Residences at Forest Glen apartments now accepting applications

The Residences at Forest Glen, a new rental apartment development at 2106 Belvedere Boulevard at Georgia Avenue in Forest Glen, is now accepting applications. Developed by Montgomery Housing Partnership, the building contains 189 affordable units. This means there are income restrictions, so you might make too much, or too little, to live here. The architect was Grimm+Parker. It's a standard stack-and-pack affair. 

Transportation access is excellent: There is a bus stop right out front, it is very close to the Forest Glen Metro station, and it is seconds away from a Capital Beltway interchange on Georgia Avenue by car. However, there isn't much else within a comfortable walking distance of the building in terms of restaurants, shopping, or entertainment. Montgomery Hills is the closest commercial area, and it's quite a stroll to get there on foot. Forest Glen is a great suburban area to live in, but you'll definitely want to have a car for practical purposes, as the urbanization dream - rabid multifamily housing and bus lane push notwithstanding - hasn't quite been realized here yet.

Wheaton Gateway development community meeting scheduled for May 13

A required pre-submittal meeting for the Wheaton Gateway development has been scheduled for 7:00 PM on May 13, 2025. There are two ways to participate in the meeting: In-person at the Montgomery County Planning Department auditorium at 2425 Reedie Drive in Wheaton, or online by signing up in advance at WheatonGateway.com. The topic of this meeting will be an amendment to the project's sketch plan. This redevelopment of land at the corner of University Boulevard W. and Veirs Mill Road will incorporate the following properties:

11200 Veirs Mill Road

11250 Veirs Mill Road

11217 - 11227 East Avenue

2715 University Boulevard W.

"Lot 1" on Upton Drive

The properties include the former sites of the Howard Johnson/Best Western hotel (later the Ambassador Apartments) and Mattress Firm, as well as the current site of the Lindsay Ford dealership. Wheaton Gateway will include up to 800 residential units, 40% of which will be affordable Moderately-Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs). By increasing the percentage of affordable units, the development team has earned additional height and density for the project. The development will also include up to 55,000-square-feet of retail and restaurant space on the the ground levels of the buildings. Artistic renderings of the actual architecture proposed will be shown during the site plan phase of approval; the view above is intended simply to show the massing of the structures.

Image courtesy Wheaton Gateway, LLC

Can you identify this man sought in Silver Spring homicide investigation? (Photos)

Montgomery County police are seeking the public's help in identifying and locating a person of interest in their investigation of a homicide in Silver Spring. They also would like your help in identifying the victim, an adult Hispanic female, believed to be in her early-to-mid-20s, with tattoos on her right thigh, right forearm, left forearm, back, and above her right elbow. The victim was brought to Adventist Healthcare White Oak Medical Center at 11890 Healing Way in Silver Spring yesterday morning, April 27, 2025, at 7:15 AM. She was declared deceased shortly after her arrival at the facility.

The victim was suffering from an apparent gunshot wound, when she was brought to the hospital by an unidentified Hispanic man. That man is the person of interest pictured here. Police say he spoke briefly to hospital staff, and then fled the scene in a newer model white Ford Mustang, also pictured here. 

Detectives are asking anyone with information about the victim or person of interest to contact the Montgomery County Police non-emergency number at 301-279-8000. Anonymous tips can be submitted to Crime Solvers of Montgomery County by visiting www.crimesolversmcmd.org and clicking the "Submit a Tip" link, or by calling 1-866-411-TIPS (8477). Tips leading to an arrest may be eligible for a reward ranging from $250 to $10,000. Tipsters may remain anonymous.

Taxi driver targeted in Aspen Hill armed robbery

Montgomery County police responded to a report of an armed robbery at an apartment complex in Aspen Hill on April 9, 2025. At 8:40 AM, a taxi was in the 3500 block of Pear Tree Court at the Cinnamon Run apartments. A suspect displayed a weapon, police allege, and stole money from the taxi driver. 

Police describe the suspect only as a Hispanic male of unknown age. If you can identify the suspect, or have any other information about this incident, call police at (301) 279-8000.

Quarry House Tavern still temporarily closed in Silver Spring

Quarry House Tavern at 8401 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring is still temporarily closed due to a plumbing emergency. They had hoped to reopen Friday, but the plumbing had other plans. "Another day, another flood," the tavern wrote on Instagram.  The tavern is now hoping to reopen tomorrow, Sunday, April 27, 2025. 

Purple Line walking tour along Bonifant St. in Silver Spring (Video + Photos)

A look at the construction of the Purple Line light rail system in downtown Silver Spring along Bonifant Street, from Popeyes on Georgia Avenue, to the future Purple Line station at the Silver Spring Library. You will see the tracks that have been laid, the future station platform, and the disruption to businesses along Bonifant Street. The Purple Line is expected to begin operating in 2027. 

WMATA replacing Metrobus signs in Silver Spring (Photos)

Washington, D.C. regional transit authority WMATA is now in the process of replacing Metrobus signs throughout Montgomery County, including the ones you see here in Bethesda and Silver Spring. The new signs sport the new route designations for Metrobus lines. Every Metrobus route in Montgomery County will now be an "M" route, instead of T, Q, or J, for example. The M stands for...Montgomery County.

Fairfax County routes will start with an "F." Prince George's County gets "P." Arlington and Alexandria have to share "A." D.C. routes will be "D" for downtown, or "C" for crosstown. Express routes will start with an "X."

It seems the famously-impoverished WMATA that is always extending its hat for Oliver Twist's proverbial "more" is suddenly flush with cash it doesn't know what to do with. That has spurred it to go in search of a solution in search of a problem. Nobody was confused about the existing route numbers; they're going to be really confused by the new route numbers. 

Two sets of new bus stop signs will be manufactured - one temporary, and one permanent after June 29, the day of the official switchover. The cost of replacing all of the signage is massive, and is being drawn from WMATA's Better Bus Network budget. A "better" use of our tax money is to refund the amount being spent on the name changes to the taxpayers of the D.C. region.

Turns out, WMATA is "really, really rich"

Quarry House Tavern in Silver Spring to reopen Friday

Quarry House Tavern at 8401 Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring is temporarily closed due to a plumbing emergency. The tavern is expected to reopen tomorrow, Friday, April 25, 2025, if all goes according to plan. "Being a basement bar is not for the faint of heart," Quarry House said in announcing the temporary closure. 

Westfield defaults on Wheaton Plaza mall loan

The moribund Montgomery County economy continues to drag down all boats. Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield has defaulted on a large loan for its Wheaton Plaza mall property, The Washington Business Journal reported yesterday. The company missed the March maturity payment on a loan of approximately $235 million from Credit Suisse. Westfield told the WBJ that "all options are on the table" in the wake of the default, including sale of the mall property, foreclosure, or the refinancing of the loan. However, when Westfield marketed its malls for sale a few years ago, there were no takers for Wheaton Plaza or Montgomery Mall here in Montgomery County. 

Virginia added more than twice as many jobs as Maryland in March

The economic development broken record played the same tune yet again in the Washington, D.C. region last month. Virginia destroyed Maryland in job creation once again, adding more than twice as many jobs in March 2025, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Maryland added 2,300 jobs, while Virginia added 5,900 jobs. 

March's job creation numbers show Virginia's economy remained far stronger than moribund Maryland's in a month where both states were impacted by federal job cuts. The total number of actual federal positions lost remains murky, as legal injunctions or orders to rehire workers have followed many of the "DOGE" layoffs.

"This job growth reflects businesses hiring as Virginians continue to find opportunities," Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin said in a statement. "Virginia has jobs, and we’re committed to strengthening the business environment so that everyone can find a path to success right here in the Commonwealth."