Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan and SMA

The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission's (M-NCPPC), Prince George’s County Planning Department is initiating a multi-year effort to develop a new sector plan and sectional map amendment (SMA) for the areas surrounding the Central Avenue-Metro Blue/Silver Line corridor and FedExField. 

Over the last 20 years, plans have been created and updated for areas surrounding individual Metro stations in the corridor.  It is time for a cohesive and complementary vision for the sector plan area. The vision will help guide the plan's goals and strategies aimed at enhancing the existing conditions and stimulating new investment.

This storymap provides a general overview of the Central Avenue-Blue/Silver Line Sector Plan and SMA area as it exists today.  

This is where we start.  

Join us to set the course forward.

Federal, State, and County designated zones exist to stimulate economic development throughout the plan area.

The existing housing inventory includes a variety of types, architectural styles, and ages.

From streetcars to automobiles, to Metro, transportation has significantly influenced the design and development of the plan area.​ Starting in the East with stop 1 and moving west to stop 9, click on the numbers at right to take a guided tour highlighting some of the key transportation influences along the corridor.

Five of the ten historic sites in the sector plan area have ties to the Ridgley Family, a prominent African American family who for over a hundred years influenced community development and education in the sector plan area. In 1871 Lewis and Mary Ridgley purchased 52 acres of land at what is now the northwest corner of the intersection at modern day Central Avenue and Morgan Boulevard. Lewis and Mary had several children, the most prominent of them is Arthur Sr. Their son Arthur Sr. married Mary Eliza Dyson and their children Arthur Jr and Mildred Ridgeley Gray carrying on the tradition of community leadership. Starting with stop 1 and continuing on to Stop 5, click on the numbers at right to learn more about this influential family.

The sector plan area contains nine county-designated historic sites (HS) identified in the 2010 Prince George’s County Historic Sites and Districts Plan (three of which relate to the Ridgley family). Three of the historic sites, Addison Chapel and Cemetery, Ridgeley Church and Cemetery, and Ridgely School, are also on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

A community’s culture is demonstrated through its practices including music, dance, performance, arts, food, festivals, fashion, and sports activities. These practices may be on display in public spaces and dedicated facilities such as museums, art galleries, music halls, and theatres.

While there is little public art in the form of sculptures, murals, and creative placemaking, there are venues for art creation targeted to youth including The Foreman Arts School and the Thomas G. Pullen K-8 Creative and Performing Arts Academy. 

Playing and watching basketball is a favorite pass time of residents of the sector plan area. NBA star, Kevin Durant, calls Seat Pleasant home. He supports the Seat Pleasant Activity Center which provides a variety of recreational, educational, and social programs for youth in the community where he grew up.

Starting at the Washington, D.C. boundary and traveling east, the development pattern transitions from walkable communities to suburban sprawl. Buildings close to the boundary are generally older, smaller, closer together, and organized in a grid pattern while those farther from the DC line are larger and widely spaced. Denser residential uses are closer to Washington, D.C., while larger scale industrial uses are toward the Capital Beltway, and clusters of suburban development with some commercial uses are scattered in between.

Seat Pleasant was first platted for subdivision in 1873, but development did not happen until over thirty years later.  Located at the convergence of multiple modes of transportation, Seat Pleasant was a convenient location for commuters. The city became incorporated in 1931. By the 1960s the population of African-Americans began to increase in what had previously been a predominately white community.

Capitol Heights was platted in 1904 into small lots that were originally advertised to white people only. Although residents were not directly served by railroad or streetcar service, they were within a mile of the stops at Seat Pleasant. As the popularity of automobiles increased and a bus line started to service the neighborhoods, African-Americans began to move into the previously segregated community. The town was incorporated in 1910.

Stakeholder Interviews (What We Heard): A key consideration is how to connect all historic sites, including the Ridgeley School and Church, the Gray Trust site at Morgan Boulevard, and the Manor at Walker Mill. They envision creating an experiential loop or streetscape on Brightseat Road that integrates these sites

Data Prince George’s. “Crime Incidents February 2017 to Present.”  https://data.princegeorgescountymd.gov/Public-Safety/Crime-Incidents-February-2017-to-Present/wb4e-w4nf 

Library of Congress, Photo, Print, Drawing:  https://www.loc.gov/photos/ 

PGAtlas:  https://www.pgatlas.com/ 

Plan 2035:  https://planpgc2035.org/ 

Development Activity Monitoring System:  https://www.mncppcapps.org/planning/damsweb/default.cfm 

1.      Hampton Park, Case No. DSP-16052-05, Prince George's County Planning Department (App. March 5, 2021).

2.      5936 Old Central Avenue, Case No. DPS-14036, Prince George's County Planning Department (App. May 17, 2016).

3.      210 Maryland Park, Case No. 4-15029, Prince George's County Planning Department (App. March 23, 2017).

4.      Capitol Heights Shopping Center, Case No. DSP-06015-01, Prince George's County Planning Department (App. June 9, 2022).

5.      Glenwood Hills, Case No. 4-21051, Prince George's County Planning Department (App. January 19, 2023).

Prince George’s County Planning Department, GIS Open Data Portal:   https://gisdata.pgplanning.org/opendata/ 

Prince George’s County Planning Department. “Pupil Yield Factors & Public School Clusters 2021 Update.”  https://www.mncppcapps.org/planning/publications/BookDetail.cfm?item_id=400&category_id=&category=&name=&pricemin=&pricemax=&author=&Pubs_year=all&price=& 

U.S. Census Bureau. American Communities Survey:  https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs 

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, Metrorail Ridership Summary:   https://www.wmata.com/initiatives/ridership-portal/Metrorail-Ridership-Summary.cfm