Tabori Critiques "Suburban" UTC Safeway Plan

Is the proposed, Safeway-anchored, commercial expansion of University Town Center too suburban for the area?

University Park Mayor John Tabori was left with that impression after representatives from Echo Realty, the development firm behind the proposed grocery and retail center, presented their vision for the expanded University Town Center to the University Park Town Council on Monday evening.

"It's really suburban in its design," said Tabori in an interview after the meeting. "It's genuinely suburban."

His critique is aimed at the developer's intention to seek approval from the Prince George's Planning Board to modify University Town Center's 2006 detailed site plan which calls for a mixed-use structure with hundreds of apartments to be built on top of a grocery store. Tabori argued that such density could be appropriate for a site located less than a mile from the Prince George's Plaza Metro Station. 

Representatives for the developers have previously said that regional market saturation in multi-family, rental and condominium housing, combined with lower than anticipated tenancies at the residential units already at University Town Center, made the residential component of the project unattractive. 

Instead, developers want to strip out the residential component, leaving a two-story retail and commercial development topped by a 300 spot parking garage. 

The developers said they are continuing to look for economic development incentives they say are necessary to make the project viable.

But are they committed to developing the property with or without incentives?

"I can't answer that," said Matthew Tedesco, attorney representing development firm Echo Realty, which is seeking to bring the grocery and retail complex to University Town Center. 

Tedesco said that, as of yet, the developers have not applied for any economic development incentive programs. 

"I don't want to indicate that we are looking for anything, per se," said Tedesco. "We're kind of exploring all the options that the county has available for transit oriented developments, as far as incentivizing developments that come in primarily in-and-around Metro stations."

The developers plan to officially file their proposal to modify the 2006 detailed site plan with the Prince George's County Planning Board this week, according to Tedesco. That would kick of a 70 day review period which would place the proposed modification of the detailed site plane on a Planning Board agenda by late October or early November. 

Concerns about traffic impacts generated by the development were also raised by Tabori and other University Park council members. In particular, the lack of a light to stop traffic at a proposed left turn lane which would take traffic from eastbound East-West Highway onto the development was highlighted by Tabori. 

"Drive up Route 1, and every, just about every one of the student housing units has its own light," said Tabori. "And here is an entrance to what is expected to be a really heavily used grocery store is going to be without a light."

Developers said that the existing traffic lights at the intersection of Adelphi Road, Queens Chapel Road and East-West Highway would provide enough of a break in traffic for cars to have safe opportunities to turn left across the westbound lanes of East-West Highway.