A 29-story, 420-unit apartment tower is coming to the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and East West Highway after the Montgomery County Planning Board approved the project on July 23.

Dubbed Bethesda Crescent, the development by D.C.-based MRP Realty and Prime Finance Partners will demolish two vacant office buildings at 7475 Wisconsin Ave. and 4650 East West Highway and replace them with a 302-foot mixed-use building. It is the largest project to advance through the county's expedited office-to-residential conversion process, according to the Washington Business Journal.

No one opposed it. No residents testified at the July 23 hearing, and the planning department received no community correspondence on the application, according to the planning staff report.

What's in the plan

The Phase 1 building will include up to 420 rental apartments, with 74 units (17.6%) set aside as moderately priced dwelling units. Ground-floor retail will total 11,500 square feet, and an underground garage will hold a maximum of 269 parking spaces. Public plazas with outdoor café seating are also planned.

A key feature: the publicly accessible entrance to the Bethesda Metro station, currently inside the 7475 Wisconsin Ave. building, will be relocated to street level. MRP Realty is responsible for replacing the interior escalator with an external stairwell and elevator, coordinated with WMATA.

MRP Realty Vice President Nick Gordon told the Planning Board the firm bought the office portfolio for $28 million in August 2025 after the previous owners defaulted on their loan. "We acquired the property portfolio kind of via distressed purchase … so we viewed the highest and best use of this property as residential versus office, just given some of the challenges and headwinds with trying to lease large blocks of office space," Gordon said at the July 23 hearing, as reported by Bethesda Magazine.

Planning Board Chair Artie Harris praised the building's low parking-to-resident ratio and its integrated Metro entrance, according to Bethesda Magazine's account of the hearing. Commissioner Shawn Bartley called the project "outstanding" at the same meeting and said it would mark the entrance to downtown Bethesda from East West Highway.

How the fast-track process works

Bethesda Crescent advanced under the county's Commercial to Residential Reconstruction expedited approval process, created by a zoning text amendment the County Council enacted in April 2025. The pathway replaces the traditional sketch plan and site plan review with a 60-day timeline from application acceptance to Planning Board hearing. MRP Realty's application was accepted April 15, 2026.

The process applies to buildings at least two stories high that are converted or demolished from a commercial building that is 50% or more vacant, in qualifying zones. Bethesda Crescent is the third project countywide to use the pathway and the largest by unit count.

What's next

The Planning Board approval covers land use and zoning for Phase 1. MRP Realty still needs a demolition permit and building permit from the Department of Permitting Services before construction can begin. The developers aim to complete schematic design by August 2026 and said they would soon seek a demolition permit, but no construction timeline was provided at the hearing.

Current tenants in the Phase 1 buildings include Ceremony Coffee, Charles Schwab and Econometrica Inc. The building at 4600 East West Highway, home to Andy's Pizza, the Waverly Street Gallery and Green & Bean Boutique, is not part of Phase 1 and will continue operating.

A second phase would redevelop 7401 Wisconsin Ave. with a building of similar height. Gordon told the board at the July 23 hearing that "there is a lot of work left on that part of the plan," as reported by Bethesda Magazine.

As a condition of approval, MRP Realty must contribute $25,000 to the Bethesda Urban Partnership for improvements to the tunnel beneath Wisconsin Avenue or public spaces near the Metro entrance. Residents with questions can contact planning staff member Tsaiquan Gatling at [email protected] or 301-495-2116.