties specifically request that the City do so. But what this means is that, for any property in the MEL, developers have more options than just working with the County — were they to successfully pursue annexation into the City, they would then be able to work with Gaithersburg’s Mayor and Council and Planning Commission, and simply walk away from the County’s process, taking with them the eventual permit fees and some amount of property tax revenue (about ten cents per hundred dollars of assessed value).

Clearly the County would prefer that developers not have this option for several of their high-profile projects such as those identified in Mr. Leggett’s letter. It is already well-known that the City is interested in annexing the Belward property, and this letter is a clear message that the County would very much like the City to back off.

From the City’s website:

Agenda - Work Session: Council Packages and Cable TV, 12/8/2008

Posted 11/26/2008

City of Gaithersburg
WORK SESSION

Mayor and City Council
Monday, December 8, 2008
7:30 P.M.

  • Discuss the Proposed Mayor and City Council Paperless Package System and Associated Physical Changes to the Council Chambers (receive staff presentation and recommendations, and provide guidance)
    Full Meeting Package (pdf format - 2M)