The Norfolk Avenue shared-street amenity proposed in the Bethesda Downtown master plan may not come to pass. It would have created a woonerf, a street shared by automobiles, cyclists, and pedestrians at low speeds. Montgomery County planning officials are now instead proposing to make the Norfolk Avenue Streetery outdoor dining space permanent between St. Elmo and Cordell Avenues, under the recommendation of the Bethesda Urban Partnership and the Bethesda Implementation Advisory Committee. They say it will accomplish some goals of the shared-street on a smaller scale, and for a lower price tag.
Instead of the current tables and seating used in the streetery area, the new proposal would fund permanent pavilion structures on that block of Norfolk. Renderings also show the asphalt roadway replaced or covered with another material. This would permanently block automobile traffic from traveling down the full length of Norfolk, and deep-six the promised shared-street connection of the Battery Lane area with Veterans Park and the core of the central business district.
The Bethesda Urban Partnership is seeking a transfer of $485,278 from the Downtown Bethesda Amenity Fund to purchase materials, and to construct the permanent Streetery. Some restaurant owners in the neighborhood have spoken in opposition to the current, temporary Streetery, for reducing visibility of their businesses and eliminating parking for patrons or pickup of takeout orders. On the other hand, many residents have called for Streeteries closed to cars to be made permanent on Norfolk, and on Woodmont Avenue at Bethesda Row. The latter Streetery was recently reconfigured to add vehicular lanes for automobiles, and short-term parking spaces for business use.
