"Avalon's move to its new facility is a key inflection point for the company," Avalon CEO Kenneth C. Carter, PhD says. "As we look to grow our discovery and development initiatives we will seek to expand our employee base from its current level of 56 professionals. Our new facility will house state-of-the-art R&D capabilities and is a perfect complement to our growth initiatives."

The impending relocation will be the third move for Avalon. "We started at the incubator Maryland Technology Development Center in 2000," Avalon's Deborah Grippaudo tells GlobeSt.com. Having outgrown its space, the company moved to its current location in October of the same year.

Avalon will lease its new locale from Seneca Meadows developer Minkoff Development Corporation for an undisclosed amount. Minkoff began leasing space in the new Montgomery County business park in 2000 at about $13.50 per sf.