Yesterday's Charm, Today's Convenience

Jason McCool ambled along a leaf-strewn path through Falkland Chase Apartments on a recent weekday, walking his mixed-breed terrier, Fenway, and taking in his favorite things about the place he lives.

He likes that Falkland Chase, which consists of 20 garden-apartment buildings on 22 acres at 16th Street and East West Highway, sits a few blocks from the Silver Spring Metro and downtown Silver Spring. He likes that the complex caters to pet owners not only by allowing cats and dogs, but also by offering fenced dog parks throughout the complex and by keeping dog treats in the main office.

And he likes that the complex is full of green space and a sense of history that can only come with age: It was built in the 1930s as one of the first apartment projects backed by the Federal Housing Administration.

One thing he doesn't like is the uncertainty that has surrounded the complex's future since New York-based Home Properties, which bought Falkland Chase in 2003, unveiled plans to demolish several of the complex's buildings to make way for new ones.

Current plans call for high- and mid-rise buildings with residential and retail space on the northern third of the complex.

Michael Eastwood, vice president of development at Home Properties, said plans are still subject to change during the review process but that "the fundamentals of the project remain pretty constant."

"Two-thirds of the complex will remain completely intact," he said. "The piece we're proposing to redevelop is the one with the highest percentage of asphalt, the least amount of trees and has already been impacted by the widening of East West Highway. We think it makes a lot of sense to redevelop."

Eastwood also said Home Properties has taken care to plan for new construction that is in keeping with both the existing portions of Falkland Chase and the surrounding properties in Silver Spring.

The pending redevelopment has sparked debate in the greater community and within Falkland Chase. Some say the new construction would bring amenities such as a swimming pool, new fitness centers, additional parking and a possible grocery store, and would retain the most architecturally significant portions of Falkland Chase while adding high-density housing. The owners and other proponents of the plan also argue that the location, just blocks from Metro, makes it among the best spots in Silver Spring for new high-density housing.

But some residents, along with historic preservationists, say replacing garden-apartment buildings with high-rises would compromise the community's historic character, part of the reason they moved there.

"There's so much history in this town, and this place is a part of that," said McCool, 33, an actor and Montgomery College professor who shares a two-bedroom apartment with a roommate. "It just seems like a shame to bulldoze that."

The Montgomery County Planning Board voted on Sept. 4 to designate two-thirds of the complex as historic, and to recommend one-third of the complex be redeveloped, according to Planning Board spokeswoman Valerie Berton.