Sunday, June 24, 2018

Bethesda construction update: 7272 Wisconsin Avenue (Photos)

Here are some night scenes from the well-illuminated construction site at Carr Properties' 7272 Wisconsin Avenue megaproject, which will include two 290' towers, 360800 SF of office space , 14572 SF of retail and restaurant space, and 480 residential units, 15% of which will be affordable MPDUs. There will be 7500 SF of public space, as well as the Bethesda Purple Line station, and the pedestrian access to it.

In many of the pictures below, you will see the base of one or the other of two tower cranes required for the project. The final photos show one of the cranes after completion.
















Update: An error regarding the square footage of retail space was corrected.

16 comments:

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the update. Do you have new information about a “cineplex”? I have carefully reviewed what I believe are the currently approved plans and sections, and do not see a cineplex. I believe it was deleted when they revised the plans, and added more parking. Landmark Bethesda Row Cinema is over 30,000 SF, so I can’t imagine how they could include a movie theatre in only 15,000 SF. I think that is all part of three retail/restaurant spaces. One on Wisconsin and two that will face the new plaza, likely restaurants that have large adjacent areas of outdoor dining.

You also did not mention a very important program element, the new south entrance to the Bethesda Metro Center that will connect the street and Purple Line (just below the street) with six high speed elevators. Although not strictly part of the Carr project, it is being built at the same time by the county. Of course the Purple Line also includes the replacement of the Capital Crescent Trail in a new and separate tunnel, that will eventually go under Wisconsin and extend the CCT east all the way to Silver Spring. A new 250 space, two level high bike station is also part of the plan.

Anonymous said...

7:16 And for coverage of the HOC.

Anonymous said...

Nice photos. Looks like the could reopen the sidewalk soon. I've seen a lot of pickup trucks parked in the curb lane lately, so that lane at least seems to be safe now.

Anonymous said...

@ 3:25 PM - What other comments has @ 1:32 PM posted?

Anonymous said...

Either your sqft info is wrong or your cineplex info is wrong. Which is it?

Robert Dyer said...

7:36: That was an error on my part. There is no indication that a movie theater will be part of the final project. I believe the space needed for that will now be taken up by Fox 5.

4:19: I mistakenly left in the cineplex when I cut and pasted the SF info from an older article. There is no cineplex planned at this time, and I have corrected the article. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.

Orkin said...

Why would they open the sidewalk or lane if the Sha does not force them? No way.

Anonymous said...

"I mistakenly left in the cineplex when I cut and pasted the SF info from an older article."

I was going to say "#DerpDerpDerp #RecycledContent LOL", but it's nice to see Dyer promptly correcting a mistake, and acknowledging the person who pointed it out. He just matured 15 years with that one comment.

Scott Orkin - The Shah's been dead 40 years, Mang.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the update and correction. I was excited by the news that a cinema might be included. Oh well, maybe another building.

A year or so ago, didn't a developer for a project on the southwest corner of Wisconsin and Woodmont (south of downtown) request additional height that would permit the inclusion of a movie theater? Any word on that caper?

I still hope a large blockbuster style cinema (to supplement the Bethesda Row Cinema) could be included in downtown Bethesda, but realize that just might not be possible given the high price of real estate. Maybe with the new south Metro Station, more folks will have easy access to hop on the Metro and head to AMC at the Mazza Gallery in Chevy Chase, or Pike and Rose. Unfortunately, this adds substantial transit cost to the already high ticket price.

Robert Dyer said...

10:28: The Planning Board and Council blew it by not requiring the replacement cineplex. All those folks who were going to movies at the Regal are now gone. I've noticed the number of open spaces on the digital garage signs around Bethesda Row have gone up substantially since the theater closed. Of course, no one wants to talk about or admit that.

Cineplexes draw 20,000 people a weekend to an area, according to the Towson study.

This is why we need a County Councilman who actually lives in Bethesda, and gives a damn about the community. Now I have to drive to see any blockbuster movie - more pollution, more traffic congestion. These Council crooks are total hypocrites living for the checks and under-the-table cash from developers.

Anonymous said...

"Now I have to drive to see any blockbuster movie - more pollution, more traffic congestion."

You walked from your house to the Regal? So Hans Riemer was right about Westbard being walking distance to the Bethesda metro station.

Anna said...

They aren't crooks, they aren't "living for the checks" any more than the rest of us who work are living for the checks. It's simply not true.

Movie theater attendance hit a 25 year low in 2017. Maybe that has something to do with it.

Anonymous said...

"Blockbusters" are just sequels and re-makes anymore. CGI has lost its magic. Folks would rather watch Netflix in their home theater, than spend $100 for a family of four and be surrounded by strangers taking loudly and having sex.

Anonymous said...

Black Panther was a blockbuster, on most movie of the year lists and didn't play in downtown Bethesda due to the Regal closing.

I'm sure the Bethesda Row restaurants would have liked to have all that movie related business that Pike & Rose, Silver Spring, etc got.

Robert Dyer said...

4:43: Wait a minute, you sound just like the "anonymous" guy who claims nobody goes to movie theaters anymore. You just happen to align against me on the movie theater issue, as well as everything else? And you just happen to be familiar with the Howard Stern show to the degree of weighing in on the origin of "Baba Booey?"

One troll, many personalities.

You've slipped up again. Can we speak to "Wrol Evans" now?

Anna said...

I'm still just me. You can work yourself up with ridiculous conspiracy theories all you want...you'll always be wrong.

It's almost like I need to apologize for being a real and honest and outspoken person. Isn't that too silly?

I'm a middle-aged gal who's lived/worked here since 1963. I know my way around the Howard Stern show. FFS, even my dad, who'd be about 100 if still alive could have told you the baby booey story. sheesh... I sure do confound you.