Gaithersburg planning department to launch interactive web map of projects, combines missed annual report

The City of Gaithersburg's planning department previewed a new interactive web map and said it will publish a combined annual planning report covering years that were not previously presented.

Jasmine, the city's community planning manager, told the Planning Commission on Dec. 3 that staff had not yet presented the 2023 annual report, so the department will combine the 2023 and 2024 reports into a single illustrative version to be released to the public by the end of the week. "We could decide to combine the 2023 and the 2024 as one report," Jasmine said.

Jasmine also demonstrated a planning projects web map built on ArcGIS that will show current planning applications (staff approvals, historic-area work permits, board appeals and other active applications). The map will let anyone type an address, draw a half-mile buffer and display nearby active projects; records will link to the city's Intergov database so users can view attachments and exhibits. "This planning projects page actually includes every application that comes to the planning department," Jasmine said, adding staff hopes the map will increase transparency and engagement. Staff expects to publish the map early next week and will issue a press release when it goes live.

The commission praised the tool and staff for the work. Staff said the map currently shows only active applications and that a future enhancement could include building-permit data. Jasmine said timelines for applications will limit how long each project pin remains visible to avoid cluttering the map.