Central Avenue - Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan and SMA
On March 13th and 16th, 2024, the project team hosted an open house event at the Sports and Learning Center in Landover, Maryland. The open house was the culmination of the project’s public participation program. The project staff wanted to make sure we heard the community’s voice correctly and collect feedback on the DRAFT vision statements, planning goals, and urban design scenarios.
During the events, staff gave a brief presentation featuring a project overview, the highlights of our community engagement efforts, a market study summary, and a brief explanation of the DRAFT urban design scenarios. View the presentation here!
Following the presentation, attendees were invited to review and provide feedback on the area-wide vision and goal statements via an online or paper survey. Additionally, attendees were asked to review the Local Transit Center and Stadium Focus Area vision statements, market study findings, precedent imagery, and preliminary urban design visualizations. Check out the poster boards here!
The survey questions are based on the material presented on the poster boards. The responses to the survey questions will inform the visions, goals, policies, and strategies of the plan. Staff will begin to develop the plan and expect to release the initial DRAFT for public review in the Fall of 2024.
The online survey is now open until April 5, 2024! If you couldn’t attend the open house, but still want to give feedback, fill out our Slido survey by clicking here to open the survey in another window. The full images can be viewed in the poster board link above. Please make sure you click SEND at the bottom of the survey to submit your responses.
A summary of responses will be posted shortly after the survey closes on April 5, 2024.
Initiation of the Central Avenue – Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan and Sectional Map Amendment (SMA)
On May 30, 2023, the Prince George’s County Council, sitting as the District Council, approved Council Resolution CR-053-2023, authorizing the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission to prepare a sector plan and concurrent sectional map amendment (SMA) for the Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line area, which includes a portion of the Town of Capitol Heights and the City of Seat Pleasant. The Council simultaneously approved the goals, concepts, and guidelines and a public participation program for this comprehensive planning project within portions of Planning Areas 72, 75A, and 75B.
The sector plan area is located along the MD 214 (Central Avenue) corridor between Washington, D.C., and I-495 (Capital Beltway). It will focus on the areas in and around Capitol Heights, Addison Road-Seat Pleasant, and Morgan Boulevard Metro Stations, as well as FedExField. To see a map of the sector plan boundary, click the above Maps tab.
The area’s three Metro stations and select properties surrounding them are designated Local Transit Centers by Prince George’s 2035 Approved General Plan (Plan 2035). Local Transit Centers are defined by Plan 2035 as mixed-use areas that are well connected by transit and offer local-serving retail, limited office uses, and a mixture of medium-density housing options. The new sector plan will reflect the vision and goals contained in Plan 2035, including focusing on new development in designated centers and preserving existing neighborhoods, and will amend applicable countywide functional master plans.
The SMA is a process that facilitates the rezoning of properties within a plan’s boundary. Typically, this process results in a change of zoning for only a few properties, and the remaining properties keep their existing zoning classification. For more information, please see the SMA FAQ page.
Now that the sector plan and SMA have been authorized by the Council, the plan preparation process has commenced. The project team will begin to implement the public participation program, and all interested citizens are encouraged to participate in the planning process. Public input meetings and events will be scheduled both in person and virtually throughout the summer and early fall of 2023. Additional online input exercises will be made available as well. The project team is excited to begin working on this project and hear what the community has to say!
For more information about this ongoing project and how you can be involved, please email the project team at CABL@ppd.mncppc.org.
Central Avenue – Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan Video
Check out our project team members as they introduce the Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan!
The Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan will be a guiding document developed through a multi-year public engagement process, extensive review, and public hearings. The sector plan will address future development in and around Capitol Heights, Addison Road-Seat Pleasant, and Morgan Boulevard Metro Stations, designated as Local Transit Centers in Plan Prince George’s 2035 (Plan 2035). This plan will also focus on FedExField and the Central Avenue corridor.
Over the past decade, several studies, reports, and implementation strategies have been completed. However, a sector plan has yet to be adopted for the Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line area. The existing documents will be major building blocks for developing this sector plan, thereby solidifying many of the key findings, recommendations, and strategies detailed throughout the reports.
This plan will entirely replace the 2008 Approved Capitol Heights Transit District Development Plan and Transit District Overlay Zoning Map Amendment and supersede (within the project boundaries) the 2010 Approved Subregion 4 Master Plan and Sectional Map Amendment. It will reflect the vision and goals of Plan 2035, including focusing on new development in designated centers and preserving existing neighborhoods. This new sector plan will examine the area’s existing conditions, issues, and opportunities identified by community members and other stakeholders, and market potential, and develop a vision and goals for future growth and preservation, along with specific and focused policies and strategies to achieve those goals.
All properties within Prince George’s County outside of the City of Laurel were rezoned on April 1, 2022, to the new zones contained within the County’s adopted 2018 Zoning Ordinance through the Countywide Map Amendment (CMA). A sectional map amendment (SMA) is being conducted concurrently with this plan should properties require further zoning changes to implement the recommendations of this sector plan.
The lack of development and growth that has occurred in this area since the 2008 Approved Capitol Heights Transit District Development Plan and Transit District Overlay Zoning Map Amendment implies there is a critical need for updating land use and planning recommendations to incentivize and guide future development within this key area of Prince George’s County.
Project Timeline
Project Boundary Map
Welcome to our Resources Center!
Here is information about the planning process for the Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan in Prince George’s County. Below are resources showing what the planning team has been working on.
Market Study
BAE Urban Economics, part of the project consultant team, is a well-established firm that has worked with public agencies, non-profit organizations, universities, and private developers across the country and here in the County. Their team conducted an unbiased assessment of the (re)development and/or improvement opportunities in the plan area through the methods below:
- Collected demographic, economic, and real estate market conditions data
- Reviewed the input received from community engagement activities
- Interviewed business owners, developers, real estate professionals, and other stakeholders in the area
- Identified and analyzed real estate activity, regional and national trends, community priorities, and development barriers and constraints
- Applied their expertise to test feasibility of alternative development scenarios
This study reviewed the existing conditions of the local market and its future potential, investment and infrastructure needs, and community and small business needs.
Online Activity: Vision Exercise
The Vision Exercise comment period closed on January 24th, 2024, however, you can still view the draft vision statements here: https://pgplanning.konveio.com/draft-vision-statement. Watch the video below to learn more about how we arrived at this stage in the planning process. // El período de comentarios del Ejercicio de Visión se cerró el 24 de enero de 2024, sin embargo, aún puedes ver los borradores de las declaraciones de visión en el enlace de arriba. Mira el video a continuación para aprender más sobre cómo llegamos a esta etapa en el proceso de planificación.
Online Input Summary
From September 7 to November 22, 2023, the project team deployed two interactive online input activities, one using the ArcGIS Online Survey123 application and another using Slido.com. The exercises were linked on the project webpage, shared through constant contact emails and social media, included in information shared with stakeholders, and distributed at various community events in QR code form as activity business cards. // Desde el 7 de septiembre hasta el 22 de noviembre de 2023, el equipo del proyecto implementó dos actividades interactivas de entrada en línea, una utilizando la aplicación ArcGIS Online Survey123 y otra utilizando Slido.com. Los ejercicios estaban vinculados en la página web del proyecto, compartidos a través de correos electrónicos de contacto constante y redes sociales, incluidos en la información compartida con los interesados y distribuidos en varios eventos comunitarios en forma de códigos QR como tarjetas de actividad.
The Slido.com platform allowed the community and stakeholders to use 1-3 words to build Word Clouds that represent their vision for each of the three inner-beltway Metro Stations and surrounding area. // La plataforma Slido.com permitió a la comunidad y a los interesados utilizar de 1 a 3 palabras para construir Nubes de Palabras que representen su visión para cada una de las tres estaciones de metro dentro del cinturón interior y el área circundante.
Visioning Slido Word Cloud Summary
Actividad de visión: Nube de palabras
The ArcGIS Online Survey123 platform allowed the community and stakeholders to actively participate by dropping pins on a map to indicate strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, or threats (SWOT) within the sector plan boundary, accompanied by an explanation. Additionally, users were asked to link their comments to a Plan 2035 element. // La plataforma ArcGIS Online Survey123 permitió a la comunidad y a los interesados participar activamente colocando marcadores en un mapa para indicar fortalezas, debilidades, oportunidades o amenazas (FODA) dentro del límite del plan sectorial, acompañados de una explicación. Además, se les pidió a los usuarios que vincularan sus comentarios a un elemento del Plan 2035.
Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats (SWOT) Exercise Summary
Resumen del ejercicio de fortalezas, debilidades, oportunidades y amenazas (FODA)
Virtual Public Kickoff Meeting Recording and Summary
Review videos and documents from the Virtual Public Kickoff Meeting Event held on Wednesday, September 27th, 2023, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. // Revise los videos y documentos de resumen de la Reunión Virtual de Lanzamiento Público celebrada el miércoles 27 de septiembre de 2023, de 6:00 p.m. a 8:00 p.m.
Welcome videos // Videos de bienvenida:
Virtual Public Kickoff Meeting Recording // Grabación de la reunión virtual de inicio público
Public Kickoff Presentation (English) // Presentación de inicio público (Español)
Q&A and Slido Poll Response Summary // Resumen de preguntas y respuestas y resultados de la encuesta de Slido
Existing Conditions Summary StoryMap and Full Report
View Existing Conditions Summary StoryMap! The StoryMap, an Esri ArcGIS Online tool, provides a concise, visually engaging, and interactive summary of the existing conditions within the sector plan area organized by the eight Plan 2035 elements.
For even more detail on existing conditions, look at the full report. *Coming Soon*
Planning in Prince George’s County
The Prince George’s County Planning Department is working tirelessly to create the communities of choice you know and love. We want to provide our residents with all of the resources they need to remain informed and a part of the process by which their communities develop and grow. Below, you will find some resources that can help you navigate the planning process and learn about current initiatives.
El Departamento de Planificación del Condado de Prince George está trabajando para crear las comunidades de “choice” que conoce y ama. Queremos brindarles a nuestros residentes todos los recursos que necesitan para mantenerse informados y ser parte del proceso de cómo se desarrollan y crecen las comunidades. A continuación, encontrará algunos recursos que pueden ayudarlo a navegar el proceso de planificación y conocer las iniciativas actuales.
Previous Plans and Studies
The Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan will replace the 2010 Subregion 4 Master Plan and Sectional Map Amendment, 2008 Capitol Heights Transit District Development Plan, and 2000 Addison Road Metro Area Approved Sector Plan. You can view the plans at the links here to see previous recommendations for the area.
2018 Morgan Boulevard and Vicinity Study and Action Plan | Spanish
The sector plan will build on the conclusions of multiple studies completed within the last 15 years.
- 2017 30% Design of the Central Avenue Connector Trail (CACT): Phase I-Addison Road Segment // 2017 30% Diseño de Central Avenue Conector Trail (CACT) Fase I-Segmento de Addison Road
- 2014 Central Avenue-Metro Blue Line Corridor TOD Implementation Market and Transit-Oriented Development Potential, Priorities, and Strategies Study // 2014 Implementación TOD de Mercado y Estudio del Potencial del Desarrollo Orientado al Tránsito, Prioridades y Estrategias para el Corredor de la Línea Azul de la Avenida Central
- 2013 Central Avenue-Metro Blue Line Corridor TOD Implementation Project Mobility Study // 2013 Estudio de Movilidad del Proyecto de Implementación TOD del Corredor de Corredor de la Línea Azul de la Avenida Central
Contact Us
CABL Project Team
PHONE: 301-780-9610
EMAIL: CABL@ppd.mncppc.org
Elena Perry
Planner II, Master Plans and Studies Section
PHONE: 301-780-8156
EMAIL: elena.perry@ppd.mncppc.org
Kierre McCune
Planning Supervisor, Master Plans and Studies Section
PHONE: 301-952-3211
EMAIL: kierre.mccune@ppd.mncppc.org
