Monday, May 16, 2016

Phenix Salon is the hair salon opening at 4500 East-West Hwy. in Bethesda

Phenix Salon, a national hair salon chain, is the mystery haircare tenant at 4500 East-West Highway. The chain, which has been featured on the television program Undercover Boss, offers fully-enclosed suites to stylists who partner with them.

Founded by Gina Rivera, whose family has 85 years experience in the industry, Phenix is named after her son. Like many salons, they also sell products, which you can get a preview of on their website.

Developer Carr Properties has managed to reorient the gleaming Class A office building after a rocky start. The moribund Montgomery County private sector economy and anti-business climate scared away Intelsat, which ultimately chose Tysons for its new headquarters, among other major anchors. 

Montgomery County has not attracted a major corporate headquarters in nearly two decades. In contrast, not far from Intelsat's Tysons Tower, Capital One is building the tallest building in the DC area as its new headquarters - complete with a Wegmans grocery store. Montgomery County has major, major trouble attracting Wegmans to retail sites, much less to office sites! Needless to say, MoCo's political cartel has an abysmal economic development record, outside of its hefty federal government sector-subsidy and successful biotech corridor.

Much like the revamped office tower at 7550 Wisconsin Avenue, Carr lowered expectations to lower-profile office tenants, and has been able to get a number on board. They've had challenges on the retail front as well, after nixing a planned return by McDonald's, which had been the original tenant of the land at 4500 East-West. Carr repurchased the McDonald's space, and is now planning a high-end restaurant for it, according to The Washington Post. 

Now Carr is turning its attention to the promising and ambitious 7272 Wisconsin Avenue project, which would redevelop the existing Apex Building into a new, multi-building mixed-use development atop the Purple Line and Metro Red Line.

50 comments:

Anonymous said...

I don't really understand your posts, Bobby. It seems like you go out of your way to sound dumb by repeating the same two lines every week. Is it laziness or you don't know any synonyms for "moribund" or what?

And your point doesn't even make sense - NoVa paid millions in public subsidies and tax credits to get Intelsat...and that's a good thing? 4500 East-West leased up just fine without Maryland taxpayers having to spend millions...and that's a bad thing? You're a complete loon and you're the least fiscally responsible person here, to boot.

Anonymous said...

So the Capital One building has a Wegman's. How is the rest of its space doing?

Anonymous said...

"Founded by Gina Rivera, whose family has 85 years experience in the industry, Phenix is named after her son. Like many salons, they also sell products, which you can get a preview of on their website."

I thought that Dyer said that "linking to external sites is a security risk"? Or is that only when Ken Hartman links to someone other than Dyer?

Anonymous said...

6:47 AM He can link to whoever he wants on his own time.
For official county communications, it's not his job, or appropriate, to drive traffic to one site over others.

Anonymous said...

Well at least he doesn't mention the fabled job growth rate anymore.

Anonymous said...

Robert if MoCo is such a bad place, then move. NoVa would welcome you with open arms birdbrain.

Anonymous said...

7:38 AM MoCo is great, but it could be greater!

If Dyer didn't care, he wouldn't be trying to improve things. Now, who's the birdbrain?

Anonymous said...

@748- how does complaining incessantly improve anything? And to answer your question, you are, apparently.

Anonymous said...

Appreciate the tip on the new tenant, but so much wrong with this post...

"Moribund" again??? Will you please stop repeating this silliness?

Out of all of the outrageous claims made on this blog, this one hurts your credibility more, because no business analyst, industry executive, or economist agrees with you. Economic performance is measured with a ton of metrics, not just "how many fortune 500 companies did you get?" A robust economy is about quality job creation, low unemployment, strong demographics, robust home values, etc.--areas in which even the most pessimistic skeptics will say that, at the very least, the county has performed decently.

Carr wasn't even trying to attract "major corporations" to its space, which is arguably too small, and lacks good visibility. It was trying to poach law firms from K Street, which admittedly was probably a losing proposition from the start.

Insulting the so-called "lower-profile office tenants" just hurts your credibility even more. RapidAdvance is a financial services firm in a high-wage sector, ASHP is an important employer in Bethesda, and most recently Serendipity is on the high-end of the rapidly growing coworking industry. Across Wisconsin Akridge's 7550 Wisconsin leased up with a similar roster of smaller tenants and traded for the highest price/SF paid for an office building in Montgomery County. Ever. Down the street JBG is positioning to break ground on a 14-story office building on Bethesda Ave by the end of the year.

This does not happen in a moribund economy!

As for Wegmans:
1. They are very particular about the location and format of their stores. They have a very large market catchment and tried to avoid overlap (the Tysons store is obviously an exception). You might have realized that each of the other counties in suburban MD only have a single Wegmans.
2. The second Mont. Co. store would have opened by now at Lerner's mall site if not for L&T's frivolous lawsuit.

Anonymous said...

7:53 AM Reporting is complaining?

Robert Dyer said...

5:41: If you think small companies pay the same rents as Intelsat or a Fortune 500 firm, you are the loon. You support the Montgomery County Council, giving you zero credibility to use the term, "fiscally responsible." They're in an endless structural deficit, and their brilliant solution is... raise taxes, and cheat public employees out of their negotiated contract wages. What geniuses!

Robert Dyer said...

6:47: It's a security risk for government websites to link to outside websites. This is a news website, and - duh - news websites link to references in most online stories. Hartman's emails are taxpayer funded, completely different from a private sector platform.

Anonymous said...

@8:17 Would small tenants pay HIGHER rents per square meter than a Fortune 500 firm? First, the small tenant is more likely to go out of business = lower creditworthiness. Second, they are leasing less space so less of an economy of scale for the landlord.

So actually, small tenants may result in higher profits for landlords = more taxes to Maryland.

Anonymous said...

@821- LOL- News website? Come on man

Robert Dyer said...

7:55: 4500 and 7550 were both built during a moribund economy, so that's a meaningless indicator. JBG is recognized as taking a big risk with office space.

All the companies mentioned certainly help the local economy, but are not the type of halo corporations that NoVa is attracting - Intelsat, CEB, Hilton Hotels, Northrop, Volkswagen, etc.

Robert Dyer said...

7:55: By the way, low unemployment is not an indicator of economic development - most of the jobs are located outside of Montgomery County.

8:25: Yep, news website. Get over it.

8:21: Tenant paying lower rent equals more income for landlord than a higher rent?! That's math Hans Riemer can believe in!

Anonymous said...

One day a politician will have the guts to say the truth

'We've been lying to you for so long, we believe it ourselves...we've made promises we can't keep to bribe you to vote for us...we've lied about our reasons for doing so many things that we have to keep telling lies to cover them up, and now we're increasingly afraid to tell you the truth about anything....we're in a mess, and I'm as sick and tired of this charade as you are...

Anonymous said...

Dyer, you're not a real news website unless your articles appear on printed paper.
AND you don't have a super secret journalist badge.

If we're good today, Steve will give us orange slices. Take that, birdbrains!

Anonymous said...

Printed paper? How old ARE you?

Anonymous said...

"By the way, low unemployment is not an indicator of economic development"

I seriously encourage you to take a course in economics or business, because quite frankly you don't seem to know much about what you're talking about.

Anonymous said...

"This is a news website, and - duh - news websites link to references in most online stories"

Hahaha okay. Well you might try linking to the Census Bureau or BLS, but of course they would totally contradict your "news." Lol!

Anonymous said...

"By the way, low unemployment is not an indicator of economic development"

This is mostly true. I would put an "always" in there. Without getting too technical,
unemployment = number of workers actively looking for work & not currently working
Specifically excludes those who have given up and ceased looking for employment which can make the numbers much higher

Anonymous said...

MoCo residents are employed. Problem is, they're employed at jobs in DC and Northern VA.
MoCo is great, but can be greater!

Anonymous said...

Dyer: "If you think small companies pay the same rents as Intelsat or a Fortune 500 firm, you are the loon."

You're right; Intelsat and F500 firms pay a LOWER ppsqft due to their size and the bargaining leverage that provides them, you complete dolt. You have got to be the most ignorant arrogant person I know, Dyer.

Anonymous said...

This is the only local news site where commentators actual argue against bringing big companies into MoCo. Amazing!

Anonymous said...

Dyer, you have to be a) incredibly stupid, or b) incredibly dishonest, or c) both "a" and "b"; to try to claim that @ 8:21 AM was claiming that a SINGLE small tenant would pay more rent than a large tenant. Anyone who is not a birdbrain can realize that he meant MULTIPLE smaller tenants occupying the same space as the larger tenant.

#DyerIsAnInnumerateBirdbrain

Anonymous said...

"Without getting too technical,
unemployment = number of workers actively looking for work & not currently working
Specifically excludes those who have given up and ceased looking for employment which can make the numbers much higher."

You're talking specifically about U3. U4 adds "discouraged workers", U5 adds "marginally attached workers", and U6 adds "working part-time for economic reasons". "Discouraged" and "marginally attached" are both less than 1%.

Anonymous said...

Ok...since you want technical.
Yes. u3 = unemployment rate.
Actually the April 2016 report puts u5 at 6%, u3 is at 5%. There's your 1%.
But, u6 is a better gauge since it includes those stuck working part-time that want full-time employment. That was 9.7%. Which is a 4.7 deviation from the u3.

Anonymous said...

9:35AM: "You have got to be the most ignorant arrogant person I know"

9:35AM has obviously never met Mr. Leventhal.

Anonymous said...

"This is the only local news site where commentators actual argue against bringing big companies into MoCo. Amazing!"

That's not what anyone is doing and you know it. People are saying Dyer's fetish with specific companies that NoVa shells out big $$ to attract (a half decade ago, mind you) is nonsensical. VA is running massive budget shortfalls, all of the region's worst vacancy rates are NoVA submarkets, and Fairfax's job growth has lagging behind MoCo's for 4 of the last 5 years, according to the USCB. Just because Dyer says "moribund" over and over doesn't make it true and just because Dyer gets off every time VA hands out millions of public dollars to subsidize companies doesn't mean that's the best long term strategy.

Anonymous said...

If only we handed out corporate welfare like candy.

Anonymous said...

Agreed.

Anonymous said...

The ironic thing is that while Dyer bashing/insulting "small companies" and complaining that we don't have more Fortune 500 companies, he criticizes the County Council for being in the pocket of "Wall Street" and "the Corporations."

Anonymous said...

Dyer himself is a walking oxymoron.

Anonymous said...

@109- LOL- Birdbrain too, I may add.

Anonymous said...

12:02 PM You may want to get help. Everything is apparently a "fetish" to you.

Anonymous said...

1:44 PM - "Fetish" isn't always used in a sexual context, you weirdo.

Anonymous said...

Don't forget Dyer said it is illegal to link to outside websites but if Ken is going to link to BM he "has to" link to RD also.

Anonymous said...

2:50 PM Fair is fair in my mind. Government can't favor one business over another.

Anonymous said...

Choosing one business over another because it is better, is not "favoring" it.

Also, the Bethesda Urban Partnership is not "government".

Robert Dyer said...

9:35: Wrong! Equity One's shareholder conference calls discussed in detail how they will be able to charge higher rents to national chains and more upscale tenants than they can currently charge the mom and pop shops there today. Wealthier tenants pay more, "dolt."

Robert Dyer said...

10:06: Rents are charged by SF. But you can't charge Serendipity the same rent you could charge Northrop or Marriott. Hence they have lost revenue, and pay less taxes, and MD and MoCo lose revenue. Main problem - we need to change the Council with more pro-business members to create the policies that can support the new economic development corporation.

Robert Dyer said...

4:07: Government doesn't get to pick winners using taxpayer money under any circumstances, as Bob McDonnell can tell you.

Ken Hartman is not Bethesda UP; he is a representative of the County Executive and the executive branch. That's government last time I checked.

Anonymous said...

Dyer: "Wrong! Equity One's shareholder conference calls discussed in detail how they will be able to charge higher rents to national chains and more upscale tenants than they can currently charge the mom and pop shops there today. Wealthier tenants pay more, 'dolt.'"

You are a complete moron if you think retail and office ppsqft are somehow related or interchangeable. Of course nat'l retailers are more commonly able to afford high rent areas than mom and pops and of course that has nothing to do with the negotiation of Class A office leases. You, in all honesty, come off as unbelievably stupid every time you open your mouth re: economic issues. Why not stick to reviewing fast food and snacks and leave the adulting to people who actually have at least a baseline understanding of the factors at play?

Dan said...

You honestly don't understand that a 100Ksqft tenant is more appealing to landlords than ten 10Ksqft tenants? You don't understand that 100ksqft tenant has the ability to leverage that appeal into a substantially lower ppsqft than the smaller tenants? This is some seriously basic stuff. Please tell me you didn't attend MCPS, Robert.

Robert Dyer said...

Dan, you can't make small companies pay higher rents than Fortune 500 companies. If tiny offices were the pot of gold all along, why did 7550 retrofit the building with whole-floor, large tenants in mind? They didn't feel right about making big profits, so they made the dumb move first?

4:59: Should we leave the "adulting" to the County Council, who have admitted in the last week that they don't read the text of the resolutions they vote on, are trying to break legally-binding labor agreements, and raise taxes on the citizens to boot? What an elegant solution to their fiscal mismanagement. Instead of growing up and taking responsibility, they're going to cheat County employees including police officers and firefighters and rob the taxpayer. Certified geniuses!

Anonymous said...

"Dan, you can't make small companies pay higher rents than Fortune 500 companies. If tiny offices were the pot of gold all along, why did 7550 retrofit the building with whole-floor, large tenants in mind? They didn't feel right about making big profits, so they made the dumb move first?"

OF COURSE (all things being the same) a tenant with a smaller sf lease will pay the same or higher ppsqft than a large anchor tenant. Ditto for malls, etc. where the anchor tenants pay a lower ppsqft than the smaller tenants. This is common knowledge and common sense. If you can't grasp it, there's literally no helping you - a dozen people have already explained it.

Anonymous said...

The small tenants aren't the "pot of gold" - that's the entire point and the reason why they have to pay a higher ppsqft than larger tenants. This doesn't even require econ 101 knowledge, Dyer, just think for a damn minute and even you should be able to grasp it.

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Unknown said...

The small tenants aren't the "pot of gold" - that's the entire point and the reason why they have to pay a higher ppsqft than larger tenants. This doesn't even require econ 101 knowledge, Dyer, just think for a damn minute and even you should be able to grasp it.منع تساقط الشعر