The Montgomery County Council unanimously approved the closure of a portion of Lincoln Street in Bethesda Tuesday, a key step in Suburban Hospital’s $230 million expansion plan that could add about 300,000 square feet to the facility.
The street abandonment — from Old Georgetown Road to Grant Street in Bethesda — has been fought heavily by the Huntington Terrace Citizens Association, whose neighborhood houses the stretch of street to be closed.
Although, as Councilman Roger Berliner, D-Bethesda, noted, the issue has been “one of the most litigated … in the history of our board of appeals,” the council generally said they believed that the street closure would not have much impact.
“I’ve heard arguments that I thought, frankly, were absurd,” said Councilman Marc Elrich, D-at large.
To help ease tensions, attorneys from both sides of the dispute agreed to meet within 30 days to have a discussion, something that Norman Knopf, attorney for the Huntington Terrace Citizens Association, requested and that the council was in favor of.
“Just hearing people out is oftentimes the best olive branch,” said Councilman Craig Rice, D-Germantown.
