Riding a tidal wave of hotel industry growth, Bethesda-based Marriott International Inc. is weighing sites for a new $144 million headquarters elsewhere in Maryland or in Northern Virginia.
The lodging conglomerate has narrowed a list of potential sites to six and intends to make a decision on a new home for about 3,000 employees by the end of March, a company spokesman said.
The locations under consideration are in Montgomery and Frederick counties in Maryland and Loudoun and Fairfax counties in Virginia. As part of its evaluation process, the world's largest hotel company is seeking financial incentives such as tax credits and assistance with construction financing.
"Today, at this moment, Northern Virginia appears to be more economically viable for us," said Nicholas A. Hill, a Marriott spokesman.
"Obviously, we're in a growth mode, and we're squeezed in terms of office space."
Marriott hopes to narrow its list of sites to two in the coming weeks, Hill said.
Maryland officials said yesterday that they were working to keep the company in the state.
"We will do everything in our power to keep them in Maryland," said Richard C. Mike Lewin, whom Gov. Parris N. Glendening named to be secretary of the state's Department of Business and Economic Development 11 days ago.
"They have been a great corporate citizen, they have a long history in Maryland and we value their presence," Lewin said.
He added that in regard to incentives, "we have resources, but I don't want to quantify them right now."
DBED has scheduled a meeting next week to discuss Marriott's search. In recent years, Marriott Chairman J. W. Marriott Jr. has criticized Glendening and the state for a "stifling" business climate.
Marriott International has outgrown its current headquarters in Montgomery County -- 775,000 square feet in a six-story building at 10400 Fernwood Road in Bethesda, where it has been since 1979. Its lease there will expire in 2004. Spokesman Hill declined to reveal how much the company spends annually on rent.
The company expects that it will need roughly 1 million square feet of office space, with options on another 200,000 square feet. At that size, the complex would be more than twice as big as the 35-story Legg Mason Tower at 100 Light St.
Marriott, which generates more than $10 billion a year in sales, has grown most recently through acquisitions.
In February 1997, Marriott bought Renaissance Hotel Group NV for $1 billion, on the heels of its $200 million investment in the Ritz-Carlton hotel chain, which gave Marriott a 49 percent stake in the luxury lodging company.
Three years ago, Marriott said it planned to add 120,000 rooms by 2000.
Pub Date: 12/12/98