Md. Parkway Funds May Pay for Tax Cut

Montgomery Project Would Be Put Off

Montgomery County Council member Howard A. Denis yesterday proposed delaying the construction of the Montrose Parkway and diverting the $5.4 million set aside for the project next year to property tax relief.

Denis (R-Potomac-Bethesda) said his plan would result in a 4-cent property tax reduction across the board, twice what County Executive Douglas M. Duncan (D) has proposed but less than the 7-cent reduction needed to bring the county in line with a voter-imposed tax and spending cap for the first time in four years.

"I think that's substantial," Denis said after a news conference. "For the average homeowner, it would be a $167 savings."

The introduction of Montrose Parkway into the property tax debate riled Duncan, who considers the North Bethesda connector road linking Interstate 270 and Rockville Pike a cornerstone of his effort to reduce traffic congestion.

"Unfortunately, some on the Montgomery County Council are determined to gut my proposed budget and reduce the significant gains we have made in education, public safety and, now, transportation," Duncan, a likely gubernatorial candidate next year, said in a statement. "Our residents want congestion relief, and they are tired of wasting their time in traffic delays and in endless debate."

Denis's proposal, which he will introduce to the council today, comes at a time when the council is deeply divided over how to cut Duncan's proposed $3.6 billion spending plan.

Although some on the council have lobbied for the 2-cent tax cut Duncan proposed, others have pushed for compliance with the charter cap, which limits tax revenue to the previous year's total plus inflation and the value of new construction. That option would require trimming as much as $70 million from the budget.

Duncan last week proposed targeted tax cuts for senior citizens and homeowners on fixed incomes.

The county is expected to pay the estimated $68 million it would cost to complete the 1.8-mile Montrose Parkway West. The plan calls for widening Montrose Road from four lanes to six between the I-270 interchange and Tildenwood Drive, then creating a four-lane Montrose Parkway that would extend to Old Georgetown Road. Denis is calling for a year's delay in the project, which originally was slated to be finished by fiscal 2009.

Montrose Parkway West is just one portion of a three-part project to build a parkway between I-270 and Veirs Mill Road. The second part, a state-funded interchange on Rockville Pike, is supposed to be finished by fiscal 2012.

Yesterday, Denis said he would ask the State Highway Administration to push up its scheduled completion date to fiscal 2010 so the two portions of the project could be ready at the same time. "Not synchronizing these projects will make traffic worse on Rockville Pike," he said.

Several residents and environmentalists have vehemently opposed the project, vowing to take their fight to court. Yesterday, members of the Montrose Parkway Alternative Coalition said they appreciated Denis's support for a delay but said he did not go far enough. "I'd love to delay it forever," member Linda Pellish said.