Editor’s Note: This story was updated at 4:17 p.m. on March 29 to clarify Marc Elrich’s comments about James Hedrick’s social media posts.
The Montgomery County Council unanimously voted to override County Executive Marc Elrich’s veto of Planning Board appointee James Hedrick during Tuesday’s meeting, with several councilmembers voicing disappointment with Elrich’s decision.
Elrich formally disapproved the appointment of Hedrick to the Planning Board Friday, nearly a month after he was selected. A nine-vote supermajority from the council was required to override Elrich’s veto.
The County Council is in the process of appointing new Planning Board members in the wake of incidents that engulfed the board and Planning Department, leading to the resignation of all its members last October. Hedrick, Shawn Bartley and Mitra Pedoeem were appointed to fill three seats last month. The council is currently in the process of finding a new chair and vice-chair, two positions currently held by temporary appointees.
Hedrick, a senior housing analyst at the Federal Housing Finance Agency in Washington, D.C., won the seat over four other Democrats in February. He was selected in an 8-3 vote by the County Council.
“In the nuanced work of planning, there is a need to recognize the opinions and lived experiences of others and to come to the table ready to work together. During my interview with Mr. Hedrick, he made it clear that he has no interest in doing this difficult work,” Elrich wrote in his memorandum. “Instead, his comments to me, as well as on social media, demonstrate an ideological close-mindedness as well as a disdain for those whose views do not comport with his. This seems particularly true regarding the widely recognized need for more housing in the county.”
Elrich wrote that he was concerned about posts Hedrick made on social media, and that Hedrick would not be able to work with people with opposing views.
Hedrick has made posts on Twitter criticizing Elrich and his policies.
Councilmember Gabe Albornoz (D-At-large) said Tuesday he has also been the subject of Hedrick’s social media posts, which often disagreed with his positions. He said he didn’t see this as a valid reason for Hedrick to stay off the board.
“We were going through a very emotional and difficult conversation around Thrive [Montgomery 2050]. That comes with the territory, for better or worse, of being a public official, and I don’t feel that any of those social media posts were out of bounds. We all have to recognize the importance of positive discourse,” Albornoz said.
Councilmember Will Jawando (D-At-large) said while he initially supported temporary Planning Board member Cherri Branson for the permanent position, he feels Hedrick is qualified for the role and disagreed with Elrich’s decision.
“Democracy dies in darkness, and it can also die in disorder and dysfunction. And while I appreciate the county executive’s input on this and other items, I don’t agree with [Elrich’s decision]. I think it will only perpetuate disorder at a time when we need our Planning Board to function,” Jawando said.
Kristin Mink (D-Dist. 5) and Laurie-Anne Sayles (D-At-Large) had also initially supported Branson, but still voted to reaffirm Hedrick’s appointment Tuesday.
“Individual members of the Planning Board cannot singularly represent all the diverse views of our community. That’s why we have five planning board members, and I look forward to them collaboratively and collegially working together on behalf of our diverse community,” Council President Evan Glass said.
Scott Peterson, a spokesman for Elrich, said in an interview in February that Elrich had 30 days to consider whether to veto the council’s appointments.
Greater Greater Washington, a transportation and housing advocacy nonprofit that endorsed Hedrick, started a petition asking the Council to override Elrich’s veto. Montgomery for All, a grassroots community group, released a letter in support of Hedrick.
The incidents that led to the resignation of all the Planning Board members in October began when former Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson was found to have violated county rules by having a full bar in his office. Then, he was alleged to have used vulgar language in the workplace, which Anderson denied.
Not long after, the Planning Board met in closed session and fired former Planning Director Gwen Wright. The County Council then asked all five Planning Board members to resign, and they did so in October.
The county’s Planning Board makes decisions regarding future development in the county, including housing, economic opportunities and parks. Some of its most prominent jobs in the coming months will be implementing Thrive Montgomery 2050, the update to the county’s general master plan, and searching for a new planning director to head the county Planning Department’s staff. Tanya Stern has been serving in an interim role since Wright was fired last year.
