February 2023

M id A tlantic Real Estate Journal — February 2024 — 11A

www.marej.com

F KLNB secures new HQ location for InventWood Lincoln Property Company brokers 88,971 s/f ind. lease

Kelley Drye Warren provided legal services Finmarc sells 25,000 s/f flex/ office building for $4.35M

REDERICK, MD — KLNB announced the 88,971 s/f commercial industrial lease for Invent- Wood (IW), a Maryland-based early-stage, high-growth company that is a leader in cellulose-based material and nanotechnology innovations that are high performance, cost-effective, and environmen- tally sustainable. Located at 5971 Jefferson Station Court in Frederick, the property lease was coordinated by KLNB vice president Kristin Rebeck who acted as IW’s tenant rep. As IW outgrew its incuba- tor space at the University of Maryland (UMD), the search for a new headquarters location began. Rebeck advised the IW team on future growth needs and space planning, searching across the DMV for the ideal property. Site selection includ- ed diverse spaces ranging from old factories to sawmills, and even undeveloped sites, with the IW team embracing the journey to find the best option. “It was an honor to have played a role in securing the future space for InventWood’s headquarters,” said KLNB’s Rebeck. “This is a perfect ex- ample of how having the right tenant advisor can ensure the successful navigation of any challenge. And in this case, we faced zoning considerations, a scarcity of industrial inventory in the region, escalating rental rates, and finding landlords able to accommodate IW’s unique requirements, but in the end we found an ideal solution and were able to secure the best facility for InventWood.” IW is poised to become one of the most innovative companies to emerge from UMD with a $20 million grant from the US Department of Energy and to establish its headquarters in Maryland. The company’s manufacturing launch in early 2025 promises not only significant economic growth for the region, but also a trans- formative step towards a sus- tainable and impactful future with an innovative technology focused on a positive environ- mental impact.

620 E. Diamond Ave.

their high school years. “This sale continues our strategy of disposing select assets, as demonstrated by last year’s sale of 7375 Boston Blvd. in Springfield, VA, as well as Largo Town Center, a 280,000 s/f regional retail center in Upper Marlboro, MD, and to deploy the generated funds into emerging acquisi- tion opportunities we expect to uncover in 2024,” said David Fink , principal, Finmarc. “A rapidly-rising interest rate environment brought invest- ment sales activity to a virtual standstill last year. But, prospects of lower benchmark rates, pent-up de- mand, and our team’s ability to identify value-add opportu- nities in various asset classes positions us as preferred buy- ers in the year ahead. “We are particularly at- tracted to under-performing properties that provides our team the opportunity to create long-term and sustained value with the implementation of proven leasing and asset man- agement strategies that lower operational expenses,” Fink added. “We also have a distinct advantage among others given our ready access to our inter- nal capital, combined with our certainty to close which instill confidence among sellers.” Fink added that Identity ac- quired a well-maintained asset with in-place tenants that will provide immediate cash flow to the non-profit organization. “Identity is a highly-respect- ed organization which provides extremely important services to the underserved population of Montgomery County and its presence in Girard Place will pay valuable dividends to the local Gaithersburg commu- nity,” he added. MAREJ

GAITHERSBURG, MD — Finmarc Management, Inc. , a diversified commer- cial real estate investment and management firm head - quartered in Bethesda has announced the sale of 620 E. Diamond Ave. in Gaith- ersburg, a two-story building containing 25,000 s/f of flex/of - fice space, to Identity, Inc. for nearly $4.35 million. The asset was part of a nine-building portfolio comprising 342,000 s/f of flex/office, commercial office, retail, and warehouse space purchased by Finmarc in 2014 from First Potomac Realty Trust . The building, which is contained on a 1.98- acre parcel in the Gaithers- burg section of Montgomery County, was 50% occupied at the time of the sales transac- tion. Ken Fellows and Rob Pugh of KLNB represented the seller and Jhon Pacheco of CBRE represented the buyer in this sales transaction. Aaron Rosenfeld of Kelley Drye Warren provided legal services to Finmarc. The asset is positioned with- in proximity to I-270, MD Rte. 200, MD Rte. 355 and the Shady Grove Metro Station and is 20 miles from Wash- ington, DC and 40 miles from BWI Airport. Identity, a non-profit orga - nization which operates four high school Wellness Centers and two Youth Opportunity Centers in Montgomery Coun- ty, intends to relocate its head- quarters and 50 employees to 620 E. Diamond Ave. later this year. The group provides a broad array of programs and services focused on support- ing the physical, social, emo- tional, and mental wellbeing of Latino and other historically underserved youth throughout

5971 Jefferson Station Court

“The relationship we cre- ated with Kristin, our KLNB tenant advisor, showcases just how much she cared about our future,” said InventWood CEO Josh Cable. “We spoke to Kristin almost daily, discuss- ing our expansion strategy, plans for horizontal growth, and why we believe so deeply in our technologies. I believe that Kristin’s dedication, and genu- ine interest in our company, is what allowed her to find such an ideal property.” In addition, Rebeck and Ca- ble credit Jody Bollinger and the team at Frederick Eco- nomic Development for being a valuable tenant resource, providing support that IW con- tinues to utilize. Additionally, Lincoln Property Company , acting as landlord represented by Brent Prossner and Kyle Bell , demonstrated unwaver- ing commitment in tailoring the site to meet IW’s needs, foster- ing a promising partnership for the company’s regional growth. In a second Maryland trans- action, KLNB announced the sale of 7750 Montpelier Rd. in Maple Lawn to St. John Properties . The sale includes a 32,488 s/f, education facility, and two additional undevel- oped parcels of land totaling 5.96 useable acres. Located in the Montpelier Research Park, the property’s sale was facilitated by the KLNB Capi- tal Markets team of principals Abby Glassberg and Joe

Friedman , senior VP Don Schline , and office & industri - al specialist Joshua Norwitz . The sale price was $8.25M. KLNB represented the sell- er, Maryland Institute of In- tegrative Heath (MUIH), and procured the buyer, St. John Properties, which intends to develop multiple single-story office/flex buildings to provide support the increased needs of the Applied Physics Labo- ratory and the greater Maple Lawn community. The seller, MUIH, has entered a short- term buyback lease that will provide income to St. John Properties while planning and construction are underway. “This is the last remaining undeveloped parcel in Montpe- lier Research Park” said Glass- berg. “The existing building is extremely functional for office, school and assembly uses due to the existing layout and gener- ous 269 surface parking spaces. It also offers outstanding acces- sibility with proximity to Rtes. 29 and 32, making it highly desirable for any occupants attracting people from nearby towns and neighborhoods.” The parcel is zoned PEC (Planned Employment Cen- ter), and possible uses include light industrial, biomedical laboratories, ambulatory health care, restaurants, ca- tering/banquets, education and schools, hospitals, hotels, and even Housing Commission housing development. MAREJ

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