Annapolis Towne Centre signs new deals

The Sunday Capital, March 9, 2008, KATIE ARCIERI - Staff Writer

Construction moves forward

The $400 million Annapolis Towne Centre at Parole recently signed several new deals with retail stores and added to its upscale restaurant mix.

Greenberg Gibbons Commercial Corp., developer of the Parole project, announced the addition of an 8,000-square-foot Gordon Biersch restaurant known for its handcrafted lagers and ales as well as steak, fish and chicken dishes. A 6,885-square-foot Daily Grill restaurant serving up American fare will also land at the complex. The Rockville-based Silver Diner will open a 4,000-square-foot location offering menus for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

These businesses with join P. F. Chang's China Bistro, the Chop House, the Real Seafood Co. and Brio Tuscan Grille to create a restaurant anchor section at the 33-acre project now under construction.

Other major new tenants include a 12,000-square-foot Smyth Jewelers, a renowned Baltimore County jeweler and Eastern Mountain Sports, which carries outdoor clothing and footwear.

The deals are the latest in a project transforming the old Parole Plaza into a massive mix of condos, apartments, office space and retail anchored by a Target. A 70,000-square-foot Whole Foods and a Bed Bath & Beyond are also major anchors in the project.

Although a national builder last week backed out of a plan to build 300 condominiums at the complex, the project continues to draw tenants despite softer market conditions, said Brian Gibbons, president and chief executive of Greenberg Gibbons.

"This is such a unique project," Mr. Gibbons said. "There are not many like it."

On a hard hat tour of the project last week, Mr. Gibbons showed off the Target under construction and led the way up escalators into the store's sales floor, where the company's famed bull's-eye design already makes up the decor.

The tour included an elevator ride to the top of the 12-story GrandView condo building, which offers panoramic views of the Naval Academy, the Bay Bridge, the Annapolis Harbour Center and a new rooftop pool.

Comprised of 150 homes, the building features its largest model - a $2 million home that spans 3,400 square feet equipped with three decks and a floor-to-ceiling circular glass wall among other luxury features.

Mike DeStefano, president of Sturbridge Homes, the condo builder, said 63 of the GrandView homes have sold.

The last piece of the $400 million project was finalized last year to make way for a Bank of America.

Mr. Gibbons said his company signed an agreement a year ago to terminate the lease for Parole Services, a well-known station at the corner of Route 2 and Forest Drive site. The station sells gas and propane and provides towing and vehicle repairs. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.