Barry's coming soon to downtown Bethesda

Barry's, the fitness chain formerly known as Barry's Bootcamp, is expanding to downtown Bethesda. It will be in the ground floor of The Elm apartment tower at 4710 Elm Street. Barry's offers high-intensity interval training (HIIT) with 50% treadmill cardio and 50% strength training in their signature red-lit facility. I've heard a lot of positive things about Barry's from people who are members at their Washington, D.C. locations, so this should be a nice addition, especially for residents of The Elm, Hampden House, and The Charles.

Fire at The Elm apartment tower in Bethesda (Photos)

UPDATE - 7:48 PM: MCFRS spokesperson Pete Piringer reports the cause was a malfunctioning microwave, and that there is no further fire or smoke present in the building.

Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service personnel are responding to a fire at an apartment tower in downtown Bethesda. Around 7:00 PM this evening, a fire was reported in a unit on the 9th floor of the The Elm at 4710 Elm Street, one of the tallest residential buildings in Montgomery County. A ladder could be seen extending to an upper floor. The fire started in the kitchen of the apartment, MCFRS spokesperson Pete Piringer said. 

No injuries have been reported so far. More than a dozen units are at the scene. It's concerning that the years-long extended closure of Elm Street at Wisconsin Avenue hampers full ease of access to the building by emergency vehicles. This could be problematic in a major emergency event.

Wooden pedestrian walkway installed on Elm Street alongside The Wilson, The Elm in Bethesda (Photos)

Elm Street remains closed at the west side of Wisconsin Avenue, as it has been since January 2017. As the new construction contractor for the Purple Line light rail project gears up to resume work on Elm, a new pedestrian elevated walkway has been constructed from Wisconsin down Elm alongside The Wilson and The Elm. 

Crews will be working on the Purple Line Bethesda station underneath those two buildings, and on the access points for Purple Line and southern entrance to the Bethesda Metro Red Line station on Elm Street. In other Purple Line news, crews are scheduled to resume erection of sound barriers along the railway's route in the vicinity of East-West Highway, working from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM seven days a week as necessary.

Staircase opens at The Elm in Bethesda (Photos)

The "Star Wars staircase" seen in one of my previous construction updates from 7272 Wisconsin Avenue is now open to the public. It leads from Wisconsin Avenue up to The Elm apartment tower. But it will be used by pedestrians and rail commuters in the coming decades, as well as residents of the apartments. For those with more than a cursory knowledge of Star Wars, the stairs evoke the lighted stairway from the iconic lightsaber duel between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader on Cloud City in The Empire Strikes Back.

A view of the Skybridge at The Wilson/The Elm in Bethesda (Photos)

Here's a view of the Skybridge that connects The Wilson and The Elm at 7272 Wisconsin Avenue at the 28th floor, as seen from the Bethesda Metro Center. The Skybridge is a common area that features a bar, a lounge, a fully-equipped catering kitchen, private dining rooms, and sweeping views of the D.C. region.

New fence erected at The Elm in Bethesda

A new, wooden fence has been erected around part of the 7272 Wisconsin Avenue/Purple Line/Bethesda Metro south entrance construction site. Leasing continues at The Elm apartment tower.

The Elm now leasing up to 16th floor in downtown Bethesda

Leasing continues to expand at The Elm apartment tower at 4710 Elm Street in Bethesda. Tours are now available for units up to the 16th floor. Current rent pricing is as follows: Studios starting at $1,880, 1-bedrooms starting at $2,338, 2-bedrooms starting at $3,303, and townhomes starting at $5380. The property will continue to be surrounded by construction even after the 7272 Wisconsin project is completed, as work continues on the Purple Line station and new south entrance to the Bethesda Metro station at the site.

Lighted sign installed at The Elm in Bethesda + a look at Elm Street today (Photos)

A lighted sign for The Elm has been attached to the new downtown Bethesda apartment tower, facing Wisconsin Avenue for maximum exposure. However, it is modest in size in proportion to the building. Last night, it was lit up. The Elm is located at 4710 Elm Street. Meanwhile, most of Elm Street remains closed between Wisconsin and Woodmont Avenue.

First walkaround at The Wilson/The Elm in Bethesda (Video+Photos)

The removal of more construction fencing has opened up the opportunity to take the first walkaround of the new Carr Propoerties development, 7272 Wisconsin Avenue. A guard is now on-duty in The Wilson office tower lobby. Now, for the first time, we can also see The Elm's lobby. And take a stroll on the outdoor plaza at the corner of Wisconsin and Elm.