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Baltimore real estate firm acquires another D.C.-area retail center
Baltimore-based MCB Real Estate has bought another D.C.-area property. <\p> The company announced Friday that it has acquired the Giant Food-anchored Takoma Park Shopping Center in Silver Spring for nearly $15 million. The 62-year-old center was last acquired by an affiliate of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida-based Westbrook Partners in October 2021 for $13.25 million, according to state property and corporate records.<\p>
Choice Hotels plots refresh for upscale Radisson brands
North Bethesda-based Choice Hotels International Inc. (NYSE: CHH) is rolling out a refresh of its Radisson and Radisson Blu brands as it aims to beef up its upscale hospitality offerings.<\p> The company recently unveiled plans to revitalize the 115-year-old Radisson brand, which it says will balance contemporary with classic finishes, more casual luxury guest rooms, and personalized service. Designs for its upper-upscale Blu brand, meanwhile, will feature a return to its Scandinavian roots, with a cleaner, more minimalist style touched with natural tones and outfitted with amenities including a dry vanity, optimized lighting and full-sized wardrobe closet. <\p>
Republic refinances Portals office building
Republic Properties Corp. has secured a $96.5 million loan to refinance its Southwest D.C. office building known as Portals II.<\p> The new loan, which matures in 2037, was described by President and CEO Steven Grigg as a long-term financing deal arranged by JLL with a pension fund. Grigg declined to disclose the identity of the pension fund, saying it wishes to remain anonymous. <\p>
D.C. hotel workers secure higher pay, pension benefits
Union workers at more than 20 hotels in the D.C. region have secured a new contract that will raise their pay by 25% over four years and require employers to make additional benefits to their pensions.<\p> The new contract, announced Thursday, ends months of tense negotiations between the workers and hotel operators and averts what the union had said could be widespread worker disruptions in the fall. In May, more than 1,000 union workers held a rally in downtown D.C. demanding higher wages and better working conditions. <\p>
D.C. earns unexpected distinction in new Michelin restaurants report
By any measure possible, it's been an exciting week for D.C. foodies: On Monday, two D.C. chefs take home top awards at the James Beard Foundation's Restaurant and Chef Awards, one of the highest honors in the culinary world. Two days later, the Michelin Guide added five new D.C. restaurants as "recommended" in its most recent publication. <\p> But it didn't end there: A new report this week from food magazine Chef's Pencil shows that D.C. has the third-highest density of Michelin-starred restaurants anywhere in the world. Take that, New York.<\p>
FanDuel threatens to end contract running D.C.'s mobile betting app
Sports gambling giant FanDuel is threatening to terminate its exclusive contract running D.C.'s mobile sports betting platform if the city follows through with a plan to open the city's mobile sports wagering market to more operators. <\p> The D.C. Council on Wednesday passed a $21 billion budget that includes a provision to create a new type of betting license allowing the city’s professional teams to run their own sports betting apps in partnership with an established sportsbook of their own choosing. If Mayor Muriel Bowser signs the fiscal year 2025 budget bill, FanDuel said it would move to establish a partnership with one of the city's teams and "invoke its termination right" running the city's mobile betting app under a subcontract with the Office of Lottery and Gaming (OLG.) <\p>
Glenstone Museum employees just unionized. Here's what they want.
Workers at Glenstone Museum, the Potomac gallery owned by Washington Commanders minority owner Mitchell Rales and his wife Emily Wei Rales, voted successfully to unionize and are preparing to begin contract negotiations.<\p> Eighty-nine workers at the contemporary art museum are now part of Teamsters Local 639; roughly two-thirds of eligible employees voted in favor of unionization. The National Labor Relations Board certified the election last week.<\p>
Equinox on 19th still putting vegetables at the center of the plate
Equinox on 19th is a family-owned and operated fine-dining restaurant on K Street. Chef Todd Gray has been serving up his regional seasonal cuisine since its opening in 1999 with the help of his wife and business partner Ellen Kassoff. <\p> Since its founding 25 years ago, Equinox has been plant-forward, with a vegetable-centric menu that is constantly changing based on what’s ripe and with an emphasis on sustainability. The menu has always been layered with mid-Atlantic and Italian influences, featuring dishes like risotto fritters with sweet garlic and crème fraîche as well as seafood dishes such as barbecued wild salmon with local corn, sweet peppers and black eyed peas.<\p>
D.C. relinquished rights to Union Station bike hub, landlord claims
The District couldn't have been wrongfully evicted from a bicycle Transit Center outside Union Station in Northeast D.C., as it claimed in an April lawsuit, because it had already shed its interest in the property to a third party, according to the firm overseeing commercial leasing at the Northeast D.C. train station.<\p> Lawyers for Union Station Investco LLC filed a reply in D.C. Superior Court on Wednesday, refuting allegations by the office of Brian Schwalb, D.C.'s attorney general, that the D.C. Department of Transportation was illegally locked out of the $4 million, glass-sided bike hub. USI said DDOT assigned its lease for the Transit Center in November to the nonprofit Washington Area Bicyclist Association, and USI didn't change the locks until a month later. As such, USI said, the District lost its standing as a plaintiff to sue.<\p>
Federal Realty's CEO is more bullish than ever on suburban retail
In the late 1990s, Don Wood had been married for a few years, had four young children and was flying back and forth from New York City to Las Vegas when the company he was working for was bought out. He needed a job.<\p> He got a call from a headhunter asking whether he’d be interested in a REIT, or real estate investment trust, in the D.C. region. <\p>
Here's what a new NFL stadium in D.C. would mean for city's economy
A new stadium in D.C. for the Washington Commanders would not just create thousands of jobs and generate millions in annual tax revenue, it would also be a catalyst for hotel, retail, housing and even office development in the immediate area surrounding the stadium.<\p> That’s according to a study on the economic impact of professional sports commissioned by D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and released to the public Thursday.<\p>
The greenest lawn in Greater Washington could be yours
Look outside your home or office window. Is that the beautiful lawn you always wanted? If not, don’t fret. <\p> Greater Washington’s landscaping companies handle this sort of crisis all the time. Whether you wish it was greener, <\p>
D.C. Lottery executive resigning for new post
Frank Suarez, the executive director of the D.C. Lottery, will resign from his post on July 31 to become the president and CEO of the Connecticut Lottery Corp.<\p> Suarez announced his departure to the D.C. Office of Lottery and Gaming staff on Thursday. <\p>
Booz Allen recruits AWS exec as new CTO
McLean giant Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. appointed a new chief technology officer amid efforts to expand its artificial intelligence and cybersecurity capabilities for the defense, civilian and intelligence industries.<\p> William Vass, a 40-year tech industry veteran who spent the last decade at Amazon Web Services Inc., will replace Susan Penfield, who is retiring after 30 years with Booz Allen (NYSE: BAH). The appointment is effective June 17.<\p>
Most Americans still struggle to get away from work while on vacation
Most Americans struggle to get away from work while on vacation, even as some progress is being seen in restoring work-life balance.<\p> About 59% of the 2,000 Americans surveyed by communications firm Movchan Agency said they struggled to switch off during their downtime and 63% said they felt anxious if they didn’t check work emails while away. Overall, 54% said they worked while on vacation, although that's a lower share than previous years. <\p>
Loudoun approves first all-affordable multifamily via fast-track pilot
Loudoun County on Wednesday approved rezoning for a 100% affordable multifamily project, part of a pilot program aimed at fast-tracking review of applications that promise attainable homes.<\p> The project calls for 80 below-market rate attached units on 3.1-acres in Sterling. The property is near the intersection of Atlantic Boulevard and Magnolia Road adjacent to Northrop Grumman’s campus. <\p>
Rockville car care startup aims to expand services under new CEO
Car care startup Roda, a subsidiary of Graham Holdings Co., has brought on a new CEO who wants to broaden its menu of services to keep the Rockville-based venture growing.<\p> CEO Rachel Lubin is a known quantity in Greater Washington: She was formerly with D.C. tech darling LivingSocial Inc., which sold to Groupon in 2016, and D.C. framing startup Framebridge, now part D.C.’s Graham. She took the reins at the nearly-4-year-old company in February.<\p>
America250 interim chief has ties to former tech firm accused of fraud
The co-founder and former president of Trustify Inc., an Arlington private investigator platform accused by federal regulators of misleading investors in 2020, is now leading the organization created to help plan America’s 250th anniversary while it searches for a permanent top executive.<\p> Jennifer Condon was named interim executive director of the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission after the post was vacated in November. The organization, beset by litigation and turnover in its executive director post, is working to raise millions in private funds and secure federal appropriations for a yearlong celebration in 2026.<\p>
Bidding war erupts for D.C.’s Vanda Pharmaceuticals
A bidding war has erupted for D.C.’s Vanda Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: VNDA).<\p> The local drugmaker has received yet another unsolicited acquisition proposal from Wixom, Michigan-based private contract-manufacturer Future Pak LLC — the latest in a string of proposals from that firm to buy the biotech, and a week after British company Cycle Pharmaceuticals Inc. made its own offer.<\p>
Nonprofit launches apprentice program to address nursing shortage
Employ Prince George’s (EPG), a workforce development nonprofit, has launched a new nursing apprenticeship program aimed at helping county health care providers fill a chronic shortage of qualified nurses. <\p> Through EPG’s Apprenticeship Innovation Program, county residents will be eligible to receive career training in nursing, an effort that is supported by Hyattsville’s Heritage Care Inc., a nonprofit that has specialized in nursing services for nearly 30 years. The training will be a registered apprenticeship, registered with the Maryland Department of Labor's Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Program (MATP), an agency that EPG has worked with for years. <\p>
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