The Claiborne, an oft-delayed luxury condominium development in the works since 2016 at 4820 Auburn Avenue in downtown Bethesda, is once again moving forward as I reported yesterday. There are two new details to report this morning, however. First, the project's site plan approval from three years ago has expired, because the developer did not pull the building permit from Montgomery County within the required time limit under the Bethesda Overlay Zone guidelines. So the developer must now resubmit, and receive a new approval of, the site plan before it can proceed with construction.
4820 Auburn, LLC intends to file the same site plan that was approved before, and barring an objection by a new member of the Montgomery County Planning Board or other unforeseen event, that approval should be a formality at this point. If approved as expected, then, the site plan will once again include up to 84 condo units, of which 15% will be affordable MPDUs, and up to 5000 square feet of retail space. Building height will remain at 110' at the north side, stepping down to 90' at the southern end.
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| "The Leaf Illusion" mural proposed for the south side of the building |
One new change is the proposed mural for the south side of the building. It now features a concept for artist interpretation, which the applicant calls "The Leaf Illusion." The heat-wrapped vinyl mural would be 30'x50' in size, and feature two children sitting on a fern branch. A fern is a native plant to Bethesda, and the public art piece therefore "ties Claiborne back into the surrounding community," design company Swatchroom says. The surreal image also reflects "The Claiborne's themes: fresh, wellness, energy," the firm suggests.
Renderings courtesy SK+I Architecture/Swatchroom
I'm no botanist, but some things about that mural seem off. "Fern branch"? First, ferns don't have branches; they have fronds. "Native to Bethesda"? There's about 10,000 species of fern; they're native to just about everywhere. Finally, what is illustrated is very clearly a maple branch, not any kind of fern.
ReplyDeleteIt actually looks like a maple leaf.
DeleteIt says it's a "Leaf of Illusion" so like our gender these days, we can make it anything we want. I say it's a cactus. These pathetic murals all over the place are an example of a weak society, not one shows robust life; all are spineless.
ReplyDelete