Is the MIOZ bill mandatory? No. Military officials at Andrews can ask Prince George's County to pass an MIOZ bill, but the base cannot force the county to do so. In the past, Prince George's has resisted engaging in land use planning with the military.
Does the MIOZ bill make sense? No. The MIOZ is supposed to keep large concentrations of people from gathering in the safety zones to prevent massive injury in the event of an air crash. However, the MIOZ allows stores and shopping centers in the safety zones with no restrictions on size. The Forestville Plaza Shopping Center is in the safety zone, and the county actively encouraged its redevelopment with Rose's Department Store. The MIOZ bill also prohibits all museums and art galleries as "recreational facilities," even though many specialized museums and galleries are small undertakings that draw only a handful of people at a time. One of the largest concentrations of people in the safety zone occurs daily in traffic on the Beltway at Pennsylvania Avenue, a point that is completely ignored in the MIOZ bill. As these examples show, the MIOZ bill imposes a patchwork of restrictions that do not amount a meaningful public safety plan.
