Getting Involved in Development Projects

There are many ways residents can get involved in the development review process. See the sections below for information on public meetings, how you may give your comments to the City, and how to get involved in Prince George's County's planning process. 

Public Meetings

Development projects will be presented or discussed at four public meetings before being voted on by the City Council. (Review the full development review process chart.) Residents are welcomed to attend these meetings to learn more about each project.. The typical order of meetings is:

  • Presentation to the Council and community at a City Council meeting
  • Presentation and Discussion by Planning Committee at a Planning Committee meeting
  • "Discussion" Agenda Item at a City Council meeting
  • "Action" Agenda Item at a City Council meeting 

All of the meeting listed above are open to the public. Be sure to check the Council and Committee Meetings page to see up to date agendas for all public meetings within the City. 

How Can I Give My Comments to the City?

When making a decision to support a development application, the City wants to hear from you! There are three ways you can give feedback to City Staff/Council Members:

  • City Council Meetings: All City Council meetings have a public comment portion at the start of each meeting. Residents can fill out an information form at the start of the meeting, which will result in their name being called to address the Council during the public comment. There is no need to register to speak in advance the meeting. (SPECIAL NOTE: While meetings are being held virtually, public comment is held via Zoom. Please join the Zoom teleconference then note in the Zoom chat box if you would like to speak during the public comment portion of the meeting)
  • Planning Committee Meetings: The Hyattsville Planning Committee typically meets on the third Tuesday of the month at 7:30 PM. Find the next meeting on our City Calendar. All committee meetings are open to the public. When a development project work session is scheduled, the applicant will present the project and then the Committee will ask questions and work through details. If time permits, the Committee will often allow guests in attendance to make a comment as well.
  • Email: Comments about the project can be emailed to cityclerk@hyattsville.org or to your appropriate City Council member. If you have a question about the project or the review process, it should be directed to Jim Chandler at jchandler@hyattsville.org. 

Getting Involved at the County Level

  • PG Atlas Development Activity Notifications: PG Atlas is Prince George’s County’s public GIS database. You can use PG Atlas to look up property information, zoning, development applications and a variety of other features tied to geographic locations. Within PG Atlas you can sign up to get an email every time a development application is submitted in a selected zip code. To utilize this service, you must create an account with PG Atlas. From there, you select the zip code(s) you want updates for, and will get an email once a week with the applications that have been submitted. 
  • Become a Party of Record: You can sign up to become a party of record with Prince George’s County to monitor a specific project. As a person of record, you are provided with notice of upcoming meetings, actions and decisions of the application by M-NCPPC. Note: you must become a party of record for each application you want to follow.
  • Register Your Association: Incorporated civic and homeowner’s associations may register with Prince George’s County. Registration automatically enrolls your organization as a party of record in any development cases occurring within one mile of your registered address. To ensure your organization stays in the know, be sure to update your organization’s contact information any time there is a change in officers, so that mailings go to the correct person/address.
  • Attend a Planning Board Hearing: The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, specifically the Prince George's County Planning Board, is the body that ultimately approves development applications. Planning Board hearings take place on Thursdays at 10 AM in the County Administration Building in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. Planning Board hearings are open to the public, and residents may register to speak to the Planning Board about their support/lack of support for a project. You may view agendas, watch meeting videos and register to testify at the Planning Board website.