Comments on: Birchmere Deal Falls Through

By: SharonK

SharonK — Mon, 10 Sep 2007 06:40:03 +0000

I don't know what the deal involved.

However, I do know that MoCo spent a great deal of money for the Strathmore expansion...IMAO, the Strathmore is not all that it could and should have been. Seating too cramped and not as many seats as would make the venue more productive economically. I purchased season tickets for season one...and never again. I need to take an Aleve upon departure due to severe leg cramps...and I am 5'8"- feel sorry for those taller folks.

Strathmore acoustics are GREAT for symphonic, but little other music and, finally, due to the expense/requirements of the acoustical engineering/construction, no real non-music performing arts are viable.

A worse debacle was at Black Rock in Germantown. It seats so few, that most shows need to be subsidized.

Too bad about the Birchmere. The county might be better off leaving the planning and implementation of performing arts venues to enterprises that need to make a profit... or at least encourage a public/for profit partnership.

By: sound chaser

sound chaser — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 02:10:02 +0000

No reason to ever go there now.It's auch a drab area and the few music venues there suck.I'm sure they'll open another 930 club you over the head type venue - just what we need :>(~ way to go Monkey County !

By: jeuill

jeuill — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 04:35:09 +0000

I guess Prince Georges County residents don't appreciate good music. Hmmmm. They're not even mentioned as a possibility.

By: jacqui

jacqui — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 00:12:13 +0000

That's MOCO for ya! They are ready to ram a 6 lane toll road down our throats,screwed with us about parking in the evening and now, teased us into thinking that just maybe we would really get something nice. Oh well, hopefully the Quarry house will hold up under pressure!

By: LooLoo

LooLoo — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 20:03:07 +0000

This SUCKS! I can't drive to the Alexandria one b/c it's too dam far, even when traffic is not a problem. I really wanted Birchmere in Mo Co. WAAAAAHHHHH !!!

By: Jamie

Jamie — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 19:33:58 +0000

Disappointing. I am guessing the "success" (read: suburbinization/sanitation) of "Silver Sprung" has made the country government see dollars signs that they didn't know existed five years ago. The Birchmere would have been a bright spot on what is rapidly becoming an incredibly bland downtown area, as many older (and much more interesting) businesses are disappearing, and the landscape becomes Red Lobster and Potbelly Sandwich. Not to mention that god forsaken audio/video loop between the parking garage on Wayne Ave. and the mall. Amazing that nobody's taken a shotgun to those TVs yet. But anyway, I digress. I bet someone else made Monkey County an offer they couldn't refuse. Anyone know any other details about this?