Narrow 260-Unit Apartment Building Pitched For Bethesda Moves Forward

• 9:08 AM EST

by UrbanTurf Staff

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The plans for a building that (forgive us) is just trying to fit in in downtown Bethesda is moving through the approval process. 

Washington Property Company (WPC) is taking plans for a 260-unit apartment building at the site of two aging office buildings in downtown Bethesda before the Montgomery County Development Review Committee next month. 

The properties, located at 4719 Hampden Lane and 4720 Montgomery Lane (map), were once part of a larger mixed-use vision known as Hampden East, but WPC is now pursuing a new plan that reimagines the assembled site with a 250-foot tall multifamily building, underground parking, and public open space.

The proposed tower would have up to 17.6% Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs), which would allow the developer to build 12 feet higher than the site’s 250-foot base height limit. The location, one block north of the future southern entrance to the Bethesda Metro and Purple Line station, positions the project as a transit-oriented development.

Because the property is unusually narrow and shallow—particularly along 4719 Hampden Lane—architect Design Collective is employing alternative façade and massing treatments permitted under the Bethesda Downtown Design Guidelines. These techniques aim to ensure adequate access to light and air while still accommodating a functional residential floorplate. The building’s architecture will rely on articulation, variation, and step-backs to soften its scale, especially along the pedestrian-oriented frontages.

The project will go before the Committee on March 10. 

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.production.logicbrush.com/articles/blog/narrow_260-unit_apartment_building_pitched_for_bethesda_moves_forward/24355.