COPT announces plans for development in Springfield, Va.

Corporate Office Properties Trust, a real estate developer based in Columbia, has gained control of 15 acres in Springfield, Va., and plans to build a multi-structure development called Patriot Ridge with up to 980,000 square feet of space.

Construction of the first building, containing about 240,000 square feet, is expected to begin by the end of 2010.

Patriot Ridge will be next to the headquarters under construction for the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, part of the U. S. intelligence community.

It is COPT's first venture in Springfield and is consistent with its strategy of building commercial space next to government offices, including military bases and forts expanding as part of the federal government's Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) program. Both northern Virginia and Maryland are expected to gain thousands of employees over the next several years as a result of BRAC.

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