For most of the 19th Century Frederick was Maryland’s second largest city. It shows. Downtown is a jewel of pedestrian oriented development and engaging architecture. It’s fairly large, was never gutted by Urban Renewal and has retained charm without losing its place functionally. A linear park along Carroll Creek is pleasant, if a little underdeveloped, and the relatively few modern buildings fit their surroundings well and make it clear Frederick is a real, vital city and not just an overgrown Williamsburg.
In the 2000 Census Frederick topped out Gaithersburg by 140 people to once again become Maryland’s second largest city. What’s more, with that city and Rockville nearing build-out it appears Frederick will probably surpass its competitors for good in the not too distant future. But although Frederick does seem to have “beaten” Gaithersburg and Rockville, it would be wise to learn from them. In the 1970s Rockville destroyed much of its historic downtown and built a series of concrete towers surrounded by parking lots. It destroyed a quality, human scale habitat in favor of what became essentially a glorified office park. Luckily the days of Urban Renewal are over and Frederick is probably wise enough not to follow Rockville’s example. More worrying, though is the equally painful lesson of Gaithersburg. When Rockville destroyed its downtown city leaders in Gaithersburg took it upon themselves to ensure nothing like that would happen in their town. So with good intentions they inserted historical protections and strict building intensity limits in the downtown, renaming it Old Town in the process. The plan was successful. Old Town Gaithersburg was never destroyed nor even seriously threatened. Unfortunately it was also largely forgotten. The city grew and over time the tiny historic core ceased to function as the heart of town. It became a quaint little village; a place to take visitors and show them the cute train station or malt shop, but rarely to do business. Because the city refused to accept reality Old Town has forever sunk in to oblivion, replaced by parts of town that matter on a more than nostalgic level.
So what does that mean for Frederick? It means that while historic treasures must be protected, you also can’t lose sight of the future. It means if Frederick is to continue prospering city leaders must have the courage and foresight to make what might be unpopular choices and not just allow, but actually encourage more and larger scale development downtown. If Frederick grows smartly it will eventually become a true second city, core of its own metro area and a place residents can be proud of. If it’s afraid to grow or chooses to grow irresponsibly it will eventually lose its independence forever and fade to nothing more than another sprawling, meaningless suburban wasteland.
