It’s been a long time since we’ve heard any updates about the long-delayed makeover of Westfield Montgomery mall. But hopes were raised this week after a Wall Street Journal article implied that something might finally happen. The grand redevelopment plan, originally expected to get under way before the pandemic, was supposed to include apartments, condos, an open-air shopping/dining promenade, underground parking garages and a multi-story gym. The whole project seemed doomed at the beginning of 2021, when mall owner Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield announced plans to sell off all its U.S. shopping centers. But later that year, VP Stephen Fluhr told Store Reporter that URW had changed course and decided to keep some “flagship” locations including Westfield Montgomery. “Things are about to start happening” with the mall’s redevelopment, he promised at the time. Well… that was two years ago, and absolutely nothing has happened since. This week’s WSJ article struck a hopeful tone, noting that many URW malls are doing well and the company finally plans to invest in Bethesda and other long-awaited projects. But URW spokesman Robyn Cotelli downplayed that report, saying there’s currently no timeline for when the redevelopment might happen — or whether it will happen at all. “We will absolutely be in touch when there is news to share,” she tells us.
