Ahead of Tuesday discussion on Thrive Montgomery 2050, Montgomery County Council President Gabe Albornoz addressed the “elephant in the room” and said the council will continue moving forward with the document amid recent events surrounding the Planning Department.
The plan has been a multi-year process, Albornoz said. Tuesday’s worksession will hopefully be the last, said Council Senior Legislative Analyst Pamela Dunn.
The Planning Board created the draft for Thrive Montgomery 2050, which is a document to guide the county for the next three decades in areas including land use planning.
Last week, the council disciplined Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson for having a full bar in his Wheaton office and drinking with officials. Then, WJLA reported that Anderson was accused, via confidential email, of inappropriate workplace behavior. Anderson says the claims are false. On Friday, the board fired Director of the Planning Department Gwen Wright, who was quoted in the WJLA news story speaking up for Anderson. No reason for termination was given in a release from the Planning Department. Albornoz said councilmembers have a number of questions regarding Wright’s removal.
The council had a second closed session scheduled Tuesday afternoon to discuss a personnel matter, per the agenda, following a closed session Monday on the same topic.
On Monday, Albornoz said the council is “aggressively investigating” the recent issues surrounding the department.
