Hyattsville Complex Adds Restaurants to Mix

By Ylan Q. Mui
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 12, 2006

The $160 million University Town Center development in Hyattsville is entering its final stages, with several restaurants signing deals that developers hope will turn the 56-acre site into an entertainment destination in Prince George's County.

The project is off East-West Highway, about a mile from the University of Maryland and near the Hyattsville Metro station. It is already home to four office buildings with roughly 5,000 workers, mainly from government agencies.

The developer, Prince George's Metro Center Inc., wants to channel the foot traffic from those buildings into several restaurants and retailers. Old Dominion Brewpub recently agreed to rent 10,000 square feet. Other restaurants to open include Tokyo Sushi, Mongolian Grill and Salad Creations.

A New York-based coffee and wine bar and a seafood restaurant are also negotiating for space.

Consolidated Theaters is building a 14-screen cineplex. Safeway has begun construction of one of its new "lifestyle" stores. Madison Retail Group, which is leasing the project, said it expects to announce more tenants soon.

One of the goals of the project is to attract higher-end retail to Prince George's County. Residents have long complained about the lack of sit-down restaurants and upscale shopping in one of the country's wealthiest predominantly African American counties.

Wearing a hard hat, Prince George's Metro Center Inc. President Herschel W. Blumberg, 82, walked through the construction area last week and imagined the end product: wide sidewalks, landscaped greenery and plenty of people.

A preview party for the project's eight-story condo building was held last week. Construction is to begin at the end of this summer on another condo building, with a curved zinc facade and a loft-like atmosphere. A 910-bed student housing complex will open in the fall, intended to draw tenants from the University of Maryland and Howard and Catholic universities, among others.

The project should be finished within a year, with the exception of the Safeway, which is expected to open in 2008.

The Mall at Prince George's, near Blumberg's site, has Target, Old Navy, JCPenney and Hecht's as anchors. Home Depot is nearby. "This area is changing dramatically," Blumberg said. "We don't mind the competition."

Blumberg bought the land in 1954. He built office complexes but was unable to put together the mixed-use development he envisioned.

Now that the tide is turning, Blumberg said he is glad that he kept the property. As he walked the site, he showed off the slabs of concrete that will become patios for the condos and the steel beams that will hold up the building's walls. From the top of the student apartments, the Washington Monument and the National Cathedral could be seen near the horizon.

"He had this dream for 50 years," Tim R. Taylor, vice president of leasing for Prince George's Metro Center, said of Blumberg. "He wanted to see it come to fruition."

Closings

· The General Services Administration appointed William B. "Bart" Bush assistant regional administrator for the Public Buildings Service in the National Capital Region. He is responsible for GSA's portfolio of 93 million rentable square feet in the Washington area, and its more than $3 billion in major construction and repair projects. For the past five years, Bush managed property for the New York state Office of General Services.

· Lerner Enterprises announced plans for an 18-story, 472,000-square-foot office tower that will be its fifth building in the Corporate Office Center at Tysons II in McLean. Company principal Mark D. Lerner said in a written statement that construction will begin in the summer of 2007 even without a tenant signed up. "We have always had significant pre-leasing in these buildings prior to their completion," Lerner said.

· The Alexander Co., which is refurbishing the historic National Park Seminary in Silver Spring, is seeking purchasers to restore one or more of 10 single-family homes on the long-vacant site that was once a hotel, then a girls' finishing school. The architectural styles include a Japanese-style bungalow, a Dutch windmill and a Swiss chalet. The company said it will concentrate on renovating larger buildings on the site. Information about the solicitation is posted at http://www.nationalparkseminary.com .

· McShea & Co. of Gaithersburg, a commercial brokerage and management firm, appointed Gayle Thrift vice president and portfolio manager. She was previously the company's director of construction management.

Staff writer Cecilia Kang contributed to this report.