Thiss is an area of Maryland which borders Washington D.C. called "Silver Spring". It is very up and coming, and there have been construction of many high rises in the city downtown. Here are some pics:

http://www.beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/aerial01.jpg
http://www.beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/2ndave01.jpg
http://www.beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/metroctr11-1n2.jpg
http://www.beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/apts02-density.jpg
http://www.beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/discovery02.jpg
http://home.earthlink.net/~wphyilla/tracks.jpg
http://www.gazette.net/newspics/200333_citizens_s9_b_cmyk_360_548_.jpg
http://media.expedia.com/hotels/1000000/20000/15200/15156/15156_1_b.jpg

That looks really nice and clean. The buidlings are really contemporary and modern.

Cool. :)

Good ole SS'... City place is a fun little mall... Did they finish the construction on fenton street yet?

very, very nice...MORE pics of DC....PLEEEZ, we need them!!

http://www.beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/metroctr11-1n2.jpg
[IMG][/QUOTE]

OH MY GOD -- I work here --- NOAA is headquartered here ... National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration --- that is awesome...6th floor, Suite 6930 -- the AWIPS NCF for the National Weather Service

This is funny, I can see my window ;-) hee hee

Thanks for the pics

Nice pics, what's it's population. Some of the buildings look like they're out of Arlington.

The population is 50,000, and many more are starting to move in.

The population is 50,000, and many more are starting to move in.


It is actually around 75,000. For those who do not know, Silver Spring, MD is not a city. It is classified as an unconsolidated area of Montgomery County, MD. Silver Spring has no corporate borders, city government nor city services. It is strickly under the governance of the Montgomery County Government.

It "borders" are defined by zip code regions. The zip code regions are far beyond of what is shown from the aerial pic.

SS is undergoing quite a change. It use to be one of the shabbier areas of Montgomery County, but has seen a nice turnaround with recent developments. I think the Metro has spurred a lot of the development as well as the close proximatey to DC(they share a border). I think the #1 Maryland suburb (at least urban-wise) might be Bethesda. It's skyline is as impressive, and it seems to have a more active nightlife. There's a few pics from Cirrus' great site - Beyond DC:

http://beyonddc.com/profiles/bethesda.html

Is there a height restriction in Silver Spring? :D

No just many people don't want larger buildings for some reason. The Discovery Channel World Headquarters in Silver Spring was supposted to have a huge tower for arcitecture but people protested it so it was not built.

I don't live there anymore but whatever happen to City Place? It use to be the old Hecht Co. in dt SS. I think there was an old JC Penney across the street too.

My friend was almost killed in a terrible derailment outside this city. Nice photos.

I don't live there anymore but whatever happen to City Place? It use to be the old Hecht Co. in dt SS. I think there was an old JC Penney across the street too.

City Place or "Shitty Place" as I like to call it is still there, and still the worst mall in the area.

Yeah, I work in SS but live in Alexanria, VA

However I have to say SS is becoming MUCH nicer, there are new condos up on E-W Hgwy near 14th street, and Blair Shops is now much nicer and larger...there is also a redevelopment fown E-W Highway and Coalsville Road with a Panera etc...the Discovery Channel Bldg really helped pick things up for SS

SS is undergoing quite a change. It use to be one of the shabbier areas of Montgomery County, but has seen a nice turnaround with recent developments. I think the Metro has spurred a lot of the development as well as the close proximatey to DC(they share a border). I think the #1 Maryland suburb (at least urban-wise) might be Bethesda. It's skyline is as impressive, and it seems to have a more active nightlife. There's a few pics from Cirrus' great site - Beyond DC:

http://beyonddc.com/profiles/bethesda.html
I agree. Bethesda is DC's greatest suburb not Silver Spring.

Well Bethesda is definetly more upper class, and cleaner than Silver Spring but Bethesda gets pretty boring after a while, and everything is so plain, and mild, atleast in SS you get more variety with everything, and the area is exciting. All that Silver Spring needs now is a Sports Authority.

http://danger-ahead.railfan.net/images/dispix/silver_spring2_l.jpg

What is that pic of GVNY?

My fellow engineer and friend of 73 was almost killed in this collision in Silver Springs. 12 people lost their lives. This is how I will always remember this city.

That's crazy, man. It's too bad those 12 people lost their lives. And we tend to think of trains as safe. When did that event take place? Do you have an article?

Silver Spring is very nice. So is Bethesda. However, DC's greatest suburb is without question Alexandria. I know it's a city, but it's well within DC's metro, and has served as a bedroom community for many many years.

Well, I am a railroading engineer, so let me tell you first hand, the passenger trains are safe. They are in fact, the safest mode of transport in the world.

Here is your article James.
http://danger-ahead.railfan.net/accidents/silverspring/home.html

When I flew into Dulles last week we flew over Silver Spring, and I had no clue what city it was when I was the skyline. I didn't know there was a city with a skyline anywhere in Maryland bordering DC. lol Thanks for the pics....now I know what I went over

I wish that the Discovery Channel's tower would have been built to the original height. It would have been over 300 ft. tall, I believe. :D
I'd like to see at least 3 or 4 more tall towers there. Maybe a couple 300 footers and one 400 footer. :D :) ;)

Silver Spring is a nice area indeed. How about Rockville? That place is going through a major downtown phase and I think is an incorporated city itself (making it the 3rd largest in Maryland behind B-More and Frederick.) Rockville Center is supposed to be a five building complex full of shops, condominiums, and offices (4RC will be a 25 story building.) Montgomery County is a dream come true area because of the incentive to bring high populations with high quality conditions and open spaces.

Roclville is ok but nothing special. If Silver Spring were an incorperated city it would have a larger population than Rockville. Don't get me wrong Rockville has nice areas but it is nothing you cannot see in Silver Spring or Bethesda.

Nice little suburban skyline. Looks like a fun place to walk around and take pics.

i live in Arlington so if anone wants to see some pics of Arlington click here (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=132124)

Ok so what do you all like more; Maryland suburbs or Northern VA?

haha well to tell thetruth NoVa rocks

I think MD is more controlled when it comes to sprawl and incorporates good city planning, though PG county really sucks in many areas. I don't care much for North VA. To me it's just a plethora of condos and yes, sprawl.

The Maryland suburbs are way better than Northern VA.Without D.C. NOVA would be just another no-where place.Maryland suburbs built up to what they are all on their own.

The Maryland suburbs are way better than Northern VA.Without D.C. NOVA would be just another no-where place.Maryland suburbs built up to what they are all on their own.


i've lived in rockville/northpotomac mclean/westspringfield

i like both, maryland is more for the urban/young
nova is more geared toward family living and lifestyles

Does anybody think that movie production companies like Universal,Fox,or Sony would consider moving into downtown Silver Spring?Discovery being a big domcumentary company and AFI being an all around movie business,I would think that other entertainment companies would start lining up to get a spot down there.

Not hardly. ^

I can't believe what I just found.It's about a bunch of things going on in Silver Spring, and it talks about movie production companies possibly moving in.Here ya go... (http://www.washingtonian.com/schools/community_silverspring.html)

Oh how I miss the clean, professional blandness of the Washington suburbs. :jk:

I can't believe what I just found.It's about a bunch of things going on in Silver Spring, and it talks about movie production companies possibly moving in.Here ya go... (http://www.washingtonian.com/schools/community_silverspring.html)

Great article. :D

What are some large theatres in the DC area? Any in SS?

Haha, I'm a little biased, but I like the DC area a lot, SS, Bethesda-Chevy Chase, etc.

But what people from Maryland don't ever seem to think about is that outside of Bethesda-Chevy Chase, and Silver Spring, the rest of Montgomery County is the same thing as Fairfax County. If you matchup Alrington(Rosslyn, Ballston, Crystal City) and Alexandria(Old Town, City of Alexandria) against B-CC and SS, then it's a push. While those two regions aren't the same in size, I'm really talking about cores. You can say the N.VA cores are more sterile, and that used to be the case, but IMO they're more aesthetically pleasing.

Outside of those two regions in MoCo, the Rockville Gaithersburg areas are every bit as bad as Fairfax County, but FFX gets the worse treatment b/c it's growth has been higher. They have been worse with development, but we saw some stunning growth, and hopefully places in Fairfax like Fair Lakes, Tysons and Reston will do better and I still think Springfield, location wise could do a lot better. And PG County has been horrible with crime and sprawls like crazy too. Basically, Nova has sucked with development and sprawl, but it has some nice 'burbs.

But nevertheless, not looking for any hostility, there's no doubt that Silver Spring is an up and coming, possibly the most up and coming, (location wise, it's second to Rosslyn IMO) 'burb and it is a cool place. It's good to see some places becoming more urban, Fairfax will get there slower than the others, but Arlington, Alexandria, B-CC and SS are doing well. I just hope Fairfax gets on it.

The entire region is still doing very well and it's good to see some urban development.

I like Fairfax , Virginia. Its beautiful during the fall.

Great article. :D

What are some large theatres in the DC area? Any in SS?
Downtown Silver Spring has a new theather that opened recently, it's called the Majestic. Really nice theater.

Downtown Silver Spring has a new theather that opened recently, it's called the Majestic. Really nice theater.

Anypictures inside/outside?
Seating capacity?

I have a bad picture of it that my friend took, but I don't know how to post it on here...

If you matchup Alrington(Rosslyn, Ballston, Crystal City) and Alexandria(Old Town, City of Alexandria) against B-CC and SS, then it's a push. While those two regions aren't the same in size, I'm really talking about cores. You can say the N.VA cores are more sterile, and that used to be the case, but IMO they're more aesthetically pleasing.



not sure how you can compare anything in suburban maryland to old town alexandria. and I don't know what you're on about with the sterile comments. all the areas besides old town are bland condo/office tower parks. Though arlington and bethesda are working on having some nightlife.

And you say besides Old Town, what is suburban maryland w/o DT silver spring and DT Bethesda?

The suburbs in both places are pretty bland and filled with office parks and condos, can you really tell me that PG county or Montgomery County isn't?

People expect fairfax to be so dense and urban like bethesda and silver spring when VA's suburbs bordering DC like them are as good.

When people say "Suburban Maryland is better", they don't mean suburban maryland, they mean like two places, not suitland, oxon hill, capitol heights, etc which there is no comparison is virginia.

And what I meant by the sterile comments, is just what I said, that by people on these urban discussion boards act like suburban maryland is poppin with activity and northern va is just crap. And I'm saying that the area is trying to become better, but the disparity was never as bad as anyone made it sound. And that outside of two places in suburban maryland, it's the same thing as n. va. outside of two places.

Anypictures inside/outside?
Seating capacity?

It also re-opened a theater from the 1930's and now is the theater for the AFI (American Film institute). Really amazing on the inside. :)

I used to live in Silver Spring and proud of the progress they have made. I shouldn't do this, but I can't help it----regarding which is better, NoVA or Suburban Maryland. Sorry, the Maryland side is tops. The VA side of the Potomac has Arlington & Alexandria --- great areas. But the MD side of the Potomac has DC, Bethesda, Silver Spring. And maybe we could count Annapolis. But, the Maryland suburbs has something NoVA does not have. At the edge of the Maryland suburbs, we have Baltimore. You don't have a Baltimore beyond the VA beltway. Plus, VA has gotten kinda crazy with its anti-gay laws. Sorry........

It also re-opened a theater from the 1930's and now is the theater for the AFI (American Film institute). Really amazing on the inside. :)
I need pictures........ :D

B'more doesn't count as a DC suburb, even though it is, I think we should be looking at the DC metro's suburbs.

And this isn't about what side of the potomac is better, how can u count DC.

All suburban maryland has is Bethesda and Silver Spring that's it. While Nova is nice and doesn't thrash S. MD, it's not like MD is so much better. Along with Arlington and Alexandria, whose area is larger than the two MD cities I mentioned, VA has Tysons Corner and further burbs that are becoming better. I'll give you Annapolis though. That's the furthest out I'd go on east side of md.

VA may be behind in some areas, I really don't think MD really has any edge in the gay living dept. that affects life of gays on a day to day basis. Don't get me wrong, I'm not gay so I don't know as well, but there is plenty of cultural and liberal influences in Nova and increasing taht would make it gay friendly. Montgomery and Fairfax are very very similar in my opinion anyway.

nova from top to bottom is a better place to live hands down IMO.

Baltimore isn't a suburb, however, it is nice to have it nearby. It is an advantage of living in the Maryland suburbs. DC is cut out of Maryland. Arlington is cut out of Virginia. If you can count Arlington, I am going to count DC. The Maryland suburbs are a natural extension of the District. However, I will concede that both sides are equal in many regards. I was really just trying to stir up things and have some fun. There are a lot of wonderful and popular neighborhoods in NOVA. Of course, I prefer Maryland. Since you are not gay, you may not be aware just how mean spirited VA has been lately regarding gay people. Or you may not understand how it does effect our day to day lives. Maybe that is a topic for another forum, however, it does effect my opinion of VA as a place to live. To be fair, I know the nonsense is not originating from NOVA. I will be glad when NOVA gets big enough to influence Virginia politics.

Cool.

DC metro is changing alot and become more diverse, it's getting expensive too.

Is it's too expensive to live in DC metro?

I respect your opinion and agree somewhat

I respect your opinion and agree somewhat

Thank you, I also respect your opinion and agree somewhat with you. You feel strongly about NOVA and you have lots of reason to do so. It is a vibrant, important, and interesting part of the DC Metro.

Baltimore is not a DC suburb. For starters its officially a larger city than DC. But more importantly, DC grew out of Georgetown, Maryland, which could have been considered a suburb of Baltimore (although not really). Is it possible to pull off such a switch?

In reality though, none of those are suburbs. Suburbs usually (although this is often debated) refer to a lower density region attached to a high-density urban areas. So, I guess technically those fall under cities within the same metro, not suburbs.

Whatever though, in conclusion - Baltimore=Not A DC Suburb

Sorry! It seems as if people think I said Baltimore was a suburb. Absolutely not!! I meant that an advantage of living in Suburban Maryland as opposed to living in NOVA is that Baltimore is nearby. From where I live, I can go to either city for dinner. I love having two great cities at my fingertips. But, Baltimore is, was, and never will be a suburb of DC!!!

Haha, nah, I didn't misunderstand. I just saw the terms "Baltimore" and "DC Suburb" flying around in the same sentence, so I thought I'd chime in. As far as I'm concerned, Baltimore and DC are the same city, and you, and people like you who live just as much in one as they do the other, are a perfect example of why I see it that way.

Ah, "Silver Spring". The hometown of Brady Anderson. :D
I wonder what he's doing these days anyway? :? Hmmm.....?

silver spring's definitely BEAUTIFUL