'Mini-mall disguised as a Country Inn' part of county plan on historic C&O site

The Seven Locks Elementary School land grab is just part of County Council Doug Duncan's plan to manhattanize the quiet neighborhoods, parklands and historic wooded areas of West Bethesda and Potomac.

West Montgomery County Citizens Association Carol Van Dam Falk describes a county panel's plan to clearcut 30,000 square feet of scenic, steep wooded area along the historic C&O Canal towpath.

She writes in the Potomac Almanac: "If the Montgomery County Planning Board and eventually the County Council approve a change in zoning for property such as the Potomac Inn on River Road to a Country Inn Zone, it would mean the new owners could construct a myriad of shops, restaurants, banquet facilities and hundreds of parking spots along a very narrow strip of land. This could happen even though the county has never clearly defined what it means to have a Country Inn Zone. If this zoning change is approved, others will undoubtedly be lining up to follow suit."