Leisure World

History

In 1963, developer Ross Cortese applied for a zoning amendment in order to build a 1,000-acre community of semi-detached homes, townhouses, and apartment buildings south of Norbeck, Maryland. Cortese's company had acquired the option to buy the 1,000 acres of land, formerly known as the Nash tract, for $5,000,000, and Cortese expected it would cost another $750,000 to build the development according to the plans. and he was then building Leisure World Laguna Hills in Laguna Hills, California, and another Leisure World in Walnut Creek, California. The one dissenting council member was Kathryn E. Diggs, who said she was skeptical that the development would be economically successful. Within a few months, Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission approved 28,000 feet of water and sewer lines for the development. The architecture firm of Collins & Kronstadt designed the housing units and the community buildings. Thurman D. Donavan designed the landscaping, which received an award by the industrial landscaping committee of the American Association of Nurserymen in November 1966. A large rotating globe was installed at the front gate. Loy Sigmon was the interior designer of the original seven model homes. J. Robert Conybeare served as general sales manager, and Angus T. Johnson was named the first administrator of the community. The community was marketed to people who wanted to stay active while living there. Leisure World allowed people of all races to live in the community. with former Under Secretary of the Navy Kenneth E. BeLieu as its first president. Homes were sold as co-ops, with prices starting at $15,000 and ongoing monthly maintenance payments of at least $85. Within six months, 400 home units had been pre-sold. Plans for Leisure World's 100,000-square-foot…

Geography

As an unincorporated area, Leisure World's boundaries are not officially defined, but are unofficially defined by a fence around the community. Leisure World is, however, recognized by the United States Census Bureau and by the United States Geological Survey as a census-designated place. According to the United States Census Bureau, the place has a total area of , all land.

Race & ethnicity

Largest nearby schools

• Montgomery Blair High
  High · Silver Spring · 3,204 students · 16.7:1 ratio
• Walter Johnson High
  High · Bethesda · 2,942 students · 18.6:1 ratio
• Wheaton High
  High · Silver Spring · 2,599 students · 16.6:1 ratio
• Gaithersburg High
  High · Gaithersburg · 2,436 students · 14.3:1 ratio
• Richard Montgomery High
  High · Rockville · 2,390 students · 17.8:1 ratio
• Bethesda-Chevy Chase High
  High · Bethesda · 2,335 students · 18:1 ratio
• Winston Churchill High
  High · Potomac · 2,234 students · 18.6:1 ratio
• Quince Orchard High
  High · Gaithersburg · 2,154 students · 16.6:1 ratio