It's the end of an era again, as another longtime business has closed in downtown Bethesda.
Crawford Tire Goodyear at 7015 Arlington Road has permanently closed after 36 years in business. An auction has been scheduled to dispose of the remaining contents of the tire dealership and automotive repair facility.
The property will be
redeveloped by EuroMotorcars as an Audi dealership. Goodyear is about as big and all-American a brand name as there is. But it also seems the company is ahead of the curve in preparing for a future in which the suburbs will be demolished in favor of dystopian, wall-to-wall concrete urban megacities. Goodyear has recently opened several Roll by Goodyear stores, where all of the repairs are done off-site. Instead of driving to Frederick to get your oil changed, some guy will drive your car to Frederick to get your oil changed, at Boardwalk prices of course.
In a future without gas stations and auto repair facilities, such as that being planned now by the developer-controlled Montgomery County Council, this will be a business opportunity for those who can provide fuel, tires, and basic auto repairs to customers where they are in these new cities - where essential services are replaced with more stack-and-pack apartments, salad shops and apparel boutiques. Of course, they all may go out of business once your car can drive itself to Frederick to get its oil changed.
So an automotive business is being converted into another automotive business. That doesn't really fit with your "war on cars" narrative. I guess that's why you devoted barely one sentence to the Audi dealership.
ReplyDeleteOurisman's Volkswagen and Volvo dealerships used to be in the District (Marten's). They were the very last new-car dealerships in the District.
A dystopian future to some, an utopian future to others. Electric cars don't need oil changes. Exaggerate much?
ReplyDeleteOh noes - where am i going to go when I need to overpay for mechanical service now?
ReplyDeleteOther maintenance not needed by electric cars (and most apply to hybrids, too):
ReplyDelete-No air cleaner
-No accessory belt
-No engine cooling system
-No power steering fluid
-No transmission
-Far less wear on brake pads and rotors due to regenerative braking
-Less tire wear due to smoother acceleration and braking
End of an era, indeed
ReplyDelete8:58 AM here. I need to clarify that I am 8:33 and not 8:41, although s/he speaks for me.
ReplyDeleteI still don't see how adding a Panera and hundreds of apartments will increase home prices. Please enlighten me.
ReplyDeleteAs for Crawford, downtown Bethesda is becoming the automotive and senior housing spot. That "Bethesda plan" isn't much of a plan.
I would think that a you might have also posted a copy and review of the proposed two story high Audi dealership that will replace the nasty oil-soaked service bays at Crawford’s. They may provide a needed service, but I suspect that most folks that live in the area and pay $3500 a month for a so-called “stack and pack” apartment, would much prefer to live near a sleek silver metal and glass Audi showroom. Perhaps a better neighbor than a service building with impact wrench noises, and dumpsters full of used tires. Perhaps your report could have described how the new Audi dealership was designed by a world/class German design firm, and the sustainable building will include angular glass windows and a curving sloped floor, inspired by a famous banker turn at a famous racetrack called the Ring.
ReplyDeleteMost folks who live in Bethesda take their cars to the dealership for service, and rarely use independent oil change and tires at places like Crawford’s.
Hog wash,Crawford Tire has done justice for the Injustice that u get at the dealer
DeleteIf mid-rise and high-rise apartments are "stack and pack", what does that make a basement "apartment"?
ReplyDelete"Bury and hide"?
10:19 AM Yup- just look at Euro across the street any morning and you'll see the good business they do just for standard service.
ReplyDelete"Of course, they all may go out of business once your car can drive itself to Frederick to get its oil changed."
ReplyDeleteDumbest sentence ever!
Or, you could just drive to Kensington or Lyttonsville - in addition to Westbard. Lots of independent auto repair shops there.
ReplyDeleteAnother victim of the disastrous nighttime economy initiative.
ReplyDelete8:58/9:00: Your comments and threat have been screen-captured for law enforcement review and future legal action. Remember, your campaign of stalking, cyberbullying, harassment, and threats carries about 2 years in federal prison per charge alone. Get used to wearing orange.
ReplyDeleteOh for heavens sake calm down. Make your blog moderated so you have to approve posts before publishing.
DeleteStop reacting in public to the bullying. People aren’t out to ‘get’ you in the literal sense. They just want to invoke a reaction and you fall for it every time.
If you really think you are being harassed then report it, but don’t react in public.
8:29am Read up on troll psychology. They're psychopaths who enjoy inflicting pain on others.
DeleteThe troll obsesses over claiming to know Robert's home address. The question is whether the psychopath troll will bring his anti social behavior to Robert in person and attack him. Scary stuff, dealing with a psychopath.
10:09
DeleteRobert ran for office so his address should be public record. If he didn’t want people knowing things about him he shouldn’t have thrown his hat in the ring. Anyone who does that is open for public scrutiny.
Robert accuses members of the current council with crimes he still hasn’t backed up with solid proof. He can’t keep doing that without some blow back. I am not saying he is right or wrong on these allegations just that it would be better if he had definitive facts and brought these facts to the proper authorities.
Airing his grievances in a public blog isn’t the way to be presented at credible. It just shows he is angry about losing.
Again I am not taking a stand for or against anyone. I am just voicing my opinion
10:25 when Dyer is attacked by the psychopath troll, your response apparently will be "well, he ran for office,.so he was asking for it"
Delete11:07
DeleteSeriously Robert you are such a dram queen.
8:13: You've obviously never read Tesla owners complaining about getting their car serviced on Tesla message boards.
ReplyDelete2:37: Lyttonsville is being redeveloped, and the rest will be used for train yard. In no way convenient for Bethesda residents to begin with.
Brookville Road in Lyttonsville is 3.6 miles and 11 minutes from downtown Bethesda. Very convenient.
ReplyDeleteAnd Kensington is the same distance. Both are only 1.4 miles farther away than Westbard.
I don't know how much time you spend reading Tesla message boards, but the complaints I've seen relate to customer service rather than than the legacy items listed above.
Robbie, I hope you back up your hard drive on a regular basis. Else you are putting yourself at risk of losing those hundreds (or thousands?) of screenshots you have collected over the last several years, before you finally get a chance to contact the FBI.
ReplyDeleteWhen the FBI contacts me and asks why I know about Dyer's home, what should I say?
ReplyDelete1. I live in the neighborhood and drive by every day on my way out and in.
2. I used public information to look up his address.
11:07AM CBD gummies can help with that paranoia
ReplyDelete10:25 & 10:30
ReplyDeleteBravo! You've made a compelling case way Robert should be continuously attacked online and worse in person (remember: you have his address,.right?)
As you said, he is asking for it for these reasons:
He ran for office, so we know where he lives and he may have disagreed with you on a particular development or a transportation issue. I believe this alone is reason to eliminate him. Like you said, he's asking for it.
He disagrees too much with our elected officials. Why can't he play nice like other media outlets and bloggers? If he doesn't like it,.leave..or you'll make it uncomfortable for him? Because he's asking for it.
Will you be the man who steps up and silences Robert Dyer's openings and closings, restaurant reviews and development reports that threaten order in our fair county? Remember you stated you know where his family lives as well.. Could be useful intel.
Dyer is at far more risk of tripping over his own shoelaces and falling on his head, than worrying about some patriotic Bethesdian taking several minutes out of his/her busy life to bodyslam him through a coffee table as he threatens to do to his readers.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDelete6:13pm it's big news when a long time neighborhood business closes.
DeleteThis is news:
ReplyDelete"Crawford Tire Goodyear at 7015 Arlington Road has permanently closed after 36 years in business. An auction has been scheduled to dispose of the remaining contents of the tire dealership and automotive repair facility. The property will be redeveloped by EuroMotorcars as an Audi dealership."
Everything beyond that is nonsense.
7:04pm Sounds like a computer wrote that. lol.
DeleteDyer, as a life long resident, is able to provide more context and color to local news.
"Once your car can drive itself to Frederick to get its oil changed."
ReplyDeleteA truly smart car would be able to change her own oil.
Great report.
ReplyDeleteWhat does everyone want to see in this space?
7:04: 99% of readers thank God you are not the editor here.
ReplyDelete6:13: #scooped
why did they close
ReplyDelete11:28: Landowner got a better deal from EuroMotorcars.
ReplyDelete