(Left to right): Moderator Lara Fritts, Division of Economic Opportunity, Frederick County; panelists Matt Holbrook, St. John Properties; Michael Brodsky, Goldstar Group; Brad Benna, Matan and Taylor Chess, Peterson Companies. (Photo credit: Bisnow)
Speaking at the recent “Exploring Frederick County” event sponsored by Bisnow and attended by several hundred local businesspeople, St. John Properties’ Regional Partner Matt Holbrook explained that the area’s quality of life and available real estate product are significant contributors to its success. Other speakers on the two panels included commercial real estate development and brokerage professionals, business leaders, and economic development staff as well as Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater and City of Frederick Mayor Michael O’Connor.
“If you consider the I-270 Corridor linking Frederick, Maryland to Washington, D.C. as a dumbbell, it is anchored by the National Institutes of Health and the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center to the south, and the National Cancer Institute and Fort Detrick to the north,” Holbrook explains. “In-between, there are several hundred biotech firms and more than 2,500 life sciences companies, with the region recognized as containing among the highest concentration of life sciences groups in the country.”
Holbrook added that, since entering the Frederick market, St. John Properties had developed 33 commercial real estate buildings – with more on the way – and a common refrain among the companies that lease space in the various parks is the “high quality of life that is available to its employees.” He added that organizations can have “the best of both worlds, including immediate access to major metropolitan areas and several airports, while enjoying less congestion, lower prices and plentiful activities in the Frederick area.”
(Photo credit: Bisnow)
For companies that have immediate space requirements, Holbrook said that “commercial office, flex/R&D and industrial/warehouse product” is readily available and “a good value play” when compared to areas such as Montgomery County.
Holbrook added that Frederick-area stakeholders should be grateful for the consistency and relative long tenures of City of Frederick and Frederick County officers and staff people. “The employees have worked in their positions for a long time and they know the land, the projects and the process,” Holbrook said. “This makes everything smoother and faster, which helps everyone.”
Frederick County Executive Fitzwater told the audience that the immediate region has nearly 35 million square feet of commercial office, industrial and retail space, a 9.3 percent vacancy rate and an average rental rate of $17 per square foot. Mirroring Holbrook’s comments, she said that people move to Frederick, in large part, due to the high quality of life and affordable pricing.
Fitzwater explained that her office remains “a champion of new commercial real estate development” and that the area needs to do more to encourage affordable and workforce housing. This includes the placement of such product on County-owned land. The County Executive also provided insights on the recently-unveiled economic opportunity plan, which examines where future commercial development should go and what infrastructure is needed to support the projects. “Not all future development should be of the greenfield nature,” she added.
“There is no better economic development plan than providing jobs,” Mayor O’Connor said, “and because our region has been a consistent job generator, the City of Frederick continues to attract new companies. “Government should not be onerous or restrictive when it comes to real estate development but, instead, it should be fair,” he added. “Employees want to live in places that are nice to live, and that is the environment we continue to maintain in the Frederick area.”
