Hyattsville Mayor On Development: Tartaro Talks About Mall, UTC

Over the past decade Hyattsville has exploded with evolution and draw. Leading the charge has been a sometimes lauded, sometimes dreaded catalyst.

Development.

Starting with the annexation of in 2005 and most recently the build out of at the intersection of Baltimore Avenue and Jefferson Street, the city has expanded its borders and tax rolls.

Patch spoke to about the state of some of the area’s developments. Here’s what he had to say:

On The Mall at Prince George’s:

Tartaro worked as an electrician on Prince George’s Plaza about 35 years ago.

“Could it be nicer? Could it be more upscale? I do think that as things evolve the plaza goes more upscale.

“They’re not a failure. [It] is a successful mall that has evolved over time.”

The mall was an open mall at once time, he said.

On University Town Center:

“From the outside looking in [the developer] made a couple missteps … and was impacted by the economy going into a freefall.”

Earlier this year, UTC was passed over as the location of new offices for the . That decision is being rethought.

“Offices are a problem,” Tartaro said of the number of vacant spots in the large office buildings at UTC. “People aren’t renting offices, they’re downsizing.”

“There are two undeveloped spaces,” Tartaro said of the southwestern corner where a Lifestyle was supposed to go and a lot on the north side.

“Is it a disappointment? Yes,” he said. “It doesn’t say Hyattsville is a failure. We’re all happy that they’re still coming. It’s a project not fully realized.

“As long as it’s clean … [they’re] biding time until the economy comes back. I can’t see it as a negative. Do we say that it’s a negative that other towns have furloughed employees and have no COLAs?"

On proposed development at the Cafritz property in Riverdale Park:

“I suspect it’ll have an impact [on Hyattsville],” Tartaro said. “The local market will be spread out more.”

Tartaro said the Cafritz development could bring into Hyattsville someone who is going to Whole Foods.

Whole Foods has signed a lease with developers of the Cafritz property in Riverdale Park, he said.

“To me the Whole Foods should go where the Safeway was going to be,” Tartaro said. “The traffic is already there and it’s easier to navigate [than Cafritz].”

“I suspect it’s going to bring more traffic into the area,” he said of the proposed development. “That’s life. The real question is how will it impact the local economy?”