Proposed MoCo law would require home sellers to test for radon

Montgomery County would require home sellers to test for radon, and supply those test results to the prospective buyer of the home, if a new County Council bill is passed. Bill 31-15 is sponsored by Councilmember Craig Rice (D - Upcounty), and is scheduled to be introduced during today's Council session.

The bill would also require the seller to furnish the buyer with an estimate of what it would cost to remediate any radon contamination present in the home. Homeowners would have to use a testing kit approved by the director of the County Department of Environmental Protection. That test would have to be conducted less than one year before the home's sale contract is signed.

Burglaries in Somerset, on Whittier Blvd.; assault on Charnwood Dr. + more - Bethesda crime update

Here's a roundup of crimes reported across Bethesda on June 13, according to crime data:

Disorderly conduct. Fairmont Avenue at Woodmont Avenue.

Disorderly conduct. Woodmont Avenue at St. Elmo Avenue.

Theft. 4400 block East-West Highway.

Burglary. 4700 block Dorset Avenue (Somerset).

Disorderly conduct. Rockville Pike at Elmhirst Drive.

Burglary. 7100 block Whittier Boulevard.

Vehicle burglary. 11400 block Rockville Pike (Pike District).

Theft. Woodglen Drive at Executive Boulevard (Pike District).

Assault. 6200 block Charnwood Drive.

Theft. Nordstrom at Westfield Montgomery Mall.

Demolition permit sought for one of downtown Bethesda's last gas stations

TD Bank has requested demolition permits for one of downtown Bethesda's last gas stations, the Shell at Old Georgetown Road and Woodmont Avenue. They're also seeking a demolition permit from Montgomery County for the adjacent house at 4804 Moorland Lane. That house is currently used as office space.

The bank is going to place a small bank structure on this extremely valuable piece of property steps from the Bethesda Metro station, hardly an example of smart growth or new urbanism.

Worst of all, the loss of this gas station will leave only 2 Liberty stations and the expensive Exxon at Old Georgetown Road and Auburn Avenue. To get a sense of the potential impact on public safety and transportation, consider that this Shell station alone sold out of gas during two different weather events in the last few years.

Grosvenor Place forest should be replaced by 46 townhomes, MoCo planners say (Photo)

A green forest in the Grosvenor area of Bethesda could be replaced by 46 luxury townhomes, if the Montgomery County Planning Board follows a staff recommendation at its June 25 meeting. That approval would require an easement and forest conservation plan, tree removal mitigation, picnic and sitting areas, bike racks and noise testing and disclosure to prospective homeowners.

Potential layout of
the future townhomes
(click to enlarge)
Top two images via
Montgomery County
Planning Department

That noise issue is related to the site's location directly adjacent to Interstate 270. Planners are recommending the developer be required to insulate the townhomes against highway noise, and warn buyers about that noise.

Planners suggested the existing townhome community to the north, Grosvenor Park, plat its unplatted property, but the Grosvenor Park HOA declined.

Finally, 7 of the townhomes would be set aside as affordable housing units.

Alan Sternstein, head of the Grosvenor Park HOA, said planners should require guest parking to be provided on-site for guests of the future townhome development, and expressed concern about the clearing of the trees generating additional highway noise for his community.

I thought it was intriguing that another nearby resident wrote a letter in support of the project, arguing that the development would "activate the highly underutilized wooded area along Grosvenor Place." It's rare to hear someone argue cutting down a wooded area is enhancing the neighborhood, or seek to "activate" natural green space. It's also novel and new to forget that trees are natural air pollution filters that improve air quality.

Here are some images of the apparently-offending forest:

"Please, clearcut this forest
to improve our neighborhood!"

What would Captain Planet say?

Starbucks renovations underway on Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda (Photos)

Renovations that will keep the Starbucks closed at 7140 Wisconsin Avenue today and tomorrow were already underway yesterday. After the store closed early at 5:00 PM, a construction crew swung into action. They will reopen with limited hours on Wednesday and Thursday. Don't worry, things will get back to normal in a venti way on Friday.

Outdoor seating installed at the Flats at Bethesda Avenue (Photos)

Pottery Barn opened ten days ago in the ground floor retail space in the Flats at Bethesda Avenue apartments. But with its first eatery, PAUL Bakery, scheduled to debut June 22, the race is on to provide the basic amenities in the public areas outside the development.

To that end, workers were installing seating out front on the ample sidewalk Sunday. PAUL Bakery plans to have 20 seats of its own on its outdoor terrace when it opens. Still on the way at the Flats are new restaurant concept Silver, and salad palace Chopt.

The benches were well-selected, as the design and color fit perfectly with the railings and steps already in place there. Now if somebody can just power wash away the Quikrete powder on the sidewalks around the property that's messing up everybody's shoes there, and by the trailside entrance to the Capital Crescent Garage...

Weapon arrest near NIH, assault at Grosvenor Metro + more - Bethesda crime update

Here's a roundup of crimes reported across Bethesda on June 12, according to crime data:

Assault. 10300 block Grosvenor Place at 9:38 AM.

Theft from vehicle. 7600 block Old Georgetown Road.

Theft. CVS Pharmacy (Arlington Road).

Weapon arrest. Rockville Pike at Center Drive (NIH/Walter Reed area).

Theft. Grosvenor Metro station.

Vehicle burglary. Sangamore Court.

Theft. Lord & Taylor (White Flint Mall).

Vehicle burglary. 5500 block Security Lane (Pike District).

Theft. 7100 block Democracy Boulevard.

Theft from vehicle. 5300 block Tuckerman Lane.

Assault. 11500 block Rockville Pike at 2:39 PM.

Theft. 11500 block Cushman Road.

Theft. 12000 block Shagbark Drive.

Theft from vehicle. 6100 block Montrose Road.

Firefighter finds radio signal problems in Bethesda Metro station

At least one Montgomery County firefighter experienced radio signal difficulties in the Bethesda Metro station early Sunday morning, when county fire and rescue personnel responded to a report of an arcing insulator in a tunnel near the station. The issue was discussed in scanner reports during the incident. After Metro advised MCFRS that WMATA maintenance crews could handle the situation, firefighters immediately conducted a radio test in the area where the radio problems occurred.

Asked via radio by a supervisor where the signal trouble areas were, a firefighter replied, "Top of the escalator, all the way down to the bottom. And then the walk from the bottom of the escalator to the kiosk was intermittent."

The firefighter was asked to ride down the escalator again while using the radio. Scanner communications picked up the following two audible comments during the test:

"Do you copy me riding the escalator?"
"Middle of the escalator 1-2-3-4-5."

This is the first radio problem in the Bethesda station I have heard discussed publicly. A MCFRS Battalion Chief, Michael Baltrotsky, reported radio blind spots in the Glenmont and Forest Glen stations on the Red Line in a personnel memo in late January, according to the Washington Post. Metro reportedly fixed another radio problem in the Wheaton station around the same time, NBC4 reported on February 2.

The radio problems have often been blamed on failures of the amplifiers within the underground Metro system, that are supposed to relay the signals.

Disorder on Cordell Avenue, liquor arrest on Bradley Lane + more - Bethesda crime update

Here's a roundup of crimes reported across Bethesda on June 11, according to crime data:

Vehicle burglary. 4900 block Cordell Avenue.

Disorderly conduct. 4900 block Cordell Avenue.

Theft. 7100 block Bethesda Lane (Bethesda Row).

Theft. 5500 block Cornish Road (Bradley Hills).

Liquor arrest. 4000 block Bradley Lane.

Theft. 6100 block Connecticut Avenue.

Theft. 5300 block Western Avenue.

Vehicle burglary. 9600 block Singleton Drive (Wyngate).

Vehicle burglary. 10200 block Grosvenor Place.

Vehicle burglary. 6200 block Wilmett Place (Hendry Estates).

Vehicle burglary. 11400 block Rokeby Avenue (Garrett Park).

Drug arrest. Outer Loop of Beltway at River Road.

Theft. Westfield Montgomery Mall.

Drug arrest. 5900 block Montrose Parkway (Pike District).

Zoom Room closes in the Pike District of North Bethesda (Photos)

Zoom Room, a dog training studio that opened 18 months ago in the condominiums across from Pike & Rose on Rockville Pike, has closed. The studio was located in The Sterling at The Metro condo building.

Zoom Room appeared to have been a success for its clients, who gave high marks to the business on multiple online review platforms. Apparently, enthusiastic customers and canines were not enough to sustain the viability of the business.

The owners say they won't be accepting new clients at this point, except for private training.

Peet's Coffee & Tea opens at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda (Photos)

After a long delay, Peet's Coffee & Tea has opened at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. It is located near bebe and Talbots on Level 1, in the Sears wing of the mall.

While Peet's is a kiosk, it does have seating available, as well as spots to work on your laptop - which customers were already taking advantage of on Saturday.

Not only is the kiosk new, but they are also offering two new iced coffee drinks right now, Cold Brew and The Black Tie.

This is Peet's second Bethesda location, with the other being in downtown Bethesda at Old Georgetown Road and Woodmont Avenue. Peet's took over several locations of Caribou Coffee in the area last year, after both chains were controlled by the same ownership.

Arcing insulator in Metro tunnel near Bethesda station

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue personnel have responded to a report of smoke in the Metro subway tunnel between Friendship Heights and Bethesda. Operations are now centered on the Bethesda station, as firefighters try to work with Metro personnel to investigate.

One firefighter on scanner broadcasts said that Montgomery County personnel are receiving "conflicting reports from Metro" regarding the location or source of the smoke. Around 1:45 AM, he said Metro had sent a train down Track 1, and had confirmed "they have an arcing insulator at...Norwood."

Fire personnel appeared to be taking a careful approach to the situation. Firefighter 1 said they were responding as a "good intent only" call. He advised personnel to "open up the shaft," but warned them, "you are not to [garbled] into the shaft."

A second firefighter reported back to him a short while later that they had opened the unspecified shaft in question. "There is no smoke in this shaft," he advised. Firefighter 1 asked, "Just to reiterate, you did not enter the shaft?" "We did not enter the shaft," Firefighter 2 responded.

Firefighter 1 reported minutes later that Metro had a maintenance crew on the way. "We're in a holding pattern," he said.

Metro was already single-tracking between Grosvenor and Bethesda at the time of the incident. Metro personnel told firefighters the reason for that was maintenance work, according to scanner reports.

After a delay, Firefighter 1 explained, "the holdup is, a track walker is walking to the event."

Westlake Park condos, iPic Theaters evacuated in Bethesda

The Westlake Park condominium building was briefly evacuated late this afternoon, as Montgomery County firefighters responded to an apparent false alarm at the Bethesda building.

Around the same time, the iPic Theaters at Pike & Rose were evacuated due to smoke. There was no fire emergency, MCFRS spokesperson Pete Piringer reports. The source, he says, was a "theatrical smoke" device.

R SB lane of Wisconsin Ave. closed in downtown Bethesda from Bethesda Ave.-Woodmont

Southbound Wisconsin Avenue is open in downtown Bethesda this afternoon, and the crane-related closure and detours are not in effect. However, the right lane is closed southbound between Bethesda Avenue and Woodmont Avenue for underground utility work.

Willow Garden summer concert series in Bethesda (Photos)

More and more public spaces, or quasi-public spaces, are hosting concert series this summer in downtown Bethesda. The latest I stumbled across is the Willow Garden summer concert series at lunchtime on Wednesdays, from noon-2:00 PM.

Presented by Guardian Realty in the Willow Garden Theater at the Bethesda Gateway Building at 7201 Wisconsin Avenue and Willow Lane, the series will run through Wednesday, September 16. Don't worry if you missed earlier acts The James Bazen Project and Chuggalug - they will have encore performances later in the series this September.

Full schedule
(click to enlarge)

Very nice venue for
an outdoor concert

Drug bust on Cedar Lane, theft from vehicle on Westbard Ave. + more - Bethesda crime update

Here's a roundup of crimes reported across Bethesda on June 10, according to crime data:

Drug arrest. East-West Highway at Connecticut Avenue.

Drug arrest. Cedar Lane at Chanute Drive.

Theft from vehicle. 5400 block Westbard Avenue at 8:50 AM.

Theft. 10600 block Montrose Avenue at 4:31 PM.

Theft. 5400 block Randolph Road (Pike District).

Tesla Bethesda Lane pop-up now official (Photos)

Tesla Motors has now announced the Tesla Model S display on Bethesda Lane is an official "pop-up" Tesla store for the summer. The display, which includes information and an actual Model S, will have set hours daily.

Official listing of the
Bethesda Row pop-up
on Tesla Motors' website

It should be noted that this is small-scale compared to more elaborate Tesla pop-ups coming to resort cities this summer. Those are often like tents with more of a showroom-style display on the walls inside.

Pow! Oof! 3 assaults in 1 hour in Bethesda, theft at Westland MS + more - Bethesda crime update

Here's a roundup of crimes reported across Bethesda on June 9, according to crime data:

Assault. 7300 block Wisconsin Avenue at 2:04 PM.

Assault with deadly weapon. 5500 block Massachusetts Avenue at 1:50 PM.

Drug arrest. Wisconsin Avenue at Middleton Lane.

Vehicle burglary. 7000 block Arlington Road.

Assault. 7000 block Clarendon Road at 2:51 PM (Edgemoor).

Theft. 5400 block Wisconsin Avenue.

Theft. Bloomingdale's.

Theft. Westland Middle School.

Vehicle burglary. 10300 block Strathmore Hall Street.

Burglary. 2700 block Daniel Road at 6:22 PM (Chevy Chase).

Assault. 11500 block Rockville Pike (Pike District).

Assault. 7100 block Democracy Boulevard at 11:38 AM.

Vehicle burglary. 5900 block Executive Boulevard (Pike District).

"Other sexual offense." E. Jefferson Street at Montrose Road.

Wisconsin Ave. Bethesda Starbucks to undergo renovations next week

The Starbucks at 7140 Wisconsin Avenue will get the same makeover next week as the 7700 Norfolk Avenue store recently did. That means a brief closure, and limited hours other days. Most notably, the store will be entirely closed this coming Monday and Tuesday, June 15-16. Here is the special schedule for the week:

Sunday, June 14: 6 AM - 5 PM

Monday: CLOSED

Tuesday: CLOSED

Wednesday: 5 AM - 5 PM

Thursday: 5 AM - 5 PM

Friday, June 19: Return to normal hours

Starbucks has a third location at 4520 East-West Highway nearby, as well.

East West Tae Kwon Do opening at Westwood Center II in Bethesda (Photos)

Equity One has come up with a tenant for the space vacated by Mostly Monograms at Westwood Center II, located on Ridgefield Road in Bethesda. East West Tae Kwon Do will be opening a dojang there in the near future. Taekwondo is Korean in origin, despite sometimes being confused with the Japanese karate I studied as a child.

East West does not require you to sign contracts, meaning you can cancel without obligation at any point. The school, which has 2 other locations currently, is headed by Master Parshotam Sharma, a teacher of over 27 years.