Costco to Anchor $2.8B Megaproject

March 3, 2026

Retail Brokerage Mid-Atlantic News More Washington D.C.

The retail company is on track to reach a dozen locations in Maryland.

MCB Real Estate has secured a 162,000-square-foot commitment from Costco at its $2.8 billion, mixed-use development in Silver Spring, Md., dubbed VIVA White Oak.

The retailer will be the first anchor tenant at the 280-acre project. In addition, the new store will be Costco’s fourth within a 10-mile radius and its 12th across the entire state of Maryland.

The VIVA White Oak project initially received approval for up to 12 million square feet of mixed-use space. However, current plans include the construction of 3 million square feet of retail, office and life science space, as well as 5,000 residential units.

VIVA White Oak obtained the support of the Montgomery County Council, which passed a Tax Increment Financing deal for the project just last week. It was the very first such resolution reached by the local authority.

Under the terms of this agreement, the county will divert capital to fund new public infrastructure, roads and public spaces. And this summer, the council will convene again to consider a potential bond issuance.

MCB became involved in the project in 2024, when it took over the development from Global LifeSci. The Percontee Inc. affiliate, which set VIVA White Oak into motion more than a decade ago, retained a minority stake in the project.

The development is set to rise some 12 miles northeast of downtown Washington, D.C., next to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration headquarters. Thoroughfares such as interstates 495, 95 and U.S. Route 29 run approximately 5 miles away.

D.C. retail rates go up, vacancy softens

The average U.S. vacancy rate reached 5.7 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025, up 40 basis points year-over-year, according to a Cushman & Wakefield report. However, the figure was below the pre-pandemic rate of approximately 7 percent.

Meanwhile, Washington, D.C.’s market partly mirrored these broader national retail trends, its vacancy rate also increasing 40 basis points during the same period, the report shows. Still, the metro surpassed the national average, the index clocking in at 4.6 percent in December.

D.C.’s retail rent averaged $35.2 per square foot in Q4, marking a 4.2 percent annual growth, Cushman & Wakefield’s data reveals. Both metrics outperformed the national average of $25.3 per square foot, up 1.9 percent year-over-year.