Bethesda mall owner narrows expansion plans

Westfield says it is responding to neighbors’ and county officials’ concerns

The original plan, which has been in the works since 2005, called for a 500,000-square-foot addition to the current 1.2 million-square-foot mall near Democracy Boulevard and Interstate 270.

In the past year, the plans have been altered to accommodate suggestions from the Montgomery County Planning Board, the Department of Public Works and Transportation, and the community, said Jim Agliata, vice president of development for Westfield, a global shopping mall owner with headquarters in Sydney, Australia.

‘‘We’re ready to make all improvements DPWT or the Planning Board recommend,” Agliata said.

The revised plan is now scheduled to go before county planners on Sept. 20. But a panel of residents still unhappy with the proposal is asking that the hearing be delayed until it can meet with developers to discuss concerns with traffic and parking. That meeting is set for next week.

The main concerns from residents and the county include the size of a parking structure and traffic safety around the mall.

Architects reduced the proposed expansion to 334,000 square feet and changed a parking structure from a three-story garage that would have wrapped around part of the mall that stretches along Westlake Drive to a smaller, four-story one. The garage will be an expansion of one of the mall’s current garages.

The proposed addition could house a new ‘‘fashion wing,” which would include a variety of designer shops, a renovated food court and a series of shops and restaurants that would face the street. Agliata said the new additions would invite customers to sit outside and enjoy a meal or wireless Internet service in a courtyard-style area.

Montgomery mall opened in 1968, with its latest renovations in 1991. According to Agliata, the mall has 8 million customers annually.

The expansion is made possible by Westfield’s purchase of the nearby Westlake Crossing shopping center, home to a variety of shops, including the Corner Bakery Café, Ledo’s Pizza, a dry cleaner and a hair salon.

Plans call for razing Westlake Crossing to make way for a new parking lot. Construction is expected to take more than three years, and should be completed by 2012, although no start date has been set, according to Agliata.

The Montgomery Mall Citizens Advisory Panel discussed its concerns with the plan.

‘‘I think the revised plan is an improvement, and I still believe that all of us would be for a thoughtful expansion,” said Peter J. Downes, president of the group.