The assembled project site includes the office building that holds the currently-operating Old Georgetown Grille and Colonial Opticians, and the former Jewelry Exchange retail building. Some one-level retail buildings directly adjacent on St. Elmo will be torn down as well, but Serpentine Dance Studio and House of Milae will remain between this new high-rise, and the Sophia Bethesda apartment tower.
Minor Master Plan Amendments have been controversial for three reasons. They have an abbreviated public process compared to a full sector plan. Second, there is often a particular developer seeking to redevelop a particular property beyond what current zoning allows, and - to get around the illegality of benefitting one property owner - a map is drawn up including a few properties around that site to provide a veneer of legitimacy to the amendment. Finally, the Montgomery County Council and Planning Board have failed to extract significant concessions or public benefits and amenities in exchange for the upzoning that typically results from an MMPA.
Case in point for the latter is the MMPA that covered the redevelopment of the Apex Building at 7272 Wisconsin Avenue. The Council could have, but did not, require a replacement cineplex for the Regal Bethesda 10 that was in the ground floor of that now-demolished building. It also did not mandate that the developer provide the replacement Capital Crescent Trail tunnel under Wisconsin Avenue. As a result, we now have neither.
The CCT tunnel? It's now very likely never to happen, especially as long the County budget continues to favor the developers and "non-profits" run by Friends of the County Council over the residents and taxpayers. The whole point of the MMPA process is to wrest at least some public benefit out of the upzoned development, in exchange for the greater profits being realized by the private developer. It's safe to say the Council failed spectacularly in that last MMPA, despite holding 100% of the leverage, and it's clear the failure was intentional.
Now, the MMPA being proposed this time is said to be focused on the cap on development allowed by the 2017 plan's Bethesda Overlay Zone. When development since 2017 comes within 2,000,000-square-feet of the 32.4 million cap, the plan recommends the County Planning Department "check in with the County Council to see if additional recommendations are needed to help implementation of public amenity and infrastructure recommendations like new parks and transportation-related improvements."
So far, despite the lofty promises of the Planning Board and County Council, the 2017 Bethesda Downtown Plan has delivered zero amenities and zero new parks. At the same time, it has provided substantial real estate development for tremendous private profit. Keep this in mind if you participate in this MMPA public process. Demand you get a return for your tax dollars that are being spent (the County's structural budget deficit has raised your property taxes every year except FY- 2015, in which the average homeowner received a $12 tax "cut") and the noise, higher housing costs, inconvenience, overcrowded classrooms, traffic congestion and net loss of existing affordable housing created by all of this development.
The new Montgomery Parks/County Council plan would maintain the road diet between Arlington Road and Dorset Avenue. It would convert the existing configuration back to the one implemented right before it - one lane in each direction, but on each side of the existing grassy median, rather than right next to each other. What this means is that there would be a slight safety improvement, as the restoration of a median will reduce the danger of head-on collisions.
However, the Parks department and County Council would remain victorious over the residents who pay their salaries, and whom they presumably serve. They get to keep the road diet they wanted, with a long-term eye still on eventually closing the parkway entirely. They keep the rush hour traffic jams and cut-through traffic into Kenwood, Somerset and Hillandale Road. Montgomery Parks continues to illegally use funds allocated to other projects and purposes for its road diet adventures; the Montgomery County Council has yet to make a capital budget allocation for a Little Falls Parkway road diet. And Montgomery Parks is once again moving ahead despite a pending court decision on the lawsuit by Kenwood residents to overturn the road diet between Hillandale Road and Dorset Avenue. Laws for thee, but not for me!
The Council is about to bend their knees to their developer sugar daddies once again with a "minor master plan amendment" allowing more development in downtown Bethesda than the 2017 master plan allowed - and before delivering a single new amenity out of that plan for Bethesda residents! That steroid shot to the thousands of new housing units delivered or under construction in downtown Bethesda since 2017 means more cars on the road. Nearly a thousand new residents will be moving into new homes in the Westbard area over the next few years, Westbard Sector Plan Phase II (River Road) is coming down the pike with a Purple Line extension, and the Council is working hard on converting the churches along River Road into luxury housing developments under the guise of "affordable housing." Yet the Council believes that reducing vehicle capacity by 50% on the main conduit between the two areas is a sensible plan.
Is the NCPC any better at math - or in representing the interests of residents - than the County Council? We will find out this year.
Rendering courtesy EYA
What sort of changes or updates are under consideration for what Montgomery Parks is calling "Capital Crescent Trail 2.0?" First on the list is the potential widening of the trail, which has been discussed for many years, as pedestrians using the trail have been struck or nearly struck by cyclists on the narrow route. New signage, access points, improved connectivity and new amenities round out the list the department has provided. But improvements and changes could include ones that residents like you propose that planners haven't thought of, if you provide your thoughts at one of these meetings.
Hogan's two terms in office coincided with a drastic speed limit reduction on River Road that defies the state highway's design, requiring drivers to ride their brakes along many stretches of the road, which was designed for a 45 MPH minimum. While Midas franchisees across the county celebrated with champagne, the change did not improve safety. Drag racers and motorcyclists can be heard roaring up and down the road all night long at three times the posted speed limit or higher.
During his governorship, Hogan was accused of approving road changes and projects that benefitted development interests, including some of his own real estate projects. The River Road record is no different, as developers and the Montgomery County politicians they control have a long term plan to bring the state highway down to 25 MPH, in preparation for urbanization and redevelopment of the corridor.
Developers are betting that rising land values, and a long-desired state tax on country clubs, will encourage or force sales of multiple properties between Brookside Drive and the Capital Beltway. They envision townhomes and apartment buildings on the current sites of the Kenwood Golf & Country Club, of many or all of the churches and schools along that stretch, and on the American Plant property at Burdette Road. MDSHA even owns a plot of land near the intersection of River and Braeburn Parkway that is currently used as a depot, but is coveted by developers. The long-"secret" plan to extend the Purple Line to Westbard will only juice the heights and density of many of these properties.
So, don't be surprised that MDSHA is coming in with a pre-formed proposal for more changes to River Road at this virtual meeting. There was no public meeting introducing a study. There was no public input. Remember when they changed the speed limit without going through the legal and required public process, and without the required advance notice posted on the roadway? Once again, they've already got something in mind, and they're going to tell us, "This is how it's gonna be." Democracy in action!
Greystar applied to the MDE for acceptance into the program for the long-dormant site in May 2023. A public meeting on the RAP has been scheduled for August 14, 2023 from 6:00 to 7:00 PM in the Medium Room of the Connie Morella Library at 7400 Arlington Road in Bethesda.
Images courtesy Stonebridge/SK+I
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.
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.
"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
Stonebridge initially leased the building to Nazlymov Fencing. But it now intends to move forward with redevelopment of the property. Stonebridge is proposing a mixed-use residential building with 240,000 square feet of residential space, and up to 6000 SF of ground floor retail and restaurant space. As proposed, the development would provide the minimum-required 15% Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs). The site is zoned with a maximum height of 175 feet (approximately 18 stories) unless bonus density is sought through the optional points system, such as providing more than 15% MPDUs.
Here's the interesting part: The Jewelry Exchange site is 0.165 acres. Stonebridge describes its redevelopment project as being 0.43 acres. That would suggest it will be incorporating additional, adjoining property. The math of adding the 0.099 acre site of 7755 Old Georgetown next door doesn't quite add up for me. Perhaps one of my math whiz readers can figure out where Stonebridge is adding .265 acres of land to get to 0.43 acres?
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| 7749 Old Georgetown Road is outlined in green; potential adjoining properties are outlined in red; directly to the right of 7749 is the 12-story Fairmont Building at 7735 Old Georgetown, which at .52 acres is alone larger than Stonebridge's .43 acre plan, ruling it out as a potential addition to the project |
The sign does not specify what additional parking facilities would be provided for tenants of the new apartments, nor the specific location of the proposed building on the site. A section of the large parking lot that is currently used for vehicle storage by W.C. & A.N. Miller and other authorized tenants includes a vacant building that was formerly a PNC Bank. The shopping center is surrounded by other multifamily housing developments on three sides, including Sumner Village and Sumner Highlands, and the Intelligence Community Campus is across the street on Sangamore Road.
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| Sign posted on the property (please click to enlarge) |
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| Currently underutilzed area of the Sumner Place parking lot indicated in red (former PNC Bank at center-left) |
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| Vacant PNC Bank building |
Another proposal from the committee was the installation of new security cameras around the Village. This Monday night, the Mayor and Council will vote to approve the installation of cameras at Red House at 4608 N. Park Avenue. These cameras will provide a video surveillance field covering the area around the house, parts of N. Park Avenue where several crime incidents have recently occurred - including assaults and a robbery - and the bus stop at 4620 N. Park Avenue. The committee has also suggested encouraging all property owners in the village to install additional cameras on their buildings.
Hiring private police may be a trend we see increase in neighborhoods with the means to do so, if County elected officials continue to prove unable - or unwilling - to address the rise in violent crime countywide.
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| Current status of the property at 5101 Ridgefield Road in Bethesda |
The virtual meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday, February 7, 2023 at 7:00 PM. To participate, log-in at shorturl.at/ghQT6 online, or by telephone at 301-715-8592. Westwood Associates, LLC is the applicant for the proposed site plan. Stormwater infrastructure is already being installed on the site of the future townhomes, as you can see in the above photo. Also still to come after delivery of the Giant grocery store building late this year are an assisted-living nursing home development on the former sites of Westwood Center II and Citgo, a mixed-use apartment building with ground floor retail on the site of the remaining section of the Westwood Shopping Center strip mall, and a second townhome development on what is now the shopping center's parking lot between the retail building and the Kenwood Place condominiums.
The meeting announcement does not state whether participants will be able to speak or provide feedback, but it says that the public will be able to testify when the data is presented to the Montgomery County Planning Board in late March or early April. No public process has been held on the road diet, which was implemented without public meetings or feedback, nor with a legal budget appropriation by the Montgomery County Council. Click here for the Zoom link for the virtual meeting on February 15.
