Silver Spring Development News [Archive]

Silver Springer

February 25th, 2006, 11:30 PM

SILVER SPRING

Significance
Dating back to 1842, Silver Spring is the first downtown in Montgomery County, Maryland and was the largest office market outside Washington,D.C. as well as the largest retail center between Washington and New York. The first to combine a parking lot, movie theater and shopping center in the U.S.A. which was recently renovated and still stands. Today it is the largest urban area in Maryland outside Baltimore and the largest urban area in the D.C. metro area. It is home to Discovery Communications, TV One, World Space, NOAA, United Theraputics and now the FDA. If incorporated its population would swell to over 280,000. It is home to the largest high school in the State of Maryland, Montgomery Blair named after the founder of Silver Spring. Some Famous people from Silver Spring are Dave Chappelle, Steve Francis, Ben Stein, Brady Anderson, Connie Chung, Maury Povich, Dominique Dawes, Goldie Hawn and Michael Ealy to name a few.

Downtown
Silver Spring is a 360 acre Central Business District(CBD) centered on a Metro Station. The area is a high density urban environment with a population density of 15,600 per square mile. The CBD contains 17.6 acres of parkland, 7,254,729 square feet of office space (2004), plus 5216 dwelling units.

The transformation of the Silver Spring Central Business District began to take shape with two events: (1.) the American Film Institute established an east coast presence in the restored historic Silver Theatre, and (2.) the world headquarters of Discovery Communications, Inc. relocated to a new building in the center of Silver Spring. With a string of opening events for new businesses in the Redevelopment Project, the revitalization of downtown Silver Spring was established in 2004. The Downtown Redevelopment Project built a retail/entertainment base that attracted WholeFoods Market, the 20 screen megaplex cinema The Majestic by Consolidated Theatres, Borders Books and Music, supported by men’s wear, dress, and furniture shops. The combination of 4500 theater seats surrounded by 4500 dining seats in a dozen new restaurants has created an environment that is in high demand.

History
Wanting to escape the summer heat of Washington, D.C., where he had a home on Pennsylvania Avenue near the White House, Blair began Construction of the three-story home in 1842, two years after he discovered a nearby mica-flecked spring that sparkled like silver when struck by sunlight. The house featured 20 rooms, 4 baths, 9 fireplaces, 2 kitchens, and a wine cellar. Named Silver Spring, the estate eventually encompassed over 1,000 acres, taking in a large portion of present downtown Silver Spring as well as areas of Takoma Park and the District of Columbia

http://www.homestead.com/silverspringhistory/
http://www.takoma.com/archives/copy/2003/08/features_thenAgain.html
http://www.takoma.com/archives/copy/2003/09/features_thenAgain.html

http://www.1110bonifant.com/admin/images/silverspringpan3.jpg

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http://beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/lowrises01-othergarage.jpg

http://beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/redevelopment01-aerial.jpg

http://beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/metroctr14-3.jpg

JAB323

February 26th, 2006, 02:21 AM

Hey, welcome Silver Springer, nice pictures. I love Silver Spring, great suburban-outskirt city. Though, I prefer my hometown of Bethesda. :)

StevenW

February 26th, 2006, 03:13 AM

Very nice History and photo tour. :)

90 degrees

February 26th, 2006, 03:41 AM

I <3 Silver Spring

Expat

February 26th, 2006, 07:11 AM

Nice pics. Silver Spring is a place to watch.

nomad997

February 26th, 2006, 07:23 AM

^^ ....agreed.

I had no idea Silver Spring was like this. I might have to make a small pit-stop next time i'm on my way to DC.

deadmaker7

February 26th, 2006, 07:52 AM

Heard a lot about this place but this is the first time I actually saw pics. Looks very nice. :) Needs more vertical height 4tw, though.

Silver Springer

February 26th, 2006, 09:26 PM

Hey, welcome Silver Springer, nice pictures. I love Silver Spring, great suburban-outskirt city. Though, I prefer my hometown of Bethesda. :)

Thanks all for the nice comments. I like Bethesda too, its been holding the fort but now with Silver Spring back on the scene we will have two very strong downtowns that are far more urban than suburban in nature.

TampaMike

February 26th, 2006, 09:37 PM

What a nice area you live in. I love the openiness of the area, with all the stores and retail centers. It's like an large open mall.

Silver Springer

February 26th, 2006, 09:46 PM

Heard a lot about this place but this is the first time I actually saw pics. Looks very nice. :) Needs more vertical height 4tw, though.

Tell me about it, we should have much taller buildings in Silver Spring but the NIMBYs, planning board and council are afraid of heights. There is no logical reason for there to be a height limit of 200ft because Silver spring has taller buildings than that already existing and it hurts economic development. The proposed Silver spring transit center project is the core of the city (center with buses and metro station in the first pic) but the private development will have buildings shorter than the surrounding buildings and no office space even though we have the lowest vaccancy rate in the county at 3.4%.

Silver Springer

February 26th, 2006, 09:57 PM

What a nice area you live in. I love the openiness of the area, with all the stores and retail centers. It's like an large open mall.

More like a Major City!

deadmaker7

February 26th, 2006, 11:38 PM

Tell me about it, we should have much taller buildings in Silver Spring but the NIMBYs, planning board and council are afraid of heights. There is no logical reason for there to be a height limit of 200ft because Silver spring has taller buildings than that already existing and it hurts economic development. The proposed Silver spring transit center project is the core of the city (center with buses and metro station in the first pic) but the private development will have buildings shorter than the surrounding buildings and no office space even though we have the lowest vaccancy rate in the county at 3.4%.
The transit village idea is very progressive and probably what sets it apart from your average Tyson's Corner type of sprawl.

DCKenny

February 27th, 2006, 12:22 AM

Silver Spring is just up the street from me nice delevopment!

DCKenny

February 27th, 2006, 12:23 AM

Silver Spring is just up the street from me nice developments!

Silver Springer

February 27th, 2006, 12:44 AM

Here is my personal favorite in Silver Spring

United Therapeutics Headquarters

United Therapeutics Corporation
1110 Spring Street
Silver Spring, MD 20910
(301) 608-9292
Attention: Paul Mahon, Esquire, Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Description:
United Therapeutics is a publicly held biotechnology company. They seek to expand their existing Silver Spring headquarters in order to consolidate a large component of their company and provide for future growth. The project will include both offices (148,598 sf) and laboratory space (48,434 sf). The property that is the subject of their applications includes two parcels on opposing corners of the intersection of Spring Street and Cameron Street within the Silver Spring Central Business District (CBD). (One of these parcels is currently a public surface parking lot.) The proposed project consists of two eight-story office buildings with ground floor retail (16,000 sf), public plazas and other landscaped public spaces. The two structures will be connected by a bridge over Cameron Street at the seventh floor level; the bridge will function as a private corridor for use by company employees only. The project includes minimal below grade parking; most employees and guests will park at the adjoining public parking garage #21.

Status

Under Construction

comments
A biotech company that is profitable and on the move. The building will be a LEED building with solar panels on the roof. There will be an elevated bridge in the shape of a double helix or "Silver Spring". The art piece will include cube seats that glow when people sit on them and plasma TVs for learning purposes outside.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/unitedthumb.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/united2.jpg

Silver Springer

February 28th, 2006, 05:27 AM

1200 East-West Highway

Goodman East-West I, LLC
1220- 19th Street, N.W., Suite 500
Washington, D.C. 20036
(202) 331-7170
Attention: Stuart Jones

Description:
This application seeks to redevelop CBD-2 property at 1200 and 1212 East-West Highway in the South Silver Spring Overlay District. A 14-story, mixed-use building is proposed under the Optional Method of Development, including 247 dwelling units and approximately 10,600 square feet of retail space. A significant amount of on-site parking (at least 220 spaces) will be provided in an underground garage; the balance of the parking requirement will be satisfied through payment of the parking district tax.

Status

Approved

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board conducted public hearings on the preliminary plan, project plan and site plan.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number(s):
Site Plan #8-06014

Planning Board Action:
Preliminary Plan #1-05084 and and Project Plan #9-05004 were approved on June 30, 2005. The Planning Board approved the site plan on January 26, 2006.

comments
The best of the high rise projects so far.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/1200eastwest2.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/1200eastwest3.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/1200eastwest1.jpg

Third of a kind

February 28th, 2006, 09:11 PM

yeah its a nice place, it looks like its booming right now

Silver Springer

March 1st, 2006, 06:28 AM

yeah its a nice place, it looks like its booming right now

Yes it is surprisingly, I guess we can thank Discovery for it. We have over 20 residential projects alone.

The Crescent Condos

930 Wayne Avenue LLC, c/o the Patriot Group
1003 K street NW, suite 207
Washington D.C. 20001

Description:
Construction has begun on this proposed project which is located on the south side of Wayne Avenue between Georgia Avenue and Fenton Street, across from the Downtown Silver Spring project. The project will include 143 dwelling units and 2300 square feet of retail space in a 14-story building. 140 below grade parking spaces are also proposed on site. The site backs up to an abandoned multifamily building on Bonifant Street that is currently owned by Montgomery County.

Status

Under Construction

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board has concluded its regulatory reviews.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Project Plan: #9-04005; Site Plan #8-05004

Planning Board Action:
The Project Plan was approved by the Planning Board on April 29, 2004. The Site Plan was approved on October 28, 2004.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff:
The proposed Silver Spring library relocation may occur on the lots located between this site and Fenton Street.

comments
The high rise condo in Silver Spring. Right across from the new downtown project and Discovery. Great Location, average architecture.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/930wayne2.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/930wayne.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/930wayne3.jpg

pcnorth22

March 1st, 2006, 08:29 PM

I lived in Silver Spring and Bethesda from 2001-2003...loved them both. Love Bethesda for all the restaurants...but really liked Silver Spring as well. We were there for the beginning of all the downtown construction...my wife worked at Discovery...thats a sweet building...

90 degrees

March 1st, 2006, 09:54 PM

There's really a lot of residential going up in Silver Spring. With all of this new development and growth of downtown, it's attracting more and more people that have money which makes me want to bring up City Place Mall. Is anything being done with it in the near future? Downtown is gentrifying and people are in demand of more high end retail which City Place isn't providing.

Silver Springer

March 2nd, 2006, 05:47 AM

Gramax Building Renovation

Description:
The Gramax Heliport building at 8060 - 13th Street was an active office building during the 1960s; however, it was an abandoned eyesore during the 1990s. RST Development has converted it into a modern apartment building with 180 units (efficiencies, one and two-bedroom units). Various financial incentives (e.g. $7.2 million in State tax credits, tax-exempt bond financing underwritten by the housing Opportunities Commission, etc) have made it possible for 70% of the apartments to be priced as affordable housing for qualified applicants.

Status

Completed

Applicant:
RST Development, Mr. Scott Copeland, (301) 816-4243

Opportunities for Public Participation:
N/A

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
N/A

Notes From M-NCPPC Staff Contact:
This project involved the renovation of an existing building and was therefore able to obtain the necessary building permits without the reviews required for new construction.

comments

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/gramax2.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/gramax1.jpg

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http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/gramax4.jpg

Silver Springer

March 7th, 2006, 03:45 AM

Montgomery College- Takoma Park/Silver Spring, Campus Expansion - Cultural Arts Center

Description:
In 2005, the PlanningBoard reviewed the King Street Art Center (KSAC), which is an adaptive reuse of the former Giant Bakery site. The King Street Art Center will include the following uses are: art education, community artists and organizations, network operations center, central plant and parking in the basement. The project includes a new landscaped plaza and entry facing Jesup Blair Park. A parking garage site is also proposed behind the KSAC, adjacent to the northern edge of Jesup Blair Park next to the railroad tracks.

The College expansion spans both sides of the railroad track near the intersections of Georgia Avenue and Jesup Blair Drive, and Fenton Street and New York Avenue. The college expansion consists of four phases: Phase I is the Health Sciences Building on Georgia Avenue (complete), the Pedestrian/Bike Bridge over the railroad tracks (complete) and Fenton Street Realignment (complete). Phase II is the Student Services Center (completion in late 2005). Phase III is the King Street Art Center. Phase IV is the Cultural Arts Center (CAC) which is proposed for the southeast corner of Georgia Avenue and Burlington Avenue (MD 410). It will include a 509-seat, two-level theater; a 125-seat studio theater; classrooms; a dance studio; meeting rooms; faculty and staff offices; and various support facilities. See the Montgomery College Website for details
http://www.montgomerycollege.org/news/hottopics/takomaparkexpansion/

Status

Proposed

Applicant:
Montgomery College - John McLean, Director of Capital Planning, Design and Construction (301) 251-7360, e-mail

Opportunities for Public Participation
A public hearing on the planned Cultural Arts Center will be the subject of a public hearing, tentatively scheduled for March 23, 2006. (Please contact M-NCPPC to confirm the date and time.)

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Mandatory Referral Case Number 05106-M-1

Planning Board Actions:
No action to date regarding the CAC

History of Past Actions:
Site selection for the Expansion - Approved with Comments - June 8, 2000
Phase I: Approved with Comments and Conditions: May 31, 2001
Phase I: 70% Bridge Design approved with Comments & Conditions: November 1, 2001.
Revised bridge connection to Jesup Blair Park and site selection for Cultural Arts Center approved Feb. 6, 2003.
Phase II- Student Services Center: Approved with comments July 10, 2003

Phase III- King Street Art Center approved with comments February 24, 2005

comments

http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/takomaparkexpansion/Web-CAC.jpg

http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/takomaparkexpansion/CAC2.jpg

King Street Art Center

http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/takomaparkexpansion/images/KSAC1.jpg

Health Sciences Center

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/SSOct03-42.jpg

Student Services Center

http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/takomaparkexpansion/DSC_0007.JPG

http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/takomaparkexpansion/DSC_0002.JPG

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http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/takomaparkexpansion/StudentServicesAerial.jpg

JAB323

March 7th, 2006, 04:12 AM

Looks like some cool projects.

MasonsInquiries

March 7th, 2006, 07:59 PM

very very VERY impressive projects. it's good to see silver spring blossum the way it has.

Silver Springer

March 9th, 2006, 04:45 AM

very very VERY impressive projects. it's good to see silver spring blossum the way it has.

Thanks, I'm surprised by the amount of investment 20 residential project alone.

Silver Springer

March 9th, 2006, 05:01 AM

American Film Institute

Description:
he American Film Institute (AFI) now occupies and operates the historic Silver Theatre, an art deco theater constructed on Colesville Road in 1938. In addition, the AFI complex features 32,000 square feet of new space, housing two stadium-seating theaters, office and meeting space. AFI is a nationally renowned organization dedicated to the advancement and preservation of motion pictures. The County contributed several million dollars to help restore the Silver Theatre.

Link to AFI Site: afi.com/silver

Status

Completed

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Gwen Wright, (301) 563-3413, e-mail

Applicant:
American Film Institute; Foulger Pratt Companies (240) 499-9600

Opportunities for Public Participation:
Completed

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Project Plan #9-98005A

Planning Board Action:
Approved project and site plans

comments
AFI and Discovery host the Silverdocs event in june, showing independent films from around the world and drawing over 16,000 visitors to Silver Spring.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/AFISilver_Colesville-1.jpg

http://www.eng.fju.edu.tw/ron/american_lit2/Images/images_files/SilverTheaterSilverSprings1938ArtDeco.jpg

http://www.afi.com/silver/new/images/hist1.jpg

http://www.afi.com/silver/new/images/hist2.jpg

http://blogs.indiewire.com/insider/archives/images/silverdocsfri.jpg

http://mysite.verizon.net/jandmyoung/images/AFI.jpg

Silver Springer

March 21st, 2006, 08:45 AM

The Adele

Description:
The applicant proposes to redevelop an automotive service facility in the southwest quadrant of the intersection of Fenton Street and Thayer Avenue in the Silver Spring Central Business District. A single mixed-use building is proposed containing 96 dwelling units, including 15 Moderately Priced Dwelling Units; approximately 15,000 square feet of ground floor retail space; and approximately 18,000 square feet of office uses on the second floor. The proposed development also includes approximately 170 structured parking spaces. The proposed building height varies from 60' along Fenton Street up to 90'. The property is zoned CBD-1/Fenton Village Overlay Zone and development is proposed under the Optional Method of Development. The gross tract area is 41,743 square feet; net lot area is 28,526 square feet.

Status

Approved

Architect: SK&I

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
Fenton Street Development LLC
Attention: Mr. Lewie Bloom
4412 Walsh Street
Chevy Chase, MD Maryland 20815
(202) 295-9000

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board will hold a public hearing on the pending site plan.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number(s):
Site plan #8-20060200 has been submitted for approval.

Planning Board Action:
The Planning Board approved preliminary plan #1-05077 and project plan #9-05003 on June 23, 2005.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff Contacts:
The site adjoins the public alley providing access to public parking lot #3.

comments
Developer is passionate about one of the best overall mixed-use projects featuring a office, retail, residential space and a green roof.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/adele1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/adele4.jpg

http://www.skiarch.com/gallery/large/m-BLM01-04L%20NEHlarge.jpg

http://www.skiarch.com/gallery/large/m-BLM01-04L%20NELllarge.jpg

Expat

March 21st, 2006, 04:23 PM

Silver Springer

March 22nd, 2006, 02:58 AM

Silver Spring is the story of an old inner-ring suburban downtown that has seen better days, but found a way back. It should be an example of similar suburbs elsewhere. I have noticed that some people think Silver Spring is a Tyson's type development with a subway stop and outdoor mall. That is misunderstanding the situation. It is an old downtown, an early transit hub, just across the line from its city (DC), that fell from grace because of new suburban development and malls. But, it apparently has found a solution.

I hate it when people call Silver Spring a suburb, it fits the definition only because it borders a major city but everything else about it fits the characteristics of an urban area, it even went through the declines of most major cities and is far denser than many part of D.C.

NovaWolverine

March 22nd, 2006, 03:28 AM

Silver Springer

March 22nd, 2006, 04:23 AM

Stop playing it is a suburb, one that we need more of. Age and density don't matter. Its decline wasn't mainly dependent on itself, like the other cities you're talking about, but more of DC's. It is a city, but what is a city that's very close to one much much much bigger one, it's a suburb. There are countless examples across the states.

Only someone from nova would say "Silver Spring is a suburb" and "Age and density don't matter". The sprawling mess that is fairfax,va is what I would call a suburb. Most people think of a car dependent mess of an office park like Tyson's Corner as a suburb. When I think of an urban area I think of a place where I don't need a car to survive, where parking lots are not paved right in front of high-rise buildings,where I don't feel like I'm crossing an interstate highway just to get to the grocery store, where there is mass transit. Silver Spring fits those characteristics, so does New York and Baltimore. Fact is there are NOT many places like downtown Silver Spring in the country and FYI it's decline came from Wheaton Mall being built and the flight from the inner city. What is your definition of an urban area?

By the way, if Tyson's gains the desnity virginia so desires what will you call it? I'm sure you would hail it as an urban core. The funny thing is that you are basically trying to create a downtown Silver Spring.

Silver Springer

March 22nd, 2006, 04:39 AM

Silver Spring Metro Center Phase V (The Bennington)

Description:
This project is strategically located along East-West Highway next to the Metro station. The first four phases of the development include the offices of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration(NOAA), a public parking garage, and street level retail. The final phase is a 223-dwelling unit multifamily building known as the Bennington, which is now leasing. The developer has also posted a bond to help fund a pedestrian bridge over the railroad tracks to Ripley Street.

Status

Completed

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Miguel Iraola, (301) 495-4512, e-mail

Applicant:
Foulger Pratt Companies (301) 948-0522

Opportunities for Public Participation:

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary Plan: #1-88184A Project Plan: #9-88003/4A, Site Plan: #8-89052

Planning Board Action:
Approved Project Plan recommendation on July 19, 1990 and Site Plan on Oct 12,1989

comments

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/SSOct03-55.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/NOAAph5_sketch.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/SSMetroCenPhas6.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/SSMetroCenPhasV.jpg

Evangelion

March 22nd, 2006, 04:52 AM

it would be awesome if all the other edge areas of dc became cool urban walkable areas.

NovaWolverine

March 22nd, 2006, 06:41 AM

NovaWolverine

March 22nd, 2006, 06:44 AM

Silver Springer

March 22nd, 2006, 07:28 PM

SilverSpringer, there's no need at all for that tirade. I didn't say anything that intended to be taken offensively, and in your case, personally and immature.

I didn't mention Nova, and I love how you say..."only a person from nova". First of all, that's not true, second of all, it has nothing to do with my opinion and nothing at all to do the topic.

I happened to have lived in Queens, NY for the majority of my 21 yrs and also in Philadelphia.

Silver Spring is a suburb. Sorry if you think otherwise. It's a damn fine suburb, my grandma lives there and I'm there every week spending time when I'm in DC from college.

If Tysons Corner were to get where it is trying to go, it would still be a suburb, and DC would be the anchor of the metro.

Get off the "official" definition for a second; you are way too focused on that and it is limiting your scope. I just don't see how you can look at a place like downtown Silver Spring and tract housing residential subdivisions full of single family homes and put them in the same category; it just doesn't make any sense. The official definition(s) of urban and suburban are so vague and varies from place to place that it doesn't even make sense to encompass a whole area with the that term but ask anyone on the street what they think of when you say suburbs and the first thing that will come to mind is a car dependent area full of single family homes and a backyard. Ask anyone what they think of when you say urban and they will think of a car independent area with high-rise density, commerce, and mass transit. I'm not trying to "out-do" D.C., any other major city or even put them on the same level with Silver Spring but you gotta be blind if you’re going to call it a suburb (by what most people think) and put it in the same category as a residential subdivision or even Tyson's Corner. Simply put Silver Spring is urban by nature; I could live within the CBD and not ever need a car.

What is Bellvue, Washington, what is White Plains, NY, what is Royal Oak, MI, Evanston, IL....and on and on? They're very nice suburban cities that have nice urban cores. Whether they've developed into that or not, they are what they are. They all have their unique qualities that shouldn't be ignored, but are suburbs nonetheless.

You act like calling Silver Spring a suburb is like calling B'more a suburb or Newark or San Jose a suburb.

I don't understand your confusion. Yes, Silver Spring, Maryland, Worcester, Mass, Bellevue, Washington, White Plains, NY are what I would call urban not suburban. Time has passed and they have matured, when will be the time we start calling them like we see them instead of defining them by some indistinct definition that doesn't even fit. I guess it takes some longer to realize this than others. You need to be more specific than just calling them "suburbs" because they are not what most people think of when you say suburb.

I like Silver Spring a lot, and I've read many of your posts here and on other boards like BeyondDC, I didn't know you'd be such a douche about something like that.

I'm sorry to disappoint you but you can refrain from the name calling, I never stooped to that level.

Get rid of your Marylander superiority complex, there are so many of you over that that have an arrogance b/c VA has developed so quickly over the past decade, not nearly as many people over here feel resentment about MD.

I go to NOVA on a daily basis, trust me, the feeling is mutual.

Besides location your point is mute. What you are trying to do is dilute real, physical characteristics of urban areas all for a silly old definition that doesn't fit anymore. So we shouldn't call Silver Spring an urban area simply because of it's spatial relationship to D.C.?

As I asked before in real world terms what is your definition of urban and suburban besides the minor aspect of location? What is the first thing that comes to mind when someone says those words? What significant difference do you see between the physical characteristics of D.C. and Silver Spring to lay them in different categories?

Silver Springer

March 22nd, 2006, 07:42 PM

Basically Silver Springer, you're making an urban area sound like an exclusive designation, one that must be independent from suburb. Regardless of connotation, I don't know how you MUST separate the two. Never did I say SS wasn't an urban area. Age and density don't matter when something is called a suburb, it's dependent on what the major municipality of area is. There are areas of Alexandria that are older and denser than DC, that doesn't change anything.

Exactly! Urban areas 99% of the time are destinations it doesn't work the other way around. And No longer are the surrounding areas dependent upon the inner city as you think. If D.C. somehow disappeared tomorrow Silver Spring wouldn't collapse instantaneously because of that. It is self dependent. Quite frankly Silver Spring is no longer a suburb like most people think, that was decades ago and it's time most people got over that.

NovaWolverine

March 22nd, 2006, 11:02 PM

NovaWolverine

March 22nd, 2006, 11:05 PM

And keep up the good work updating us on Silver Spring development.

Third of a kind

March 23rd, 2006, 02:22 AM

Nova makes a good point, Silver Spring is suburban but there is nothing at all wrong with that. There are countless other suburbs/suburban areas that should look at a place like Silver Spring as model for what they could develop or do in their own communitites. The development there and in Alexandria has reminded me of alot of places I know around New York. In fact Silver, you bring up a good point Silver Spring does remind me alot of White Plains.

Silver Springer

March 23rd, 2006, 02:42 AM

Silver Springer

March 23rd, 2006, 02:43 AM

And keep up the good work updating us on Silver Spring development.

Will do.

Silver Springer

March 23rd, 2006, 03:00 AM

Discovery Communications World Headquarters

Description:
This project is located on the 3.4 acre "Silver Triangle" formed by Georgia Avenue, Colesville Road and Wayne Avenue in the core of the Silver Spring Central Business District (CBD). As amended, the project includes 545,420 square feet of office development. The sole occupant is the headquarters of Discovery Communications. The building is L-shaped: the Colesville Road wing is ten stories and the Georgia Avenue wing is seven stories. Two public open spaces are provided: Discovery Garden and the Discovery Plaza near Georgia/Wayne Avenues. An art wall is provided along Colesville Road.

Status

Completed

Architect: The Smith Group

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Glenn Kreger, (301) 495-4653, e-mail

Applicant:
Discovery Communications, Inc. Contact: Ms. Barbara Henry, (301) 771- 5814

Opportunities for Public Participation:
Completed

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Project Plan - #9-90002A, Site Plan - #8-00032

Planning Board Action:
Approved on July 19, 2001

comments

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/DiscoverHQ_GaAve-WayneAve-1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/DiscoveryHQ_WaynePlaza_Aerial-1.jpg

http://beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/discovery04.jpg

http://beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/discovery11-rendering.jpg

http://beyonddc.com/images/photos/md/silverspring/downtown/discovery12-rendering-spire.jpg

TampaMike

March 23rd, 2006, 05:08 AM

So, Silver Sprongs is like an technology and entertainment city.

Silver Springer

March 25th, 2006, 01:51 AM

So, Silver Sprongs is like an technology and entertainment city.

Yes, Silver Spring is.

Silver Springer

March 25th, 2006, 01:57 AM

Discovery Creative Technology Center

Description:
This renovation and reuse of the former Caldors Department Store accommodates the technical staff of Discovery Communications who have a long term lease with the applicant. Uses include Discovery's computer operations, in-house production and editing facilities, a videotape library, business offices and possibly accessory studio uses.

Status

Completed

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Glenn Kreger, (301) 495-1304, e-mail

Applicant:
Kennett Street Venture, L.C., Thomas Woodhouse, (703) 845-9805

Opportunities for Public Participation:
Completed

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Project Plan - #9-94001A

Planning Board Action:
Approved on June 24, 1999

comments

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/Discovery.jpg

Silver Springer

March 29th, 2006, 04:36 AM

1200 Blair Mill Road

Description:
This 0.77-acre site at the corner of East-West Highway, Newell Street and Blair Mill Road is zoned CBD-1. The applicant proposes to construct a 96-unit condominium building with 44 below-grade parking spaces. The proposed building would be 90' in height and would have its main entrance would be on Blair Mill Road.

Status

Preliminary Plan and the Project Plan approved

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
1200 BMR Associates
c/o Perseus Realty
2099 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006
(202)741-1892
Attention: Woody Bolton (John Wood Bolton, Jr.)

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board will hold a public hearing on a future site plan.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number(s):
Preliminary Plan #1-06006 and Project Plan #9-06001

Planning Board Action:
The Preliminary Plan and the Project Plan were approved on October 10, 2005.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff Contacts:

comments
Last I heard the developer wants to flip the property so it may never see the light of day.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/1200_blairmill1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/1200_blairmill.jpg

MasonsInquiries

March 30th, 2006, 07:08 PM

Stop playing it is a suburb, one that we need more of.
i agree 100%, NoVa.

MasonsInquiries

March 30th, 2006, 07:16 PM

Exactly! Urban areas 99% of the time are destinations it doesn't work the other way around. And No longer are the surrounding areas dependent upon the inner city as you think. If D.C. somehow disappeared tomorrow Silver Spring wouldn't collapse instantaneously because of that. It is self dependent. Quite frankly Silver Spring is no longer a suburb like most people think, that was decades ago and it's time most people got over that.
Alright, let's cut to the chase here. Silver Spring is a SUBURB, SilverSpringer. It's a suburb of the nation's capital. Nothing more, nothing less. It's no different than what Towson, Owings Mills, Ellicott City, and White Marsh is to Baltimore. Now, if we're talking about Columbia, i would consider them a city in many aspects; but Silver Spring? A CITY? You can't be serious......lol. :down:

NovaWolverine

March 30th, 2006, 08:59 PM

NovaWolverine

March 30th, 2006, 09:04 PM

But to each his own I can see why people think otherwise, in the end it's fine.

DCKenny

March 30th, 2006, 10:06 PM

How is Columbia consider a city?

MasonsInquiries

March 30th, 2006, 10:16 PM

How is Columbia consider a city?
well, you have to ask yourself a couple of questions before you can answer that question. first, which city is it considered a suburb of, baltimore or washington? i would have to say neither. columbia's population is 102,000 or something like that which leads into my second question. What suburb (and this is MY personal thinking on the issue) have you ever heard of having a population of more than 100,000 or so? i could be wrong on this issue, but i've never heard of any. how about you guys?

pepperjack

March 30th, 2006, 10:17 PM

Alexandria hasn't been independent in terms of growth for at least 100 years. The entire area is non-profits, association headquarters, and government contractors. Non of which would be anywhere near the place if it wasn't a stone's through from DC. Without DC, it would be maybe a smaller version of Savanah (at best).

DC is a giant monster consuming hundreds of smaller, independent towns and almost overnight turning them into suburbs. It doesn't matter how long they've been cities with their own identity and character, they pretty much become dictionary definitions of suburbs. Places with their own city identities as recently as 25 years ago like Frederick and Leesburg, now are throughly DC suburbs.

As for height, I think Silver Spring is quite lucky with the DC height restriction. It has nothing to do with whether people call it a suburb or not. It's almost entirely due to location--if you examine the areas of height (I hesitate to even call it that) in DC, it's Roslyn, Crystal City, Silver Spring, Bethesda. Places that all physically touch the District boundary. If there was no height resitrction inside city limits, those places would be almost exactly the same as Towson, Ellicott City, except maybe a little larger in terms of population.

Silver Springer

March 30th, 2006, 11:21 PM

Alright, let's cut to the chase here. Silver Spring is a SUBURB, SilverSpringer. It's a suburb of the nation's capital. Nothing more, nothing less. It's no different than what Towson, Owings Mills, Ellicott City, and White Marsh is to Baltimore. Now, if we're talking about Columbia, i would consider them a city in many aspects; but Silver Spring? A CITY? You can't be serious......lol. :down:

I think you’re confusing incorporated with unincorporated areas. Silver Spring is not a municipality, it has no mayor etc but neither does Columbia so I'm not sure what you’re getting at. From the places you’re comparing it to and your views it doesn’t read like you have ever been to Silver Spring. Towson is the county seat of Baltimore county, it exits as the government body so it would be there whether or not Balitmore city was there. Even places that call themselves cities or towns are far smaller than Silver Spring's CBD alone. Also (maybe I should have made myself clear) when I say Silver Spring I'm talking about the downtown area and the entire area considered as Silver Spring is 280,000+, that is the same size of a city like Buffalo,NY and far larger than Columbia.

No offense, but it seems you guys are stuck on a much generalized definition and the old ways of thinking. Sectors of a metropolitan area independent of the major city are still a new phenomena and I suppose it will take time for a correction and more people to realize this. I've taken social and urban geography courses and we never referred to places like Silver Spring simply as suburbs, uptowns, urban districts and edge cities were the common terms. Even Montgomery County has light pole banners saying "Celebrate Silver Spring's Urban District" and many developers have referred to it as an extension of D.C. and more like it than the county it resides in.

Silver Springer

March 30th, 2006, 11:35 PM

Silver Springer

March 30th, 2006, 11:50 PM

I'd put it ahead of many of those, and eventhough it has a very nice urban walking area, I don't think it's significance is great enough to not be a suburb. If it doesn't have the significance, than it should have the development, and it's development isn't quite there yet. It's in a funny little area but it's still a suburb, the vast majority of it.

Like I said before, no one is putting Silver Spring on the same level as the District of Columbia, but many agree that its significance is more than just a suburb and the connotations associated with that word. You can’t call a subdivision with single family homes a suburb and use that same word for Silver Spring when you’re trying to characterize places. It's funny you don't consider Jersey City a suburb of NY by your argument.

As far as spatial location Silver Spring is a community outside D.C., when characterizing the area suburb is an inappropriate term that someone who is even blind can see.

I guess it comes down to the your knowledge of the area and how it compares to other places. You guys can believe what you want but I will take what developers, government and residents have said over people on an internet forum.

Silver Springer

March 31st, 2006, 05:08 AM

8021 Georgia Ave

Description:
developer has proposed the adaptive reuse of the buildings designed by Arthur Heaton on Georgia Avenue in South Silver Spring. The 1.88 - acre site is zoned CBD-1/South Silver Spring Overlay Zone. It was placed on the Locational Atlas and Index of Historic Sites in 2005. The applicant proposes approximately 210 dwelling units (including 27 MPDUs), public use space and amenities, and 200 parking spaces in a 90' tall building (measured from the the mid-point along Burlington Avenue). The proposed project preserves and rehabilitates portions of two of the existing buildings on site. The pedestrian entrances for the new project will be along Georgia Avenue.

Status

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
Cypress Realty Investments LLC
C/O Union Realty Partners, Inc
1228-31st Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20007
(202) 682-1001
Attention: Mr. Doug Cooper, e-mail

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board will hold a public hearing on the proposed Project Plan and the Preliminary Plan applications. In the future, there will also be a site plan review process.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number(s):
Preliminary Plan #1-20060080 and Project Plan #9-20060020

Planning Board Action:
None to date.

comments
Residents are pushing for some common sense changes like adding a retail component, since it will be across the street from the 500 seat Montgomery College Performing arts center.

http://www.montgomerypreservation.org/ELdrycleaning.jpg
The National Dry Cleaning Institute, Silver Spring - 1927

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8021_georgia2.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8021_georgia3.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8021_georgia.jpg

MasonsInquiries

March 31st, 2006, 03:08 PM

8021 Georgia Ave
http://www.montgomerypreservation.org/ELdrycleaning.jpg
The National Dry Cleaning Institute, Silver Spring - 1927

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8021_georgia2.jpg

Ahhhhhhh!!!!!! The preservation of the "old" mixed with alot of the "new". I love the look of this project in general. It's really going to blend in with the other projects there.

Molo

March 31st, 2006, 05:38 PM

MasonsInquiries

March 31st, 2006, 06:10 PM

Silver Spring is a city, not a suburb.
It's like Richmond, Towson or Wilmington...maybe larger.
There's nothing urban about anything in northern VA. (All highway and midrises)

I think it has a suburb feel like Annapolis.
Now Columbia is a suburb...probably 60% Bmore--40% DC. Hell, the entire Howard county is for that matter. Buses don't even go there, let alone trains.

I group all these suburbs together...Huntvalley, Fairfax, Columbia, Arlington, Owings Mills, Alexandria, Woodlawn.

Silver Spring can hold its own.

Silver Spring is a city, not a suburb. VERY FALSE
It's like Richmond, Towson or Wilmington...maybe larger. TRUE (I disagree with S.S. being like Richmond. Richmond's a little bigger)
There's nothing urban about anything in northern VA. (All highway and midrises) VERY TRUE..........lol
I think it has a suburb feel like Annapolis. NOT QUITE, BUT CLOSE
Now Columbia is a suburb...probably 60% Bmore--40% DC. Hell, the entire Howard county is for that matter. Buses don't even go there, let alone trains.
TRUE
I group all these suburbs together...Huntvalley, Fairfax, Columbia, Arlington, Owings Mills, Alexandria, Woodlawn. NOT QUITE. Columbia and Arlington are in a league slightly ahead of the other 5

Silver Spring can hold its own. MOST DEFINITELY. 100% TRUE.

NovaWolverine

March 31st, 2006, 07:53 PM

Silver Springer

April 1st, 2006, 05:32 PM

Silver Springer

April 1st, 2006, 05:40 PM

I'm not pressed on Richmond, but it's a state capitol with universities and fortune 500 companies present, I know silver spring has a strong business presence, they have advantages over eachother, but overall, they're not really comparable.

I agree about Columbia and Arlington too, and Alexandria and Fairfax too. they're both more urban or significant than Hunt Valley and Owings Mills.

Silver Spring can very well hold its own I agree, it will evolve and become better, but it's definitely within DC's heavy heavy influence which is important.

The interesting thing and huge difference between Silver Spring and Arlington, even Behtesda is that they all have major government agencies that basically fueled their growth. Arlington was fueld by the Pentagon with the majority business related to defense. Bethesda is held down by NIH and Navy Medical Center. Silver Spring simply grew out all on it's own, sure NOAA is there but the place was already well developed and renowned way before they arrived. Today Discovery is the anchor and that is a private firm.

vivo

April 1st, 2006, 06:19 PM

um Howard County does have buses

KGB89

April 2nd, 2006, 12:26 AM

I was just going to add that, there's the Howard Transit green buses and commuter buses to Baltimore, Washington, and BWI

Silver Springer

April 2nd, 2006, 06:21 PM

Ahhhhhhh!!!!!! The preservation of the "old" mixed with alot of the "new". I love the look of this project in general. It's really going to blend in with the other projects there.

They don't do this in the suburbs.

Molo

April 4th, 2006, 11:09 PM

Also, I think Silver Spring is the only one that has that real city feel.

Ground level retail, foot traffic, metro hub, good cluster of midrise buildings.

Bethesda and Towson have the feel, but you know they're suburbs of large cities.

Now NOVA is like Charles Village or University City...very nice, walkable, pricey, car oriented, midrise apartments and condos everywhere and very scenic. It's kinda hard to put Annaplolis in suburb.

Now in 5 years, Hanover will be next in these debates. They're building like crazy over there, and will not want to be called suburb any longer.

JAB323

April 5th, 2006, 12:59 AM

Now in 5 years, Hanover will be next in these debates. They're building like crazy over there, and will not want to be called suburb any longer.

I don't know about that, but you are right, the Hanover/Arundel Mills area is growing FAST!!! It's really sneaking up. Not too long ago, there was no mall, no hotels, no office, no homes, nothing. It was just a little zip code. Now it's a big zip code, with Canon Stadium, home of the Maryland High School baseball championships! :)

StevenW

April 5th, 2006, 02:08 AM

Where does Rockville fit into all of this? City or suburb? :D

Silver Springer

April 5th, 2006, 02:44 AM

Where does Rockville fit into all of this? City or suburb? :D

Technically speaking Rockvlle is a city because it is incorporated and Montgomery County's county seat but it has a while to go before it catches up to Bethesda and Silver Spring. It has a few tall buildings where governemnt offices are located but it looks more TOD than Urbanized City, plus the Rockville Town Center project will make it more "old town" than "downtown". The Twinbrook project about a mile down 355 (Rockville Pike) will be more urbanized(after being annexed into the city) but it is too far away from the density around Rockville government center\town center to be considered one continous urbanized area. Overall Rockville pike needs to cleanup the strip malls but in the near future watch for North Bethesda to become an ubran Bethesda 2, they have the 19 story Midtown Bethesda North going up and a whole nother slew of highrises going up.

P.S.: check beyonddc soon, I will post soem Rockville Town Center Pics of the model.

Silver Springer

April 5th, 2006, 03:14 AM

The Galaxy

Description:
The developer of the Aurora on Eastern Avenue has proposed an Optional Method project known as the Galaxy on the adjoining CBD-1 property, also located within the South Silver Spring Overlay District. (Both projects are illustrated on the graphic at top left.) The project would include 321 dwelling units and 27,000 square feet of on-site public use space. Sufficient private parking spaces are proposed to serve both this project and the Aurora at a ratio of one space per unit. The applicant will also construct a significant number of public parking spaces pursuant to an agreement with Montgomery County that enables the developer to include Parking Lot 16 within the new project. The proposed heights of the buildings in the Galaxy project range from 45' along Eastern Avenue to 125' to the north.

Note: The portion along Eastern avenue will have to conform to Washington, D.C. streetscaping standards.

Status

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
RST Development
6001 Montrose Road, Suite 1001
Rockville, MD 20852
(301) 816-4243
Attention: Mr. Scott Copeland

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board held a public hearing on the proposed site plan on January 12, 2006.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number(s):
Site Plan #8-20060130

Planning Board Action:
Preliminary Plan #1-05089 and Project Plan #9-05005 were approved on July 28, 2005. Site plan #8-20060130 was approved on January 12, 2006.

comments
RST has done a lot in downtown Silver Spring, renovating the The abandoned Gramax, William and Whistle buildings but once again residents are pushing for some common sense changes like adding a retail and office component for this group of 3 100%residential condo buildings,with the tallest being 12 stories. this also the second largest project by units in Siilver Spring, the developer has also been the fastest to date with going from project plan to site plan and then to demolishing buildings and construction in a matter of 8 months but unfortunately the project is the least aesthetically pleasing. IMO this is the ugliest project out of all proposed, it has a 1960's dated design to it but it has grown on me since visiting the new website at galaxysilverspring.com . We may see some "red brick" as requested by one concerned resident to break up the sea of blandness.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/galaxy2.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/galaxy4.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/galaxy3.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/galaxy.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/galaxy5.jpg

StevenW

April 5th, 2006, 04:56 AM

Thank you. :)

Silver Springer

April 13th, 2006, 02:45 AM

Thank you. :)

You're welcome! ;)

Silver Springer

April 13th, 2006, 02:58 AM

Cameron Hill

Description:
Eakin Yougentob has constructed 57 townhouses one block from the Metro station at Second Avenue and Cameron Street. The Fidler Lane Urban Park is located at the south end of the development near Colesville Road.

Status

COMPLETED

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Glenn Kreger, (301) 495-1304, e-mail

Applicant:
Eakin Yougentob, (703) 525-5565

Opportunities for Public Participation:
Completed

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary Plan # 1-98104

Planning Board Action:
Preliminary Plan # 1-98104 approved on September 1998

comments
Completed in the beginning of the revitalization planners are now regretting approving the plan as it seems out of place amongst the density and high rises at the time they were desperate for anything. Residents are protesting a 13 story highrise called the Portico directly next to there townhomes.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/CamHill_2ndAve4-23-03-1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/Cameron_Hill1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/Cameron_Hill2.jpg

Silver Springer

April 15th, 2006, 05:32 PM

Eastern Village Co-Housing: A LEED Silver Rated Green Building

comments
Silver Spring is setting the trend with an influx of High-Performance Green buildings. I don't think any other area in the D.C. metro has more green buildings. Places like Alexandria are only finally getting their first when Silver Spring has had them for years now ith many more to come. The Eastern Village Co-Housing is a Silver Rated building with a Geothermal well, Intensive and extensive green roofs of a renovated former office building. There is also office space next door with the tenant being the Architectural\Civil Firm who designed the building. http://www.easternvillage.org/

Description: A former office building at 7981 Eastern Avenue [that borders Washington, D.C.] was renovated by Eco-Housing into 56 co-housing units. Co-housing is a form of housing that began in Denmark about 40 years ago and spread to this country in the late 1980s. It attempts to foster community by allowing residents to share some living spaces, such as common dining facilities.

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Glenn Kreger, (301) 495-4653, e-mail

Applicant:
Eco-Housing Corporation, Ms. Ann Zabaldo (202)291-7892

Opportunities for Public Participation:
N/A

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
N/A

Planning Board Action:
N/A

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff Contact:
This project involves the renovation of an existing building and was therefore able to obtain the necessary building permits without the M-NCPPC reviews required for new development.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/eastern_village.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4556.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4552.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4547.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4539.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4570.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4580.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4621.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4656.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4652.jpg

http://kochel.com/easternvillage/images/DSC_4691.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/SSOct03-48.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/eastern_village1.jpg

Expat

April 15th, 2006, 10:58 PM

Silver Springer, thanks for keeping us up to date with all the great stuff going on in Silver Spring. I would love to have a condo at the Galaxy with a wrap-around, space-age balcony.

JAB323

April 16th, 2006, 01:35 AM

Nice Project :) :cheers1:

Silver Springer

April 17th, 2006, 12:53 AM

No prob! Still a few more to go.

Silver Springer

April 27th, 2006, 06:10 AM

Silver Springer

April 27th, 2006, 06:12 AM

Silver Spring Gateway (check out the video link!)

http://www.clairvoyantmedia.com/Portfolio/animations_review.asp?id_files=235

comments
Unfortunately the grocery store space (which we really needed) was removed and so was the office component. JBG could have really done a better job.

Description:
A 129,160 square foot assemblage of CBD-2 property on East-West Highway (between Blair Mill Road and Georgia Avenue) is proposed for a mixed-use project under the Optional Method of Development. The applicant is the developer of the adjoining Canada Dry property. The project that was originally proposed included 466,400 GSF of residential uses (471 multifamily dwelling units, including MPDUs) and 60,000 GSF of non-residential uses with an overall FAR (floor/area ratio) of 4.08. The application also included 593 structured parking spaces.

Revisions to the approved Preliminary and Project Plans were approved by the Planning Bolard on March 17, 2005. The total non-residential Gross Floor Area in the revised application was 53,027square feet and the number of proposed dwelling units was 468 including 59 MPDUs. At site plan, these numbers were reduced to 457 dwelling units (58 MPDUs); 14,080 square feet of general retail; and 655 parking spaces.

Status

Under Construction

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Michael Ma, (301) 495-4523, e-mail

Applicant:
The JBG Companies
4445 Willard Avenue, Suite 400
Chevy Chase, Maryland 20815
Attention: Pete Jervey, Project Manager

Opportunities for Public Participation:
A hearing was conducted on a site plan on November 3, 2005.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary Plan 1-04039 and Project Plan 9-04002 were the originally approved plans. Revisions to the Preliminary Plan (1-04039A) and Project Plan (9-04002A) were filed to accommodate a grocery store on site. Site plan #8-05001A deleted the grocery store.

Planning Board Action:
The initial project and preliminary plans were approved on February 5, 2004. The revised preliminary and project plans were approved on March 17, 2005. The site plan was approved on November 3, 2005.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff:
Blair Mill Road will be abandoned as a public street between East-West Highway and Georgia Avenue after the subject property has received site plan approval.

http://www.jbgr.com/frameMD26b.htm

http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/4174/gatewaysite41se.jpg

http://www.clairvoyantmedia.com/Portfolio/uploaded_files/SilverSpringGateway.jpg

Historic station to be demolished to make way for the gateway.
http://img285.imageshack.us/img285/6152/gatewaysite14xl.jpg

Site
http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/2261/gatewaysite22dr.jpg

http://img101.imageshack.us/img101/9754/gatewaysite32li.jpg

http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/5310/gatewaysite54rt.jpg

http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/7262/gatewaysite66nq.jpg

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/5548/gatewaysite74ck.jpg

cityman1100

May 3rd, 2006, 07:44 PM

Do any of you know exactly where the new Midtown Silver Spring property will be built?

Silver Springer

May 4th, 2006, 07:22 PM

Do any of you know exactly where the new Midtown Silver Spring property will be built?

To answer your question I might as well make it the next feature presentation.

Silver Springer

May 4th, 2006, 07:47 PM

Midtown Silver Spring (Ripley Street District)

comments
I have seen the colored renderings presented by the Developer KSI, unfortunately I could only find a black and white photo, the building design has changed to 2 towers since the first renderings. To spurr your imagination, the two towers have an extensive use of glass and red brick on the facade with a white "crown". I almost thought this project wouldn't get built, it was first rumored to be 330 ft (according to emporis). At the least I thought it would be six years before it would be built because of the time the lanning board gave the Pyramid Atlantic building (arts firm) that was recently renovated as well as the future Purple light rail line right-of-way. At 20 stories it will have the most in Silver Spring. They will be the tallest residential buildings (for now until Silver Spring transit center is built) with ground floor retail. KSI claims they will be the tallest buildings in all of downtown Silver Spring but that is far from true at only 200ft. The 238ft Silver Spring metro center II built in 1986 is still the tallest.

Description:
Description: A high-rise residential project is proposed on a 69,750 square foot parcel on the north side of Ripley Street between Georgia Avenue and the railroad tracks. The property is zoned CBD-2 and can be developed up to 5 FAR as a mixed use project under the Optional Method of Development. The proposed project includes 317(315?) dwelling units (including 40 MPDUs), approximately 5380 square feet of ground floor retail or other street activating uses, and about 369 parking spaces. The proposed building will be approximately 200 feet tall and will include a swimming pool deck for the residents. An 10,000 square foot (including Dixon Avenue sidewalk) landscaped public use space will be constructed on the east end of the project, adjoining the alley behind Pyramid Atlantic. Ripley Street and Dixon Avenue will be improved in accordance with the Silver Spring CBD Sector Plan recommendations. Dixon Avenue will connect through Garage 5 to Bonifant Street. Ripley Street may ultimately be connected to the Silver Spring Transit Center.

Status

Planned

Doug Johnsen (301) 495-4571, e-mail

Applicant:
KSI
8081 Wolftrap Road
Vienna, VA 22182-5100
(703) 852-5719
Attention: Mr. Don Hague

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board held a public hearing on the original project plan for this development on July 29, 2004 and on the project plan amendment on March 30, 2006. They will hold hearings on the proposed preliminary plan and a future site plan.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary plan 1-20060540

Planning Board Action:
The original project plan was approved on July 29, 2004 and the project plan amendment was approved on March 30, 2006.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff:
.

Date of last page update: March 31, 2006

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Silver Springer

May 4th, 2006, 09:38 PM

http://ketsco.com/news/news-release33.html

News
Contact:

Cassie Cataline
KSI Services, Inc.
703-852-5709
ccataline@ksi.com
OR
Sara Nichols
KSI Services, Inc.
703-852-5645
snichols@ksi.com

KSI SERVICES SEEKING FINAL APPROVAL FROM MONTGOMERY COUNTY TO CONSTRUCT MIDTOWN SILVER SPRING
Complex will consist of 2 20-Story Towers with 315 homes

Vienna, VA—

April 21, 2006---KSI Services, Inc., one of the DC metro area’s top mixed-use residential and commercial developers, is seeking approval from Montgomery County officials to construct Midtown Silver Spring, the newest in their line of high-end condominium projects bearing the ‘Midtown’ brand. Midtown Silver Spring, when completed, will be the tallest structure in downtown Silver Spring. It will consist of two 20-story towers offering a total of 315 homes and is expected to be a $100 million investment. If KSI receives approval on the project, construction could begin this fall with expected delivery in late 2008 or early 2009.

Silver Spring has benefited recently from $1 billion in public sector improvements and much more in private-sector development.

‘The whole downtown Silver Spring project has been tremendous,” stated Don Hague, the vice president of multifamily development for KSI. “Several years ago, KSI began to focus on transit-oriented developments and when we had the opportunity to acquire this parcel, we jumped at it.”

Midtown Silver Spring will have a pool on the roof, a substantial fitness center, game room and a conference area designed for those with home-based businesses. It is further expected that many of the partnership amenities that KSI offers in their other properties will be available to residents. This could includes, American Express, VIPdesk, Flexcar and Restoration Hardware among others.

In addition, KSI is committed to reserving 40 of Midtown Silver Spring’s homes for affordable housing. KSI is the largest manager of affordable housing in the Washington metro area. Prices will not be set until closer to delivery. KSI should open its sales center this summer.

###

Silver Springer

May 4th, 2006, 09:41 PM

http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/04/03/story2.html
KSI to reshape Silver Spring skyline with twin towers

Washington Business Journal - March 31, 2006by Joe CoombsStaff Reporter
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KSI Services could add a towering element to Silver Spring's skyline with a planned $100 million development.

The Vienna-based company is seeking approvals from Montgomery County for Midtown Silver Spring, a 315-unit condominium complex with a pair of 20-story towers that would become two of the tallest structures in the city's downtown.

» Get the latest business news on the go!
Brought to you by Cingular If KSI (www.ksi.com) gets the nod from the county, work could start this fall on the project, says Don Hague, the company's vice president for multifamily development.

"It would be a higher-end project, with all the bells and whistles," he says. "We'll have a pool on the roof, a substantial fitness center, a game room and a conference area for people with home-based businesses. And we're looking forward to some spectacular views."

Midtown Silver Spring (www.condosof
silverspring.com) also would include 369 below-ground parking spaces.

KSI's site on Ripley Avenue is a short distance from the road's connection with Georgia Avenue and within a quarter-mile of the Silver Spring Metro station on Colesville Road. It's only a couple of blocks from Discovery Communications' headquarters and a slew of other recent projects that have contributed to Silver Spring's revitalization, which has included $1 billion worth of public-sector improvements and billions more in private-sector developments.

"The whole downtown Silver Spring project has been tremendous," Hague says. "About five years ago, we focused on transit-oriented developments for our new projects. And when we had an opportunity to acquire this parcel, we jumped on it."

KSI would reserve 40 of Midtown Silver Spring's units for affordable housing. Prices on the condominiums won't be set until the project gets closer to delivery, which could be in late 2008 or early 2009. A sales office should open this summer.

The new project will have plenty of competition in Silver Spring, where condominium developments have been a huge part of the city's rebirth, says Gary Stith, director of the Silver Spring Regional Center. The center is the managing authority for the redevelopment project and provides maintenance and beautification services for the city's downtown district.

"There was a lull for a little while, but it seems like a lot of condos are coming online all of a sudden," Stith says. "I think demand for those types of projects is still very strong. One project sold all 123 of its units in 70 days. It's a popular place, because we've got all the amenities in place right now."

Montgomery County has the third-highest number of condo units in the pipeline for the next three years among local jurisdictions, according to Alexandria-based research firm Delta Associates (www.delta

associates.com).

The county has 11,174 units in various stages of construction or planning, behind only the District with 12,378 units and Fairfax County/Falls Church with 13,117.

E-MAIL: JCOOMBS@BIZJOURNALS.COM PHONE: 703/816-0306

Silver Springer

May 10th, 2006, 01:45 AM

Businesses vacate to make room for library
High rents may force some out of downtown
Wednesday, May 3, 2006

by Meredith Hooker
Staff Writer

ACI-Home Theater Solutions, which has been in downtown Silver Spring since 1969, won’t be at its Bonifant Street location much longer.

As the county moves closer to purchasing land to create a new Silver Spring Library, several niche businesses along Bonifant Street have had to vacate their stores to make way for the public facility. The move is a disappointing one since a number of the businesses — like ACI-Home Theater Solutions — have been in Silver Spring for many years, said Fred Powell, who’s in charge of the store’s customer installation department and often runs the store for its owner.

‘‘We were one of those businesses in Silver Spring when things weren’t so good,” Powell said of the audio and video repair and theater installation company. ‘‘... Now they’re running us out.”

A library expected to be two-and-a-half times the size of the current facility on Colesville Road, the smallest library in the county’s system, will be constructed on Wayne Avenue, Fenton and Bonifant streets.

The county is still acquiring land for the project, said Gary Stith, director of the Silver Spring Regional Center. The county now owns one building — the one where ACI-Home Theater Solutions is located — and has made offers on a couple others. Those property owners are getting their own appraisals, which the county encourages. The county has budgeted $11 million for acquisition and relocation.

The county executive’s proposed capital budget has moved design funding for the new library back two years to fiscal 2009, delaying construction and pushing back the opening of the building until 2011. However, the County Council still could decide to start funding the project in fiscal 2009, Stith said.

Total cost for the project is estimated to be between $21 and $24 million, according to the proposed budget.

The new library may include small-scale retail facing Fenton Street and apartment units above the library. The proposal is under review by the public libraries department and the county’s Department of Housing and Community Affairs. No final decision has been made.

‘‘I guess they’re trying to bring one of the higher-end businesses in here,” Powell said, adding he’s known for two or three years that a move was possible.

He’d like it if ACI could stay in the downtown. The company had a good lease, he said, and a location with parking where customers didn’t have far to walk if they were bringing in televisions for repair.

But rent elsewhere downtown would be too high to accommodate the store — rents have gone up from $10 to $20 per square foot to $30 per square foot or more, Powell said.

However, the move — the company will relocate to an industrial park near Tech Road within the next 90 days — won’t be detrimental to sales.

‘‘People would seek us out,” he said. ‘‘We didn’t need to have prime real estate.”

Additionally, the move also will allow for ample parking close by, instead of forcing customers to park in a garage and lug a television to the store, he said, adding the county has been very responsive and helpful with relocation.

‘‘They’re making it so it’s not quite so hard,” he said. ‘‘They’re trying to help us out.”

Other business owners at 905 Bonifant St., the only property the county has purchased so far, could not be reached for comment.

The county is required to provide assistance to businesses that need to relocate, Stith said. ‘‘Of course, we’d like to keep them in downtown Silver Spring and if that’s not possible, in Montgomery County.”

There are no restrictions on where a business can relocate, he said.

However, despite receiving help, it doesn’t mean it’s easy to leave the neighborhood his business has called home for more than 30 years, and it doesn’t mean it’s easy to watch the neighborhood, which boasted niche shops, including a store that sold razors and blades, make this transition, Powell said. In his own building, at 905 Bonifant St., stores like an African fashion shop and framing store will have to find new homes.

‘‘There are ways of cleaning up and renovating without running people out,” he said.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

May 10th, 2006, 01:50 AM

United Therapeutics moves on to ovarian cancer drug, new labs
Silver Spring firm sees competition ahead for its pulmonary hypertension drug
Wednesday, May 3, 2006

by Steve Berberich

Staff Writer

If a social club existed for biotech executives, its members wouldn’t share a drink with officials from United Therapeutics Inc., says David Zaccardelli, the company’s vice president for pharmaceutical development.
‘‘It‘s because we are making a profit,” Zaccardelli said. ‘‘Biotechs are not supposed to do that so quickly.”

The future seems bright for the Silver Spring company. It turned a profit of $65 million in 2005, just seven years after going public; it is entering final human testing of an ovarian cancer drug with a potential blockbuster market; and it is about to open a new $32 million laboratory in Silver Spring,

United Therapeutics’ fortunes have been fueled by sales of Remodulin, which treats pulmonary arterial hypertension and which accounted for more than 90 percent of its $115.9 million in revenues last year. The company licensed Remodulin from pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline, effectively setting in motion United’s business plan several years ago, say its officials.

One explanation for United’s rapid and unusual success may lie in its unconventionality. It is a small drug-development company — 215 employees — that is using an imaginative strategy.

‘‘We are not a discovery company,” CFO Fred Hadeed said. ‘‘We do not have basic R&D facilities and basic research grants. We find drugs that have been tested in humans in a late stage. We in-license those drugs and get them approved.”

Some companies take 20 years to get a drug ‘‘from discovery of the molecule to the time it is approved,” Hadeed said. ‘‘We enter the timeline almost at the end.”

Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration lifted all conditions it had imposed on its accelerated approval of Remodulin two years ago. Because the pulmonary disease is life-threatening and United’s tests had indicated Remodulin to be safe, the agency conditionally allowed United to sell the drug. It is injected under the skin or sprayed into an artery periodically through a catheter.

Chairman and CEO Martine Rothblatt, who previously worked in satellite communications, founded United Therapeutics in 1996 under the name of Lung Rx, driven by a passion to save the health and perhaps life of her young daughter, Jenesis Rothblatt. Jenesis had developed pulmonary hypertension three years earlier. She is now 21, still taking the medication, according to company officials, and planning to marry in June.

When the company licensed other late-stage drug candidates for treating other diseases, the name Lung Rx seemed limited, Rothblatt said. She and her management team changed the name to United Therapeutics; Lung Rx remains as a wholly owned subsidiary of United Therapeutics.

Currently, United is working on inhaled and pill versions of Remodulin and has a full pipeline of drug candidates and four commercial products, Hadeed said.

But there’s competition. CoTherix Inc. of South San Francisco, Calif., is marketing its own version of an inhaled treatment for pulmonary arterial hypertension that is already on the market and gaining strength. In only nine months of 2005, sales for CoTherix’ Ventavis generate revenues of $23.9 million for the small company.

Hadeed said only three companies are actively developing such treatments: Glaxo, United and CoTherix. ‘‘We truly have an advantage because our molecule has the longest active life in the body of these products — four-and-a-half hours,” he said.

Anne Bowdidge, senior director of investor relations with CoTherix, acknowledged that Remodulin is a longer-lasting treatment but said Ventavis is preferred by many patients because it is more convenient and more potent. She added that, similar to United’s approach, CoTherix licensed Ventavis in a late stage of development from Schering AG in Europe, which agreed to relinquish its U.S. marketing rights.

United Therapeutics has marketing approvals for use of Remodulin in nearly 30 nations, including most of the European Union, most of North America, Australia, Switzerland and Argentina, Hadeed said.

United is now ready to focus on ovarian cancer. The company has nearly filled its final trial of OvaRex, which stimulates an immune system attack on ovarian tumors. The trial includes 60 clinical sites and 350 patients with advanced ovarian cancer. It is designed to help patients in the ‘‘watchful waiting period” of up to six months after chemotherapy. As many as 85 percent of patients get the disease again.

‘‘There is nothing that is FDA-approved for this period. We are trying to prevent the recurrence of the disease,” said executive vice president Paul Mahon, who has been with the company since its founding.

United Therapeutics is turning its profits into significant capital investments. Its new Silver Spring lab — adjacent to its headquarters and with a dedication scheduled for June 26 — will produce Remodulin and OvaRex.

The company also plans an expansion in North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park, where it already has a small facility with 35 employees. Durham County officials have approved up to $650,000 in incentives to woo the company to build a new, 175-employee plant that would manufacture a pill form of Remodulin.

United Therapeutics is ‘‘different in that we have a very strong fiscal discipline,” Rothblatt said. ‘‘We have an obligation to get a gain for our shareholders. And, of course we also have a strong ethical commitment for doctors and patients to produce the best possible medicines.”

This report originally appeared in The Business Gazette.

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Silver Springer

May 10th, 2006, 02:12 AM

8045 Newell Street Condominums

comments
This was the former site of the Blair post office as well as the former site of the Francis Blair Mansion (founder of Silver Spring). The condos are nice on the inside although pricey. Patriot group should learn to put a little "pizzaz" into their projects (and get a website too) it feels out of character with it's surroundings of brick front buildings. Oh yeah, STOP USING WOOD!

Status: COMPLETE

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
8045 Newell Street, LLC, c/o the Patriot Group, (202) 737-9540, Mr. Leith Wain

Opportunities for Public Participation:
Project is under construction.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Project Plan #9-0300 and Preliminary Plan #1-03021, Site Plan #8-03037.

Planning Board Action:
Project Plan #9-0300 & Preliminary Plan #1-03021 Approved on Feb 27, 2003.

Specs
8045 Newell Street

Project Description: 120 Unit Condominiums with Parking Level

Project Location: 8045 Newell Street, Silver Spring, MD

Developer: The Patriot Group, LLC

Architect: A. R. Meyers & Associates

Project Vaule: $14,200,000

Project Schedule: Sept.2003 thru Sept., 2005

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JAB323

May 10th, 2006, 01:39 PM

SilverSpringer, what are they doing with the Twin Tower Apartments, I think that's what they're called. Just to make sure, the old brick ones across from Downtown Silver Spring. Seems like it would be some prime real estate. Oh, and another question, is there any push for incorporation, like I've seen recently in other place?

Silver Springer

May 10th, 2006, 04:13 PM

^^^^^I haven't heard any plans to demolish them although I think they were recently renovated. I agree that those ugly things should go (if that is what your implying). They seem so out of place and I think something denser and taller needs to go there, we may see them go sooner than later. Part of the reason why I think they are still there is because a developer wouldn't be able to build any taller because of zoning rules. In other news, during the last week or so, a developer has proposed a new office building called City Place Tower as an addition maybe, but I don't have any details on it.

As for incorporation I have not heard anything about it recently. I think it would be cool only because we would be by far the second largest jurisdiction in the state and the largest in the D.C. area but at the same time what would it accomplish besides paying some officials salary and snow clean up? Just more tax money going down the drain IMO.

I also wonder if Silver Spring would be as large as it is if it had incorporated from the get go. I doubt it looking at all the incorporated jursidictions in the area that are not as prosperous. The county has done a good job managing the unincorporated parts of the county (only recently for Silver Spring). I also think it is ironic that Bethesda and Silver Spring are the two largest urban nodes in the state but are unincorporated, no other incorporated area is as large and urban besides Baltimore.

Silver Springer

May 12th, 2006, 06:11 AM

Formula for downtowns: Talk to the community
Residents’ input has been a key ingredient in redevelopment projects
Wednesday, May 10, 2006

http://gazette.net/stories/051006/silvnew185136_31939.shtml

by Meredith Hooker
Staff Writer

Find some land. Build some stores and restaurants. Throw in a piece or two of art for good measure. Creating a downtown doesn’t seem complicated.

However, coming up with a plan for an area where people want to work, visit and live that also fits the surrounding community can take time. And the retailers and employers have to go along with it, too.

In some cases, it takes help from the public sector. It takes communication between developers and community members. It can take time; it took more than 20 years for officials and developers to create an adequate plan to revitalize downtown Silver Spring.

In downtown Wheaton, developers have focused on adding residential and office space. New townhouses have been built by the Metro station. The mall, Westfield Wheaton, recently underwent a renovation that brought in several new stores.

In downtown Silver Spring, developers hoped to make the area a destination. Apartments and condos have been built, along with a town center with a variety of restaurants, stores and a movie theater. Both concepts work well for the communities they serve. But there’s no set idea as to what’s best for Wheaton and Silver Spring’s downtowns, or any others, said Joe Davis, director of the Wheaton Redevelopment Program.

‘‘The best way to get a pulse — the best way is to actively ask people,” Davis said.

Wheaton has two committees made up of community members who advise officials. ‘‘One of the keys to redevelopment is that the community has to be involved,” Davis said. Marian Fryer, a Wheaton resident and small business owner who serves on several advisory committees, said if community members aren’t involved in the process, development might not meet residents’ needs. ‘‘That’s one of the reasons why I’ve been so active.”

What’s in store
Some projects ahead for Silver Spring:
DSW Shoe Warehouse
Z Pizza Fuddrucker’s
Old Dominion Brewing Company

In Wheaton, she said, residents and workers need safe ways to cross Georgia Avenue and access Westfield Wheaton. The area needed more residential units and ways to retain the flavor of small businesses. Community members expressed those concerns to county officials and developers.

Attending advisory meetings takes time, Fryer said, but is worth it.

Residents, developers team up

In Wheaton, a developer and residents were able to work together and select a plan they felt ultimately worked best. ‘‘That collaboration was exciting,” said Artie Harris, vice president of the Bozzuto Group, which is working on several development projects in Wheaton.

‘‘It’s important to have that perspective in order to be able to keep it a community,” Fryer said. ‘‘We have an opportunity to be Wheaton, to be different from Silver Spring, to be different from Rockville.”

Greenbelt-based Bozzuto has been active in Wheaton’s redevelopment since the late 1990s, when it put in an unsolicited proposal to build over the Metro station, Harris said. At that time, the proposal wasn’t granted because Metro wasn’t developing the site, but Bozzuto and Bethesda-based developer EYA, formerly known as Eakin⁄Youngentob Associates, acquired the former Tuesday Morning site on Georgia Avenue and split it.

Bozzuto built 243 apartments and EYA built townhomes in a response to the need for more residential development.

Toward the end of this month, along with the Housing Opportunities Commission, Bozzuto will begin building a mixed-use development with 173 residential units as well as retail space over Wheaton’s Kiss and Ride, Harris said. Thirty percent of the units will be affordable. In about two years, the group plans to build an office building over the bus station on the west side of Georgia Avenue.

The group listened to the community’s suggestions when creating plans, Harris said, keeping in mind that Wheaton, with its large number of retail and restaurants, needed more residential and office space. ‘‘You don’t want to be a cookie-cutter community.”

Several stops and starts

Likewise, in Silver Spring, which is much further along in its redevelopment, steering committees advised officials and developers.

Several plans to revitalize Silver Spring emerged over the past two decades, led by developers and politicians who hoped to transform Silver Spring. Before the current redevelopment began to take shape, two major large-scale plans were considered and rejected mainly because developers didn’t believe retailers would rent space in the buildings that had been proposed.

Many credit the role of community activists who opposed the projects that didn’t get built and kept encouraging county officials and developers to consider development on a smaller scale. Those residents attended several years’ worth of meetings, telling developers and county officials what they did and didn’t want to see.

Both the business and civic community played a role in the development of the downtown, said longtime Silver Spring business owner Charles Atwell. When developers were considering putting the American Dream mall in Silver Spring’s downtown, some of the members of those advisory committees even visited the Mall of America in Minneapolis and West Edmonton Mall in Canada, which were seen as prototypes for the Silver Spring mall. Members of the Ghermezian family from Triple Five Development made public appearances in Silver Spring, touting a destination shopping center that featured an amusement park, a theme hotel and a wave pool.

Community members spent hours on weeknights and weekends talking about what they wanted to see in Silver Spring, Atwell said. At the time, officials and residents believed that Silver Spring’s rebirth depended on making the development a regional destination. While some residents believed a megamall was inappropriate, others saw it as just what Silver Spring needed. Ultimately, the lack of development interest doomed the project.

Where residents come first

Once the megamall was rejected, residents eventually told developers Foulger-Pratt Companies and Peterson Companies in the late 1990s about the types of stores they wanted to see in a local downtown.

Foulger-Pratt and Peterson had a good idea of what they thought should be in the downtown, said Bryant Foulger, vice president of Foulger-Pratt, and the community confirmed that idea at several public meetings.

The suggestions included traditional town fixtures, like a grocery and hardware store, which Foulger-Pratt and Peterson sought out as tenants. Whole Foods was one of the first stores to sign on to the downtown Silver Spring redevelopment project.

‘‘We felt like the Ghermezian project kind of missed the whole community issue,” Foulger said. ‘‘They took the view that this needed to be an entertainment [center].”

Foulger said his vision — and the community’s — was of a center that would serve and draw in people in the surrounding neighborhoods. People living near downtown Silver Spring had money to spend, he said.

‘‘We had a very clear picture of what would do well and wouldn’t do well,” he said.

The final step in Silver Spring’s downtown renaissance, however, was the county’s ability to bring in Discovery Communications from Bethesda and the American Film Institute to a refurbished Silver Theatre. The influx of workers from a large employer and movie-goers at AFI provided the final impetus for commercial tenants to come to Silver Spring. Tax and financial incentives, as well as large parcels of county-owned land, made it possible to redo Silver Spring’s downtown.

Foulger-Pratt and Peterson did seek out some stores, but other restaurants and retail have come to the area on their own accord, he said, and businesses continue to call and inquire about space.

The development on Ellsworth Drive probably has all the restaurants it needs, Foulger said, and now the company is focusing on retail. DSW Shoe Warehouse will open in July and a day spa will be opening in the space above Macaroni Grill. After that, Foulger said, the town center will be about 96 percent occupied and will be focusing on leasing more ‘‘softer goods.”

When leasing tenants, he said, ‘‘We have to look at downtown Silver Spring not just as our project but the entire area. I’m pleased to see other retail going in the properties around us.”

For instance, restaurants like Taste of Morocco, Ben and Jerry’s and Chipotle have leased space in City Place. A steakhouse is coming to the Lee property on Colesville Road. Clothing store American Apparel plans to open in a building at Colesville Road and Fenton Street, just across from the Ellsworth Drive development.

The downtown was made possible by the partnership developers had with the county, Foulger said. That partnership was critical to the success of the project since county officials assembled the land.

No surplus of county land

But unlike Silver Spring, Wheaton doesn’t have county land available to give to a company to bring workers to the downtown, which is why many Wheaton stakeholders are interested in zoning changes that would allow increased building height. That would allow more space to be created for offices, residences and some retail.

However, the specific stores that come to a community often can’t be chosen, Davis said, since the market influences business owners. However, people can make it known the types of things they’d like to see — and things they’d like to avoid.

‘‘One concern is that there’s too much retail at Wheaton right now,” he said.

When developers determine what to build, they will often use a consultant, Harris said. ‘‘When nothing exists there, it’s hard to determine what is the best product.”

In Wheaton, community members and officials would like to emphasize office and residential development to create more daytime traffic in the community, as well as focus on arts and entertainment.

‘‘I’d like to see mixed-use development,” Davis said, adding legislation that would change the overlay zone would slightly increase height regulations in the downtown and allow opportunity for denser development. That, he said, would allow more opportunity for mixed-use development and bring more people to Wheaton. It also would retain small businesses.

Marketing plays a key

The mall brings people to Wheaton’s downtown, Davis said, but the county and developers need to find a way to get those people to the rest of the community.

That entails creating physical pathways, Davis said, as well as marketing the downtown and its events, like the upcoming Taste of Wheaton. That event draws thousands of people annually and has played an important part in introducing area residents to the neighborhood.

Similar events, like the annual jazz festival, attract thousands of people to Silver Spring.

Events and marketing are important, said Gary Stith, director of the Silver Spring Regional Services Center. Not too long ago, downtown Silver Spring was an area perceived as unsafe with not much to do. And bringing people to the downtown proved difficult at first because not only was the area unattractive, it also was unattended.

‘‘We’d turn everything into an event,” he said, recalling the day the Tastee Diner was moved from its old location — where the Discovery building now stands — to its current location on Cameron Street. Officials turned the moving of the building into a parade.

‘‘There was a perception a lot of people still have of downtown Silver Spring,” Stith said. ‘‘We’ve had to work to let people know what kind of downtown Silver Spring we have now.”

Silver Springer

May 12th, 2006, 06:17 AM

Planners OK condos at historic building
Board, neighbors concerned about parking, access at National Institute of Dryers and Cleaners
Wednesday, May 10, 2006

http://gazette.net/stories/051006/silvnew185150_31945.shtml

by Meredith Hooker
Staff Writer

While 210 condominium units are being constructed at the former National Institute of Dryers and Cleaners site on Georgia Avenue, developers must ensure nearby businesses aren’t negatively affected.

The Montgomery County Planning Board on Thursday approved plans for the project, but asked that developer Cypress Realty Investments LLC accommodate local businesses if their parking is affected, as well as discuss alternate routes for Ride On buses and extension of the VanGo shuttle, a free bus service in the downtown, to ensure that portion of Silver Spring is accessible to public transportation.

Businesses in south Silver Spring are already being negatively affected by construction of condominiums, said Brenda Smoak, owner of Alchemy, an art store.

‘‘Stoddard Place is not adequate to accommodate all of the traffic that would be flowing into and out of this complex,” she said, adding that the five parking spaces she and three other south Silver Spring businesses share could be affected by construction. ‘‘... How will my customers, my artists and my class participants be able to be accommodated? If I don’t have parking, I cannot get customers to me, and that obviously is going to negatively impact my business.”

Anything Cypress Realty could do to minimize negative affects on Alchemy and other business would be critical, said Planning Board Chairman Derick P. Berlage. Board members don’t want a situation in which ‘‘the small individual business is getting the short end of the stick.”

Those parking spaces are on Stoddard Place in a public right of way, said Doug Cooper, senior vice president of Union Realty Partners, which encompasses Cypress Realty. Union Realty does not plan to take those spaces during construction.

The National Institute of Dryers and Cleaners consists of several buildings on a 1.88-acre site. Cypress Realty will preserve the entire building at Georgia and Burlington avenues and parts of the structure at Georgia Avenue and Stoddard Place, said Robert Kronenberg of Park and Planning. There will be 200 parking spaces.

The institute is listed on the Montgomery County Locational Atlas and Index of Historic Sites, which protects it from being torn down. Designed in 1926, it features a Spanish-tile roof and was created by architect Arthur Heaton.

‘‘We are very grateful for the support of the historical society to this particular project,” said Stephen Kauffman of Linowes and Blocher, the law firm representing Cypress Realty.

‘‘This is a wonderful example of adaptive reuse,” said Wayne Goldstein, president of Montgomery Preservation Inc.

The site will be accessed via Stoddard Place, Kronenberg said. Cypress Realty had also considered putting a right-turn only driveway from Burlington Avenue. However, such a driveway isn’t entirely compliant with State Highway Administration design standards, and Park and Planning staff recommended eliminating that entrance.

However, Planning Board members were concerned about the site solely being accessed from Stoddard Place and asked Cypress Realty and Park and Planning staff to take a closer look as to how the site could be accessed from Burlington Avenue. The board will take a closer look when the project returns for site plan review.

Commissioner Wendy C. Perdue said with the amount of traffic that would be coming onto the site, she didn’t understand why having an entrance on Burlington Avenue was a bad idea, and Commissioner Meredith K. Wellington agreed.

From Cypress Realty’s perspective, Kauffman said, it’s a good idea. However, from Park and Planning’s perspective, it will affect the streetscape, as well as pedestrian traffic. ‘‘There’s no question that having access from Burlington would be a significant improvement.”

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

May 12th, 2006, 06:22 AM

Blair Mill Road units will add to south Silver Spring (South Point) growth
Wednesday, May 10, 2006

— Meredith Hooker

A nine-story building with 96 condominium units will replace an auto shop in south Silver Spring, a neighborhood that is transitioning from industrial to residential.

The new 1200 Blair Mill Road, located near Newell Street and East West Highway, will include 12 moderately priced units. The building will be 90 feet tall. Washington, D.C.,-based Perseus Realty also will make streetscape improvements along Blair Mill Road and Newell Street, according to Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission staff reports.

The project will include public use space, as well as specialty pedestrian-oriented lighting throughout the public-use areas, as well as the walkways around the building, according to staff reports. There will be 46 parking spaces in a two-level underground garage.

The Montgomery County Planning Board approved the site plan for the project Thursday without comment. Preliminary plans for the project had previously come before the board.

1200 Blair Mill Road will be constructed near Acorn Park, believed to be part of Francis Preston Blair’s original estate. It is also close to the Silver Spring Metro station, Discovery Channel Communications building and the Silverton condominium project.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

May 21st, 2006, 10:37 PM

Parking shortage is taking a toll on south Silver Spring (South Point), businesses say
Shuttle, valet are helping some during construction
Wednesday, May 17, 2006

E-Mail This Article | Print This Story

by Meredith Hooker

Staff Writer

When they’re complete, residential units in south Silver Spring will bring new patrons to the area’s shops and restaurants. But in the meantime, businesses are trying to remind residents that they’re there amid the construction.

Construction has taken away from parking, particularly along Blair Mill Road, that many patrons used when going to places like Mayorga Coffee Factory, Gallery Restaurant and Lounge and the Silver Spring Innovation Center.

‘‘It’s hurt our business,” said Martin Mayorga, owner of Mayorga Coffee Factory. Mayorga, one of the first new businesses to set up shop in the neighborhood, said he’s had to re-learn how to bring people to his store.

He and his wife, Kerry, have cut back on hours at the store, Mayorga said, because the couple felt the shop was taking on too much of a bar atmosphere in the evening and they wanted to make sure it stayed focused on coffee. However, that cut in hours did coincide with a drop in business because of construction. Business dropped ‘‘enough for me to be concerned,” he said.

A shuttle that runs from the Kennett Street Garage to stops in front of Mayorga, as well as the innovation center, Moorenko and Crisfield’s Seafood Restaurant on Georgia Avenue and Gallery Restaurant and Lounge on East West Highway has been helpful, said Brenda Smoak, owner of art store Alchemy on Georgia Avenue. However, that shuttle, which is paid for by developer JBG Co., only runs Monday through Friday. There’s still a need for access on weekends, particularly when she holds her outdoor artists market.

‘‘It’s kind of hard,” she said. ‘‘I think we’ve lost a lot of business. ... We all have to survive this.”

One solution, she said, would be to extend the hours of the VanGo, the free bus service that runs throughout downtown Silver Spring, to run nights and weekends.

JBG Co., which is building the Silver Spring Gateway Project at Blair Mill Road, is also paying for valet parking for nearby businesses that is free to patrons if they get their tickets validated.

‘JBG is doing everything they possibly can to help out with this,” Smoak said.

Valet parking has been helpful, Mayorga said, because although there are a few parking spaces still available near the shop, they’re not enough.

Short-term parking is an issue, said Barry Soorenko, a principal at PhotoGroup, a south Silver Spring photography agency. People don’t mind using valet parking when they’ll be spending a few hours at a destination; however, many people don’t want to use valet parking when they plan on running into a store for 15 minutes to buy coffee or ice cream.

Mayorga said he realizes things will be completely different a few months from now when dozens of construction workers are on site — they could want to take a coffee break — and different once again once the condominium is built and open to residents. In fact, business could skyrocket.

‘‘We’re go-with-the-flow kind of people. Things change,” Mayorga said. ‘‘I’m looking forward to our new neighbors.”

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

May 21st, 2006, 10:58 PM

8711 Georgia Avenue (More office space!)

comments
I would say cross your fingers and hope for an architectural design change. It has been requested by residents and their was positive feedback from the developer. It was nice to see the office development pick up again as I feel there is residential saturation in downtown Silver Spring. If all 20+ residential projects are built there will be a glut of housing and I fear an over supply of the market. With Silver Spring's low commerical vaccany rate at around 4.8%it really boggles the mind as to why there is not a lot more office space being built and why the Silver Spring Transit Center project will not reconsider office for one the the 3 towers planned.

Description:
Description: The 0.76 acre property next to the Zalco building-currently a parking lot and a drive through for a bank-- has been proposed for a thirteen-story (143' tall) mixed use building. Approximately 147, 670 square feet of office uses and 5,070 square feet of retail/service uses would be constructed with two levels of underground parking. Vehicles would enter the front of the building along Georgia Avenue and exit from the rear on Fenton Street Extended. (Note: Fenton Street Extended is actually a private street providing egress from Garage 2. The proposed circulation plan therefore requires an access agreement with Montgomery County.) A significant public use space would be provided behind the proposed building along the extension of Fenton Street. A mid-block pedestrian linkage would be provided through the site connecting Georgia Avenue to Fenton Street Extended. The site is zoned CBD-2 and the proposed project would be constructed at a 4.0 FAR.

Status

Planned

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
8711 Georgia Avenue Associates, LLC
8701 Georgia Avenue, Suite 300
Silver Spring, MD. 20910
Attention: Paul Bellegrad
(301) 495-6601

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board will conduct a public hearing on a future site plan for the proposed project.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number(s):
Project Plan #9-20050020 and Preliminary Plan #1-20060420

Planning Board Action:
The project plan and preliminary plan were approved on January 19,l 2006

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8711_georgia01.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8711_georgia02.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8711_georgia04.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/8711_georgia03.jpg

pennster

May 22nd, 2006, 01:18 AM

Silver Springer

May 22nd, 2006, 09:40 PM

Silver Springer, the Newell Condos look MUCH nicer than the rendering did. I am quite pleased. The SS Gateway project looks MASSIVE. East-West Highway and Blair Mill Rd are becoming quite the highrise canyons.

About the Twin Towers Apts. They may look hideous on the Colesville Rd side, but they are actually surprisingly elegant on the inside, and nice looking from other streets. Instead of demolishing the entire building, I think that the gas station at the corner of GA and Colesville would be a prime location for a (very) thin new highrise that could mask the empty and blank brick wall of the Twin Towers.

Welcome to the board Pennster, the East-West highway block is my favorite in the CBD and is about to get better. As for the Twin Towers, I just hope someone doesn't try to give them an historical designation. They could at least update the facade. It is unforuntate that the designers did not have the foresight to match the exterior to the interior like a lot of buildings in downtown but it was built in the 60s so go figure.

Silver Springer

May 25th, 2006, 03:30 PM

Planners choose higher-cost option for trail
County board’s recommendation keeps motorists, pedestrians separate on Metropolitan Branch route
Wednesday, May 24, 2006

by Meredith Hooker

Staff Writer

http://www.gazette.net/images/SilverSpring/trailmaps052406b.jpg

A Silver Spring hiker-biker trail that’s part of a regional trail system should cross over Georgia Avenue and under Burlington Avenue to connect the Silver Spring Transit Center with Montgomery College in order to protect its users from cars, the Planning Board recommended Thursday.
That segment of the trail, a 10-foot wide hiker-biker path, would complete the Metropolitan Branch Trail in Montgomery County. It connects with other major trails, like the Capital Crescent Trail, which runs to Bethesda, said Charles Kines, of Park and Planning’s transportation planning division. The trail loosely follows Metro’s Red line.

‘‘The project enhances bicycle and pedestrian mobility in south Silver Spring area and connects two major destinations: the Silver Spring Transit Center and Montgomery College,” Kines said.

After examining options for the alignment of the trail, Park and Planning staff recommended a modified version of Option 5. That option would take the trail across Georgia Avenue on a new pedestrian and bike bridge and down Philadelphia Avenue, where cyclists would share the road with cars. The trail would then go around Fenton Gateway Park to connect to the Fenton Street⁄Burlington Avenue intersection. Cost of that option is between $10 million and $12 million, Kines said.

But after further review and raising concerns about putting cyclists with cars on Philadelphia Avenue, Planning Board members decided to recommend to the county’s Department of Public Works and Transportation Option 1 — which Park and Planning staff didn’t recommend largely due to cost. That option, which would cost between $17 million and $22 million, is the Master Plan alignment the Planning Board studied and endorsed in 2001. The Master Plan is a document that acts as a guide for an area’s long-term development plans.

‘‘You have to think big, OK?” said Commissioner Meredith K. Wellington. ‘‘... You have to think about the future.”

The Metropolitan Branch Trail is one of the most important in the region, Wellington said, and should be created to best serve cyclists and pedestrians.

‘‘If it’s only about the money, then you’ve got to fight for the money,” she said.

Under Option 1, the trail would include a pedestrian and bike bridge over Georgia Avenue and a tunnel under Burlington Avenue. Selim Avenue would be narrowed to accommodate the parallel trail and the intersection of Selim and Philadelphia avenues would be realigned to accommodate the bridge.

The Washington Area Bicyclist Association supports Option 1, said Wayne Phyillaier, a Silver Spring resident and WABA representative. That option protects cyclists and hikers from cars, which is critical in encouraging residents to use the trail. WABA also supports the modified Option 5, which addresses the cost issue, but also includes a bridge over Georgia Avenue.

Peter Gray, who spoke for the board of directors for the Capital Crescent Trail, said the board also supported the modified Option 5, as well as Option 1, and encouraged the Planning Board to keep the Capital Crescent Trail in mind when looking at plans for the Metropolitan Branch Trail.

‘‘The Capital Crescent Trail has been a wildly successful trail,” he said.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

pennster

May 28th, 2006, 10:15 AM

I saw a post with updated pictures of Midtown Reston coming along in another thread. I suppose that Midtown Silver Spring will look something like them. They should tower over the office buildings in Station Square. That will give Silver Spring a new skyline from Wheaton and from East-West Hwy coming from Bethesda. Do you know when ground is supposed to be broken on them?

pennster

May 29th, 2006, 02:43 AM

I know what you're saying, but unfortunately it is a suburb b/c of reasons aside from it's own development level, it's proximity to a place orders in magnitude more important. It's not on the development level of places such as Oakland or Jersey City that are hard for me to look at as suburbs, but it's built up plenty. It's not suburban, that's not what I said. The definition of suburb may have changed. It's an edge city, but isn't prominent enough for me to exclude it from being a suburb like parts of arlington and alexandria are.

The feeling across the borders is not mutual. As you said yourself, we're leeching off the land that you guys gave to be apart of DC and we're competing with you all. We're sprawly, internet capital, more concentrated educated ppl, more biotech..blah, blah, whatever you can say to feel superior.

Silver Spring will keep developing more and more and more, and people's idea of it will change even more, I think sooner or later it will lose the stigma you're thinking about, but I still think it's a suburb and I don't at all think of it as a Rockville or an Oakton.

Suburb by its very definition is a place that is less than urban; that is where the "sub" in suburban comes from. It is not the location of the place relative to another that matters. The stereotypical definition is that a suburb is to be located outside of a major city, but that is only because suburbs actually fit the stereotypical definition for a while. Some "suburbs" like Silver Spring matured and became urban cores, just as downtown DC had to do at one time. One could argue that White Oak, Colesville, and even Wheaton are suburbs of downtown Silver Spring. People come to visit me and marvel at how urban Bethesda and Silver Spring are--it is simply not something you see everyday. The reason for DC's unique inner "suburbs" is probably partly because of DC proper's small size and partly because of Metro.

In response to an earlier post about how you think that Marylanders feel outdone by the pace of development in VA, it simply isn't true. Sprawling development isn't anyone's idea of good development. It hinders quality of life, and you end up with a place such as Tysons Corner, which has to be rebuilt from scratch in order for it to become a born-again urban center. As a result you have Montgomery County's population growing 1.6 times faster than Fairfax County's, adding 50,000 people between 2000 and 2004 compared with Fairfax's 34,000. If Fairfax had been less concerned with luring tech companies to the Dulles corridor, and instead had balanced bringing the new companies in while also practicing intelligent planning, it wouldn't be in the situation it is in now, attempting to transform glorified office parks into "urban" centers. Yes, it would have potentially had to develop slower, but quality is what life is about and what matters in the end, not quantity.

Remember the tech bubble? It hit NoVa HARD. MoCo has biotech, which has been steadily growing; and though it receives less publicity than the type of helter skelter development in Fairfax, is quickly picking up pace.

I don't go to Fairfax very often, because frankly, there's no center where I can go, park the car, and do whatever I'd like to do--be entertained, fed, and laze around (and no, I don't consider Tysons Corner Center to be that place--I could just as well go to any other mall). Maybe once Tysons Corner has been realized, and the Metro has been extended, will I actually want to venture into Fairfax.

Many parts of Arlington, on the other hand, and Reston (in Fairfax!) are quality urban centers even though they are outside of D.C. Ballston is in many ways similar to Bethesda and Silver Spring, and I feel no resentment towards it. I even venture into Ballston from time to time for restaurants and friends.

From your attitude, I would have to think that someone in Fairfax, VA is jealous (and don't deny it, I'm not trying to be condescending, just blunt) that they must drive everywhere in order to do their daily business, and that there are no true urban centers (yet) where you can live, work, and play, and get where you need to go without a car--Reston is still under construction, and Tysons Corner hasn't even started.

Fairfax suffers from being somewhat removed from DC proper, Arlington being in the way, and thus Metro wasn't designated to go far into Fairfax County. But now that it will, it is time for changes. Do you know where planners in Fairfax County looked to find how they wanted the area to look in 25 years? That's right, Ballston, Bethesda and Silver Spring, urban centers that are the very epitome of quality urban planning.

Oh, and by the way, Fairfax and Montgomery overall have IDENTICAL percentages of persons with a bachelor degree or higher, while downcounty MoCo (Bethesda, Chevy Chase, and Silver Spring) has the highest concentration of people with postgraduate degrees in the area, and one of, if not the, highest in the country.

newyorkrunaway1

May 30th, 2006, 07:51 AM

i love silverspring maryland. when i made my last trip to dc, i made it a point to make it here. it is a beautiful city and i recomend anyone in dc or balitmore are to go here. the metro drops you off right in the middle of it all.

NovaWolverine

May 30th, 2006, 09:09 AM

Silver Springer

May 30th, 2006, 03:53 PM

Defense Firm [Leaves Northern Virginia] ,Moves Offices to Rockville

By Michael S. Rosenwald
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, May 25, 2006; Page GZ15

New Age Security Solutions Corp., a Northern Virginia counter-terrorism technology consulting firm, has moved its operations to Montgomery County, bringing with it 10 jobs, and plans to expand quickly in the future.

The defense specialist, which is relocating to Rockville, is one of three new technology companies to move recently into private office space in the county.

New Age Security is joined by two recent graduates of county incubators: NetImmune Inc., an information technology firm, and Applied Cell Sciences Inc., a biotechnology firm.

New Age, previously based in Tysons Corner, originated in Israel and is led by Rafi Ron, who in three decades of security work rose to head security at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv.

The company bases its security programs in law enforcement, aviation and port authorities on procedures developed in Israel.

"New Age Security Solutions is exactly the type of innovative company we work hard to attract to our county, and we look forward to working with them to ensure they continue to grow and prosper here," County Executive Douglas M. Duncan said in a statement.

County officials are offering the firm workforce recruitment and training.

The company is also receiving help from the Maryland/Israel Development Center, a public-private partnership.

"NASSCorp. is one of the top homeland security consulting companies, using knowledge and techniques developed in Israel's long struggle in the war on terror," said Barry Bogage, executive director of the center. "We're proud to have them in Maryland."

Meanwhile, Applied Cell Sciences Inc. became the 31st company to graduate from the county's first high-tech incubator, moving into offices on Key West Avenue in Rockville. The firm provides drug discovery services.

NetImmune is the first graduate of the Silver Spring Innovation Center, a new county incubator. The company, which was recently acquired by RioRey Inc. of Bethesda, designs programs to prevent Internet attacks.

Have some business news about Montgomery County? Send an e-mail torosenwaldm@washpost.com.

NovaWolverine

May 31st, 2006, 07:39 AM

Ya know..I really really really try not to incite any kind of competition or strife with other area forumers, I personally don't see why it is this way. I can tell you that, while there aren't that many DC forumers on the VA side, success isn't measured primarily relative to the neighboring county, I don't know why it's that way over there.

I barely even mentioned Northern VA in my initial posts, and if I did, it certainly wasn't in matching it up with Montgomery County. This isn't my knee jerk method of thinking as it seems it is with many forumers. I'm pretty sure it was someone else who looked at my screename and got pissed that I called Silver Spring a suburb. And I still love the place to death, by the way.

But the 10 more jobs coming to Rockville is some good news congrats. Both counties are still growing modestly and getting more jobs and economic activity into the area.

Silver Springer

May 31st, 2006, 04:59 PM

Not that it's a big deal, but in response to pennster, I don't know that many fairfax residents are distraught that they have to cross an arbitrary line to areas of alexandria, arlington, dc or MD to go have fun in an urban environment. Outside of Silver Spring and Bethesda/Chevy Chase, that's all there is in MD suburbs like that anyway. And aside from some nice shopping in Chevy Chase, there isn't really all that much there that can't be had in Arlington or Alexandria, and nothing that can't be had in DC. The traffic can be bad, but it's not that much of a pain in the ass to usually drive 15-30 minutes on occasion to go somewhere like that, and there are recreational areas that are nice where you can enjoy yourself too. I simply don't look at it so rigidly as many do, many MD forumers surely, from reading some posts. The economy is doing fine, and diversifying more by the day in fairfax, I'm working in the biotech industry for a company that recently moved it's HQs from Rockville to Fairfax, much of the development in biotech is happening in loudoun and prince william, but it's still a priority for fairfax people, and northern va, which is really the designation people refer too, not fairfax. Biotech and expanding it's research capabilities is definitely a priority for northern va.

I know Ballston and Silver Spring were models, and that's great, and I hope they're closer to resembling them in a decade or two. It will be great for those who live in fairfax county to have some more urban options.

Mistakes have been made, but I certainly don't believe that Fairfax in dire straits like many would like to have people believe, not necessarily you. Montgomery County in land area is much larger than Fairfax, and I'd love to see where and in what fashion the bulk of that population growth took place, although it's better than Fairfax. 34,000 people in the grand scheme of things is healthy, Loudoun grew by like 100k, but I don't think it's necessarily that healthy of growth. The growth in Fairfax, if the planners get it right, will certainly be healthy.

The crime is becoming a problem relative to where it was, I hope it gets better, the schools remain good, the growth, planning and development is better, the government is relatively good, aside from really one aspect, the quality of life is getting better, using your criteria, which I agree with, I will hold my tongue for another few yrs before I can come to a real conclusion. But I remain optimistic for the entire DC Metro barring some unforseen mishap.

I've read that stat about MoCo before, and that's defintely a great thing for it, but I really don't see many clutching themselves in disappointment across the river, as long as the people here are alright in northern virginia I guess most people are content. Quality of life in northern va outside of a few issues, traffic being the only significant one IMO, not culture, is just fine.

I only posted that article because of your comment in bold. I'm not trying to instigate but you may try to act like your taking a neutral stance but your bias shows clearly, you didn't call yourself NovaWolverine for nothing. To me it all comes down to fairness and I take it as an offense when somebody says "everything is fine" in this regional economy when their are places like Prince Georges County that get treated like crap. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Maryland donated the land for D.C. that fuels Va's growth, while what is now Arlington county was receded so they could maintain slave ownership. You may say it was a long time ago but that is irrelevant and I think a token of gratitude that is never spoken and seems to be forgotten should come from others. The federal government even seems to have a bias towards Va as well.

When you post comments like the above in bold it shows where you stand. You seem to be boasting. Quite frankly I don't think Virginia deserves a crumb of the Biotech industry. There is no "fair share" like some officials might believe. I don't recall Northern Virginia saying “Maryland needs a fair share” (or Maryland its self) when it was touting its self as the "Internet Capital of the World" while at the same time trying to take Marriott and Discovery. Now that it's weaker since AOL merged and MCI went belly up it is focusing on the Biotech industry. Competition is the name of the game and that is fine but I don't think Va is entitled to it like they believe. Thankfully Maryland is very far ahead Va in this industry (although I hope they would diversify) with the largest incubator in the county going up along route 29 and FDA in Silver Spring as well as the John Hopkins and UMB BioParks in Baltimore, M Square at UMD College Park and other incubators around the state.

By all means I never want Montgomery County or any part of Maryland to emulate Fairfax's and Loudon's method of growth. They have terrible land use decisions and in a way they seem to have sold their soul for the sake of business. I don't think we have to go that route to entice more firms to come to MD. Like Pennster said Montgomery County is far more balanced, whether it is business, land use, schools, transportation, diversity etc.

To say that "Outside of Silver Spring and Bethesda/Chevy Chase, that's all there is in MD suburbs like that anyway" is trying to downplay a great achievement IMO and even after those two, parts of Rockville,Gaithersburg, College Park, Laurel etc make logical sense of why they are there. Fairfax and Loudon have ZERO places like these, while you can see the contained method of growth in Montgomery County and why the places grew where they did, there is no logic to Fairfax's and Loudons madness, they threw up a town where ever they saw bare cheap piece of land. Silver Spring and Bethesda combined would rival some major cities downtowns. That is amazing and shows an excellent, efficient use of land that in affect has created cities that have a culture and unique character of their own. These are cities in the suburbs, besides just being suburbs like you make yourself believe. It is ironic that Montgomery County is larger in geographical size than Fairfax but made better use of their land and now Fairfax is regretting their nonchalant attitude.

I don't hate Northern Virginia but sometimes there is only one piece of pie to go around. My taxes go to the State of Maryland; any negative impact to the state will affect my well being and quality of life. If a negative impact happens to Va, it will not affect me, or at least not as much as if it happened to my home state.

pennster

May 31st, 2006, 08:22 PM

Novawolverine, while the bulk of the area internet companies is in Northern Virginia along 267, there are definitely large pieces of it in Maryland. And while the bulk of area biotech companies is in suburban Maryland, namely the I-270 and (now) 29 corridors, there will be pieces of it in Northern Virginia. It doesn't mean NoVa is now suddenly prioritizing biotech or Maryland is prioritizing tech companies, it just means that there is definitely spillover. Maryland's technological, governmental, and academic infrastructure (UMD, JHU, NIH, FDA, Nat'l Med Library, Montgomery College, etc.) is arranged in such a way that it makes sense that the biotech industry would grow here; and it makes sense that internet companies would locate in NoVa, at least now that many of them are there already.

pennster

June 3rd, 2006, 09:53 PM

Silver Springer, I'm surprised you didn't post this here, as well. This was taken from Silver Spring Scene (http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/).

Silver Spring Scene Exclusive: Unveiling of the Fenton Village Redevelopment

The Silver Spring Scene was there to see the first time presentation of the large redevelopment planned by Michael, LLC for the Fenton Village area of downtown Silver Spring. The presentation, held in the Spring room of the Crown Plaza hotel (which was very nice inside), was a pleasant surprise. Although in the preliminary stages, the project known as Studio Plaza, taking the parcels at 914 Georgia Avenue, 8241 Georgia Avenue and 919 Silver Spring Avenue, is ripe with an architectural design worthy of downtown Washington, D.C. Designed by SK&I architect’s the building indicates use of high quality materials and some curvilinear forms. The developer is quoted as saying he wants a "Timeless design".

With the slew of condo buildings coming down the pipeline, it was refreshing to see this impressive project add some sorely needed office space to the downtown. Michael, LLC is also developing an elegant 2 story dance studio space and retail building by the eastern portion of Fenton Street, between Thayer Avenue and Silver Spring Avenue.

A few attendees complained about the project not having enough parking spaces, while ironically at the same time unhappy with the possibility of more vehicular traffic. Also noteworthy is that the project leaves the historical buildings fronting Georgia Avenue untouched. Together with the Adele mixed use project along Fenton Street and Thayer Avenue, the Fenton Village area is expected have a healthy revitalization.

Highlights:

-8 Story office building consisting of 160,000+ square feet.

-8 Story residential condominium building consisting of 230 units with 31 MPDU's.

-Each building will have ground floor retail.

-The buildings will meet the zoning law height of maximum 90’ feet.

-Completion planned for 2010.

The residential component:
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/1600/SilverSpingScene-1F.jpg

The office component:
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/1600/SilverSpingScene-2F.jpg

Map:
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/1600/SilverSpingScene-3F.jpg

While I love the architecture, I think that the building heights should be raised. Zoning needs to change in downtown Silver Spring. Current zoning reflects a different time.

NovaWolverine

June 4th, 2006, 04:11 AM

If my name were DCWolverine, and I said I lived in Arlington, I'd have ppl saying that I don't even live in DC why is that my name. My name, NovaWolverine, tells others that I'm from Nova, and I'm a Wolverine, that's it, it doesn't tell you where I've lived, what I'm like as a person or any of that. Any unbiased person can tell you that among the small following of DC residents in these urban issue boards, most of them are from or show alignment with MD, and I'm simply supplying balance, I love the DC area, and I sincerely mean it, I love MD and VA. Again I've lived and went to school in all parts of metro and I have tons of family and friends all over the place. You shouldn't castigate or judge someone just b/c of their screename.

"Rockville,Gaithersburg, College Park, Laurel etc make logical sense of why they are there. Fairfax and Loudon have ZERO places like these"

First of all, I didn't say what I said before to slight the achievment that is Silver Spring and Bethesda area, they're very nice. But this quote shows great ignorance on your part. Please enlighten me what is so special about any of the places above that Fairfax and Loudoun have zero places like these. Aside from UM being in College Park, there is little that is unique about the above relative to the other side of the river. You may disagree, but this is a statement I would never make. My original statement is absolutely true. Aside from Bethesda and Silver Spring, there is no real other true large urban area that's so unique and great. So I'm tired of hearing how sprawly places like Gaithersburg and Rockville and Laurel are so much different that the sprawly places in Northern VA. Northern VA has it's work cut out for it, but people that are interested know that there are steps being made to becoming better. I don't see why there is almost always a cheap shot at Northern VA. And again, you may disagree but Bethesda and Silver Spring, bordering the District, are completely different things that can be compared to Fairfax. VA is urban where it borders DC also. It's an asset to Montgomery County definitely but I don't see why it's made out to sound like planning is the only reason a center like that isn't in Fairfax County. If you want to do the tit for tat thing, there's no way you can exclude Arlington and Alexandria IMO. In general Montgomery County has been wise in their planning definitely, wiser than anywhere in Nova, you should be proud, but involving fairfax in it isn't necessary.

I don't live by the comparison of Fairfax to Montgomery like some do, it's not how I gauge success, and while you say competition is the name of the game, I don't want to hear from anyone how one side is being dirty.

Spillover or not, this just sounds to me that you are slighting VA's success, not using my logic, but silver springer's. I'm not saying that VA is prioritizing biotech for no reason, there have been articles talking about this move. It may well never be as big in this as MD is, and that is perfectly fine, it's not the goal at all.

We're both biased, but I personally don't think I'm as biased as you or many other posters from the area. Me saying that I work for a biotech company is just showing an example of growth and existence of the industry in va, not rubbing it in MD's face, although I can see how it could be interpreted that way. I don't take cheap shots and spit in MD's face in every one of my sentences as many do with VA. Maryland has a lot going for it, and it does make sense that the states have their niche industries, I absolutely agree with that.

vivo

June 4th, 2006, 06:31 PM

JAB323

June 7th, 2006, 08:23 PM

this is referring to an oold post but i stumbled across it again. also does one of the marc lines go through howard co?

Yeah, the Camden (Blue) Line runs through the eastern edge, with stops in Savage, Jessup, and Dorsey.

Raleigh-NC

June 7th, 2006, 09:01 PM

Fantastic thread!!! Keep the photos and the updates coming ;)

Silver Springer

June 17th, 2006, 03:57 AM

Hollywood comes to Silver Spring

Washington Business Journal - 2:55 PM EDT Wednesdayby Jennifer Nycz-ConnerStaff Writer

http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/06/12/daily38.html?from_rss=1

Forget Hollywood and Vine. The entertainment scene last night was at Georgia and Colesville.

Downtown Silver Spring rolled out the red carpet last night as film and television executives, producers and movie fans gathered at the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center for the opening night of the SIlverdocs: AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Film Festival.

The festival kicked off with a screening of "Boffo! Tinseltown's Bombs and Blockbusters," a documentary inspired by Variety editor Peter Bart's book which celebrates the trade publication's 100th anniversary.

Pre-film introductions were made by AFI chief Jean Picker Firstenberg, who recently announced that she will be retiring in 2007; Discovery CEO Judith McHale; festival director Patricia Finneran; and Motion Picture Association of American chairman and CEO Dan Glickman. Glickman's predecessor and long-time MPAA chief Jack Valenti was also on hand.

Following the film, the sold-out house participated in a question and answer session with the film's director Bill Couturie, Variety publisher Charlie Koones and Bart. The discussion was moderated by National Public Radio's Liane Hansen.

After the discussion, lifesize blockbuster icons including Batman, a giant shark and a penguin escorted guests to AFI neighbor Discovery Communications for a gala reception.

Silver Springer

June 17th, 2006, 04:02 AM

AFI cements plans for Walk of Fame in Silver Spring

Washington Business Journal - 1:34 PM EDT Thursdayby Jennifer Nycz-ConnerStaff Writer

http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/06/12/daily48.html?from_rss=1

Martin Scorsese isn't exactly the kind of guy you can walk all over.

Unless, of course, you're in Silver Spring.

At the June 13 opening night of the Silverdocs: AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival, AFI chief Jean Picker Firstenberg announced that a Walk of Fame featuring all of the AFI Life Achievement Award winners will soon adorn Colesville Road in front of the AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center.

One of the first stars to grace the walk will be that of Martin Scorsese, who is in town Thursday night as the guest of honor during the festival's Charles Guggenheim Symposium. AFI honored Scorsese with the Life Achievement Award in 1997.

Additional stars on the walk honoring past and future honorees will follow, with room to accommodate 100.

Silver Springer

June 18th, 2006, 02:54 AM

Bikers to take to Silver Spring streets in Grand Prix

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

Talk of the Town Meredith Hooker

On Sunday, cyclists will fill downtown Silver Spring’s streets during the second annual Martens Volvo Grand Prix of Silver Spring. The event, to be held rain or shine, is sponsored by the Montgomery College Takoma Park-Silver Spring campus.

Bikers — including children in a race for kids up to age 9 — will circle a 1-kilometer course. Streets include Ellsworth Drive, Georgia Avenue, Bonifant and Fenton streets. The races start 8 a.m. The children’s race will be at 11 a.m. Registration for the children’s race starts 9 a.m. and closes 10:30 a.m. in front of Lebanese Taverna at the Silver Plaza. Children race for free. E-mail kids’ race inquiries to kidsrace@dcvelo.com

For more information about other races, go to www.dcvelo.com. Registration for adult races closes 11:45 a.m. Thursday. To register online, go to www.bikereg.com. The entry fee for adult riders is $30.

Update on Silver SpringVeterans Plaza

An update on the status of downtown Silver Spring’s Veterans Plaza and civic building will be presented 7:30 p.m. Thursday at American Legion Post 41, 905 Sligo Ave.

The project has been in the works since the former Silver Spring Armory was demolished in the late 1990s to make room for the downtown’s redevelopment. Money for the project has been appropriated by the county and architectural firm Machado & Silvetti are designing the building. Maryland artist Toby Mendez, whose past works include the Thurgood Marshall Memorial in Annapolis, is designing the Veterans Memorial.

‘Silver Pass’ artworkdedicated Friday

Officials Friday evening dedicated the ‘‘Silver Pass” artwork, a paint and mosaic mural near the underpass on Georgia Avenue near Blair Mill Road.

The mural was created by 25 Montgomery County youths with help from artists G. Byron Peck and Carien Quiroga. The youths are from Montgomery Youth Works, a Wheaton-based nonprofit that provides employment and enrichment opportunities for teens.

New art displayedat Pyramid Atlantic

Pyramid Atlantic Art Center is presenting two new exhibits: ‘‘Displacement,” a multi-media installation by Nino Leselidze, Hadieh Shafie and Jennie Thwing, and ‘‘A Change of Plans,” a video installation by Symmes Gardner.

Both exhibits are on view June 27 to Aug. 15. There will be an opening reception 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. June 27 and an artist’s talk 7 p.m. July 13.

Library funds approved by County Council

The County Council unanimously agreed Tuesday to authorize the planning, design, land acquisition and construction of a new Silver Spring Library.

Design of the 41,500-square foot library, to be built on Wayne Avenue, Fenton and Bonifant streets, will begin in fiscal 2007. Estimated cost of the project is about $25 million, according to County Council documents. The county has budgeted $11 million for acquisition of property and relocation of businesses.

Silver Spring’s existing library at 8901 Colesville Road is the oldest community library in the county’s system.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

June 26th, 2006, 03:50 AM

Cameron House

comments

I just wish these developers would stop hiring WDG Architects as if they are the only design firm in town. They are designing a lot of the new buildings in downtown but all of them look the same. Outside the beautiful 8515 Georgia ave, they are very boring looking.

Little is know about this project. The developer is Fairfield Realty, they are knocking down the St. Charles apartments after some legal battle due to lack of maintainance of the property by the landlord and tenants. The building is adjacent to the United Therapeutics headquarters, one the most profitable biotech companies in the state and will have the largest photovatalic cells inside the beltway. Fairfield Realty will do streetscaping from their side of the project up to both sides of Cameron street.

Description:
The St. Charles apartments on Cameron Street (across from the new United Therapeutics project) is proposed for redevelopment as a 15-story (143' tall) residential building with 325 dwelling units, including MPDUs. (312 units were originally approved.) The project will also include structured parking and 7330 s.f. of ground floor retail. The 1.63 acre site is zoned CBD-2. It adjoins public parking garage #2 and a future second phase of the United Therapeutics project.

Status

Planning

Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
FF Realty LLC
7200 Wisconsin Avenue
Suite 1108
Bethesda, MD 20814
(301) 654-2884
Attention: J. Johnson, J. Graham Brock, or Mark Coletta

http://img45.imageshack.us/img45/1086/cameronhouse8xn.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/cameron.jpg

pennster

July 7th, 2006, 06:00 AM

Yay.

Silver Springer

July 7th, 2006, 07:36 PM

Yay.

LOL...More news about Cameron House and 8021 Georgia Ave (National Dry Cleaning Institute building). This may be bad news or good news by how you look at it but they are seriously considering turning them into Apartments instead of condos. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/04/AR2006070400969.html

Notice that Silver Spring Gateway doesn't have a sales office so you can almost bet that they will end up being apartments, IMO this is bad news for this project because it is the largest measured by number of units but overall the condo glut is becoming less apparent and developers are changing their tune.

pennster

July 8th, 2006, 09:18 PM

Yeah I read that article when it came out. I'm still waiting for Midtown Silver Spring to set itself up. It's making me nervous.

Silver Springer

July 9th, 2006, 05:28 PM

Yeah I read that article when it came out. I'm still waiting for Midtown Silver Spring to set itself up. It's making me nervous.

They have a sales office seting up in the former Crescent sales office. I think they have gone too far to turn back now.

Silver Springer

July 9th, 2006, 06:00 PM

National Park Seminary, "Welcome to Silver Spring, Maryland"

comments
A national treasure.

What is the National Park Seminary?
The National Park Seminary is a historic district in the Forest Glen area of Silver Spring, MD, which includes a wooded glen and two dozen Victorian era buildings, including a magnificent 3-story ballroom, a windmill, castle, and Japanese pagoda.

The first building, "Ye Forest Inne," was constructed in 1887. Early suburban developers acquired the land above Rock Creek, laid out lots, and built the hotel to attract prospective homeowners. By 1894, the hotel failed and the inn was converted to a women’s post-secondary school. For nearly 50 years, the National Park Seminary and College was one of the most prestigious women’s schools in the country. As enrollment grew, so did the campus, and the new buildings, built in various international styles, reflected the educational philosophy of founders and the values of a nation just emerging on the international scene. The school weathered the Great Depression and, just as it was beginning to thrive again, it was taken over by the U.S. Army in 1942, when it served as a rehabilitation center for wounded veterans returning from World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.

Many suburban resort hotels were built in the late 1800’s. Many of them were converted to schools. And many of them were, in turn, taken over by the armed forces during the war. But very few of these original resort hotels are left, and none that have witnessed all three incarnations! Clearly this site has profound architectural and historical importance. It is also a place of pure magic – a commodity very hard to come by today.

Brief History
A Brief History of
National Park Seminary

Through all its years and incarnations, a trickling stream has run through the wooded glen of the National Park Seminary grounds. Indeed it was nature, and the coolness inherent in the geography of the site that first attracted developers to the area: built in 1887, the first building constructed in Forest Glen's picturesque setting was Ye Forest Inne, a vacation retreat for Washington residents looking to escape the city's oppressive summer heat.

Hit by financial hard times, Ye Forest Inne closed its doors at the end of the 1892 season. The shingled Queen Anne style resort was purchased by John and Vesta Cassedy, who re-opened it as a girls' finishing school with a class of 48 female students in 1894. The Cassedy's instituted a 10-year building program, much of which was inspired by book of plans they had acquired at the 1893 Colombian Exposition in Chicago. Over the next 15 years, internationally styled buildings sprouted throughout the Campus as the school grew healthily - many of these unique structures such as the Dutch Windmill, Japanese Pagoda, Swiss Chalet, Italian Villa, and English Garden Castle were built on a small scale, as they were initially used only as sorority meeting houses. Elaborate, well-tended gardens and winding paths kept the buildings connected and created a whimsical, almost playful feel to the campus. Dormitories, a chapel, and the Aloha house, the Cassedy's residence, were also built. Ye Forest Inne, renamed Main, underwent extensive renovations to accommodate an exclusive higher learning facility; classrooms, boarding rooms, and several parlors were created, all of which were tastefully furnished. In 1901, the Odeon, a classically styled theatre, was built. An impressive colonial revival gymnasium, complete with a heated pool, bowling alley, and solarium was one of the last buildings constructed during the Cassedy era.

In 1916, John Cassedy sold his interest in the blossoming school to Joe Clifton Trees, who placed James Eli Ament at the helm. Ament, much like the Cassedy's, immediately started building. In 1919, his first major building campaign was centered on the expansion and addition of the Main building. The building was expanded and connected to the outlying dormitories as well as the Chapel in an almost abrupt way, and the huge President's House was added to the Main at a 45-degree angle. In an attempt to unify the now monolithic building, which had taken on something of a cobbled look, the entire façade was covered in white pebble-dash stucco. Under Ament's guidance, the whole grounds were interconnected through ornate bridges and covered walkways in an attempt to "unify" the campus. The Aloha house received additions that more than doubled its existing size and was converted into a dormitory to accommodate a growing student body.

During his tenure, Ament undertook two other building campaigns; the first, in 1924, centered on a massive renovation of the Gymnasium. The changes turned the building from a colonial revival into an intimidating highly detailed neo-classical structure. It was covered in stucco, classical details were added, and a massive Greek portico complete with Corinthian columns was added. The last major building campaign on the campus took place in 1927, when a ballroom of Ament's own design was built. The tallest building on the site, the ballroom was and still is seen as the crowning jewel of the campus. Along with various busts of prominent thinkers, leaders, and artists that could not be reached by vandals, the massive wooden speaker from the original Victrola record player still sits in the ballroom today. The Music Hall, built in a neoclassical style and linking the Main to the Odeon, was also constructed in 1927.

Ament's travels in Europe brought classical statues, fountains, and busts back to campus, adorning the already impressive grounds with an additional elegance and rarity that still comes through today. At its peak before the stock market crash in 1929, National Park Seminary enrolled 400 young women and had an ample waiting list. It boasted tuition rates higher than both Harvard and Yale and catered to the highest socio-economic class in the country.

In 1936, the school was purchased by Roy Tasco Davis, who changed the focus of the school to more modern principles of thought. Co-ed dances were allowed and classes were modified to reflect the changing intellectual landscape. Once more, National Park Seminary (at this time renamed National Park College) seemed to have a bright future when the army annexed the property in 1942 for use as a medical facility for returning soldiers.

Through three wars, the beautiful setting of National Park Seminary rehabilitated amputees and wounded soldiers. The grounds sprouted military style cinder block buildings, and many of the lavish furnishings were auctioned off. The ornate covered walkways that once connected the campus were torn down, bridges collapsed, and the grounds, once elegant and graceful, began to overtake their surroundings. By 1978, the army had abandoned much of the complex in favor of newer facilities and many buildings fell into advanced states of disrepair due to poor, or non-existent, maintenance. Vandalism and theft increased at shocking rates - statues were defaced or stolen, the Italian fountain that sits in front of Main was broken, and in 1993, the Odeon was lost to arson.

Local preservation groups took action and in 2003 a development team led by The Alexander Company, a national leader in historic preservation and rehabilitation, took on the task of saving National Park Seminary and restoring it to its original glory, cementing its place once more as a true gem of the region as well as the country.

Plan Description:
The National Park Seminary Historic District is an eclectic group of structures that began as an Inn and later served as a private girls school. In 1942 the U.S. Army acquired the school under the War Powers Act for use as a convalescent center for soldiers injured in World War II. Until recently, the site served as part of the Forest Glen Annex to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

In 2001, the Army declared the National Park Seminary Historic District to be surplus to their needs and authorized the General Services Administration to dispose of the site along with a vacant parcel of land across Linden Lane to the west. Montgomery County is actively facilitating the transfer of the site from the Federal Government to the next user. Development proposals were solicited, reviewed and discussed with the community. After a competitive bid process, County Executive Duncan selected a parnership between the Alexander Company and Eakin Yougentob Associates to redevelop the property, preserving as many of the historic structures as possible. Montgomery County accepted the property from the Army and transferred it to the developer on October 25, 2004.

A rezoning from R-90 to the PD-15 zone was proposed by the Forest Glen Venture LLC, the partnership between the Alexander Company and Eakin Yougentob Associates. The subject property for the rezoning includes approximately 32 acres with 29 buildings. The proposed project included the renovation of many of the historic National Park Seminary structures. The development plan proposed no more than 280 dwelling units on site including 169 multifamily residences, 98 townhomes and 13 single family detached dwellings. Approximately 20% of the units will be Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs); however, the applicant is achieving no density bonus. The proposal also includes the relocation on-site of Carroll House, a transitional housing facility for men operated by Catholic Charities. Approximately 16 acres of land is forested; much of it is stream valley including the "historic glen," an area with paths and statuary. The proposal provides for improved access and connections to parkland.

Montgomery County has identified this project for the Green Tape process and M-NCPPC has also applied an expedited review process. The Montgomery County Planning Board considered the rezoning application on December 16, 2004 and voted unanimously to recommend approval. The County Council, approved the rezoning in Spring 2005. The Planning Board was then asked to approve a preliminary plan of subdivision and site plan, encompassing 280 dwelling units including 56 MPDUs. A groundbreaking for the project was held on November 17, 2005.

Detailed historical background on the Forest Glen site can be found in a book published by Save Our Seminary (SOS) entitled Enchanted Forest Glen and also on SOS's Web site (http://www.saveourseminary.org)

Status
UNDER PRESERVATION\CONSTRUCTION

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Gwen Wright, Historic Preservation Section, (301) 563 - 3413, e-mail
Glenn Kreger, Silver Spring Team, (301) 495 - 4653, e-mail

Applicant:
Forest Glen Venture LLC c/o Eakin Yougentob Associates Development, 1000 Wilson Boulevard, Suite 2720, Arlington, VA 22209

Opportunities for Public Participation:
A Seminary Advisory Board continues to provide communication between the community and the developer. The mailing address for the Seminary Advisory Board is 2924 Woodstock Avenue, Silver Spring, MD 20910.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary plan #1-05054 and site plan #8-05024

Planning Board Action:
The preliminary and site plans were approved on April 7, 2005.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff Contacts:
Historic covenants will transfer with the property to the new owner. The Maryland Historical Trust will ensure compliance with the covenants. Historic Area Work Permits from the Montgomery County Historic Preservation Commission are also needed before facades of the historic structures can be altered.

LINKS
http://nationalparkseminary.com
http://www.saveourseminary.org
http://www.eya.com/homes/images/homes_nps_nc_tudor_evelation1.jpg

http://www.saveourseminary.org/images/Forest_Glen_postcard_crop_1.jpg
Forest Glen Postcard, 1919

http://www.geraldking.com/Paintings/0303b.jpg

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http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/national1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/national5.jpg

New homes under construction by EYA

http://www.eya.com/homes/images/homes_nps_nc_tudor_listing.jpg
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http://www.dcrealestate.com/images/nc/DFF24192-E1E8-508D-5EAA765E70DF2CF3.jpg

JAB323

July 9th, 2006, 11:30 PM

I didn't realize Forest Glen had a Silver Spring address. Of course about half of MoCo is "Silver Spring". :)

Zorba

July 10th, 2006, 08:28 AM

As a Silver Spring resident I probably should take some photos of downtown. I'm just too lazy sometimes. :scouserd:

On a side note, does anyone know the population of Silver Spring?

Zorba

July 10th, 2006, 08:31 AM

Suburb by its very definition is a place that is less than urban; that is where the "sub" in suburban comes from. It is not the location of the place relative to another that matters. The stereotypical definition is that a suburb is to be located outside of a major city, but that is only because suburbs actually fit the stereotypical definition for a while. Some "suburbs" like Silver Spring matured and became urban cores, just as downtown DC had to do at one time. One could argue that White Oak, Colesville, and even Wheaton are suburbs of downtown Silver Spring. People come to visit me and marvel at how urban Bethesda and Silver Spring are--it is simply not something you see everyday. The reason for DC's unique inner "suburbs" is probably partly because of DC proper's small size and partly because of Metro.

In response to an earlier post about how you think that Marylanders feel outdone by the pace of development in VA, it simply isn't true. Sprawling development isn't anyone's idea of good development. It hinders quality of life, and you end up with a place such as Tysons Corner, which has to be rebuilt from scratch in order for it to become a born-again urban center. As a result you have Montgomery County's population growing 1.6 times faster than Fairfax County's, adding 50,000 people between 2000 and 2004 compared with Fairfax's 34,000. If Fairfax had been less concerned with luring tech companies to the Dulles corridor, and instead had balanced bringing the new companies in while also practicing intelligent planning, it wouldn't be in the situation it is in now, attempting to transform glorified office parks into "urban" centers. Yes, it would have potentially had to develop slower, but quality is what life is about and what matters in the end, not quantity.

Remember the tech bubble? It hit NoVa HARD. MoCo has biotech, which has been steadily growing; and though it receives less publicity than the type of helter skelter development in Fairfax, is quickly picking up pace.

I don't go to Fairfax very often, because frankly, there's no center where I can go, park the car, and do whatever I'd like to do--be entertained, fed, and laze around (and no, I don't consider Tysons Corner Center to be that place--I could just as well go to any other mall). Maybe once Tysons Corner has been realized, and the Metro has been extended, will I actually want to venture into Fairfax.

Many parts of Arlington, on the other hand, and Reston (in Fairfax!) are quality urban centers even though they are outside of D.C. Ballston is in many ways similar to Bethesda and Silver Spring, and I feel no resentment towards it. I even venture into Ballston from time to time for restaurants and friends.

From your attitude, I would have to think that someone in Fairfax, VA is jealous (and don't deny it, I'm not trying to be condescending, just blunt) that they must drive everywhere in order to do their daily business, and that there are no true urban centers (yet) where you can live, work, and play, and get where you need to go without a car--Reston is still under construction, and Tysons Corner hasn't even started.

Fairfax suffers from being somewhat removed from DC proper, Arlington being in the way, and thus Metro wasn't designated to go far into Fairfax County. But now that it will, it is time for changes. Do you know where planners in Fairfax County looked to find how they wanted the area to look in 25 years? That's right, Ballston, Bethesda and Silver Spring, urban centers that are the very epitome of quality urban planning.

Oh, and by the way, Fairfax and Montgomery overall have IDENTICAL percentages of persons with a bachelor degree or higher, while downcounty MoCo (Bethesda, Chevy Chase, and Silver Spring) has the highest concentration of people with postgraduate degrees in the area, and one of, if not the, highest in the country.
Great post. All very true. :applause:

pennster

July 11th, 2006, 05:39 AM

I didn't realize Forest Glen had a Silver Spring address. Of course about half of MoCo is "Silver Spring". :)

I live in Forest Glen. It is, of course, part of Silver Spring, part inside and part outside the Beltway, about a mile and a half from downtown. We get mad when the county counts us separately, especially when we're so close. Most consider the border between Wheaton and Silver Spring as Plyers Mill Road (Wheaton to the north, and SS to the south). Holy Cross Hospital, the Seminary, St. Johns chuch(es), Forest Glen Metro, and Sligo Middle School are all in the Forest Glen neighborhood, and all in Silver Spring.

On a side note, does anyone know the population of Silver Spring?

The Central Business District (CBD) has a population of about 82,000 (my approximation since 2000, when it was 76,500). The entirety of Silver Spring has around 250,000, though no true population estimate exists since there are no clear borders.

Silver Springer

July 11th, 2006, 04:40 PM

I live in Forest Glen. It is, of course, part of Silver Spring, part inside and part outside the Beltway, about a mile and a half from downtown. We get mad when the county counts us separately, especially when we're so close. Most consider the border between Wheaton and Silver Spring as Plyers Mill Road (Wheaton to the north, and SS to the south). Holy Cross Hospital, the Seminary, St. Johns chuch(es), Forest Glen Metro, and Sligo Middle School are all in the Forest Glen neighborhood, and all in Silver Spring.

The Central Business District (CBD) has a population of about 82,000 (my approximation since 2000, when it was 76,500). The entirety of Silver Spring has around 250,000, though no true population estimate exists since there are no clear borders.

Yeah, I don't know why they would count it seperately either, when places like burtonsville are considered Silver Spring. Even Wheaton shares a Silver Spring mailing address. The population of downtown and immediate areas would make Silver spring the largest outside Baltimore. I don't understand why places like Germantown and Columbia can use all areas that share their mailing address, if that was the case with Silver Spring it would be 5x their size.

Fox 5 did a neighborhood news segment a few month ago and said that Silver Spring has a population of 250,000 as well so that adds some credibility to it.

Zorba

July 11th, 2006, 11:59 PM

The Central Business District (CBD) has a population of about 82,000 (my approximation since 2000, when it was 76,500). The entirety of Silver Spring has around 250,000, though no true population estimate exists since there are no clear borders.
Hopefully by 2020 the CBD population will break 100,000.

On a side note, am I the only Montgomery Blair High School Alum. on this site?

pennster

July 13th, 2006, 06:05 AM

I went to Blair at the beginning of my freshman year in the Math, Science and Computer Science magnet program---it wasn't my home school since I went to Sligo MS. I hated the program, but I don't hate Blair. It just wasn't for me--mostly not my type of people in the program, and the school was overwhelming for me not knowing anyone with everyone else knowing everyone else (having come from middle schools that actually feed into it). I went to Einstein and graduated in '04 to go to UPenn, so leaving hardly ruined by university prospects. Funny thing is, even though Einstein is my home school, I live closer to Blair lol.

Zorba

July 14th, 2006, 03:18 AM

^^
Same with me, in terms of living distance from each school. The whole area where I live(Woodside) is much closer to Blair, I still fail to realise why it is in the Einstein district.

Interesting story though. I wasn't in the Math, and Science(Magnet) program at Blair, but I found it to be a good school, especially by down county standards(I don't know if that's saying much though). I graduated in '06, btw.

pennster

July 15th, 2006, 08:23 AM

Silver Springer

July 18th, 2006, 06:44 AM

All MoCo schools are in the top 5% in the country, so even downcounty schools are fabulous. And Blair is an extremely good school, especially with the magnets (MSCS and CAP). Einstein has International Baccalaureate and the county Visual Arts program, as well. Downcounty schools are not the "worst" in the county. Einstein hits it in the middle, and Blair is way up there above AEHS. Kennedy and Wheaton are the schools that have been "struggling", but it's not the teachers or administrators who need help, it's many of the students that simply need some motivation (from their parents). I just look at it that I was lucky to have gone to Einstein in MoCo. And you're lucky to have gone to Blair.

I'd put my money on east down county schools over up county schools. Simply because you're exposed to the diversity and there is just a unique character about the area. I couldn't say as much about the new Blair as I could say about the old Blair even though I didn't attend either. The Takoma Park area schools were setup in a weird way as well too.

By the way what ever happened to the days of the Science Fairs? It seemed like a down county only thing to me but I could be wrong. They just don't run them like they used to.

Silver Springer

July 18th, 2006, 05:35 PM

Silver Spring's Discovery: Shark fears inflated

Washington Business Journal - 4:38 PM EDT Mondayby Jeff Clabaugh and Jennifer Nycz-ConnerStaff Reporters

http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/07/17/daily13.html

Discovery Channel is employing some toothy guerilla tactics to market this year's Shark Week.

For starters, Discovery Communications just hoisted a 446-foot-long inflatable great white shark to the top of its downtown Silver Spring headquarters.

The shark marks the return of the Discovery Channel's popular Shark Week series, the 19th year Discovery has aired a weeklong marathon of shark-related shows.

Some Silver Spring businesses are also picking up on the shark theme, including Asian Bistro and Redrock Canyon Grill, which have added shark-themed menu items. The AFI theater is screening special showings of "Jaws" through July 21.

Meanwhile, New York will see a feeding frenzy of street marketers as surfers, "Bight University" faculty and (pun alert) "chewleaders" circle city landmarks, area beaches and the sets of national morning shows.

Discovery says this year's Shark Week marathon, which airs July 30 through Aug. 4 with daily premieres at 9 p.m. Eastern, includes seven new shark-focused specials. Last year, about 20.6 million people watched Shark Week, cable TV's longest-running programming event.

As for that gigantic shark in Silver Spring: Discovery says it took 6.65 miles of fabric to create the inflatable fish and 36.7 miles of thread to sew him together. And if it were real, the shark would weight about 84,000 pounds.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7073/112/1600/shark2jpg.jpg

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7073/112/1600/1.0.jpg

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7073/112/320/3.jpg

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/7073/112/1600/2.jpg

Silver Springer

July 23rd, 2006, 03:36 AM

Blair Towns (First LEED Ceritified Apartment Buildings in the United States

comments
First LEED Ceritified Apartment Buildings in the United States. One of the first LEED buildings in Silver Spring and the region.

"A "Green Building"

Experience Building Harmony

Certified Environmentally Sensitive, Blair Towns is the first U.S. Green Building Council* apartment community built in harmony with the environment.

Discover what this means to you and our planet.

Reduced Dependence on Cars

Smart Growth development with immediate access to Silver Spring Metro station.
Urban village location encourages walking to nearby shopping, dining, entertainment and work.
On-site bicycle parking encourages pedaling to work or to Rock Creek Park.
On-site energy efficient hybrid vehicles - FlexCar® program encourages car sharing; you don't need a car to live at The Blairs.
Community carpooling pick-up and drop off location with "rider/driver message board".
Reduced Energy Consumption & Lower Utility Costs

Enhanced energy efficiency because of Earth friendly construction practices and design, resulting in lower monthly utility costs, reduced waste and pollution.
State-of-the-art energy-efficient "Low-E®" windows and balcony doors maximize daylight and reduce heat loss.
Super efficient Energy Star light fixtures, ceiling fans and appliances use less energy and save water.
Greater conservation of energy due to thicker, better insulated exterior walls.
Healthier, More Comfortable Apartment Homes

Improved indoor air quality due to non-toxic low-emission paints, sealants, adhesives, and carpet products.
Additional peace of mind due to carbon monoxide detectors in all units.
Greater comfort due to ceiling fans in all bedrooms.
Increased daylight due to larger windows and use of "Low-E®" glass.
Reduced Water Consumption & Water Pollutants

Low-maintenance landscaping with hardy native plantings eliminates need for an irrigation system.
On-site filtering system for storm water runoff reduces pollutants before water reaches the Chesapeake Bay.
Greater savings because of 20% less water consumption.
Preservation of Natural Resources & Reduced Waste

Minimized wood consumption because of efficient framing design and finger-jointed wood studs.
Reduced landfill waste and extensive use of recycled materials.
Recycling depositories and use of closed compaction system to minimize litter and reduce pickups.
Stronger Local Economy/Reduced Air Pollution

Support of local companies through conscientious use of building materials manufactured within 500 miles of Blair Towns also reduces impact to air quality because less transportation miles are driven.
* For more information on the U.S Green Building Council (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green building rating system go to www.usgbc.org
"

Description:
Three groups of piggyback townhouses, some to be "live / work units", have been constructed on a former surface parking lot along Colesville Road. A structured parking garage with 418 spaces has been constructed to replace the surface parking and provide parking for the 78 new units.

Status
COMPLETE

Planning

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Glenn Kreger, (301) 495-4653, e-mail

Applicant:
(301) 984-7000
The Tower Companies
11501 Huff Court
North Bethesda, MD 20895

Opportunities for Public Participation:
None Required

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
not filed

Planning Board Action:
None required

http://www.blairapartments.com/uploads/Thomas__Uploads/Blair_Park_afternoon[1].JPG

http://www.blairapartments.com/uploads/New_pics/Night.jpg

http://www.towercompanies.com/images/prop_LWP_theBlairs.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/new_images/SSOct03-10.jpg

D.C.\Maryland Border
http://www.blairapartments.com/uploads/AApictures/townline.JPG

http://www.blairapartments.com/uploads/AApictures/town1.JPG

http://www.blairapartments.com/uploads/Photos_3_16_04/BT_From_Road.jpg

JAB323

July 23rd, 2006, 03:42 AM

Silver Springer

July 23rd, 2006, 06:53 PM

I just swung by Silver Spring yesterday, on way to aunt/uncle's house in Wheaton. It keeps looking more and more like a real city, and less suburban. BTW, we need some good SS cityscapes and street scenes on here to show people how "urban" it is.

What did you have in mind? Like the gritty areas around Fenton Village\South Silver Spring?

BTW did you get your free shark hat and view the Discovery Shark?

JAB323

July 23rd, 2006, 11:27 PM

What did you have in mind? Like the gritty areas around Fenton Village\South Silver Spring?

BTW did you get your free shark hat and view the Discovery Shark?

I saw the giant inflatable shark, pretty neat. I missed out on getting the hat though. >(

Silver Springer

July 27th, 2006, 08:24 PM

Heres a color image of cameron house.

http://xs304.xs.to/xs304/06304/CameronHouse.JPG

pennster

July 28th, 2006, 03:06 AM

And so we're looking at Cameron Street facing north?

Silver Springer

July 28th, 2006, 05:21 PM

And so we're looking at Cameron Street facing north?

Yes. I wonder if they will demolish that old garage for Silver Place.

pennster

July 31st, 2006, 12:37 AM

It doesn't look like they would have to but that rendering says otherwise.

Silver Springer

July 31st, 2006, 05:23 PM

It doesn't look like they would have to but that rendering says otherwise.

Cameron House said they would use it for overflow but the new Park and planning headquarters should get rid of it IMO. It sprawls across too many acres.

Silver Springer

August 4th, 2006, 03:26 PM

Falkland Chase Under Fire [New Development planned on historic complex site]

http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/2006/07/falkland-chase-under-fire.html

JAB323

August 4th, 2006, 04:33 PM

Hey Silver Springer, we've got over 140 posts. Maybe this should be stickied.

Silver Springer

August 4th, 2006, 07:49 PM

Hey Silver Springer, we've got over 140 posts. Maybe this should be stickied.

Yes, I think it should!

JAB323

August 4th, 2006, 09:04 PM

^^ This is a very consistent thread, and a lot busier than Providence. If they can be stickied we should too! :cheers1: BTW, I PMed jmancuso about it.

bmorescottamanda

August 5th, 2006, 05:00 AM

Cool Silver spring is getting a lot of replys. Thats so cool for such a small city.

pennster

August 5th, 2006, 07:58 AM

Mid-sized city, thank you. 250,000 people is nothing to sneeze at.

StevenW

August 5th, 2006, 04:37 PM

^^ This is a very consistent thread, and a lot busier than Providence. If they can be stickied we should too! :cheers1: BTW, I PMed jmancuso about it.Good idea! :)

Silver Springer

August 5th, 2006, 07:20 PM

Wow I don't know what to say! I'd like to give a shout out to pookie, ro-ro and the Silver Spring-MD dynasty. To all the people who believed in me, we finally made it baby! :tyty:

JAB323

August 5th, 2006, 10:02 PM

:cheers1:

Silver Springer

August 7th, 2006, 06:10 PM

SHARK WEEK LINK (http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/2006/08/end-of-shark-week.html)

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/1536/nightshark1nb6.jpg

http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/7038/nightshark2ge9.jpg

JAB323

August 8th, 2006, 01:19 AM

^^ awesome.

pennster

August 10th, 2006, 12:32 AM

They took it down as of today :\.

JAB323

August 10th, 2006, 12:34 AM

^^ :( Oh well, 'till next year.

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 02:00 AM

Here's a link to a stupid video about the shark. http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/2006/08/silver-spring-scene-news-round-up_09.html

I'm not sure they'll do it next year but the dumb transit center is going to block the view eventually.

blueb73

August 10th, 2006, 02:25 AM

if i make it back up 2 the DC area, SS is def on the list of places to live...

JAB323

August 10th, 2006, 04:18 AM

^^ Yeah that video was pretty stupid. :)

pennster

August 10th, 2006, 06:36 AM

I'm hoping REALLY hard that the final architecture will be taller for the transit center. If anytime would be the time to lobby for a taller building, it would be when those final numbers come out. Unfortunately, it seems as though the developers have absolutely NO motivation whatsoever to push for taller buildings, or an exception to the rule, which makes no sense from a business standpoint. Without a developer's push, it's difficult to get any sort of significant group together in support of taller buildings.

bmorescottamanda

August 10th, 2006, 08:57 AM

Mid-sized city, thank you. 250,000 people is nothing to sneeze at.

What Silver Spring are you talking about 250,000 what? Is that how many Illegals you have in Silver Spring LOL? Because the last I heard Silver Spring was under 80,000 people.

JAB323

August 10th, 2006, 02:49 PM

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 04:39 PM

^^ For the CDP of Silver Spring, MD as of 2000 has 76,000, though is probably about 85,000 - 90,000 now. The entire zip code areas named Silver Spring (which i like half of MoCo, LOL) is about 250,000 as of 2005.

Yes, thank you very much! The lands known as Silver Spring goes from the D.C. border all the way to the Howard County border. Even Wheaton shares a Silver Spring mailing address. It's the ruler of the east! :horse:

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 04:42 PM

bmorescottamanda

August 10th, 2006, 04:59 PM

^^ For the CDP of Silver Spring, MD as of 2000 has 76,000, though is probably about 85,000 - 90,000 now. The entire zip code areas named Silver Spring (which i like half of MoCo, LOL) is about 250,000 as of 2005.

Nothing against Silver Spring it's a Maryland city and I love Maryland but that's like saying that Baltimore county is Baltimore city because a lot of people that live in the county writes Baltimore for the city on there mail. That would make Baltimore cities population around 1.4 million.

MasonsInquiries

August 10th, 2006, 05:00 PM

^^ For the CDP of Silver Spring, MD as of 2000 has 76,000, though is probably about 85,000 - 90,000 now. The entire zip code areas named Silver Spring (which i like half of MoCo, LOL) is about 250,000 as of 2005.

excuse me for saying this, but it wouldn't be right if i let this slide by.

SILVER SPRING??? 250,000????? you can't be serious......LOL. :hilarious
im not buying that; i just can't. i agree with bmorescottamanda 100%........correction, 900%.

silver spring's a well-developed, up-and-coming area, and i'm truly happy for silver spring because it is indeed a huge part of the "wonderful" state of maryland (i'm even happy for THIS thread), but there's no need to hype it up to something that it's not. you guys are starting to sound ridiculous to the 45th power....LOL. you don't see columbia trying to hype up it's area to something that it's not, so what's the point in doing this? just throwin' in my 2 cents. :2cents:

MasonsInquiries

August 10th, 2006, 05:03 PM

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 05:19 PM

Nothing against Silver Spring it's a Maryland city and I love Maryland but that's like saying that Baltimore county is Baltimore city because a lot of people that live in the county writes Baltimore for the city on there mail. That would make Baltimore cities population around 1.4 million.

Oh man, here we go again. :sleepy:

That doesn't make any sense, when you're in owings mill do you write Baltimore,MD as your property address? That's like me writing Montgomery, MD as my property address.

The population of Silver Spring isn't really in debate, the county agrees on those numbers, and even FOX 5 presented it in front of millions of people.

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 05:26 PM

excuse me for saying this, but it wouldn't be right if i let this slide by.

SILVER SPRING??? 250,000????? you can't be serious......LOL. :hilarious
im not buying that; i just can't. i agree with bmorescottamanda 100%........correction, 900%.

silver spring's a well-developed, up-and-coming area, and i'm truly happy for silver spring because it is indeed a huge part of the "wonderful" state of maryland (i'm even happy for THIS thread), but there's no need to hype it up to something that it's not. you guys are starting to sound ridiculous to the 45th power....LOL. you don't see columbia trying to hype up it's area to something that it's not, so what's the point in doing this? just throwin' in my 2 cents. :2cents:

Quit your hating already. No one is hyping it up just giving credit where it is due. It's other people who have been down playing it for years and not realizing it's significance. Same can be said about Baltimore. Columbia has a long way to go to reach downtown Silver Spring density, economic amd social prowess. It's more in Tysons Corner stage and that's even a stretch. Hopefully they'll get some mass transit rail and things will change.

bmorescottamanda

August 10th, 2006, 05:38 PM

Oh man, here we go again. :sleepy:

That doesn't make any sense, when you're in owings mill do you write Baltimore,MD as your property address? That's like me writing Montgomery, MD as my property address.

The population of Silver Spring isn't really in debate, the county agrees on those numbers, and even FOX 5 presented it in front of millions of people.

Maybe not owings mill but residents in the county and business use Baltimore as there city. I mean if Silver Spring really is that big I'm gald because 1 big city in this state suck's. But if that's true than why does people in MO county and the rest of the state look at rockville as the main city in MO county and also why does the census not show that population?

MasonsInquiries

August 10th, 2006, 06:46 PM

Quit your hating already. No one is hyping it up just giving credit where it is due. It's other people who have been down playing it for years and not realizing it's significance. Same can be said about Baltimore. Columbia has a long way to go to reach downtown Silver Spring density, economic amd social prowess. It's more in Tysons Corner stage and that's even a stretch. Hopefully they'll get some mass transit rail and things will change.
whatever, man. and if there's anyone that's "hating", it's you. you said something a while back in the baltimore thread that displayed your bonified "haterade" on baltimore. you said "i'm surprised you guys are even getting a four seasons". so, if you're going to call someone a hater, you might as well look at yourself in the mirror.

MasonsInquiries

August 10th, 2006, 06:52 PM

Maybe not owings mill but residents in the county and business use Baltimore as there city. I mean if Silver Spring really is that big I'm gald because 1 big city in this state suck's. But if that's true than why does people in MO county and the rest of the state look at rockville as the main city in MO county and also why does the census not show that population?
it's simple, because the people aren't there........LOL!!!!!!:hilarious

let's just sit back and continue to let silverspringer pull these ungodly figures out of nowhere, bmorescottamanda. i'm actually starting to have fun with this. the good thing of all this is that atleast WE know the truth.......lol.

pennster

August 10th, 2006, 07:24 PM

Rockville is the county seat, which is why Rockville is referred to often when speaking about Montgomery County. Both Rockville and Gaithersburg (which, I should note, is larger than Rockville) are incorporated cities with defined borders, which makes it easy for the Census to determine. Bethesda and Wheaton are larger than either Rockville or Gaithersburg proper, as well.

There is no dispute as to the actual population of Silver Spring. It is more or less 250,000 people and growing. While the area is large, the populated areas are quite dense, and that is why the number is so large. The CDP (Census Designated Place), which is the only "Silver Spring" defined in the Census, had around 76,000 people in 2000. The Census goes by their own definitions (which is why it is called a Census Designated Place and not simply a Place), and recognizes and acknowledges that theirs generally do not fit with local definitions of spaces, especially those which have no borders. The neighborhoods in Silver Spring are: downtown CBD, North Silver Spring, West Silver Spring, East Silver Spring, Forest Glen, Four Corners, Colesville, White Oak, Fairland, Hillandale, and parts of Calverton (if I'm missing any, let me know). These people live in neighborhoods with these names, but they themselves say that they live in Silver Spring with Silver Spring mailing addresses.

If you told my friends in Colesville and Fairland that they didn't live in Silver Spring, they'd become extremely offended. If Silver Spring had borders, it would be like telling people in Cleveland Park that they were not park of DC just because they weren't part of Downtown, or telling residents of Canton that they're not part of Baltimore because they're not downtown either. If you do not live here, you do not know the area, and are not qualified to make judgments about it, especially on something which is not under discussion and is indisputable. Simply because the number is large and surprising to you, does not make it inherently untrue.

MasonsInquiries

August 10th, 2006, 07:33 PM

There is no dispute as to the actual population of Silver Spring. It is more or less 250,000 people and growing. While the area is large, the populated areas are quite dense, and that is why the number is so large. The CDP (Census Designated Place), which is the only "Silver Spring" defined in the Census, had around 76,000 people in 2000. The Census goes by their own definitions (which is why it is called a Census Designated Place and not simply a Place, and recognizes and acknowledges that theirs generally do not fit with local definitions of spaces, especially those which have no borders. The neighborhoods in Silver Spring are: downtown CBD, North Silver Spring, West Silver Spring, East Silver Spring, Forest Glen, Four Corners, Colesville, White Oak, Fairland, Hillandale, and parts of Calverton (if I'm missing any, let me know). These people live in neighborhoods with these names, but they themselves say that they live in Silver Spring with Silver Spring mailing addresses. If you told my friends in Colesville and Fairland that they didn't live in Silver Spring, they'd get extremely offended. If you do not live here, you do not know the area, and are not qualified to make judgments about it, especially on something which is not under discussion and is indisputable.
before moving to baltimore, i used to live in silver spring, pennster (i lived off of university blvd East). so your entire point is null & void.....LOL.

pennster

August 10th, 2006, 07:44 PM

My point about not living in Silver Spring might not work for you (I said "if" you don't live here, not "you don't live here"), but the rest of the argument and valid and true. Even people who have lived in Silver Spring are unaware of its size, simply because of its amorphous and indeterminate nature. Others just don't care. As a resident of Silver Spring in the Forest Glen neighborhood all my life (born in Holy Cross Hospital and raised nearby), and as someone who works for the Montgomery County Department of Parks and Planning, I do not see that this should be a discussion, especially with people who do not take other arguments seriously.

pennster

August 10th, 2006, 07:47 PM

Silver Springer, have we heard anything about that Thayer and Georgia Avenue development lately? There seems to have been a dearth of development news in almost all sections of the county lately. August has been a slow month.

Back to the transit center topic, I'm not sure who I would need to talk with in the planning department to discuss heights, as the transit center topic hasn't been big news within the department lately. I had connections to Berlage, but now that he's gone I do not have any straight-to-the-top Planning Board connections. My bosses are hooking me up with planners in the department soon for discussions unrelated to the transit center, but I may just bring it up anyway. By the way, as of today, the Montgomery County Department of Parks and Planning is now divided in two: the Department of Parks, and the Planning Department, as was the case until 1995.

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 08:21 PM

whatever, man. and if there's anyone that's "hating", it's you. you said something a while back in the baltimore thread that displayed your bonified "haterade" on baltimore. you said "i'm surprised you guys are even getting a four seasons". so, if you're going to call someone a hater, you might as well look at yourself in the mirror.

So the reason for you, wada guy and other B'more posters distaste for me and the D.C. metro area all comes down to a misinterpretation of a phrase that I said back in Feburary? If I didn't like the city I wouldn't frequent the Baltimore thread and post as much as I do. You forgot the hundreds of other positive things I've said about Baltimore.

All we ever hear is bad news about Baltimore but I can see past the negative perception, I know better and apparently Four Seasons did too. I was surprised because the city lacked investment for so long and Firms kept away in large part due to the negative perception. I was looking through the eyes of the typical FIRM. It had nothing to do with Baltimore not being on a level significant enough or worth the investment (unlike what you think of Silver Spring). Even though there are cities that lacked the potential but got far more investment, Baltimore was always passed by for some reason not of it's own doing in part. You're getting a Ritz Carlton too, Montgomery County doesn't even have a Ritz Carlton and Marriot's headquarters is in that county!

It's about time Baltimore got the attention it deserved, it finally is happening that's the only surprise.

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 08:27 PM

Silver Springer

August 10th, 2006, 08:41 PM

Silver Springer, have we heard anything about that Thayer and Georgia Avenue development lately? There seems to have been a dearth of development news in almost all sections of the county lately. August has been a slow month.

Yeah, things are slowing down, it's the market overall but...today they are unveiling the development they have planned for Falkland Chase. I will be there. I will also e-mail the manager of Studio Plaza to see what's up.

Back to the transit center topic, I'm not sure who I would need to talk with in the planning department to discuss heights, as the transit center topic hasn't been big news within the department lately. I had connections to Berlage, but now that he's gone I do not have any straight-to-the-top Planning Board connections. My bosses are hooking me up with planners in the department soon for discussions unrelated to the transit center, but I may just bring it up anyway. By the way, as of today, the Montgomery County Department of Parks and Planning is now divided in two: the Department of Parks, and the Planning Department, as was the case until 1995.

Bryan Foulger would be a good contact because he is developing the damn thing. He is on the urban district committee. I have spoken with him, park and planning, wmata, ACT, Steve Silverman and other officials but they don't really care. I feel like I am the only one voicing my concern about the bad route this project is taking.

MasonsInquiries

August 10th, 2006, 10:18 PM

So the reason for you, wada guy and other B'more posters distaste for me and the D.C. metro area all comes down to a misinterpretation of a phrase that I said back in Feburary? If I didn't like the city I wouldn't frequent the Baltimore thread and post as much as I do. You forgot the hundreds of other positive things I've said about Baltimore.

All we ever hear is bad news about Baltimore but I can see past the negative perception, I know better and apparently Four Seasons did too. I was surprised because the city lacked investment for so long and Firms kept away in large part due to the negative perception. I was looking through the eyes of the typical FIRM. It had nothing to do with Baltimore not being on a level significant enough or worth the investment (unlike what you think of Silver Spring). Even though there are cities that lacked the potential but got far more investment, Baltimore was always passed by for some reason not of it's own doing in part. You're getting a Ritz Carlton too, Montgomery County doesn't even have a Ritz Carlton and Marriot's headquarters is in that county!

It's about time Baltimore got the attention it deserved, it finally is happening that's the only surprise.ok, if you say so. what's said is said. what's done is done. let's just agree to disagree.

Eerik

August 11th, 2006, 02:06 AM

Well said Pennster, I couldn't have said it better myself. I would also add Burtonsville to the neighborhoods as well.
So now I have a question, but let me preface by saying I'm from Baltimore, currently live in Arlington, but have also worked and lived in Silver Spring.

If Silver Spring neighborhoods reach as far away as Burtonsville and Fairland, are the neighborhoods of Takoma Park considered a part of Silver Spring? What about the neighborhoods in Ward 4 across the District line?

I'm just not accustomed to the notion people living within a stone's throw of Laurel and Columbia are actually living in Silver Spring neighborhoods. I'm open to the idea...it's just I've never heard folks I know who live in the Takoma Park-Burtonsville-Laurel corridor suggest that in any way they somehow live in "Greater Silver Spring"...if there is such a thing.

Since I'm a visual person, let's plot this out on a map:
http://www.dcestonian.com/baltimore/dc/dumb_ideas/silver_spring_metroarea.jpg

JAB323

August 11th, 2006, 03:05 AM

If Silver Spring neighborhoods reach as far away as Burtonsville and Fairland, are the neighborhoods of Takoma Park considered a part of Silver Spring? What about the neighborhoods in Ward 4 across the District line?

I personally don't consider SS as big as everyone says. If you go by zip code SS goes all the way up to the Norbeck area by Olney. It's rediculous.

Eerik

August 11th, 2006, 03:32 AM

I personally don't consider SS as big as everyone says. If you go by zip code SS goes all the way up to the Norbeck area by Olney. It's rediculous.
I guess I'm still befuddled by the question of what exactly is Silver Spring? Is it a:

city?
town?
place?
crossroads?
suburb?

Is it an attractive place to:

work?
live?
spend free time?

Maybe Silver Spring should be an incorporated city. I don't know. What provision does Montgomery County law give to incorporating towns/cities; how would that play out in the State legislature? From a cultural/historic perspective, is there anything significant that Silver Spring contributes? (Boston you have the Colonial history, Tea Party, etc.; Philadelphia with Constitution Hall, temporary seat of US Gov't, etc.,...) I've always thought of it as being a bedroom community to Washington, and before that, simply a railroad stop on the B&O line, nothing more...

Silver Springer

August 11th, 2006, 07:55 PM

I guess I'm still befuddled by the question of what exactly is Silver Spring? Is it a:

city?
town?
place?
crossroads?
suburb?

Is it an attractive place to:

work?
live?
spend free time?

Maybe Silver Spring should be an incorporated city. I don't know. What provision does Montgomery County law give to incorporating towns/cities; how would that play out in the State legislature? From a cultural/historic perspective, is there anything significant that Silver Spring contributes? (Boston you have the Colonial history, Tea Party, etc.; Philadelphia with Constitution Hall, temporary seat of US Gov't, etc.,...) I've always thought of it as being a bedroom community to Washington, and before that, simply a railroad stop on the B&O line, nothing more...

Your point is mute, what is so significant about Los Angles, Detroit, or Chicago then because they didn't play a pivitol role in the forming of the nation? Let add Roswell, NM to the list of great places jsut because. Annapolis was a temporary seat of U.S. government too what's your point?

Just to prove again how mute your point is Silver Spring played a Pivotal role in Civil War and also was a route for the underground railroad. The Space Race is claimed to have started here, many famous people come here and the military developed many new technologies here as well. Even Silver Spring dates back further than some bigger cities, so what is your point?

Look. No one trying to say Silver Spring is on the same level as Philly, NY or any other major city which seems to be implied within your confusion and totally ridiculous but on hierarchical scale it's the next step down after some mid-sized cites and in the state of Maryland it's the next step down after Baltimore . You just don't see many "crossroads" or "bedroom communities" this large especially with world headquarter companies or the busiest metro station in one of the most renowned systems in the world.

Here is map of Silver Spring territory that should put an end to that discussion.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/320/N-S_SilverSpring.png (http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/1600/N-S_SilverSpring.gif)

cityman1100

August 11th, 2006, 08:27 PM

Whew...now thats what I call getting shutdown! :bash:

Anyhow...I wanted to know will the MidTown Silver Spring be the tallest building in the city?

Silver Springer

August 11th, 2006, 08:51 PM

Whew...now thats what I call getting shutdown! :bash:

Anyhow...I wanted to know will the MidTown Silver Spring be the tallest building in the city?

No, the Former AT&T building will still be the tallest.

Silver Springer

August 11th, 2006, 08:52 PM

ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROJECTS EVER IN SILVER SPRING

LINK (http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/)

MasonsInquiries

August 11th, 2006, 09:41 PM

So now I have a question, but let me preface by saying I'm from Baltimore, currently live in Arlington, but have also worked and lived in Silver Spring.

If Silver Spring neighborhoods reach as far away as Burtonsville and Fairland, are the neighborhoods of Takoma Park considered a part of Silver Spring? What about the neighborhoods in Ward 4 across the District line?

I'm just not accustomed to the notion people living within a stone's throw of Laurel and Columbia are actually living in Silver Spring neighborhoods. I'm open to the idea...it's just I've never heard folks I know who live in the Takoma Park-Burtonsville-Laurel corridor suggest that in any way they somehow live in "Greater Silver Spring"...if there is such a thing.

Since I'm a visual person, let's plot this out on a map:
http://www.dcestonian.com/baltimore/dc/dumb_ideas/silver_spring_metroarea.jpg

"Greater Silver Spring".......LOL. Oh boy, this is getting to be funnier and funnier by the minute. What's even funnier is when pennster referred to Silver Spring as a "Mid-sized" city.

Well, anyway, here's the answer to your questions, Eerik. Here's some information from Emporis that hopefully will put this whole thing to rest. READ CAREFULLY, SILVER SPRINGER. READ THE UNDERLINED BOLD ESPECIALLY.

Silver Spring

Population
76,540 in city and 8,157,184 in metro

Area
24 km² (9 mi²)

About Silver Spring

Silver Spring is one of the primary business hubs in Montgomery County, Maryland, just north of Washington, DC. Located on the Red Line, downtown Silver Spring has many highrise office and residential buildings.
Silver Spring is unincorporated, and shares mailing addresses with neighboring areas, including Wheaton-Glenmont, White Oak, Fairland, and Rossmoor. Additional highrise buildings can be found in these cities also.

So, in essence, Silver Spring's nothing more than a suburb of the nation's capital; a "bedroom" community if you will.

bmorescottamanda

August 11th, 2006, 10:06 PM

Your point is mute, what is so significant about Los Angles, Detroit, or Chicago then because they didn't play a pivitol role in the forming of the nation? Let add Roswell, NM to the list of great places jsut because. Annapolis was a temporary seat of U.S. government too what's your point?

Just to prove again how mute your point is Silver Spring played a Pivotal role in Civil War and also was a route for the underground railroad. The Space Race is claimed to have started here, many famous people come here and the military developed many new technologies here as well. Even Silver Spring dates back further than some bigger cities, so what is your point?

Look. No one trying to say Silver Spring is on the same level as Philly, NY or any other major city which seems to be implied within your confusion and totally ridiculous but on hierarchical scale it's the next step down after some mid-sized cites and in the state of Maryland it's the next step down after Baltimore . You just don't see many "crossroads" or "bedroom communities" this large especially with world headquarter companies or the busiest metro station in one of the most renowned systems in the world.

Here is map of Silver Spring territory that should put an end to that discussion.

http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/320/N-S_SilverSpring.png (http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/4469/2190/1600/N-S_SilverSpring.gif)

I agree with you on that one Silver Spring is the next step down after Baltimore even if the population is 280,000 or 80,000.

Eerik

August 11th, 2006, 10:23 PM

Why not just say Rockville, Laurel, Columbia, and NW/NE Washington DC are Silver Spring neighborhoods? That way, the population of Silver Spring balloons to something like 1.9 million, and then you can even claim Silver Spring is served by BWI airport (or would that be Silver Spring International airport?).

As for my question of historical/cultural significance, I was merely suggesting cities/towns often have some "impetus" or "birth" that made them come about (such as a natural resource like a harbor; perhaps an historical event/movement, i.e. Salt Lake City=Mormons or the Gold Rush=San Francisco). All I've ever known about Silver Spring is it has a long ago abandoned depot on the B&O line and that it had (still has?) a small natural spring, hence it's name.

But little did I know Silver Spring played such a "pivotal role" in the Civil War! I realize there are many cities which developed after the first inhabitant of Silver Spring raised his shack at the crossroads of Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road, but the point is they developed. For the last hundred years, nothing really happened in Silver Spring to move it beyond the status of being a Washington bedroom community. Most of the growth is occurring now. So maybe in the next twenty years Silver Spring will be something more than just "a place" in the shadow of DC as it has been...

Seriously though, either way, Silver Spring is a suburb of Washington. It has developed nicely in the last twenty or thirty years, and I like what they're doing now. Occasionally when I get the opportunity on my way back to DC, I take a detour to see what's new. All-in-all, I think it's great you are so passionate about the community. I suspect this board isn't your only channel for enthusiasm and energy?

MasonsInquiries

August 11th, 2006, 10:34 PM

pennster

August 12th, 2006, 06:32 AM

"Population
76,540 in city and 8,157,184 in metro"

That is from emporis, and represents only the Census Designated Place (obviously). Get past the Census population figures--it stops a thinking mind.

-------

Just because some of you people don't like what Silver Spring is, and what it's becoming does not mean you get to change the rules of the game, its population, its significance, its very definition. It's neighborhoods have been part of Silver Spring for many, many decades. I do not insult you, you do not insult me, especially those of you from the Baltimore forums where we're all banded behind the same goals--which should also include repping all of Maryland.

I do not see why Silver Spring threatens your very being so much. It has become quite comical and I would think that on these respectable forums you would not hide behind your screen names representing the very worst of human behavior.

-------

From the chamber of commerice website: "Population of more than 200,000 in one of the most affluent counties in the U.S."

From wikipedia: "After Baltimore, Silver Spring is the second largest place in Maryland. (Note: According to the Census Demographic Profiles, Silver Spring is the third largest after Baltimore and Columbia, Maryland; however, census data accounts only for Silver Spring's core and does not include surrounding neighborhoods which would be included in a comprehensive analysis of population.)...When the entire portion of Montgomery County, Maryland using Silver Spring addresses is taken into account, the population can swell to over 250,000 people, comparable to mid-sized American cities such as Buffalo, New York and St. Paul, Minnesota. In the Washington-Baltimore region, Silver Spring is the third-largest community, behind the cities of Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C., and ahead of Arlington, Virginia and Alexandria, Virginia."

-------

Discussions of incorporating Silver Spring have occurred before in other forums, and while some people would like it, most think it unnecessary (including myself). Silver Spring already has enough of a sense of place and support from the county and the state that incorporating would benefit only the Census bureau and those of us who do not understand its borders (and for those who don't, I would suggest being a little more mature and receptive).

pennster

August 12th, 2006, 06:46 AM

ONE OF THE BIGGEST PROJECTS EVER IN SILVER SPRING

LINK (http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/)

Wow this sounds crazy. I'm not sure what I think about this development because I really like their feel. I would like to see if some of the original buildings could be kept as is, instead of demo-ing it all. I'm wondering why this is coming about now, especially with the real estate slowdown. Silver Springer, do you know who the developer would be?

Speaking of which, it seems to me, and my coworkers at the planning commission, that this slowdown will only be temporary. A few of my superiors are selling their homes right now and have the same points of view. What seems to be happening is that a mass stoppage of buying homes started when potential buyers realized that they could get better prices by waiting. So once people start buying homes again, it will all pick up as they realize they can't wait as long to buy the homes they want without someone else putting down a bid. So if developers just hang in there (and I'm sure they're going to try), then things may pick up again in mid-2007 or thereabout. Of course this is just our opinion, but I mean, it seems to make sense.

Eerik

August 12th, 2006, 07:15 AM

StevenW

August 12th, 2006, 02:49 PM

Silver Spring is very nice and there is alot going on, but I, as well as many probably, view it, (no offense), as a suburb of DC. Still a nice urbany suburb. :yes: :)

Silver Springer

August 12th, 2006, 07:14 PM

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: I like Silver Spring. I would love to see Silver Spring (as well as all inner city suburbs) revitalize and thrive; become great places to live, work and shop. This would encourage more people to live closer to mass-transit possibilities, closer to attractions, and all the other amenities that urban areas offer. The greater the concentration of people and the less sprawl, the better for the region and environment.

However I cannot -- and will not – sit quietly and not respond to such delusional nonsense and distortion of reality! To somehow suggest Silver Spring represents nearly a quarter million people; that Silver Spring in population could in any way be equal to “mid-sized American cities such as Buffalo, New York and St. Paul, Minnesota” is total bunk.

Call it immature thinking, or what you wish, but that’s total crap, and we all know it!

No offense but the only one who is delusional is you and others who don't believe it. Why is it so hard for you to comprehend? If someone said the same thing about Baltimore you'd have a major fit and rip their head off but its okay for you to dis another part of your own state for no apparent reason. You find it comical but I've already explained my valid and factual points while you and everybody else are just being incongruous. Like Pennster said why does Silver Spring threaten you so much?

The same unfounded negative perception and dislike you have of Silver Spring is in the same category others have of Baltimore that you are so trying to dispel and makes you relentlessly defend it because you know it's in part a misconception.

The capital region of Maryland is not your enemy as so many Baltimoreans believe, your hatred is misplaced and a form of internal cannibalism. In fact I will go as far to say that Montgomery County is the economic glue that is holding the state together, if Montgomery County just so happens to weaken do you think the jobs and economic strength will fly to Baltimore? You have wishful thinking if you think that is the case as they will swim across our Potomac River right into Northern Virginia! Montgomery can only do so much within a state that is known to have a bad business climate whether true or false. The goal is to reposition Prince George's, Baltimore and any other cities or counties so they can play a role in strengthening this great state.

Montgomery County is not only the wealthiest but the most populous county in the state it is practically a million people, Silver Spring's population wouldn't even be half that at 250,000. It was the first downtown in Montgomery County and the part of the county that was first to truly develop and mature. I'm dumbfounded as to why you think 250,000 people are such a bogus claim. At one point Silver Spring was the largest retail hub between D.C. and New York and the largest office market in the D.C. area. With half our land in Montgomery County naturally preserved (highest ratio in the nation) where do you think all these people are living?

I'm gong to shut all the haters down right now. You find Silver Spring comical but facts are facts. The Silver Spring CBD has well over half as much office space as Baltimore's (some claim equal to) and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase is arguably equal or larger, if you add all Bethesda territory it surpasses the entire city of Baltimore, so much for suburbs huh? Silver Spring has a population density of 15,600 per square mile while Baltimore has a population density of 8,058.4 per square mile. Baltimore may have some larger pockets but 35,000 people within 2 1/2 square miles is nothing to laugh at. The Silver Spring CBD has 5000 residential units coming down the pipe all within 2 1/2 square miles! See it for what it is and not what your ignorance is telling you.

Silver Springer

August 12th, 2006, 07:21 PM

Silver Spring is very nice and there is alot going on, but I, as well as many probably, view it, (no offense), as a suburb of DC. Still a nice urbany suburb. :yes: :)

Over 50 posts in this discussion would disagree with you.

http://www.dcist.com/archives/2006/07/06/maryland_envy.php

Do you still consider the low density residential areas of single family homes and tract housing in Baltimore urban and non-suburban simply because they lie within the bounds of an arbitrary line?

JAB323

August 12th, 2006, 09:34 PM

Silver Spring is very nice and there is alot going on, but I, as well as many probably, view it, (no offense), as a suburb of DC. Still a nice urbany suburb. :yes: :)

That's fairly acurrate description.

Eerik

August 12th, 2006, 09:40 PM

No offense but the only one who is delusional is you and others who don't believe it. Why is it so hard for you to comprehend? If someone said the same thing about Baltimore you'd have a major fit and rip their head off but its okay for you to dis another part of your own state for no apparent reason. You find it comical but I've already explained my valid and factual points while you and everybody else are just being incongruous. Like Pennster said why does Silver Spring threaten you so much?

The same unfounded negative perception and dislike you have of Silver Spring is in the same category others have of Baltimore that you are so trying to dispel and makes you relentlessly defend it because you know it's in part a misconception.

The capital region of Maryland is not your enemy as so many Baltimoreans believe, your hatred is misplaced and a form of internal cannibalism. In fact I will go as far to say that Montgomery County is the economic glue that is holding the state together, if Montgomery County just so happens to weaken do you think the jobs and economic strength will fly to Baltimore? You have wishful thinking if you think that is the case as they will swim across our Potomac River right into Northern Virginia! Montgomery can only do so much within a state that is known to have a bad business climate whether true or false. The goal is to reposition Prince George's, Baltimore and any other cities or counties so they can play a role in strengthening this great state.

Montgomery County is not only the wealthiest but the most populous county in the state it is practically a million people, Silver Spring's population wouldn't even be half that at 250,000. It was the first downtown in Montgomery County and the part of the county that was first to truly develop and mature. I'm dumbfounded as to why you think 250,000 people are such a bogus claim. At one point Silver Spring was the largest retail hub between D.C. and New York and the largest office market in the D.C. area. With half our land in Montgomery County naturally preserved (highest ratio in the nation) where do you think all these people are living?

I'm gong to shut all the haters down right now. You find Silver Spring comical but facts are facts. The Silver Spring CBD has well over half as much office space as Baltimore's (some claim equal to) and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase is arguably equal or larger, if you add all Bethesda territory it surpasses the entire city of Baltimore, so much for suburbs huh? Silver Spring has a population density of 15,600 per square mile while Baltimore has a population density of 8,058.4 per square mile. Baltimore may have some larger pockets but 35,000 people within 2 1/2 square miles is nothing to laugh at. The Silver Spring CBD has 5000 residential units coming down the pipe all within 2 1/2 square miles! See it for what it is and not what your ignorance is telling you.
I don’t think anyone here has any animosity, negative perception, or hatred of Silver Spring. I’ll say it again; let me bold it for you if you’ve failed to read it in past posts: Silver Spring is a great place. With ongoing development, it’s going to be (hopefully) even a greater place than it is now.

But Silver Spring is what it is: a community; an inner suburb. It’s not even a city, so how can you make comparisons between Silver Spring and municipalities like Buffalo, Baltimore, St. Paul and other cities? You not even comparing apples and oranges, but more like apples and…I don’t know…tomatoes!?

Frankly, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Silver Spring area has over more than half the office space of Baltimore. Big deal. It’s a submarket of probably the most bureaucratic city in the world. I’m surprised there isn’t even more office space in Silver Spring…

So: Baltimore has more warehouse space and more freight, deepest and farthest inland harbor on the East Coast; and probably the highest consumption of UTZ potato chips and scrapple consumed by a demographic of women who use aqua-net hairspray…so what.

You are correct I don’t like Baltimore bashing, but I also dislike and bristle when outrageous claims are made.

What I have a hard time “digesting” are some of your claims, which you cite as being fact, yet use on a conditional basis. For example, you agree Silver Spring isn’t an incorporated city with definitive boundaries, yet compare Silver Spring population density statistics to that of Baltimore. Are you basing these numbers on census tracts or what? (Or should I ask, how are these numbers being calculated? Do you even know?) It’s all relative, and ultimately moot unless one can cite a source with more reliability than simply Wikipedia or a web blog.

Likewise, I’ve seen the claim before that Silver Spring was the largest retail hub (not between Washington DC and New York City), but between Philadelphia and Richmond. But I’ve also seen the claim Wheaton was the largest retail hub between Richmond and Wilmington; Baltimore as the premiere retail hub south of Philadelphia; Philadelphia’s Center City as the largest retail hub on the East Coast (south of New York City), etc. Get my point?

So for now, I’ll leave it at that: Silver Spring is a great place; I like Silver Spring (I’ve bolded that part for you again, just in case you missed it above). Great things are happening in Silver Spring, and I’m glad I remember what Silver Spring was like decades ago, because it has come a long way. But please don’t make some of these unsubstantiated and ludicrous claims about Silver Spring. Being a Silver Spring civic booster is great, but some of your claims are provincial thinking at best. Being someone with deep roots in the Silver Spring area, I find some of these claims a bit “overboard” and embarrassing to read…

bmorescottamanda

August 12th, 2006, 10:56 PM

Silver Spring is very nice and there is alot going on, but I, as well as many probably, view it, (no offense), as a suburb of DC. Still a nice urbany suburb. :yes: :)

I agree with that.

Silver Springer

August 13th, 2006, 06:05 PM

Wow this sounds crazy. I'm not sure what I think about this development because I really like their feel. I would like to see if some of the original buildings could be kept as is, instead of demo-ing it all. I'm wondering why this is coming about now, especially with the real estate slowdown. Silver Springer, do you know who the developer would be?

Speaking of which, it seems to me, and my coworkers at the planning commission, that this slowdown will only be temporary. A few of my superiors are selling their homes right now and have the same points of view. What seems to be happening is that a mass stoppage of buying homes started when potential buyers realized that they could get better prices by waiting. So once people start buying homes again, it will all pick up as they realize they can't wait as long to buy the homes they want without someone else putting down a bid. So if developers just hang in there (and I'm sure they're going to try), then things may pick up again in mid-2007 or thereabout. Of course this is just our opinion, but I mean, it seems to make sense.

I thought the boom was over too and I'm surprised as much as you are about the size of this project with all the housing doom and gloom talk. Then again this project is apartments not for sale units and there is a huge demand for them in the CBD. I just did a tally of project built and proposed since the revitalization and we've come up to 5929 and that is only for the residential units!!!!!!

As for a temporary slowdown I conceived that as one of my scenarios but the only reason the probability increased is because of the BRAC plan and the feds have stopped increasing interest rates.

P.S. There is another project in the works that I’m sure you’ll love to know about. I’ll have more info on that and this project on my blog.

MasonsInquiries

August 14th, 2006, 02:15 PM

I'm gong to shut all the haters down right now. You find Silver Spring comical but facts are facts. The Silver Spring CBD has well over half as much office space as Baltimore's (some claim equal to) and the Bethesda-Chevy Chase is arguably equal or larger, if you add all Bethesda territory it surpasses the entire city of Baltimore, so much for suburbs huh? Silver Spring has a population density of 15,600 per square mile while Baltimore has a population density of 8,058.4 per square mile. Baltimore may have some larger pockets but 35,000 people within 2 1/2 square miles is nothing to laugh at. The Silver Spring CBD has 5000 residential units coming down the pipe all within 2 1/2 square miles! See it for what it is and not what your ignorance is telling you.
There's nothing worse than someone who can't accept the truth. I probably have just as much pride in Silver Spring as you do, but I would never hype a SUBURB up to be this huge metropolitan area right next to the nation's capital. And then, you have the audacity to try and develop this "Silver Spring vs. Baltimore" boxing match. Why not be happy for the development of BOTH places?

I'm a teacher at a Baltimore city inner city school, and 3 of my coworkers are from Silver Spring (BORN AND RAISED in Silver Spring) and they even said that it's nothing more than a suburb. Bottom line, Silver Spring is what it is: a wonderful SUBURB.

pennster

August 14th, 2006, 04:57 PM

Have we heard anything else on the Falkland Chase project yet? I've been looking for something to be announced in the media but my guess is that it hasn't been picked up yet. Perhaps we'll be seeing an article in the Gazette this week.

Speaking of projects, whatever happened to that tower proposed next to the Cameron Hills townhouses that those residents were self-righteously complaining about? Anybody remember that?

Silver Springer

August 14th, 2006, 05:25 PM

I will have more info on the falkland Chase project on my blog. The Portico is name of the project by Cameron Hill. It's owned by Centex homes now, the Patriot group sold it to them. Ironically this was the best architecture of the three buildings proposed by Patriot group. I have a feeling it might be dead. The site plan has already been approved so they really don't have any other hurdles with park and planning.

pennster

August 15th, 2006, 04:02 AM

It's just the "Planning Dept" now. Parks and Planning are two separate entities as of last week.

I just emailed the person in charge of this project, Robert Kronenberg, at the commission regarding the Portico. Hopefully me having another commission email address will get us a response.

JAB323

August 15th, 2006, 06:02 AM

^^ I didn't know that.

pennster

August 15th, 2006, 03:52 PM

It worked!

"...the plans are being reviewed for the certified site plans. We are waiting on the applicant to address minor issues before final signature. Robert"

Silver Springer

August 15th, 2006, 10:19 PM

Ok so now we have three major gyms within a less than 2 blocks of each other. Washington Sports Club, Golds Gym, and now L.A. Fitness. Who will be the first to go? I predict Golds because there location really sucks.

L.A. Fitness Leases 48,400 Sq. Foot Building from Washington Property for Its First Sports Club in the Washington, DC Region

SILVER SPRING, Md.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 10, 2006--Washington Property Company (www.washproperty.com) has completed renovations of the two-story, 48,422 square foot building at 8616 Cameron Street in Silver Spring, MD and leased it to L.A. Fitness International, LLC, one of the nation's premiere sports club companies with approximately 135 clubs in operation. This will be the first L.A. Fitness location in the in the Washington, DC region and is scheduled to open in late fall of 2006.

The property, known as Silver Spring Corner, is the company's first retail re-development in downtown Silver Spring. Located at the intersection of Cameron and Fenton streets, the property is the former Bowl America site. David Ward of H&R Retail represented L.A. Fitness, and Shary Thur of Thur & Associates and Marc Witowski of Washington Property Company represented the landlord.

"The fact that L.A. Fitness chose Silver Spring for its first location in the D.C. region sends a very clear message to the marketplace about the strength of this area and its continued renaissance," said Charles K. Nulsen III, president of Washington Property.

The $5 million renovation included demolition and reconfiguring of the interior in preparation for the tenant's build-out, new and upgraded utilities, and replacement of the entire roof, a section of which was raised to accommodate the tenant's basketball court. GTM Architects of Bethesda, MD is the project's architect.

Exterior renovations provide a sleek, modern facade by incorporating extensive use of glass and metal panels with floor to ceiling glass along Cameron Street on the upper level. Renovation of the building entrance creates a glass-enclosed, two-story atrium featuring the landmark signage of L.A. Fitness, giving the space high visibility from Fenton Street, the gateway to the New Downtown Silver Spring.

L.A. Fitness, which is known for its cutting edge sports facilities, will offer a lap pool, basketball court and state-of the-art strength training and aerobic equipment areas, as well as amenities that include convenient shower and locker rooms, juice bar and children's activity center. The tenant's architect is Zivic and Hurdle of Fairfax, VA.

Washington Property Company (WPC) is a full service commercial real estate firm located in Bethesda, Maryland. WPC's experienced team provides a full range of commercial real estate services offering expertise in acquisition and financing, development and land use, property management, construction management and leasing. The Washington Property Company portfolio of quality properties includes award winning office developments, high-rise renovations, and retail centers.

Washington Property Company - an experienced and diversified commercial real estate firm

Silver Springer

August 15th, 2006, 10:30 PM

It worked!

"...the plans are being reviewed for the certified site plans. We are waiting on the applicant to address minor issues before final signature. Robert"

Why did they seperate park and planning? Clarksburg? County thinks they can't handle both? Does this mean the public use space funds can't go towards parks? Will they eliminate the public use requirement for developments (crossing fingers)?

As for the Portico...do you know if Centex is changing the design?

pennster

August 15th, 2006, 10:40 PM

Silver Springer

August 15th, 2006, 10:41 PM

L.A. Fitness muscles in to Silver Spring
Baltimore Business Journal - August 11, 2006by Jeff ClabaughContributor
Print this Article Email this Article Reprints RSS Feeds Most Viewed Most Emailed
Health club chain L.A. Fitness will open its first Washington area location in Silver Spring this fall.

The company is leasing a 48,000-square-foot building at Cameron and Fenton streets from Bethesda-based Washington Property, which says it has completed a $5 million renovation of the property, formerly a Bowl America bowling alley.

L.A. Fitness is expected to move in late fall 2006.

"The fact that L.A. Fitness chose Silver Spring for its first location in the D.C. market sends a very clear message to the marketplace about the strength of this area and its continued renaissance," says Washington Property president Charles Nulsen III in a statement.

The club will include a basketball court, lap pool, juice bar and children's activity center.

Irvine, Calif.-based L.A. Fitness has about 135 health clubs nationwide.

pennster

August 15th, 2006, 10:52 PM

Why did they seperate park and planning? Clarksburg? County thinks they can't handle both? Does this mean the public use space funds can't go towards parks? Will they eliminate the public use requirement for developments (crossing fingers)?

They separated parks and planning more for logistical and organizational reasons. It had nothing to do with Clarksburg, and they're both still MoCo government. Before, the Parks director was reporting to the Planning director, who would then report to the Planning Board. This way, both the Parks and Planning directors report directly to the Board, with no middle man. I don't think any funding or requirements have changed with the separation, which is mostly superficial reorganization, and nothing major. Each were already physically separated by about 1 1/2 miles, with the Planning side (MRO) on Georgia at Spring St, and the Parks side (Parkside) off Sligo Creek Pkwy near Holy Cross Hospital.

This was the press release sent to my inbox:

PLANNING BOARD SEPARATES DEPARTMENT OF PARK AND PLANNING

SILVER SPRING, MD - The Montgomery County Planning Board unanimously approved more details of the separation of the Montgomery County Department of Park and Planning into the Department of Parks and the Planning Department, effective immediately.

This separation is intended to enhance and strengthen the capacity of the agency to deliver first-rate parks and planning services to the community.

Previously, the director of parks reported to the planning director, and now the two directors will have equal and direct access and accountability to the Planning Board. The Planning Board previously initiated the separation of the two departments in February 2006.

Over a period of several months, the Commission’s executive director, acting planning director and parks director developed the proposed plan to return the department to its previous structure as two separate departments before they merged in 1995.

Park Planning and Resource Analysis is now a division within the Department of Parks. Several other staff will join the Department of Parks, including the special program coordinator and grants manager. Management Services positions will be divided between the two departments. For now, the Historic Preservation staff will remain in the Planning Department.

The Community Outreach and Media Relations Division remains under the Chairman, and the Research and Technology Center will continue to support both departments.

The Department of Parks operates Montgomery County’s 33,000-acre park system from the Parkside Headquarters located at 9500 Brunett Avenue in Silver Spring, and the Planning Department is located at 8787 Georgia Avenue, Silver Spring in The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission’s Montgomery Regional Office.

pennster

August 15th, 2006, 10:55 PM

As for the Portico...do you know if Centex is changing the design?

Mr. Kronenberg didn't mention a change of design, which I doubt since it would be unnecessary and expensive. That is something I could ask when I meet with him next Tuesday.

Silver Springer

August 15th, 2006, 11:18 PM

The two gyms already there (I belong to the WSC) are doing very well, and I'm sure LA Fitness wouldn't have come if it didn't see a market. The WSC has only been open for a few months and it already has close to 3,000 members (paying premium prices!). With all the new condos and residents in the downtown area, it is no surprise to me. Just try to walk down Ellsworth and surrounding streets on any evening, especially close to the weekend, and you can just see how many people crowd the place.

I'm going to be meeting with Robert Kronenberg and Glenn Kreger (head of the Silver Spring/Takoma Park planning division) very soon. Are there any specific questions you'd like me to ask them? Mr. Kreger is the go-to guy for the transit center, and Mr. Kronenberg handles a lot of the other projects in downtown.

LOL. I chose WSC over Golds too! It's the only WSC with a pool in the D.C. area I believe (might be one other in D.C.). You're right though, I think downtown can support all three (we have three grocery stores always out of inventory so...). I am just amazed at the fast growth in downtown, with nearly 6000 units all in downtown in the works, it almost seems unreal. At the same time I am little concerned on how fragile it might be and I want only the best projects put forth so that the revitalization is sustainable. There was virtually nothing here but City Place mall 8 years ago, Silver Spring was avoided like the plague and people made fun of it (still do) but it is becoming a force to be reckoned with. The growth is similar to the 1930’s.

As Mr.Kreger and Mr. Kronenberg, you can ask them why they don't reply to my e-mails. Anyways, how far along is the private development of the transit center in the planning process? The Silver Spring sector plan asks for an office component but it is 2 condo buildings and a hotel, Foulger is making a mistake on this one big time. I also want to know why a text amendment can’t be approved to make the buildings taller or at least zone the parcel TS-M\CBD-3 like at White Flint Crossing.

pennster

August 15th, 2006, 11:40 PM

Silver Springer

August 15th, 2006, 11:58 PM

Haha. I chose WSC because I didn't want to have to walk far and into the mall from the parking garage, and it has newer equipment plus I had those two free personal training sessions. I don't use the pool, but when I walk by it on the street it seems awkward since you can see in so easily. Neither has the hours I'd like, however (I usually go late, until closing).

Regarding the planners, definitely good questions, and ones I was thinking myself. My guess is they prioritize commission emails over others, who probably email them nonstop. I haven't heard back from Mr. Kreger yet (my superior emailed them) but the meeting with Mr. Kronenberg is on the books (or in Outlook).

Exactly! I didn't want to have to walk into the mall either! Even though Golds was cheaper I still chose WSC, looks more inviting plus it's newer. It would be cool if the Silver Spring WSC was one of those opened 24 hours, the setting and atmosphere certainly feels that way.

One more thing I remembered about the Transit Center, since the workforce housing requirment passed the buildings will have to grow according to what Silverman told me. I'm not sure if this is still the case since Foulger submitted his plans before the requirement becomes law.

Silver Springer

August 16th, 2006, 08:24 PM

James A. Van Allen; Discovered Earth's Radiation Belts

By Patricia Sullivan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, August 10, 2006; Page B06

James A. Van Allen, 91, who helped launch the United States into space with the discovery that radiation belts surround the Earth, died after a heart attack Aug. 9 at the University of Iowa Hospital.

Dr. Van Allen's realization that charged solar particles are trapped by the Earth's magnetic field in concentric rings around the planet was the first major scientific discovery of the space age. It revolutionized scientific understanding of the Earth and the solar system and created an entirely new field of research, called magnetospheric physics.

His breakthrough came with readings from a Geiger counter he sent into space aboard the first U.S. satellite, Explorer 1.

Ecstatic that Explorer 1 made it into orbit, Dr. Van Allen, William H. Pickering of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and rocket scientist Wernher von Braun held a triumphal news conference at the National Academy of Science on Feb. 1, 1958, hoisting a model of the satellite over their heads in what became an iconic image of the era.

But it was only later that the true discovery was revealed. The Geiger counter began clicking madly as soon as it reached orbit. The data from that and subsequent satellites showed that Earth was surrounded by a vast series of nested shells of trapped particle radiation, later named the Van Allen Radiation Belts. Those belts helped scientists understand everything from the Northern Lights to the chemical composition of space and alerted scientists to the vast store of knowledge just outside human reach.

"There was a consideration for some time that there had to be some trapped radiation in the Earth's atmosphere," said David DeVorkin, curator of the history of astronomy and space sciences at the National Aeronautics and Space Museum. "But it was a true surprise that there were two different belts and the level of energy. . . . They thought something might have gone wrong with Explorer 1. The darn thing was saturated."

Dr. Van Allen, who had taken only one undergraduate astronomy class, continued to measure and explore the belts around the Earth, then radiation belts around Jupiter and Saturn as well. Until recently, he pursued the discovery of the edge of the heliopause, the outer boundary of the solar wind. He pored over data still coming in from the almost obsolete Volkswagen-sized Pioneer 10.

The affable, down-to-earth scientist, whose University of Iowa office door was marked with his name and longitude and latitude coordinates, took his achievements in stride. His favorite activity, he said, was teaching the beginning astronomy class at Iowa. "It was like going hunting for rabbits and encountering an elephant instead," he once said of the discovery of the radiation belts.

Time magazine put him on its cover in 1959 and again in 1961. President Ronald Reagan gave him the National Medal of Science in 1987. He received the Vannevar Bush Award from the National Science Board in 1991 and the National Air and Space Museum's trophy in 2006, among many other awards.

None of that acclaim stopped Dr. Van Allen, a longtime proponent of unmanned space probes, from speaking out against manned space exploration.

Reagan's endorsement of a $20 billion manned space station was, he said in Congressional testimony in 1985, "so speculative and so poorly founded that no one of lesser stature would have dared mention it to an informed audience."

"I'm one of the most durable advocates for space exploration around," he said just 13 months ago. He supported the Apollo moon landings and missions to service the Hubble Space Telescope, but he said the United States could explore Mars robotically "at far less cost and far greater quantity and quality of results." That prompted a former senator from Florida to respond, "No Buck Rogers, no bucks."

Born in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, on Sept. 7, 1914, Dr. Van Allen grew up reading Popular Mechanics and Popular Science magazines, doing chores such as splitting wood and tending the family's garden and flock of chickens. He said watching the annual August Perseid meteor shower turned him on to geophysical topics, but he also tinkered, building a Tesla coil that produced foot-long sparks, taking apart the engine and transmission of a Model-T Ford and assembling crystal radios.

"I was a kind of a one-man army,'' he told the Christian Science Monitor in 1989. "I could solder circuits together, I could turn out things on the lathe, I could work with rockets and balloons. I'm a kind of a hybrid between an engineer and a physicist and astronomer.''

He was nominated to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis but failed the physical exam. He graduated from Iowa Wesleyan College, and he helped prepare research instruments for the Byrd Antarctic expedition, which one of his professors joined. He received a master's degree in 1936 and a doctoral degree in 1939, both in physics, from the University of Iowa.

Just before World War II, he worked on the development of proximity fuses for bombs, a significant advancement. He worked for the Carnegie Institution in Washington and later the Applied Physics Laboratory of Johns Hopkins University.

In a memoir, he said his work was developing a rugged vacuum tube that he tested by firing into the Potomac River from Southern Maryland and recovered with a post-hole digger. Montgomery County commissioned him as a deputy sheriff so he could carry a loaded revolver "for coping with hypothetical hijackers on our daily expeditions to and from the test site," he wrote. He served in the Navy in the South Pacific during World War II, overseeing the use and revision of the proximity fuses.

After the war, he returned to Johns Hopkins and continued to work on rockets and the use of balloons powered by rockets to recover information from Earth's upper atmosphere. Time magazine pegged the start of the space race to an informal meeting of scientists in Dr. Van Allen's Silver Spring living room in 1950. The men came up with the idea of designating an international geophysical year to put attention on Earth and space sciences. The United States designated it for 1957-58, and that prompted the Soviet Union to rush Sputnik into space.

Dr. Van Allen returned to the University of Iowa to be chairman of its physics department and retired from active teaching in 1985. But he continued to work in science as an emeritus professor and on a number of scientific boards.

Survivors include his wife of 60 years, Abigail Fithina Halsey Van Allen of Iowa City, Iowa; five children, Cynthia Van Allen Schaffner of New York, Dr. Margot Van Allen Cairns of Vancouver, B.C., Sarah Van Allen Trimble of Washington, Thomas Van Allen of Aspen, Colo., and Peter Van Allen of Philadelphia; and seven grandchildren.

One of his daughters told the Chicago Tribune in 1999 that her father's endless experiments were part of family lore. He rigged the family car to start with the pull of a cord, like a lawn mower. When one of his sons drove the car into a ditch on a snowy Iowa night, Dr. Van Allen tucked a pulley into his pocket, walked to the accident and extracted the car using only muscle and pulley power.

"I believe in scientific inquiry for its own sake," he said. "I think the history of science gives ample examples that pure investigation has enormous benefit. . . . I can't tell you what this might be good for, but learning about nature is important. And lovely things turn up."

JAB323

August 16th, 2006, 08:44 PM

^^ Obituaries now? wtf?

Silver Springer

August 16th, 2006, 08:47 PM

^^ Obituaries now? wtf?

Different but relevant.

Silver Springer

August 17th, 2006, 02:43 AM

The Portico

comments
Site sold to Centex homes.

Description:
This proposed residential project is located on Fidler Lane, adjacent to Cubanos restaurant and the Cameron Hill townhouse develoment. The 0.65 acre site is currently occupied by a private parking lot. The Patriot Group plans to construct 158 dwelling units (including 24 Moderately Priced Dwelling Units) plus 89 parking spaces in a 139' tall building.

Status

Planning

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

PLEASE CONTACT THE APPLICANT-- NOT STAFF-- FOR SALE/RENTAL INFORMATION

Applicant:
1203 Fidler Lane LLC, c/o the Patriot Group
1003 K street NW, suite 207
Washington D.C. 20001

Attention: Mr. Leith Wain (202) 737-9540

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board has concluded its review of the required plans.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary Plan: #1-04040A; Project Plan: #9-04003A; Site Plan #8-05020

Planning Board Action:
The Preliminary Plan and the Project Plan were approved on September 23, 2004. The site plan was approved in 2005.

Notes from M-NCPPC Staff:
The Approved and Adopted Silver Spring CBD Sector Plan calls for Fidler Lane to be a landscaped pedestrian route to the Transit Center.

http://www.porticocondo.com/images/home-4fw_r2_c1.gif

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/fidlerpark.jpg

JAB323

August 17th, 2006, 02:53 AM

^^ cool, but Springer when are they gonna build a true skyscraper in SS? ;)

pennster

August 17th, 2006, 06:56 AM

Silver Springer

August 18th, 2006, 03:27 AM

^^ cool, but Springer when are they gonna build a true skyscraper in SS? ;)

Might be sooner than you think ;)

Silver Springer

August 18th, 2006, 03:29 AM

Yeah, I remember the design; pretty nice except for the ugly elevator shaft/stairwell jutting out from the side. The people on the southeast side of the building won't have much of a view, except the side of Silver Spring Centre or inside their parking garage.

It looks much better than anything patriot group built in downtown, if only they built it first. I'm sure Centex would have put out a much better design.

JAB323

August 18th, 2006, 04:14 AM

^^ fo sho.

bmorescottamanda

August 19th, 2006, 01:08 AM

^^ cool, but Springer when are they gonna build a true skyscraper in SS? ;)

I think they have a high restriction in Silver Spring. I don't think they can build that high.

pennster

August 19th, 2006, 06:49 AM

Just to let you know, I'm meeting with Robert and Glenn jointly on Tuesday. I met with a couple planners earlier today, but nobody specifically specializing in Silver Spring. It was interesting nonetheless.

JAB323

August 19th, 2006, 04:56 PM

^^ It was pretty much a joke, because after all this is skyscraper city ;)

Silver Springer

August 19th, 2006, 05:45 PM

^^ It was pretty much a joke, because after all this is skyscraper city ;)

I thought the focus was on urban places and spaces...hmmm I wonder when D.C. is going to get a skyscraper too?

Silver Springer

August 23rd, 2006, 06:05 AM

WooHoo 5,000 views and my 300th post.

Silver Springer

August 23rd, 2006, 06:10 AM

District Court House

comments
I got a special invitation to go there!!!

Description:
This is a new District Court House to replace the one currently located on Georgia Avenue. It includes 100,000 square feet and 15 on-site parking spaces for judges and staff. It is next to the CSX railroad line, the Metro Red Line and the future Capital Crescent Trail and Purple Line (Bi-County Transitway). Grand opening: September 22, 2004.

Status
Complete

Planning

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Glenn Kreger, (301) 495-1304, e-mail

Applicant:
General Services Administration, Barry Miller - (410) 767-4446

Opportunities for Public Participation:
Completed

Planning Board Review Process and Case Number:
Mandatory Referral MR-01111-MDGS-1

Planning Board Action:
Approved on November 29, 2001

Notes:

The staff is evaluating a Purple Line alignment along the tracks next to the court house site.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/public_projects/photo033_large.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/District_courthouse4.jpg

JAB323

August 23rd, 2006, 03:51 PM

In Greater DC/MoCo/PG my two projects that I think should come first have been the ICC and the Purple Line. We've got the ICC coming, now the Purple Line! :)

Silver Springer

August 30th, 2006, 05:23 AM

Silver Spring Civic Center

Description/comments

Read a write up and view more pictures through the link,http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/2006/08/rating-projects-best-and-worst_25.html

Status
Planning

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/1412/civic2vh1.jpg

http://img104.imageshack.us/img104/2602/civic3hx5.jpg

JAB323

August 30th, 2006, 11:59 PM

^^ Looks Great!

Silver Springer

September 2nd, 2006, 07:53 PM

Discovery, TV One, AFI, FDA these are just a few of the organizations and venues in Silver Spring that some major cities would proudly acknowledge and I am grateful that we have them all here!

Hailed as one of the most successful urban revitalizations in the nation, we can now claim another asset to solidify Silver Spring's success. On August 30th, Montgomery County Executive Doug Duncan announced that the nationally acclaimed concert hall called the Birchmere will open a second and larger location in Silver Spring at the historic former J.C. Penny location. This will make Silver Spring more of a destination and a competitive urban district.

http://silverspringscene.blogspot.com/2006/08/its-official-birchmere-will-touchdown.html

http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/apps/News/press/release.gif

For Immediate Release: 8/30/2006

Duncan Announces Plan to Bring Birchmere to Silver Spring; Second Music Hall to be located in historic J.C. Penney's Building

Continuing the successful revitalization of downtown Silver Spring, Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan today announced he has crafted a new public/private partnership to open a second home for the nationally renowned Birchmere Music Hall. The project will be located at the old J.C. Penney building on Colesville Road, permanently preserving one of the County’s historic landmarks, the J.C. Penney façade. The partnership includes Montgomery County, the Birchmere, and Lee Development Group. In addition, the County has sent a formal request asking the State of Maryland to join the project as well.

“We are extremely excited about welcoming the Birchmere Music Hall to Silver Spring,” said Duncan. “Silver Spring has been transformed into a dynamic arts and entertainment center, and adding a live music venue with the reputation of the Birchmere will make Silver Spring an even more desirable destination. I want to thank the Birchmere and Lee Development for working with us to make this public/private partnership a reality.”

The plan calls for Lee Development to transfer the land under the building to the County. Montgomery County’s investment will be a total of $4 million. Duncan today also sent a letter to the State requesting a $4 million matching grant. The Birchmere will make a significant investment towards the construction and fit out of the building and will then lease the finished facility from the County for a monthly rent to be determined.

“The Birchmere looks forward to contributing to the continued rebirth of Silver Spring’s arts and entertainment center by finalizing negotiations to open a second Birchmere on Lee Development’s Colesville Road site,” said James Mathews, partner, the Birchmere Music Hall.

Bringing the Birchmere to Silver Spring has been a vision shared by the County Executive and local residents for many years now. The project will continue the extraordinary revitalization of Silver Spring and bring a new cultural crown jewel to the County. The Birchmere, with its national reputation, will help attract new visitors to Silver Spring from across the region and be a major economic boost to the downtown.

“Silver Spring is a shining example of successful revitalization and we see this as an important piece of the redevelopment puzzle. The Birchmere will provide an economic shot in the arm for downtown Silver Spring and help create even greater potential for the future,” said Dan Cohen, Co-founder, of the citizens group Silver Spring Forward.

Duncan earlier today transmitted requests to both the County Council and the Governor’s Office and looks forward to working with them to help make this vision a reality. Attached are copies of those requests.

“The land we are contributing is part of a parking lot we will develop some day. When we do, county law requires us to make a contribution to the public good so why not contribute now to help attract the Birchmere,” said Bruce H. Lee, president of the Lee Development Group.

# # #

Release ID: 06-307
Media Contact: David Weaver 240-777-6530

Silver Springer

September 15th, 2006, 12:46 PM

Web-services firm gets venture funding
Washington Business Journal - September 8, 2006by Ben Hammer Staff Reporter

Freewebs has closed an $11 million first round of venture capital from Novak Biddle Venture Partners and Columbia Capital.

The Silver Spring company, which was founded in 2001, plans to announce the deal next week.

More than 10 million users have chosen the company's free and for-pay tools to create online blogs, photo albums and other online content. The company also serves ads selected by Google based on user-generated content and recently began approaching major advertisers directly.

Freewebs was hotly pursued by venture capitalists after the company pitched for investment at the May 31 to June 1 Capital Connection event in D.C. Since then, the company was in talks with venture capital firms on both coasts.

The company received a $1 million bridge loan earlier this spring from early backers Bobby Yazdani, the founder and CEO of public company Saba Software (NASDAQ: SABA), Silicon Valley venture capital firm Amidzad and Aydin Senkut, a former early Google employee. It's unclear if they participated in this round.

As the first round of funding was closing at the end of August, Freewebs announced it acquired Mad4Milk.net, a developer of Internet programming tools for Web 2.0 applications. Freewebs plans to create an "online community" for developers who want to use the tool to improve Internet applications.

The company has also recently added some high-profile executives. Andrea Spiegel, the former AOL vice president of audience programming operations and planning, was hired a vice president of content and editor-in-chief at the beginning of August.

In July, Freewebs added Chris Cunningham as its vice president of advertising. He left Bolt Media, which has 11 million users who post video and content online, in July as senior vice president of sales.

And in late June, the company brought on former Nextel Communications executive Robert Ewald as its first vice president of marketing and operations.

Freewebs had paid its own way until this round. The company is profitable and generated $970,000 in 2004, according to Dun & Bradstreet. It has said 2005 sales were in the millions but wouldn't be more specific.

Silver Springer

September 15th, 2006, 12:51 PM

Discovery launches fund to honor croc hunter
Washington Business Journal - September 5, 2006by Joanna Sullivan and Neil Adler Staff Reporters

A Maryland company is mourning the death of Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin, with plans to create "The Crikey Fund," in his honor.

Discovery Communications, the Silver Spring-based creator of Animal Planet and the channel that made Irwin an international star, will create the Steve Irwin Crocodile Hunter Fund (the official name) to support wildlife protection, education and conservation.

Irwin died during a filming expedition for Animal Planet on the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. A stingray's barb pierced Irwin's heart when he swam over the sea creature.

The fund will support Irwin's Australia Zoo in Beewah, Australia, and provide money for his children Bindi and Bob's education.

"Rarely has the world embraced an animal enthusiast and conservationist as they did Steve Irwin," says Discovery Networks International President Dawn McCall in a statement Monday. "Steve's passion for animals and leadership in conservation awareness leaves a powerful and lasting legacy across the globe."

For a decade, Irwin could be seen on Animal Planet, helping grow the channel into a global brand, Discovery executives say.

In addition to the fund that Discovery has created, the media giant will rename the garden space in front of its headquarters "the Steve Irwin Memorial Garden."

"Steve was a larger than life force," says Discovery founder and Chairman John Hendricks.

Silver Springer

September 15th, 2006, 01:24 PM

Competitive Power Ventures lands up to $200M in financing
Washington Business Journal - 2:35 PM EDT Thursdayby Neil Adler Staff Reporter

Competitive Power Ventures, a power-development company, says it has closed on an agreement with Warburg Pincus for equity financing of up to $200 million.

Silver Spring-based Competitive Power Ventures says the funding from the New York private equity firm will be used to develop a portfolio of fossil fuel power plants that could grow to 6,000 megawatts in the United States and Canada.

Warburg Pincus first invested in the Maryland company in 2000 and maintains a significant stake in the it.

Besides its fossil fuel projects, Competitive Power Ventures has more than 2,500 megawatts of wind power projects under development and manages more than 5,500 megawatts of natural-gas fired plants throughout the United States.

"We have tremendous respect for the CPV team's development and project-management skills and believe that this is an opportune time to push forward on a new power plant development program in selected regions of North America," says Jeffrey Harris, a managing director of Warburg Pincus and a board member of Competitive Power Ventures, in a statement.

Competitive Power Ventures, founded in 1999, has offices in Braintree, Mass., and Denver in addition to its Silver Spring headquarters.

The company says it plans to open an office in California by year's end.

Silver Springer

September 15th, 2006, 01:26 PM

Two new Silver Spring office towers proposed
City Place Mall, Georgia near Thayer would be sites
Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2006

by Sonny Goldreich

Special to The Gazette

Citing downtown Silver Spring’s tight office vacancy rate, separate developers are seeking approval to build two eight-story towers at marquee locations — one along Georgia Avenue and the other atop the City Place Mall.

Together, they would add about 320,000 square feet of Class A space, which fits into Montgomery County’s goal of adding mixed-use development under the master plan for the downtown area.

‘‘Vacancy rates in Silver Spring are at historical lows,” said Jeffrey Dierman, a principal with Dierman Realty Group who developed City Place Mall and has proposed adding the tower.

The Silver Spring vacancy rate has fallen sharply in recent years, from 18 percent in 1997 to 9.8 percent in 2005 to 4.2 percent in the second quarter of this year, according to a report by CB Richard Ellis, a commercial real estate services company headquartered in El Segundo, Calif.

Dierman estimated that the City Place tower would cost about $220 per square foot to build, or $35 million. The City Place office tower revives a project that was first approved in 1989 as a complement to the retail mall but was scrapped when the real estate market collapsed.

The Studio Plaza project, rising behind the storefronts of Georgia Avenue near Thayer Avenue, would serve as a gateway for the planned renewal of Fenton Village.

Studio Plaza developer Robert Hillerson has proposed a complex that also would include ground floor retail space in the office building and in a nine-story condominium. Pedestrians would have access to the project from Georgia Avenue through Mayor Lane, named for the late Norman Lane, a homeless man who was considered Silver Spring’s unofficial mayor and is memorialized in a bust and plaque.

Hillerson has even more ambitious plans for the site, which includes parcels of Georgia, Thayer and Silver Spring avenues.

‘‘There’s a bigger story here,” he said. His company, Michael LLC of Silver Spring, has proposed building more housing units on a county-owned parking lot, which sits like a doughnut hole within the Studio Plaza plans that were submitted to county planners in July.

The county sought requests for proposals for the 77,420-square-foot lot in December but then canceled the solicitation when state planning officials developed a list of alternative alignment plans for a possible Metro Purple Line, one of which would run through the property.

‘‘Our plan is to move forward with the one plan [as submitted] and see how fast the county development review office moves on it versus the state and county making a decision on the alignment,” said Robert Metz, Hillerson’s attorney. ‘‘It will be a much better project if we can use the parking lot.”

The county had sought proposals that would include 30 percent of housing units reserved for affordable or workplace housing. The Studio Plaza plan as submitted would set aside 15 percent for that purpose.

Dierman has tapped Morris & Ritchie of Towson, the original architect of City Place, to update his office tower plans. The proposal calls for 159,058 square feet of Class A office space. Like the mall, the office project mimics the Art Deco design elements of the original Hecht’s department store on the site. The proposal also would allow for office conversion of 42,000 square feet of space previously occupied by the now-empty mall’s movie theater.

The City Place office plan comes as welcome news to residents, who have been pushing for the mall to attract more upscale stores.

‘‘I think anything that would add to the appeal of City Place will win support,” said Alan Bowser, a member of the Silver Spring Citizens Advisory Board’s development committee.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

September 15th, 2006, 01:29 PM

Traffic is residents’ main concern for Indian Spring
Access roads, ICC dominate issues raised at hearing over planned development
Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2006

by Kristina Gawrgy

Staff Writer

Click here to enlarge this photo

Residents who live along Layhill Road in Wheaton say the only problem with a proposed 773-home development at the Indian Spring Country Club will be the cars those homes and people would generate.

Hundreds of residents came to testify at a hearing Thursday, wearing stickers in opposition to many traffic patterns the 308-acre development could create.

Some opposed a proposed extension of Tivoli Lake Boulevard into the Indian Spring site from the south. Others did not want to see an extension of Foggy Glen Drive into the development from the north. Many also were concerned with the lack of information about the effects of the Intercounty Connector highway if an interchange on Layhill Road north of the development were created.

Max Bronstein of the Strathmore-Bel Pre Civic Association told members of the Montgomery County Planning Board he wants to see some changes before development goes forward.

‘‘We submit that traffic will make the situation worse,” he said.

Planning Board members suggested that developer Winchester Homes and board staff revisit traffic concerns with an emphasis on how the ICC would affect the area. They also asked Montgomery County Public Schools to consider the former Saddlebrook Elementary as a potential school site to serve the subdivision.

The next meeting on the matter will take place 1 p.m. Thursday at the Planning Board auditorium, 8787 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, but will not include public testimony.

Winchester Homes of Bethesda bought the site from the country club in 2003, making it one of the few large undeveloped tracts in eastern Montgomery County. It is the latest country club in the county to fall victim to development, following others like the Washingtonian, which once lay along I-270 where a shopping center now sits.

The land includes two 18-hole golf courses, a dining hall and conference center. The country club and conference center will continue to operate until Dec. 31. The current conference center and country club amenities will also be removed, but a new community center may be built.

A proposal for a 565-home development that would have retained one of the golf courses was denied in 2005 because planners said the environment around the Northwest Branch and Bel Pre Creek would be compromised.

Winchester reworked the plans to replace some of the golf course with forests and stream buffer, but added 208 homes. Thursday’s meeting was the company’s third appearance before the Planning Board.

Michael Lemon, project manager for Winchester Homes, said the company addressed problem areas. Winchester included two trails for pedestrian and bike traffic and a bio-sensitive stream crossing on the Tivoli Lake Boulevard extension, he said.

‘‘We believe that [crossing] is worthy and can be done in an environmentally sensitive manner,” Lemon said.

Winchester also plans to respect nearly all the 100 acres of stream buffers as previously suggested by the board. The company also took the planning staff’s recommendation to set a maximum number of homes at 773 units, with 463 single-family homes, 310 townhouses, including 116 moderately priced dwelling units.

Company representatives said they were committed to reaching out to the community throughout the planning and construction process.

Residents, however, made sure they were heard at the meeting Thursday night. Many groups dressed in colored shirts or wore stickers displaying their alliances.

Residents who were upset with the proposed Tivoli Lake Boulevard extension said that it would increase cut-through traffic by giving drivers on Layhill Road another way to avoid the intersection at Layhill and Georgia Avenue.

Tivoli Lake Boulevard would be extended into the new development and connect to Indian Spring Drive, the only current entrance into the site. Winchester Homes and Planning Board staff said the Tivoli Lake Boulevard would be ‘‘unattractive” to cut-through motorists, but Tivoli residents disagreed.

Margie Gertzman, president of Tivoli Community Association, said the neighborhood is a haven in Silver Spring and called it a ‘‘walking, running, baby carriage-pushing, roller-skating community.”

‘‘Why would Indian Spring development need more than one road?” she said at the hearing. ‘‘Outside traffic will be zooming down [Tivoli Lake Boulevard] with no consideration for our residents.”

Tivoli residents also were concerned about the environmental impact on the road that would cross Bel Pre Creek. An ecologist who spoke on behalf of the Tivoli Community Association, Joe Berg, said the ‘‘project was not state-of-the-art and would not aid the stream.”

However, residents who lived north of the development said a proposed link through Foggy Glen Drive would cause unnecessary traffic in their area, while not addressing traffic needs on the south side.

‘‘The community believes that there is no real need for [the Foggy Glen] connection, and any possible benefits from neighborhood connectivity is far outweighed by the negative impacts to the community,” said Anne Errigo, president of the Layhill View Citizens Association.

Another topic of contention was setting aside land for an elementary school. Residents largely agreed that if a school was needed, then the former Saddlebrook Elementary School should be reopened. The building is now used by Maryland-National Capital Park Police.

If a new school were built, it would be on the Indian Spring property north of the Indian Spring Drive entrance. It also would take up a parcel between 10 and 12 acres and cost the county between $8 million and $12 million.

Jody Kline, attorney for MCPS, said just under 200 students would be generated by the new development and the new location would be needed. He said that a previously proposed location near Queensguard and Layhill roads was not feasible because of wetlands.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

September 29th, 2006, 03:12 PM

Discovery launches new HDTV series
Washington Business Journal - 3:13 PM EDT Thursdayby Jennifer Nycz-ConnerStaff Writer

Discovery's not known for skimping when it comes to big productions or parties, and it did neither Wednesday night.

The Silver Spring media monolith pulled out all of the stops to celebrate the premier of the $65 million dollar high-definition TV project "Discovery Atlas."

The series is the brainchild of Discovery Communications founder and chairman John Hendricks, who excitedly introduced the labor of love he referred to as "the world's most-expensive documentary." The mission of the project was simple, he said: "To chronicle the planet in high definition."

While premier events are never short on public relations, this series appears to live up to the hype -- and possibly even its price tag. The first four episodes of the series feature stunning high-definition photography and celebrity narrators including Russell Crowe for Australia, James Spader for China, Sela Ward for Brazil and Isabella Rossilini for Italy.

During the next five years, "Discovery Atlas" will travel to 30 countries.

Discovery offered a short taste of the first four programs to air in a presentation at The AFI Silver Theatre. The packed house of more than 400 media and embassy professionals stopped traffic on Georgia Avenue as they were led by a parade of Chinese dragon dancers into a four-country themed reception featuring food and performers from each of the cultures, including Brazilian Carnival goers, Australian aborigines and masked Venetian revelers.

The first episode of the series debuts, "Discovery Atlas: China Revealed" on Discovery Channel and Discovery HD Theater 9 p.m. Oct. 1.

Silver Springer

October 8th, 2006, 08:04 PM

After six years of redevelopment, more work lies ahead
While major projects have transformed downtown Silver Spring, officials say there’s still more to come
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2006

by Meredith Hooker

Staff Writer

Though the streets of downtown Silver Spring are rife with new restaurants, retail and activity, local planners say the area’s revitalization is not complete.

‘‘The problem we often encounter in downtown Silver Spring is that people look at the Ellsworth area and Discovery and think we’re done. We’re not done,” said Glenn Kreger, Park and Planning team leader for Silver Spring and Takoma Park.

Redevelopment has been taking place over the past six years. Now, the downtown has two movie theaters, a number of restaurants and retail, a new courthouse and fire station, and several new residential buildings in south Silver Spring, Kreger said Thursday at a Planning Board briefing. And every month, more progress is made. Montgomery College recently opened its student services center and Easter Seals broke ground at its Second Avenue site.

But nearly 3,100 more residential units are still in the pipeline, along with continued expansion at Montgomery College and the construction of a multi-modal transit center at the Silver Spring Metro station, as well as other projects, Kreger said.

‘‘The spiral of decline has been reversed,” Kreger said.

At one point, vacant storefronts lined downtown Silver Spring’s streets and few people could be seen walking around the downtown. Now, that’s not the case. People can be seen out eating and shopping, Kreger said, and property values are increasing.

Also on the horizon is a new civic building and veterans plaza to be built at the corner of Fenton Street and Ellsworth Drive on an area currently covered with artificial turf. A plan for the civic building should be submitted to the Planning Board in October, Kreger said.

The civic building will replace the former Silver Spring Armory, a public meeting space that was demolished to make room for redevelopment, said Gary Stith, director of the Silver Spring Regional Services Center. The new building will provide plenty of public meeting space, as well as a great hall that can be used for a variety of functions. The building will also house the Silver Spring Regional Services Center and classrooms for the Round House Theatre School

Outside, Stith said, a plaza will be used as an ice rink in the winter and concert venue in the summer. The plaza will also have a veterans’ memorial.

‘‘The plaza is going to be a very active space,” Stith said.

It’s important to provide public space like the civic building and outdoor public areas because it creates a sense of place, Kreger said.

‘‘There’s a lot of public space [in the downtown]. ... Some are better than others,” Kreger said. ‘‘... I hear people who say, ‘Meet me at the fountain’ all the time.”

However, he said, there’s some public space that doesn’t work so well. Discovery Communications headquarters’ Steve Irwin Memorial Garden, though open to the public, is fenced in.

‘‘People don’t feel it’s really public,” Kreger said.

Additionally, he said, residents are ready to see more retail in the downtown. Right now, the majority of new venues open are restaurants. Bryant Foulger, vice president of Foulger-Pratt Company, has said that the town center area has enough restaurants and his company is focusing on leasing more stores.

Planners are also hoping to energize Fenton Street Village and the Ripley District, both just outside downtown Silver Spring’s core. A new Silver Spring library will be constructed in Fenton Street Village, but that area ‘‘has not really taken off yet,” Kreger said, adding there is also only one new development — condos — currently planned for the Ripley District.

However, said east Silver Spring resident Bob Colvin, many residents feel Silver Spring has all the development it can handle for now.

‘‘We don’t have the infrastructure to support it,” he said.

Roads are congested, Colvin said, and parking, though adequate, could decrease as more condominiums are built. When the Bi-County Transitway is built, some commercial structures and homes will be affected.

The neighborhood needs more roads, not the elimination of Blair Mill Road, which has been closed for the construction of a condominium project, Colvin said. It needs more park facilities and more schools.

‘‘I think most people in the neighborhood want a moratorium on development,” Colvin said. ‘‘We’ve got too much coming in and not the services to have it.”

New development, Colvin said, is driving leases up, risking the loss of several small businesses.

‘‘I think the mom-and-pop shops are great,” he said. ‘‘We’ve got shoe repair, a dry cleaner, some small restaurants. How can they afford to turn a profit?”

It’s a concern that’s been echoed by many. In the wake of redevelopment, officials need to make sure rents don’t rise to the point where only a certain type of business can afford to set up shop in the downtown. Silver Spring needs neighborhoods that develop organically, said Commissioner Meredith K. Wellington, citing Washington, D.C.’s, Adams Morgan as an example.

‘‘If we [plan] them too much and force the rents up, we’ll lose those fun spaces,” she said, referring to mom-and-pop coffee shops and artist spaces.

‘‘I’d like to see development adhere to the vision of the master plan,” said Dan Meijer, a south Silver Spring resident and business owner, during a Monday phone interview. The master plan provides a basic guideline for future development in a neighborhood. ‘‘I think if you stick with it, those other issues will resolve themselves.”

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

October 8th, 2006, 08:10 PM

Live there, shop there, but where do you park or play?[Why is there an emphasis on parking?]
Wednesday, Oct. 4, 2006

by Meredith Hooker

Staff Writer

Parking spaces and recreational areas haven’t kept pace with the development taking place in downtown Silver Spring and the surrounding neighborhoods, according to planning staff, residents and business owners.

‘‘It has an eerie resemblance to Clarksburg in the sense that the density of residential development has exceeded the infrastructure’s capacity for parking and recreation facilities unexpectedly. Not intentionally, but unexpectedly,” said Dan Meijer, a south Silver Spring resident and small business owner, during a Monday phone interview. Now, he said, priority needs to be placed on parking and parks to catch up with development that’s been approved.

Particularly in south Silver Spring, where a number of residential units have been built and more are on the way, there isn’t quite enough parking to accommodate residents, and there are few public places for children to play and adults to relax, said Glenn Kreger, Park and Planning team leader for Silver Spring and Takoma Park.

‘‘Parking’s been a big issue in south Silver Spring in particular because there’s been so much development,” Kreger said at a Thursday briefing about Silver Spring redevelopment for the Montgomery County Planning Board.

And, he added, not all developers have provided enough parking, choosing instead to pay into a parking fund designated to provide and maintain parking spaces throughout Silver Spring’s central business district.

That can be a problem, Meijer said, because even though developers pay into that fund, public parking still needs to be required somewhere. ‘‘It’s nice to approve the development but you have to produce the parking.”

Some new public garages are planned — one residential building, The Galaxy, is providing public and private parking — but Kreger said he didn’t know if those spaces would be enough to alleviate the problem.

Several south Silver Spring businesses have felt the pinch from lack of parking made worse by construction. Brenda Smoak, owner of art store Alchemy on Georgia Avenue, saidparking is a challenge because not only are there few parking spaces nearby, but many are snapped up by people coming to Mayorga Coffee Factory, Moorenko’s or to Montgomery College.

‘‘People park on my side of the street, but they don’t come to my store,” she said. ‘‘I’m losing my little bit of spaces but I’m not benefiting from it at all.”

Few people know about the nearby Kennett Street garage, Smoak said. Additionally, she said, the neighborhood could benefit from an extension of the VanGo route, a free bus that circles through the downtown and some surrounding areas.

Another issue, Kreger said, is a lack of park and recreation facilities.

‘‘We need to find ways to address the needs of all age groups,” Kreger said.

Jesup Blair Park in south Silver Spring was recently renovated, but some new residents on the opposite side of Georgia Avenue have expressed concerns about having their children cross the busy road. Currently, Kreger said, there are no new capital improvement projects planned for that area.

The artificial turf currently acting as a placeholder for a new civic building in downtown Silver Spring is a good place for people of all ages to relax and play, said Commissioner Meredith K. Wellington. However, she said, the turf will be removed when the civic building is built. The turf is a popular hangout, especially for teens.

There is a need for pocket parks in that area, which is populated with high rises, said Planning Board Chairman Royce Hanson.

‘‘Can you put something like Candy Cane City [a play area in Rock Creek Park] in an urban environment?” asked Commissioner John Robinson.

A playground built to the same extent as Candy Cane City may or may not be possible to build, Hanson said. Parks should serve people of all age groups rather than just specific ages, but ‘‘you certainly can put opportunities for children to exercise in an urban park setting,” Hanson said.

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

October 14th, 2006, 05:52 PM

Silver Spring Tries to Juggle Development And Livability
Board Considers Plans For Downtown Growth

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/11/AR2006101100929.html

By Aruna Jain
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, October 12, 2006; Page GZ03

Over the past six years, redevelopment efforts in downtown Silver Spring have led to construction of 891 residences and plans for an additional 3,100, plus the development of more than 1.8 million square feet of commercial space, including restaurants, bars and shops, according to county planners.

"Silver Spring is a hot market, and everyone wants to cash in on its success," said planner Glenn Kreger, who monitors development in the area. "But there is a lot of additional work to be done, so it's still a work in progress."

Planners recently provided an update about what is happening in downtown Silver Spring and its surroundings to members of the Montgomery County Planning Board.

The new development includes two major public projects.

Officials are still reviewing plans for a $20 million civic building and public space that could be the site of an ice rink in winter months and a space for concerts and festivals the rest of the year. It would replace the synthetic-turf field along Ellsworth Drive.

Its construction, expected to start in the spring, is contingent on final approval by the Planning Board, said Gary Stith, director of the Silver Spring Regional Service Center.

Work on the $74.7 million Silver Spring Transit Center is slated to start next summer.

The transit center would reshape the Silver Spring Metro station by adding commercial bus lines and hiker-biker trails and by allowing space for the Purple Line, a proposed 14-mile rail line. The Metro stop now provides Ride On and Metrobus service in addition to Red Line Metrorail service. The transit center is to be finished in 2009.

"The transit center is a much-needed upgrade," said Bruce Johnston, who works with the county's department of public works and transportation. "It's one of the heaviest-used Metro stations in the transit corridor."

Next to the transit center, developer Silver Spring Metro LLC plans to build a 200-room hotel and two residential towers with a total of 450 units. There would also be 25,000 square feet of retail space and landscaped open space.

During construction of the transit center, bus operations will be moved southeast of the current location. Construction of the interim location will start in the next few weeks.

Restaurants continue to open in downtown Silver Spring. Some new offerings include Zpizza, off Ellsworth; Ray's the Classics, a steakhouse on Colesville, across from the AFI Silver Theatre; and Piratz Tavern, across Georgia Avenue from the Quarry House. A Fuddruckers is scheduled to open this year.

Other ongoing projects include the Silver Spring Gateway, at Blair Mill Road and East-West Highway, and the Midtown Silver Spring Ripley Project between Georgia Avenue and the railroad tracks.

The Silver Spring Gateway is a 130,000-square-foot development that will include about 450 residences, 14,000 square feet of retail space and more than 600 parking spaces.

The planned Ripley Project calls for 317 residential units, more than 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space and nearly 400 parking spaces.

During the recent discussion of downtown Silver Spring, Planning Board members said there is a need to improve other areas in Silver Spring, such as Long Branch, Montgomery Hills and the area known as Takoma-Langley Crossroads, around University Boulevard and New Hampshire Avenue, Kreger said.

Planning officials also discussed the transitions needed from the dense central business district to surrounding residential areas. Kreger said the idea is to decrease density and building heights toward the edges of the business district to create a "tent effect."

For a more complete list of ongoing and upcoming projects in Silver Spring, go to http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring .

TampaMike

October 14th, 2006, 06:06 PM

Amazing town/city/ whatever it is. Very cool. When did all this development start? Why? Who is developing all this. Yes, I have lots of questions :)

Silver Springer

October 15th, 2006, 01:29 AM

Amazing town/city/ whatever it is. Very cool. When did all this development start? Why? Who is developing all this. Yes, I have lots of questions :)

Downtown Silver Spring is an urban district on the eastern half of Montgomery County Maryland right outside Washington D.C. For decades the downtown was in decline because of urban flight, abandonment and many unwarranted reasons, it was simply forgotten.

Revitalization efforts like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) new headquarters and City Place Mall didn’t really do the trick to bring the downtown back to life. Quality private development did not follow and the negative perception did not change.

The county government was concerned that if the downtown continued to decay the blight would spread through out the rest of the county. After the collapse of the mega mall project (similar to the Mall of America in Minnesota) a public\private partner was formed to create a smaller mixed use project of office\retail\residential adjacent to the old City Place Mall. The old 1930’s Art Deco shopping center would be incorporated into the project, while the theater would become the new regional headquarters of the American Film Institute (AFI).

IMO what I think played the most significant role in the revitalization was the decision of Discovery communications to move their world headquarters to Silver Spring. Discovery was searching all over the Washington region for a new mainstay as their various locations in Bethesda were over capacity. In addition to the public\private project totaling $1 billion and spearheaded by County Executive Doug Duncan he convinced Discovery to build their headquarters on the former Silver Triangle site that was a left out parcel to be included in the mega mall project. They also opened a creative technology center in South Silver Spring, I couldn’t think of anything better than Discovery’s world headquarters to sit on what is pretty much the core of downtown. Soon after headquarters of cable channel TV One, satellite radio company World Space, and American Nurses Association soon followed.

Today downtown Silver Spring is no longer ignored, developers are finding out that investing in this area is not so risky but in fact pays off handsomely. In addition to the AFI Silver theatre, the 20 screen mainstream majestic theatre ranks 38th in the country for viewer ship.

There are over 6,000 residential units and close to 1 million square feet of office space planned for the downtown area alone. All from different developers. Timing, bombardment of mixed use projects and companies like United Therapeutics growing all happening at once has helped put Silver Spring in the spotlight again.

The revitalization is not over yet, there is still a lot more in store like the Silver Spring Transit Center project.

Silver Springer

October 18th, 2006, 04:34 PM

Lofts 24

comments
N\A

Description:
The applicant (Tezzera) proposes 24 loft condominium units on a 17,089 square foot CBD-1 property at Fenton Street / Bonifant Street (next to the Safeway) in the Silver Spring Central Business District (CBD). The proposed building will be 60' tall and feature a green roof. It is now under construction.

Status
Complete

Planning

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
Tezzera Urban Authors
Brian T. Shepard, Managing Partner
10214 Lorain Avenue
Silver Spring, MD 20901
(301) 650-7167

Condo sales contact: Ross McWilliams (703) 535-5550

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Montgomery Planning Board conducted a public hearing on the plans for this project on May 22, 2003.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Preliminary Plan #1-03060 and Site Plan #8-03025

Planning Board Action:
Plans were approved on May 22, 2003.

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/loft24-1.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/loft24-2.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/loft24-3.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/loft24-4.jpg

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/loft24-5.jpg

Silver Springer

November 1st, 2006, 03:19 PM

3 groups compete to control Silver Spring project

Washington Business Journal - October 27, 2006by Joe CoombsSenior Staff Reporter

Montgomery County planners are reviewing three proposals to redevelop the county's planning offices with a new headquarters and residential complex in Silver Spring.

The planning board wants to consolidate its three offices on Georgia Avenue, Spring Street and Brunett Avenue into a 120,000-square-foot headquarters at the Georgia Avenue property.

The new development also would have a residential complex with 200 to 300 units -- 30 percent of them devoted to affordable and work force housing. The work force housing is geared toward teachers, emergency-service workers and others whose incomes don't qualify for market-rate housing.

Developers vying for the project, to be called Silver Place, include:

Silver Place Joint Venture, which has representatives from D.C.-based The Donohoe Cos., Silver Spring-based MCF Investment and Baltimore-based Otis Warren & Co.
A joint venture between D.C.-based PN Hoffman and Bethesda-based Stonebridge Associates.
SilverPlace LLC, which includes representatives of Greenbelt-based The Bozzuto Group, the District office of Spaulding & Slye Investments and Baltimore-based Harrison Development.
Members of the Donohoe and PN Hoffman groups could not be reached for comment. Art Frye, senior vice president at Spaulding & Slye Investments, declined to comment on the specifics of his group's proposal.

A planning board hearing on the plan is scheduled for Oct. 26. After a developer is selected, the board will forward the proposal to the Montgomery County Council for consideration.

Cost totals for the project were not available.

"It's a very underutilized site," Frye says. "It's really the gateway to the Silver Spring central business district. We saw a great opportunity to provide an anchor for downtown with a mixed-use project. It achieves several goals for the planning board, including building a new headquarters and providing affordable housing for the county."

The planning board's current offices total about 100,000 square feet. With the new 120,000-square-foot building, the organization wants to not only consolidate its offices but also install better technology and create a larger auditorium for its weekly hearings.

The approximately 3.2-acre Georgia Avenue property is next to a Crowne Plaza hotel and just two blocks from properties that have been built as part of Silver Spring's ongoing $1 billion revitalization.

E-MAIL: JCOOMBS@BIZJOURNALS.COM PHONE: 703/258-0827

Silver Springer

November 6th, 2006, 06:35 PM

Colesville Road Hilton/Hampton Inn/Homewood Suites

comments
N\A

Description:
This project involves the conversion of an existing office building on Colesville Road to a combination Hampton Inn/Homewood Suites Hotel. The 13-story building will have 276 hotel rooms and approximately 10,000 square feet of meeting rooms on a 21,881 gross square foot lot. The site is zoned CBD-1.

Status
Planning

Planning

MNCPPC Staff Contact:
Joshua Sloan, (301) 495-4584, e-mail
Robert Kronenberg, (301) 495-2187, e-mail

Applicant:
Metro DC Hotel LLC c/o Kaufman Architects
Gene Kaufman
525 Broadway, 8th Floor
New York, NY 10012
(212) 625-8700

Opportunities for Public Participation:
The Planning Board will conduct a public hearing prior to taking action on the proposed plan.

Planning Board Review Process & Case Number:
Site Plan #820070030

Planning Board Action:
None to date.

Date of last page update: September 21, 2005

http://www.mc-mncppc.org/silverspring/Images/Colevilhiltonhampsite_full_.gif

Silver Springer

November 7th, 2006, 05:32 PM

Sports and entertainment arena eyed for Montgomery
Study under way; upcounty sites floated as possible locations
Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2006
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by Melissa A. Chadwick

Staff Writer

The owner of the Maryland Nighthawks professional basketball team says he has investors ready to help fund a new sports and entertainment arena in Montgomery County.

Three upcounty sites have been mentioned as potential locations for a 7,000- to 12,000-seat facility, but officials are quick to point out that a study of the proposal is in its very early stages and will include what such a facility might look like, not where it would be.

The Maryland Stadium Authority, acting on a request from the Montgomery County Department of Economic Development, has commissioned the feasibility study.

The department and the state Department of Business and Economic Development will each contribute up to $50,000 for the study, said David W. Edgerley, director of economic development in the county.

The study will explore a number of items, including market viability; stadium design, seating and parking; and event programming options such as basketball, ice shows, concerts and graduations, Edgerley said.

After the study is completed — in December or January — Edgerley said state and local officials will review it and ‘‘see if there is an interest in forming a partnership to determine economic feasibility.”

Potomac resident Tom Doyle, president of the Maryland Nighthawks, an American Basketball Association team, said the stadium could cost between $30 million and $40 million to build. The Nighthawks currently play at Montgomery College-Rockville.

‘‘I’ve got private investors lined up ready to do this thing,” Doyle said Friday. ‘‘We’re about ready to go. In reality, this thing could be moving along next year into the following year.”

Doyle said he began researching what it would take to bring an arena to Montgomery County early last year.

After meeting with county development officials and the Maryland Stadium Authority on his ideas, Doyle was approached to form the Sports Council of Montgomery County in early 2006, he said.

Private investors and sports groups are interested in funding the arena, he said.

Doyle said arena funding would work best as a public-private partnership, with the county or state providing land or matching funds.

‘‘It’s not necessarily a county project at this point,” Edgerley said. ‘‘We’re just examining it. It may be the recommendation that we ask the state to take it on or that we ask a private partner to take it on.”

The council was formed in part to lobby for sports and recreation opportunities in a county that some say pours a majority of its resources into the arts.

‘‘We became so focused on the arts. All these dollars are being pushed there,” Doyle said. ‘‘I think you’re not serving the greater populace when you’re not supporting sports and recreation.”

Doyle said the council met a few times before group members collectively suggested they consider pushing for an arena.

‘‘[The lack of an arena] takes an awful lot of money out of the county. Not just to see the Wizards, to see Sesame on Ice or other ice shows,” Doyle said Friday. ‘‘One of the biggest factors is the whole graduation thing. It’s just obscene.”

Nearly all county high schools hold their graduation ceremonies outside of Montgomery County.

He said the Show Place Arena in Upper Marlboro, which seats 6,000 to 8,000, is a good example of what Montgomery’s arena could look like.

But County Councilman Michael J. Knapp (D-Dist. 2) of Germantown said that the arena should have up to 12,000 seats.

‘‘If you’re going to do a facility and are going to do a real one, it’s got to be a 10,000- to 12,000-seat facility,” he said.

Knapp added that of the sites that have been mentioned as possibilities — the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Gaithersburg and the Germantown campus of Montgomery College — the college site interests him the most.

Knapp said he doesn’t believe ‘‘anyone seriously thinks” an arena should be at the SoccerPlex. ‘‘The more I think about it, the more I get excited about MC-Germantown,” Knapp said. ‘‘I think it’s certainly something this county should be looking at.”

Edgerley was quick to note that the feasibility study will not address possible locations.

‘‘Let me be brutally clear,” Edgerley said Thursday. ‘‘People are talking about sites — that is not part of the study. We are not doing a site study. We want to find out what this looks like before it would be placed. Site considerations, while fun to talk about, are not part of the work being done at this point.”

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

November 25th, 2006, 10:06 PM

Students worried for future of college
After vote to keep Columbia Union’s liberal arts curriculum, some undergrads remain concerned about facilities
Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2006

by Agnes Jasinski

Staff Writer

Members of Columbia Union College’s constituency on Friday approved the board of trustees’ previous decision to maintain a liberal arts focus at the Takoma Park school, but students remain uneasy about how the school will address concerns that existed before its future was in question.

Students interviewed since the board’s recommendations last month said structural improvements need to be made on campus to retain current students and attract new students.

‘‘It’s a vicious cycle. They’re trying to get more students to come, but when they get there, they end up moving on because of the shape the facilities are in ... and then because enrollment goes down, there’s not enough money to fix those facilities,” said Sam Shin, a fourth-year student at the college who has one year left to complete. ‘‘So cutting programs is then an option, but then students won’t want to come here if they do that.”

The school’s board of trustees considered three major proposals Oct. 18 to address its future and a current $7.5 million debt. One was to keep the school liberal arts-focused, another would have turned ownership of the school over to Adventist HealthCare and the last combined the two concepts. The board decided to maintain the school’s liberal arts curriculum while beginning talks of developing a new School of Nursing and Allied Health on the campus.

At the time, college President Randal Wisbey emphasized saving the school’s essential programs and the areas of academics ‘‘most opportune” to the school’s mission of service to the community. Many cuts have already been made in the last few years, he said, and students in small classrooms should see class size as an advantage.

Shin, who is enrolled in a music history class with three other students and is the only cello major on campus, is still worried academic cuts may be the only option to address the school’s long-term debt. Certain mathematics classes are already only offered every other year, he said, and that field has seen the lowest enrollment in the last five years, according to the school’s Facts and Figures booklet produced by school employees in the office of Academic Administration.

Administrators hope more creative options could prevent future cuts and improve the school’s management. On Nov. 9, faculty members sat in on a presentation by Gina Brown, the dean of the school of Graduate and Professional Studies, brainstorming ways to improve the school’s profile.

Brown suggested ‘‘growing programs” by bringing courses to businesses with employees looking to enroll in undergraduate and graduate level programs.

And to accompany the vote Friday, the constituency agreed to decrease the number of their own members and those on the school’s board, all unpaid volunteers, to ‘‘add more efficiency” in the running of the school, college spokesman Scott Steward said.

The size of the constituency will be decreased from 350 members to fewer than 170, and the Board of Trustees from nearly 50 to 31. The change went into effect immediately, as new members were voted in Friday, while the decrease in the number of constituency members will be more gradual, Steward said.

Students hope administrators will continue looking at long-term solutions.

‘‘Obviously, changes need to be made,” said Kelley Wiedemann, a senior majoring in music education and English who was involved in filming a DVD to give to the board of trustees before the vote on the importance of a liberal arts education. ‘‘There are some students nervous about whether we’ll be kept informed. They said they’d make the music building a priority, but they’ve said that for years.”

Save the music

The school’s music department is often used as a recruiting tool. Its band and vocal groups have traveled across the globe to perform with professional groups and at venues like New York City’s renowned Carnegie Hall.

But the building used by the students to practice their instruments and warm up their voices is falling apart.

‘‘Oh brother, it’s awful. They have this world-class group of students, and this house with tiny practice rooms,” Wiedemann said. ‘‘It’s embarrassing to show prospective students. ... So that’s what we have to deal with.”

Although he’s a freshman in business, Detroy Bean spends plenty of time in the school’s music building drafting new songs in its practice rooms. The self-taught pianist said he’s seen some very talented students and excellent teachers in the building, but both groups need new equipment.

The music building itself looks more like a single-family home, with worn carpeting and peeling paint. The temperature inside is ‘‘blazing hot” most days, Wiedemann said, despite windows propped open.

The problems with the school’s infrastructure aren’t limited to the music building. The school’s old boiler system that provides heat and hot water on campus malfunctioned last month, as students were forced to take showers for several days in portable units on the back of a semi-truck while repairs were made, a ‘‘temporary situation,” Steward said.

‘‘Yeah, we were bothered ... but at least they did something about that,” said Bean, who lives in the boys’ dorm.

A quick fix is not expected for the music building. The school still has $2 million left to raise, Wisbey said, before a matched federal grant is approved from the state for a 23,000-square-foot music and performing arts site to replace the current building.

It is still too early to say where the new building will be located or whether improvements will be made to the old building before the state funding is matched, said Steward, who added that preliminary drawings placed the new building on the school’s parking lot across from Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church.

‘‘The program itself is really good, and the faculty is top- notch. They travel, do [public relations] for the school, but then students come and see the music building and get turned off by it,” Shin said. ‘‘We need good facilities to keep the interest going.”

Enrollment concerns

Much of the school’s focus now is on raising Columbia Union College’s profile to boost enrollment. Although the number of students enrolled in traditional programs at the school is still higher than it was in the mid-1990s, the number of freshmen on campus has been on the downswing, and the number of Adventist students has decreased substantially since 2001, according to the school’s Facts and Figures booklets.

Shin said most of the students on campus know enrollment is down, and a handful have come together to bring more awareness to the issue and other concerns through an online MySpace.com profile. The Web site, which has 60 students signed up as members, urges students to become more involved and vocal with the administration about their concerns.

The administration’s plan now to address waning enrollment, Wisbey said, is adding ‘‘strategic programs” to prepare students for work in fields relevant to the community and partnering with outside businesses.

Students have seemed to adopt a wait-and-see approach on what lies ahead for them and the school.

‘‘Initially, everyone was very positive ... there was more camaraderie between the students and the faculty,” Wiedemann said. ‘‘Now, everything’s mulled. We just want the administration to keep us informed of what we can do to actually help.”

Copyright © 2006 The Gazette - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Privacy Statement

Silver Springer

November 25th, 2006, 10:08 PM

Residents’ group supports office tower
Project at City Place had been proposed years ago
Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2006
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by Meredith Hooker

Staff Writer

Developers who want to put an eight-story office tower above City Place Mall recently gained support from a residents’ advisory committee.

The office tower was approved when plans for the mall went before the Montgomery County Planning Board many years ago, said Bob Metz of Linowes and Blocher, the law firm representing City Place Mall. City Place is owned by Virginia-based Dierman Realty Group.

‘‘We were the first revitalization effort in Silver Spring,” he said. The mall opened in 1992.

The downtown Silver Spring mall was to be built in two phases: first retail, then office space. However, Metz said, plans for the tower have to be re-approved because so much time has lapsed. Plans were put on hold when the real estate market collapsed, and revived as the market boomed again.

As part of the process, mall representatives have to seek support from community members, which was why they attended a Nov. 15 Silver Spring Advisory Board commercial and economic development committee meeting before going before the Montgomery County Planning Board in the coming months. The committee agreed to give written support of the office tower. The plans must be approved by the Planning Board before work can begin on the tower.

The tower, which will cost about $35 million, can be built without changing the mall’s basic structure, and no stores will be eliminated to accommodate it. The tower would be constructed over the portion of the mall at Colesville Road and Fenton Street.

‘‘When we built City Place, we put the structural support already in there,” Metz said.

Part of the abandoned movie theater also will be converted into office space, Metz said. The office tower, which will be 240,000 square feet, including the use of the former movie theater, will extend 90 feet above the existing mall. The height of the entire structure will be about 160 feet. Buildings are permitted to be up to 200 feet tall in that area.

Residents, like Silver Spring’s Mark Bombaugh, expressed some concerns about the structure blending in with the existing building, having windows and boosting the retail in the mall.

‘‘Can you access the lobby from the retail?” he asked at the meeting.

Developers hope the office space, which could accommodate up to 800 people, will improve patronage at the mall. The lobby of the office could be accessed from the retail portion of the mall. Office space has not yet been leased.

‘‘We’re hoping it will bring more people into the City Place retail, which will help the existing tenants,” Metz said.

Additionally, he said, they hope it will be appealing to new, more upscale retail tenants looking to lease space.

‘‘We are hoping to upgrade the retail establishment,” Metz said.

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