JV Breaks Ground on Apartments Near Expanding Ft. Belvoir

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

Woodbridge, Va.—Ground has been broken for Bainbridge River Oaks Apartments, a ‪294-unit apartment property in Woodbridge, Va., near the Ft. Belvoir military base. The development is a joint venture between Starwood Capital Group Global, a privately held real estate investment firm, and multifamily specialist Bainbridge Cos.

According to the developers, the market is right because of the growth of Ft. Belvoir, which will eventually have a larger workforce than either the Pentagon or Quantico Marine Base. The impetus for Ft. Belvoir’s growth is the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission (BRAC), which outlined a $4 billion expansion of the facility as part of BRAC’s wider goal of cutting defense spending through base closures and the consolidation of the remaining military facilities.

Ft. Belvoir is already one of the largest employers in Fairfax County, Va. The expansion will add more than 19,000 more workers to the base, many of whom will be looking for housing nearby. The first apartments at Bainbridge River Oaks are expected to be finished in the summer of 2012, with full completion planned for early 2013.

Though not formally going for green certification, kitchens in the one- and two-bedroom apartments will have Energy Star appliances, and the units will feature energy-efficient fixtures and lighting to keep utility costs low. The property’s amenities will include a swimming pool and sun deck, as well as a clubhouse with a fitness club, cyber café, billiards area and business lounge.

Bainbridge River Oaks isn’t the JV’s first foray into multifamily properties in this part of the country. Earlier this year, Starwood and Bainbridge acquired 1,626 apartment units in Virginia and Maryland. Bainbridge also started construction this year on Bainbridge Bethesda, a new high-rise community in Bethesda, Md., and Campus Circle Tallahassee, a new student housing property in Tallahassee.