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Planning Board Approves Bethesda Office Park Townhome Community

By WTOP Staff

Rendering of EYA-proposed townhome community for Rock Spring Park, via Montgomery County Planning DepartmentThe Montgomery County Planning Board on Thursday approved plans for a 168-unit townhouse community in the middle of a Bethesda office park, despite concerns from a leader of the local high school PTA.

Bethesda-based EYA wants to build the project in an area ofRock Spring Park that has been predominantly commercial office for a long time.

The 10-acre property is across Fernwood Road from the corporate headquarters of Marriott International and a short walk along Rockledge Drive to the corporate headquarters of Lockheed Martin. A building constructed for IBM in the 1960s sits just north of the site, an empty swath of land reserved for two more office buildings and a parking garage.

The Planning Board approved the project’s preliminary and site plans on Thursday. After the county finalized a master plan calling for a North Bethesda Bus Rapid Transitway in October, EYA worked with the Department of Transportation and is offering the county right-of-way along Fernwood Drive for a future BRT station. The North Bethesda Transitway would run bus rapid transit from White Flint to Westfield Montgomery mall.

Not far from the site is Walter Johnson High School, which is near capacity and projected to be over capacity by the 2017-2018 school year with no addition or modernization projects on the horizon.

Jennifer Cope, representing the Walter Johnson cluster of PTAs, told the Planning Board she saw a “major disconnect” in the county’s planning strategies and the approval of the EYA townhouse proposal. She also questioned how accurate the county’s school population projections are.

“Stop approving non-priority developments, especially those that are far from established rapid transit,” Cope said.

EYA will be required to pay a school facilities fee, which planning staff said will mean $2,000 per each unit, good for almost $400,000. The developer will also be required to pay an impact fee of $19,533 per unit, meaning another $3 million. EYA will not be required to make additional school facility payments at the middle school level, as first reported by planning staff.

The Board also approved variances to allow EYA to remove 10 specimen trees and provide what could end up being 32 fewer parking spaces than required. EYA has also arranged to provide 72 guest parking spaces in a nearby office building garage.

The inclusion of space for the county to build a future bus rapid transit facility wasn’t part of the original plan, said EYA Vice President McLean Quinn.

“This project seems at first pretty simple, but I can tell you over the last six months we’ve had a lot of meetings with staff and with DOT to come up with a plan to respond to the new transitway,” Quinn said.

Quinn also tried to convince the Board that the Rock Spring Park office complex isn’t as strange a place for residential development as it might seem. He pointed to nearby Westfield Montgomery mall and the Wildwood Shopping Center as activity areas.

“This really is a major center of activity in the county and we view this site as the hole in the doughnut,” Quinn told the Board.

Rendering via Montgomery County Planning Department

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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