Strathmore Street Residences plans revealed in Bethesda

More details about the proposed redevelopment of the Strathmore Apartments at 7025-7039 Strathmore Street in downtown Bethesda were revealed at a virtual public meeting last night. The Strathmore Street Residences applicant appears to be the current ownership of the property, which has hired Bethesda firm Architects Collaborative to design a brick-facade building that will favor classic aesthetics over current trends. No renderings of the architectural design were available last night. Architects Collaborative is also designing the proposed Apartments at Sumner Place project in Bethesda.

Robert Harris, the applicant's attorney, called Bethesda "the economic engine and arguably the most desirable place to live" in Montgomery County. The general outline of what is being proposed is a 7-story rental apartment building with 160-170 units, with 15% of the units being set aside as Moderately-Priced Dwelling Units, the minimum required by Montgomery County. There are 32 naturally-occurring-affordable-housing units at the current property, so the project would represent a net loss of 7 affordable apartments in downtown Bethesda.

Residents will have 2 levels of underground parking. The current plan is to provide at least one parking space for every unit, but the total number of garage spaces could be reduced by the end of the approval process. Montgomery County's public Capital Crescent Garage is about two blocks from the Strathmore Apartments site via Woodmont Avenue.

Faik Tugberk, principal and founder of Architects Collaborative, said the new development will make the Woodmont-Strathmore side of the property the focal point with a circular design element. The loading dock will be on the alley side of the building, with a lay-by for trucks so that other traffic using the alley will not be blocked. However, Tugberk said the garage entrance will be placed on the Strathmore Street side, so as not to overburden the alleyway. He added that this was not ideal from a design standpoint, but a compromise to be a good neighbor with the surrounding properties and users of the alley.

Tugberk said the new design will allow an uninterrupted pedestrian crossing from Strathmore Street to Wisconsin Avenue via the cut-through at The Camille on Wisconsin. He added that the pedestrian pathway on the Strathmore Street Residences portion of the route will be enhanced with public art. A rooftop amenity is planned, such as a lounge or terrace, but there are no plans for a swimming pool. 

Apartment units will have balconies, Tugberk confirmed, but some elements of the project are still in flux at this early stage. The mix of unit sizes hasn't been finalized yet, a factor he said will be determined by market demand. No retail space is planned at this time.

"We're at the front end of a multi-tier approval process," Harris told virtual meeting attendees. He said the applicant is preparing to submit a Sketch Plan for the project to the County, and that a groundbreaking is likely still a couple of years away. The property owner "respects" the current tenants of the existing garden apartments, but it has not yet been decided if they will be offered any discounts or incentives to be able to return in the new development.

Images courtesy Architects Collaborative

First images of building to replace Strathmore Apartments in Bethesda (Photos)

Here is the first look at the new building that would replace the garden-style, naturally-occurring affordable housing property of the Strathmore Apartments at 7025-7039 Strathmore Street in downtown Bethesda. No fully-developed architectural renderings are shown in this slide presentation, which will be the basis of a required public meeting being held tonight, Tuesday, June 20, 2023 at 7:00 PM (see sign pictured below for information on how to join the virtual meeting this evening). Instead, there are several top-down images of the layouts of the ground level, typical residential floor and rooftop level.

The proposed building would hold up to 180 rental apartments. If only the required 15% of apartments are set aside as affordable Moderately-Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs), representing a net loss of 5 affordable units at the property. Renderings show a lobby facing the corner of Strathmore Street and Woodmont Avenue, a fitness room, a party room, a rooftop terrace, a green roof, and a pedestrian connection along the south side of the property, which would create a walking route between Strathmore Street and Wisconsin Avenue via the rear alley and The Camille development at 7000 Wisconsin.

Redevelopment proposed for Strathmore Apartments property in Bethesda

The great vanishing act of naturally-occurring [relatively] affordable housing in the Bradley Boulevard corridor of downtown Bethesda may be about to begin. A developer is proposing to demolish the Strathmore Apartments at 7025-7039 Strathmore Street, and replace them with a 180-unit residential building. 

According to the Strathmore Apartments website, 1-bedrooms with dens are currently available for only $1985. By contrast, the average rent of a 1-bedroom apartment in downtown Bethesda is $2525-$2658 as of June 2023.

There are 32 apartments in the existing buildings; if the new development has the minimum 15% requirement of 27 affordable units, it will be a net loss of 5 affordable apartments. The sign does not indicate what percentage of affordable Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs) the developer is proposing to offer. Moreover, residents of naturally-occurring affordable apartments often make too much to qualify for MPDUs, but too little to afford market-rate apartments in newer buildings in downtown Bethesda.

A required pre-submittal public meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday, June 20, 2023 at 7:00 PM. The virtual meeting can be accessed by internet or telephone. See the instructions on the sign below to participate in the meeting.

SLEEPY'S BUILDING COULD ADD 2 FLOORS ON WISCONSIN AVENUE IN BETHESDA (PHOTOS)

A second downtown Bethesda landowner is bucking the mixed-use development trend.

An application is before the Montgomery County Planning Board requesting permission to add 2 floors to the Sleepy's mattress store building on Wisconsin Avenue. The store is near the new Bethesda Post Office, and across a public alley from the Strathmore Apartments.

The applicant seeks to retain the surface parking lot, and add an elevator and handicapped van parking space.

Planning Board staff is recommending approval under the condition that the applicant make sidewalk, alley, lighting and parking lot improvements.

This sounds fine to me, but I have 2 small concerns:

The staff's proposal to screen the parking lot from view of the sidewalk, and the apartments in back, does raise safety issues. One of the advantages of roadside surface parking is the ability of passing motorists, pedestrians, cyclists and police to note any criminal activity taking place in such lots.  Given that the lot has been there for years, is it really necessary to "hide" it? I would think shielding the apartments from headlights might make sense. But screening the street side doesn't.

The other concern is that the Planning Board staff report notes stair access from the lot to the alley. And that a lower-level business tenant can be reached from the alley via that staircase. However, a disabled person could not. I'd be interested to know if there is an alternative access method for customers with disabilities.