The Board of Appeals is headquartered in the Stella B. Werner Council Office Building in Rockville. Montgomery County photo.
The County Council has announced it is looking for applicants to fill a four-year term on the county’s Board of Appeals.
Members are expected to hear and decide on requests for variances from development standards contained in the zoning ordinance; hear appeals from certain administrative decisions rendered by county government agencies; and hear oral argument on and deciding appeals from decisions of the hearing examiner on conditional uses. The board also considers and decides requests for modifications of special exceptions.
The board normally holds weekly hearings all day Wednesday and work sessions every other week and normally work about 15-25 hours a week.
Under current law, no more than three members of the board can be from the same political party. Only a Republican, a voter who is unaffiliated with a party, or a voter who is a member of another party officially recognized by the Board of Elections can fill this position, which is currently held by Edwin Rosado (unaffiliated).
The other members of the board include Chair John Pentecost (Democrat), Stan Boyd (Democrat), Katherine Freeman (Democrat) and Bruce Goldensohn (Republican). Board members receive $15,365 annually (the chair receives $21,715).
The principal jurisdiction of the Board of Appeals does not include the municipalities of Barnesville, Brookeville, Gaithersburg, Laytonsville, Poolesville, Rockville and Washington Grove. Normally the council does not appoint residents of those municipalities to the board; however, exceptions may be made.
Letters expressing interest, including a résumé listing professional and civic experience, political party affiliation, home and office telephone numbers and an email address, should be addressed to:
Council President Hans Riemer
County Council Office
100 Maryland Avenue
Rockville, Maryland 20850
Applications can also be emailed to [email protected], but must be received no later than 5 p.m. on July 2 to be considered.
After the application closing date, councilmembers will review the letters of application and may select applicants to interview. Application materials are made public as part of the appointment process and any interviews held are open to the public and will be televised.
A financial statement of assets, debts, income and family property interests will be required of all applicants. Only the appointed candidate will be required to make the financial statement available to the public.