Rockville-based developer TM Associates received approval from the Montgomery County Planning Board on Thursday to build a North Bethesda housing project with all 154 units designated as affordable.
Board Vice Chair Mitra Pedoeem and commissioners James Hedrick and Josh Linden unanimously approved the project on 1.56 acres at 11800 Nebel St., which will also include such environmental sustainability features as geothermal pumps that tap into the earth’s heat to for warming and cooling buildings.
Board Chair Artie Harris and Commissioner Shawn Bartley were not present at Thursday’s meeting.
TM Associates pursued its project through a Mixed Income Housing Community (MIHC) Plan, which fast-tracks the regulatory review process of proposed projects that include a significant amount of affordable housing. According to planning documents, the MIHC plan framework was created by the County Council in 2023. Instead of a 90- to 120-day review, the MIHC plan requires a review of 60 to 65 days and combines a project’s sketch and site plan applications.
The development team expects to begin construction within a year, Don Nuzzio, vice president of development at TM Associates, told Bethesda Today on Thursday. The team was looking forward to bringing more affordable units to the county, he said.
“It really is giving accessibility, not only to individual and families covering a large range of incomes,” Nuzzio said. “Providing an integrated community in such high-cost areas is, I think … just a really critical fact of the development.”
According to Nuzzio and planning staff, the project is the first MIHC plan to be considered by the board.
Units in the seven-story building will be moderately priced dwelling units (MPDUs) available to those with incomes within 30% to 70% of the Area Median Income, according to planning documents. The building will offer units with one to four bedrooms.
“Typically, rental housing communities will have maybe 12.5% or upwards of 30% in that range of [MPDUs], which preserve the covenant for those units for about a 99-year period,” Nuzzio explained. “We’re saying we’re going to do 100% MPDUs [and] all of our units will be held at a 99-year-old covenant, so it protects long-term affordability for generations to come.”
The building will also include an underground parking garage for residents with 75 vehicle spaces, an entry plaza with seating and greenery, plus a backyard courtyard terrace, according to planning documents. The courtyard space will have a playground, seating and a grilling and dining space.
The proposed site for the project is a property with a vacant building and a surface parking lot about a half-mile from the North Bethesda Metro, according to charging documents.
Before voting Thursday, board Vice Chair Mitra Pedoeem praised the developers for securing financing for the project, which could garner high costs due to its environmental sustainability plans.
“Geothermal is not cheap. The insulation is not cheap. Making it air tight is not cheap. All of these add to the construction cost and then you made it 100% affordable. I’m not a whiz in financing … but if that is a possibility, I think you probably should … share your experiences on how it could be done,” Pedoeem said.
Commissioner Josh Linden said the fact that all of the project’s units would be affordable was “really impressive.”
Environmental sustainability
The project aims for a high level of environmental sustainability, according to the developer’s plans. TM Associates intends to pursue Passive House Institute U.S. Zero certification, which is “one of the most rigorous green building certifications in the country,” planning documents state.
To receive the certification, the project must “minimize its energy consumption down to a level that can be mostly covered by on-site renewable energy sources” and must achieve numerous energy and environmental sustainability certifications including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Zero Energy Ready Home certification, according to planning documents.
The project plans include a variety of environmental sustainability features such as geothermal heat pumps, energy recovery ventilation, airtight construction and thermal insulation, according to planning documents.
According to Nuzzio, the plans include rooftop solar panels and the building will be the first multifamily community in the area to have a vertical geothermal system..
Nuzzio told Bethesda Today that the project’s environmental sustainability components set the project apart and can serve as a “template for what can be done.”
