Wood Partners Moves Forward with Construction in Germantown, Md.

By Joshua Ayers, Senior Editor

Germantown, Md.—Wood Partners has announced that it is proceeding with construction on Alta Liberty Mill following ground breaking on the $60 million, 304-unit community in Germantown, Md.

When completed, the mixed-use community will boast 11,900 square feet of commercial space and three, five-story LEED certified wood-frame buildings located across the street from the Germantown MARC commuter rail station. The community design was produced by Poole & Poole Architects and will be built on 8.5 acres on Waters Road in Germantown.

“This transit oriented community will be far superior to anything available at comparable rental projects in the immediate submarket,” said Scott M. Zimmerly, Wood Partners’ director for the Mid-Atlantic Region. “Alta Liberty Mill is ideally located in rapidly developing Montgomery County, the third largest biotechnology center in the United States.”

The community will include an assortment of floor plans, including two studios, 139 one-bedroom apartments, 158 two-bedroom apartments and five three-bedroom apartments. Interiors, which will average about 939 square feet, will feature granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and vinyl plank flooring.

The amenity package will feature a 6,500-square-foot clubhouse, a business center, fitness center, conference room and media center. Outdoor amenities are comprised  of a 2,500 square-foot swimming pool, outdoor kitchen, fire pits with seating and barbecue grills, as well as cabanas, an outdoor fireplace, game lawn, and car wash station.

The community will also include 454 surface parking spaces and enclosed air-conditioned corridors. The lease-up is anticipated to start in fall of 2014, with construction finishing a year later. Thirty-eight of the community’s units will be Moderately Priced Dwelling Units (MPDUs) that will be leased to those earning no more than 65 percent of the area median income for the Washington D.C., while the remaining 266 units will be leased at market rate.

Germantown is located about 30 miles northwest of Washington D.C., and MARC’s Brunswick line offers service to Union Station in Washington for $5 each way. The bedroom community is growing quickly, according to Wood Partners, and is driven largely by the I-270 Technology Corridor, as well as other Montgomery County-based companies including Discovery Communications, Coventry Health Care, Lockheed Martin and Marriott International.

The addition of the 304 units to the area market is poised to generate $24 million in local income, $2.5 million in taxes and other revenue, as well as help create 366 new jobs, according to a National Association of Home Builders formula that determines the local impact of multifamily housing in typical metro areas.