Konterra Opening Delayed to 2018

In an article on June 11, 2015 in the Prince George's edition of The Maryland Gazette, representatives of the Gould family (the developers of Konterra) and several local officials discussed the current state of the project.

From the Konterra Fact Sheet

The opening date for Konterra Town Center East, planned as a mixed use retail center with office space and some residential housing, has been pushed back from 2015 to 2018.

Work is proceeding on building the east entrance to the Konterra development, with more construction expected this summer.

Several buildings have already been built on the 2200 acres of scattered parcels that comprise Konterra, straddling I-95 between MD-198 south to MD-200 (the Intercounty Connector). Town Center is expected to be about 740 acres in size.

The overall plan for Konterra includes:

• 1.5 million square feet of retail (comparable in size to The Mall in Columbia)
• 3.8 million square feet of office space
• 4500 multifamily rental and condominium residences
• 600 hotel rooms

Other Laurel Projects

As the local market has recovered in the last few years, several other Laurel developments have been revitalized.

In addition to the Grand Opening of Laurel Towne Centre last Fall, which replaced the demolished Laurel Mall, projects include:

• Laurel at the Brick Yard: 63-acre mixed-use development on the site of the former Washington Brick Co. on Route 1 south of Contee Road. Plans call for 1200 residential units and 750,000 square feet of commercial space, including ClimbZone and FloorMax.
• Westside: a 60-acre mixed-use project on Van Dusen Road on the north side of Konterra with 450 apartment units, a hotel, 200,000 square feet of retail, and some townhouses.
• C Street Flats: 122 one-bedroom and 22 two-bedroom apartment units just north of Main Street.
• Laurel Park: the racetrack owned by The Maryland Jockey Club, the same corporation as Pimlico where the Preakness of the Triple Crown is held, is completing $7M in renovations this year and is undergoing studies for revising traffic in that area and long-term renewal. Owner Frank Stronach is examining options for both tracks and is redirecting some management resources from his Florida Gulfstream Park to the Laurel facility.
• Laurel Branch Library: The busiest library in the Prince George's County Memorial Library System, located at the intersection of Talbott Avenue (MD-198) and 7th Street (MD-216), was torn down this Spring and is being doubled in size to 31,000 sq. ft. when it reopens in Fall 2016. The new facility will have a community meeting room and an outdoor amphitheater.

Conceptual drawing of new Laurel Branch Library
from Grimm and Parker Architects

See Also:

• Konterra Development News (4/1/13)
• Metro Green Line at Konterra? (12//11/14)
• Town Centre at Laurel Update (7/17/14)

External Links:

• New Date for Major Laurel Development Konterra Town Center East is 2018 (The Maryland Gazette, 6/11/15)
• Strategic Alliances Serve BWCC's Konterra: Today's Reality, Tomorrow's Vision (The Business Monthly, 7/1/13)
• Sidelined Development Back on Track in Laurel (The Business Monthly, 9/2/14)
• Laurel City Council Approves Zoning, Designs for 62-Acre Strittmatter Development (The Baltimore Sun, 1/29/13) - Westside
• Laurel Park Gets $7 Million Face-lift (The Capital Gazette, 3/18/15)
• Laurel Park Redevelopment Could Impact Laurel MARC Stop (The Baltimore Sun, 7/15/15)
• Laurel Park Station Development Gaining Steam (The Baltimore Sun, 8/20/15)
• Laurel Library Breaks Ground (The Baltimore Sun, 5/27/15)
• Laurel Library Construction (Flickr Album)