Bethesda construction update: Hyatt Regency (Photos)

Work continues on the Hyatt Regency Bethesda project that will add more restaurant and retail space to the ground floor of the hotel. Current tenants like Morton's steakhouse remain open during the construction. A banner out front promises that, when the work is complete, the Hyatt will be "The New Place to Be" in Bethesda.

This is not only a way for the hotel's new owners to generate more rent income from additional tenants, but also a needed upgrade to compete with at least two new hotels that will be entering the market in the next few years. Both the future Westin Bethesda (on the site of the Connor Building downtown) and Canopy by Hilton (Pike & Rose) will have lobbies, check-in procedures and in-house amenities aimed at millennial business and leisure travelers.

First look: Renderings of Hyatt Bethesda makeover (Photos)

Here's the first look at what the Hyatt Regency Bethesda hotel will look like after its major renovation project is complete. You can see the new restaurant/retail space that will be created at the front right corner of the building on Wisconsin Avenue.

Meanwhile, the rooms and common areas are also getting a complete overhaul. The hotel will remain open throughout the renovations, and interior work will be staged incrementally, to prevent interference with guests staying at the property.

Renderings courtesy Streetsense
All rights reserved

New retail space at Hyatt Regency Bethesda (Photo)

Bethesda real estate firm Streetsense is marketing a new retail space steps away from its Bethesda Metro Center headquarters. The new 4800 SF space will be delivered in the 4th Quarter of 2016. Streetsense is touting the space's "great exposure on Wisconsin Avenue," one of the highest-traveled state highways in Montgomery County.

The space is in the front right corner of the Hyatt Regency Bethesda hotel, at 1 Bethesda Metro Center. I wouldn't mind getting a new restaurant in that space.

This is the first public sign of changes under the new leadership of the Meridian Group, which reacquired the hotel this past May with new partner Highgate Hotels. At that time, the partners promised to "return it back to a premier asset at that location."

Three years earlier, the hotel was sold at auction.

POWER RESTORED AT HYATT BETHESDA HOTEL (PHOTOS)

Electrical repairs at the Hyatt Regency hotel in downtown Bethesda were completed ahead of schedule, and power has been restored. However, the Daily Grill and Morton's restaurants in the building will reopen tomorrow morning, as scheduled. The Daily Grill says it will open at 11:00 AM Wednesday.

A hotel employee said a new electrical panel was installed. It is unknown right now if the electrical issue had any connection to the electrical fire that briefly closed the hotel earlier this year.

HYATT BETHESDA POWERS UP (PHOTOS)

The lights of the Hyatt Regency hotel have been missing from the nighttime Bethesda skyline for 2 nights.

Last night, power was restored following an early Monday fire in the building that - fortunately - spared all of the hotel besides the utility area where it ignited. 430 guests were evacuated during the fire.

HYATT BETHESDA REMAINS WITHOUT POWER TONIGHT AFTER FIRE (PHOTOS)

The Hyatt Regency hotel in Bethesda remains dark tonight, after an electrical fire forced the evacuation of 430 guests early this morning.

Guests have been relocated to hotels, and the next word we are waiting for is when the hotel will reopen for guests, as well as for diners at Morton's and the Daily Grill.

Click here to see a photo gallery from the overnight fire, as it happened live.

FIRE AT HYATT BETHESDA HOTEL (PHOTOS)

Update 2:34 AM: Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School is being opened as a shelter for Hyatt Bethesda fire evacuees.  MCFRS Public Information Officer Scott Graham has confirmed one critical injury in Hyatt Bethesda fire. Generator-powered fans are providing some ventilation from the building. Firefighters are conducting a floor-by-floor search of the hotel.

* New photos added.

A 2-alarm electrical fire at the Bethesda Hyatt Regency has caused the evacuation of 430 guests. Fire operations are ongoing. Montgomery County Fire and Rescue has requested a canteen truck, and a staging area is being set up at Pumphrey's Funeral Home on Wisconsin Avenue.

Sprinkler systems have deployed in the hotel, according to one report, and there is an unconfirmed report of one injury.

Additional units from Kensington and DC have joined the operation.

Firefighters have requested Ride On and Metrobuses, and 4 are end route to the scene to pick up evacuees.

Stay tuned here and on Twitter at @BethesdaRow for more details.

SHA SIDEWALK REPAIR CLOSES SIDEWALK IN FRONT OF HYATT BETHESDA (PHOTOS)

The Maryland State Highway Administration continues its slow and haphazard renovation of sidewalks along Wisconsin Avenue.

Even as sidewalks further north remain unfinished, crews are now working in front of the Hyatt at Bethesda Metro Center.  Yesterday, the curbside sidewalk was closed to pedestrians. Full access to the hotel remains, however.

As these many projects slouch towards completion, Bethesda will not be spared the embarrassment of being in this condition when tourists arrive for the Inauguration later this month. Is this the impression the state wants visitors from around the nation - and the globe - to have of Maryland and our fair city? It's a disgrace to leave streetscapes in such shambles when the event is known to be approaching.

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Bethesda-based Marriott International is one of several lodging giants to partner in new hotel-booking website RoomKey.com.

Room Key is operational, but still in beta, so you can be among the first to try it.

What is the advantage of booking via Room Key?

When you book a room at the Pooks Hill Bethesda Marriott, North Bethesda Marriott, or any other Marriott hotel, through Room Key, you'll get your Marriott Rewards Points. At other travel booking sites, you won't get those, only the deal itself.

Other partner brands include Hilton and Hyatt. So if you are planning a trip to Bethesda or Washington, D.C., you can book rooms at the Hyatt Bethesda, Hilton Garden Inn and Doubletree Bethesda with Room Key.

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