In a blockbuster announcement Thursday morning, a development team spearheaded by Todd Hitt, the man behind the 2.5 acre Harris Teeter-anchored Rushmark Property project now under construction in the 300 block of W. Broad announced its acquisition for $13.6 million of a three-parcel consolidated 2.68 acre site, including the current Applebee’s and Robertson Building at the southeast corner of Routes 7 and 29, the center of the City of Falls Church. The properties encompass 100 N. Washington, 127 E. Broad, Applebees and 131 E. Broad St.
According to a press statement released Thursday, the Arlington, Virginia based Insight Property Group LLC and the Reston, Virginia based Kiddar Metz group announced the acquisition, with the seller of the sites being their long-time owner, Robertson Properties, Inc.
Hitt, who is the CEO of Kiddar Metz group, said in the release, “We are believers in downtown Falls Church.” Insight’s President Michael Blum was also quoted saying, “Broad and Washington is a strategic Main and Main location at the City of Falls Church’s core. Falls Church is a place with beautiful established neighborhoods, Metro access, first class schools, retail and proximity to employment.”
Falls Church City Manager Wyatt Shields confirmed the seminal role of Hitt in the deal, saying City officials have been aware of the plans for the property sale for a couple of months. “We are very happy to have Mr. Hitt doing more in our downtown,” Shields told the News-Press.
Shields said that nothing has been determined to date about what the buyers plan to do with the parcel, most of their other projects have been large scale mixed use ones similar to the Rushmark Harris Teeter effort only a couple blocks away.
According to Rick Goff, the City’s Economic Development director, he has met numerous times with Hitt and others involved in recent months and have talked about options. “Mr. Hitt is bullish on investing in the City and is reliable with his partners. We are excited about the possibilities here,” Goff told the News-Press today. He said his office played a role in bringing the Robertson family together with Hitt when the Robertsons first indicated a desire to sell their holdings a couple of years ago.
Insight, according to the press statement, has nearly 1,000 apartments currently under development in the D.C. area, including a 430-unit project anchored by a Whole Foods under construction on H Street NE in D.C, a 310-unit luxury apartment building near the Metro station in Silver Spring, and a 240-unit luxury apartment project near the Huntington Metro in Alexandria. In 2013 Insight completed its Grayson Flats apartment project in Arlington, and has acquired another 572 existing apartments in four DC Metro locations, including the Metro Rosslyn Apartments in Arlington.
Kiddar Metz, the statement said, is a private investment firm that originates, structures and manages strategic equity investments across a variety of business disciplines. It has in excess of $300 million under management.
