EASTHAM'S EXXON SITE DECONTAMINATION BEGINS (PHOTOS)

CLEANUP REQUIRED

AT BETHESDA GAS

STATION TO REZONE

LAND FOR

RESIDENTIAL USE

Another Robert Dyer @ Bethesda Row Exclusive

Developers wasted no time in hiring a decontamination crew for the former Eastham's Exxon site on Wisconsin Avenue.  A battalion of trucks entered the fenced-off property in downtown Bethesda Thursday.

Triumvirate Environmental is the firm in charge of any necessary decontamination, tank inspection and removal, and soil remediation at the Eastham's site.

Eastham's closed forever Monday, as the developer was unwilling to extend a lease allowing continued operation as a service center.  The swift boot by the developer, and the nearly-immediate launch of the decontamination process, strongly suggest the new owners intend to begin construction of their luxury residential building as soon as possible.

SUMNER PLACE, WESTWOOD CENTER II LIKELY SITES FOR SECOND BETHESDA POST OFFICE

The second big postal story yesterday was the announcement that USPS is seeking space for a post office in the 20816 zip code of Bethesda.

A 2000 square foot space requirement has been cited.

Place your bets on The Shops at Sumner Place first (Sangamore Road), and the Westwood Center II (Ridgefield Road at River Road) as potential homes for the new post office.

Frankly, there is no other appropriate space in the zip code.

Both offer ample, free surface parking.  And both currently have vacancies.

Sumner Place has a vacancy between Starbucks and the future Passion Fin sushi restaurant.  Its largest available space is 2361 square feet, well over the 2000 requirement.  Another space is just under 2000.

Neither site is convenient for downtown Bethesda residents, but may offer some relief for senior citizens and the disabled, who have virtually no access to the new post office at 6900 Wisconsin Avenue.

Both sites are also accessible via Ride On Bus 23 (Friendship Heights Metro to Sibley Hospital).  And both are adjacent to apartment communities.

The 20816 post office won't solve the downtown Bethesda post office fiasco, but that part of Bethesda would certainly benefit from the convenience.