FDA Growth Benefits Surrounding Communities.

It has been a couple of years since I last posted about the Food and Drug Administration White Oak Campus. When I last reported the total work force at the FDA was just pushing past the 5,000 workers mark. Actually, in the past two years this number has not changed much. However, there is still major construction going on and the scheduled completion of a few new buildings should give the facility a boost in it's worker population. By 2017 the projection number of workers should exceed 8,000 employees. After that there is no real projected growth for beyond 2017 as the campus will be pretty much built out. However I would not be surprised to see more buildings and space open up with the passage of time as that seems to be the norm for all government facilities.

Originally there was a lot of griping and resistance to the FDA coming to White Oak but it seems that most objections have faded away and the local communities have not only accepted the new facility but embrace it as well. Hillandale, my own community, which abuts the campus is a good example. I really think the stabilizing real estate market in Hillandale owes a lot to the growth of the campus.  To be sure, our road traffic is a little worse but the FDA has brought a lot of good paying jobs to the area and we have seen a number of FDA employees purchase homes in Hillandale, not to mention some of the other surrounding neighborhoods such as Burnt Mills Hills, and Burnt Mills. We have also seen our local Key Middle School and Cresthaven Elementary School reconstructed as modern, state of the art facilities. We waited a long time in Hillandale for this to happen but the FDA campus seems to have helped move this process along. When my wife and I first moved to this area, I jokingly referred to the New Hampshire Ave. corridor between the White Oak  and Hillandale Shopping Center's as  "dining's death valley." There were just so few options for decent dining out. Nowadays it is different with both shopping centers offering a broad choice excellent places to eat.

With the arrival of the FDA my community is really shaping up to be a great place to live and work. And as any Realtor will tell you. The neighborhoods around the FDA campus offers up some of the best home values in close-in Montgomery County. Click on this Hillandale link if you want to see what is on the market in Hillandale and the rest of the 20903 zip code. And if you are curious about the value of your own home you can go here to get an estimate of your home's worth in today's market.