Authorities build case against South Silver Spring motels
The law wants two South Silver Spring motels to clean up their acts before the authorities clean it up for them, say one civic association.
According to a May 12 post on the South Silver Spring Neighborhood Association’s website, investigators with the county’s third police district and the assistant state’s attorney are gathering evidence against the Days Inn and Travelodge motels on 13th Street. Both motels have long rap sheets for dirty deeds gone down inside and around the buildings, the website claims.
“I have personally been told stories by members of our community that are shocking and sad,” writes Evan Glass, president of the neighborhood association. Area residents have had to deal with hookers, johns and drug dealers entering and leaving the motels, he adds.
If the motels’ managers don’t improve their business practices, they could be faced with possible legal action, the website says. The post does not dip into what kind of legal action could go down.
However, the law is no stranger to shaking things down at the motels. In late March, police confiscated drugs and two handguns after busting a large party inside the Days Inn. A 16-year-old was arrested on undisclosed charges. And in late February, a man was robbed of cash in the motel’s parking lot. The suspected robber later tried to return the cash. Go figure.
Both motels are adjacent to the Kennett Street public garage, which has had its own problems with crime. So far, police have not tied car thefts and break-ins at the garage to the action rocking the motels.
The motels are also in an area that has shed its gritty industrial flavor and has grown more residential in recent years. The hood is home to the Eastern Village co-op, condos on Eastern Avenue, Newell Street and East-West Highway, and apartments on 13th Street. More residential units are going up near Blair Mill Road and on 13th Street near Eastern Avenue.
Hookers, guns, and drugs? It’s clearly Grand Theft Auto week in Silver Spring!
Friends of mine were just put up in that unit recently and when I dropped them off I was a bit taken back. Sure it used to look like that for blocks around, but that’s the last bastion of a day-gone-by in Silver Spring, and I don’t think it would hurt to raize the whole block.
Before the Subway opening in the Lenox, I’d occasionally go to the Subway at the Days Inn on Saturday morning to take for lunch on road trips and so forth. Each and every time there would be obvious hookers coming out of the hotel, milling around that internal parking area, and loudly chatting about the night’s events.
Wasn’t that Days Inn also the base for a robbery ring? They’d hit houses in NW DC and bring the stuff back to the hotel. If I recall correctly, a maid noticed lots of vcrs and so forth and turned them in.
Color me surprised.
On an apartment-hunting trip to Silver Spring two summers ago, I had the dubious pleasure of staying at the Days Inn. I’d requested a non-smoking room, but upon arrival, was told that they didn’t have any available until later in the afternoon. Admittedly, I was a little early for check-in, but after a red-eye and navigating the Metro from Falls Church to Silver Spring in rush hour, I just wanted a horizontal surface on which to crash for a bit (not to mention a place to stash a suitcase while I investigated housing), so I agreed. Yeah, that was a mistake. Upon entering, the boyfriend immediately noted that, “Some hookers have definitely died in this room.” It was tidy, sure, but everything, all the surfaces, just felt grimy and disgusting. The A/C unit was leaking, so a large portion of the carpet was damp and smelly.
I think the final straw was, after we returned from filing out applications and some site-seeing, I noticed the lightbulb in the bedside lamp: it has very obviously burned out, had burnt a hole into the shade, and was just sort of hanging there, half-attached, on the fixture. I called the front desk about it. They offered to send a maintenance worker to fix the lamb; I said, “No, I think I’d like another room instead, actually.” Rather miraculously, they said, “Sure, come pick up the key to your new room.” They moved us up a flight stairs…and you wouldn’t have thought that the two rooms were part of the same hotel. It was spotless, well-ventilated, lots of light. I figured that they were in the middle of remodeling, but I have never recommended the place to out-of-town visitors.
Careful about razing entire blocks, Kearns. Some of us paid good money for the condos on the other half!
I wonder what the new building down that way (the one just south..er east..) of silverton on EWH openning up will do. I would imagine it will add to pedestrian traffic in that area a little bit at least…that’s a ton of residential units… Maybe inspire some more retail/commercial development to create more places to go down that way. I dunno… I imagine pedestrians and commerce aren’t the ONLY reason you don’t get hookers and drug dealers at the courtyard downtown… probably some managment practices at fault here as well…. or maybe it’s as simple as economics… courtyard is desirably located and hence more expensive, too much so for hookers and drug dealers to bother with…. in which case perhaps residences, retail and commerce down that way will help the situation… anywho.. just speculating, nothing really useful to say :-)