Friday, March 02, 2012

Silver Spring "Adele" Site Fails to Sell at Auction



The half-acre parcel at 900 Thayer Avenue in Silver Spring, formerly touted as the prospective site of the 96-unit Adele, failed to sell at auction last month.

According to Bill Hudson of Atlantic Auctions, there were several interested parties at the auction, and bids were made, but ultimately American Bank, present owner of the property, put in a token high bid and retained ownership. (Identities of the bidders and the amounts of their respective bids are confidential.)

American Bank is the holder of the property's note, which dates from November 2006, in the original principal amount of $5.15 million. American acquired the property after original developers Fenton Street Development LLC - a partnership between the Freeman Group and Bloom Builders - presumably defaulted. Fenton Street had gained approval in 2008 for an SK&I-designed mixed-use project, christened "the Adele," that featured 15,000 square feet of ground floor retail, 18,200 feet of second-floor office space, and 96 residential units, as well as a green roof and a public plaza. But when the recession hit, the project stalled (probably the most-typed phrase in real estate blogging), and eventually the property changed hands.

The 28,500-square-foot corner lot, located in downtown Silver Spring at the intersection of Thayer Avenue and Fenton Street,
seems like it would still be a viable location for the right project, and was already approved by the county. Zoning (3.0 FAR for mixed-use) and a location in the Fenton Village Overlay Zone (which confers certain building height exceptions) seem conducive to high-rise construction. The most recent listings for the property (which are over a year old) peg it at just over $7 million. Take note, prospective future bidders. (And don't forget to bring your $100,000 deposit to the next auction.)

Silver Spring, MD real estate development news

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Literally across the street from a Safeway and a couple blocks to the metro. The large apartment building across the street has effectively no vacancies. It honestly doesn't get easier than this.

Anonymous said...

Where are your tasteful thoughts now, Fraklin?

Silver Spring Maven on Mar 11, 2012, 10:00:00 AM said...

It is not very easy actually. The approved design is for a small CONCRETE building with large units and lots of underground parking. This is a plan that cannot be economically built even if the land were free.

IMGoph on Mar 11, 2012, 9:54:00 PM said...

imaging having a building called the adele today? you could capitalize on the fame of the singer. what a loss. :)

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