Work Under Way on Columbia Apartment Community
A partnership between the Howard Hughes Corp., Kettler and Orchard Development Corp. has broken ground on the Metropolitan Downtown Columbia, the first development to proceed under the 2010 Downtown Columbia Plan for Columbia, Md.
By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor
Columbia, Md.—A partnership between the Howard Hughes Corp., Kettler and Orchard Development Corp. has broken ground on the Metropolitan Downtown Columbia, the first development to proceed under the 2010 Downtown Columbia Plan for Columbia, Md. When complete, the property will include 380 apartment units, garage parking and approximately 14,000 square feet of ground-floor retail.
Amenities at the Metropolitan Downtown Columbia will include the largest resident clubhouse in Columbia, a fitness center with studio, an all-season kitchen with built-in grills and bar and a pool with submerged seating and cabanas. The project will also include the development of a 28,500-square-foot public promenade with a 6,000-square-foot children’s play area, creating a local gathering place.
The 2010 Downtown Columbia Plan allows for up to 13 million square feet of new density comprised of 5,500 residential units, 4.3 million square feet of office, 1.25 million square feet of retail and up to 640 hotel rooms. The plan also includes a new multi-model transportation system and the redevelopment of Merriweather Post Pavilion concert venue.
The new plan builds on the city’s history as a master-planned community. Columbia contains 10 villages consisting of a number of neighborhoods, all developed according to a long-term plan kicked off in the 1960s. Each village has retail, recreation facilities, walking paths and residential properties. The Mall in Columbia is the city’s regional shopping center.
The Howard Hughes Corp. manages and develops commercial and residential properties nationwide, while Orchard Development is a multifamily developer and manager who has developed land for more than 6,500 residential units in four states and Washington, D.C. Kettler is a multifamily specialist whose projects include the Millennium at Metropolitan Park, the Gramercy at Metropolitan Park in Pentagon City, the Metropolitan at Reston Town Center and the Metropolitan at Village at Leesburg.
