Police seal off public parking garage in downtown Bethesda

UPDATE -September 25, 2025, 10:43 AM: I have learned that police were dispatched to this parking garage at 12:41 PM on September 23, 2025 to investigate a report of a 2nd-degree assault. Montgomery County police have still not commented publicly on this incident, or why a total garage closure was necessary.

UPDATE - 2:30 PM: The garage has reopened as of 2:15 PM. Montgomery County police have not yet commented publicly on the reason for the closure.

Montgomery County police officers have sealed off all entrances to the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in downtown Bethesda. Crime scene tape has been placed across the entrances on Cordell and St. Elmo Avenues, and police cruisers have been parked across those driveways to block access. Montgomery County recently scrambled police radio communications, so information about what is happening is no longer accessible to the public. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.

Cordell-St. Elmo garage cleaning scheduled for evening of Sept. 9-10 in Bethesda

Heads up for those planning to park in the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 in downtown Bethesda this coming Monday and Tuesday night, September 9 and 10, 2024: The garage is scheduled for evening washdown and degreasing operations both nights. Drivers are reminded to use caution while this work is being performed.

Shots fired inside Bethesda parking garage

The Montgomery County Police Department reports that officers investigated the sound of gunfire in the 4900 block of St. Elmo Avenue in downtown Bethesda "in the early morning hours of" February 11, 2024, but have not identified or located any suspects in the incident so far. That is all the department has stated publicly as of this writing.

However, DMV News Live reported on Twitter that a police officer was patrolling in the vicinity of the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue around 3:15 AM that morning, and heard gunshots coming from inside the garage. The officer saw two vehicles - makes and models were not identified - speed out of the garage and flee the scene. 

MCPD officers investigated inside the garage, and located shell casings on the parking deck around 4:05 AM, confirming that shots had indeed been fired inside the structure. The suspect(s) remain at-large.

Painting at Cordell-St. Elmo garage in Bethesda November 7-30, 2023

The Montgomery County Department of Transportation will be touching up the paint in the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in downtown Bethesda starting tomorrow, November 7, 2023. Painting will begin on the roof level Tuesday. The work is expected to conclude by November 30. Watch for signage as the project proceeds.

Construction work begins at Cordell-St. Elmo garage in Bethesda

It's still not clear what the "construction activities" are inside the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in Bethesda. But they are getting started. Construction fencing has been erected, and some "DANGER" signs posted. A sign providing directions for those impacted by the blocking of elevator access on the St. Elmo side of the garage has also been posted by the Montgomery County Department of Transportation's Division of Parking Management. The work is expected to be completed by April 20, 2023.

Construction work to impact facilities at Cordell-St. Elmo Garage in Bethesda

Starting today, "construction activities" at the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in Bethesda will impact access to some facilities inside. Between now and April 20, 2023, access to the elevators and pay stations on the St. Elmo side of the garage may be limited or blocked at times, according to the Montgomery County Department of Transportation. MCDOT did not specify what the construction project involves.

New EV charging stations now operational at Cordell-St. Elmo garage in Bethesda

New electric vehicle charging stations at the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in Bethesda are now operational. Installation of the charging stations began in October. The 4-hour parking spaces are on Level 1, and are for use by electric vehicles only. The stations are NovaCharge units branded with the Pepco logo, and are operated via the downloadable Greenlots app.

EV charging stations installation update at Cordell-St. Elmo Garage 40 in Bethesda (Photos)

The actual charging units are now being installed in the new electric vehicle charging spaces in the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in downtown Bethesda. They are branded as Pepco-Exelon, but are NovaCharge chargers. EV drivers will operate them using the Greenlots app on their phones.

Cordell-St. Elmo Garage 40 charging station installation update (Photos)

Here's a look at the progress on the installation of new electric vehicle charging stations in the Montgomery County Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue in downtown Bethesda. Poles went in a little less than a week ago. As of yesterday, components of the charging units themselves were being installed atop the poles. There will be a fee to charge your EV at these stations.

EV charging spaces installation underway at Garage 40 in Bethesda (Photos)

The Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 in downtown Bethesda is staying up-to-date with the times. New electric vehicle charging spaces are being installed at the Montgomery County-owned parking deck, which is located at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue. The garage remains open during the project.

All four suspects now arrested in Bethesda parking garage armed carjacking

Montgomery County police have now located and arrested the fourth of four suspects in the June 10, 2022 armed carjacking at the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 in downtown Bethesda. The other three suspects were found and arrested by police last weekend. All four have now been charged with armed carjacking and firearm offenses.

The sole adult suspect arrested is Herbert Randall, 18. Two juveniles, Katelyn McKiernan, 16, and Caleb Fraker, 17, are being charged as adults. All three allegedly "admitted to committing the carjacking" during an interview at police headquarters, according to a department press release. Fraker was the last to be arrested, after police executed a search warrant. 

A third juvenile, a 15-year-old female, is being charged as a juvenile and has been released into the custody of a parent. Police did not disclose the current custody or bail status of the other three suspects, nor their towns of residence. They did not release any information about the number or type of firearm(s) used, nor how they were acquired. Only Randall's mugshot was released.

As I reported last week, the stolen Hyundai Elantra was recovered by police, and was a rental car registered in Washington, D.C. In their press release, police disclosed that a tracking chip inside the car allowed them to locate it. They also indicated that one of the suspects pointed a firearm directly at the chest of one of the two victims when demanding the keys to the Hyundai. 

Armed carjacking in Bethesda public parking garage

Montgomery County police responded to a report of an armed carjacking in downtown Bethesda on Friday night at 10:58 PM, according to crime data. The carjacking took place at the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 at 4935 St. Elmo Avenue. County police have arrested three of the four suspects involved, and have recovered the stolen vehicle, which was a rental car, according to a person with knowledge of the status of the investigation. The stolen car was a red 2022 Hyundai Elantra, @CordellTraffic reported on Twitter Friday night.

New pay stations installed at Cordell-St. Elmo Garage 40 in Bethesda

New pay stations have been installed in the Cordell-St. Elmo Public Parking Garage 40 in downtown Bethesda. You pay by typing in the stall number of your parking space, making your payment, and then taking your receipt. As the name suggests, the garage fronts onto Cordell Avenue and St. Elmo Avenue. It's a convenient garage for patrons of popular businesses like Caddies on Cordell, Chef Tony's, and George's Chophouse.

Montgomery County garage sign damaged

The sign at the Cordell-St. Elmo public parking garage was damaged Tuesday. A panel with the Montgomery County seal has come off, and is propped up against the base of the sign. The lighted sign still works fine. It's unclear whether the damage was caused by heavy rain and blustery winds, or through vandalism.

CAR CRASH-RELATED HOLE IN BETHESDA GARAGE GETTING PATCHED (PHOTOS)

Somebody was listening last week, when I reported on the massive hole that remained in Montgomery County Parking Garage 40 (Cordell-St. Elmo Garage) after a car wreck four months ago. The wall is being patched up, and the space is blocked off in the meantime. A fresh coat of paint on the exterior and interior walls should leave Garage 40 looking as good as new.

Exterior view from
St. Elmo Avenue

ST. ELMO APARTMENTS DESIGN UNVEILED IN BETHESDA (PHOTOS)

The future of St. Elmo Avenue got bigger last night, when the sketch design for the 16-story St. Elmo Apartments was unveiled at a public meeting in Bethesda. Steve Robins, with Lerch, Early & Brewer, presented the sketch plan he said Lenkin Companies will submit to county planners within the next month.

A mixed-use project, St. Elmo Apartments will include up to 15,500 SF of retail space, up to 210 luxury apartments, and a potential second floor office space for Lenkin, which has been headquartered at this site since 1970. Chef Tony's and Pizza Pass would be demolished for the construction, currently scheduled to begin in mid-2016 or 2017.

Lenkin has hired David M. Schwarz to design the building, and Robins said they are aiming for a "timeless" design, rather than "trendy or aping past traditional style." He said glass will be the predominant exterior feature. DMS designed the Baltimore Orioles training facility, along with many big projects in the DC region. Lenkin has selected Rhodeside & Harwell for the landscaping and exterior space, a firm that worked on the impressive Intelsat Tysons Tower recently.

Public space is a priority for the developer, Robins said, and Lenkin hopes to work closely with next-door neighbor Bainbridge to realize a pedestrian plaza that will give a strong sense of place.

Speaking of place, the building entrance and parking will front on St. Elmo, as the developer feels that street is "more marketable" than Fairmont Avenue (although the project applicant's official name is 4931 Fairmont Avenue LLC).

Building amenities will include a roof terrace, a pool one flight down from the roof, and dens for some of the 1 and 2 bedroom units.

A St. Elmo Avenue businessperson attending last night's meeting expressed concern about parking, noting that the Cordell-St. Elmo public parking garage is full by midday, creating parking problems for her customers.

In a departure from the trend these days, Robins said St. Elmo Apartments will actually provide more than the required parking on-site - 220 underground spaces in a 4-level garage for 210 (or less) apartments. He also said that the pathway next to the 7770 Norfolk apartments on Fairmont Avenue will make the Woodmont Avenue garage accessible to visitors or patrons of businesses at the St. Elmo Apartments.

As you'll see in the images below (click to enlarge for greater detail), there are alternative plans to capitalize on the space between the St. Elmo and Bainbridge. The most promising would create a large, Bethesda Lane-style public space between the buildings. This is similar to what will eventually exist on Auburn and Del Ray Avenues, when The Rugby is built across from Gallery Bethesda.

There's a lot of potential to do something special with this project, and several high-quality firms involved. Done right, this could be a great addition to the Woodmont Triangle.

Woodmont Triangle and
current zoning

Aerial view that shows several
new and future buildings
in tan color
(Gallery Bethesda, The Rugby upper left;
Bainbridge and 4990 Fairmont center;
7990 Wisconsin, 7770 Norfolk right)

Show me the blueprints,
show me the blueprints

16 stories above
the Woodmont Triangle

Public space

Some individual units

Showing roof terrace and
pool one level down

3 possible configurations for
the public street/plaza between
the buildings

And thank you for
reading!

All images courtesy Lenkin Companies
and DMS Architects, All rights reserved