Food Truck Festival (Curbside Cookoff) Coming to Wheaton Triangle this Saturday!

A deer in Wheaton Regional Park

This is becoming such a happening hood!  As reported by Good Eatin' in Wheaton, there will be a food truck extravaganza in downtown Wheaton this weekend!  It will have 19 or 20 of the regions food trucks (some gourmet) and a craft beer garden.

Of the trucks that will be there, the only one I've tried is Dangerously Delicious Pies, and it was good. They now have a cafe in Union Station and I'm happy to see they're sticking close to their roots with the truck.

It will be noon to 8pm Saturday 9/28.

A deer in a Wheaton front yard

In other news, there are a lot of hungry deer around Wheaton right now! Last week I saw several of them during my bike rides to and from the metro.  Here are two different deer from September 16...

In other other news, I did not make it to the community meeting last week (we can thankfully read about what happened in the WaPo) but I hope to make it to the Sligo Park community cleanup day this Sunday 9/29. Will I see anyone from the internet there?...

Sligo Creek Park Community Cleanup Next Weekend: Sweep the Creek Sat-Sun Sept. 28-29

Sweep the Creek fall 2013 meeting sites near Sligo Creek Park

Yesterday I saw signs up for this event along Sligo Parkway and it should be fun to help out and meet some neighbors.  It is called:

Sweep the Creek and Celebrate National Public Lands Day!

There is no need to sign up ahead of time and "all you need to bring is your community spirit."  The event will feature trash pick-up from inside the parkland (something that is fun and rewarding to do!) and invasive plant removal.  Instructions will be provided on-site.  Friends of Sligo Creek will provide "gloves, bags, water, and guidance on what help is most needed in each section."

The sites near Wheaton are labeled 8, 9, and 12 on the map and are happening both Saturday and Sunday (some each day).  Here are the details:

Saturday, September 28, 9-11amCreek Sections 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 10 Middle, 10 Lower and 12 

Section 12: Wheaton - Glen Haven Park. Windham Lane dead-ends at the park coming from the east or west.  This small park features mature trees and is peaceful and pleasant. Can be accessed easily from Wheaton by walking or bicycling.

Section 8: Whitehall Pedestrian/Bicycle Bridge - on Sligo Creek Parkway in between University Blvd. W and Dennis Ave.  This will be at "Whitehall Bridge," a short distance north from the Sligo-Dennis Avenue Local Park and Activity Building. The path going over the bridge connects Gridley Lane/Sligo Middle School fields to the west, and Whitehall St./Tenbrook Dr. to the east. There's a small parking turnout here along the parkway that is readily visible and the site can be accessed easily from Wheaton or Forest Glen by walking or bicycling..

Sunday, September 29, 1-3pmCreek Sections 4 and 9

Section 9: Upstream from University Blvd W - Sligo Creek Park here is behind the Kemp Mill Shopping Center, which is at the intersection of Arcola Ave. and Lamberton Dr.  The cleanup group will meet between Shalom Kosher Mart (which will be open that day) and the walking/biking path in the park.  This is a perfect opportunity to use the path to get to the cleanup! 

The website has more details about exactly when and where the clean-ups will be taking place, including a link to a nice map of the meeting sites (a copy of their map is provided in this post).  Which ones will you join?

This Wednesday: Wheaton neighborhood meeting seeking our feedback about new development in the Triangle

Wheaton triangle from Grandview Avenue.

I hope to see you at the public meeting this Wednesday, September 18, at Wheaton High School.  According to the county website:

"The Montgomery County Government is inviting the community to a meeting with Stonebridge Carras/Bozzuto, the selected developer for the Wheaton Redevelopment Program. At the meeting, the proposed development plan will be shared along with details on the scope of their project and ideas for design. The County would like the community’s feedback as preparations begin for the development of a contract with the developer."

So come to the meeting and share your preferences for downtown Wheaton!  The triangle in question is in the middle of our community so should be of close interest to all of us.

"Wheaton Triangle" is shown here.

As background: our county is moving forward with plans to redevelop the Wheaton Triangle.  This is the area just northwest of the Wheaton Metro station that is currently a large parking lot with meters.  I think having new buildings here will be a good thing since they may bring more people to the area and they have promised a new "town center" as part of the deal.  There will be underground parking so there isn't a loss of the parking lot.

As I wrote last winter, the new development should be person-oriented with businesses on the ground floor, or at least displays that are nice to look at.

There is a contentious history of this redevelopment project, as JUTP reports in this blog post, since the county made a good plan in 2010 and then pulled out to the community's surprise and annoyance.  Specifically, "the county made a deal with developer BF Saul in 2010 to build several million square feet of apartments, shops, and offices in downtown Wheaton, along with a town square. BF Saul had a website and public outreach team to gather feedback, but the deal collapsed when the County Council balked at the $39.5 million price tag of building a platform over the Wheaton Metro station so BF Saul could build office towers on top." 

I hope they get it right this time and build things that will be a boon to the community. We need things that will be open and vibrant after work as well as during the workday, and we need open space with grass, trees, and benches.

Panoramic view of Wheaton triangle from outside Vietnamese restaurant on Grandview Avenue.