$3B White Oak Science Center Good News For N. PG (Baltimore: sales, lease)

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by nonsence

Needs to be a rail line in that area....

Not going to happen in our life times. Even if the Green line is extended, it would more than likely travel parallel to I-95. But case would be a Rapid Bus Transit line. But even that would travel along RT. 29.

[bufflove]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

Not going to happen in our life times. Even if the Green line is extended, it would more than likely travel parallel to I-95. But case would be a Rapid Bus Transit line. But even that would travel along RT. 29.

Yep, I'd think BRT is likely, in about 7-12 years. It'll probably just be a glorified bus route rather than actual BRT (dedicated lane, etc.), though.

[adelphi_sky]

Montgomery County, developer reach agreement on White Oak project

Montgomery County announced Friday that it has reached agreement with a private developer to create a “life sciences” town center in its economically moribund eastern sector.

It took the county and developer Percontee, owners of adjoining land, more than a year to settle their differences over Viva White Oak, envisioned as a 300-acre hub of medical and science companies, housing and retail businesses adjacent to the Food and Drug Administration campus near Route 29 and New Hampshire Avenue.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local...b54_story.html

[Mutiny77]

Yay, more traffic for me.

[adelphi_sky]

Bumping up this thread to see if anyone has any updates.

Just a little paragraph here:

Percontee Inc. announced in September it was preparing to begin construction on the $3B, 300-acre Viva White Oak development. The long-planned mixed-use project in eastern Montgomery County would feature residential, retail, office and life sciences space. However, some remain skeptical of the project's future, including County Executive Marc Elrich, who is concerned that Viva White Oak will never attract enough commercial users to help it truly get off the ground.

https://www.bisnow.com/washington-dc...rhood/x-114236

[adelphi_sky]

So much for building out the East MoCo County biotech industry. If you're trying to move jobs east, why is stuff like this getting approved? Acres and acres of land not even being used inside the beltway next to the FDA.

https://wtop.com/business-finance/20...ring-facility/

[ion475]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

So much for building out the East MoCo County biotech industry. If you're trying to move jobs east, why is stuff like this getting approved? Acres and acres of land not even being used inside the beltway next to the FDA.

https://wtop.com/business-finance/20...ring-facility/

The new AZ facility building is already built...just sat empty for years. Pretty sure it's easier to use that building than having to wait, and wait longer, for the whole White Oak thing to start.

Seriously at this point they should just build houses and more houses in that area...wait can't really do that on a brownfield easily either.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by ion475

The new AZ facility building is already built...just sat empty for years. Pretty sure it's easier to use that building than having to wait, and wait longer, for the whole White Oak thing to start.

Seriously at this point they should just build houses and more houses in that area...wait can't really do that on a brownfield easily either.

Right. It was built in 2020. My point was that Viva White Oak, an approved development plan, has been sitting empty since way before 2020. That building could have been built in Viva White Oak and potentially sparked some more development. And now there's a major pharmaceutical company investing $300 million in a facility in Gaithursburg that the county approved, and not in East County. So, what is their plan for a development that has been sitting on the books for almost a decade? It doesn't seem like their plan is working.

[ion475]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

Right. It was built in 2020. My point was that Viva White Oak, an approved development plan, has been sitting empty since way before 2020. That building could have been built in Viva White Oak and potentially sparked some more development. And now there's a major pharmaceutical company investing $300 million in a facility in Gaithursburg that the county approved, and not in East County. So, what is their plan for a development that has been sitting on the books for almost a decade? It doesn't seem like their plan is working.

From what I read (so it could be wrong) the development is stalled so badly b/c it never make much economic sense.

Commerical real estate being in the mud certainly doesn't help either. It's one thing to put a development in the middle of somewhat desirable area like Pike & Rose (which itself is filling that shiny new building "stealing" companies from other part of MoCo anyway...i.e. Choice Hotels from central Rockville and Sodexo from Rio/Washingtonian), or whenever they get to redevelop White Flint, it's another to build a giant biotech campus with zero large clients. And if they need lab spaces? Pretty sure Frederick Co has cheaper lands.

As for plan - there's none...which is why half of the development is still a quarry / concrete recycling plant.

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by ion475

From what I read (so it could be wrong) the development is stalled so badly b/c it never make much economic sense.

Commerical real estate being in the mud certainly doesn't help either. It's one thing to put a development in the middle of somewhat desirable area like Pike & Rose (which itself is filling that shiny new building "stealing" companies from other part of MoCo anyway...i.e. Choice Hotels from central Rockville and Sodexo from Rio/Washingtonian), or whenever they get to redevelop White Flint, it's another to build a giant biotech campus with zero large clients. And if they need lab spaces? Pretty sure Frederick Co has cheaper lands.

As for plan - there's none...which is why half of the development is still a quarry / concrete recycling plant.

Such a waste. Oh well.