Rockville construction update: Brightview West End (Photos)

Rockville's new senior housing development, Brightview West End, is under construction at 285 N. Washington Street. CBG Building Company is the construction company, and the architecture was designed by Hord Coplan Macht, Inc.

Brightview West End will include 195 units of independent and assisted living, 6568 SF of ground floor retail, dining facilities and a fitness center, a landscaped courtyard, and a "therapeutic" roof garden. Alzheimer's care will also be a specialty at this residential building, and services will include transportation to medical centers, museums and galleries, and local events. A movie theater, library and "upscale pub with billiards and TV" round out the leisure options.

Delivery is expected in 2017. A rental office Welcome Center is now open at 401 N. Washington Street.

More psychobabble, no specifics on MCPS achievement gap

The sound you hear is $90,000,000 in taxpayer money going down the toilet. That's the $90 million the Montgomery County Council extracted out of you to give above the required funding for Montgomery County Public Schools in their wallet-busting, record tax increase FY-2017 budget two months ago. Where is it going? If you don't have blood pressure medication handy, you may want to stop reading now.

Incoming MCPS Superintendent Jack Smith announced his strategy last night to address the achievement gap between white students and black and Latino students. That gap has increased since 2010, despite record amounts of your money being supplied to MCPS by the Council.

So, we had the 9% property tax hike, and taxes are now at the highest total level in Montgomery County history. What is MCPS going to do with it on the achievement gap? What's the innovative new strategy? We know what we're doing now doesn't work. After several months to strategize, here's what MCPS has outlined for spending your $90 million:

According to the Washington Post, Smith "stopped short of providing a detailed plan for the coming year, and school officials said more specifics would come soon."

Wait a minute, what?! 

Here comes the barrage of Orwellian buzzwords and phrases:

"Optimistic"

"build up cultural competency among educators"

"operational excellence"

"learning accountability"
(quite a statement from a system that just jettisoned final exams, and dumbed down its grading system to inflate final grades - which college admissions offices will catch onto soon enough, tarnishing our once great reputation across the country)

"Smith did not say precisely how success would be measured." 

God help us.

Your tax dollars "at work."

#MoCoTermLimits #ThrowTheBumsOut

Advisory board revolts against Leggett on Avery Road bus depot study

The Mid-County Citizens Advisory Board, which acts as the middleman between residents of Wheaton, Glenmont, Aspen Hill and Olney and Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett, has sent a letter to Leggett strongly denouncing his consideration of the Blair G. Ewing Center as a school bus depot site.

"We strongly urge that the Blair G. Ewing Center (on Avery Road) be immediately removed from any consideration," board Chair Gregory Intoccia wrote to Leggett. "This location is wholly unsuited for hundreds of buses."

The board cited environmental damage to Rock Creek and its watershed, loss of a forest conservation easement, traffic impacts on Norbeck Road, reduced traffic safety on Avery Road, the loss of Mark Twain Athletic Park on the Ewing site, and demolition of a functional school building when overcrowded schools are the norm in Montgomery County as its key objections to an Avery Road depot.

The latter loss would require existing programs at Ewing to be moved elsewhere, potentially to the vacant English Manor in Aspen Hill.

What makes the letter remarkable is not just the board going to bat for the community, but that the board members are appointed by Leggett himself. It's another sign of just how politically-toxic the bus depot issue is. There is literally no support for closing the existing depot outside of Leggett, certain County Council members, and the developer who is eager to get started redeveloping the current depot on Crabbs Branch Way in Shady Grove. Yet this thing keeps moving forward, attempting to find a political weak spot on the map.

The letter suggests that, once again, Aspen Hill will not be that weak spot. How much longer does the County risk pushing this scheme, with term limits looming on the November ballot?

Chestnut Lodge developer outlines changes in revised plan

A small crowd of residents turned out at Rockville's City Hall last night for a presentation by applicant JNP Chestnut Lodge, LLC on its revised project plan for 500 W. Montgomery Avenue. Developer-owner Jim Proakis outlined a series of adjustments to the plan designed to address complaints and concerns that derailed the townhome project's initial application earlier this year.

These include a reduction in the number of townhomes from seven to six, a slightly smaller footprint, exterior material changes, and a reconfiguration of parking. More holly trees will be saved under the revised plan, although some attendees said they would prefer to see chestnut trees restored to the site. Those trees gave mental health institution Chestnut Lodge its name, recounted resident Patricia Woodward, who once served as head nurse there. Chestnut Lodge ceased operation in 2001, and the building burnt down in a suspicious fire in 2009, before a previous plan to convert it to condos could be realized.

Proakis said his company had considered planting chestnut trees, but were told by two arborists that the current species available are not sufficiently acclimated to survive at the site. He and attorney Soo Lee-Cho said they would be glad to plant chestnut trees if it's determined they are viable.

In terms of improving the viewshed of the structure from the western side, the wood treatment on the rear facade is being replaced by brick. The building will now have a brick exterior all around, although the frame will be made of wood.

Nancy Pickard of Peerless Rockville, a historic preservation organization, asked what the roof would be made of. Proakis said it would be a composite material designed to reflect the appearance of slate. Pickard also asked about the very dark appearance of the windows in the renderings shown. While they look that way in the renderings, that's not how dark they will be in reality, Proakis replied. He noted that further guidance on colors and textures for the exterior will be given during the review process.

Strict condominium association rules will keep trash cans and recycling bins out of sight, and there will be a special utility room inside the garages to store them. "You won't see them," Proakis promised. A private contractor will collect the community's trash, he said.

Rockville City Councilmember Beryl Feinberg asked about the availability of overflow guest parking. Proakis said a separate guest parking area has been eliminated, allowing preservation of more trees. In its place, are four parking spaces per unit and six for the end units. Those spaces are split between those within the garages, and those immediately outside the garages.

There will also be street parking available along the internal road for the intermittent times when more parking is needed, such as during parties. A driveway 18-20' in width would allow for cars to be parked on one side.

Fire and rescue officials asked the applicant to include a new, grassy turnaround area that would allow emergency vehicles to make three-point turns, Proakis said.

Townhome units will be 4200-4800 SF in size, essentially making them attached single family homes, Proakis added.

Feedback from the audience was primarily in the form of questions. Previous criticism from project opponents has centered on a Planned Residential Unit agreement the City reached with the previous developer. That agreement specified condos could be built only if the historic Chestnut Lodge building were restored. Some current and past elected officials, historic preservation advocates and residents have argued the PRU remains legally binding, thereby disqualifying a townhome project on the site.

The next step in the review process will be a staff development area review meeting on September 8.

One resident asked if the developer could create a 3-D CAD model of the project. "Well, now I only have 6 units, so I can't afford a 3-D," Proakis replied jokingly.

Rendering courtesy City of Rockville

Rockville Hooters to close in November

Hooters on Rockville Pike will close after surrendering its liquor license to Montgomery County on November 1. The move, which was brokered by a Hooters attorney, renders moot an August 4 liquor license hearing the restaurant was facing. That was to address the restaurant's role in the drunk driving death that killed Montgomery County Police officer Noah Leotta last year.

The driver who struck Leotta had been served alcohol at Hooters on December 3, 2015, before he drove north on Rockville Pike. His blood alcohol level was .22. This decision, reached in agreement between Hooters and an associate Montgomery County Government attorney, Kathryn Lloyd, seems to acknowledge that the fallout from fighting the violations alleged by the County would not have been worth keeping the restaurant successfully in operation. Community outrage had been seen in comments posted on the restaurant's social media accounts following the tragedy.

Hooters stated to Lloyd in a letter agreeing to the exit that the proposed resolution "holds Hooters accountable, and hopefully contributes to the community's healing process." The company and others could still face civil suits from Leotta's family in the incident despite the liquor license agreement.

Rockville construction update: 1900 Chapman Avenue (Photos)

Mystery project name. Mystery developer. Despite still being publicly known by an address and an LLC, construction is underway at the future 1900 Chapman Avenue development in Rockville. The project includes 319 apartments, 61 townhomes, office space, and 3 to 4 retail spaces.

Right now, concrete and asphalt have been demolished and cleared, and some grading work appears to be underway. You can see how close the townhomes will be to passing CSX, Amtrak, MARC and Metro trains in some of these photos, an issue raised by some planning commissioners during the approval process.

The site is bordered by the railroad and Twinbrook Parkway. It was previously home to Syms. From some angles, the current state of the site creates a surreal atmosphere. In the photo below of a Metro train passing the site, I can almost convince myself I'm standing near a CSX main line in Boyds or Adamstown. Almost.

Rockville construction update: The Metropolitan apartments (Photos)

The Kettler mixed-use project called The Metropolitan at Rockville Town Center continues to rise from the hole at 255 N. Washington Street. This is part of Phase 2 of redeveloping the Town Center area.

275 apartments will range from one-bedroom lofts to three bedrooms on the former site of the historic Suburban Trust Building. Amenities will include a fitness center, a yoga room, a pet grooming station, bike storage, two courtyards with outdoor grills, a swimming pool, and a two-story entertainment lounge and terrace.

A two-level, 303-space underground parking garage and 6000 SF of ground floor retail round out the project. Delivery is expected in the fall of 2017. A very bare bones website has been launched to market the apartments.

Maryvale Elementary School students' art livens up N. Washington St. in Rockville (Photos)

A graffiti-style painting that appeared in a pedestrian covered walkway on N. Washington Street may have been a premonition of things to come. CBG Building Company, which is constructing the Brightview Rockville Town Center senior apartment project at 285 N. Washington Street, has an art program that puts works by local students on display at their construction sites.

Here in Rockville, CBG asked third, fourth and fifth graders at Maryvale Elementary School what they do for fun in their neighborhood. The resulting artworks have now been installed at the site's covered sidewalk area. In addition, CBG posted a couple of renderings of the project, which is expected to deliver in May of 2017.

Abandoned Twinbrook Safeway (Photos)

The vacant former Safeway store at the Twinbrook Shopping Center may have been stripped of exterior signage, but inside it still very much looks like a grocery store. Just without any groceries on the shelves.

Interestingly, the lights are still on inside. This was not the classic Safeway store design like that found in Damascus, which ended up being demolished. All contents were auctioned off prior to demolition.

This situation looks more like that at the old Magruder's in College Plaza. That store was put up for lease, and the new tenant utilized the leftover checkouts and even shopping carts when it opened. Other than a potential redevelopment of the shopping center, the question here is, will it be a new grocery store chain or an ethnic grocery store?

Mayor & Council nix dramatic changes for Southlawn industrial area in Rockville

Rockville will likely take a more conservative approach to improving the co-existence of the Southlawn industrial area and the residential neighborhoods that adjoin it than a consultant study recommended. The study provided a range of options from modest to dramatic for review by the Mayor and Council. Last night, there was unanimous agreement on most issues that it is too early to take a radical approach.

Transportation is one of the biggest concerns of residents in East Rockville, especially cut-through traffic. Several residents testified during the Community Forum earlier at last night's meeting that they were displeased with City staff's recommendations to not take more drastic action to curtail such traffic. They noted that neighborhood plans from years ago were already recommending such changes prior to the Southlawn Industrial Area Study.

The Mayor and Council, while seeking further study of the citywide implications of more dramatic options like closing sections of streets, generally felt that more modest measures could have an impact. These could include stricter enforcement of truck traffic restrictions, and more speed cameras on N. Horners Lane.

Regarding potential road network changes, Councilmember Julie Palakovich-Carr said she was "not quite ready to take this one off the table." She asked for further study, including whether adding more direct road connections rather than closing sections of roads might help reduce cut-through traffic. Councilmember Mark Pierzchala did not favor road closures at this time, saying it could actually hurt access for residents by making the neighborhood "one big giant cul-de-sac." He suggested a better approach would be to "make it a real pain to traverse that area," by adding more stop signs and increasing funds in the next budget for traffic enforcement in that area.

Of 10 transportation recommendations, the Mayor and Council ultimately gave the green light to Recommendations 1 through 6. They asked for further study of #7, the potential realignment of Southlawn Lane to straighten the bend north of Lofstrand Lane. Recommendations 7 and 8 were eliminated, and they asked staff to come back with more potential options for #10, long-term changes to the street grid.

The other major decision was whether or not to rezone the public housing development David Scull Courts. Clark Larson, project manager for the City on the Southlawn study, said staff concluded the development's current industrial zoning is not an issue. As public housing, David Scull Courts retains a public use rather than being a private residential development. To rezone it as residential would essentially be a semantic change, rather than a practical one.

"I don't see the need to change the zoning," Pierzchala said. Mayor Bridget Donnell Newton, Palakovich Carr, Onley, and Councilmember Beryl Feinberg concurred with Pierzchala on leaving David Scull Courts as industrial. They did not favor reducing setbacks between industrial and residential uses where an opaque wall separated the two uses, nor did they want to change zoning for properties in the industrial area at this time.

The formal process of addressing concerns in the Southlawn area began 13 months ago, when the City began a long-asked-for review of community issues there.

MoCo Council crackdown on airbnb reinforces County's anti-business, "fight-the-future" reputation

Anti-business Montgomery County
Councilmember Hans Riemer

When Montgomery County Councilmember Hans Riemer declares he has found a new sector of the economy to fix, businesspeople are justified in heading for the hills. After chasing 96% of food trucks out of the County (or out of business altogether), running 9 bars and a 24-hour restaurant out of business in Bethesda with his "nighttime economy" initiative, and spearheading a "get government of the liquor business" drive - that ended with Riemer endorsing the County government monopoly on liquor, where to next for Hans Riemer?

Well, after Riemer and his Council colleagues finished raising your Uber fares in Montgomery County, they're now fighting another modern upstart in the cutting-edge "sharing economy" sweeping the nation: airbnb.

County residents found a wonderful business opportunity in offering their properties for short-term rental on airbnb. They dared to have some success and make money, without help or involvement from Montgomery County Government. And that's sure to run you afoul of the Montgomery County political cartel.

As with Uber, Lyft and other ride-sharing services, the Council has their Communist China-style doublespeak ready to deploy. They are actually "legalizing airbnb," if you read their taxpayer-funded propaganda regarding the bill and zoning text amendment. Most people struggling to pay the bills and get the kids to school on time will hear that, shrug, and keep going.

Here's what they're really doing:

First, folks in the County have found a relatively simple and easy source of revenue through airbnb. So the MoCo cartel has to figure out A) how to eliminate this business opportunity, or at least make it difficult and complicated enough that "the masses" (a.k.a. the little guy) will be discouraged from engaging in it; and B) how does the MoCo cartel get a cut of the money?

The answer is very similar to their agenda with Uber. Apply a new tax. Make Uber more expensive to use. Make doing business here more costly for Uber, thereby driving up Uber fares and driving down another new economic opportunity, driving for Uber. Less drivers adds to the pressure for higher fares, and Uber becomes less appealing to use for those with less money. And "the little guy (or gal)" who thinks of a way to disrupt Uber with his or her own ride-sharing innovation now can't get into the market, because the entry cost is higher than it was when Uber and Lyft got in. Mission accomplished, and they sold it as "legalizing Uber."

Now, it's airbnb's turn. A public meeting will be held tonight to seek feedback on the airbnb crackdown. You can RSVP online.

Riemer, et al, have pointed out with glee that they are so inept (the County government was found to run on Windows 2000 four years after Riemer took office), that they passed a zoning code in 2014 that made airbnb "illegal."

Montgomery County is not enforcing the supposed rules that "banned" airbnb. In fact, a search on the airbnb website for rentals available for this coming weekend in Bethesda and Chevy Chase alone shows 26 listings. Those include a bargain $38 airbed available on Westbard Avenue. There are 30 listings in Silver Spring, including a "cheerful, serene" room near Forest Glen for $39.

Those prices are for check-in Friday through check-out Sunday. For the traveler who can't afford an overpriced hotel room, that's a huge deal. That also ticks off the County political cartel.

So, if successful, the Council will double-tax airbnb "landlords" by forcing them to pay both income tax and a hotel tax, a law already passed by the Council last year. Now they'll add a new "tax," which they're calling a license, and which must be renewed annually.

In addition, airbnb entrepreneurs would only be able to rent their primary residence. The bill also contains a stipulation that "County officials" (and the language leaves open that it could be any County official, if designated by one of three officials named in the bill) have the right to enter your property at any time for any inspection "they may deem necessary." Finally, the bill demands that the property owner maintain a guest register like a hotel, with personal information on each airbnb guest, that the County can review at any time.

With the hotel tax and register, once again the Council is treating one type of business as another. They successfully forced ride-sharing services under the same rules as taxicabs, a completely different business model. Here, they're attempting to reclassify airbnb rentals as hotel rooms, or bed-and-breakfasts.

And once again, the cutting edge of business and technology is going to be blunted by our "Fight the Future" County Council. Across the country, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and other businesspeople seeking to launch start-ups are paying attention to the follies of our elected officials.

They're finding Montgomery County to be an expensive and complicated place to do business. That hurts businesspeople, and it hurts consumers. We get less choices. Prices go up. Opportunities and jobs continue to go elsewhere.

What are we missing out on under the "leadership" of Riemer and our current Council?

Global revenue from the "sharing economy" is forecast to reach $335 billion by 2025, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. Even the famously-liberal City of Takoma Park isn't cracking down on airbnb.

Message? If you want to start a disruptive tech company, don't start it in Montgomery County. With an already-moribund private sector economy, and billions in wealth fleeing to neighboring jurisdictions, that's a message we literally cannot afford to send.

East Grill Karaoke, Class 520 Thai ice cream rolls coming to Rockville Town Center (Photos)

Two new dining options are coming to Rockville's Town Center. East Grill Karaoke is moving into the Courthouse Center shopping center at 12 N. Washington Street. And a new ice cream shop called Class 520 is taking over the former My Vapez space at 5 Dawson Avenue. The store will offer handcrafted Thai ice cream rolls.

Future home of
Class 520

Is this the first place to offer Thai ice cream rolls in Rockville, or just the first one I've heard of? These are also known as stir-fried ice cream, a way of making ice cream that originated in Thailand.

Here is a video showing how the rolls are made.

Montgomery County Council to hold session on 911 system failure July 28

The Montgomery County Council's Public Safety Committee will hold a "special worksession" to receive preliminary findings on this week's catastrophic 911 system failure. Two residents seeking fire and rescue assistance died during the outage. Media accounts suggest those fatalities were a result of the inability to reach 911 operators.

ABC7 reporter Kevin Lewis asked the daughter-in-law of Ting Ting Co if she thought her husband's mother would still be here today if the County's 911 system had been operational Sunday night. "I think so, I think so," replied June Cheung of Brookville, who was a caretaker for Co.

The session will be held at 9:00 AM on Thursday, July 28, in the 3rd floor conference room of the County Council Building, located at 100 Maryland Avenue in Rockville. Hopefully the discussion will explore failure of the Alert Montgomery system during the outage, as well. Text alerts were not sent out to subscribers until 16 minutes after the outage had ended early Monday morning. I am still the only reporter to raise the Alert Montgomery failure issue.

Of course, the tables should be turned at some point to ask the Council why they failed to ensure the 911 system had adequate back-up, especially knowing that there was only one level of backup! Did you know these clowns gave themselves a 28% raise, and that you - the taxpayer - will be paying each councilmember $136,258 each next year?

We're definitely not getting our money's worth.

Public meeting for Chestnut Lodge plan revision set for July 26 in Rockville

Applicant JNP Chestnut Lodge will host a public meeting regarding its revised project plan amendment for 500 W. Montgomery Avenue on Tuesday, July 26, 2016 at 6:30 PM in the Mayor and Council Chambers at City Hall (111 Maryland Avenue).

This is in regard to the controversial townhome project planned for the former site of the Chestnut Lodge psychiatric facility's main lodge building. The revision sought is to reduce the number of units from 7 to 6, and slightly reduce the overall footprint of the structure.

If you can't make this particular meeting (and that's a real possibility given it is being held in the last prime vacation time of the summer), you can see the full tentative schedule for the review of this revised plan amendment in my previous post.