Rockville Planning Commission to discuss building heights, housing targets for Town Center tonight

The Rockville Planning Commission will hold a work session on the draft 2024 Rockville Town Master Plan tonight, August 14, 2024, at 7:00 PM, at Rockville City Hall. Key points of discussion will be the maximum building heights to be allowed in the "core" and "edge" areas of the Town Center, the target number of housing units to be developed over the life of the plan, and the parking policies and standards for the Town Center area.

Area covered by the Town Center
Master Plan is outlined in black

The current draft of the plan allows buildings up to 200' tall in the core zone of the Town Center, and up to 75' in the edge zone, where the latter transitions from the urban Town Center to the single-family homes of the West End. It projects a housing goal of 2000 new units within the Town Center by 2040. During the public feedback process for the plan, several people suggested setting a housing unit target higher than 2000 units. There are currently only 608 housing units in the development pipeline for Town Center, which has led City planning staff to believe that it would not be realistic to propose a target higher than 2300 to 2500 units.

The number of units has been a hot topic of debate, as many have suggested that there are not enough people living in the Town Center to support the businesses there. Likewise, parking has been highly controversial, as many residents and business owners alike have cited parking issues as a deterrent to business in the Town Center.

Following tonight's discussion, commissioners will instruct staff to implement or report back on potential revisions to the draft plan. The commission will then review the updated draft at its September 11, 2024 meeting. If commissioners are satisfied with the draft at that time, they will have the option to vote to approve the plan, and transmit it to the Mayor and Council for their review, revision, and approval.

Chase bank "coming soon" in Rockville

A long-planned Chase bank branch at 460 Hungerford Drive (MD 355) in Rockville is "coming soon," according to a banner posted at the construction site. The historic Jack Sullivan-designed commercial building on the property that was most-recently home to Meixin Supermarket has been demolished. Some parking signs for the Chinese grocery store remain intact, however. The bank will have a drive-thru, and is just north of Rockville Town Square and Walgreens.

Rockville Town Center apartment tower sold, rebranded as BLVD Ansel

Dulles-based Comstock Holdings has acquired The Ansel apartments at 33 Monroe Street in Rockville Town Center. The real estate firm will rebrand the newly-delivered Duball, LLC-developed property as BLVD Ansel. Comstock already holds the Ansel's sister building at 44 Maryland Avenue, also developed by Duball, which it rebranded as BLVD Forty Four in December.

“BLVD Ansel is the latest addition to Comstock’s mixed-use, transit-oriented portfolio of high-quality, luxury residential assets in one of DC’s fastest growing employment centers,” Comstock CEO Christopher Clemente said in a statement. “The Duball team did a tremendous job developing The Upton and Ansel, making these properties proud additions to our expanding BLVD brand of luxury apartment communities."

“Duball, LLC has a tremendous amount of pride in developing The Upton (now BLVD Forty Four) and Ansel, with over 600 new residents, much needed parking, and retail services for Rockville residents,” said Marc Dubick, President of Duball, LLC. “For over a decade, we have worked closely with the City of Rockville and believe these two mixed-use developments materially changed the face of the city. We know the project will be in great hands with Comstock as Ansel moves from physical completion to fully operational.”

New public parking garage opens in Rockville Town Center

Parking is always a hot topic in Rockville Town Center. Now there is a new option for drivers: the public parking garage at the Ansel apartments at 33 Monroe Street. The just-opened garage is operated by Colonial Parking.

There aren't any businesses to patronize at the Ansel yet, but you can still park there when going to any other nearby destination in the town center. In fact, there may never be any businesses in the Ansel. Despite developer Duball, LLC's success in attracting desirable national brands like World of Beer and Panera Bread to the sister Upton/Cambria Suites building across the street, the company is now seeking permission to convert the ground floor retail spaces in the Ansel to residential apartments.

Duball, LLC seeks to convert ground floor retail into residential units in Rockville Town Center

Planned retail and restaurant spaces
boarded up at the Ansel apartments in Rockville

The developer of the Ansel apartments at 33 Monroe Street in Rockville is finding weak demand for retail space in the ground floor of the newest residential building in Rockville Town Center. Duball, LLC is asking the city's Planning Commission for permission to convert up to 20,153 square feet of ground floor retail space to residential loft apartments, which would have direct access doors to the sidewalk. 

Retail spaces currently on the market
for lease at the Ansel; the developer says
demand for them is weak at this time

Retail and restaurant uses on ground floors are considered beneficial in activating the streetscape in urban areas, and in making pedestrians feel more secure about walking in an area at night. Duball is making a counter-argument in its application, suggesting that having occupants living on the ground floor will activate the streetscape more than having empty, walled-up storefronts. It cites the pandemic retail market as a major obstacle to leasing these already-approved retail and restaurant units, and promises that the loft apartments can be converted back to retail use if demand rises in the future.

A virtual meeting on the matter will be held this Thursday night, December 9, 2021 at 6:00 PM. Access the Zoom meeting online by entering Meeting ID: 929 7347 6840 and Passcode: 894571. You can also join the meeting by phone at +1 301 715 8592 US.

Public art installed at Ansel apartments in Rockville Town Center (Photos)

Public art has now been installed at the new Ansel apartments at 33 Monroe Street in Rockville Town Center. Suspense remains in the air, however, as the art is about 95% under protective cover. The cover is also wrapped in police tape. Only the top parts are sticking out, but details such as a house are visible.

Rockville construction update: The Ansel apartments (Photos)

Here's a super-sized update on The Ansel, the new apartment building in Rockville Town Center across from Regal Row. At this later stage in construction, you can really see how the architecture is complimentary to its sister Duball, LLC project across Helen Heneghan Way. 

The official address of The Ansel is 33 Monroe Street, and the building is managed by Bozzuto. Construction remained on-schedule for the fall opening despite the pandemic, and leasing information can be found on the property's website. The following photos are in chronological order, from August 30, 2021 through today: