Residents Find Small-Town Vision Blurred

The Retail Question

The allure of small-town charm in a sprawl-weary world has not been lost on developers, who in one project after another promise a Mayberry-like sense of community.

Clarksburg Town Center, near Interstate 270 in northern Montgomery County, will "provide an opportunity for a vital civic environment in the Town Square, which reflects the democratic tradition of our communities," one of its brochures says.

But exactly what kind of retail center would embody those high-minded principles is a matter of dispute.

What both sides agree on is that the conflict began in earnest July 27 of last year, during a meeting at a nearby church where the developer presented plans for the town square and adjoining retail center.

Giving retail centers a Main Street feel while attracting tenants who often prefer the easy automobile access of suburban strip stores has been one of the most daunting challenges for new urbanist planners.

At the meeting, developer representatives presented drawings of a more contemporary retail center than what many neighbors had in mind: a 60,000-square-foot grocery store and other shops arranged around a 300-car parking lot.

"They'd promised the Kentlands, only better," Presley said. "It was a question of lifestyle. I thought I'd be able to walk to upscale restaurants and have a glass of wine. But I don't think anyone will be congregating in front of the Giant or having a glass of wine in front of the dry cleaner."

One of the key points in the dispute is the amount of office and retail space in the town center, which has been scaled down from 250,000 square feet to roughly half that. Unlike many development disputes, the complaining neighbors actually want more retail building, not less. But Newland representatives have argued that the market would not support the number of shops and restaurants that neighbors are calling for.

Since the church meeting, Newland has revised the plan. The proposed Giant still would front a parking lot, but for a few blocks, some small shops would open onto the sidewalk, as if on a Main Street. Company representatives have depicted this as a fulfillment of traditional town planning ideas.

Shiley, Presley and other neighbors believe that the plan could be better, and some experts agree.

"The developer is going part of the way there," said Rob Steuteville, editor of New Urban News, which tracks new urbanism projects across the country. He noted approvingly that the plan shows stores off sidewalks around the town green, an arrangement similar to historical cities -- and unlike suburban strips such as those flanking Rockville Pike or Lee Highway.

However, he said, the project's overall quality is a long way off from the model of Kentlands or of historical towns. Among other things, some of the garages at Clarksburg Town Center face the street, and some of the design comes off as superficial, Steuteville said.