History

History

St. Louis’ May Company and Philadelphia’s Strouse, Greenberg and Company built Montgomery Mall. Designed by Seattle's John Graham Jr. and Springfield, Virginia’s Ward and Hall, the center opened in March 1968 as the first mall in the region with two full levels of retail. Eight of the center’s 58 boutiques featured 18^th century Colonial facades, known as “Georgetown Row.” Sears, Hecht’s and Garfinckel’s were the center’s major department stores.

The center’s first expansion was completed in March 1976. The new north wing featured 40 additional stores and the fourth department store, Woodward and Lothrop. Hecht's was expanded by over 60,000 square feet with a new, two-level parking deck connected to the store's south and west entrances. A new multilevel garage was also built in the northwest lot. The center offered its first cinema in a 1983 expansion that included an additional parking area to the west of the north wing.

A $100 million expansion in October 1991 created a new south wing featuring Crate & Barrel and a three-level Nordstrom. 40 specialty shops totaling over 100,000 square feet increased the center’s offerings to more than 180 stores and services. To accommodate the growing attendance, a third parking garage was built in the southeast lot connecting via skybridge to Sears and Nordstrom. The Boulevard Cafes Food Court opened with 18 eateries.

Westfield purchased the center in 1994. J.C. Penny assumed Woodward and Lothrop’s location from 1995 until March 2001. In October 2001, the second level of the former J.C. Penny became a Hecht’s (now Macy’s) Home Store.

Today, Westfield Montgomery serves as Bethesda’s premier shopping destination with over 190 specialty shops and dining establishments covering over one million square feet.