“We want to make sure that everybody in Montgomery County has a place to live.”
That’s what Council President Andrew Friedson said minutes before cutting the ribbon at Strathmore Square in North Bethesda, Maryland.
Backing up to Rock Creek Park, next to the Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro station, Ravel and Royale is the newest affordable housing project in the county.
It’s Metro’s fourth development in 2024, totaling 1,300 new housing units. Metro worked on the project in partnership with Fivesquares Development, Strathmore, Aimco, Amazon Housing Equity Fund and Montgomery County officials.
The Amazon fund makes the apartments available to a range of income levels.
“Here, we actually have gone from a commuter parking lot to a new community,” Andy Altman, with Five Squares Development, said.
“This has become, and will continue to be, a model for how we are turning parking lots into places,” Friedson said. “In land use, we often focus on the what and the where. The what is housing at Metro; the most sustainable, most transit-oriented place possible. The where is critical for environmental and equity reasons, for economic reasons. But the why is just as important. The why is about the arts, the why is about the connection to the environmental footprint right here in a critical area.”
The connection to the arts is apparent in the developing Strathmore Square neighborhood.
“As I walked up to this incredible structure, I walked by and saw ballet taking place,” Friedson said.
The new affordable housing project is located right next to The Music Center at Strathmore and also sits above City Dance.
“Dance rehearsals happen here every day,” said Monica Jeffries, the president and CEO of Strathmore. “Imagine life in a community enlivened by the arts, and today we’re living that vision.”
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