This Week's D.C. Deal Sheet
Comstock has acquired a second just-developed, Metro station-adjacent apartment building in Rockville.
Northern Virginia-based Comstock Holding Cos. has acquired The Ansel, a 250-unit building at 33 Monroe St., through a joint venture with its affiliate, privately held Comstock Partners, it announced this week. Comstock declined to disclose the deal price.
The Ansel will be rebranded as BLVD Ansel to bring the property in line with Comstock's other multifamily properties. It pairs with the 263-unit BLVD Forty Four, which Comstock acquired in October for $110.75M. Both buildings were developed by Duball LLC.
"BLVD Ansel is the latest addition to Comstock’s mixed-use, transit-oriented portfolio of high-quality, luxury residential assets in one of DC’s fastest growing employment centers,” Comstock CEO Chris Clemente said in a statement. “The Duball team did a tremendous job developing The Upton and Ansel, making these properties proud additions to our expanding BLVD brand of luxury apartment communities."
The Ansel has substantially completed construction, according to a press release, and Comstock plans to begin leasing soon. The building also includes 20K SF of retail space and a unit mix of studios and one- and two-bedroom apartments.
SALES
The Adams Morgan church that previously occupied The Line Hotel site has sold a separate property it owns in the neighborhood. The First Church of Christ, Scientist sold the retail property at 1782 Columbia Road NW, one block from the former church, to Bethesda-based Greenhill Cos. for $4.25M, according to the D.C. Recorder of Deeds. The building is occupied by the Christian Science Reading Room.
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Glazer Properties, the real estate investment arm of Tampa Bay Buccaneers owner and Manchester United Principal Investor Kevin Glazer, purchased a Springfield, Virginia, retail center for $25M. The 48K SF strip center, known as Backlick Center, is near the I-95/I-495 interchange. Cushman & Wakefield Managing Director John Owendoff represented the seller, Crow Holdings, and procured buyer Glazer Properties.
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Chevy Chase-based FCP has partnered with Insight Property Group, AHC and Prince George’s County to acquire a multifamily property in Largo and institute affordability protections. The joint venture paid $71.9M to acquire the 245-unit community at 9701 Summit Circle from Camden Property Trust, rebranding the property from Camden Largo Town Center to Haven Largo, according to a release. The garden-style apartment property will have affordability requirements implemented in a portion of its units, according to a release. Chris Doerr and Will Harvey of Walker & Dunlop brokered the transaction.
PLANS
Vegetable and Butcher, the meal delivery service based in Washington, D.C., said it plans to begin construction this summer on a 46K SF production facility in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. The facility allows the service, founded in October 2016, to expand its deliveries to Baltimore and Annapolis, according to a press release. Located at 6001 Fallard Drive, Upper Marlboro, Maryland, the building is designed to include culinary production facilities in addition to its fulfillment, distribution and office space, according to a press release.
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Move-ins are set to begin soon at a new multifamily development at The Wharf ahead of the grand opening of Phase 2 on Oct. 12. The 12-story, 255-unit residential building named The Tides apartments is scheduled to begin leasing this spring and welcome residents this summer, according to a press release from developer Hoffman-Madison Waterfront. The building will feature waterfront views and contain some units available to residents making 30%, 60%, 100% and 120% of the area median income, in addition to market-rate units.
CONSTRUCTION MILESTONES
Cedar Street Apartments, the first property to receive financial assistance from the D.C. Housing Preservation Fund, will celebrate the completion of its redevelopment with a ribbon-cutting on Tuesday. The 30-unit property is in Ward 4 and is affordable to residents making up to 60% of the area median income. Joseph Development Inc. and Wesley Housing acquired the property in partnership with the Cedar Street Tenants Association after 40% of its units were damaged by flooding in 2017. The HPF provided the development partners with $5.7M in initial acquisition funding.
FINANCE
Stewart Investment Partners and Chestnut Funds refinanced a 47K SF office building they own in downtown McLean, Virginia, following an extensive remodel that took it from a standard office building to a high-end medical office property. Avison Young’s Debt and Equity Finance team of Jon Goldstein, Mike Yavinsky and Wes Boatwright arranged a $20M loan for the property, located at 1420 Beverly Road, according to a release.
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Howard University’s Northwest D.C. hospital received a significant capital infusion from the federal omnibus spending bill signed into law on March 15. The university will receive $100M toward the roughly $650M project, which the university plans to complete in 2026. Howard University has partnered with Adventist HealthCare for its healthcare program, and has been raising funding for the new hospital plan since it was announced in 2020, the Washington Business Journal reported.
PERSONNEL
Dwight Schar, founder of homebuilding giant NVR, announced Thursday he would retire from his post atop the board of directors in May. The move will shake up leadership at the top — following Schar’s departure, Paul Saville, the current president and CEO, will seek the vacant executive chairman title and relinquish his other roles. NVR Mortgage President Eugene Bredow would become the company’s new president and CEO, WBJ reported.
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Tim Lenahan is joining Newmark to co-lead the firm's Federal Investor Services Group. Lenahan will serve as executive managing director, and he will co-lead the group alongside Vice Chairman William Hill. Lenahan joins Newmark from FD Stonewater, where he was managing director of brokerage.
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Cushman & Wakefield announced two hires it made to augment its tenant rep team. Matthew Goldberg, formerly of The Ezra Co. and Avison Young, will join Cushman & Wakefield as a senior director. George Men, formerly of Cresa, will serve as director of the D.C. Tenant Representation Leasing Team. Both will focus primarily on the office sector, according to a press release.
