Three ongoing development projects in Bethesda are among the most expensive projects in the Washington region, according to a list compiled by the Washington Business Journal.
The projects — the future Marriott International headquarters, Avocet Tower and an expansion at Suburban Hospital — total more than $1.7 billion in development in Bethesda.
The Washington Business Journal (WBJ) list was led by a $1.4 billion project in Reston, Va., to construct an eight-story, 840,000-square-foot mixed-use building.
The future Marriott International headquarters in Bethesda is estimated to cost $600 million and checks in at No. 7 on the 25-project list.
The 22-story building encompasses more than 700,000 square feet and will include office space, as well as a 230-room hotel.
More than 3,500 Marriott employees will be based on the corporate campus near the intersection of Norfolk and Wisconsin avenues when the project is completed in 2022. Plans call for a 244-room hotel with meeting space and a neighborhood restaurant to stand next to the office high-rise, with a plaza running between the two buildings to connect Woodmont and Wisconsin avenues.
Crews broke ground in May on the $350 million Avocet Tower, a 23-story mixed-use building on Wisconsin Avenue. When completed in 2021, Avocet will include hotel space, underground parking and 370,000 square feet of office space.
The project is a public-private partnership between Montgomery County and Bethesda developer StonebridgeCarras LLC.
The Avocet Tower project was No. 16 on WBJ’s list of the region’s most expensive projects.
Suburban Hospital, No. 23 on the list, is nearing completion of a $273 million expansion to its location on Old Georgetown Road. The hospital is adding 300,000 square feet and a 1,111-space parking garage. The project is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
In February, local developers asked the county to consider suggestions to “get ahead of increased traffic and population” before several key projects are completed, including Marriott International, in the coming years.
The group asked for Bethesda Circulator bus routes to be expanded to the Medical Center Metro station, purchase of backup Circulator buses to run when main buses are out of service, stronger parking enforcement and increased police presence.
Along with Marriott’s trophy project will come several multifamily buildings to include about 1,900 new apartments and an estimated 4,500 people in downtown Bethesda. More than 1.7 million square feet of office space is expected to be built among four projects.
At No. 17 on the WBJ list is the Washington Adventist Hospital in White Oak. The facility, with 180 patient rooms, is expected to open Aug. 25. The WBJ list says the project is estimated to cost $331 million, but Washington Adventist officials recently said the total cost is about $400 million, which would move the project up to a four-way tie for No. 12 on the list.
The White Oak center is more than twice the size of Washington Adventist Hospital and will bring in up to 1,400 employees and 650 medical staff.
Caitlynn Peetz can be reached at caitlynn.peetz@moco360.media
