Bethesda’s newest offering of fine shopping, dining and residences officially opened to the public over the weekend, following a ribbon cutting ceremony held last week by Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRIT), developers of the project. County Executive Isiah Leggett, Councilmember Roger Berliner, Montgomery County Department of Economic Development Director Pradeep Ganguly, representative for Congressman Chris Van Hollen Karen McManus, FRIT senior executives, and other invited public and private sector guests attended the ribbon cutting.

Bethesda Lane at Bethesda Row features 43,000 square feet of new retail and restaurants, 180 luxury apartment residences and 244 new retail-dedicated parking spaces. The completed development of the 1.7 acre former Giant Food site rounds out the seven blocks of existing retail, restaurants, and office space encompassing Bethesda Row.

“Bethesda has long been one of Montgomery County’s, and, in fact, the Greater Washington Region’s, most dynamic and thriving business, restaurant and retail hubs,” said Leggett. “The opening of Bethesda Lane at Bethesda Row, with its many fine, new shops, restaurants and residences, certainly helps continue Bethesda’s great legacy in this regard.”

New retailers now open at Bethesda Lane include lucy, The Little Shoe Box, Ginger, BlueMercury, and Urban Country. New retailers and restaurants set to open soon include Urban Chic, Dolcezza Gelato, Le Pain Quotidien, Cork & Fork, Salon Cielo, Lebanese Taverna, Redwood Restaurant and Bar, and several others.

FRIT is an equity real estate investment trust that owns, manages, develops, and redevelops high quality retail assets, including several in Montgomery County.

Another Bethesda redevelopment project was recently honored by the Maryland Economic Development Association (MEDA). The architecturally restored Bethesda Theatre on Wisconsin Avenue, which re-opened last fall, won the 2007 Economic Development Redevelopment Project of the Year award at the 2008 MEDA Awards Program, held during the organization’s annual conference earlier this month in Cambridge, Maryland.

Restoration of the 70-year-old theatre began in 2001 by The Bozzuto Group. In 2006, Bozzuto donated the theatre to the Bethesda Cultural Alliance, that now owns and oversees its operation. Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment, a leading provider of off-Broadway, live entertainment for nearly 100 years, provides performance and production management.

The new Bethesda Theatre includes approximately 700 seats, a state-of-the-art technical package, a VIP lounge, a formal box office, a will-call area, and other modern amenities. This $11 million, 20,000-square-foot theatre employs nearly 20 full-time staff and is expected to generate more than $500,000 in annual tax revenue for Montgomery County.

“The restoration and reopening last fall of the historic Bethesda Theatre was so important from both a cultural and business development standpoint,” said Ganguly. “Not only has it brought some of the hottest off-Broadway productions to the area and played a major role in helping distinguish Montgomery County as a true player in the new creative economy, it has now been recognized by MEDA as their redevelopment project of the year, a truly deserved honor.”

The Department of Economic Development nominated the Bethesda Theatre for a MEDA award, because it represents an impressive partnership among the public and private sectors and local community, and has become a cultural asset for the county.