Crystal Spring Annapolis - City of Annapolis Ponders $200M Development Project

Crystal Spring Annapolis - City of Annapolis Ponders $200M Development Project

According to an article published in The Capital on August 18, 2001 reporting on an economic analysis presented to Annapolis officials the day before, Anirban Basu, Chairman and CEO of Sage Policy Group Inc., said that the Crystal Spring development project could bring 1,100 permanent jobs and will generate more than $900,000 in net fiscal benefits for the City of Annapolis and more than $1.3 million for Anne Arundel County. At the heart of Crystal Spring is a planned continuing care retirement community run by Rockville-based National Lutheran Communities and Services. According The Capital article:

The project's focal point is the Village at Crystal Spring, a planned continuing care retirement community [... ] will include apartments, one-story houses and duplexes for seniors.

But Crystal Spring won't be limited to retirement homes. Another 125 townhouses will not be restricted by age. Plans for Crystal Spring also include shops and restaurants, a grocery store, a boutique inn and day spa, and a cultural arts center, plus shuttle service to downtown Annapolis.

Is the future for Crystal Spring Annapolis secure?

The area has a long history of failed development efforts. Initially in 1987 there was approval for Steeplegate, a housing subdivision with 600-plus homes. The recession of the early 90's stalled development and a new developer took over. By 1996 the new developer's contingency on the main parcel of property forming the backbone to the subdivision expired. That's when Janet (now Richardson-Pearson) and David Richardson started acquiring property on Crystal Spring Farm Road. Multiple parcels of land purchased over the years by Ms. Richardson-Pearson have been combined into her vision for Annapolis's first community-integrated retirement living option.

After the lengthy peacetime expansion of the 1980s, inflation began to increase and the Federal Reserve responded by raising interest rates from 1986 to 1989. This weakened but did not stop growth, but some combination of the subsequent 1990 oil price shock, the debt accumulation of the 1980s, and growing consumer pessimism combined with the weakened economy to produce a brief recession.

[Between December 2007 and June 2009, the Late 2000 Recession was trigger by t]he subprime mortgage crisis [that] led to the collapse of the United States housing bubble. Falling housing-related assets contributed to a global financial crisis, even as oil and food prices soared. The crisis led to the failure or collapse of many of the United States' largest financial institutions [...]. The government responded with an unprecedented $700 billion bank bailout and $787 billion fiscal stimulus package.

SOURCE: Wikipedia: List of recessions in the United States

While the recession of the early 90's lasted only 8 months, the most recent recession lasted about 1 year and 6 months. The recession still affects the U.S. economy and continues to stunt economic growth in Maryland. The burst housing bubble resulted in an unprecedented decline in local house values almost equal to 30% off the real estate market's peak in late 2005 and early 2006. Annapolis and Anne Arundel County have weathered the storm well. The economic shake down which resulted in short-sales and foreclosures has been minimal in Annapolis when compared to other parts of the Maryland and the U.S. as a whole. Overall, Annapolis, as well as Anne Arundel County, would benefit from the creation of new jobs and an influx of additional revenue.

The audience for development of the area has changed over the last three decades. The area's population has aged and their needs are now different. Developers historically wanted to attract growning families to the site with a single-family home development plan. Now developers are looking to seniors as the most desirable consumer market segment for site.

Annapolis Maryland is a wonderful place to retire. Steeped in history, host to two prestigious colleges (St. John's College and the U.S. Naval Academy), located along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, possessing a vibrant historic downtown with shopping and dining options for residents and visitors alike, and enjoying a true four-season climate all combined together to make Annapolis Maryland an attractive place to retire.

The Project Background

Plans were unveiled in November 2010 for the project. As reported in an article posted on Citybiz Real Estate:

The land is known as Mas-Que Farm and Crystal Spring Farm, and the plans for a Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) to be developed, subject to Maryland Department of Aging approval, will reflect the vision of Janet K. Richardson-Pearson, an ASID-certified interior designer, and her husband, retired Rear Adm. William "Bill" Pearson.

Led by its Master Developer, Crystal Spring Development LLC, and Annapolis Attorney Alan J. Hyatt of Hyatt & Weber P.A., the team includes, Forest Drive LLC, Annapolis, as retail/commercial developers, FreemanWhite, Charlotte, N.C., as project architects, and Streetsense, Bethesda, Md., as retail planners/marketers.

When and if the project received all necessary approvals, construction could begin as soon as 2013.

What is Crystal Spring Annapolis?

According to the Crystal Spring Annapolis website, their vision is:

[...] To be Annapolis's first 'community-integrated' retirement living option centered around a world class Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC*).

The CCRC will offer well-appointed residences for seniors along with access to an array of first-class amenities, wellness and health care services.

* Proposed Continuing Care Retirement Community is subject to approval by the Maryland Department of Aging.

The project will be located off Forest Drive, between Crystal Spring Road and Spa Road, encompassing about 180 acres well known to Annapolitans by the names of the farms long located on the properties. The project's goal is to retain about seventy percent of the overall area as open space, thus preserving the natural and agriculture flavor of the location.

What is the National Lutheran Communities & Services?

According to the National Lutheran Communities & Services website, NLCS was known as the National Lutheran Home for the Aged and is now moving forward as National Lutheran Communities & Services to fulfill a vision of thriving retirement communities and new senior services. From their website:

More than a service provider, every program of NLCS is part of a ministry, designed to meet a family’s spiritual, social, emotional and physical needs. NLCS was founded as a serving agency of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is supported by the Delaware-Maryland, Virginia and Metropolitan D.C. Synods. Our services are open to people of all faiths. More than 55 percent of our family members are non-Lutheran.

Who is Anirban Basu?

According to the Sage Policy Group website, he is:

One of the Mid-Atlantic region's most recognizable economist, in part because of his consulting work on behalf of numerous clients, including prominent developers, bankers, brokerage houses, energy supplies [...] law firms [...] government agencies and non-profit organizations [...].