An unusual coalition of developers, community and issue activists, property owners, and local business people helped Montgomery County officials create a new sector plan and a $1.6 billion financing blueprint to realize their vision: a walkable, bus-served Rockville Pike commercial center in North Bethesda.
"It was like no other land use plan I’ve ever seen," said Erica Leatham, a land-use attorney for Ballard Spahr who represents one of the project’s developers. "Generally, you have the commercial interests on one side and the community interests on another. Here, we figured out how to work together. It was really a unique situation."