Imagine the parking lots behind the Farm Women’s Market as parks, creating a green buffer between the development of downtown Bethesda and the leafy single family home neighborhoods of of Chevy Chase.
That’s an idea at least two candidates for the Town of Chevy Chase Council said they’d pursue during a candidates forum on Thursday, as far-fetched as it seems.
With the in-progress Bethesda Downtown Plan — which could mean zoning changes for the Central Business District — many in Chevy Chase are worried about taller buildings and buildings with more density on their western border.
The word “encroaching” was used a few times by various candidates.
“The Town is green, quiet and safe,” said candidate Vicky Taplin. “It’s an oasis right next to downtown Bethesda.”
Councilmember Al Lang has proposed making Lots 10 and 24 into green space. It’s unclear how exactly that would happen.
The public parking lots at 4600 and 4601 Leland St. are owned by Montgomery County and have a total of more than 300 metered parking spots.
“I’ve been investigating the possibility of acquiring those parking lots,” Lang said. “I’m beginning to understand what it might take to do that. It’s going to be quite an endeavor to pull off.”
It seems unlikely that Montgomery County would agree to do away with parking spots that serve a busy area of downtown Bethesda.
But Lang said he’s worried the surface parking areas are ripe for development that will overshadow some homes in the Town. There have been no indications from the county that it would allow development on the parking lots.
According to the Montgomery County Planning Department, the parking spaces in Lot 10 were 78 percent occupied on average from July 1, 2012-June 30, 2013. Lot 24 was 77 percent occupied.
The spaces are behind a block of businesses on the east side of Wisconsin Avenue and a short walk away from busy Bethesda Row.
Candidate Kathie Legg, a member of the town’s Long-Range Planning Committee, endorsed the idea of converting Montgomery County’s parking lots into parks to serve as a buffer area. Downtown Bethesda and the Town are served by Elm Urban Park, a 2.1-acre park surrounded by the Bethesda Crossing office development, Capital Crescent Trail and the entrance to the Town.
More green space was the No. 1 concern of Town residents who responded to a survey inquiring as to how the Town should use a budget surplus of more than $8 million, though
“We should use some of that money to acquire more land,” Legg said.
