Sell me on Silver Spring

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DP.
Do you like Georgia Avenue? I almost bought in Woodside which is a beautiful neighborhood. But the surrounding area is ugly. The Mofongo place makes me mad just to see it and I’ve had it in PR and like the dish. I don’t prefer neighborhoods with check cashing, cape stores, and pawn shops all over the place. DTSS also looks depressing.

And the pawn shop is NEW. Who approved that??? That corridor is a dump and the reconfiguration in the works is not going to help.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP.
Do you like Georgia Avenue? I almost bought in Woodside which is a beautiful neighborhood. But the surrounding area is ugly. The Mofongo place makes me mad just to see it and I’ve had it in PR and like the dish. I don’t prefer neighborhoods with check cashing, cape stores, and pawn shops all over the place. DTSS also looks depressing.

You left out the adult video store and the worlds sketchiest aquarium store.

PP. The only thing that is intriguing to me is the Tropical Ice Cream store. Haven’t had a chance to go there.

Jumping in here with a genuine plug for the tropical ice cream. It’s delicious and BIPOC woman owned. Definitely worth a venture in to try some unusual flavors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP.
Do you like Georgia Avenue? I almost bought in Woodside which is a beautiful neighborhood. But the surrounding area is ugly. The Mofongo place makes me mad just to see it and I’ve had it in PR and like the dish. I don’t prefer neighborhoods with check cashing, cape stores, and pawn shops all over the place. DTSS also looks depressing.

You left out the adult video store and the worlds sketchiest aquarium store.

PP. The only thing that is intriguing to me is the Tropical Ice Cream store. Haven’t had a chance to go there.

Jumping in here with a genuine plug for the tropical ice cream. It’s delicious and BIPOC woman owned. Definitely worth a venture in to try some unusual flavors.

Second that. Super good Caribbean ice cream.

[Anonymous]

Yes, it's good ice cream but that is an activity. You go out for ice cream, you do not move for ice cream.

[Anonymous]

This thread is really amusing me! I’ve been living in SS for 20 years! Staying our first home (in 20901, not Woodmoor, tho) has afforded us and our children many things in life! We love our small home and all it’s old-house problems! We love our neighbors and we love living close to literally everything. I’ve learned that you’ve got love where you live for what it is, not what it could be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Sorry, didn’t mean to offend anyone. I like the diversity in SS and some of the neighbourhoods are nice. People seem friendly.
It’s just that I have been to downtown SS many times now and it is a bit depressing. I’m fine with urban grit but there is something about the SS downtown that I find jarring. It is not designed well and many of the buildings are ugly and rundown. I love ethnic food. It’s just that the area feels utterly charmless. The WF is nice but the parking lot there gets crazy on the weekends. I was surprised at the traffic and congestion in downtown on Friday evenings. I just feel it would add to my stress level if I had to go there a lot. The farmers market is very nice. Maybe it is fine to live there but avoid downtown and instead frequent Takoma Park, Bethesda and Rockville instead. Even the metro station looks imposing and uninviting. Good to hear there are nice parks around. We are also looking at Kensington. I’m not a huge Bethesda fan but I would say the Bethesda downtown beats SS by a mile. I guess that visual aesthetics are important to me. I could never live in an ugly house even if the inside was very nice.

I think you should work on your anxiety before you buy a house.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m fine with urban grit but there is something about the SS downtown that I find jarring. It is not designed well and many of the buildings are ugly and rundown.

That's called small business. Many people consider it an asset to a community.

No it’s not. I’m a NP. Downtown Silver Spring is charmless because it is mostly chains. OP is completely right. I live in Takoma Park and rarely go to downtown silver spring because it is so devoid of character. But I wouldn’t let that put me of living in silver spring. There are charming neighborhoods and that’s more important.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Sorry, didn’t mean to offend anyone. I like the diversity in SS and some of the neighbourhoods are nice. People seem friendly.
It’s just that I have been to downtown SS many times now and it is a bit depressing. I’m fine with urban grit but there is something about the SS downtown that I find jarring. It is not designed well and many of the buildings are ugly and rundown. I love ethnic food. It’s just that the area feels utterly charmless. The WF is nice but the parking lot there gets crazy on the weekends. I was surprised at the traffic and congestion in downtown on Friday evenings. I just feel it would add to my stress level if I had to go there a lot. The farmers market is very nice. Maybe it is fine to live there but avoid downtown and instead frequent Takoma Park, Bethesda and Rockville instead. Even the metro station looks imposing and uninviting. Good to hear there are nice parks around. We are also looking at Kensington. I’m not a huge Bethesda fan but I would say the Bethesda downtown beats SS by a mile. I guess that visual aesthetics are important to me. I could never live in an ugly house even if the inside was very nice.

You think DTSS meets the definition of “urban grit?” Jesus where are you from?[/quote]

Completely. What is she going to do when Steph wants to do double-date in the new hotspot in DC? Also,if you think SS is congested travel wise, perhaps you should just leave the DC area altogether. I mean, even Kensington can get less congested, but there are fewer BIPOC walking around.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Sorry, didn’t mean to offend anyone. I like the diversity in SS and some of the neighbourhoods are nice. People seem friendly.
It’s just that I have been to downtown SS many times now and it is a bit depressing. I’m fine with urban grit but there is something about the SS downtown that I find jarring. It is not designed well and many of the buildings are ugly and rundown. I love ethnic food. It’s just that the area feels utterly charmless. The WF is nice but the parking lot there gets crazy on the weekends. I was surprised at the traffic and congestion in downtown on Friday evenings. I just feel it would add to my stress level if I had to go there a lot. The farmers market is very nice. Maybe it is fine to live there but avoid downtown and instead frequent Takoma Park, Bethesda and Rockville instead. Even the metro station looks imposing and uninviting. Good to hear there are nice parks around. We are also looking at Kensington. I’m not a huge Bethesda fan but I would say the Bethesda downtown beats SS by a mile. I guess that visual aesthetics are important to me. I could never live in an ugly house even if the inside was very nice.

Can you give us specific examples of what streets/buildings you like in downtown Bethesda, as compared to downtown SS? Because to me downtown Bethesda is just bland. Would like to see what you think is appealing.

Also there are plenty of houses near DTSS that aren't "ugly." They're probably smaller or less built out than what you'll find in Bethesda, but the styles are similar. The DC suburbs overall are not known for the unusual architectural beauty of their neighborhoods. There's not much like the fantastic early 20th century homes in cities in the midwest or the colorful and elegant regional architecture of California, for example. Too many neighborhoods that were built with conservative cookie cutter houses in the 1950s-1970s, and only sporadic streets that have some lovely examples of pre-war buildings or interesting mid-century modern houses.

That's what I am trying to figure out. I have nothing against DT Bethesda but I cannot see what's so appealing: it's mostly tall buildings, car dealerships and don't even mention traffic congestions on 355.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Sorry, didn’t mean to offend anyone. I like the diversity in SS and some of the neighbourhoods are nice. People seem friendly.
It’s just that I have been to downtown SS many times now and it is a bit depressing. I’m fine with urban grit but there is something about the SS downtown that I find jarring. It is not designed well and many of the buildings are ugly and rundown. I love ethnic food. It’s just that the area feels utterly charmless. The WF is nice but the parking lot there gets crazy on the weekends. I was surprised at the traffic and congestion in downtown on Friday evenings. I just feel it would add to my stress level if I had to go there a lot. The farmers market is very nice. Maybe it is fine to live there but avoid downtown and instead frequent Takoma Park, Bethesda and Rockville instead. Even the metro station looks imposing and uninviting. Good to hear there are nice parks around. We are also looking at Kensington. I’m not a huge Bethesda fan but I would say the Bethesda downtown beats SS by a mile. I guess that visual aesthetics are important to me. I could never live in an ugly house even if the inside was very nice.

OP, I lived near SS for 16 years and worked in downtown SS for 6 and I agree with you 100%. I think the people being mean to you are just being defensive. FWIW, I like a lot of the neighborhoods in SS and like the people there better than in Bethesda but anyone who argues that DTSS is as nice as or nicer than Bethesda is deluded or just trying to justify their choice to live there.

+1

I don't live in DTSS, but I live in South Four Corners. DTSS is fine but nothing special.

[Anonymous]

Rented there YEARS ago when we first moved to area and HATED it. The people were great but it was visually depressing and traffic was always a bear to get ANYWHERE.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP.
Do you like Georgia Avenue? I almost bought in Woodside which is a beautiful neighborhood. But the surrounding area is ugly. The Mofongo place makes me mad just to see it and I’ve had it in PR and like the dish. I don’t prefer neighborhoods with check cashing, cape stores, and pawn shops all over the place. DTSS also looks depressing.

You left out the adult video store and the worlds sketchiest aquarium store.

No — luckily the porn shop is gone. I live nearby and am praying the revitalization of Georgia Ave will finally happen. State Hwy Assoc is planning it — with boulevards, tree-lined sidewalks etc. all the crappy businesses there will be bulldozed and I can’t wait

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Rented there YEARS ago when we first moved to area and HATED it. The people were great but it was visually depressing and traffic was always a bear to get ANYWHERE.

Where do you live now? Cant be DC, MD or VA. Unless you are so far out you don’t see traffic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Sorry, didn’t mean to offend anyone. I like the diversity in SS and some of the neighbourhoods are nice. People seem friendly.
It’s just that I have been to downtown SS many times now and it is a bit depressing. I’m fine with urban grit but there is something about the SS downtown that I find jarring. It is not designed well and many of the buildings are ugly and rundown. I love ethnic food. It’s just that the area feels utterly charmless. The WF is nice but the parking lot there gets crazy on the weekends. I was surprised at the traffic and congestion in downtown on Friday evenings. I just feel it would add to my stress level if I had to go there a lot. The farmers market is very nice. Maybe it is fine to live there but avoid downtown and instead frequent Takoma Park, Bethesda and Rockville instead. Even the metro station looks imposing and uninviting. Good to hear there are nice parks around. We are also looking at Kensington. I’m not a huge Bethesda fan but I would say the Bethesda downtown beats SS by a mile. I guess that visual aesthetics are important to me. I could never live in an ugly house even if the inside was very nice.

OP, I lived near SS for 16 years and worked in downtown SS for 6 and I agree with you 100%. I think the people being mean to you are just being defensive. FWIW, I like a lot of the neighborhoods in SS and like the people there better than in Bethesda but anyone who argues that DTSS is as nice as or nicer than Bethesda is deluded or just trying to justify their choice to live there.

+1

I don't live in DTSS, but I live in South Four Corners. DTSS is fine but nothing special.

Eh I have lived in both Bethesda and Silver Spring and prefer Silver Spring. It's just a personal preference. I would love to stay in DTSS long term. If OP doesn't like it that's fine but those of us who love it are not going to beg her to move here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DP.
Do you like Georgia Avenue? I almost bought in Woodside which is a beautiful neighborhood. But the surrounding area is ugly. The Mofongo place makes me mad just to see it and I’ve had it in PR and like the dish. I don’t prefer neighborhoods with check cashing, cape stores, and pawn shops all over the place. DTSS also looks depressing.

You left out the adult video store and the worlds sketchiest aquarium store.

PP. The only thing that is intriguing to me is the Tropical Ice Cream store. Haven’t had a chance to go there.

Jumping in here with a genuine plug for the tropical ice cream. It’s delicious and BIPOC woman owned. Definitely worth a venture in to try some unusual flavors.

Second that. Super good Caribbean ice cream.

Have they improved their service though? Always were very rude. And I don't like their chocolate.