Montgomery Mall Expansion May be Approved Today

The Montgomery County Planning Board at its meeting today issued a tentative approval to a revised expansion plan for Westfield Montgomery, better known as Montgomery Mall, a nearly 4 decade-old mall at Democracy Blvd. and Westlake Drive along I -270 just outside the beltway. The plan could include new retail, restaurants and parking structures along the entry streets to the mall. The Board has recessed temporarily, and plans to take a formal vote tonight to decide the matter.

The 60-acre project will expand to enlarge Macy's, relocate the Sears, and add a promenade with freestanding retail. The Board had been working over the past several days with a citizen's group to improve pedestrian access, and add a bike lane, shade trees, and a raised median strip. The the Planning Board originally approved the plan in 2005 to include 308,000 square feet of new retail, the new proposal includes approximately 60,000 feet of additional retail, including 25,000 square feet recently acquired from an existing strip mall.

UPDATE: The project was voted on and approved by the Board.