Perseus Preps for $109M Shady Grove Office Project

SHADY GROVE, MD-Perseus Realty has acquired 10 acres in Montgomery County, MD’s Shady Grove submarket, on which it will plans to develop a $109 million, approximately 360,000-sf office project on spec.The firm paid $12.5 million for the parcel, John Wood Bolton, executive vice president and principal of Perseus Realty tells GlobeSt.com, which is located at the intersection of Redlands Road and Gaither Road.Initial plans for the development, which will be called Redlands, include two office buildings of six- and nine-stories, separated by a parking structure that will hold 1,200 spaces. The firm is working on the permits now and expects to break ground in September, Bolton says. Tenant work would begin approximately 16 months after construction starts.Redlands is the latest illustration of Perseus Realty’s strategic investment in the Montgomery County market. “We are very bullish here,” Bolton says. “We see it as a long-term, consistent-growth county.”Shady Grove’s office opportunity is particular strong, he says, because there is little to no new supply entering nearby Bethesda. Meanwhile most workers live further north. “A lot of businesses are beginning to look for additional space here as a result because this is where their potential employees are.”Perseus is also targeting the demand for additional residential space in Silver Spring. The firm recently broke ground on a $38 million, 96-unit, nine-story condo building called the Argent. The project includes 12 moderately priced dwelling units, a below-ground parking for residents and a 4,200-sf public park.The 108,000-gross-sf building is expected to deliver in mid-2008, retailing in the $400,000s-range.”We are very strategic in what we develop,” Bolton says. “We see tremendous growth patterns in both Silver Spring and Shady Grove.”