Gilbane Development Company (“GDC”) engaged The Scion Group to perform a Market and Demand Analysis (“Study”) for a proposed graduate student housing development, Western Gateway, adjacent to the University of Maryland in College Park (“UMD” or “University”).
In April 2020, the Board of Regents for the University System of Maryland approved a partnership agreement between GDC and UMD for the Western Gateway project to be located at the southwest edge of campus. GDC will sign a 75-year ground lease for 2.2 acres of land owned by UMD for the phased development of 300 rental units and then purchase additional acreage from UMD for the development of 83 for-sale townhomes. GDC agreed to offer rental units at below-market rents, and UMD graduate students will have priority for occupancy over other renters. The University does not offer any on-campus graduate student housing due to consistently high demand from undergraduate students. However, two off-campus properties with an affiliation to the University, Graduate Hills and Graduate Gardens, provide 476 apartments for single graduate students and graduate students with families. Phase I of Western Gateway is scheduled to open in Fall 2023.
The purpose of the Study was to determine the demand for the project and solicit feedback on proposed unit types, features, and estimated rents. Scion used both qualitative and quantitative data to achieve the goals of the Study. In collaboration with the University and GDC, Scion collected and synthesized relevant information through stakeholder meetings with administrators and focus groups with students. Analysis of a student survey, the off-campus student rental market, and other quantitative data informed Scion’s calculation of demand and understanding of UMD students’ housing preferences and expectations.