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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Bethesda Row is a lot nicer to walk around than Friendship Heights. (And somewhat ironically, I find it a lot easier to drive to and park cheaply.) Even in its heyday Mazza and the retail around it was kind of a mess. And as a pp said, owned by different companies and in two different jurisdictions. In the downfall of Friendship, luxury businesses moving to CenterCity was a small factor, but mostly foot traffic and stores just migrated north. .Anthropologie literally picked up and moved to the old Barnes and Noble space. The area around Wisconsin and Western is just not super charming.

[b]Now if you are talking about the Connecticut Avenue strip, that’s ridiculous. CCDC, unlike Greenwich or whatever cute towns have been mentioned, [/b]was a subdivision built in the early 1900s with a retail strip and a streetcar. That’s it. Of course the business there are and should be for the locals. Toy store, drug store, grocery store, some restaurants of varying quality. Yes the Safeway is a bit down on its luck.[/quote]

Brookline is on the Boston border and has a streetcar running through it. No one was talking about Greenwich. Even neighborhoods like Roland Park in Baltinore or Chestnut Hill in Philadelphia, which are the Chevy Chases of those cities (pre WW2 SFHs in the city that were leafy prestigious suburbs within the city when they were built), have more charming retail on their main commercial strips, and these neighborhoods have a fraction of the old money that Chevy Chase has.

[b]Case in point is Roland Ave and the Petit Louis and Johnny’s shopping mall or the Eddie’s of Roland Park grocery up the street from them. These aren’t luxury boutiques, they are quaint, locally owned, upscale places that mirror the charm of the housing stock.[/b] I don’t think anyone would describe the Brookville Market shopping strip or the Connecticut Avenue commercial area with of the circle as especially charming, which is unfortunate considering how nice the homes are nearby. [/quote]

If you are talking about Baltimore and Philly, isn't it cheaper there than CC? Could the rents on commercial RE be simply lower to allow more independent stores, plus more younger people, plus maybe owners of these stores also own the buildings where stores are located?  There are a lot of factors.  In general the cost of opening and maintaining a store has to be justified by the demand for the services.  A balance between the cost of operation and the demand. [/quote]

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