The new apartment tower at 7340 Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Bethesda has apparently been branded as The Charles. It is currently rising on the site of a former Exxon gas station. The retail space in the ground level is being marketed as a potential restaurant location, with kitchen venting installed. That would be a positive development if realized.
When completed, the building will hold 310 residential units. Developer Greystar anticipates the first residents moving in during Q4 2025, and delivery of the completed project in early 2026.
18 comments:
Nice looking tower! At last we no longer need to see that vacant gas station. I hope the neighboring property on the block is at least cleaned up and painted, and even leased up for the short term. I would hate to slowly watch the former Tommy Joe’s slowly continue to crumble next to a shiny new mixed-use building.
The approved mixed-use retail, apartment and office tower is likely many years from starting up. Perhaps they will change the office part to become condos and proceed with construction.
At last, apartments and space for another restaurant. Those are just what's been missing to Make Bethesda Great Again.
Bethesda has become the summer residence of old farts who live in Naples or Vero. This sucks!
I wonder where will they find tenants who can afford to pay the rent.
These new luxury apartments are usually 95% leased up after being open for a bit!
7:01 PM, what sucks about this, or do you prefer a vacant gas station site, covered in weeds? Bethesda has about 500 shops, cafes and restaurants within the downtown area. Not sure what folks are complaining about this project….Bethesda is indeed a pretty great place.
3:06AM - I'd be interested to see vacancy rates and real average rents paid.
For all of the new apartment buildings constructed the past decade in downtown Bethesda, there aren't more people in the restaurants or bars. I can't say foot traffic is up around town.
On a Saturday or Sunday, the downtown is downright earily empty. If the apartments are full, there'd be folks lining up to get into bars and the sunday farmers market.
It all points to Apartments being held empty or used as corporate housing/Airbnb. Those folks skew weekday.
Meanwhile, no significant new entertainment options to draw people in. Wheaton Plaza has a better movie theater, for example.
It's a shame that the old Pines of Rome and Tommy Joe's (Durty Nelly's way back when) and other sites weren't able to be included.
As 12:14pm observed, the tenants of these new towers don’t seem to be impacting local businesses much. Of course this makes sense, since they are part-time residents who dine at their country clubs when in town and already maintain at least 2 residences. Moreover, as legal residents of other locales they pay no Maryland income, estate, or other taxes. We get left with a hollowed out CBD. 😕
Great, 10% more section 8 people added to the area right across the street from a CVS where I watched a perp running away with 2 12 packs of toilet tissue almost got run over by a cement mixer before making his way to the Metro elevator on the way to jump the faregates with his ill-gotten booty!
@12:04 PM: I'm curious where that 95% rate you cite is from. I've seen much lower occupancy rates (<50%), especially for "exclusive" high-rise buildings. Plus, occupancy rates when buildings first open are often higher due to incentives/special offers than after a building has been around for a while. Thnx.
I don't imagine Marco has any complaints about relocating Pines to its current digs. As far as I'm concerned, the original Hampden Lane location was vastly superior to his place on Cordell, both for atmosphere and for quality of food. But his "new," vastly smaller footprint must certainly cost less to run than did that sprawling warren he originally maintained. These days, whenever I go to Pines, the place is jumping, and chances are great of seeing the owner not frantically running to and fro as he did before the relocation, but rather at his leisure, dining with a coterie in attendance, looking to all the world like a pasha, with no care in the world. You and I may miss the original Pines, @3:58, but judging from what I see of him, I suspect the restaurant's owner is best pleased with his move to the Triangle.
What an insane story you've completely made up in your head about an apartment building that hasn't even been completed yet.
12:04 PM You sound like the realtor trying to paint a rosy picture.
7:01 PM Come and smell the roses!
3:06: I notice the same things. A few restaurants look busy. Most are empty-ish. To get more people out, you need to find a reason for folks bother looking for a parking place or walk over from metro. One good thing is Wonderland Books was busy when I went.
Any building branded "Charles", should only be allowed in Baltimore City.
Wonderland Books looks to be a keeper.
No surprise given Bethesda has one of the most educated populations in the country.
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