City Business Journals survey says business optimism growing

Prince George’s OKs new tax incentive area
Washington Business Journal - by Sarah Krouse Staff Reporter
The Prince George’s County Council on Tuesday approved a new incentive zone for businesses hoping to expand in or relocate to the county. The zone encompasses over 6,600 acres of commercial property and aims at encouraging development near the county’s 15 Metro stations.

Known as Enterprise Zones (PDF) , the areas last for 10 years once they are established. The current zone (PDF) would have expired Oct. 15, according to Kwasi Holman, president and CEO of the Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation.

“We basically did minor expansions that were primarily around subway stations to reinforce the county’s priority of developing areas near Metro stops, especially those contiguous to the District of Columbia,” he said.

The county created “focus areas” around Metro stops such as Seat Pleasant and Landover in which businesses receive enhanced incentive packages.

Focus areas are places with higher than average unemployment, poverty, crime, substandard housing, or vacant square footage.

“The idea is to get an entire area around a metro redeveloped,” Holman said.

The basic state income tax credit is $6,000 per disadvantage employee and $1,000 per non-disadvantaged employee over a three-year period. Those credits jump to $9,000 and $1,500 per employee in focus areas.

Prince George’s County offers 10-year real property tax credits for increases to real property taxes as a result of qualified new construction or property improvements.

In focus areas, there is a 10-year business personal property tax credit that is 80 percent of the amount of tax otherwise due on new qualified business personal property.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009, 2:20pm EDT

Foulger-Pratt buys Alexandria apartments
Washington Business Journal - by Tierney Plumb Staff Reporter
Foulger-Pratt Cos. has bought the The Fields at Landmark in Alexandria for $26.1 million and is planning a rehabilitation process to preserve the affordable housing units.

The 290-unit garden apartment community, built in 1965 and renovated in 1998, sits on 8.57 acres adjacent to Landmark Mall at 318 South Whiting St.

The total cost of the transaction, including the acquisition, renovation and closing costs, was $30.5 million.

It has operated as a tax credit community for the past 13 years and Foulger-Pratt will preserve the property -- formerly called Crestview Apartments -- as an income and rent restricted community through the end of the tax credit compliance period, which lasts another 17 years. It worked with the city of Alexandria to score the necessary approvals.

The fully-occupied property will get a $3.2 million renovation by Foulger-Pratt, which affects its boilers, chillers, convector units, piping, paving, landscaping, lighting, and selective unit upgrades in kitchens and baths.

Foulger-Pratt, which has recently bought and revamped other older apartment communities in the area, financed the acquisition using privately raised equity from friends, family, and close business relationships.

“The equity raise for Fields at Landmark was over subscribed, so we’re hard at work finding other acquisition opportunities for our investor group,” said Cameron Pratt, president of Foulger-Pratt, in a statement.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009, 10:59am EDT | Modified: Tuesday, October 13, 2009, 11:04am

Silver Spring building sells for $4.7M
Washington Business Journal - by Tierney Plumb Staff Reporter


8665 Georgia Ave. in Silver Spring

A 16,902-square-foot office building in Silver Spring has sold for $4.73 million.

Encore Properties LLC sold 8665 Georgia Ave. to Gallagher Properties LLC. Its single tenant is EagleBank, which occupies 4,000 square feet and runs a drive-through branch on part of the first floor. The remaining space will be owner-occupied.

It is the second office building of more than 15,000 square feet to sell this year in Silver Spring, according to West, Lane & Schlager, which represented the seller.

The building formerly functioned as the Silver Spring courthouse, and the seller dumped a substantial amount of money into renovations. It last traded in 2004 for $2.95 million, according to Maryland tax assessment records.

Clark Turner and Trevor Campbell of West, Lane & Schlager’s investment services group worked on behalf of the seller.

“This is a fantastic deal for Encore,” Turner said. “The owner managed to achieve strong sales numbers in today’s challenging market.”

The price-per-square foot is significant: The sale price amounts to $280 per square foot on rentable space and $402 per square foot on above-grade space.

Monday, October 12, 2009, 5:01pm EDT

City Business Journals survey says business optimism growing
Washington Business Journal
A new poll of business executives and owners shows that optimism about the economy is growing, but it is more prevalent among big business officials than owners of small- to medium-sized businesses (SMB).

The poll of 202 SMB businesses (five to 499 employees) and 77 big businesses (more than 500 employees) was conducted by City Business Journals Network, a unit of Washington Business Journal publisher American City Business Journals.

The poll found that in September, 38 percent of SMB owners agreed that the economy was “definitely” turning around. That was up from 28 percent in August. Meanwhile, 48 percent of executives at large companies thought that a turnaround was under way.

Big company executives were also more likely to support President Obama’s health-care reform, with 49 percent in support versus 37 percent of SMB owners, and more likely to think TARP funds were being used appropriately (42 percent versus 17 percent).

Thirty-nine percent of big company executives and 25 percent of SMB owners think health-care reform legislation will pass this year, with the rest saying it will not or that they are not sure. Seventy-one percent of SMB owners think the legislation, if passed, will increase the cost of doing business, and 64 percent of big company executives agree.

Fifty-two percent of SMB owners think business prospects will get a little or a lot better over the next year, up from 35 percent in March. Seventy-one percent of big company executives see conditions improving over the next 12 months.