FREEZING WINDS DAMAGE A DOWNTOWN BETHESDA RELIC (PHOTOS)

I hope you are all keeping warm today. Temperatures may reach a record low today in Bethesda, but the freezing winds blowing the frigid air into town already did some damage last night.

The sign at the former Relic nightclub on Fairmont Avenue was ripped apart, and was flapping around last evening in the wind. There still appear to be no bidders for what could be a prominent nightlife spot when the Bainbridge Bethesda opens this year along Fairmont.

Power outages were initially few in number. Late last night, there were outages affecting about 105 customers within an area bounded by Goldsboro Road, the Potomac River, Bradley Boulevard, Seven Locks Road, Veirs Mill Road, and Old Georgetown Road. Expect more, as long as high winds persist, and the weather forces residents to turn up the heat indoors.

The temperatures today are certainly in line with those of 2013, which was the overall coldest year in Bethesda in my lifetime.

Veterans Park last night

LAST TENANT VACATES 4936 FAIRMONT AVENUE IN BETHESDA (PHOTOS)

The only remaining tenant in the building that housed the doomed Relic nightclub has vacated the premises.

Koh Law Firm has left 4936 Fairmont Avenue, and moved down the street to 4962 Fairmont, on the third floor.

As you may recall, the interior of Relic was recently demolished. The building is currently for lease.

But with no tenants, the building is now ripe for redevelopment via demolition. Stay tuned.

RELIC NIGHTCLUB INTERIOR DEMOLISHED (PHOTOS)

Total destruction is the only phrase to describe the interior of the defunct Relic nightclub on Fairmont Avenue. Debris piles abound after crews demolished what was left of the bar/restaurant space.

The space is currently for lease, but there have been no takers in 11 months.

Relic closed last summer after Montgomery County tore up its liquor license. Supposedly, there were too many Relic-related incidents requiring police action.

The club was shuttered, and then the entire building was foreclosed on. It was auctioned off August 9.

Nothing happened for months. There was some hope when DC mega-developer Douglas Development took over. Douglas has ties to popular chain tenants like Shake Shack.

Alas, Douglas departed, and another large firm, Papadopoulos Properties, took charge.

I checked, and the space is still on the market for lease.

Why?

Because that block of Fairmont is a bad location for a restaurant at the moment. While crime is negligible, the block is deserted at night. Few venture beyond BlackFinn and Bold Bite towards Old Georgetown Road. The crowds from Relic are gone, as are the many restaurants in the green retail center across Fairmont, now slated to be razed for a JBG 17-story building. Fresh Grill and Dansez Dansez! vacated a separate Fairmont building after it was shuttered, allegedly due to damage from the Bainbridge excavation.

The result?

That block of Fairmont remains dead, dead, dead at night.

First floor retail in the future  Bainbridge Bethesda building cannot open soon enough. The JBG project will be joined by a second luxury building at Fairmont and Old Georgetown, currently a defunct BP gas station.

Once this happens, the old Relic space will certainly command a higher lease, as there should be much foot traffic.

Relic remains notable for offering table service, which was later made available at The Parva. BlackFinn has also experimented with VIP table/bottle service on Thursday nights.

START THE BETHESDA SHAKE SHACK RUMORS

BURGER EMPIRE'S

DC LANDLORD

TAKES COMMAND OF

RELIC NIGHTCLUB

BUILDING

Another Robert Dyer @ Bethesda Row Exclusive

DC powerhouse firm Douglas Development has taken charge of the 4936 Fairmont Avenue building that housed the now-defunct Relic Lounge.   The company, founded by Douglas Jemal in 1985, not only is an award-winning developer, but also landlord to many prime restaurants and retailers like LivingSocial, Carmine's and... Shake Shack.

Douglas is now leasing the building's units for office and retail space.  But with Relic having been configured as a food service operation, and Shake Shack's rapid expansion to 3 DC locations in 12 months, the scenario is bound to fuel rumors.  If any company has the inside track, and established relationship, to score the next DC area Shake Shack, it's Douglas.  So Bethesda has to move up on the list of potential locations on those merits alone.

Shake Shack will not reveal specific plans, but does not deny the company is actively expanding.

That block of Fairmont Avenue is currently underappreciated.  But JBG is about to redevelop half of it into a 17-story residential building, and The Monty is currently under construction on the Relic building's side of the street.  Now add a major player like Douglas, and the game has changed on this almost-forgotten block.

So the atmosphere on Fairmont - and level of pedestrian traffic - is bound to change over the next two years.  This could make 4936 Fairmont a prime target for Shake Shack, which undoubtedly would like to tap into the deep pockets of Bethesda diners.

Have we maxed out on burger restaurants?  Burger aficionados wouldn't say so!  With spaces opening at Bethesda Row, there will be a lot of speculation about the most-wanted restaurants and retail in the near future.

The only certainty is that, with Douglas Development in charge, 4936 Fairmont is likely to end up with at least one prominent tenant.

RELIC NIGHTCLUB MOVES OUT - EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS

The final words in the final chapter of troubled Bethesda nightspot Relic were written this week.  After losing its liquor license, and then its home to foreclosure and auction, the club appears to be vacating the premises.

Despite its unpopularity with police and county officials, the club did have a loyal following.  Whenever I pass by that building on Fairmont Avenue, there is almost always someone just discovering that Relic is closed.  Relic will be most remembered for being the first in Bethesda history to offer bottle service and VIP tables.  BlackFinn and The Parva soon followed, and still offer that on specific nights (for example, Thursdays at BlackFinn, and, usually, weekend nights at The Parva).

I'm still holding out hope - albeit a futile one, given our county's rudderless "leadership" - that Bethesda will eventually get a pretentious, Las Vegas-style nightclub.  Complete with rope lines, bottle service, swanky surroundings, and C-list celebrity guest hosts.  Bethesda wallets can afford it, but the question is, will anyone build it?

RELIC NIGHTCLUB BUILDING TO BE AUCTIONED OFF

FORECLOSURE FINAL BLOW TO

SHUTTERED BETHESDA 

NIGHTSPOT

Another Robert Dyer @ Bethesda Row Exclusive

The saga of the beleagured Relic nightclub will reach an end on Thursday, August 9, at high noon.  At that moment, the small building that houses the club and office space at 4936 Fairmont Avenue will be auctioned off to the highest bidder, on the sidewalk out front.

Apparently, Montgomery County's seizure of the club's liquor license - which forced its indefinite closure - sent the building into foreclosure when the property owner defaulted on the mortgage, according to Craig Haughton and Nina Basu, who have been named substitute trustees of the property.

The 15,000 square foot property continues to house several offices, as you can tell by scanning the lobby directory.

Thinking of placing a bid?  You'll need $100,000 cash or certified funds if you win.

The property has potential for either a long-term investor, or a large developer.  Someone wanting to run a nightclub or restaurant - and who has the capital and patience to wait 5 years for the rebirth of dilapidated and deserted Fairmont Avenue - will be rewarded with a prime spot in the new Old Bethesda.

Developers might be interested in the property, if they can buy adjoining plots to allow for a larger, mixed use development.

Whatever the future of this building, this block of Fairmont is dead, dead, dead right now, and not a street people like to venture down after dark.  Of course, that's because pro-developer tax and planning policies by the county have indirectly forced out many of the street's tenants.  Although Relic has been the source of many complaints, the tearing-up of its liquor license certainly came at a most convenient time.  The shark fins are circling most of the mom-and-pop shops on the most promising avenues across Old Town Bethesda.

So far, nearby residents have been displeased by the project proposed at Fairmont's corner with Norfolk.  A primary complaint is the developer's plan to have an "inactive" street level (i.e. no restaurants or shops to activate the area after business hours).  I share their concerns.  This block is one of the darkest and loneliest at night in town, and the entrance to the street should not be essentially a Berlin Wall.

As I've said many times, with little room to develop downcounty, it is imperative that the Planning Board ensures the most added value from each and every project it approves.  And the maximum height and density within walking distance from Metro in downtown Bethesda.

Otherwise, many of those projects will suffer the same fate as 4936 Fairmont Avenue, in the not-so-distant future.

AND THEN THERE WERE TWO

Now that Montgomery County has torn up Relic's liquor license, only two Bethesda nightspots with VIP table service remain.  And that block of Fairmont Avenue is nearly dead.

Most businesses have either moved away or closed due to construction damage caused by the Bainbridge development.  Fortunately, the most active remaining storefront - Bold Bite - is close enough to Norfolk Avenue to still get foot traffic at night.  But with Relic sidelined perhaps indefinitely, that is one lonely street at night.

I hope Westin will recognize that the market and deep pockets to support an upscale, pretentious Las Vegas-style nightclub exist in Bethesda, and build one into their new hotel planned for Wisconsin Avenue.

BOTTLE SERVICE CATCHING ON AT BETHESDA NIGHTSPOTS

BLACKFINN WILL BE THIRD BETHESDA

BAR TO OFFER TABLE SERVICE WITH

MAY 10 LAUNCH OF "THIRSTY THURSDAYS"

 Another Robert Dyer @ Bethesda Row Exclusive!!!

A promising new trend is developing in downtown Bethesda's nightspots:  bottle service/table service.

Once a practice limited to places like Las Vegas and Los Angeles, table service made its way to Washington, DC eventually.  But it was completely unheard of in Montgomery County.

Relic on Fairmont Avenue was the first to introduce it.  In the last year, The Parva has added it.

Next week, on May 10th, BlackFinn Bethesda will join them with the launch of "Thirsty Thursday."

In general, bottle or table service in Vegas, et al, can require an upfront fee, and mandatory purchases of x-number of bottles, based on the size of your party.

BlackFinn isn't going to make you do that.  But it will be an exclusive, VIP experience, and you will not only get special deals, but also have the chance to win gift cards.

What makes it exclusive, is that the first 5 hosts - with at least 5 guests - (that's you, within the group you are going to BlackFinn with) who are present, and check-in at the sign-in table, get on the First Come-First Served Reservation List for table service.

What makes it VIP, is that if you are one of those 5 hosts Thursday nights at 9 PM, you and your guests will receive not only a reserved booth for the night, and a cocktail server waiting on that booth all night, but you are also going to get a FREE bottle of champagne to get the evening started.

You'll be able to take advantage of special deals, like $3 U-call-its and a FREE appetizer buffet from 9-11 PM.  Then, at 11, all drinks will be $4 until midnight (if your party has signed in by 11:00).  In addition, Bud Light bottles will be $2 from 9:00 to close.

Now, about those prizes.  For every 10 guests you bring, you'll get a $10 gift card.   But the host who brings the most guests will win a $100 gift card.

Please note that your guests will need to tell the hostess your first and last name to enter the VIP area, which is now the downstairs bar.  Making the downstairs more private is the result of customer feedback, said Maddy Pinckert, BlackFinn's Promotions Manager.  She noted it will make a buffet arrangement more accessible to VIP guests.

To sign up for table service, email mpinckert@BlackFinnBethesda.com.  

This is a bit more modest of a table or bottle service program than you would find in Vegas or even some spots in DC.  But, as I noted, BlackFinn's table service won't drain your bank account like those other clubs' pricing would.

This is a good start, and the growing popularity of such offerings is a positive for downtown Bethesda.

Bethesda had a very promising initial transformation.  And we have quite a few great nightspots like BlackFinn.  But we are at a crossroads here.

We need to not only recapture the momentum, but take this opportunity to definitively move ahead of other cities in the DC area.

Why can't Bethesda be the first city in Montgomery County to have a 50-story building?  And then 75 and 100 after that.  Who decided we would suddenly take a back seat to White Flint (please!) in building heights?  I refuse to accept second best as a lifelong Bethesda resident, and so should you!

The same goes for the Bethesda nightlife scene.  Adding table service and other VIP touches is a step in exactly the right direction.

Bethesda has the level of income to support at least one or more new, very swanky nightspots.  I'm not aware of any plans, within residential buildings currently under construction, to add new nightclubs.

But with at least two upscale hotels nearing groundbreaking in downtown Bethesda (including a Westin on Wisconsin Avenue), why can't we have a venue like Pure or TAO in Vegas?  Or something equivalent?  Are we trying to be the premiere urban area for young people, or not?  Sure, some people find bottle service, or rope line waits outside, pretentious.  That's not a reason to aim low.  I don't know if you've been to a place in DC that doesn't just aspire to Vegas, L.A. or South Beach, but matches it?  I haven't.  I'm not criticizing DC, because they are currently ahead of us.  But what if Bethesda were to aim higher?

That's why I advocate for just such a spot here in Bethesda.  Does it really cost that much, in the grand scheme of things, to hire a C-list, reality show celebrity to come in and host once a week?  How about some more rooftop pool venues, Vegas style (TAO Beach, etc.)?  Or are we content to play second banana to DC pool parties?  I'm not.

So I for one applaud the new trend of table service, and if you've got a group that isn't planning to bar-hop all night, it's well worth giving Thirsty Thursday a try at BlackFinn.  These sort of experiments will position BlackFinn well for the future of Bethesda nightlife.

BlackFinn Bethesda, 4901 Fairmont Avenue.

BETHESDA'S

BIG PLANET COMICS

IS MOVING

What may soon be the last bastion of comic books in Montgomery County is moving. Fortunately, true believers, Big Planet Comics will be moving just a couple of blocks from its current location at 4908 Fairmont Avenue.

On April 18, Big Planet will reopen in a brand new spot at 4849 Cordell Avenue. So they're staying right here in Bethesda.

That block of Fairmont Avenue is undergoing perhaps the biggest upheaval of any street in "Old Town" Bethesda. Except for Relic and Bold Bite, and a few who may stagger around from BlackFinn, it is dark and dead at night. A number of storefronts are vacant, and one building is even condemned - "Do not go in there," as Ace Ventura once said!

JBG is building a new residential building at the corner of Fairmont and Norfolk, and there are some complaints that the ground floor will not have active businesses at night on Fairmont. That is indeed something to fix about that project, as the whole point is to activate a dead block there at night.

Expect more tear downs on that block of Fairmont in the next 1-3 years. But the street is a great location with lots of promise.