Montgomery County, MD Green Party Blog

National Builder KB Home Is Battling With Local Firms for Projects Large and Small

The last great expanse of developable property near Gaithersburg is the Crown Farm, with its rolling hills and freshly cut grass, nestled near Interstate 270 and the heart of Montgomery County’s biotech community. It is such an irresistible jewel for home builders that bidding for the property at times resembled begging.

So when Los Angeles-based KB Home swooped in on the 180-acre property this summer as lead builder in a $137 million, 2,000-house deal, the region’s home builders did not need to be told the ground underneath them had shifted. The nation’s fifth-largest builder, with $7 billion in revenue last year, jolted the country’s fastest-growing home-building market, setting the stage for even sharper battles between regional and national builders for a limited amount of land.

“We are all absolutely fierce competitors,” said G. Cory DeSpain, who oversees home building in Virginia and Maryland for Pennsylvania-based Toll Brothers Inc., which deals mainly in luxury homes. “They will find their market niche here. They have deep pockets. They are a big company. They’re probably going to take some market share from people.”

It’s nice to see the developers suffering — even a little — heartburn for a change…
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Days From Making Candidacy Official, Gubernatorial Hopeful Thanks Backers

Appearing at his annual political picnic, Duncan thanked those who stood by him during his two-decade rise from Rockville City Council member to mayor to his countywide post.
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Duncan’s acknowledgment of the task ahead comes as his opponent in the Democratic primary, Baltimore Mayor Martin O’Malley, is enjoying double-digit leads in early polls.

Citing the gap, some Democrats have started talking anew about the possibility that Duncan step aside to avoid a divisive primary that could leave Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) in a better position to win reelection. But Duncan, who has seemed on the defensive about the prospect in recent weeks, made light of such talk yesterday.

There’s nothing to be cheerfull about here, as both candidates are in the developers’ pockets.
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The Supreme Court today rejected the state of Missouri’s attempt to stop a prison inmate from obtaining an abortion.
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The Supreme Court does not issue vote counts when it acts on stays of lower court orders, so it was not possible to determine how Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. voted in the matter. Nor does the court’s action constitute an endorsement of the lower court’s holding or set any precedent.

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