Councilmember Friedson to Host Press Conference Highlighting Accelerate MoCo Package to Fast-Track Biohealth and Housing

MARYLAND, March 16 - For Immediate Release: Monday, March 16, 2026

From the Office of Councilmember Andrew Friedson

Press conference to be held on Tuesday, March 17 at 12:30 p.m. in Rockville

Two new zoning measures spearheaded by Councilmember Andrew Friedson will accelerate and streamline the regulatory process to attract the biohealth industry and address the housing shortage in Montgomery County, cutting review times by 75 percent.

Tomorrow, March 17 at 12:30 p.m., Councilmember Andrew Friedson will hold a press conference highlighting the passage of the Accelerate MoCo legislative package, intended to expand the biohealth industry and encourage the construction of affordable housing. The press conference will take place at the Council Office Building in Rockville. Friedson will be joined by economic development and biohealth leaders, as well as affordable housing advocates and builders.

On Tuesday, the Council is expected to vote on two zoning measures:

Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 26-03 – Biohealth Priority Campus Eligibility builds on Friedson’s previous legislative efforts to attract the biohealth industry to Montgomery County by expanding opportunities to qualify for an expedited regulatory review process. The zoning measure will help qualified applicants save time and money as projects face challenging market conditions.

ZTA 26-03 reduces the square-footage threshold for new construction to 100,000 square feet, reduces the threshold for additions to 25,000 square feet, and adds the adaptive reuse of commercial office buildings for biohealth uses as a qualifier for the expedited review process.

Zoning Text Amendment (ZTA) 26-04 – Mixed-Income Housing Community Eligibility builds on the mixed-income housing ZTA sponsored by Councilmembers Friedson and Sayles in 2023 establishing an expedited review process for housing projects meeting certain affordability requirements.

ZTA 26-04 significantly expands opportunities to qualify for this expedited review process by eliminating the square-footage requirement and adding four percent LIHTC projects to the list of qualifying developments.

By cutting unnecessary delays in the approval process, the measure will help speed the production of new housing and reduce the cost of building homes.

Press Conference Details

Date: Tuesday, March 17

Time: 12:30 p.m. Location: Council Office Building, 4th floor (100 Maryland Ave., Rockville, MD 20850).

Who: Montgomery County Councilmembers Andrew Friedson & Sayles, Montgomery County Councilmembers, Angela Franco, President and CEO, Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce, representatives from United Therapeutics, Action in Montgomery (AIM), and TM Associates, the first housing provider to utilize the new expedited process.

Members of the media must RSVP by March 17 at 10 a.m. by emailing [email protected]. 

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Release ID: 26-091
Media Contact: Cindy Gibson 240-620-8571
Categories: Andrew Friedson