BETHESDA, MD–WTTG Fox 5 and WDCA Fox 5 Plus, a unit of Fox Television Stations, is planning a move from its current location in northwest Washington, DC to Bethesda. If all goes according to plan, it will build out out a new 57,500 square foot, studio, newsroom and office space at Carr Properties' planned 937,000 square foot, mixed-use development, which is under construction at 7272 Wisconsin Ave.
The media group has signed a letter of intent, subject to executing a lease and obtaining certain approvals from Montgomery County.
Some 200 employees will be moving to the new Bethesda location when the building delivers and the build out is complete, in the second quarter of 2021.
Carr Properties acquired the then 163,000 square foot building for $105.5 million in late 2015.
Bethesda Gets a Boost
It is one of three building under development being built on spec in the Bethesda market, the others being JBG Cos.' 4747 Bethesda Ave. and StonebridgeCarras' 7359 Wisconsin Ave. The three buildings in total will deliver one million square feet of trophy space into the Bethesda market.
However because so little trophy product has been built in Bethesda, much less on spec, JLL Senior Research Analyst Sara Hines believes these three buildings will lease up much faster than otherwise could be expected.
“The trophy market has been underserved in Bethesda,” she told GlobeSt.com in an earlier interview.
According to JLL, demand is projected to lift occupancy in the Bethesda CBD class A to a historic high of 3.7 million square feet by 2019. Furthermore JLL identified 2.6 million square feet of prospective DC tenant expirations through 2025 for potential future Bethesda CBD relocation. Vacancy in the submarket is currently 3.8% for buildings built after 2000.
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Erika Morphy
Erika Morphy has been writing about commercial real estate at GlobeSt.com for more than ten years, covering the capital markets, the Mid-Atlantic region and national topics. She's a nerd so favorite examples of the former include accounting standards, Basel III and what Congress is brewing.
