Chelsea School, The Goddard School, and Howard County Gastrointestinal Diagnostic Center joining 12.5-acre Howard County business community acquired by joint venture in 2024

BALTIMORE, MD – A joint venture between Greenebaum Enterprises and St. John Properties, Inc. has signed three leases totaling more than 56,000 square feet of space at Montpelier Research Park. Located in Howard County, the 12.5-acre section of the business community was acquired by the partnership in 2024. The leasing activity includes a 13,510 square foot lease with The Goddard School and a 10,078 square foot lease with Howard County Gastrointestinal Diagnostic Center at 7760 Montpelier Road, a recently delivered 36,120 square foot flex/R&D building. Chelsea School inked a full-building 32,488 square foot lease at 7750 Montpelier Road with expectations to open in time for the 2026/2027 school year.

St. John Properties and Greenebaum Enterprises recently delivered two speculatively developed flex/R&D buildings at 7760 and 7740 Montpelier Road, totaling nearly 70,000 square feet of space. Approximately 44,000 square feet of newly constructed flex/R&D space is currently available for lease. Chelsea School is taking occupancy of a two-story office building that was acquired as part of the 2024 sales transaction. Montpelier Research Park is adjacent to the 450-acre campus of Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratories. St. John Properties currently has approximately 44,000 square feet of new flex/R&D space available for lease in the project.

Chelsea School relocating campus from Hyattsville, Maryland

Established in 1976, Chelsea School is a non-public special education school serving grades 5 through 12 which provides an individualized college preparatory environment for students with dyslexia and other learning difficulties. The school, which has been operating in its current Hyattsville building for the past 13 years, also offers opportunities to children who would not have had the economic means to attend a school that met their individual needs. According to Frank Mills, Executive Director of Chelsea School, the new Howard County location offers a “protected campus setting surrounded by woods which provides a preferred learning environment.”

“The building is beautiful and its larger size will enable us to expand our student population from our current 70 student size to approximately 100,” Mills added. “We absolutely love the green space which will allow students and faculty to enjoy the serene setting and possibly conduct some classroom work outdoors. The business community’s setting will also enable us to expand our radius farther north and serve students and families from the Columbia and Baltimore areas.”

Matt Lenihan and Alex Lyons of St. John Properties represented the joint venture partnership and Jerry Dawson of JCDAWSON Global Solutions represented Chelsea School in this lease transaction.  

New Goddard School marks second local location for franchisees Jim and Lynn Moratis

The Goddard School of Maple Lawn will be the second location for franchisees Jim and Lynn Moratis, who also manage the Goddard School of Columbia. Having expanded the Columbia location to its maximum available space in 2024, the franchisees decided to open a second school to accommodate the overwhelming demand for high-quality early childhood education in the Columbia, Laurel, and Fulton communities.

“This new school expands our offering of exceptional early childhood education to this companion location and will serve even more families in the area, especially given the increasing demand, stated Jim Moratis.”

For 37 years, The Goddard School has provided a warm, caring, and safe environment that supports children’s individual social, emotional and academic development, appreciates their unique talents and personalities, and fosters skills they need for long-term success in school and in life. The Goddard School’s exclusive inquiry-based education program, Wonder of Learning®, embraces how children learn best through their innate curiosity. Wonder of Learning® is backed by expert knowledge, data-driven insight, and unwavering compassion for growing minds, encouraging children to explore their curiosities and interests as they discover the joy of learning. The Goddard School serves almost 100,000 students from six weeks to six years old in 37 states and Washington, D.C.

Building on its partnership with Howard Community College’s Apprenticeship program, the Howard County Office of Economic Development provided Grant funding to assist in the buildout costs. The school is scheduled to open in January of 2027. Bill Jautze of St. Properties represented the joint venture, and David Fritz of KLNB represented The Goddard School in this lease transaction. 

Howard County Gastrointestinal Diagnostic Center relocating from Columbia,

 Howard County Gastrointestinal Diagnostic Center plans to relocate its flagship operation in the Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center in Columbia to Montpelier Research Park in late 2027. The endoscopy center specializes in gastrointestinal procedures including GI endoscopies and colonoscopies to diagnose and treat conditions in the esophagus, stomach, and intestines. Bill Jautze of St. Properties represented the joint venture and Jhon Pacheco and Searcy Ferguson of CBRE represented the tenant in this transaction.

Site directly adjacent to Maple Lawn mixed-use community

Montpelier Research Park is situated just north of Maple Lawn, a 605-acre mixed-use community featuring more than 1,300 homes, 1.8 million square feet of Class ‘A’ office and flex/R&D space, and 215,000 square feet of supporting retail amenities. Greenebaum Enterprises is the master developer with St. John Properties overseeing the development of more than one million square feet of commercial office, medical office, and flex/R&D space at Maple Lawn. The site is near the intersection of MD Route 29 and Johns Hopkins Road and is three miles from I-95, 11 miles from BWI Airport, and 20 miles from Washington DC and Baltimore.

“This leasing activity validates our decision to acquire the last remaining undeveloped parcels in Montpelier Research Park and invest in its final phase of development,” said Matt Lenihan, Executive Vice President of Leasing for St. John Properties. “Our nearby flex/R&D buildings at Maple Lawn have maintained limited vacancy for many years, which reinforces our confidence in the demand for new, high-quality flex product in the immediate vicinity.”   

Greenebaum Enterprises, Inc. is a privately held, full-service real estate development company founded in 1981 and located in Baltimore, MD. Having delivered over 5 million square feet of commercial space and developed over 20,000 residential lots and home sites, Greenebaum Enterprises has a reputation for developing award-winning communities and brings extensive expertise in development and construction management, leasing, property management, finance and government relations.

Founded in 1971, St. John Properties, Inc. is one of the nation’s largest and most successful privately held commercial real estate firms. The company is distinguished by its commitment to customer service, achievements in green building, and top-rated workplace culture. Throughout St. John Properties’ 55-year history, the company has developed more than 25 million square feet of flex/R&D, office, retail, and warehouse space and has investments in over 3,000 residential units. The company proudly serves more than 2,700 clients in Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Utah, and Wisconsin. For more information about the company, visit www.sjpi.com.

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