Friday, April 28, 2006

$600M Luxury Wellness Resort Planned Fro Bethesda



April 26, 2006
By Michael Fickes, Mid-Atlantic Correspondent

Tucson-based Canyon Ranch has announced plans to develop a $600 million luxury wellness resort and residential community called Canyon Ranch Living in Bethesda, Md. The Penrose Group, Inc. of Tysons Corner, Va., will develop the project.

The decision to locate in Bethesda stems from the fact that the Washington, D.C., metro area is the fourth-largest market for Canyon Ranch resorts in Tucson and Lenox, Mass. "Canyon Ranch guests have consistently told us they want more opportunities to integrate our healthy living philosophies into their daily lives," said Kevin Kelly, president of Canyon Ranch.

The Bethesda development is the second Canyon Ranch Living community. The first got underway in Miami last year. According to Kelly, the company plans to announce a new community in a major market every 18 months.

Scheduled to open in 2008, the Bethesda resort will include a 157-room hotel and two 20-story towers with 434 condominiums and 87 luxury apartments. One of the towers will contain a 90,000-square-foot complex housing wellness programs, exercise equipment, retail, a restaurant and a host of wellness professionals.

The project will alter Bethesda's image in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. "In this region, you never think about Bethesda as a high-end retail and entertainment destination," said Larry Thau, managing director of the Bethesda office of CB Richard Ellis Inc. "For the first time, Bethesda will be part of the four star luxury marketplace

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