Truck traffic at Marriott construction site to increase in coming weeks

Marriott International headquarters development partners The Bernstein Companies, Boston Properties and Hensel Phelps say they expect truck traffic in and out of the construction site at 7750 Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Bethesda. A phasing plan has been prepared to ease the impact of the additional trucks on traffic.

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The partners acknowledge that too many meters around the site have been improperly bagged, taking them out of commission and hurting nearby businesses. They say they are working with Bethesda Urban Partnership and Montgomery County parking enforcement to reduce the number of bagged meters where possible.

Marriott continues to be blamed by some for utility problems in the vicinity of the construction. The partners say all of those disruptions and glitches are the fault of utility companies working on their own projects in the area, and that none were related to the Marriott site work underway. You can now watch the site 24 hours a day, and in time lapse, on a webcam set up by the Marriott HQ team.

New parking lot configuration at Home Depot shopping center

The expanded parking lot has been reconfigured at the Home Depot shopping center by Montgomery Mall. New concrete curbs and islands have been constructed. Part of the shopping center was torn down in order to make room for additional parking spaces.

Downtown Bethesda garage gets freshening (Photos)

Painters shut down the Woodmont-Rugby Public Parking Garage 35 overnight, to apply fresh paint. It was kind of a strange situation, as the garage was supposed to be closed, but there were still many cars inside. And some random cars had protective tarps thrown over them, while others sat exposed, presumably, to dripping paint. On the other hand, I assume they know what they are doing, and where the paint would be dripping.

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Dorset Ave. to be resurfaced in Kenwood today and tomorrow

The Montgomery County Department of Transportation says it will be resurfacing parts of Dorset Avenue in Kenwood today and tomorrow. Parking will be prohibited between 7:00 AM and 7:00 PM both days. It's probably best to avoid this route during those hours even if you don't live there. This is part of a larger project to resurface the third-world quality roads throughout Kenwood, which the Montgomery County Council allowed to fall into severe disrepair.

BETHESDA CONSTRUCTION UPDATE: PIKE & ROSE, INCLUDING GAP (PHOTOS)

Some of the exterior wraps are off at Gap on Grand Park Avenue, in Federal Realty's new Pike & Rose development in White Flint.

Meanwhile, two other tenants have opened this past weekend at the property. iPic Theaters opened Friday, without extending any preview invitation to this blogger, and thereby reaching less total audience. Doesn't seem too smart, given the extensive outreach competitors ArcLight Cinemas and Landmark Bethesda Row Cinema have engaged in prior to opening. The majority of iPic's PR seems to be focused on legacy media like broadcast TV, print newspapers, FM radio and glossy magazines - which probably would strike those who get most of their news via smartphone these days as a bit behind the times. iPic does have a couple of cool promotional spectacles going on at the actual property, though. One was a man on stilts walking around Pike & Rose, and the other was a projection of the Hollywood sign on a blank construction barrier wall.

Women's apparel boutique Francesca's opened Saturday.

With these openings, parking was jammed in the garage off of Grand Park Avenue Saturday. Room to maneuver along the drive aisles inside the garage proved to be quite tight, now that more people are visiting. Parking is indeed free for 2 hours, and no validation is necessary for that. Longer validations for free parking are available from tenants like Del Frisco's Grille and iPic. If confronted with a similar squeeze in the garage, your best bet is to skip Grand Park Avenue, and head to the garage entrance west of it along Old Georgetown Road, just past Del Frisco's Grille's patio.

Stilt walker near
Del Frisco's Grille

AMP sign is lit

"Goodnight from Hollywood"

PIKE & ROSE PARKING (PHOTOS)

Planning to head to Pike & Rose for Thursday's opening of Del Frisco's Grille? You can park in the garage at 11800 Grand Park Avenue. The street is at the signaled intersection with Old Georgetown Road about halfway between Rockville Pike (MD 355) and Executive Boulevard. After turning into Grand Park Avenue, drive up to the (temporary) end of the street, and turn left onto the garage entrance ramp. Alternatively, you can enter from 11580 Old Georgetown Road (although I did not try that yet), if you're on the Pike and Rose side of Old Georgetown.

One question readers have asked in the past is, will there be paid parking at Pike and Rose like Federal Realty's other town center-style properties, or would it be free like White Flint Mall or Montrose Crossing? The answer is, it is paid parking, using the Easy Pay system (take your ticket on the way in, and keep it with you). There is also free, 2-hour surface parking for the businesses at the corner of Old Georgetown and 355, such as Starbucks.

Businesses will offer parking garage ticket validation (although the Pike & Rose website says the first two hours are flat out free, without mentioning validation). Del Frisco's Grille, for example, will validate parking for 2 hours for you. Sport and Health will give you 2 1/2 hours. The iPic Theaters, opening in November, will give you a bit more for a movie: 3-and-a-half hours. Not enough time?

2 to 3 hours $1.00
3 to 4 hours $2.00
4 to 5 hours $3.00
5 to 24 hours $10.00

One other interesting point is that the garage uses the green/red overhead lighting system, like the Rockville Town Square garages. Searching for a space? If the lights are all red, head to the next row to find a green one.

Want to handle parking in advance? You can do it online with Parking Panda's Pike and Rose parking reservations and payment system.  Although, when testing it as of this writing, it was telling me the parking space would be at the Marriott North Bethesda Convention Center across the street, not at Pike & Rose. The Pike & Rose development is so new, have some patience with the various services that are being phased in. A $5 valet parking service is also scheduled to begin operating after October 1.

PARTIAL CLOSURE OF LITTLE FALLS PARKWAY LOT TO IMPACT BETHESDA POOL PATRONS

A portion of the public parking lot just north of Arlington Road on Little Falls Parkway will close Monday, April 28. It will remain closed from tomorrow through December, while it is utilized as a staging area for WSSC contractors for the Bethesda Waterline Replacement project. That project itself has generated complaints from residents closer to the actual work.

One has to ask if this is an appropriate use of public property. The loss of parking spaces will surely be a problem when the Bethesda Pool opens in May, as the lot handles overflow parking for that Little Falls Parkway recreational facility. This is just the latest insult to users of Little Falls Stream Valley Park over the last few years, with the Hoyt/Betco property decision and results being the most notable.

STREET PARKING RETURNS TO FAIRMONT AVENUE AFTER DEMOLITION (PHOTOS)

Some street parking has been restored along Fairmont Avenue, following the demolition of a shopping center.

Spaces are still blocked off in front of the karate dojo, for example, but at least some parking is better than none for shops along Fairmont.

PARKING RESTRICTIONS, SIDEWALK CLOSURES ON CORDELL, ST. ELMO IN DOWNTOWN BETHESDA (PHOTOS)

Sidewalk replacement on two downtown Bethesda streets has led to parking restrictions on both.

Through 5:00 PM Wednesday, June 12, there is no street parking in front of Caddies or Matuba on Cordell Avenue.

And no parking between the Public Parking garage and Rock Bottom on St. Elmo Avenue.

Both sidewalks have closed segments. However, all businesses are still open.

WOODMONT VIEW CONDO PROJECT WANTS TO ELIMINATE RESTAURANT PARKING, POOL AND JACUZZI FROM BATTERY LANE SITE (PHOTOS)

Future Battery Lane luxury condo building Woodmont View will not provide parking for customers of its ground floor restaurant, nor the promised rooftop pool and Jacuzzi (for residents), if their waiver request is granted by the Montgomery County Planning Board.

The 9-story luxury project will house only 46 units, and - by my calculation - 8 MPDUs, at the northwest corner of Battery Lane and Woodmont Avenue. Currently, the site is home to a small structure that includes a dry cleaners. Past tenants included a tattoo parlor.

Developer Duball, LLC argues that there will be plenty of parking in Public Parking Garage 35 on Woodmont Avenue, less than a block away. Duball says the on-site restaurant parking would require a costly valet service, thereby raising condo fees.

It is unclear what the effect of this waiver would be on already-tight on-street parking on Battery Lane. Last year, a group of residents organized to fight a county plan to place parking meters on Battery Lane. With at least three new mixed-use projects on the books nearby, parking pressures should reach new heights in the coming years.

Duball further argues that moving the fitness center and community room closer to the ground floor will "activate" the street. I doubt that, given that such facilities rarely are full around the clock. You really need retail or restaurants to activate an urban sidewalk through the evening.

The request to delete the rooftop pool is interesting. That 70s Building (a.k.a. The Gallery), a short distance away, will have a rooftop pool. Woodmont View will be at a disadvantage, then, with wealthy buyers seeking premium amenities.

Both buildings will allow an easy walk to work for employees of NIH and Walter Reed.

One intriguing note on Woodmont View: If I recall correctly, its original project approval hinged on the requirement that the building's eatery be a "quality restaurant."

We often hear that developers can't be required to include a particular commercial use, much less a class of that use.

But here we have an apparent legal precedent set in Montgomery County. It not only requires a restaurant, but a quality one. Should the Apex Building be torn down, the board could therefore require a "quality" movie theater be located within the new development.

Finally, the design of the building is not bad, in my opinion. It isn't exhilarating, but does have the distinctive roof accents you can see below. Certainly, it's far better than the hospitalesque design of the Trillium-replacement project across Woodmont.

WESTFIELD MONTGOMERY MALL GARAGE CLOSED BEHIND MACY'S HOME STORE (PHOTOS)

The parking structure behind Macy's Home Store at Westfield Montgomery Mall is now closed. An extensive renovation and mall expansion is underway. Westfield has placed signs to direct customers to additional parking as necessary. Just a heads-up if you are planning to go shopping at the mall this weekend.

STREET SWEEPING TO AFFECT BETHESDA STREET PARKING STARTING THURSDAY, APRIL 11 (PHOTO)

Be alert for signs prohibiting on-street parking around downtown Bethesda later this week.

Starting Thursday, Montgomery County will be conducting Spring street sweeping operations in Bethesda. As you can see from this sign along Woodmont Avenue, you may not be able to park on certain streets during that period.

Signs are popping up now, so plan ahead if you utilize downtown street parking.

You may have seen Bethesda Urban Partnership's street sweeper before. It makes regular rounds to keep downtown Bethesda clean. But the county sweeper is doing a more-thorough cleaning. Hence, the parking restrictions.

BRUCE VARIETY OPENS AT NEW LOCATION IN BETHESDA (PHOTOS) - 8011 WOODMONT AVENUE

Bruce Variety has reopened in Bethesda at its new location, 8011 Woodmont Avenue.

A friendly employee was welcoming each customer entering the store yesterday. There is convenient parking alongside the store, and you can park for free on weekends, according to the posted sign.

Much of the familiar Bruce Variety products are back in stock, including thread, craft supplies and, yes, Mad Libs books.

The store has more open space, and brighter lighting than the old location, even though the cramped aisles and dim lighting were part of the original's charm. Overall, it is much easier to get around this store during more crowded times than the old one.

Enjoy a virtual tour of the new store below. It is also a virtual online catalog, as you can click to zoom in on each photo to see all of the individual products.

The Captain 20 Dick Dyszel pirate stole the show. Now that's classic Bethesda for you.