The BIT has committed $53 million in equity capital for the $222 million development project known as Ritchie Station Marketplace. This 996,000-square-foot retail center is to be built in the Capitol Heights neighborhood of Prince George’s County, Maryland, just outside of Washington, DC. The property will consist of two shopping centers to be developed in two phases. Adding to the project’s value is its prime location on a 120-acre, elevated site with direct access to the Capital Beltway and I-95. The developer, The Michael Companies, is currently conducting lease negotiations with a variety of national retail tenants. The BIT worked closely with the Washington, DC, Building and Construction Trades Council (BCTC) to assure that the Ritchie Station Marketplace project will meet the BIT’s union labor requirements. The project is expected to generate approximately 1,600 union construction jobs. “When the BIT committed to the Ritchie Station development, it committed to good union jobs for our members,” says Jerry Lozupone, Secretary-Treasurer of the Washington, DC, BCTC. “We’re pleased that we could work with the BIT to bring economic development and jobs to Prince George’s County.” “Ritchie Station Marketplace represents an excellent opportunity for the BIT to increase its retail development exposure in the portfolio, particularly in the Mid-Atlantic region,” says Rinse Brink of PNC Realty Investors, investment advisor to the BIT. “This in turn provides greater portfolio diversification and an opportunity to generate more core income.” The December 2007 commitment to this project is the BIT’s third recent investment in the Washington, DC, area. The others are the $125 million Executive Building redevelopment project and development of the $282 million Gallery Place mixed-use complex, both in downtown Washington.