The Montgomery County Planning Department will present the Working Draft of the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan to the Montgomery County Planning Board at its Thursday, October 28 meeting.
The Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan builds upon the success of the 2000 Silver Spring Central Business District Sector Plan, which envisioned a green, transit-oriented and pedestrian-friendly downtown with a strong commercial and residential development market.
During the meeting, Montgomery Planning staff will discuss the recommendations, the schedule for the plan, and the next steps with the Planning Board. This is the first time staff will present the plan’s draft recommendations to the Planning Board and follows the July 29, 2021 presentation to the Board on the plan’s big ideas and the October 25 virtual community meeting.
View the Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan Working Draft
“Downtown Silver Spring has changed dramatically over the last 20 years to become the lively residential and business district it is today,” said Montgomery Planning Director Gwen Wright. “The Silver Spring Downtown and Adjacent Communities Plan builds upon that success while incorporating the feedback of over 500 stakeholders. This plan truly represents the comments of residents, community members, and business owners and we continue to welcome everyone’s feedback during the plan’s next steps.”
“We want to make sure we got the plan’s recommendations right to allow Silver Spring to continue to grow and prosper,” said Project Manager Atara Margolies. “We have learned so much from the community so far and now we are ready to take the next steps in the planning process.”
On October 25, Planning staff shared an overview of the draft recommendations for the plan during a virtual event called “Silver Spring Tomorrow.” The event, which was closed captioned live in multiple languages, also gave community members the opportunity to ask staff questions. This event followed “Silver Spring Today,” the planning team’s presentation of the existing conditions analysis in February, and a series of interactive Visioning Workshops held in the spring. The team also received hundreds of comments on an interactive, online map of the plan area.
The Working Draft includes both area-wide and district-specific recommendations. These eight districts are: South Silver Spring, Falklands District, Downtown North, Metro Center, Ripley District, Ellsworth District, Fenton Village and Adjacent Communities. As the first Sector Plan to follow the passage of Montgomery County’s Racial Equity and Social Justice Act, equity is woven throughout the plan and the four overarching themes that emerged after engaging with stakeholders:
- Diversity
- Resiliency
- Connectivity
- Community Health
Authorities say a United States Park Police officer was involved in a shooting that occurred on the 200 block of Missouri Avenue in NW D.C. that led to a chase into Silver Spring early this morning.
According to Park Police, the suspect was chased approximately 10 minutes into Silver Spring where the driver crashed into several cars on Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road before being apprehended and taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The Officer will be placed on administrative leave, pending an investigation. It is unclear why the shooting occurred at this moment.
Colesville Road was closed between between Georgia Avenue and Wayne Avenue for much of the early morning due to police activity, but reopened at approximately 6am.
SHOTS FIRED AT/BY POLICE w/ CHASE— US Park PD observed a man with a gun in his lap near 2nd St and Missouri Ave NW-DC. He allegedly exchanged gunfire w/ police who chased him to Georgia Ave and Colesville Rd in Silver Spring where he is in custody and injured. @BrightwoodCADC pic.twitter.com/rPUQzSORi6
— Alan Henney (@alanhenney) October 27, 2021
Kusshi ko, a restaurant by the folks who have brought you Kusshi Sushi (Pike & Rose), Hanaro (Bethesda), and Poke Dojo (Bethesda Row), will be moving into the location formerly occupied by Gusto in Downtown Silver Spring (8512 Fenton Street).
For now, management tells us they know that sushi will be part of what the restaurant offers, but they’re looking into doing more than just sushi with the space. “We know it‘ll be more quick service style,” owner Wesley Yao tells us.
Gusto announced its permanent closure in January of this year and the ink is still drying on this contract with plenty of construction likely, so it’ll likely be a while before we see Kusshiko make its Downtown Silver Spring debut.
You can follow the progress on their Instagram account, @kusshiko
The 8th annual Harvest Moon Festival will take place this Sunday, September 19th at Veterans Plaza in Downtown Silver Spring from 1pm-7pm (Silver Spring Civic Center, 1 Veterans Plaza)
The outdoor event will feature a diverse array of exhibitors, live music & art performances, a comedy tent, and will feature Anthony Spearman-Leach as the festival director of ceremonies.
The schedule of performances includes:
• 1pm – 2pm: Community Drum Circle (with Katy Gaughan of Drumming for Well ess)
• 2pm – 2:30pm Batalá Washington (all-women Afro-Brazilian band with Samba-Reggae rhythms)
• 3pm – 5pm Polyphony Marimba (returns from Santa Fe, New Mexico with Marimba music of Zimbabwe)
• 5pm – 7pm Silver Spring Flow Arts
New Crosswalk Signals on Bel Pre Road and Spring Street
The Montgomery County Department of Transportation has recently activated new “HAWK” crosswalk signals in Silver Spring and Aspen Hill.
The Silver Spring site is located on Spring Street near First Avenue and Woodside Park. The other new installations are on Bel Pre Road at Tynewick Drive, Weeping Willow Drive and at North Gate/ Astrodome Drives.
These signals do not have green lights; drivers will see a blank signal when other styles of signals would be showing a green ball. When pedestrians press a pushbutton to cross, drivers will see a yellow signal and then a solid red signal. Drivers are only permitted to proceed thru the signal once the red lights have deactivated and the signal is blank again.
The Angry Jerk Will Have a Soft Opening This Wednesday, 7/14/21
Early last month it was reported that the Angry Jerk is coming to 8223 Georgia Ave in Silver Spring, the former location of the Big Greek Café (Big Greek Cafe in Downtown Silver Spring recently moved about 300 feet down Georgia Avenue to the location that was home to Fat Fingers– 8213 Georgia Avenue).
The Carribean restaurant’s social media announced a soft opening this coming Wednesday, 7/14/21. They will serve “authentic Caribbean cuisine.”
Source of the Spring reports that the restaurant is owned by Jason Miskiri, the founder of Society Restaurant and Lounge.
Hug Lounge Opens Today in Downtown Silver Spring
Hug Lounge is opening today at 10am at 949 Bonifant St. in Downtown Silver Spring, in the former Pennyworth Thrift Shop location.
The restaurant will serve Ethiopian cuisine and remain open late night as a lounge.
Hours of operation, per Google, are as follows:
Their first event will be an “All White Affair at Day Lit” on Saturday, 5/29 from 4pm-10pm, where attendees are asked to wear white clothing. Table and bottle service is currently being offered for this event.
Photos courtesy of the Hug Lounge website.
F45 Training, a global fitness community that offers high-intensity group workouts and is partially owned by Mark Wahlberg, is coming to Downtown Silver Spring.
According to the @F45_training_dtsilverspring Instagram page, the fitness center will be moving into 8244 Georgia Ave., on the ground floor of Solaire 8250.
The Downtown Silver Spring location has been teased for over a year on the Instagram account, but the picture above finally revealed the location.
The Bethesda location, which was located at 4800 Auburn Ave., recently announced that it will no longer be operating from that location, but that they’re looking for investors and a new location to continue operating.
F45 also had a planned Rio location in Gaithersburg, but that fell through once the pandemic hit and will no longer be opening.
Silver Spring Civic Building, Veterans Plaza Reopen for Events
Starting Monday, May 24, applications will once again be accepted for events inside the Silver Spring Civic Building and outside on Veterans Plaza. According to Operations Manager Eric Rasch, all prospective events must be consistent with remaining state and county COVID restrictions, including specific guidance on gatherings.
The Silver Spring Civic Building is reopening for indoor events on June 1, 2021.
Exciting news! Starting Monday, May 24, 2021 we will accept applications for use indoors at the #SilverSpring Civic Building and on the Plaza as long as the event is consistent with the state and county restrictions including specific guidance on gatherings. pic.twitter.com/egHdIWNnSL
— Eric Rasch (@EricWRasch) May 21, 2021
Great music at the #VeteransPlaza #BuskingStop today! Thanks to the @ExBandAndShow and to @EricWRasch (who’s the brainchild for this great #placemaking effort. @reemberto @creativemoco pic.twitter.com/BitXtlGunO
— Jonathan Bernstein (@dccampfin) April 28, 2021
Raccoon Rescued After Climbing to 4th Floor in Silver Spring
Shortly before 10 AM on Monday May 3, Montgomery County Animal Services Officer Sarah Ogrin responded to the 8700 block of Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring where a raccoon had climbed up some wiring onto a ledge about 40 feet above the ground.
Animal Services Officer Ogrin requested assistance from the Ladder Company stationed at Fire Station 719 on Seminary Road. Together, the Firefighters and the Animal Services Officer were able to safely bring the racoon back down to Earth. The raccoon was advised to avoid any similar shenanigans in the future and was safely released.
https://www.facebook.com/mcasac/posts/4216335728397250?__cft__[0]=AZV_mzfFIAs3oTPS0vsD1VebdHJFQk-bPCOtcP5aiXGZoP7xs0Ojl9TpSPBvoQVnPds-ogQTYjo7qHQs2jN6L3DY30_Xj89BPL_10HBj9ie-P0p5vBwFgfUs_XPnydcDgul8bE02admnRdYoNWtRPfFc&__tn__=%2CO%2CP-R
BIBIBOP Offering Free Bowls for Teachers Today
There are MoCo BIBIBOP locations in Pike & Rose, Bethesda Row, and Downtown Silver Spring.
From BIBIBOP:
“Help us show our teachers some love! 👏 National Teachers Day is tomorrow (May 4th) and we’re celebrating by honoring our impactful teachers with a free bowl from BIBIBOP! 🧡 Let your favorite teacher know that they can get their free bowl at BIBIBOP when they present their school ID by tagging them below! 😊 Help us show our appreciation to the teachers you love!
*Offer valid in-store only. Not available for online ordering. Offer valid Tuesday, May 4, 2021 only. Must present valid school ID or identify as teacher to claim free bowl. Offer does not include Extra Protein. Cannot combine with other offers.“
