Like much of the Washington region, Montgomery County has a shortage of housing that’s affordable to families who are low-income or even upper-middle class. The county’s new general plan, Thrive Montgomery 2050, puts an emphasis on housing affordability, but it might not do enough to address the problem, and may even make things worse for low-income residents of color.

That conclusion comes from a preliminary racial equity analysis by the Office of Legislative Oversight that has planners and lawmakers scrambling to address criticisms of the document that could further delay its approval by the council.

Planners and some council members had hoped to put the plan to bed last year so they could focus on other priorities, such as a new sector plan for the downtown Silver Spring area. Now, it appears more deliberation is ahead.

Thrive Montgomery 2050, an update to the county’s general plan that has been in the works since 2018, guides the future of growth in Montgomery County for the next 28 years. The plan has drawn support from progressive and “smart growth” groups that praise its emphasis on walkable communities, housing affordability, and climate resilience, though many neighborhood associations are strongly opposed, saying the plan would attract too much development to single-family neighborhoods.

Now planners and council members must grapple with findings in the racial equity analysis, which elevated concerns from lawmakers and critics that the county hasn’t sought enough input on the document from Black and brown residents. Detractors of Thrive have seized upon the report as evidence that the plan is deeply flawed, while supporters maintain that the ideas in Thrive — such as adding a wider variety of housing types to single-family neighborhoods — would actually foster more equity in the county.

The report, by senior legislative analyst Elaine Bonner-Tompkins, recommends that leaders “elicit the meaningful input of residents of color” to help update Thrive so the document “reflects a consensus of land use policies and practices aimed at advancing [racial equity and social justice].” It also advises council members to add a chapter to Thrive describing the historical and current drivers of racial and social inequities in the county, among other suggestions.

Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson and Montgomery County Planning Department Director Gwen Wright took turns defending the plan during a council discussion on Tuesday, pointing to multiple examples of racial equity policies that are already in the latest draft.

“Advancing racial equity through just planning policies and public investments in underserved communities, promoting the racial and economic integration of neighborhoods, and focusing on the potential for the design of communities to help build social trust and inclusion while encouraging civic participation are among the most significant elements of Thrive Montgomery 2050,” says a passage in the document’s introduction.

“[Thrive] actually makes 72 recommendations directly or indirectly related to racial justice and social equity and includes metrics for evaluating progress toward equity goals,” Anderson said.

Wright and Anderson both remarked that the racial equity analysis — which is required for legislation and zoning changes, but not general plans — is ill-suited to something so broad as Thrive, which makes sweeping policy proposals whose impacts are difficult to measure precisely. (Council President Gabe Albornoz requested the analysis of Thrive in response to an appeal from local advocates.)

“This kind of analysis is better suited to specifics that will come later,” said a PowerPoint slide that Wright and Anderson displayed during Tuesday’s discussion.

But Council member Nancy Navarro (D-District 4), who championed sweeping racial equity legislation in 2019, said Bonner-Tompkins’ analysis raises crucial points.

“I don’t think we should get defensive about it,” said Navarro, who represents a heavily Latino part of the county. With people of color projected to make up almost three-quarters of Montgomery’s population by 2045, officials have a responsibility to involve them in large-scale planning efforts, the council member said.

“We can’t set a general plan without authentically involving the people that are going to be affected by that general plan,” Navarro said. “I myself don’t feel comfortable saying, ‘All these things are going to help you people of color, just take it at face value.'”

Planners and Council member Hans Riemer, who chairs the council’s Planning, Housing and Economic Development Committee, say the public engagement process for Thrive has been lengthy and comprehensive, encompassing multiple public hearings, listening sessions, and discussions with community groups over three years. Still, hearings have attracted mostly white homeowners and advocates, and leaders have struggled to elicit feedback from renters, people of color and lower-income residents.

“When you have a once-in-a-30-year document, you have to make sure you do this in a really intentional way,” said Council member Will Jawando (D-At Large), who sits on the planning committee.

Jawando has convened his own conversations about Thrive with Black residents and leaders. Some of his colleagues indicated on Tuesday that they are willing to do the same.

“I am ready to begin the deep dive into this document, so that we can all ask our questions, we can all engage with the community — the entirety of this community, the diverse community that we live in — so that we can all then set the course for Montgomery County’s future,” said Council Vice President Evan Glass (D-At Large).

But most legislators also expressed support for passing Thrive during the current council session, rather than letting it slide past the 2022 election.

“We don’t intend to extend this forever,” Council President Gabe Albornoz said Tuesday.