First the Hiker-Biker Trail has already been unofficially open for the past 2 weeks or so (IE: no barricade you had to step around) but within the next 2 weeks it should be officially open, only with an indirect path around the construction.
They are working on paving the area where the future Hyatt Hotel will be and will use that to connect the Hiker Biker trail. This is the path the new trail will take. (see highlighted path)
Honestly this is NOT a huge deal since so many folks have already been using the trail, but this should mean that they will open the south of the trail near Tuckerman to Hyattsville (that was impassable) and also this will mean there will not be an annoying but passable barricade at the north end of the trail. Plus there won't be signs everywhere threatening prosecution. :)
I have made the walk down to Hyattsville a few times and it is only a mile walk and it's a really nice wide and safe two lane bike trail. This is great as I didn't realize Busboys and Poets and Tara Thai were in walking distance when I bought here.
In other news, townhouse Building 6 also just went vertical on Monday (9/25). Building 4 is getting exterior finishing touches and still looks like closings in the middle of next month... Building 5 just got its first brick exterior so is still on track for December. I will post a construction update with pictures soon.
As I posted here in July and early September MOD pizza is opening in October. They finally confirmed an open date of October 20th. I went by there today and it looks like District Taco is generally staying on course with MOD and may be just a little behind where MOD is as far as interior construction goes. I still believe District Taco will make October but it may be the very end of the month.
Lastly, the Riverdale Park Station metro shuttle is in operation and even has an app which updates it's real time location.
See screenshot of the app below: (app name = "Riverdale Shuttle")
The walk from the College Park Metro to Riverdale Park Station is really not too bad and I usually get there in 15 minutes or so but it will be nice to be able to check this app and if I time it right I can take the shuttle instead... This will be even more useful when it is brutally cold outside in January/February and I don't feel like making the walk. Adding this feature where you can see the real time location of the shuttle is a big plus.
That's us!! We are lot 52 (not sure if that is 6 or 7). We are being told to expect late December or early January for closing. It sounds like they are selling units a bit faster than they expected to, which is good to hear.
ReplyDeleteI am really excited about the app, too. Having two stations to choose from, we might be able to time it closely to catch the shuttle from one or the other. The walk to the Metro was a big selling point for us, but it's great to have options.
I still have not taken the shuttle as the walk to College Park is not terrible. I realized later that building 6 and 7 are actually just one building... I am updating the blog to reflect this and I just posted a map with numbers for clarity.
DeleteHi MDRE,
ReplyDeleteDoes the path to the college park metro right next to building 4? Does the highlighted path you drew include the indirect route to avoid construction? Or that's how it will look like eventually?
Path goes right next to building 4... the highlighted path is the indirect route to avoid construction but honestly I believe everyone is still using the normal straight path through. I think they just have to be able to say there was a way you could avoid the construction.
DeleteI am contemplating between Riverdale Park Station and Editors Park. There are pluses and minuses to both developments. Editors Park I like the character of the face of the buildings for the townhomes, not to mention the additional space you get in the floorplan (ie. each bedroom having a bathroom and a nice sized closet and having a 2 car garage). However, Riverdale, you have Whole Foods, eatery places and also the gym in the development. I was curious in regards to the HOA fees. When I saw the cost comparison versus Editors Park, I asked the sales if the HOA was paid quarterly, but was advised that no it was monthly. Since you had your first HOA meeting, did mgt show where all the intake of funds are going? Is a lot of the cost per fee going to provide the shuttle service?
ReplyDeleteEditors Park has less square footage but much better use of the square footage, I agree with you on that. The HOA fee here is $133 per month and most of it goes to the "Master HOA" and we have not been provided good details on what they are doing with that yet.. We have another meeting next week where we are supposed to figure out more. For me I really preferred the area RPS was in vs PG Plaza Mall/Home Depot/East West Highway and that was the selling point. Editors Park is nice too though.
DeleteSounds good. Yeah, one thing I like about Riverdale Park is all the amenities at your door step (gym and grocery store are a big plus). It will be good to know where all the fees are being spent. I live in DC and my condo fees when I first bought were that much per month, then increased. However, since it is a townhome community there are already less costs b/c main thing needed is property management company, trash/recycling removal and snow removal and grounds upkeep. It will be good to know once more details are provided. When I asked at sales and marketing they didn't really know and were only able to tell me that it has turned over to the property management company. Thanks for the reply and I continue to try and narrow down my selection.
DeleteHad another meeting and apparently the reason nothing has been revealed is a budget has not been presented... so right now the money is just going into an escrow account until a budget is submitted. It is going to be used for general community maintenance but that is all I know right now. How many units are for sale right now? Appears like 6 more are left from the MLS?
DeleteIt looks like still 5 available for sale (4 Dawson and 1 Parker). I'm planning to make my decision ins 6 months (since I still have to sell my place). Of course the sale office gives me the whole "you better buy now because these places are selling fast" sales pitch. However, I am going to try and do my best to barter on the upgrades. I think one thing that is unfair to a prospective buyer is showing the models with the 2 BD/ 2.5 BA layout. Even in their marketing they don't mention 1.5 bath. When you do the customization, you then find out that that is $5k just to have a 2.5 BA layout. Needless to say, when the time comes I'm going to be working my negotiation tactics (especially since I see they were giving half off upgrades prior). I know when I asked about the HOA fee, I was told there was a 5 year lock on that fee. So it makes you really wonder if the HOA fee needs to be that high etc. I know when we were initially paying condo fees, the developer was getting that money back and the only thing they couldn't touch was our capital contribution. I love the layout of Editors Park (another nice thing is I can walk away from the contract if my place doesn't sell for my asking price), but I do like the setup of Riverdale Park. It is a good place where on the weekend you can be lazy and not really have an excuse to not go to the gym ;-)
DeleteI did see they already sold 4 units in Building 7 which has not even broke ground yet which was surprising. I do think there will probably still be something left 6 months from now but it may be in that very last building.
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