The Conflict Resolution Center of Montgomery County (CRCMC) assists county residents by providing skilled neutral facilitators for a neighborhood or community to work through problems they face. See below for a list of sample facilitation cases.
To request a facilitation call us at 301-652-0717 or 301-652-0718 OR Fill out our on-line form and a member of our staff will contact you.
♦ Requests are confidential and non-binding. ♦
Meeting on Break
A facilitator can...
Assess whether the situation is appropriate for facilitation or if another process would be more effective (such as mediation, community conferencing, civic activism/politics, courts);
Identify the affected stakeholders;
Plan and design one or a series of meetings to explore the situation with the stakeholders;
Identify the issues and information which may need to be explored;
Assist the parties in generating options and gathering the information they need to effectively address the situation; and
In some cases our facilitators can assist the stakeholders to reach a consensus set of strategies and actions.
Sample Facilitation Cases
Connecticut Avenue Estates: Working with the local citizens’ association, we facilitated a series of meetings that brought neighbors together to address a chronic parking problem. In six weeks the neighbors developed a plan to resolve the problem: build more driveways. The county agreed to provide loans or grants to support construction, and the citizens’ association asked contractors for volume discounts, which they received. Another problem addressed through this process was safety. During the six-week period, residents came together to form a Neighborhood Watch Program working directly with their area police. Then they worked together to clean up a tot lot at the end of a cul-de-sac, which had become unusable due to broken glass, rusted play-ground equipment and tall weeds. They asked the county to provide new play-ground equipment, which they received. The president of the association commented: “This process worked. It’s really helpful when an outside, objective party comes in to filter problems down to a manageable cluster of issues.”
Master Plan Development: Working with the Park and Planning Commission, the Conflict Resolution Center of Montgomery County (CRCMC) designed and facilitated a series of meetings for residents, business owners, and developers in the Woodmont Triangle area of Bethesda. The results were a healthy dialogue among all the participants, and a land-use plan that reflects a high degree of consensus among the participants. The county planner said the discussions were quieter and less contentious than usual because community members were focused on taking action and finding solutions.
East County Leadership Summit: Working with the East County Citizens Advisory Board and the Eastern Montgomery Regional Services Center, we designed and facilitated a one-day “visioning” meeting for 200 East County citizens as well as state and local lawmakers. This resulted in a report to the County Council on what is important to citizens in the areas of transportation, housing, economic development, public safety, and education. The Director of the Services Center wrote in the final report: “If you were a Summit participant, you felt the camaraderie, excitement, and dreams that ensued during the discussions and deliberations.”
