Insight Property Group, an Arlington, Virginia-based real estate company specializing in residential and mixed-use development, is pleased to unveil the renovations and redesign of Falls Green, a 576-unit multifamily community located in Falls Church, Virginia managed by Bozzuto.

Built in 1974 at 501 Roosevelt Blvd., the property was previously Oakwood Falls Church, a short-term corporate housing community and was acquired through a joint venture of PCCP, LLC & Insight Property Group in 2018. Falls Green has since undergone an extensive repositioning, rebrand and transformation into a residential apartment community. Community amenities were redesigned by popular Washington D.C.-based design group, Edit Lab at Streetsense, to include a renovation of the clubhouse, concierge, kid-friendly multi-purpose room, community market, state-of-the-art fitness facility, clubroom with entertainment kitchen, coworking lounge and the leasing center.

“With our value-add strategy and complete repositioning of Falls Green, we took the opportunity to create a multigenerational micro-neighborhood that caters to and supports the lifestyles of the broad demographic range of our community,” said Maury Stern, Principal at Insight Property Group. “Residents may come for the location, but they stay for the everyday conveniences, accessibility and retreat-inspired amenities.”

“Since we were renovating an existing project with an existing resident base, we were able to draw on the knowledge and experiences of the long-term employees of the community,” said Brian Miller, Senior Design Director of Edit Lab. “There were existing resident routines, activities, bonds, and more – we refreshed the common areas to support those activities. The end result? An open resident kitchen and a reorientation of the lounge area to better host weekly resident events, like movie nights.”

The community offers studios, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments with den options with rents starting in the mid $1,300s. Insight has previously completed such projects at The Apollo on H Street in Washington D.C., The Shelby in Fairfax, Virginia, and is currently focused on the completion of The Elm in Bethesda, Maryland.

Marcus & Millichap today announced its Institutional Property Advisors (IPA) division has arranged the sale of The Hawthorne at Gillette Ridge, a 246-unit luxury multifamily community in Bloomfield. The $52 million sales price equates to more than $211,000 per unit.

“The property was constructed on a 612-acre mixed-use campus in 2004 by a partnership between Cigna and The Bozutto Group,” says Victor Nolletti, an executive director of IPA’s Northeast and Florida team. “The construction quality and proximity to West Hartford, and to Hartford’s central business district, make The Hawthorne at Gillette Ridge one of the most desirable properties in the market.”

“The acquisition of this property gives the new owner significant value-add potential through high-end kitchen and bath upgrades,” adds Steve Witten, also an executive director of IPA’s Northeast and Florida team.

Nolletti and Witten represented the seller, Bouwfonds Hawthorne LP and procured the buyer, White Eagle Property Group.

The Hawthorne at Gillette Ridge is four miles from Interstate 91 at 2 Francis Way in Bloomfield near the region’s high-end dining, shopping areas and entertainment venues. Nearby major employers include United Technologies, the Hartford Financial Services Group, Aetna, St. Paul Travelers Cos., Hartford Hospital, Bank of America and St. Francis Hospital.

A vibrant new development is in the works that will dramatically change the southern edge of downtown College Park. The University of Maryland today announced plans to redevelop the Quality Inn, and several adjacent businesses, into a grocery-anchored, mixed-use community featuring upscale residences, restaurants and retail.

The project involves collaboration between Bozzuto, Willard Retail, and the University of Maryland College Park Foundation, the entity that will acquire the property in early 2017. This $110 million project is a signature piece of the University's Greater College Park initiative, an ongoing effort to rapidly revitalize the Baltimore Avenue corridor and academic campus.

"We are thrilled to contribute toward this transformative project at the southern gateway to our campus," said Peter Weiler, Vice President, University Relations and President of the UMCP Foundation. "The strength and retail expertise of our partners, Bozzuto and Willard Retail, will deliver this transformative market-leading community to the City of College Park."

The project, slated to break ground in 2018, will create a town-center atmosphere within steps of the campus, complete with 300 luxury apartments.  Modeled after a similar project that helped invigorate the area around Catholic University in Northeast D.C., this project is designed to create a welcoming atmosphere as visitors arrive on campus via Baltimore Avenue. It will also serve and enhance the amenities available to the community of more than 50,000 students, faculty and staff at UMD.

"We are grateful to have been selected to develop this wonderful project with the University of Maryland College Park Foundation, the University of Maryland, the City of College Park, Prince George's County, and Willard Retail," said Toby Bozzuto, President and CEO, Bozzuto. "The combination of our previous experience developing Monroe Street Market with Catholic University and the strength of our partners will create a community to complement the University's ongoing redevelopment efforts in downtown College Park. This is a rare opportunity to develop a project with transformative potential and we are proud of our stake in this extraordinary collaboration."

County and city leaders echo the enthusiasm. "I am thrilled to see Bozzuto, one of Prince George's County's most important companies, partner with one of our most important economic resources, the University of Maryland," said Prince George's County Executive Rushern L. Baker, III. "Over the past five years since the arrival of President Wallace Loh, we have seen a transformational change in housing, retail, employment, and transportation options along Baltimore Avenue and in the College Park area. With Bozzuto's involvement, I have confidence that this premier development will bring quality and vitality to the southern portion of College Park, making that area more attractive to new residents, as well as to students, faculty, and staff associated with the University."

"Remaking Baltimore Avenue as College Park's walk-able main street is a key element of the University District Vision 2020," said Senator Jim Rosapepe, chair of the College Park City/University Partnership, which drafted the vision that was endorsed by UMD and the city. "This project, focused on residences and a grocery store designed with families and the community in mind, is a big step forward."

"With The Hotel at the main gate, and this new project at the southern edge of the city, College Park is now book-ended by transformative developments supported by the UMCP Foundation," said Weiler.  "We are proud to play such an important role in creating a Greater College Park.