Save our Town: Oppose Jaffe Tower

We have moved here this year, and I am getting familiarized with the issues living near downtown Bethesda.

Montgomery County leaders never even responded to my request to help with a 5 foot variance on my corner house on Walsh St, but they are giving away height restrictions to developers. It's obvious that our elected leaders don't care about regular citizens and want to develop us out of Bethesda.

Building a tower on the site proposed doesn't make any sense. There is already a daily quagmire in the area around the Wisconsin Ave/Bradley Blvd intersection. More traffic brought by senseless over-development would exacerbate an already bad situation.

I agree.

We should not change the zoning ordinances for a street that directly borders a single family community. West Ave is a parking lot right now in the morning and evening as parents drop off and pick up their children from the school.

Construction of this "tower" is senseless and will clearly have many negative effects on the surrounding community, primarily the west end of the Town of Chevy Chase: Severe disruption of an already terribly congested area (what about safety for neighborhood kids?); serious parking issues during the entire process of construction and longer after completion; severe noise and air pollution from construction debris and dust (the Town is on the receiving end of the prevailing wind patterns, so we can expect more than usual pulmonary irritation and likely additional medical aggravations); worse-than-now traffic congestion anywhere around the Bradley-Wisconsin intersection both during and continuing after construction; this list can only grow. There is no upside for residents or anyone who else reliant on the area roads for their commute, but count on the developer reaping ample benefits. I'd bet that the developers don't live anywhere near Bradley Wisconsin, West, Ridge, Stanford or Walsh.

I do not believe the height planned for this development is appropriate and should be lowered substantially. We do not want, not should be have to live with, a high rise tunnel along Wisconsin. Traffic is already a nightmare and will only get worse with this development. I understand the need for development near the Metro but please, let's do it reasonably.

Please don't make charming Bethesda feel like concrete jungle Arlington

I am a longtime resident of Chevy Chase. The plan is appalling. Surely something can be done at a lesser height with reduced impact on the adjoining neighborhood.

Bethesda needs considered positive development not "Gateway" buildings which benefit no one but the developers. As a Bethesda resident I live here for the atmosphere and lifestyle which appears to be in jeopardy from excessive awarding of additional density and height allowances.

The residents living in the surrounding area and neighborhood should be participants in any development decisions.

it is already too congested on our roads for another large building with more people living in our small area. Where is the city planning?

That corner is already so congested. Please don't make our community more crowded. At some point development must stop

Town of Chevy Chase

Unless there is a feasible and comprehensive plan for traffic and parking management, STOP. CONTEXT, developers. Please learn something from the architects and planners who are trained to deal sensitively with the surrounding area and who may not deem this site viable for the immediate community.

The County Council's job is to attend to the needs and wishes of their constituents--we the citizens of Montgomery County--and NOT to the needs and wishes of developers, whose only concern is to maximize profits and not the wishes and needs of the citizens. Developers care little for the character of the surrounding neighborhoods--that's the concern of the Council. If the Council receives money from the developers and does not give preference to the needs of their lawful voting constituents, what does this say about our county government? And why would we ever want to live here and pay taxes? Or vote for them again?

There is way too much traffic and building going on in the area. We don't need another tall building and more people.

We have to stand together against developers and their political contributions that support the Montgomery County Council ( with the exception of CM Marc Elrich). The pro development policies of the County Council comsistently ignore the concerns of their constituents who seek to protect the neighborhoods where they live.

The height and scale of the proposed development are incompatible with the nearby single family homes and narrow residential streets. Traffic along West Avenue is already congested and unsafe by allowing cars to park in the No Parking zones in front of the Oneness School., where students get picked up and dropped off. Adding more pedestrians, commuters and cars to an already problematic situation will surely result in accidents and injuries. Anyone who has experienced the morning or afternoon jumble along West Avenue will agree that this block needs less traffic - not more.

Traffic in this area is already at a standstill. This is not smart development, this is a grab at more profit by developers and helps no one but developers. Our infrastructure cannot support this level of development.