- Norfleet Mulch is closing its facility on Central Road in Fredericksburg following a sale of the property last month. A liquidation sale is now under way for remaining Norfleet product on the site, and the business is expected to close within about a month. The 6.44-acre property at the intersection of Lafayette Boulevard and Blue & Gray Parkway sold last month for $3.515 million (it sold for $1.4 million in May 2023). The property includes a 10,600-square-foot warehouse and 3,400-square-foot office building. Norfleet Owner Dan Palchak said in an email to listing broker Brian Cunningham of Coldwell Banker Commercial Elite that rising property values made it inefficient to store finished product (mulch) on the site for much of the year. He said the “future of the Norfleet brand is uncertain at this time,” and the owners are “entertaining interest by several companies from the surrounding area.” Norfleet tried to get a conditional-use permit several years ago from Stafford County to operate the facility on a 75-acre site at 1812 Warrenton Road in the Hartwood area, but the application was denied.
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Leasing flier for Central Road property
The buyer of the Norfleet land was Bethesda, Md.-based Open Industrial, a real estate investor that is building a portfolio of industrial assets. Ruppert Landscape has leased almost a third of the property, said Open Industrial’s Elmo Alexander, and the rest is available for lease.
- A special-use permit application has been submitted to Spotsylvania County to re-purpose the 4.7-acre former Marquee Cinemas property at 5800 Southpoint Centre Blvd. as a used-automobile dealership. The proposed Marquee Auto Mall project would have multiple independent automotive dealerships inside the existing 28,228-square-foot former cinema building. The interior of the building would be renovated to include offices, an employee break room, restrooms, detail bays and a showroom.
- Site work is expected to begin soon on the planned 7,000-square-foot Patient First facility at 1313 Alum Spring Road near the intersection of Blue & Gray Parkway and Lafayette Boulevard on a commercial pad site in front of the Fredericksburg Park neighborhood. Royal Farms had previously been interested in that Fredericksburg site. Patient First already has area locations in Fredericksburg’s Central Park and Stafford’s Garrisonville area. The 1.7-acre site where the facility will be built was sold last month for $1.35 million to Richmond-based Roka Partners, according to land records. The land will include a small publicly available (but privately owned and maintained) park off the VCR Trail with benches and tables. A public easement is also being dedicated for a future VCR Trail connection for a bridge over the Blue & Gray Parkway.
- Fredericksburg-area median housing prices in August increased more than 5 percent year-over-year to $485,750. While prices continued to climb, the pace of sales continued to slow compared to last year. There were 491 homes sold in August compared to 531 last year, according to the Fredericksburg Area Association of Realtors (FAAR).
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This King George home, which sits on 40 acres, sold last week for $1.1 million.
“As we move into the autumn season, the Fredericksburg housing market is showing its usual signs of slowing, with more listings coming online and prices holding steady,” said FAAR President-Elect Matthew Rathbun. “Sellers aren’t seeing the rapid pace of sales we’ve had in recent years, but the market remains balanced and healthy. Buyers, meanwhile, are enjoying a bit more breathing room in their search and are watching interest rates closely, hopeful that future drops could expand their options. Overall, we’re in a period of stabilization rather than sharp swings, which is good news for long-term market confidence.”
- Median prices surpassed $500,000 in August in Fredericksburg, King George and Stafford. Here is a breakdown for each area locality:
- There were 85 homes sold in the past week in the Fredericksburg area, according to FAAR, including a $1.55 million condo sale downtown. Check back weekly for the new list.
- Rappahannock Goodwill Industries is relocating and expanding its store in Stafford’s The Shops of England Run development at 736 Warrenton Road. The store will move to a portion (22,584 square feet) of the former Big Lots space at the center. That will leave Goodwill’s current 8,000-square-foot end-cap space available for lease, along with the remaining 14,000 square feet of the former Big Lots space. Cushman & Wakefield | Thalhimer’s Sharon Schmidt said there is a prospect for the 14,000-square-foot space.
- The month-long Scarecrow Fest event in downtown Fredericksburg will kick off Oct. 1. Scarecrows will be at participating businesses throughout downtown, and numerous events are planned.
- The Silver Companies this week remembered company founder and prominent local developer Carl D. Silver on what would have been his 100th birthday.
- Fredericksburg Yoga & Wellness in Spotsylvania is the focus of this week’s Biz Beat Clips video.
- Longtime Fredericksburg-area tourism promoter M.C. Morris is the guest on this week’s edition of the Biz Beat Banter podcast.
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The site of the former Virginia Bazaar in the Ladysmith area of Caroline County is set to become a data center campus.
- The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) has named Greg Henion as its new Fredericksburg District Engineer. Henion has more than 32 years of transportation and engineering experience in public and private sector roles.
- Cousins Maine Lobster will have a food truck at several area locations in the upcoming months, including at Laudenbach Brewing in Stafford, and at the former Hardee’s location at 1700 Princess Anne St. in Fredericksburg.
- The King George County Planning Commission last week recommend denial of a utility-scale solar project.
- Marib Restaurant, which serves Yemeni cuisine, has opened a location near the Target store at 27 S. Gateway Drive in Stafford.
- Books-A-Million is opening a store at the former Party City location at 1240 Stafford Market Place, Suite 101, in Stafford.
- Pink Petals Nail Apothecary has opened at 223-A Progress St. in Fredericksburg.
- The eighth-annual A Downtown Affair event in Fredericksburg is scheduled this year for October 12 in the 900 block of Charles Street. Downtown restaurants involved in the seven-course, outdoor meal include River’s End & Galvin’s Delicatessen, The Port Oysteria & Brewery, Harry’s Sidecar, Ristorante Renato, Ironclad Inn & Bourbon Tasting Room, Five Chophouse and Anita’s Cafe & Dessert Bar. The event is a fundraiser for Fredericksburg Main Street.
Biz Beat Roundup runs every Wednesday and includes a roundup of business news from around the Fredericksburg region. Send submissions to: [email protected]
