STEM-Focused Charter School Inks Expansion Lease in Baltimore Suburbs
By Nick Trombola October 29, 2024 3:12 pm
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A science-based charter school network is already expanding in the suburbs south of Baltimore, just two years after signing its first lease in the area.
The Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation, which operates the Chesapeake Science Point Charter School network, has signed a 56,964-square-foot, full-building lease at 7320 Parkway Drive in Hanover, Md., with landlord St. John Properties to expand its middle and high school. The new building is expected to open in fall 2026.
The foundation operates five STEM-focused schools in nearby Prince George’s County, along with an elementary school and a combined middle and high school in Anne Arundel County. That elementary school is at 1503 and 1513 Signature Drive, at which Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation signed a roughly 72,000-square-foot lease with St. John in mid-2022. Students began classes at the facility, which St. John calls Arundel Overlook, in fall 2023.
The facility on Parkway Drive is just west across Interstate 295 from Arundel Overlook. In the new lease deal, Lacey Johansson represented St. John Properties in-house, while NAI KLNB’s Chuck Breitenother and Austin Eber represented the tenant.
Eric Derin, director of operations and enrichment for the Chesapeake Lighthouse Foundation, said that fast-growing enrollment at the foundation’s schools necessitated the expansion.
“Leasing an entire building is our preference given security and privacy concerns, and 7320 Parkway Drive features frontage and roadside visibility from MD Route 295 and is surrounded by densely populated residential neighborhoods,” Derin said in a statement.
Plans for the school at 7320 Parkway Drive, which is about 13 miles southwest of Downtown Baltimore, include a state-of-the-art robotics lab and outdoor recreational areas, according to St. John.
“St. John Properties’ in-house design and construction teams worked seamlessly with the Chesapeake Science Point Charter School to deliver two new school buildings at Arundel Overlook in 2023,” Matt Lenihan, senior vice president of leasing for St. John Properties, said. “We have found our flex/R&D buildings are ideal to provide students a bright and modern classroom environment combined with a healthy amount of outdoor recreation space.”
Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.
