FAIRFAX, VA—The Peterson Companies and Brandywine Realty Trust have formed a 50/50 joint venture to develop a 300,000-square foot mixed-use town center development in Herndon, VA. Peterson will be the lead developer for the retail and entertainment components that will serve as an amenity base for BrandywineRealty Trust's existing 1.86 million square feet of office buildings and the surrounding community. Brandywine originally purchased the land in 2012. The joint venture will seek a rezoning of the property and anticipates commencement of the development in 2016.

“This is arguably one of the best mixed-use development opportunities in the Northern Virginia market and it is exactly the type of project that we excel at creating,” says Taylor O. Chess, president of Retail for Peterson Companies. “The new retail, dining and entertainment offerings will also provide an attractive amenity base for the thousands of employees and residents in the surrounding office parks and neighborhoods.”

The development is envisioned as a mixed-use town center that, at completion, will feature residential units perched above high-quality retail and restaurants, entertainment uses which could include a multi- screen movie theater or other types of destination entertainment and high-end amenities including a lifestyle fitness center. Pedestrian friendly streets, outdoor seating and year-round events and programming will create a true sense of place.