COLUMBIA, MD-General Growth Properties has handed over a one-million-sf, seven-asset office portfolio to NAI KLNB to manage. The class A portfolio, called Columbia Town Center portfolio, is based in this submarket and has a 25% vacancy rate–or 250,000 sf of space available to lease. Asking rates for the portfolio range from $24 per sf, full service up to $27.50 per sf, full service. David Fritz, Craig Morrell and Michele Kornbluth from NAI KLNB's Columbia office will handle the leasing and marketing.

One strength that NAI KLNB plans to leverage is Columbia's easy commute distance from nearby Washington, DC, its suburbs and the Baltimore CBD, Fritz tells GlobeSt.com. “We will be taking a regional approach with the marketing campaign. Besides targeting the immediate area, we will try to attract firms from Towson, MD, Northern Virginia, Downtown Baltimore, Washington, DC and Silver Spring.” Firms would be interested in relocating from the latter locations, in particular, he says, because of the relatively higher asking rates.

The buildings are 10400, 10420, 10440, 10480, 10490 and 10500 Little Patuxent Pkwy and 11000 Broken Land Pkwy. They are situated just off MD Route 175. Existing tenants include Miles & Stockbridge; Ferris, Baker, Watts; BusinesSuites; and American Express. These buildings were part of General Growth's $12.6-billion acquisition of the Rouse Co. in 2004. Since then, the company handled the leasing internally, Fritz says. “This is the first time this portfolio has been outsourced since its acquisition.” Most of General Growth's offices are leased and managed by third parties, he adds.