A 26-story, 450-unit apartment tower proposed for 7201 Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Bethesda is moving through an expedited county approval process.

The Pinkard Group filed to redevelop the half-vacant, seven-story office building at the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and Willow Lane under Montgomery County's "Commercial to Residential Reconstruction" process, according to UrbanTurf. The project's first hearing before the Development Review Committee is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 8, according to the committee's agenda.

The shortcut works like this: instead of the standard two-step sketch plan and site plan review, qualifying projects move through a single expedited plan. To qualify, the existing building must be at least half-vacant. The Pinkard Group's filing argues the office building clears that bar.

The county created the expedited path in April 2025 through a zoning text amendment to convert underused office space to housing, Bethesda Magazine reported. At least two other projects have already used it. The Planning Board approved Bethesda Crescent, a 29-story, 420-unit tower at 7475 Wisconsin Avenue, on July 23 under the same process. A 148-unit project at 831 University Boulevard East in Silver Spring also moved forward under the rule.

The process is gaining traction. Nick Gordon, vice president at MRP Realty, called the expedited path "a tremendous lift" for the Bethesda Crescent project at a July 23 Planning Board meeting, as reported by Bethesda Magazine on July 30.

The 7201 Wisconsin Avenue tower, designed by SK+I Architecture, would rise 262 feet. It reaches that height through a 12-foot bonus tied to affordable housing incentives: moderately priced dwelling units (MPDUs) would make up 17.6% of the 450 units. The project also includes 12,000 square feet of commercial space on a 0.78-acre site zoned under the Bethesda Downtown master plan.

According to the application, the residential building would generate fewer peak-hour vehicle trips than the current office use. Nearby schools can absorb the roughly 34 new students the project would add.

The project's design has already gone through several rounds with the Bethesda Downtown Design Advisory Panel. The Art Review Panel approved a plan in June to relocate, or if necessary decommission, the Crystal Willow public art installation on the site.

The DRC agenda lists the applicant as 7201 Operator, LLC, with engineer Ian Duke of VIKA. The committee is an inter-agency task force that includes representatives from WSSC, Pepco, the State Highway Administration and county departments of Permitting Services, Environmental Protection, and Public Works and Transportation. After the committee's review, planning staff prepare recommendations for the Planning Board, which would then hold its own hearing. No Planning Board date has been set.

The 7201 Wisconsin Avenue item is scheduled for 11 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 8, in Conference Room 3-202 on the third floor of the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission's Wheaton headquarters. The meeting is open to the public and will be streamed on the Montgomery Planning YouTube channel.