WASHINGTON — Metro is sitting on some very valuable land, and there are calls for the agency to sell it off to help deal with its fiscal challenges.

In a letter to Metro General Manager Paul Wiedefeld, Montgomery County Council President Roger Berliner said the agency should sell, rather than lease, its properties next to the Bethesda and White Flint Metro stations.

Berliner said that and other changes would speed up development of the properties and increase Metro ridership. He points to a 30-acre piece of land next to the White Flint station that is sitting mostly empty, saying that the company selected by Metro to develop in the area has failed to move forward under a lease agreement.

Berliner also said Metro could remove red tape from the development process and bring in additional interest from developers by hiring professionals to market the properties.