VI.

COMMUNITY FACILITIES
Community facilities such as parks, recreation centers, nature centers, schools, equestrian trails, and the post
office, contribute to the character of Cloverly. Other facilities that serve Cloverly, such as government
centers, libraries, fire stations, and police stations are located in adjacent, more densely populated
communities.

This Plan recommends an expanded park and open space system that serves as a greenway system, equestrian
trails, and improved retail postal service. These recommendations support the fundamental planning
principles of protecting Cloverly=s watersheds and community character.

COMMUNITY FACILITIES GOAL:

Provide appropriate public facilities and strengthen the links between Cloverly residents and
community facilities.

PARK AND RECREATION FACILITIES

The existing park and open space system is one of Cloverly's defining elements. The rural and suburban
character of Cloverly is reinforced by the relatively large amount of open space that provides active and
passive recreation opportunities. The primary role of much of the existing and proposed park and open space
is to protect the quality of Cloverly's watersheds. This Plan strengthens community character and protects
watersheds by recommending additional parkland in each watershed. Park acquisition does not preclude
improvements needed to assure safe and adequate access for purposes of public safety and service.

Cloverly contains approximately 800 acres of parkland and public open space. There is parkland or public
open space along approximately 75 percent of Cloverly's borders. This system extends beyond Cloverly's
boundaries into adjacent areas along the Paint Branch Stream Valley Park, the Northwest Branch Stream
Valley Park, and the WSSC property along the Patuxent River.

Local and neighborhood parks in Cloverly include: Cloverly Local Park, Ednor Local Park, Good Hope Local
Park, Peachwood Neighborhood Park, Spencerville Local Park, Stonegate Local Park, and Wembrough Local
Park. The Maydale Nature Center was closed in 1992, due to budget cuts, but is currently operated by the
Friends of Maydale, a group of local residents. In addition, Burtonsville Local Park, the Countryside
Neighborhood Park, and the Woodlawn Cultural Park are located in the Fairland Master Plan Area and Sandy
Spring/Ashton Special Study Area but are on the border of Cloverly. A community center is located in Good
Hope Local Park, and the Ednor Local Park, Spencerville Local Park, and Maydale Nature Center contain
buildings that may be rented for activities.

CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN - 69 - APPROVED AND ADOPTED

OBJECTIVE: Protect sensitive or high-quality natural, archaeological, and historic resources located
on parkland in Cloverly.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

C Acquire additional parkland as necessary for resource protection. (See Figure 24, page 67.)

Northwest Branch Watershed

Acquire an additional 33 acres north of Norwood Road to permit trail construction outside
the stream buffer. The park acquisition recommendations of the 1981 Plan do not provide
sufficient area for construction of a trail. The Cloverly Master Plan also recommends
additional parkland along the tributary that connects the mainstem to open space in the
Hampshire Greens subdivision.

Paint Branch Watershed

Acquire an additional 121 acres of parkland for the protection of the upper Paint Branch
watershed. Approximately 173 acres were recommended for acquisition by the 1981 Plan,
but have not been acquired. This Plan removes approximately 6 acres of parkland,
recommended in the 1981 Plan from the area between Good Hope Road and Windmill Lane.
This allows property owners with existing homes to continue to have reasonable use of their
land and preserve the Good Hope community while protecting the water quality of the east
branch of the Good Hope Tributary. The Plan recommends the acquisition of a minimum of
7.75 acres on P330 at the corner of Spencerville Road and Good Hope Road. This property
will have to go through the SPA process which may result in constraints on the size or
location of any development. The process may also result in significant additions to the
amount and/or changes to the configuration of parkland. Additional parkland acquisition
may be necessary if it is determined that development of the property cannot be
accomplished consistent with applicable SPA guidelines and regulations.

An additional 247 acres have been approved in the limited amendment for park acquisition
in the Paint Branch watershed. The total amount of parkland recommended in the Cloverly
portion of the watershed will be approximately 1,904 acres.

Patuxent River Watershed

Acquire the Thompson/Lethbridge Soapstone Quarry as an archaeological site. The

Thompson/Lethbridge Soapstone Quarry is located on Ednor Road near the crossing of the
PEPCO power transmission lines. Artifacts from the site indicate that it was most heavily
used from about 2500 to 500 BC. The site was originally documented by pioneering
Smithsonian archeologist William Henry Holmes in 1897. It is one of the few steatite
(soapstone) quarries in Maryland that has not been destroyed by commercial quarrying.
Public protection of the site is critical because a portion of the site has been recently
damaged by private activities.

C Maintain strict compliance with Planning Board Environmental Guidelines for the development of park
facilities.
PARK PLAN
FIGURE 24

CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN - 71 - APPROVED AND ADOPTED

C Apply aggressive education and enforcement efforts to reduce encroachment and clearing by adjacent
property owners in parks and public open space.

OBJECTIVE: Provide adequate and accessible recreational opportunities for Cloverly's residents.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

C Create a community gathering place at the eastern end of Cloverly Street in the northern portion of
the proposed 2.77 acre park to serve as a village green or commons as a focus for community
activities. Environmental conditions limit the southern portion of the site to conservation uses and
the northern end to open space with limited facilities. The park should include a path system that
formalizes current informal connections among the Montgomery View subdivision, Cloverly
Commercial Area, Cloverly Elementary School and the Briggs Chaney Road bikepath.

C Coordinate with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) use the residual land on the Northeast
High School site for ballfields. In addition, other parts may be suitable for conservation or
recreation uses, depending on environmental impacts.

OBJECTIVE: Locate and design parkland multi-use trails to support a regional recreational
bikeways and pedestrian network.

All bikepaths in parks are subject to an environmental feasibility study, which evaluates the unique conditions
in each park. Development in stream valleys and floodplains must be sensitive of needs to protect the
environment. Each study will determine whether a bikepath is feasible given the environmental conditions, as
well as appropriate trail surfaces, location, alignment, linkages to other trails, users (cyclists, equestrians
and/or pedestrians), and necessary protective and mitigation measures. The interaction of cyclists,
equestrians, and pedestrians on individual trails also will be addressed during the design stage.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

C Provide neighborhood connections to stream valley parks and trail systems, where feasible.

C Provide a neighborhood connection from Thompson Drive to the proposed trail in Fairland that
connects to Old Columbia Pike.

A connection to the Rainbow Drive -Thompson Drive bikeway is desired because of connections to
Briggs Chaney Middle School, Cloverly Local Park, and the Cloverly Commercial Area. Until
Thompson Drive is extended, Donna, Peachstone, and Seibel Drives may serve as connections to the
park.

C Construct a trail in the Northwest Branch Stream Valley Park between Sandy Spring/Ashton and
White Oak. A trail or trails will be evaluated as part of the environmental feasibility study.
Environmental conditions, separation of user groups, and the presence of the Northwest Branch Golf
Course may cause the path to be located along Layhill Road and Norbeck Road Extended before
joining the bikepath north of Norwood Road. Trail through the park will require a trail(s) between
the existing park and the Northeast High School and for the Norbeck Road Extended bridge at
Norwood Road and the Northwest Branch to accommodate a below-grade crossing of the trail.

APPROVED AND ADOPTED - 72 - CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN

C Coordinate with MCPS to locate a trail or trails along the south side of Northwest Branch outside of
current parkland. This would require acquisition or an easement between the stream and the
Northeast High School. A connection to the school=s internal path system is recommended.

C Repair existing erosion problems on soft surface trails through coordinated efforts between the
Department of Parks and local residents.

C Designate trails by types of users to prevent environmentally damaging uses and/or conflicts between
user groups.

C Close undesignated, duplicate trails and restore vegetation.

GREENWAYS
Greenways are linear open spaces set aside for recreation and conservation uses. Greenways link people,
communities, and the natural environment. The greenway system is not a regulatory or land acquisition
program. It is a unifying approach that uses existing regulatory and/or voluntary programs to create a
network of green spaces in the County and throughout the state. The stream valley parks form the core of the
greenway system.

The greenway connectors are major pedestrian and/or bikeway connections that, although they may contain
varying amounts of or no green space, are especially important to provide access to greenways. In some
places the connectors cross private land where property owners have granted access, as is the case where the
Trail Riders of Today (TROT) negotiated easements for public access along specific routes.

The Northwest Branch and Paint Branch greenways form part of a larger greenway network that extends to
Prince George's and Howard counties. A key link is made along Cloverly's border with Fairland between the
Paint Branch and the Patuxent through the Burtonsville Local Park. Due to the environmental sensitivity of
this area, access may be limited to hikers and equestrians. A major greenway connector between the Little
Paint Branch, the Paint Branch, and the Northwest Branch can be provided by a separated bikeway along the
route of the proposed Intercounty Connector. The Parks and Recreation section recommends connections
between neighborhoods and parkland.

OBJECTIVE: Identify and preserve connections within and between stream valley parks to protect
natural features and habitats and to provide appropriate access to these areas.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

C Designate the Northwest Branch mainstem, the Patuxent River, and the Paint Branch mainstem and
headwaters tributaries as greenways.

C Designate the entire length of the proposed Intercounty Connector as a connector between the
Northwest Branch greenway and the Paint Branch greenway.

C Protect a continuous greenway between the Patuxent River and the Paint Branch via the Burtonsville
Local Park and the Right Fork of the Paint Branch.

CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN - 73 - APPROVED AND ADOPTED

GREENWAYS
FIGURE 25

APPROVED AND ADOPTED - 74 - CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN

C Protect a continuous greenway between the Northwest Branch mainstem to connect through Sandy
Spring to the Patuxent.

C Designate park access trails in the following locations:

- Via Seibel Drive to Paint Branch Park

- Via Cutstone Way to the Northwest Branch Park

C Identify and protect areas on developable properties and parkland where natural linkages between
habitats can be made and included within the greenway system.

EQUESTRIAN TRAILS
The rural character of Cloverly is enhanced by and helps support numerous equestrian trails. The ability to
ride a horse over the countryside epitomizes the rural lifestyle that attracted some residents to Cloverly. The
sight of people riding horses, horses grazing in a pasture, and barns to house the horses contribute to
Cloverly=s rural feel. Equestrian activity is not limited to the Agricultural Wedge, but also occurs in the
Residential Wedge and Suburban Communities where trails in parks and undeveloped land have been used for
years. Trails have developed over time through private arrangements between riders and property owners.
Some of the arrangements are informal agreements while others have been formally designated through the
subdivision process. The routes shown in Figure 26, page 73, represent currently used equestrian trails or
extensions of routes that should be formalized as properties are subdivided.

This Plan recognizes the existence of equestrian trails in Cloverly and the need to create a more
interconnected system of such trails. However, there may be areas where equestrian trails could cause
adverse environmental impact if they are improperly located.

In particularly sensitive watersheds such as upper Paint Branch, existing or proposed trails that are identified
for equestrian use should be carefully evaluated by M-NCPPC on a site-by-site basis before these trails are
constructed or maintained for equestrian use.

Existing trails may need to be relocated and new trails sited to avoid disturbance in or near environmentally
sensitive areas such as streams, wetlands, floodplains, steep slopes, and areas supporting rare, threatened, or
endangered species or unusual or exceptionally high-quality plant and animal communities.

Some trails may not be possible because of the sensitive nature of certain stream valleys and the limited land
available to locate a trail with adequate buffering from sensitive features.

OBJECTIVE: Designate adequate equestrian trails to provide a pleasant riding experience without
conflicting with other users or with conservation of natural resources.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

C Encourage the creation and continuation of equestrian easement agreements between the property
owners and user organizations such as Trail Riders of Today, Inc. (TROT) when preliminary plans of
subdivision are reviewed.

CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN - 75 - APPROVED AND ADOPTED

C Provide equestrian access to all established and suitable unpaved trails in parks, except where
specifically prohibited (e.g., playgrounds, nature centers, ballfields, high-traffic pedestrian areas,
wetland areas, and sensitive natural areas).

C New trails in parks should be located to minimize environmental impacts, impacts on other park uses,
and adjacent properties.

C Encourage trail crossings in areas of good visibility and with crossing warning signs.

C Consider the use of underpasses where feasible. (See the Transportation Chapter for the underpass
recommendation for Norbeck Road Extended.)

C Provide adequate signage that indicates where pedestrian use is allowed and advises other users that
equestrians may be encountered on the trail.

PUBLIC FACILITIES
Figure 27 on page 74 shows the location of schools, recreation centers, the Spencerville post office, and
Hampshire Greens golf course.

Schools

Cloverly is part of three public high school clusters: Paint Branch, Sherwood, and Springbrook. The proposed
Northeast High School is scheduled to open in September 1998 at the intersection of Norwood Road and
Johnson Road. The Board of Education adopted a preferred choice boundary plan for Springbrook, Paint
Branch and the new Northeast High School and has defined base areas for the three high schools. The location
of the high school in Cloverly can be used to enhance Cloverly's community identity. Methods to achieve this
result could include naming the school after the area instead of an individual, using excess lands for
community benefit and utilizing architecture that reflects the style of nearby historic homes. See page 48 for
pedestrian access recommendations.

The Briggs Chaney Middle School, Cloverly Elementary School, Charles Drew Elementary School, and
Stonegate Elementary School are in Cloverly. The Cloverly Master Plan Area also contains Spencerville
Academy, a private school located on Good Hope Road.

Additional school sites in Cloverly are not anticipated due to the relatively small amount of growth that can
occur. The Northeast High School, Briggs Chaney Middle School, and Charles Drew Elementary School are
designed to accommodate expansions, if needed. However, some Sherwood school children have been
reassigned to Cloverly Elementary School and Stonegate Elementary School to ameliorate overcrowding.

Public Safety

The Cloverly Master Plan Area is served by the Montgomery County Police Department=s Wheaton-
Glenmont Station. The Montgomery County Department of Police developed a strategic implementation plan
in 1993 called Transition to Community Policing. The Briggs Chaney Satellite Station Trailer was opened in
1994 at the Briggs Chaney Shopping Center in Fairland. The Montgomery County Police Department is
currently developing a facilities master plan. This facilities plan may make recommendations regarding
police facilities in the Cloverly Master Plan Area. The Police Department is also currently working to amend
Police District boundaries to better distribute workload. The Wheaton-Glenmont District boundaries may
change during the life of this Master Plan.

APPROVED AND ADOPTED - 76 - CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN

EQUESTRIAN TRAIL SYSTEM
FIGURE 26

CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN - 77 - APPROVED AND ADOPTED

COMMUNITY FACILITIES PLAN
FIGURE 27

APPROVED AND ADOPTED - 78 - CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN

 Fire and Rescue

The Cloverly Master Plan Area is primarily served by Burtonsville Firestation 15, Hillandale Firestation 24,
and Sandy Spring Firestation 4. Additional stations provide occasional service. As is the case with other
public facilities, Cloverly will not have a sufficient population to support a new fire and rescue station.

The 1994 Fire, Rescue, and Emergency Medical Services Master Plan recommended the replacement of the
Sandy Spring Firestation. The location of the new station will also be addressed in the upcoming Sandy
Spring/Ashton Master Plan.

Post Office

The Spencerville Post Office (20868 zip code) is the only post office located in Cloverly. The remaining zip
codes (20904 and 20905) are served by the Colesville Branch Post Office on New Hampshire Avenue in
White Oak. Despite a distance of 6 miles or more from Silver Spring, these zip codes have Silver Spring
place names. The use of a more relevant name such as Cloverly for 20905 would strengthen community
identity.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

! Support efforts to replace the temporary post office trailer with a permanent post office at the
southwest corner of Spencerville Road and Peach Orchard Road.

! Support the location of retail postal service in the Cloverly Commercial Area to improve access to
postal services, and to strengthen the importance of the commercial area as a focal point for the
community. Retail postal service could be as basic as a contract postal unit, where a business
operates a small post office in a larger store.

! Support the renaming of the 20905 zip code from Silver Spring to Cloverly.

Libraries

Cloverly is served by the Aspen Hill, Fairland, and White Oak public libraries. This Plan does not
recommend a library in Cloverly due to the relatively small population and the proximity to other libraries.

CLOVERLY MASTER PLAN - 79 - APPROVED AND ADOPTED