U. of Maryland Seeks to Create a ‘College Town’ at Campus Edge

The University of Maryland at College Park plans to create a $700-million town center — complete with restaurants, movie theaters, student housing, and a high-end grocery like Whole Foods or Harris Teeter — on a 38-acre parcel east of its main campus, according to The Washington Post.

“Maryland has a goal to be a top-10 university, and they realize without a top-10 college town, they would never make it,” said Douglas M. Duncan, the university’s vice president for administrative affairs. Mr. Duncan is the former county executive for Montgomery County, Md., where he helped redevelop downtown Silver Spring by bringing in restaurants, the American Film Institute, a Whole Foods, and other amenities. Montgomery County adjoins Prince George’s County, in which College Park is located.

The new town center is intended to help create connections between the campus and nearby neighborhoods, Mr. Duncan said. Constructing it will require demolition of unused university greenhouses, a mail facility, and maintenance structures.