$3B White Oak Science Center Good News For N. PG

[bufflove]

I assumed this thread was bumped because of the recent news:
"Baltimore-based MCB Real Estate and the project's original developer, Global LifeSci Development Corp., 'have executed a purchase and sales agreement for the development of Viva White Oak, transitioning from due diligence to the project's planning and design phase,' according to a blurb in Montgomery County Executive"
https://www.bizjournals.com/baltimor...percontee.html

As for why Viva has taken a backseat to more biotech going up along 270...there's demand along 270 and there isn't in White Oak. AstraZeneca, for the example given, wants to invest $300M in a new building near all its existing buildings rather than 20+ miles away, which seems logical enough.

I don't particularly see the point of Viva being developed at all. It's trying to make sense of the sprawl and crappy location of the FDA campus, but in reality it'd just be doubling-down on its errors. If anything, just keep the FDA campus as-is until the buildings are at end-of-life and then move the jobs somewhere with better infrastructure, e.g. Twinbrook, North Bethesda, Wheaton, College Park, or Greenbelt (if space allows or the FBI move ends up falling through).

[adelphi_sky]

Originally Posted by bufflove

I assumed this thread was bumped because of the recent news:
"Baltimore-based MCB Real Estate and the project's original developer, Global LifeSci Development Corp., 'have executed a purchase and sales agreement for the development of Viva White Oak, transitioning from due diligence to the project's planning and design phase,' according to a blurb in Montgomery County Executive"
https://www.bizjournals.com/baltimor...percontee.html

As for why Viva has taken a backseat to more biotech going up along 270...there's demand along 270 and there isn't in White Oak. AstraZeneca, for the example given, wants to invest $300M in a new building near all its existing buildings rather than 20+ miles away, which seems logical enough.

I don't particularly see the point of Viva being developed at all. It's trying to make sense of the sprawl and crappy location of the FDA campus, but in reality it'd just be doubling-down on its errors. If anything, just keep the FDA campus as-is until the buildings are at end-of-life and then move the jobs somewhere with better infrastructure, e.g. Twinbrook, North Bethesda, Wheaton, College Park, or Greenbelt (if space allows or the FBI move ends up falling through).

The building was built in 2020 without a tenant. If the county's goal was to spur an east-county bio-tech center, I would assume those types of empty buildouts would have been pushed east until a tenanet could be found. This building apparently sat for a number of years without a tenant.

From a regional perspective, these jobs east tenants east makes sense. It is still the case that a lot of workers live east and work west. Which creates an imbalance in commuting patterns. If people who lived along Columbia Pike and adjacent towns had an employment center close by, then that would alleviate the imbalance. Or people from the west would travel east along the toll road or the Beltway.

The site does lack mass transit, which doesn't help. Also, Cherry Hill Rd. isn't exactly wide enough if the development were at full capacity. There are definitely some challenges.

It's a shame that this area still has irreversible self-fulfilling prophecies. DC and the northern and western suburbs get all the jobs because they already exist there, while the eastern suburbs have to commute to those job centers.

The FBI, it is hoped, could spur some jobs east and balance things out a little.

[bufflove]

Originally Posted by adelphi_sky

The building was built in 2020 without a tenant. If the county's goal was to spur an east-county bio-tech center, I would assume those types of empty buildouts would have been pushed east until a tenanet could be found. This building apparently sat for a number of years without a tenant.

From a regional perspective, these jobs east tenants east makes sense. It is still the case that a lot of workers live east and work west. Which creates an imbalance in commuting patterns. If people who lived along Columbia Pike and adjacent towns had an employment center close by, then that would alleviate the imbalance. Or people from the west would travel east along the toll road or the Beltway.

The site does lack mass transit, which doesn't help. Also, Cherry Hill Rd. isn't exactly wide enough if the development were at full capacity. There are definitely some challenges.

It's a shame that this area still has irreversible self-fulfilling prophecies. DC and the northern and western suburbs get all the jobs because they already exist there, while the eastern suburbs have to commute to those job centers.

The FBI, it is hoped, could spur some jobs east and balance things out a little.

"Pushing east" isn't really a viable thing the county can just require of an investor or their lenders. Spec lab and office buildings are built where they are because there's projected demand for someone to lease the building, in this case first by Autolus Therapeutics and subsequently by AstraZeneca. The alternative wasn't that this facility was built in White Oak, the alternative was that it was built in Boston or Research Triangle.

I agree the east-west imbalance in MoCo and the region as a whole is a real issue. Public investment and political capital spent on things like the Purple Line and FBI are important. Hopefully private $$ follows the public $$. I certainly saw a lot of that implemented successfully in downtown Silver Spring.

[ion475]

Originally Posted by bufflove

I assumed this thread was bumped because of the recent news:
"Baltimore-based MCB Real Estate and the project's original developer, Global LifeSci Development Corp., 'have executed a purchase and sales agreement for the development of Viva White Oak, transitioning from due diligence to the project's planning and design phase,' according to a blurb in Montgomery County Executive"
https://www.bizjournals.com/baltimor...percontee.html

As for why Viva has taken a backseat to more biotech going up along 270...there's demand along 270 and there isn't in White Oak. AstraZeneca, for the example given, wants to invest $300M in a new building near all its existing buildings rather than 20+ miles away, which seems logical enough.

I don't particularly see the point of Viva being developed at all. It's trying to make sense of the sprawl and crappy location of the FDA campus, but in reality it'd just be doubling-down on its errors. If anything, just keep the FDA campus as-is until the buildings are at end-of-life and then move the jobs somewhere with better infrastructure, e.g. Twinbrook, North Bethesda, Wheaton, College Park, or Greenbelt (if space allows or the FBI move ends up falling through).

There is always the White Flint site...just saying .

As for AZ - well, to be fair they do have facilities 25 miles up 270 in Frederick, but that's another story.

[Mr Beco]

Originally Posted by Yeadon718

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

Definitely need public transportation which is the crux of the issue and WHY Elrich never addresses it is amazing....I-270 is booming with Biotech, but they have a real community there now, its understood that I-270 is indeed a major biotech hub..