B.F. Saul Meets Wheaton Redevelopment Advisory Committee

Talks between B.F. Saul, the management company leading the development of a key portion of downtown Wheaton, and the community kicked off Wednesday evening at the September meeting of the Wheaton Redevelopment Advisory Committee.

During the meeting, Saul explained that in addition to the lots offered through the partnership, development would likely involve adding property nearby. In order for this to be a reality, the company will need to buy out owners in the immediate area.

"We'll probably need to assemble other parcels held privately," said senior vice president Robert Wulff during a presentation to the committee, which is made up of residents, business owners and staff of the planning board.

The parcels currently open to Saul includes the bus bays next to the Metro entrance, the mid-county regional services center and parking lot 13 - the main county lot between Triangle Lane and Grandview Avenue. 

The presentation was largely an introduction, informing committee members of the team members on the project, including Torti Gallas and Partners and Loiederman Soltesz, as well as outlining B.F. Saul's plan for outreach to the community for input on the concept of the redevelopment.

When asked by committee member Jonathan Fink about how Saul would deal with the high number of individual property owners needed to buy land from, Wulff noted that the company had experience in this area but that the acquisition of private lots would not be shared publicly.

"It's not like there's a lot of magic here," Wulff said. "You pay owners what they think their property is worth, if it's appropriate. And you don't buy if it's not appropriate."

What will be very public, however, is B.F. Saul's process of speaking to civic associations, businesses and other "stakeholders" in Wheaton.

Ellen Bogage of Chesapeake Public Strategies, who is working with Saul on public relations and outreach, outlined whom they would be speaking to and when. There will be two large events: one for listening for input on the concept plan and another to present the eventual plan.

David Dise, director of the county's Department of General Services, estimated it would take about six months for Saul to present a concept plan that would include broad outlines of what the development would include.

Manny Hidalgo, a committee member and executive director of the Latino Economic Development Corporation, asked Bogage and Wulff about how they planned to retain current tenants, especially given Wheaton's small-business dynamic.

Wulff noted that in Saul's current development in Arlington, displaced long-term tenants had been been given a slightly subsidized rent in the new building. But the real challenge was finding temporary spaces during construction.

"We don't want all national tenants," he said.

New committee member James Mensah said the B.F. Saul presentation was comprehensive.

"I have some more questions, but I think it's the right first couple of steps, " he said.