More News

New Carrollton Hotel converting to Sheraton

Friday, Nov. 10, 2006

Owners of the former New Carrollton Hotel completed demolishing 39 exterior rooms last week and plan to erect a Sheraton Four Points in its place as part of a $80 million mixed-use project.

When completed in 2008, the 6-acre property is to include a 200-room hotel, 88,000 square feet of office and retail space, townhouses and condominiums.

“We shut down the hotel on Nov. 1 and we're in the process of a liquidation sale,“ said Parvez Ahmed, vice president of AHM Properties of New Carrollton. “When we're done building next spring, we'll move our offices there.“

The company will consolidate offices scattered at three sites in Rockville, Frederick and Fairfax, Va., in its new New Carrollton location.

The entire hotel, which AHM bought in 2004 when it operated as a Ramada Inn, will be replaced to make way for the Sheraton and mixed-use space that will include a Stonefish Grill Restaurant. In the second and third construction phases, 25 luxury townhouses and 106 condominiums are planned.

AHM has letters of intent from a medical group and is negotiating with a number of other potential tenants, including FedEx, a Five Guys franchise, a gym and a chain coffeehouse.

The project, called New Carrollton Town Center, is intended to capitalize on growth in the Route 450 and Capital Beltway corridor. AHM plans to provide a shuttle service from the hotel to the New Carrollton Metro stop, he said.

The hotel has made the news in the past, serving as the East Coast polling place for the Iraqi elections last year and for housing for refugees from Hurricane Katrina.

AHM, which owns an Econo Lodge in Frederick, has a number of other developments in the works, including a 104-room hotel planned in Upper Marlboro, a 21,000-square-foot office building in Silver Spring and residential projects in Silver Spring and McLean, Va.

Mills Corp. sparswith major investor

Development company The Mills Corp. of Chevy Chase has been sued by a major investor to hold its annual meeting, part of an effort to take control of the financially troubled mall developer.

Gazit-Globe Ltd. of Israel, which owns more than 9 percent of Mills, sued in a Delaware court. Months ago, Mills announced it was exploring a buyout.

Chaim Katzman, Gazit-Globe’s chairman, said Mills officials haven’t responded to his company’s desire to help Mills find “strategic alternatives.“

“Actions speak louder than words and the lack of action clearly indicates a board of directors which has embraced inertia,“ Katzman wrote in a letter to Mark S. Ordan, Mills’ CEO.

Mills responded, saying in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that “Gazit’s actions are designed to advance Gazit’s own interests and disrupt The Mills’ ability to effectively explore the company’s strategic alternatives and maximize value for all Mills shareholders.“

“Katzman is clearly wrong about The Mills board,“ Mills said. “The Mills board has been acting aggressively and effectively to deal with the current circumstances.

Ridgecrest sells Frederick buildings for $10.9M

Ridgecrest Investments of Frederick sold its ExpoExchange Business Complex to Merchants Properties of Baltimore for $10.9 million.

The Class A office buildings on 7 acres overlook the Monocacy River. The property at 1888 N. Market St. is a two-story, 52,000-square-foot structure built in 1998. Ridgecrest added 1890 N. Market, a three-story, 31,000-square-foot office building, last year. The property is headquarters for event management firm Experient, formerly ExpoExchange, which leases two-thirds of the complex.

Nancy Greene of Mackintosh Commercial Brokerage in Frederick handled the deal for Ridgecrest. Michael Royce, of Cushman & Wakefield in Bethesda, represented the buyer.

Orix breaks ground on$20M Columbia project

Orix Real Estate Capital Inc. of Chicago started construction last month on 7021 Columbia Gateway Drive, a five-story office building in the Columbia Gateway Business Park.

The $20 million project, a 104,000-square-foot, Class A building, is expected to be ready for occupancy next October, according to Orix information. Orix’s first development at Columbia Gateway was a 250,000-square-foot, build-to-suit headquarters building for Micros Systems, which was completed in 2000 and sold in 2001.

“We’re proud of our Micros project and expect our new building will enjoy equal success,“ said David R. Brown, Orix president and CEO.

The leasing agents are Kevin Willie, David Fields and Kim Penny for CB Richard Ellis in Baltimore.

OBJ⁄Mid Atlantic buys building for $2.65M

OBJ⁄Mid Atlantic Realty bought 3900 Ironwood Place in Hyattsville from Ironwood I LLC for $2.65 million, or $65 per square foot, according to CoStar, the Bethesda commercial real estate data service.

The 30-year-old Class B, 40,920-square-foot industrial building was fully leased at the time of sale. It is part of the Ardwick-Ardmore Industrial Park in the Landover⁄Largo submarket. Ralph Haught, Jay O’Donnell, Michael Williams and William Prutting Sr. of CB Richard Ellis represented the seller. The buyer used in-house representation.