This article, originally published at 9:52 a.m. on March 27, 2024, was updated at 3:07 p.m. on March 27, 2024, to include details about the developers’ goal for the dining car to be in use as a restaurant or diner again.
Tastee Diner, an iconic eatery in downtown Silver Spring, closed in March 2023 after more than 70 years in business, but its local legacy will live on, according to a sketch plan filed Monday with county planners by Washington, D.C.-based developer Roadside Development.
The developer’s plans include the diner’s historic dining car at the foot of a 30-story mixed-use building proposed for the site of the eatery and a neighboring lot which was most recently home to Capital One bank, at 8676 Georgia Ave. There are no plans for the diner to reopen.
In May, Roadside filed a preliminary plan for the project, which showed the developer’s interest in preserving the historic dining car as part of the redevelopment of the site.
According to planning documents, the developer is proposing a building with up to 525,000 square feet of residential space, 25,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space and 340 parking spaces. The building will house up to 525 residential units, 15% of which will be moderately priced dwelling units (MPDUs) as required by county rules.
Jeff Edelstein, a partner at Roadside Development, told MoCo360 in May that Roadside plans to preserve the diner’s stainless-steel canopy and the North, East and West facades of the diner car while replacing the glass block base with stone. He also said in May that during construction, Roadside plans to design and provide infrastructure for a restaurant to enter the space, with the goal of the diner being used once again.
Edelstein did not respond to MoCo360’s requests for comments Monday and Tuesday.
Chris Peifer, acting communications chief at Montgomery Planning, wrote in an email to MoCo360 that the sketch plan is scheduled to be reviewed April 9 by the Development Review Committee. A public hearing date is also tentatively scheduled for mid-July, he wrote.
The dining car is considered to be the only historic portion of the restaurant space, according to the Maryland Historical Trust, which describes the diner as “exceptionally significant as an extremely rare building type and a classic example of Art Deco/Modern commercial architecture.” Few factory-built diners like the Tastee Diner have survived modern-day competition within the restaurant industry and only a dozen diners remain in Maryland, documents state.
In 1994, the Silver Spring diner was recognized by the Montgomery County Council as a historic landmark. The diner opened in 1946 at Wayne and Georgia avenues. In 2000, owner Gene Wilkes decided to move the diner car to its current location on Cameron Street to make way for the construction of Discovery Communication’s former headquarters.
After more than 70 years of business, Tastee Diner closed abruptly on March 22, 2023. MoCo360 reported at the time that there was no reason provided and many employees were not notified.
Roadside Development has completed four other historic preservation projects in the area, including Purcellville Gateway in Virginia and City Market at O, City Ridge, and Cityline in the District, MoCo360 reported in May.
For this project, Roadside has partnered with Bonstra Haresign Architects, also based in the District. The design of the building is still in development, but plans propose to move the dining car closer to the corner of Ramsey and Cameron streets, according to Peifer.
The plans also propose the building have multiple green roofs and planters along the façade as well as green space open to the public on the street level.