Old Marriott HQ demolition

 

The old Marriott Headquarters

Back in February they put up construction fences around the old Marriott HQ headquarters in the Rock Spring area of Bethesda, MD.  Since then, visible progress has been slow.  They've done some demolition on the north side, but nothing too dramatic.  I think they have been clearing out the interior of the building.

 

 Now, on the south side, some very visible demolition is occurring. They have removed the facade from part of the building leaving the bare interior visible. There are piles of sorted demolition debris waiting to be recycled.

 

Exterior demolition and a dumpster

 

 

The Astrid apartments construction

 

Both towers of the Astrid

 

The Astrid, an apartment complex being built next to the Pooks Hill Marriot is nearing completion.  Somehow, it has managed to get to this point without me posting about it.

The site is located on the north side of Pooks Hill Road next to the Pooks Hill Marriott and close to Interstate 495. It is also less than 1.5 miles from the Grosvenor-Strathmore metro station. Prior to this construction, the site had a surface parking lot that was overflow for the Marriott.
 

 

The Astrid apartments as seen from the Marriott parking lot

The latest site plan (pdf link) I can find is from 2020 and called for 510,000 square feet of space across two buildings that have a maximum height of 137 feet. There will be 562 units in total.

The view of the Astrid if you were going east on Pooks Hill Rd.

 

The apartments are on a hill, so there is a large retaining wall at the front of the site.

 

 

Taste of Bethesda was today

 Taste of Bethesda made it's triumphant return to the Woodmont Triangle area of Bethesda on October 7th 2023.  The day started off rainy and cloudy, but by the start of the festival the rain had stopped.  By early afternoon the sun was poking through the clouds eventually being sunny and breezy.

 

Spanish Diner was there and served up chicken Paella all afternoon. They (and Jaleo before them) have long participated and make paella in a huge pan.

This is the first Taste of Bethesda post-covid. the event was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 because of the virus, then in 2022 the weather put the kibosh on the festivities.

It was crowded there and popular food stands had long lines, but everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.

 

Tout de Sweet served up a variety of macarons and pastries. This one was made with pistachio and was a bit greener than it looks in the photo.

 

 

 

 

 

8015 Old Georgetown Road construction progress

 

8015 construction as seen from Old Georgetown Road

Progress on the apartments at 8015 Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda, MD has continued. A lot has been done since my last update in June, but there is still much to go.

When complete, the building will contain 224 units and up to 82,270 square feet of commercial density for 73 live/work units and shared commercial space. Find out more at the planning board (pdf link).

The corner of Old Georgetown Rd and Glenbrook Rd

 The 2.52 acre site is along  Old Georgetown Road, Glenbrook Road, and Rugby Avenue. The property was formerly occupied by Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church. The church and related buildings were demolished in March of 2022. (see also this and this).

The construction from Glenbrook Road

 

Looking at the 8015 Old Georgetown Road construction from the Auburn-Del Ray parking garage.

The construction as seen from a nearby parking lot.

 

 

 

4909 Auburn construction

 Construction has really progressed since my last update in April. Then there were just two stories above ground, now there are about a dozen. Another thing that has changed is the project now has it's own website promising "timeless, Scandinavian inspired interiors". The apartments will be available in mid 2024.

 

The building towers over it's neighbors.  The lower floors are starting to get covered up, but the top floors have a way to go.

 

The main part of the building fronts Auburn Avenue in Bethesda, MD (no surprise there). It is near the corner of Auburn and Norfolk, with just the small building containing V Nails, Cornucopia, and Jack the Clipper next to it.

 

Along Auburn Avenue, the lane adjacent to the construction is closed, but there is still two-way traffic along the block.

 

From the top floor of the parking garage across the street, you can only see the top five floors.

 

There is one entrance on Norfolk Avenue, this used to be the entrance to the parking lot for the Auburn Professional Building, now it will contain a retail storefront.

 

 

The new Call Your Mother in Bethesda

 

The Call Your Mother trolly on the corner of Old Georgetown Road and Greentree Road in Bethesda, MD has been replaced with a new, much larger, trailer.  The same pastel colors are there but the difference is immediately obvious. When you first see it, all that is visible is a large blank pink wall.

Here's how it looks if you are traveling North on Old Georgetown Road.

The front of Call Your Mother.  Although from the perspective of the road, it is the back.  They open the shutters when they are open for business.

The Old Trolley

The Call Your Mother trolley is back in the corner of the lot. It is much smaller and more cramped than the new food trailer, but it looks a lot nicer and has more character.

I must admit, I'm not a big fan of this change, but I'm open to hearing what you think.

A fall leaf in Bethesda

 

It was a bit misty and gray this morning, which were the perfect conditions for finding this leaf covered in tiny water droplets.

Little Falls robot

 

Over a year ago I first noticed a little blue tent and a solar panel alongside Little Falls Branch stream. I had no idea what it was for, my best guess was some sort of shelter for wayward ducks or a beaver rehab center, but both of those seemed unlikely.  Yesterday I noticed they have a sign explaining it is an automated water monitoring robot that can measure Temperature, pH, Salinity, Dissolved Oxygen, Turbidity, and Water Flow.  I'm not really sure why it has to physically move to the water as opposed to just having sensors in the creek all the time, but that's how it is.  You can learn more at the Little Falls Watershed Alliance Robot Project. You could also take a look at it yourself, it is located where Little Falls branch goes under Massachusetts Avenue, across from Little Falls Parkway.

St. Elmo Apartments construction

 

St. Elmo Apartments is making progress.  I last wrote about the St. Elmo construction in October.  At that time, it was a big hole in the ground.  Now it is rapidly gaining height.

 

St. Elmo Apartments in context

 

From the top of a nearby parking garage, you can more easily see how tall St. Elmo is and what is around it.  To the left is Bistro Provence and to it's right is Bainbridge Bethesda. When it is completed, it will have 276 apartments and 6,000 sq ft of retail in a 22 story building. It will also have four levels of below-grade parking with 220 parking spots.

On the ground, Fairmont Ave

 

Here is the building at ground level on Fairmont Avenue, there is still a lot of work to do.  On the right you can see the side of Bainbridge Betehsda. The pedestrian alley (or promenade as they call it) that currently exists will be widened as part of the project.

St. Elmo from St. Elmo

 Here is the construction from St. Elmo Avenue. The main entrance will be here.

 

Pla-za gets Pain-ted

 

Pla-za Artist Materials on Old Georgetown Road in Bethesda has gotten a paint job. No longer is it plain white, now it is a rich blue.  This comes after their parking lot was resurfaced not long ago.

In adition to seeing the blue wall, you can see part of the newly repaved parking lot.

The side of the store facing Cordell Ave. From this side, the blank blue wall seems a little overwhelming, but still better than the old white wall.  This would be a perfect place for a new mural.