The Lakeforest Mall was open in Gaithersburg, Maryland, for more than 40 years but has sat vacant since 2023. Redevelopment of the site is about to get underway.
Once a mecca of shopping, a place for teens to hang out and somewhere for people to get their steps in, it’s a ghost town now. But that’s about to change.
A small transit center will be moved and tripled in size because of a partnership with Montgomery County, the city of Gaithersburg and the state of Maryland.
“We’re going to grow in population and jobs. How we grow really matters. Our roads cannot continue to handle massive additions of travel. We need other ways to move people,” Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich said.
The expansion of the transit center will kick off development of the 100-acre site.
The wrecking ball is expected to hit the deserted mall in the next couple of months to make way for a mixed-use development with housing, retail, entertainment and open space.
Gaithersburg Mayor Jud Ashman described what’s planned.
“While my family and I and our neighbors have had wonderful experiences over the years at Lakeforest, it was time to build something new and better and get more potential out of this wonderful spot,” he said.
As the transit center announcement, a woman held a sign asking “Why did you cut down our forest?” She said she was upset that trees were leveled to make way for the project.
“The people wanted it to be restored. The developer should have restored it. We gave them ideas. It was less than two acres out of 103,” she said.
Officials said that while the trees were removed, 16 acres of trees will be part of a new development, as well as green space, which supporters called a win for the environment.
Some residents said they support the development but wish more amenities were planned to make it special.
“We wanted to have a community garden, a makers’ space, we wanted to have, definitely, a park,” a resident said.
The developer said there will be 1,600 residential units, including apartments and condos, with a range of price points. They’re planning 500,000 square feet of retail, restaurant and entertainment space.
“We looked for opportunities where there is an incredible mix of raw ingredients, which this has, that needs to be reworked,” Kevin Rogers of WRC real estate said.
The mall opened in 1978 and was an important part of the community for decades. Some described the expected demolition as bittersweet. But they’re excited to breathe new life into the deserted space.
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