Anchor Inn (Wheaton, Maryland)

Last updated
Anchor Inn
Anchor Inn (Wheaton, Maryland)
Restaurant information
Established1954
Closed2004
Food typeAmerican fare
Street addressUniversity Boulevard Avenue and Georgia Avenue
CityWheaton
CountyMontgomery
State Maryland
CountryUSA

The Anchor Inn was a landmark restaurant opened in 1954 in the heart of Wheaton, Maryland located at the corner of University Boulevard West and Georgia Avenue. [1] The restaurant was closed in 2004 and in May 2006 the restaurant was torn down to make way for a residential and retail mixed-use development. [2]

Contents

Food, drink, and atmosphere

When the Anchor Inn was still in business, its menu consisted mainly of American fare. Entrees were predominantly in the range of $12 to $20 and consisted of pasta, seafood, and steaks. [3] It drew many customers who were looking for Chesapeake Bay seafood specialties such as oysters, shrimp, and crab cakes. [4] The restaurant had however been criticized for being inconsistent and having generally worse food on the weekends when the crowds were heavier. [5]

The Anchor Inn was one of the first six establishments to apply for and receive a liquor license in Montgomery County in December 1964. The county had just recently repealed by referendum a prohibition era law which allowed liquor to only be sold at three restaurants in the county. [6]

The restaurant was also a favorite of locals who held special occasion dinners and club meetings at the venue. The Kiwanis Club of Wheaton held its meetings at the Anchor Inn on Wednesday afternoons and had a photograph of the Anchor Inn on the front page of their website. [4] The Wheaton Chamber of Commerce held regular board meetings [7] [8] and the Silver Spring Business and Professional Women's Club held social events [9] at the restaurant.

Closing and redevelopment

In 2003, the owner of the Anchor Inn, Harry "Selby" Scaggs Sr., testified in front of the Montgomery County Council and Maryland State Legislators in Annapolis, Maryland indicating that a smoking ban, which was under consideration at the time, would hurt his business. [10] After a smoking ban went into effect on October 9, 2003 in Montgomery County, Scaggs reported that his sales of Keno, beer, wine, liquor and food sales were down nearly 40% as customers flocked to nearby municipalities which still allowed smoking. On August 11, 2004, the Anchor Inn closed its doors for the last time citing the smoking ban as a major reason for its closure. [4]

The property was sold to Greenhill Capital Corp. and developer Lenny Greenberg, CEO, who already owned a majority of the block on which the Anchor Inn was situated. The building was leased to Anthony Fahey who reopened the Anchor Inn on January 19, 2005, but again had to close only after a few months. The Anchor Inn building was subsequently demolished on May 8, 2006. [2] [11]

After initially indicating that the parcel which the Anchor Inn was situated would be used as part of a $50 million, 600,000 square foot (56,000 m2) mixed use project, Greenberg and his team changed course and opted to build a standard strip mall due to a changing real estate environment. [2] [12] SIGAL Construction Corp. announced on August 31, 2007 that they had received the contract to build a new two story structure at the site where the Anchor Inn had once stood which they expected to complete by January 2008. [13]

The site does however retain the Anchor Inn sign which has been renovated and now reads "Georgia Crossing at the Anchor Inn". The sign had originally read "Anchor Inn Seafood House & Lounge". [4]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Pulling Up Anchor". Washington Business Journal. August 20, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2008.
  2. 1 2 3 Developers mull plans for Anchor Inn site in Wheaton Archived 2009-08-17 at the Wayback Machine . Gazette.Net Archived 1996-12-27 at the Wayback Machine August 2, 2006. Retrieved December 18, 2008.
  3. ↑ Anchor Inn Archived July 10, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at DineSite.com Archived October 11, 2008, at the Wayback Machine . Retrieved December 18, 2008.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Owners of Anchor Inn say smoking ban sunk business Archived 2011-05-22 at the Wayback Machine Erin Uy. Gazette.Net Aug. 18, 2004. Retrieved December 18th, 2008.
  5. ↑ Gail and Mark Barnett (May 3, 1984). "Try Mooring at the Anchor Inn While the Crowd's Away". The Washington Post. p. MDA11.
  6. ↑ Thomas R. Kendrick (Dec 3, 1964). "No Opposition Voiced On Liquor Applications". The Washington Post and Times-Herald. p. B1.
  7. ↑ "Area Events for Today". The Washington Post and Times-Herald. Dec 13, 1960. p. A24.
  8. ↑ The Washington Post and Times-Herald. Aug 30, 1967. p. A26.{{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  9. ↑ "BPW Club Plans Week of Parties". The Washington Post and Times-Herald. Mar 8, 1963. p. C2.
  10. ↑ Future of smoking in bars cloudy. Archived 2011-05-22 at the Wayback Machine Corinne Purtill. Gazette.Net May 28, 2003. Retrieved December 18, 2008.
  11. ↑ Demolition of Anchor Inn may signal redevelopment at site Archived 2009-08-17 at the Wayback Machine Fred Lewis. Gazette.Net. May 10, 2006. Retrieved December 18, 2008.
  12. ↑ georgia crossing: no style, but lots of potential for wheaton. May 28, 2008. Retrieved December 18, 2008.
  13. ↑ SIGAL Awarded Georgia Crossing at the Anchor Inn Archived 2011-07-15 at the Wayback Machine . Press Release August 31, 2007. Retrieved December 18, 2008.

39°2′30″N77°3′8″W / 39.04167°N 77.05222°W / 39.04167; -77.05222

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pub</span> Establishment that serves alcoholic drinks

A pub is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private houses from those open to the public as alehouses, taverns and inns. Today, there is no strict definition, but the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) states a pub has four characteristics:

  1. is open to the public without membership or residency
  2. serves draught beer or cider without requiring food be consumed
  3. has at least one indoor area not laid out for meals
  4. allows drinks to be bought at a bar
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montgomery County, Maryland</span> County in Maryland, United States

Montgomery County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 1,062,061, increasing by 9.3% from 2010. The county seat is Rockville, and Germantown is the most populous place in the county. The county is adjoined to Washington, D.C., the nation's capital, and is part of the Washington metropolitan area and the Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area. Most of the county's residents live in Silver Spring, Bethesda, Germantown, and the incorporated cities of Rockville and Gaithersburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wheaton, Maryland</span> Census-designated place in Maryland, United States

Wheaton is a census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, situated north of Washington, D.C., and northwest of downtown Silver Spring. Wheaton takes its name from Frank Wheaton (1833–1903), a career officer in the United States Army and volunteer from Rhode Island in the Union Army who rose to the rank of major-general while serving before, during, and after the Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smoking ban</span> Law prohibiting tobacco smoking in a given space

Smoking bans, or smoke-free laws, are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, that prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. The spaces most commonly affected by smoking bans are indoor workplaces and buildings open to the public such as restaurants, bars, office buildings, schools, retail stores, hospitals, libraries, transport facilities, and government buildings, in addition to public transport vehicles such as aircraft, buses, watercraft, and trains. However, laws may also prohibit smoking in outdoor areas such as parks, beaches, pedestrian plazas, college and hospital campuses, and within a certain distance from the entrance to a building, and in some cases, private vehicles and multi-unit residences.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wegmans</span> Supermarket chain in the United States

Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is a privately held American supermarket chain. It is now headquartered in Gates, New York, but was founded on January 30, 1916, in Rochester, New York.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenmont, Maryland</span> Census-designated place in Maryland, United States

Glenmont is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. The United States Census Bureau had combined Glenmont with nearby Wheaton to create the census-designated place of Wheaton-Glenmont, from 2000 to 2010. It had a population of 16,710 in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Forest Glen station</span> Washington Metro station

Forest Glen station is a side platformed Washington Metro station in Forest Glen, Maryland, United States. The station was opened on September 22, 1990, and is operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). Its opening coincided with the completion of 3.2 miles (5.1 km) of rail north of the Silver Spring station and the opening of Wheaton station. Providing service for the Red Line, the station is located at Georgia Avenue and Forest Glen Road. The station is the deepest in the system and the state of Maryland at 196 feet (60 m) deep, so high-speed elevators, rather than escalators, are used for access to the surface.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arundel Mills</span> Shopping mall in Maryland, U.S.

Arundel Mills is a shopping mall located in unincorporated Anne Arundel County, Maryland. It is 59.3% owned by Simon Property Group, who manages the mall. With its 1,930,820 sq ft (179,379 m2) GLA, it is the largest mall in the state of Maryland. Developed by The Mills Corporation, the mall is located at the intersection of Maryland Route 100 and the Baltimore-Washington Parkway in northwestern Anne Arundel County. The anchor stores are Cinemark Theatres, Books-A-Million, The Children's Place, TJ Maxx, Burlington, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Sun and Ski Sports, Old Navy, MD Furniture, Bass Pro Shops, Saks Fifth Avenue, Ulta Beauty, Dave & Buster's, Yard House, and Primark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brightwood (Washington, D.C.)</span> Place in the United States

Brightwood is a neighborhood in the northwestern quadrant of Washington, D.C. Brightwood is part of Ward 4.

The Gazette published weekly community newspapers serving Montgomery, Prince George's, Frederick, and Carroll counties in Maryland, including a subscription-based weekend edition covering business and politics throughout the state. The group of papers consistently won awards from the Suburban Newspapers of America, and regional awards. It was based in Gaithersburg.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Montgomery County Alcohol Beverage Services</span> Government agency of Montgomery County, Maryland, US

Alcohol Beverage Services, previously known as the Department of Liquor Control is a government agency within the County of Montgomery, Maryland, and is the wholesaler of beer, wine and spirits alcoholic beverage throughout the county's 507-square-mile (1,310 km2) area. Montgomery County Department of Liquor Control also exercises control over retail sales for off-premises consumption, either through government-operated package stores or designated agents.

Laurel Mall was a shopping mall located on the west side of U.S. Route 1 in Laurel, Maryland. The mall opened on October 11, 1979 and connected two pre-existing structures – the freestanding Montgomery Ward on its south side and Laurel Shopping Center to the north. The mall closed permanently on May 1, 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westfield Wheaton</span> Shopping mall in Maryland, United States

Westfield Wheaton, formerly known as Wheaton Plaza, is a 1.7 million square-foot, two-level indoor shopping mall in Wheaton, Maryland, north of Washington, D.C. It is owned by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and Its anchor stores include Macy’s, Target, JCPenney, Dick's Sporting Goods, and Costco.

Alcohol laws of Maryland vary considerably by county, due to the wide latitude of home rule granted to Maryland counties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smoking in Canada</span>

SmokinginCanada is banned in indoor public spaces, public transit facilities and workplaces, by all territories and provinces, and by the federal government. As of 2010, legislation banning smoking within each of these jurisdictions is mostly consistent, despite the separate development of legislation by each jurisdiction. Notable variations between the jurisdictions include: whether, and in what circumstances ventilated smoking rooms are permitted; whether, and up to what distance away from a building is smoking banned outside of a building; and, whether smoking is banned in private vehicles occupied by children.

Layhill is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. According to the United States Census Bureau, Layhill had a population of 5,764 in 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roger Berliner</span> American politician

Roger Berliner is a former member of the Montgomery County Council from 2006 to 2018. He represented District 1, which includes parts of Poolesville, Potomac, Bethesda, and Chevy Chase.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.