Lobby entrance repairs at 4747 Bethesda Avenue (Photos)

There's some extensive work being done on the glass panels of the lobby entrance at 4747 Bethesda Avenue. A team was working on the glass-box-design entrance after hours last night. Panels shattering by themselves have been an issue at the new Class A office building previously. It's unclear if that is the reason for the work this time, but it is the same spot as before.

Glass has fallen and/or shattered at many new downtown Bethesda buildings built since the recession, including 4500 East-West Highway, Cheval Bethesda, and the Flats at 8300. The mysterious breakage has been blamed by at least one expert in the field on flawed imported Chinese glass.'

Veronica Beard, Reformation to open at Bethesda Row

Two more fashion brands are coming to Bethesda Row this year. Veronica Beard and Reformation have both signed leases at the development, property owner Federal Realty announced in a press release yesterday. The release also officially announced the opening of Anine Bing.

Veronica Beard reconfigures traditional styles for "today's multifaceted, multitasking woman." The company was founded in 2009 by fashion designer and entrepreneur Veronica Swanson Beard and her sister-in-law Veronica Miele Beard. Like Tucker Carlson, Swanson Beard is related to the Swansons of TV dinner fame.

Reformation's niche is claiming to be the most environmentally-sustainable fashion label. The company promises it will be "climate positive" by 2025. It coincidentally was also founded in 2009 like Veronica Beard, but in Los Angeles, not New York.

“2023 is beginning with exciting additions to our sophisticated retail scene,” Federal Realty Senior Director of Leasing Vanessa Mendoza said in a statement Monday. “We welcome ANINE BING, and with Reformation and Veronica Beard coming soon, it will be a fashionable year in the neighborhood.” 

Veronica Beard will be located at 4840 Bethesda Avenue. The location of Reformation has not been announced.

Photo courtesy Veronica Beard

Shouk closes at Westwood Shopping Center in Bethesda

Shouk has closed at 5436 Westbard Avenue in the Westwood Shopping Center in Bethesda. The closure comes as somewhat of a surprise, as the local plant-based restaurant chain had intended to operate this as a temporary pop-up location, until its permanent space was constructed in the new Westbard Square development on the other side of this Regency Centers-owned property. It's also been very rare for a business to "fail" at the Westwood Shopping Center over the decades. Baskin Robbins and the old hardware store are the only ones that come to mind. Other closures have usually been attributed to the owners retiring (Lad & Lassie, Westwood Pet Center) or the collapse of a local or national chain (Farrell's, RadioShack, Crown Books).

Will we see Shouk in the new Westbard Square development as originally intended, then? The success of Westbard Square will partly hinge on whether or not a sit-down restaurant suitable for family dining is brought in (such as Gregorio's Trattoria, Millie's or Chef Geoff's, to use some nearby examples), along with the more typical fast-casual take-out spots like Shouk (Shouk opened here last June). And how many of the community-serving small businesses from the existing strip center are retained in the new development. Shouk's other area locations remain open for business.

Bethesda construction update: The Rae at Westlake apartments (Photos)

A lot is looking finished at The Rae at Westlake apartments at 10401 Motor City Drive in Bethesda. Under construction on the former site of Ourisman Ford, much of the final facade appears complete, just about all the windows are in place and the parking garage almost looks ready to drive into - if only it had a driveway. But there is still Tyvek visible here and there, the odd missing window, earth moving equipment still parked and ready around the complex, and the large windows of the lobby entrance remain boarded up. 

Foulger-Pratt is the developer of the 343-unit project. Located steps away from Montgomery Mall and the Home Depot Square shopping center, The Rae is a shopper's paradise - and with The Cheesecake Factory and Frank Pepe's Pizzeria right across the street, a diner's paradise as well. The Rae is scheduled for a Q3 2023 delivery, but pre-leasing is set to begin this spring.

Stop Work order issued at GW Primary Care at Bethesda Row, as clinic begins seeing patients at secondary office

Montgomery County's Department of Permitting Services has issued a Stop Work order for the GW Primary Care clinic at 7137 Arlington Road at Bethesda Row. That is the main clinic facility. But GW Primary Care has apparently quietly begun accepting patients at the secondary, 2nd floor office around the corner at 4920 Elm Street, Suite 225. That office is ultimately meant to be the location for the clinic's specialty care services, but is currently being described as a "temporary location" for primary care services.

According to the posted order, construction work at the main facility on Arlington Road is now in violation of Montgomery County Code Chapter 8 - Section 26 (c), which states: "(c) Compliance with permit. All work must conform to the approved application and plans for which the permit has been issued and any approved amendments to the permit." The notice does not indicate the specific non-conforming work that was observed being performed by the inspector. 

"As Seen on TV" at Spanish Diner at Bethesda Row

There's a bit of cross-promotion going on at Spanish Diner at 7271 Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. A sandwich board outside the entrance is inviting you to watch chef-owner José Andrés' wonderful new Discovery+ show, José Andrés and Family in Spain. But to then "enjoy a taste of España at Spanish Diner!" 

Of course, any mention of Discovery can't help but remind us of how Montgomery County lost the Discovery headquarters to Knoxville, Tennessee, an embarrassment that stings all the more after Discovery CEO David Zaslav ended up becoming the most powerful man in the Warner Bros.-Discovery merger. On the very days that Knoxville was wooing Discovery and sealing the deal, the Montgomery County Council was memorably debating a ban on circus animals. "Heckuva job, Brownie!"

Dalia's Falafel opening Bethesda location (Photos)

Dalia's Falafel, a popular food stand in Kensington, is expanding to downtown Bethesda. The new restaurant will be at 7750 Old Georgetown Road. That is the very unique, and tiny, brick building vacated by M&N's Pizza, when it relocated to 4914 Del Ray Avenue in 2019. "Coming soon" and some permanent signage has been installed at the building, which seems like a good fit for a eatery with a focused menu designed primarily for take-out sales.

Fairmont Avenue sidewalk closure at St. Elmo Apartments construction site

Here's something you don't see every day in downtown Bethesda: a sidewalk closure with the required notice posted. It is related to the St. Elmo Apartments construction project that impacts Fairmont and St. Elmo Avenues. This particular sign is on Fairmont, and the affected sidewalk segment is in front of 4931 Fairmont.

A Montgomery County law guided to passage by former County Councilmember Roger Berliner in 2014 mandated this sign be posted at sidewalk closures during construction projects displaying the project name, and the projected date of reopening. The law is often ignored, and rarely enforced by the County. 

Rent stabilization rally set for January 30 at Montgomery County Council building

A rally to support passage of a rent stabilization law in Montgomery County has been scheduled for this Monday, January 30, 2023 at 12:30 PM in front of the Montgomery County Council Building at 100 Maryland Avenue in Rockville. "The Rent is Too Damn High" is being sponsored by the Maryland Poor People's Campaign, and the UFCW Local 1994 union, who say some on the County Council are trying to block efforts to make rent stabilization part of changes to housing policy in the county.

"Council Vice President Andrew Friedson (D - District 1) has assembled a hastily-scheduled panel of housing experts to discuss Montgomery County’s housing crisis — by invitation only," the event announcement says. "While the details are still not clear, we expect the speakers to be weighted towards opposing rent stabilization, despite studies and local evidence showing that rent stabilization works. You, the people, have been left out of this discussion. To re-center the conversation, we need you to join a large coalition of nonprofit and labor organizations fighting to center the County residents most impacted by housing policy. We will express our frustration that the people most affected by housing decisions do not have an equitable role in the conversation. We will also denounce the lack of transparency in the organization of the [Planning Housing and Parks Committee] meeting."

Participants are asked to assemble at the front steps of the Council building at 12:30 PM for a rally and press conference. Then the group will move inside for the Council committee session around 1:15 PM. Organizers recommend wearing an KN95-or-better mask inside the crowded hearing room, wearing a rent stabilization t-shirt (shirts will be available Monday if you don't have one), and to "prepare to make noise in support of rent stabilization." 

Interested participants can sign up to join the rally online, or just show up at 12:30 PM Monday.

Pepco hardens security at downtown Bethesda substation (Photos)

Pepco appears to have completed a project to harden security at the electrical substation at 4935 Del Ray Avenue in downtown Bethesda. While attacks on substations in several states have been in the news recently, this project was begun prior to those incidents. A simple metal fence around the property has been replaced with a taller, more imposing black fence that also reduces visibility into the ourdoor areas around the building. 

New fence along Del Ray Avenue side

Old fence along Old Georgetown Road side

New fence along Old Georgetown Road

Old fence along Del Ray Avenue

Kay Jewelers "temporarily closed" at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

Kay Jewelers is "temporarily closed" at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda, according to a sign posted on the shuttered entrance to the store. The ubiquitous mall jeweler being closed is like a Cinnabon or Auntie Anne's being closed at your local mall - all is not right with the world. No reason for the closure is stated on the sign, and no reopening date is given. It invites customers to shop their website in the meantime.

UPDATE: Westbard townhome development meeting canceled

Current status of the property at
5101 Ridgefield Road in Bethesda

UPDATE - February 2, 2023: The meeting has been canceled

Just as Phase 1 of the Westbard Square construction has more than passed the halfway mark at 5400 Westbard Avenue, gears are beginning to turn on the townhome development portion of the megaproject. A virtual public meeting has been scheduled for a site plan for 32 townhomes at 5101 Ridgefield Road, the former Springhouse of Westwood nursing home property. The property is being enlarged by the realignment of Westbard Avenue, and already completed destruction of that block of Ridgefield Road, creating a parcel of approximately 2.25 acres. 

The virtual meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday, February 7, 2023 at 7:00 PM. To participate, log-in at shorturl.at/ghQT6 online, or by telephone at 301-715-8592. Westwood Associates, LLC is the applicant for the proposed site plan. Stormwater infrastructure is already being installed on the site of the future townhomes, as you can see in the above photo. Also still to come after delivery of the Giant grocery store building late this year are an assisted-living nursing home development on the former sites of Westwood Center II and Citgo, a mixed-use apartment building with ground floor retail on the site of the remaining section of the Westwood Shopping Center strip mall, and a second townhome development on what is now the shopping center's parking lot between the retail building and the Kenwood Place condominiums.

Stuart Weitzman closes at Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

The long and painful death of Stuart Weitzman at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda has mercifully come to an end. Its space on Level 2 was cleared out and stripped of signage yesterday. Customers - or potential customers - of the upscale shoe boutique often found the store closed during its stated business hours starting in December. Bizarre indeed, as this was at height of the holiday shopping season. So, while this is a stunning development, it's not much of a surprise to regular readers of this website.

One reader commented, as the often-reduced hours of the store continued last month, that there were staffing issues there. Stuart Weitzman opened exactly ten years ago at the mall. This was a coup for Westfield at the time, as you might have expected a brand like this to land at Bethesda Row. Perhaps it was a ten-year lease, and the chain decided to stick it out to the end, rather than close last month. Regardless, it was a very solid run in the very business-unfriendly climate of Montgomery County, and those who managed and worked at this store over the last decade can certainly be proud of that.

Bethesda construction update: St. Elmo Apartments (Video + Photos)

Things are finally moving forward full-steam at the St. Elmo Apartments construction site at 4922 St. Elmo Avenue in Bethesda, after a years-long approval process, and an additional delay during the sheeting and shoring phase. Here are some scenes from a concrete pour at the site, that was taking place just before the assembly of the project's tower crane last week. You can see the base of the crane in place in the video.

The 22-story apartment tower will house 276 luxury apartment units, 6000 square feet of ground floor retail and restaurant space, and a 220-space underground parking garage. Developed by Duball, LLC and the Lenkin Companies, a Q1 2024 delivery is still promised on the project's official website. However, I would expect a slightly-revised delivery date to be announced at some point.