A visit to the National Park Seminary in Forest Glen

These days the redevelopment of the National Park Seminary is old news to many long term Silver Spring residents. I personally think it is one of the most successful cooperative efforts between developers and the community to both preserve and enhance a historical property that we have seen in a long time. Once an exclusive girls boarding school and then purchased by the army during World War II for the care and rehabilitation of wounded soldiers, by the early 1980s. most of the National Seminary campus had fallen into disuse and decay. It can be argued that the army allowed a local treasure to decay over the past three decades but it is also true that if the property were not owned by the government it would have not been preserved at all and developed long ago into some sort of residential housing.

Two years ago some of the detached homes on the property were placed on the market. All of these unique homes were in horrendous shape and needed total rehabilitation.  Eventually they were purchased and today all save one home have been rehabbed. Part of the problem is that most of these properties were designed and built to accommodate the different sororities at the school and were not designed as residences. As a result most of these homes were not only in poor condition but were what we call "functionally obsolete." due to the floor plans. The challenge was how to preserve the unique interiors while designing  spaces that could accommodate single families.

Did it work? Well, I suggest that you go visit the site and see for yourself. It is a great place to take a walk. The main buildings of the site had previously been converted to condos and now that the single family homes are  restored the place just oozes charm. There is one home remaining that is in private hands and needs to be restored but all others are completed or near completion. A major restoration of the old Gymnasium is now under way. It is a massive project due to the sad condition of the space but should look stunning when it is complete. Forest Glen is one of the nicest communities in Silver Spring and due to the redevelopment of the downtown area home values have been rising at a nice pace.. One of the restored seminary homes (the Swiss Chalet) is currently on the market for sale, and another (the Windmill Home) is offered for rent.  If you have further interest, you can visit my web site to see what other properties are selling for in Forrest Glen and it's surrounding neighborhoods.