Monday, March 11, 2019

Regal Row surface parking lot closes in Rockville for the last time

It's the end of an era in Rockville Town Center. The last remaining half of the surface parking lot across from the Regal Cinemas and Cambria Hotel that once also hosted large Hometown Holidays concerts has permanently closed. Drivers are being directed into the adjacent hotel garage to park.

The closure comes as a new mixed-use project by developer Duball, LLC approved for the site begins to gain momentum. Once a popular and convenient parking destination for moviegoers and diners, the two-step closure of the lot has thrown gas on the dumpster fire that is parking in Rockville Town Center. It has also rendered Hometown Holidays a shadow of its former self.




31 comments:

  1. I really don't get your bent here, Rob... After so much talk of "moribund Montgomery County" it's become its own meme, you're *upset* that Duball is finally putting in the second half of its two-block development, which will bring 400 residences to downtown Rockville and help the businesses there survive? You're upset an ugly surface lot is being replaced by a parking garage with far more capacity? This will clearly be an improvement for the city

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    1. 10:19: After you lose the battle again, you just go back to square one. So once again, I'll remind you that residential growth alone is not economic development.

      Residential development adds more new costs to city and county government than it generates in revenue, as proven by the County's structural deficit and overcrowded Rockville schools.

      The project will be a profitable success for Duball, but will not move Montgomery County out of rock bottom in regional economic development rankings. Duball would be the first to tell you that we need more high-wage jobs and commercial development to complement the fine work they are doing on the residential front with The Upton, The Cheval and Stonehall.

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    2. "Duball would be the first to tell you that we need more high-wage jobs and commercial development to complement the fine work they are doing on the residential front with The Upton, The Cheval and Stonehall."

      Love the way you mix editorializing and sponsored content. LOL

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    3. Anon is correct. Dyer clearly doesn't go to Hometown Holidays. The stage in that area is on the street in front of Regal; the parking lot has held carnival rides for years.

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    4. 6:35: Another carpetbagger reveal. Now the facts: The large concerts like REO Speedwagon and Rick Springfield were no longer held after the closure of the first half of the parking lot. Yes, carpetbagger, the parking lot was necessary for the big HH concerts.

      BOOM

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    5. Okay sure no big concerts, but REO and Springfield? Seriously I'd rather my tax dollars didn't to go crappy music. Better spent other ways.

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    6. 9:40: Rick Springfield and REO Speedwagon are both multiplatinum artists. Your attitude sounds familiar - now that Hans Riemer has destroyed nightlife in the County, you claim we now don't need nightlife anymore.

      "We didn't need those concerts anyway."

      Try telling that to the vendors and city who are taking in less revenue from Hometown Holidays than back when they had big name concerts to draw a bigger crowd.

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  2. Your article makes it sound like there will be no Rockville Hometown Holidays (Ho-Ho's) concerts this year. That is incorrect.

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    1. 11:42: Read again. "Large concerts." I am correct. There will be no large concerts, just farmers market/"Taste of..."-style stages with performers you've never heard of. I am correct. I am correct.

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    2. Robert, where did you get the farmer market/taste info? Also to note, that lot only had the carnival rides crap, not any stages.

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  3. Umm, don't realize if you noticed but the surface parking will be replaced with a far bigger garage.

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    1. Facts don't matter.

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    2. 12:25: No kidding, but have you ever tried to park in a garage that hasn't been built yet, and won't be open to cars for about two years, Einstein?

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    3. Except that you didn't mention that any garage was being built there. You just said that the parking there was gone forever.

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  4. Okay, but when are they actually going to break ground? How long will we have a completely dead plot of land in the middle of Rockville that cant be used for anything and further inconveniences parking? Instead of attacking Robert why cant you ask him that?

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    1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  5. What do you care? Why dont you go read Washington Business Journal and ignore this site if you hate it so much.

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  6. The area around the movie theater has been struggling with foot traffic for at least 15 years. I hope the infill development and thd new apartments accross Middle Lane will bring more vitality to the downtown area.

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    1. Don't cross your fingers on that, you will develop arthritis in the process.

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    2. @Cy

      Same. Foulger-Pratt is maneuvering to build on the parking lot across the street from this project which should help as well.

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  7. Residential development is fine as long as there are jobs to support the rental/purchase of the new (and expensive) units. This should be a boost to the downtown area service and retail businesses but not sure at a higher level such developments will help the county prosper and compete.

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    1. Financial backers generally will not fund a major construction project unless they see a retrun on that investment. This project has been on hold for awhile, and now that the market has improved, appears ready for take-off. The employment pool in the eyes of financiers, must be in place for residential to be funded. By the looks of this approval the market is ripe.

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    2. 1:14 PM: The employment pool consists primarily of jobs that are located OUTSIDE of Montgomery County, which has become the bedroom community for the booming job centers elsewhere in our region. Secondly, isn't this project senior housing? Most are retired, not employed, and many will qualify for affordable housing. Via HOC, this project is being subsidized as affordable housing, so it hardly reflects a booming economy in moribund Montgomery County.

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    3. Why did you delete a comment that noted that only a third of the units will be for seniors? The rest will be market-rate.

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  8. The concerts at town center were good.Nils Lofgrin played a great show around 1997,large crowd.

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  9. Yes Lofgrin was good and a local boy as well. I'm just saying the cost is one of my concerns. People want their taxes cut, but want to keep all the perks at the same time. Can't have both.

    Also Robert goes off the deep end THE SKY IS FALLING all the time.
    New building let's cry about not having concerts anymore.

    No new development, stores, business, homes so there can be two days a year with music? He will cry about things being MORIBUND. Can't win with this guy.

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    1. 9:48: I don't recall any tax cuts being given by either the city or county. The County has hiked taxes every single year this decade. Residential development alone, which generates costs that exceed the revenue it generates, does not stop MoCo from being moribund.

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    2. "The County has hiked taxes every single year this decade."

      Are you sure about that? An increase in a property tax assessment is not the same as "the County hiking taxes".

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    3. 10:48: Oh yes it is. That's why I've previously published the legal notice the County is forced to place in local papers each year announcing it is raising taxes via the automatic assessment-driven tax hike.

      It is clearly stated in law that this is a tax increase, and the County has indeed raised taxes each year.

      Furthermore, the law states that the only way to avert the tax increase, and therefore not raise taxes that given year, is to CUT taxes sufficiently to prevent the assessment method of tax hike.

      In short, my statement is 100% accurate.

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    4. Your readers explained that one to you, Dyer.

      http://www.rockvillenights.com/2018/04/montgomery-county-council-to-raise.html

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    5. 5:31: You're such an idiot, you're directing people to the article that has a photo of the County's own announcement that 100% backs up what I said. How dumb can you be, moron?

      The photo even shows where it states the Council must give a tax CUT in order to avoid the automatic tax hike via assessments.

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