Metro projects moving forward

Council approves office building, parking garage at Prince George’s Plaza Metro

The $160-million project will be developed in three phases over the next two years. It will include 264 luxury apartments, said Jennifer Rademacher, chief operating officer of Miami-based Taylor Development and Land Co., the lead developer of the project.

It also will have about 164,000 square feet of retail space, including a Staples, Bally’s Total Fitness and Circuit City, which should open this summer, she said.

The 300,000-square-foot office building will include two additional open retail spaces at the ground level, with tenants yet to be named, said architects working with the developer.

Construction material will be similar to those used on existing buildings along East-West Highway near the Mall at Prince George’s. The side facing East-West Highway will have floor-to-ceiling glass.

The parking garage will contain 600 spaces. Because the developer would not be permitted to use an existing WMATA ramp for its parking garage, a separate one must be built, Rademacher said. This would require Taylor to build 27 feet into a 100-foot vegetative buffer alongside the garage. A variance from the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission would be required for such a move.

A six-foot privacy fence would be constructed between the garage and residential space next to it, Rademacher said. Evergreen trees and plants native to the area would be included to create an extra buffer.

Councilwoman Paula Perry (Ward 4) asked developers to ensure that residents are not affected by the added noise from traffic or cleaning in the parking garage.

‘‘My concern with even getting it just a tad closer to the parking garage is the noise the residents are going to endure,” she said.

A 42-inch wall would be built on each side of the garage to shield light, and may help quell noise, Rademacher said. Also, the garage would be cleaned during the day.

A community meeting would be held to familiarize residents with the project, but a date has not been set.

In other council news, Hyattsville Police Chief Douglas K. Holland briefed the panel on a Safe Cities Project, a community-based initiative to improve safety in commercial areas through partnership and technology.

Holland’s goal is to get businesses, residents, city officials and law enforcement to communicate about crime prevention. Proposed solutions include closed circuit TV, emergency call boxes, an e-mail alert system, red light and speed cameras, he said.

The Safe Cities Project is still under discussion and funding would come through partnerships and sponsors, Holland said.

E-mail Sarah Nemeth at snemeth@gazette.net.