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What's Next For The Rock Spring Office Park and The Executive Boulevard Area in White Flint?

ULI Washington a District Council of the Urban Land Institute ULI at the local level: 1,900+ Members: developers, architects, planners, public officials, financiers, students. Emphasis on sharing best practices and providing outreach to communities.

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323 views

What's Next For The Rock Spring Office Park and The Executive Boulevard Area in White Flint?

ULI Washington a District Council of the Urban Land Institute ULI at the local level: 1,900+ Members: developers, architects, planners, public officials, financiers, students. Emphasis on sharing best practices and providing outreach to communities.

Uploaded by

Planning Docs
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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ULI Washington Technical Assistance Panel

Whats Next for the Rock Spring Office Park


and the
Executive Boulevard area in White Flint?

December 1-2, 2015


Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

ULI the Urban Land Institute

The mission of the Urban Land Institute


is to provide leadership in the responsible
use of land and in creating and
sustaining thriving communities
worldwide.

ULI Washington
A District Council of the Urban Land Institute
ULI at the local level: 1,900+ Members: developers, architects,
planners, public officials, financiers, students...
Emphasis on sharing best practices and providing outreach to
communities

Technical Assistance Panels


Regional Land Use Leadership Institute
UrbanPlan Program
Washington Real Estate Trends Conference
Case Studies
Regionalism and Housing Initiative Councils

http://washington.uli.org

TAP Panelists
Bob Eisenberg, CHAIR, Clark Enterprises
Robert Atkinson, Davis Carter Scott
Dean Bellas, Urban Analytics
Brigg Bunker, Foulger Pratt Development
Barbara Byron, Fairfax County Office of Community
Revitalization

Matt Klein, Akridge


Alex Rixey, Fehr & Peers,
Rebecca Snyder, Insight Property Group
Stan Wall, HR&A Advisors

Office Space Trends (WDC metro area)


Tenant Relocation Rate at Lease Expiration*
2000 2008: 40% (from existing space)
2009 2014: 60% (tenants moving where?)

Absorption from 2008 2014*


Class A:
Class B/C:

18.6 million square feet


-13.6 million square feet

Lease Activity**
86% occurs within mile of Metro
*NGKF

**JLL

Office Space Vacancy in Montgomery County


Montgomery County currently has nearly 11
million square feet of office space vacant in
2015*
Office Vacancy**
Rock Spring
Executive Boulevard Area
Montgomery County
Bethesda/Chevy Chase
*PES (Partners for Economic Solutions) **CoStar

21.2%
29.2%
14.8%
9.4%

Flight to Quality in Office Market


What does this movement mean?
Good news: Not unique to Montgomery County;
happening all over the country
Bad news: What exists in the Study Area is not
the office product that is currently in demand

Functional versus Locational Obsolescence*


16% of the regional office space is obsolete
Some office space is curable, some is not
*NGKF

Economic Development Hope is not a Strategy

Corporate HQ Migration (Past 6 Years)*


Fairfax County

8 (in)

1 (out)

Montgomery County 0 (in)

0 (out)

*Based on data provided to the ULI TAP panel members

Is the Study Area office market competitive?


The ULI panel is here today to discuss how
to change the status quo of the Study Area
Identity
Connectivity
Amenities
Land Use
Implementation of recommendations

City of
Rockville

Twinbrook
Sector Plan

White Flint
Sector Plan

Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

Master Plan Context: White Flint 2

Executive Blvd Existing Conditions

Executive Boulevard

Discussion Framework
1.
2.
3.
4.

Connectivity
Amenities
Identity
Land Use

Challenges
1. Connectivity: Access to offsite amenities is automobile
oriented and pedestrian challenged.
2. Amenities: The experience locally is unpleasant due to the
lack of amenities

3. Identity: No There There


4. Land Use: All existing uses are office

CONNECTIVITY

Confusing Pedestrian Site Access from Metro

0.75 Miles
15 Minutes

Goat Trail Through Parking Lot

0.75 Miles
15 Minutes

Auto-Oriented Crossing at Old Georgetown Road

0.75 Miles
15 Minutes

Auto-Oriented Crossing at Old Georgetown Road

Auto-Oriented Crossing at Old Georgetown Road

Poor Local Pedestrian Site Access

0.75 Miles
15 Minutes

Lack of Local Pedestrian Site Access

Lack of sidewalk to facilitate pedestrian access


Pedestrians must walk through the drive aisle.

6 Minutes to Pike & Rose! (But it Feels Longer)

0.3 Miles
6 Minutes

AMENITIES

1. All existing uses are office


2. Lack of amenities within study area (lunch, coffee, gym,
drugstore)
3. Access to amenities via walking feels prohibitive due to
unpleasant pedestrian conditions

Currently an Amenity Desert

IDENTITY

Placeless
Single Use (Office Only)
Disconnected from
Amenities

Recommendations
1. Connectivity: Prioritize Infrastructure Improvements to
Catalyze Redevelopment.
2. Amenities: Improve Local Experience and Provide
Diverse Amenity/Use Mix

3. Identity: Leverage Pike & Rose and White Flint


4. Land Use: Diversify

CONNECTIVITY

Recommendations
1. Accelerate Implementation of North/West (Pike &
Rose) Metro Entrance
2. Implement planned Old Georgetown Road and
Executive Boulevard Realignment (Western
Workaround).
3. Improve Pedestrian Connection to Nearby
Amenities (Pike & Rose & Metro)

New Metro Entrance & Western Workaround

Western Workaround

Improved Pedestrian Connection

0.5 Miles
10 Minutes

0.75 Miles
15 Minutes

Leverage & Link To White Flint Recreation Loop

Extend Implementation of White Flint Pedestrian Amenities

Introduce Bikeshare As a Multimodal Connector

AMENITIES

A Clean Slate Ripe For Opportunity!

Provide Diverse Amenity/Use Mix


1. Introduce Retail Catering To Office Workers & Future Residents
Coffee Shops
Cafes
Drugstore
Drycleaner
2. Decrease Perceived Distance Between Building Entrances & Street
Encourage Small Floor plate Retail
Implement Pop-Up Amenities (Food Trucks, Coffee Shop, Parklets)
Implement Outdoor Seating (moveable chairs)
3. Embrace & Enhance Existing Green Spaces

Provide Diverse Amenity/Use Mix

Areas of Opportunity

Mature Trees and Landscaping are Assets

Ample Existing Greenspace

Leverage & Link To White Flint Recreation Loop

IDENTITY

Leverage & Link to Pike & Rose Identity

Create Consistent Wayfinding & Streetscape Package

Land Use

Diversified Uses

Executive Blvd Framework Plan

Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission

Master Plan Context: Rock Spring

10

Rock Spring Existing Conditions

IDENTITY

Rock Spring - Identity


Live Well
Build upon existing medical tenants and open
space/park like environment
Create an anchor for wellness/central
community uses
Lifestyle environment will be key to attracting
tenants and residents
Mixed-use environment is favored by corporate
tenants and residents alike
Enhance pedestrian-oriented environment

Rock Spring - Identity


Improve entry points:
create gateway theme
through artwork,
signage, etc.

CONNECTIVITY

Rock Spring - Connectivity


Transit technology tools
to enhance rider
knowledge
Direct shuttle to the Metro
with appropriate
headways
Mall/bridge connection
(civic plaza 11th Street
Bridge, Wilson Bridge)
Bikeshare stations

Rock Spring Connectivity


0.75 Miles
15 Minutes

0.25 Miles
5 Minutes

Rock Spring - Connectivity


Pedestrian
connectivity
break up
superblock with
mid-block
crossings
Pedestrian
experience along
the routes

AMENITIES

Rock Spring - Amenity


Infuse communal amenities into a central
location on the site for activity (village center,
community center, library,) instead of
individual building amenities.
Create mixed use Village Center centrally
located and walkable within the campus;
include relocated library, arts facilities, etc.

Rock Spring - Amenity


Leverage existing green assets by building
trail network, seating, open space

LAND USE

Rock Spring Park Land Use


Designated
staff position to
facilitate
redevelopment
Catalyze
development
of DRI mixed
use site

Rock Spring Park Land Use


Flexibility of uses change zoning to
eliminate constraints and make it market
responsive
Explore creative approach to address school
issue to include adding another school on
Walter Johnson site, adaptive re-use of
existing office building or building new school
on site within Rock Spring Park

Rock Spring Framework Plan

Implementation Strategies for Both Study Areas

Land-Use Policy
- Implement zoning to allow maximum land use
flexibility
- Encourage The Better Idea
- Accelerated entitlement process

Implementation Strategies (contd)


Financial Tools
- Tax abatement to create public benefit or other
desired uses
- Special assessment taxing districts to accelerate
desired infrastructure improvements
- Acquisition by the County of
vacant/underperforming office buildings to spur
a change in use
- Tax-Increment Financing
- Public Private Partnership

Implementation Strategies (contd)


Event Programming
-

Farmers market
Craft festival
Wellness fair
Food Truck-a-Palooza

Implementation Strategies (contd)


Community Education to Create Buy-In
- Fiscal burden of underperforming real estate
- Impact on Schools from new multifamily
development

THANK YOU!

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