Developer Seeks Higher Height Limit To Add ‘Niche’ Grocery Store to Downtown Silver Spring Project

County Council is considering the zoning change

A rendering of the Solaire Ripley II project via Washington Property Co. website

The Montgomery County Council is weighing a zoning change that would allow a developer to add a grocery store to a planned downtown Silver Spring apartment building.

The proposed change, introduced by council member Tom Hucker of Silver Spring earlier this month, would allow buildings in Silver Spring’s Ripley District to be built as high as 270 feet if they include a grocery store on the ground floor or something similar of at least 10,000 square feet. Current zoning limits building height in the district to 200 feet with ground floor retail or 145 feet without retail, according to the zoning text amendment.

Washington Property Co. President Charles Nulsen said his company requested the change because it’s working to bring a “niche grocer” to the 440-unit apartment building project dubbed Solaire Ripley II that it has planned for the former Progress Place shelter site at 8120 Colonial Lane.

The county gave the company the property where the former shelter was located in exchange for construction of a new shelter nearby. The company spent about $15 million to build the new Progress Place shelter, which opened in December behind the Silver Spring fire department on Georgia Avenue.

The former shelter building is being used by a nonprofit to train culinary workers as well as for artist space before construction begins on the apartment building.

Nulsen would not identify the grocer, but described the business as a “niche urban grocery store” that likes the project’s location and that he believes would be a major addition to the Ripley District. He said his company needs the additional height because it would have to put parking above ground to provide space for a grocery store on the ground floor. A total of 223 parking spaces is planned for the building.

Giant and Whole Foods Market both have stores within blocks of the planned project.

Washington Property Co. plans to revise its plans for the building and submit them to the county’s Planning Board in September—around the same time the council is likely to vote on the zoning amendment to allow the additional height. The project is not scheduled to begin construction for another two years, according to Nulsen.

Washington Property Co. is a major developer in the Ripley District. It completed the 295-unit Solaire Silver Spring apartment building in 2012. Workers are pouring the foundation for the crane this month that will be used to build the Solaire Georgia Avenue building at the corner of Georgia Avenue and Bonifant Street. Nulsen said the crane is expected to be installed in the next two weeks.

That building will be 20 stories and contain about 340 housing units. It’s scheduled to be completed in a little over two years, according to Nulsen.

Washington Property Co. projects in the Ripley District of Downtown Silver Spring (click to expand)