Wisconsin Ave Development Project

[Anonymous]

I’m confused. Aren’t they already developing on that corridor, at least the southern part starting at Rodman Street?

[Anonymous]

Property values only go up, up, up if you're willing to sell your SFH for development.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, Trader Joe's is coming to Chevy Chase Pavillion.

FH could be incredible if it was connected on the MD side. You could create another Reston Town Center or whatever they call the area in Rockville/North Bethesda with the REI and LL Bean.

You have a wasted surface lot behind the new Mazza replacement, wasted surface lot at the Saks in CC MD. You have the Lord & Taylor site...it seems crazy to turn that into the new bus depot...although I guess that opens up development of the current bus depot.

It needs to be far more mixed-use...apartments, retail, entertainment (Dave & Busters, Pinstripes type places), etc.

Turning Friendship Heights and AU Park into some high rise city with Dave & Busters? No thanks.

That would be awesome. Right now it is basically nothing and wont be converted into a SFH or open space area…so what would you suggest?

BTW…I don’t care nor even understand what Smart growth is. I want a fun, dynamic destination with lots for everyone to do.

Neighbor here. We don’t want to BE your “destination.” Metro or no metro, you and the thousands like you don’t need to traverse the city to play arcade games in my backyard. Nobody here wants to be your mecca for people seeking suburban chain restaurants. Local commerce for local people, sure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://planning.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/op/page_content/attachments/Wisconsin%20Ave%20Development%20Framework_web.pdf

What do people in the community think of this? How do you think it will impact property values?

I love the idea of developing from Friendship to Tenley as it's a bit of a ghost town for such an affluent area.

People don't care as much about property values as the look and feel of a place where they want to live. They like "small village," trees and sky, not suburban massing that is a city trying not to look like a city.

Friendship Heights isn't a "small village" and hasn't been for decades.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Turning the Lord and Taylor into a WMATA bus garage is nuts. Makes me question the credibility of the entire plan.

The busses have to go somewhere and they need to be repaired/maintained. It's the end of the line for a lot of busses and connects to the Metro.

What they should be doing is building a bus garage and having some sort of mixed use 8 stories high above the garage - shopping, indoor playland, a big gym, etc. A stand-alone bus garage is dumb. Maximize use of air rights.

+100

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://planning.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/op/page_content/attachments/Wisconsin%20Ave%20Development%20Framework_web.pdf

What do people in the community think of this? How do you think it will impact property values?

I love the idea of developing from Friendship to Tenley as it's a bit of a ghost town for such an affluent area.

People don't care as much about property values as the look and feel of a place where they want to live. They like "small village," trees and sky, not suburban massing that is a city trying not to look like a city.

That's 1000% nonsense. We don't live in a "small village"...it is a fantasy that a strip of CT avenue with a gas station, bus turnaround and 1970s bunker library/community center resembles anything like a village. It offers convenience which is nice.

However, we aren't even talking about Upper CT Avenue. We are talking about FH which has never been a "small village". I have lived in the area for 30+ years and a major reason was FH offering a Macy's/Hechts, a Linens n Things, Border, Filene's, an AMC 8 movie theatre...that was in the early 2000s...let's revive the area and make it better and more dynamic then before.

Yeah, I also care about property values...which 99% of all homeowners care about.

Calm down. No one is saying it's lovely and perfect now. But do you really need 50 industrial looking high rise buildings blocking out the sky to accomplish that? You can make beautiful retail and keep the village scene.

"blocking out the sky"

Are you assuming somehow there will be 70 story buildings in Friendship Heights?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Turning the Lord and Taylor into a WMATA bus garage is nuts. Makes me question the credibility of the entire plan.

The busses have to go somewhere and they need to be repaired/maintained. It's the end of the line for a lot of busses and connects to the Metro.

What they should be doing is building a bus garage and having some sort of mixed use 8 stories high above the garage - shopping, indoor playland, a big gym, etc. A stand-alone bus garage is dumb. Maximize use of air rights.

Have you ever smelled the exhaust from a bus garage?

Uh, they fleet is being electrified, so there shouldn't be any exhaust.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, Trader Joe's is coming to Chevy Chase Pavillion.

FH could be incredible if it was connected on the MD side. You could create another Reston Town Center or whatever they call the area in Rockville/North Bethesda with the REI and LL Bean.

You have a wasted surface lot behind the new Mazza replacement, wasted surface lot at the Saks in CC MD. You have the Lord & Taylor site...it seems crazy to turn that into the new bus depot...although I guess that opens up development of the current bus depot.

It needs to be far more mixed-use...apartments, retail, entertainment (Dave & Busters, Pinstripes type places), etc.

Turning Friendship Heights and AU Park into some high rise city with Dave & Busters? No thanks.

That would be awesome. Right now it is basically nothing and wont be converted into a SFH or open space area…so what would you suggest?

BTW…I don’t care nor even understand what Smart growth is. I want a fun, dynamic destination with lots for everyone to do.

You don't need a concrete forest and lots of high rises to accomplish that though. You can revamp the area and make it a dynamic destination without turning it into Reston.

Great...so what's your plan? All I hear is I don't want Ballston, or Reston, or Pike & Rose...but then no alternative plan is offered.

Why do I have to be the one to make the plan? It's not my area of expertise. Show me a plan, and I'll tell you what I think as the consumer and home owner. This one? Not crazy about it. Scale it down, open it up some more. Don't shift traffic into school yards and residential neighborhoods. Pay attention to the realities of people who need physical access points.

Scale down development ON TOP OF A METRO STATION?

That is WHERE you want development to be located. The result will be more people who are not dependent on cars, so the "shifting traffic" won't be there, because it will be people, not cars.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, Trader Joe's is coming to Chevy Chase Pavillion.

FH could be incredible if it was connected on the MD side. You could create another Reston Town Center or whatever they call the area in Rockville/North Bethesda with the REI and LL Bean.

You have a wasted surface lot behind the new Mazza replacement, wasted surface lot at the Saks in CC MD. You have the Lord & Taylor site...it seems crazy to turn that into the new bus depot...although I guess that opens up development of the current bus depot.

It needs to be far more mixed-use...apartments, retail, entertainment (Dave & Busters, Pinstripes type places), etc.

Turning Friendship Heights and AU Park into some high rise city with Dave & Busters? No thanks.

That would be awesome. Right now it is basically nothing and wont be converted into a SFH or open space area…so what would you suggest?

BTW…I don’t care nor even understand what Smart growth is. I want a fun, dynamic destination with lots for everyone to do.

Neighbor here. We don’t want to BE your “destination.” Metro or no metro, you and the thousands like you don’t need to traverse the city to play arcade games in my backyard. Nobody here wants to be your mecca for people seeking suburban chain restaurants. Local commerce for local people, sure.

Lady, other parts of the city and region have "arcades" and whatever else you are fearing. The amenities the PP suggests are for those of us who, you know, live here. Your neighbors and our kids and their friends. This idea that no one else anywhere has the things we want here and thus will travel here is crazy. As it is, we have to travel to other parts of the city and region to get those amenities. Why not have the here and save those trips?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What's the problem with a bunch of high-rise buildings on Wisconsin Avenue, exactly? I see people complaining about turning AU Park into Pike & Rose, but Wisconsin Avenue is already a commercial corridor, and there's no plans to change the zoning for the actual residential parts of the neighborhood at all.

I live in an SFH less than a block from Wisconsin Avenue and across the street from an area that' slated for new zoning, and I think this plan seems great.

There's nothing wrong with Pike & Rose. It's just a bit soulless, common and cookie cutter. Seems like trend chasing at the end of the trend. But FH does need an Arlington style re-fresh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:https://planning.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/op/page_content/attachments/Wisconsin%20Ave%20Development%20Framework_web.pdf

What do people in the community think of this? How do you think it will impact property values?

I love the idea of developing from Friendship to Tenley as it's a bit of a ghost town for such an affluent area.

People don't care as much about property values as the look and feel of a place where they want to live. They like "small village," trees and sky, not suburban massing that is a city trying not to look like a city.

That's 1000% nonsense. We don't live in a "small village"...it is a fantasy that a strip of CT avenue with a gas station, bus turnaround and 1970s bunker library/community center resembles anything like a village. It offers convenience which is nice.

However, we aren't even talking about Upper CT Avenue. We are talking about FH which has never been a "small village". I have lived in the area for 30+ years and a major reason was FH offering a Macy's/Hechts, a Linens n Things, Border, Filene's, an AMC 8 movie theatre...that was in the early 2000s...let's revive the area and make it better and more dynamic then before.

Yeah, I also care about property values...which 99% of all homeowners care about.

Calm down. No one is saying it's lovely and perfect now. But do you really need 50 industrial looking high rise buildings blocking out the sky to accomplish that? You can make beautiful retail and keep the village scene.

Generally in this area, more shade is a *good* thing for the people on the street.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, Trader Joe's is coming to Chevy Chase Pavillion.

FH could be incredible if it was connected on the MD side. You could create another Reston Town Center or whatever they call the area in Rockville/North Bethesda with the REI and LL Bean.

You have a wasted surface lot behind the new Mazza replacement, wasted surface lot at the Saks in CC MD. You have the Lord & Taylor site...it seems crazy to turn that into the new bus depot...although I guess that opens up development of the current bus depot.

It needs to be far more mixed-use...apartments, retail, entertainment (Dave & Busters, Pinstripes type places), etc.

Turning Friendship Heights and AU Park into some high rise city with Dave & Busters? No thanks.

That would be awesome. Right now it is basically nothing and wont be converted into a SFH or open space area…so what would you suggest?

BTW…I don’t care nor even understand what Smart growth is. I want a fun, dynamic destination with lots for everyone to do.

Neighbor here. We don’t want to BE your “destination.” Metro or no metro, you and the thousands like you don’t need to traverse the city to play arcade games in my backyard. Nobody here wants to be your mecca for people seeking suburban chain restaurants. Local commerce for local people, sure.

The whole point about more housing is that there will be more neighbors. I.e., more local people, who can support local commerce.

However, nice areas do also tend to be destinations as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, Trader Joe's is coming to Chevy Chase Pavillion.

FH could be incredible if it was connected on the MD side. You could create another Reston Town Center or whatever they call the area in Rockville/North Bethesda with the REI and LL Bean.

You have a wasted surface lot behind the new Mazza replacement, wasted surface lot at the Saks in CC MD. You have the Lord & Taylor site...it seems crazy to turn that into the new bus depot...although I guess that opens up development of the current bus depot.

It needs to be far more mixed-use...apartments, retail, entertainment (Dave & Busters, Pinstripes type places), etc.

Turning Friendship Heights and AU Park into some high rise city with Dave & Busters? No thanks.

That would be awesome. Right now it is basically nothing and wont be converted into a SFH or open space area…so what would you suggest?

BTW…I don’t care nor even understand what Smart growth is. I want a fun, dynamic destination with lots for everyone to do.

Neighbor here. We don’t want to BE your “destination.” Metro or no metro, you and the thousands like you don’t need to traverse the city to play arcade games in my backyard. Nobody here wants to be your mecca for people seeking suburban chain restaurants. Local commerce for local people, sure.

Lady, other parts of the city and region have "arcades" and whatever else you are fearing. The amenities the PP suggests are for those of us who, you know, live here. Your neighbors and our kids and their friends. This idea that no one else anywhere has the things we want here and thus will travel here is crazy. As it is, we have to travel to other parts of the city and region to get those amenities. Why not have the here and save those trips?

I live 1/4 mile from FH metro...and I absolutely want all of it. Sorry, but it is a massive amenity to the neighborhood to be able to walk to shopping, retail, entertainment, etc. Nobody actually suggested they add a Chili's, Applebees or a Fridays. BTW...we already have a Cheesecake Factor and Maggiano's...so the chain restaurants wouldn't be a novelty.

[Anonymous]

If I lived close by I would love to see a movie theater, a Trader Joe’s, a soul cycle or yoga studio, a few independent boutiques , maybe a spa, a doggie day care and a few more bakeries and places to eat that are independently owned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What's the problem with a bunch of high-rise buildings on Wisconsin Avenue, exactly? I see people complaining about turning AU Park into Pike & Rose, but Wisconsin Avenue is already a commercial corridor, and there's no plans to change the zoning for the actual residential parts of the neighborhood at all.

I live in an SFH less than a block from Wisconsin Avenue and across the street from an area that' slated for new zoning, and I think this plan seems great.

Your property value is going up, up, up.

Example: price history of SFHs just adjacent to Clarendon and Ballston development corridors and walkable to Metro. Land values are some of the most expensive in NoVa on a per square foot basis.

Seems quite likely, but more to the point, I don't see why some of my neighbors seem to think having slightly more, slightly taller buildings on a street that's already full of commercial buildings taller than our houses are — and that they live several blocks away from at any rate — is bad. I like being able to walk to things like restaurants, shops, and movie theaters. Seems like that's exactly what they're aiming for with this plan.