Bethesda Boards crowdfunding The Alley pub

The owner of Bethesda Boards is reaching out to the community for financial support to help fully realize the vision for The Alley, a pub, live music venue and event space at the skateboard shop, located at 7900 Woodmont Avenue. Raising $35,000 would facilitate construction of two ADA-compliant restrooms, and electrical and plumbing upgrades, which are all necessary to receive approval from Montgomery County Department of Permitting Services inspectors. The GoFundMe account has brought in $920 as of this writing. Owner Kaare Wieneke says the project "has proven to be more challenging and costly than initially expected. We find ourselves at a pivotal moment, requiring additional support to bring this vision fully to life."

Signage installed for The Alley pub at Bethesda Boards

Exterior signage for The Alley, the new pub and live music venue at Bethesda Boards at 7900 Woodmont Avenue, was installed yesterday. Music and comedy events have already been held at The Alley. The shop applied for a liquor license from Montgomery County for the pub. The venue can also be rented for private events.

Bethesda Boards mural expands as new music venue nears debut (Photos)

The new mural at Bethesda Boards at 7900 Woodmont Avenue is getting bigger. An artist has been working on the expanded public art piece on the Woodmont side of the building in recent days. Bethesda Boards is also close to opening its new music venue inside the business. If all goes well, live music could begin as soon as this week. Stay tuned!

New mural project underway at Bethesda Boards (Photos)

Bethesda Boards is just dominating the news in Bethesda this weekend. Yesterday, I reported about their liquor license application. Later in the day, an artist was working on a new mural outside the building, which is located at 7900 Woodmont Avenue. The mural includes an airborne skater, which never fails to bring back memories of one of the great video games of all time: "Skate or die! Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!"

Bethesda Boards applies for liquor license from Montgomery County

Bethesda Boards, the skateboard shop and event space at 7900 Woodmont Avenue in downtown Bethesda, is seeking the ability to serve beer and wine. It has applied for a liquor license from Montgomery County. A hearing on the license request has been scheduled for September 21, 2023 at 10:00 AM. Terrapin Bicycles, also located in the Woodmont Triangle neighborhood, last year became the first bike shop in Montgomery County to receive a liquor license. Perhaps Bethesda Boards will be the first skate shop to do so.

Bethesda Scooters and Boards moves over to new spot (Photos)

The most controversial sign in downtown Bethesda history has moved...next door. Bethesda Scooters and Boards' skateboard sign is now above its new storefront at 7900 Woodmont Avenue. Paper is over the windows at the shop's original location at 4825 Fairmont Avenue. In addition to what they had before, the new space also boasts an indoor skate park, and a concert stage for live music.

Skate or Die!!!

Bethesda Scooters and Boards taking over ARC Document Solutions space next door

Bethesda Scooters and Boards at 4825 Fairmont Avenue is in the process of taking over the space next door at 7900 Woodmont Avenue, which was vacated late last year by ARC Document Solutions. They will be adding an indoor skate park and a stage, in addition to the products and accessories sales the shop already offers. The space is larger than it appears from the street. It's great to see a local, independent business continue to thrive and expand in downtown Bethesda, especially during this extremely challenging time.

Thief steals hermit crabs from Bethesda Scooters and Boards

The pet hermit crabs at Bethesda Scooters and Boards were trying to enjoy the spring weather outdoors last Thursday, March 24, when they were snatched by an unknown thief. According to the store's owners, the crabs were inside a coconut shell in Veterans Park, which is right outside the store at 4825 Fairmont Avenue.

Whoever took the crabs, also took their "house."

If you have any information about the whereabouts of the crabs, or if you saw anything that might help identify the thief, call the store at (301) 654-7710. They are offering a reward.

Giant skateboard hovering over Bethesda again (Video+photos)

The giant skateboard is suspended over the storefront again at Bethesda Scooters and Boards at 4825 Fairmont Avenue. Montgomery County previously forced the store to take it down, terming the object a "sign". That joined the County's crackdown on "premature" Christmas tree lots, and a child's lemonade stand being shut down, in the annals of MoCo Nanny State history. Mysteriously, illegally-closed sidewalks and other infractions by heavy donors to Montgomery County politicians go "unnoticed."

This time the shop is playing by the rules, and has a Montgomery County sign permit on display.

The return of this yesterday made me think of the old Sunshine House on Cordell Avenue, another lost piece of Old Bethesda.

BETHESDA VETERANS DAY COMMEMORATION (PHOTOS)

The annual dedication of wreaths on Veterans Day at downtown Bethesda's Veterans Park Tuesday saw several community groups and organizations once again represented in the park. Groups participating included the Kiwanis Club, Rotary Club, the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Chamber of Commerce, and Bethesda Urban Partnership.

Veterans Park neighbor
Bethesda Scooters and Boards
joined in the patriotic display

SKATE OR DIE! GIANT SKATEBOARD CATCHES AIR ON BETHESDA BUILDING (PHOTOS)

A giant skateboard appeared this weekend in downtown Bethesda, suspended in mid-flight by Veterans Park, installed above the storefront of Bethesda Scooters and Boards. The shop is technically at 4825 Fairmont Avenue, for USPS and GPS purposes. But in reality, it is accessed from Norfolk or Woodmont Avenues, in the building facing Veterans Park near BGR and Jetties.

The giant trucks caught in perpetual mid-air spin also caught a lot of attention from passersby. Bethesda Scooters and Boards moved to this permanent location after starting a pop-up shop in the recently-demolished retail center that held Foong Lin.

SCOOTERS ARRIVE AT BETHESDA SCOOTERS AND BOARDS AHEAD OF MARCH 1 OPENING (PHOTOS)

The scooters have arrived, and are lined up in the storefront window at Bethesda Scooters and Boards on Fairmont Avenue.

March 1 is the date the store's owners have targeted for the grand opening, as you can see on the large signs in the window. Duh!

BETHESDA SCOOTERS AND BOARDS REOPENING 6 MONTHS EARLY (PHOTOS)

Bethesda Scooters and Boards has pulled off a December Surprise.

When their pop-up shop on Norfolk Avenue closed last August, the owners vowed to reopen in a new Bethesda location for summer 2013.

But they've now signed a lease for the former Natura Interiors space at Fairmont Avenue and Veterans Park.

BSB could open any day, as they can set up and break down their inventory very quickly.

BETHESDA SCOOTERS AND BOARDS VOWS TO OPEN AGAIN NEXT SUMMER

Bethesda Scooters and Boards, a pop-up shop that operated over the summer on Norfolk Avenue, is closing its doors.

But maybe not forever.  In a message posted to customers "and their pets" (a dish of dog treats remained out front Monday, evidence of the shop's dog-friendly policy), BSB concluded, "see you next summer."

It's certainly likely there will be another "in-limbo" storefront slated for demolition, but ready to house a pop-up shop for a few months, next summer in Old Town Bethesda.

BSB was a novel shop at the right time, when municipalities like Ocean City, MD are revisiting their skateboard and longboard policies, in light of the current trends of alternative transportation.

BETHESDA SCOOTERS AND BOARDS TO CLOSE ITS DOORS IN 2 WEEKS

It seems my hunch that Bethesda Scooters and Boards was just a pop-up shop has been proven correct.  The store will close in 2 weeks.  They're having a closeout sale in the meantime.

Other nearby tenants were already being forced out by JBG, which is developing a new building at the corner of Norfolk and Fairmont Avenues.

The major problem with the JBG building - which relative to some of the really bad projects recently approved in the Woodmont Triangle, is actually a fairly good one - is that the ground floor is currently not going to have restaurants, bars or shops to activate the two streets fronting it after business hours.  One would hope that this could be addressed, in light of neighborhood concerns that this will not achieve the desired revitalization goals for those blocks of Norfolk and Fairmont.

How about a Las Vegas-style, upscale nightclub?  Or a Great American Restaurant Co. brand like Coastal Flats?

C-list celebrity hosts, and the world's best bread basket, can solve the "Berlin Wall" problem that project currently portends for the future.

BETHESDA SCOOTERS AND BOARDS OPENS ON NORFOLK AVENUE

SKATE OR DIE!

Another Robert Dyer @ Bethesda Row Exclusive!!!

Adrenaline junkies have a new friend on Norfolk Avenue, across from Veterans Park.  Bethesda Scooters and Boards has opened in the old Lulu Florist space at 7710-A Norfolk Avenue.  What they're selling is just what you'd expect from the name: scooters and skateboards.

Bethesda Scooters and Boards has the potential to become a fixture in the community.

That's because they are selling wheels that are designed for the urban-suburban landscape.

Whether you live to shred on the halfpipe, or want a less expensive motorized vehicle to navigate the clogged streets of downtown Bethesda, Bethesda Scooters and Boards is the place to go.

When I stopped by Tuesday, they had a colorful assortment of scooters lined up outside.  As you can tell from the photo, they're sporty and stylish vehicles.

For the skaters, they have just gotten their first shipment in.  You can see some of it around the store in the photos.

They've got parts and decks for the serious skater to build his or her own board.

Here's a list of what they just got in:

50cc & 80cc Scooters and Modified Chopper Bikes By Chuck

Skateboarding:

Santa Cruz Goddess Cruiser Complete

Anti Hero Skateboards

Girl Skateboards

Powell Peralta Boards

Baker Skateboards

Real Skateboards

Independent Trucks

Spitfire High Performance Bearings

Bones Reds Precision Skate Bearings

Wheels:  Spitfire, Ricta, Bones

Bethesda Scooters and Boards is a great and welcome addition to the downtown Bethesda community.  Stop by soon and check it out!