A New North Bethesda Civic Association

The Greater Farmland Civic Association (GFCA) is now up and running, having had two general meetings, adopted bylaws, and poised to elect officers at the general meeting on March 13. It creates a community out of four defunct associations...Old Farm, Tilden Woods, Walnut Woods, and Hickory Woods. These neighborhoods are geographically located west of the Luxmanor Civic Association (LCA), east of I-270, and south of Montrose Road (which is also the boundary with the City of Rockville). The entire area is served by Farmland Elementary School and is in North Bethesda. GFCA now encompasses 971 properties, and the association is actively seeking input from residents for an upcoming directory and for membership. Dues for membership are $25 annually, which will entitle the member to a vote at meetings and access to the directory.

Committees have been formed and are still growing, with involvement from members being encouraged and solicited. Information about the community can be found at www.GreaterFarmland.org.

Historically, Tilden Woods was built by Community Builders between 1962 and 1964 as a "country-style" home in the woods just north of Bethesda. Most of the homes are split levels, bi-levels, and ramblers, with some colonial style homes, all in the 2000-2500 square foot range. Some of the homes have carports (which, over the years, have often been converted to 1-car garages or sunrooms), with many having off-street parking. Lot sizes range from around 9,000 sq. ft. to 13,000 sq. ft. There are approximately 260 homes in this neighborhood.

Old Farm was built between 1963 and 1966 by Kettler Brothers. There are over a dozen home styles, most of them colonials of varying sizes and layouts. Most of the homes have garages, predominantly 1-car. The lot sizes tend to be around 8,000 to 11,000 sq. ft. There are nearly 500 homes in Old Farm.

Much of Walnut Woods was built around the same time as Old Farm, but there were several builders and many building styles. Most are colonials, but there are a few ramblers. A number of these homes were built by the builder Groover-Cooley, which is renowned for quality construction and plaster walls. The "newer" (it's all relative) homes have 2-car garages. In the 1980s, Hickory Woods was built on lots closest to I-270. The neighborhood names of Walnut Woods and Hickory Woods, advertised by the builders and known by the residents, are not recognized in the legal descriptions, so the legal subdivision name for both of these neighborhoods is Montrose Woods. It is not too uncommon in Montgomery County for the developer/builders to name a subdivision with a different name than that in the public records. For instance, the community we all know as Windermere is in the public records as Heritage Walk.