ALEXANDRIA, VA. — JBG Smith (NYSE: JBGS), a Maryland-based developer and REIT, has broken ground on the first building within the $1 billion Virginia Tech Innovation Campus at the university’s satellite campus in the Washington, D.C. area. The development is located about 275 miles from Virginia Tech’s main campus in Blacksburg.
The 300,000-square-foot building will be situated on a 3.5-acre site within the Potomac Yard development. Construction of the first building is scheduled to be complete in advance of the fall 2024 academic semester. Plans for the campus call for the construction of two more academic buildings spanning 150,000 square feet each.
When completed, the new academic building will provide instruction, research, office and support spaces for graduate-level programs in computer science and computer engineering, as well as other select programs.
The building will also house experiential learning spaces, including flexible multipurpose areas and research and testing labs. Sasaki and SmithGroup led the design of the academic structure.
JBG Smith is the master developer of the Innovation Campus and will also serve as the property manager and leasing agent for subsequent commercial and residential buildings within Potomac Yard.
“This is a vibrant district, anchored by a new Virginia Tech campus, that will become a magnet for partners that want to work with the university as well as other businesses that want to offer services to the students, faculty and community members,” says Matt Kelly, CEO of JBG Smith.
“This building will help us develop new and diverse talent pathways, explore new models of learning and discovery, and influence technology-related policy,” adds Virginia Tech president Tim Sands. “We look forward to integrating our campus into the fabric of Alexandria, contributing to the ideas and energy that make it an extraordinary community.”
The development of the Innovation Campus is part of the initial phase of Potomac Yard, a mixed-use redevelopment project that will be located within National Landing, a newly established tech hub that is headlined by the future site of Amazon’s HQ2. JBG Smith is also developing the $2.5 billion HQ2 campus, which will reportedly bring 25,000 new Amazon jobs over the next 10 years.
JBG Smith currently has approval from the City of Alexandria to develop six buildings at Potomac Yard that will house these residential, retail and office uses, including an “Innovation Building” that will be located adjacent to the new Virginia Tech campus.
Earlier this year, JBG Smith and J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives announced a joint venture to design, develop, manage and own approximately 2 million square feet of new mixed-use space within Potomac Yard. The development will include the new Potomac Yard Metro Station that is expected to open in 2022, as well as 57,000 square feet of public and private green space.
JBG Smith’s stock price opened at $29.37 per share on Wednesday, Sept. 15, relatively unchanged from $27.75 per share a year ago.
— Taylor Williams