Some more of the type of developments occurring in the Washington DC metro area:
https://www.bisnow.com/washington-dc...lopment-101317
Quote:
The radius of Northern Virginia buyers citing Amazon HQ2 in their plans continues to expand, with a developer in Woodbridge now citing the tech giant as a catalyst for a large-scale shopping center redevelopment.
Grace Street Properties acquired the 13-acre Station Plaza shopping center and plans to move forward on redevelopment plans, with the site allowing for over 2M SF of mixed-use development.
Boosalis Properties represented Grace Street in the $19.1M acquisition of the 158K SF shopping center. The brokerage firm announced the deal Tuesday and said it closed at a 7.6% capitalization rate. Greysteel represented the seller, and Apple Federal Credit Union provided acquisition financing. The Prince William County shopping center sits at the intersection of VA 123 and Route 1. It is anchored by Food Lion and B-Thrifty and also includes a Chinese restaurant, a Mexican restaurant and a pizza shop. The property sits in an opportunity zone area that Prince William County recently rezoned with a new master plan that allows for over 2M SF of mixed-use development on the shopping center site. The buyer didn't say if it plans to utilize the federal tax incentive program. The site is roughly 20 miles south of Crystal City and Pentagon City, where Amazon is building its second headquarters.
The property is across the street from a VRE and Amtrak station, which also connects it to the HQ2 site. The buyer's representative cited the proximity to Amazon HQ2 five times in its release announcing the acquisition. It said it plans to work with the county to create a pedestrian bridge across Route 1 to the train station to provide better transit access for commuters. "This will essentially create an opportunity for residents to be at their jobs in Washington, D.C., or Amazon HQ2 office space within 30-45 minutes," a Grace Street spokesperson said in the release. "They will not have to sit in traffic or drive to get to work from Woodbridge, VA. They can simply wake up and walk to the VRE/Amtrak station. We believe this site has the potential to be one of the largest mixed-use developments in Northern Virginia."
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although you don't hear about them on this site, there are dozens of similar developments moving forward across the DC metro area.
the catalyst being extremely high salaries and economic growth (amazon hq, Rolls royce US HQ to Reston, etc), plus a youthful population.
But little in the way of foreign money, no greenbelts, etc.
and likely no 40 story towers, even if the square footage is impressive.