Hospital Expansions, Purple Line Updates And Mixed-Use Developments: The Latest In Prince George’s County
1. Children's National Hospital is looking to expand its footprint into more neighborhoods across the D.C. region, including opening a new facility in Prince George’s County, Bisnow reported. The health system is also moving into spaces in Silver Spring, Friendship Heights, Columbia Heights, Anacostia and Takoma Park as part of its expansion plan.
2. Retail Properties of America announced in June that it will soon restart its plans to construct its Carillon mixed-use development in Largo. The project was put on hold at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The first phase will be a 125K SF medical office building, branded as The Ella.
3. The General Services Administration submitted a $10.93B budget to Congress to help move several D.C.-area federal real estate projects forward. The proposed budget includes a recommendation for $20M to be put toward renovations to the Suitland Federal Center in Prince George's County.
4. A group called Connected DMV published a report in July titled Regional Economic Development Strategy highlighting strengths and weaknesses in the D.C. region. One of the proposals in the report calls for the relocation of the FBI headquarters from the District of Columbia to a site either in Fairfax County or one of two in Prince George’s County.
5. What is happening with the expansion of the Purple Line light rail? The planned expansion of the Maryland public transit system would connect Montgomery County and Prince George’s County with stops stretching from Bethesda to New Carrollton, but construction was stalled last year after a dispute with contractors. Now, organizations are calling for the project to be prioritized once again.
6. In April, House Bill 980, which allows Prince George’s County to change the county’s 50-year-old zoning ordinance, passed in the Maryland General Assembly. The rewrite of the ordinance is designed to implement nationwide best practices to streamline the county’s development review process with the goal to make it more user-friendly and allow for greater public input.
7. Prince George's County Public Schools have created a relief fund survey to receive input from members of the community on how they think $1.95B in funds from the United States Department of Education should be allocated.