Mayor and Council vote to acquire two other Chestnut Lodge properties

Chestnut Lodge in 2003; the
building burnt down in 2009

Rockville's City Manager is now authorized to acquire two parcels at the former Chestnut Lodge site, after a unanimous vote by the Mayor and Council last night. The City moved to acquire the main Chestnut Lodge property from owner JNP Chestnut Lodge, LLC earlier this year. These two additional parcels are owned by the Chestnut Lodge Homeowners Association.

All three pieces of land are expected to be converted into a passive public park, on the site where the famed Chestnut Lodge psychiatric hospital once stood. A 40-year covenant will be placed on all three for that purpose.

Photo courtesy City of Rockville

MoCo drags feet on correcting illegal traffic signals, refunds for drivers wrongly ticketed by red light cameras

Montgomery County still has illegally-timed traffic signals, which could be issuing unwarranted red light camera tickets to drivers, a recent report by the County's Office of the Inspector General found. On Friday, Delegate Marc Korman (D - District 16) asked County Executive Ike Leggett to consider an outside audit of its signal timing (the OIG had to rely on the word and data of the County Department of Transportation), turn off any cameras ticketing at an illegally-timed signal, and to begin reimbursing drivers who were wrongly ticketed at those intersections.

After being caught ticketing drivers with illegal signal timing in 2015, the County initially resisted adopting the Maryland-required yellow light time of 3.5 seconds. It then promised to correct the problem. However, the OIG report - based on MCDOT data not confirmed by an independent audit - found that 13% of signals countywide are still illegally timed.

When asked by the OIG for a schedule for correction of those 105 remaining signals, MCDOT refused to produce one. And while MCDOT insists that there are no red light cameras at the out-of-compliance intersections, the OIG noted that "We did not test or verify the accuracy of the information provided by MCDOT."

"Improper timing of traffic signals at locations with red light cameras goes to the heart of the confidence people can have in their government," Korman wrote in his letter to Leggett. 

Montgomery County responded to the OIG report with a one-sentence promise to create a schedule for signal correction, but did not say when such a schedule would be released. Once again, Montgomery County seems unable to deliver the basic functions of government - collecting the trash, clearing snow from sidewalks along its properties (sometimes as long as a month(!) after the snowstorm ended), plowing roads, providing 911 service or completing construction projects on-schedule (with the Wheaton Library being the latest, now a year-and-a-half behind-schedule).

New house proposed on Martins Lane in historic district

A property owner has proposed building a new home in the Hebron House Historic District of Rockville, on a newly-subdivided lot at 19 Martins Lane. The single-story home will have an attached garage. Hebron House itself is located at 17 Martins Lane.

The Historic District Commission will take up the proposal at their June 15 meeting. Staff is recommending approval of the home, once advice from the Commission is incorporated into the design.

Rendering courtesy City of Rockville

Dunkin' Donuts Community Celebration this Saturday in Rockville

The local Dunkin' Donuts franchisee is hosting a community celebration this Saturday, June 10, from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM, at the Dunkin' Donuts at 15180 Frederick Road, in the College Plaza shopping center. There will be games, a raffle, facepainting and a moonbounce.

Another Brightview senior housing project proposed in Rockville

Shelter Development, LLC has filed a pre-application submittal for a new Brightview senior housing development, this time at 1201 Seven Locks Road. Currently home to the Montrose West building, that office building would stay. A separate lot would be created on the southern area of the site for a new 198-unit senior housing development.

120 of the units would be for independent senior living, and the remaining 78 units divided between assisted living and memory care patients. Amenities will include a cafe and other dining facilities, a library, a media room, fitness center, art studio, spa/salon, and a movie theater. There will be 242 parking spaces in a three-level underground garage, and there will continue to be 278 surface and garage spaces for the existing office building.

The seven-story building will have an "F" configuration, and a setback from the sixth-floor up. Shelter has another Brightview building currently under construction in Rockville Town Center.

Rendering courtesy hord coplan macht
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Rockville construction update: 1900 Chapman Avenue Phase 1 (Photos)

Construction is now at ground level and rising at the site of the future apartment building at 1900 Chapman Avenue in Rockville. There is still no website for the development that I can find online.

This is phase 1 of the project, which will eventually have a 61-townhome development on the other half of the site. The property is bordered by Chapman to the west, Twinbrook Parkway to the south, and the CSX railroad to the east. This used to be the location of Syms.

Two new restaurants coming to Galvan at Twinbrook in Rockville

The new Galvan at Twinbrook development is recovering from the shocking loss of the Pie 360 pizzeria by upgrading with two new Asian dining additions. Akira Ramen and Urban Hot Pot are coming soon to the JBG-developed property, with names leaving little to the imagination as to what cuisine they will be serving.

Urban Hot Pot will be the second hot pot restaurant in Rockville, following the opening of Little Dipper Hot Pot at Rockville Town Square this past February. It also continues the growth of Rockville as a major destination for Asian cuisine in the D.C. region.