Friendship Heights council clears Page Park design change; Red House renovation costs rise

The Friendship Heights Village Council unanimously approved a revision to the Page Park design on Oct. 14, removing a planned walkway at the north end of the park from the Stream Valley buffer zone to secure a Montgomery County forest conservation exemption, the council said at its regular meeting.

The change was presented by Jim Wilson, the village's project manager for Page Park and the Red House, who also briefed the council on the Red House renovation. Wilson said building-permit approvals for the Red House's zoning and electrical work have been secured and that the permitting cycle could allow construction to begin as early as late December or January. "We have submitted for building permits for the Red House," Wilson said. "...They would allow us to, potentially start construction as early as December. Probably late December, or January would be when we think we'd be ready for construction."

Why it matters: the walkway removal was required to obtain the county's forest conservation variance; keeping the concrete walkway in the Stream Valley buffer would have prevented the exemption and added months to the parks permitting schedule. Wilson told the council that the variance was a significant milestone because a full forest conservation plan could have added "anywhere from 8 months to a year and a half" to the schedule.

Permits and timing: Wilson outlined the county's sequential permitting steps for Page Park site work. After forest conservation approval, the county next reviews stormwater management plans, then sediment/erosion control plans and associated easements for bio-retention basins. On the current schedule, Wilson said, the earliest the project could receive permits allowing site work is March or April, assuming single-cycle reviews. "If things go for a single cycle, it's gonna go faster. If they go through multiple cycles, it...can push it out," he said.

Red House costs and scope: Wilson said the contractor returned a revised proposal after updated drawings showed broader accessibility work was required beyond the building envelope. "The contract that he sent over was approximately $256,000," Wilson said, contrasting that with earlier construction estimates he recalled as roughly $138,000 plus about $40,000 in allowances. Wilson said he planned to review the draft proposal with the contractor and expected to have more clarity within a week to 10 days.

Pergola remediation: Wilson reported a separate, unexpected cost driver: the park's pergola lacks footings the county requires for structures of that size. County rules require foundations to extend below the frost line (Wilson cited 30 inches). He said engineers recommended removing the pergola, install 10 individual footings (approximately 16 inches square by 30 inches deep under each column), and then reassemble the structure. Wilson provided an estimate in the meeting transcript describing the full disassembly and remediation as "probably about a $4,050,000 dollars to take this pergola, disassemble it, take it apart, put it aside, cut the holes, put the rebar, put new anchor bolts, and put it back in place." The council asked staff to obtain a formal contractor estimate and consider lower-cost alternatives such as temporary shade structures or landscaping if the footing work proved too costly.

Accessibility and coordination with tenant work: Council members asked whether the village's work must finish before private tenants begin their fit-out. Wilson said he expected the village work to be completed before tenant construction begins to avoid site-commingling problems. He also noted outstanding long-lead items such as structural posts for steps and that procuring those items may add lead time.

Public comments and next steps: Several residents urged more naturalized park treatments and questioned the amount of concrete in the design. Council members also discussed options to preserve the park's intended character while meeting county requirements. The council voted to adopt the revised design removing the walkway from the Stream Valley buffer; the motion passed unanimously.

The project manager said he would return with a reviewed contractor proposal for the Red House and a firm estimate for pergola remediation; the park's site-work permitting status will determine whether construction can proceed in March'April 2026 or later.