Montgomery County lawmakers on Monday will consider new ideas for how to redevelop Wheaton — ideas significantly different from those proposed by County Executive Ike Leggett.
In his fiscal 2013 capital budget, Leggett proposed a $42 million project that features a platform above the Metrobus bays at Georgia Avenue and Veirs Mill Road. On top of and adjacent to the structure the plan has office, retail and residential space. At Reedie Drive and Grandview Avenue, a 28,000-square-foot town square would be adjacent to a mixed-use development.
The project centers around a partnership with a development firm — the county is in negotiations with Bethesda company B.F. Saul which would bear the responsibility for the mixed-use development to the west of the town square.
But a proposal before the County Council suggests delaying or eliminating the platform and instead building additional office space, which could be occupied partly by a county agency.
Increased office space would bring customers for Wheaton’s restaurants and other businesses during the day, explained council Senior Legislative Analyst Jacob Sesker, estimating that 300,000 to 415,000 square feet of office space means about 1,200 to 1,660 additional office workers.
Though the platform is intended as a way to introduce more office space, it is not necessary, Sesker wrote in documents prepared for Monday’s meeting of the council’s Planning, Housing and Economic Development Committee. Building the platform would create noise, dust and other disruptions — such as the need to relocate existing Metrobus bays — for as long as seven years. And unlike office space, the platform would not generate revenue.
But the platform allows for one million square feet of office space, including a hotel, said David Dise, director of the county Department of General Services. Without the large-scale development proposed by Leggett’s office, B.F. Saul could lose motivation to participate, making the project expensive for the county.
Some council members also want more public space.
The current planned town square is “a little skimpy,” said Councilwoman Nancy Floreen, D-at large and chairwoman of the committee.
The county should aim to create something similar to Bethesda Row or Rockville Town Square, said Councilman Hans Riemer, D-at large.
“I want a connecting space that families can spend time in and that is designed for people to walk around and enjoy themselves,” he said. “Build a fountain, and kids will come.”
But Kathleen Guinan, president of the Wheaton-Kensington Chamber of Commerce, is hesitant to throw out a plan the community and county have worked on for 10 years.
“The most important thing is to find a particular proposal that will move Wheaton forward,” said Councilwoman Nancy Navarro, D-Eastern County.
