A 44-acre corporate campus in north Gaithersburg has been purchased by Matan Companies, a Frederick-based real estate firm that has been investing in the Interstate 270 corridor and the greater Washington area.
The property, north of Montgomery Village Avenue between I-270 and Route 355, is home to a division of Leidos, a multi-billion-dollar information-technology, defense, aviation and biomedical professional services firm.
Matan said it has not determined a future use for the property, long considered prime real estate in the county’s high-technology corridor.
“With Leidos vacating in the near future the property represents a rare redevelopment opportunity in a severely supply constrained area,” Managing Partner Mark Matan said in a statement. “The limited to non-existent supply of large 270 land tracts, coupled with the new Watkins Mill Interchange, make this site attractive across user types.”
A new interchange along I-270 at Watkins Mill Road has been planned for more than a decade and is expected to bring more business activity to north Gaithersburg and clusters of technology companies that have opened there.
Plans for the site are still being evaluated by Gaithersburg officials, but the Matan has had discussion with the city about what will go there, Gaithersburg Economic Development Director Tom Lonergan said.
The area has a Mixed Use-Transportation Oriented zoning designation, giving Matan many options for development, Lonergan said.
The zoning classification, widely used in Montgomery County, generally encourages pedestrian-friendly areas with tree-lined streets, access to public transit and a blend of offices, shops and residences.
The property, at 700 N. Frederick Ave., is next to a new FedEx Ground facility, and near Lakeforest shopping center. Leidos will remain a tenant for the time being.
The two interconnected office buildings totaling 538,916 square feet would be adequate for a headquarters, biotech facility, distribution location or retail site, the company noted in a news release.
“That the property sold for future redevelopment before Leidos vacates is testament to the strength of Gaithersburg’s commercial real estate market,” Lonergan said. “It’s a prime site with tremendous potential, and we look forward to working with the Matan Companies to attract new employers to this location.”
More than a generation ago, the campus housed a division of IBM Corp. and later Lockheed Martin Corp., the Bethesda-based defense contractor.
Leidos was formerly named Science Applications International Corp., SAIC, and is one of the Washington area’s largest government contractors. The company is based in Reston, Virginia.
The sale of the property was first reported by Montgomery Newsletter, which covers real estate and development.
