Wednesday, February 13, 2019

Edgemont II construction imminent

Rendering of the Edgemont II, seen
with green roof at center
Construction of the new Edgemont II is nearing at 4885 Edgemoor Lane in Bethesda. Developer Equity Residential has requested sheeting and shoring permits for the project from Montgomery County. Those are related to excavation, which will begin once the site has been cleared.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

This looks like it will be a cool infill project. It does show you the power of denisity, in that well over one hundred apartments can fit on a lot the size of a single family house. A perfect location for high density, only steps from the Metro. By connecting to the existing underground parking deck, they have cleverly avoided the space required for ramps, and are sharing the phase one pool, and adding a small privately owned public space mid-block on Edgemont.

I like the design quite a bit. Sort of a funky pair of staggered ladders that separate at the corner to form a vertical zipper above the entrance. Sometimes these ideas are hard to read once all the apartment windows and window treatments start to obscure the grid idea. Overall, I think SK+I did a great job on this challenging site.

The curving building mass will be fun, but it’s too bad they don’t have at least a token amount of retail in the base to help bridge the streetscape from Bethesda Row to the Woodmont Triangle. The wider sidewalk will be welcome though.

Planners often refer to A streets with tons of street life, lined with retail, restaurants and cafes, and B streets that are pleasant, but serve a different purpose. I guess with this new tower, and the existing Metropolitan apartments and ground level parking deck with a continuous solid brick wall, this section of Woodmont will always be a B Street. Maybe some public art or murals on the base of the Metropolitan would help strengthen the connection of these two bifurcated neighborhoods.

Anonymous said...

https://bethesdamagazine.com/bethesda-beat/news/county-board-gives-initial-nod-to-multifamily-housing-project-in-downtown-bethesda/

#ScoopageTime: 10 days, 22 hours, 43 minutes.

#Ooops

#LOL

And the image is much better, too.

Anonymous said...

I double checked and it’s actually 154 additional units added on a lot that previously included only a single family house and a detached garage. Edgemont I and II will total 276 units.

Anonymous said...

Cars will be restricted soon my prediction.

Anonymous said...

7:38 AM

That was when the project was approved over 1 year ago. Robert is now reporting on the start of construction. Not #Ooops. #LOL back at you!

Anonymous said...

And those renderings from 1 year ago have changed. Robert has posted a view of the currently approved design.

Anonymous said...

@ 7:47 AM - the rendering posted here is from a year ago, when Dyer reported it five days after BB did.

http://robertdyer.blogspot.com/2018/02/small-changes-to-edgemont-ii-high-rise.html

Anonymous said...

10:30 AM

That may be so, but Robert is indeed posting the latest rendering that was approved with the zipper corner. The original post on Bethesda Beat showed an earlier design. This was the post you said he was scooped on, but tat post is is over 1 year old. Robert messes up quite often, but not in this case.

Anonymous said...

Note that the ZOM project on the same block is also pulling permits. Makes a lot more sense for both to be built concurrently to minimize disruption to existing residents.

Anonymous said...

Perhaps the construction noise on both sides of the Edgemont will be in stereo...