Hawkers applies for liquor license at Bethesda Row

Hawkers Asian Street Fare has applied for a Montgomery County liquor license for its future Bethesda Row location. A hearing on their application has been scheduled for December 19 at 11:30 AM. But judging from the current absence of construction inside the former Redwood space on Bethesda Lane, Hawkers won't be opening any day soon. Even December 20 sounds like a stretch at this point.

MoCo Council approves budget-busting developer-backed housing scheme

The Montgomery County Council quietly adopted a developer-backed regional housing scheme in a unanimous vote Wednesday. A vote that received little attention from the local media, and was preceded by no public process to promote taxpayer buy-in. Why was that? Probably because the plan, along with the almost-certain Kirwan Commission spending increases ahead, is likely to bankrupt Montgomery County and lead to massive future tax hikes. And because each of the nine councilmembers has accepted thousands of dollars from their developer sugar daddies.

Only the Council itself appeared eager to brag about its vote in a press release yesterday. But braggadocio doesn't substitute for mathematics aptitude nor budgeting skill, as the Council's annual structural budget deficit proves. The Council just put you, the taxpayer, on the hook for a massive spending increase - in education, social services, police and fire, health care, and developer tax giveaways - even as they (presumably?) know there's no way in hell future councils will be able to pay for it.

What does approving the developer-backed Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments' "regional housing targets" actually mean? It obligates Montgomery County to build 23000+ new housing units for low and middle-income residents by 2030, in addition to those already planned. The County Council couldn't even be honest about that in the press release, which falsely claimed the number as 10,000 additional low-income units.

The initiative sounds good, and like most developer initiatives, it's meant to. The reality is, the scheme is all about developer profits, and taxpayers will be left holding the bag.

MWCOG itself predicts that 75% of the new residents coming to Montgomery County by 2030 will be low or mid-income residents. That not only means they will contribute little in tax revenue to the county, but that spending will have to skyrocket to provide the services and infrastructure such a population surge would require.

This would be difficult enough of a fiscal equation to square - massive new spending, with only 25% of the new residents able to shoulder the huge costs. But then you look at the bigger picture, and the alarm bells really start going off.

Montgomery County's moribund economy, job creation, business starts, and business growth are all rock-bottom in the regional rankings this decade. Despite record-high tax rates and tax hikes, revenue is actually declining, even as the County Council continues to spend more. Many of the ultra-wealthy have fled Montgomery County to lower-tax jurisdictions in our region, taking huge chunks of revenue that used to balance the County budget with them. Greater spending, fewer revenue-generating residents...it simply doesn't add up, no matter what brand of calculator you use.

Then you look at the debt and cost obligations of the County. The bond rating agencies have already criticized the current Council's budgetary dirty tricks, which have failed to adequately fund government retiree health benefits, for example. Our councilmembers might be shocked to learn that even governments have to pay their bills. How such incompetent people were allowed to take power is a sad commentary on the sham, Soviet-style 2018 election, which had no general election debates or local media coverage of the County Council races. Joseph Stalin would be proud.

Debt is skyrocketing. If the County's current debt was a department, it would be the third-largest department in the County budget. The last thing a sane elected official would do in that situation is agree to a massive spending increase.

Finally, there's the coming budgetary atomic bomb: The Kirwan Commission. Kirwan is the biggest threat to the County's fiscal health since the state threatened to make the County pay more toward teacher pensions earlier this decade.

Kirwan is proposing astronomical amounts of new education spending, with no appreciable change in the actual curriculum or methods. Spending on education has already been jacked up year after year by the Council, to no avail. Test scores and graduation rates continue to decline, while the achievement gap remains the same or worsens.

Spending hikes proposed by the Kirwan Commission would literally be flushing good money after bad down the MCPS toilet. Money isn't the problem at MCPS. And don't forget, the maintenance-of-effort-on-steroids law adopted by Maryland will require us to maintain that level of spending into the future. There is no escape once these spending increases are approved.

Taken together, the housing targets adoption and the Council's rabid desire to adopt the Kirwan recommendations on the backs of the taxpayers, have placed Montgomery County on an accelerated course to fiscal oblivion. We can't go on like this.

Yuzu space in Bethesda being marketed for lease

The space currently home to Japanese restaurant Yuzu at 7345 Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda is being marketed for lease. According to an online listing, the 3175 SF restaurant space is available for $45 per square foot, but that rate is negotiable. Yuzu remains in business at this location.

Details on sale of Clark Enterprises building at Bethesda Metro Center

The recent sale of Clark Enterprises' 7500 Old Georgetown Road office tower went through on October 2, and now we know a few more details about this major transaction. It was already known that Bethesda-based StonebridgeCarras was the purchaser. Maryland real estate records now reveal the official purchaser is a Stonebridge shell company, Bethesda Office Owner, LLC. That company was only created on August 30 of this year, according to state business records.

Maryland state records indicate Bethesda Office Owner, LLC is a "foreign LLC," which means it was formed in one state but intends to do business in another state. The sale price for the Clark building was not publicly disclosed when announced late this past summer. Now the records show it was a whopping $133,750,000 for a structure Bisnow reports was previously assessed at $75,500,000.

Stonebridge is expected to extensively renovate the building, which was constructed in 1984.

Matchbox packs up outdoor seating for the year

It's cold and getting colder in Bethesda, as winter makes an early arrival in the MidAtlantic region. While excitement for the holidays is building, there are downsides, such as temperatures not suited for outdoor patio dining. Matchbox is one of the first restaurants around Bethesda Row to pack up the furniture and call it a year for al fresco dining. Interestingly, the outdoor seating doesn't go into a storeroom - it's being trucked away for off-site storage until spring.

What's new at Amazon Books at Bethesda Row (Photos)

When Amazon Books unexpectedly closed its doors for "updates" at Bethesda Row in late October, the question on everyone's minds was, for what? Now that the store reopened over the weekend, I have the answers. According to an Amazon employee, the primary changes were to enlarge the tech section of the store - including the Ring security products display, the WiFi signal is improved, books have been moved further out, and the magazine section is now a wall display.

Nationals victory fever leaves Bethesda Bryce Harper de-faced

A Bryce Harper display outside a Bethesda wellness spa endorsed by the all-star athlete has been "de-faced," following his former team's World Series victory. The giant poster on the storefront of Ninotch at 8301 Wisconsin Avenue now has a "World Champions...And now we dance" radio station placard slapped over Harper's face.

For those living under a rock for the last year, Harper enraged many Washington Nationals fans when he chose to sign with the rival Philadelphia Phillies in pursuit of a World Series title. But over the course of the remarkable Nationals season, that rage slowly turned to schadenfreude as Harper and his Phillies' fortunes headed south. while the Nats ultimately grabbed the prize Harper wanted all along.

Ninotch founder and former Nationals head massage therapist Tatiana Tchamouroff told the City Paper last spring that she had no intention of taking down the Harper images at her Bethesda and Tysons spas despite the outfielder decamping to Philly. The poster notes Harper has been a client since 2011, and Tchamouroff said the player's endorsement helps emphasize the sports therapy services Ninotch offers.

Potomac construction update: Playa Bowls (Photos)

Playa Bowls is getting closer to opening at Cabin John Village shopping center in Potomac. Here's a look at the construction progress.

Luxury Beauty & Nails coming to Montgomery Mall in Bethesda

There will soon be a new salon option at Westfield Montgomery Mall in Bethesda. Luxury Beauty & Nails will open for the holidays next to Candy World on Level 2, in the Dining Terrace area. Speaking of the holidays, this is always the most wonderful time of the year at the mall, as they gear up for Black Friday and Christmas. Expect to see seasonal stores and pop-up kiosks open again.

First to return is perennial retailer Sheepskin Gifts & Alpaca Too. Warm and comfortable winter clothing from Peru is their specialty. Find them this year next to the Apple Store and Madewell on Level 2. Just look for this guy:

The Riggsby to take over Kapnos Kouzina space at Bethesda Row

A source tells me celebrity chef Michael Schlow will take over the vacant Kapnos Kouzina space at 4900 Hampden Lane at Bethesda Row. He is expected to open a new Bethesda outpost of his Dupont Circle restaurant, The Riggsby. Schlow already operates the fast-casual Prima right next door.

Last April, I was told by a different source that The Riggsby would be the tenant here. It makes sense that Schlow's restaurant group would have waited to first successfully launch Prima before turning attention to the sit-down Riggsby next door. Michael Schlow Restaurant Group describes the Riggsby concept as retro-American, "with a flash of old-school Continental."

AOTA sells Bethesda HQ

The American Occupational Therapy Association has sold its Bethesda headquarters at 4720 Montgomery Lane to Washington Property Company. AOTA announced its intention to sell the building last year, stating at the time it planned to complete a sale by the end of 2020. The deal went through October 2, 2019, according to Maryland real estate records.

A shell company, Hampden Lane Project, LLC, is the official purchaser. The sale price was $22 million. WPC is now in the catbird seat. It can redevelop the AOTA site. It can assemble the AOTA property with the WPC headquarters building directly adjacent to it. It can assemble both of those properties with the Douglas Development property (former Pines of Rome/Tommy Joe's buildings) that is contiguous with the AOTA and WPC properties. Or it can assemble all three of those with the former Exxon station property that adjoins the Douglas property to the east, and redevelop the entire block.

Every property on this block could
potentially be assembled for redevelopment
with clear thinking by all parties involved

Redeveloping the entire block would create a site large enough to provide room for a mainstream cineplex, desperately needed to support local restaurants damaged by the demolition of the Regal Cinemas Bethesda a few years ago. It must be noted that the Exxon property is currently expected to be redeveloped as senior housing. In any case, there are a number of options to assemble a winning project on two or more of these properties.

AOTA announced earlier this year that it had already found a new headquarters. They will be moving to 6116 Executive Boulevard in North Bethesda.

Ultimate Home Design Center relocates in Bethesda

Ultimate Home Design Center, an interior and remodeling design business, has relocated in downtown Bethesda. Its 7942 Wisconsin Avenue showroom has been cleared out, and moved to 7810 Wisconsin. That is next door to 7-Eleven.

Montgomery College sends out false active shooter alert, apologizes

Montgomery College, through an electronic alert system, sent out erroneous tweets and text messages at 7:42 AM this morning falsely stating there was an "active shooter" at one of its campuses. The message included a bracketed phrase stating, "[insert campus]," (Montgomery College has three campuses). About half an hour later, the College deleted the original tweet from its Twitter account, and sent another message indicating the alert was a false alarm and apologized.

Safeway ready for winter weather in Bethesda

Winds brought December-like temperatures to Bethesda Halloween night, and the Safeway at 5000 Bradley Boulevard was thinking that far ahead with a display of winter weather supplies. Everything from deicer to salt to fireplace logs was available, even as there were many hours of Halloween left to go Thursday. Safeway isn't the only grocer getting a head start on winter; rival Giant had egg nog on shelves last weekend,