THE GAZETTE
Wednesday, February 12, 2014 s
Page A-11
BUSINESS
Biotech companies concerned over plans Duncan: Plan to move companies is ‘very big issue’ for county n
BY
RYAN MARSHALL STAFF WRITER
Montgomery County’s biotechnology businesses are concerned about the effect of a county plan to move companies out of a Gaithersburg center for beginning businesses. The county plans to renovate the William Hanna Center for Innovation at Shady Grove to make it the home for the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence, forcing biotech and other companies at the facility to find new space. The biotech industry is a community, whose members rely on each other for information and customer referrals, said Dietmar Wolf, executive vice president of AnalytiCon Discovery, which is at the Hanna Center. Wolf spoke Thursday at a gathering of biotech companies for a meeting with Douglas M. Duncan, a Democratic candidate for Montgomery County executive. Duncan, a former county executive, is running against incumbent Isiah Leggett and Councilman Philip M. Andrews (D-Dist. 3) of Gaithersburg. Duncan criticized the decision to
DAN GROSS/THE GAZETTE
Douglas M. Duncan, a candidate for Montgomery County executive, meets with current and former tenants of the William Hanna Innovation Center at GeneDX in Gaithersburg on Thursday to discuss the county’s plan to close the biotech incubator. move the cybersecurity center into the Gaithersburg facility and relocate many biotech companies to the Germantown area. “This is a very significant issue for the future of this county,” Duncan said. He said he plans to send a letter to the County Council asking it to reconsider the issue. Surely, there’s another location in the county for the cybersecurity facility, he said. “Why does it have to be at this facility? Why can’t the county do both?” Duncan asked.
Montgomery started nurturing the biotechnology and life sciences industry in the early 1980s, he said. Duncan said if the county follows through with the plan, it would send a message to the world that Montgomery is losing interest in life sciences. The county believes it can remain one of the nation’s top life sciences region while also establishing itself as a center of the cybersecurity industry, said Kristina Ellis, a spokeswoman for the county’s Department of Economic Development. “We’re just unique in thinking we
can be a leader in both,” she said. Life sciences in the county seems to be moving toward the Germantown region anyway, she said. Meanwhile, the Hanna Center’s proximity to the National Institute of Standards and Technology makes it a good spot for the cybersecurity facility, she said. Ellis said the county would work with the companies now at the Hanna Center to help as many as possible to move to Germantown. David Beylin, CEO of Brain Biosciences Inc., said his company moved into the Gaithersburg incubator in May and he appreciates the business “ecosystem” in the facility. The county’s plan to move the biotech companies out “is not a friendly message” that these types of companies are welcome in Montgomery, he said. Beylin said he’s not opposed to a cybersecurity center, but thinks the county should find another place for it. Jonathan Cohen, president and CEO of 20/20 GeneSystems, said business incubators around the country and the world are trying to attract biotech companies. “We should be growing the Shady Grove innovation center, not destroying it,” Cohen said. rmarshall@gazette.net
Retailers, restaurant announce openings at mall Lilly Pulitzer, True Religion and Talbots are new shops
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BY KRISTA BRICK STAFF WRITER
Three stores and a restaurant are expected to open to shoppers and diners at the Westfield Montgomery mall in Bethesda this spring. Opening its second Maryland location, Lilly Pulitzer designs and distributes apparel and accessories for women, children and men. The new store will be on the lower level, near Center Court, according to a press release from the mall.
Founded in 2002, True Religion, a men’s and women’s store selling denim, T-shirts, western shirts and loungewear with a vintage feel is opening a new store on the lower level of the mall, along the Nordstrom wing. This is True Religion’s third store in Maryland, according to the press release. Talbots sells women’s classic apparel, shoes and accessories and will soon move from the White Flint mall to the Westfield Montgomery mall. The company was established in 1947 and has more than 500 stores in the U.S. and Canada, according to the mall’s press release. The new store will be on the lower level in the Sears wing. Naples 45 Ristorante e Pizzeria is an authentic Neapolitan pizzeria and Italian restaurant originat-
ing in New York City. It is owned by Patina Restaurant Group, which has more than 60 restaurants, including Brasserie, Lincoln Ristorante, Patina and The Sea Grill. The Westfield Montgomery Naples 45 location will be the company’s second outside New York City and its first mall location. Naples 45 offers regional southern Italian specialties with gourmet brick-oven slices. The restaurant will be adjacent to the center’s new Dining Terrace and ArcLight Cinemas and will open later this year. Other new restaurants that came to the mall in 2013 include Bobby’s Burger Palace, The Cheesecake Factory, Wicked Waffle and Kraze Burgers. kbrick@gazette.net
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BizBriefs
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Mostly Monograms, but other gifts, too Jill McNamara has launched Mostly Monograms, which offers personalized monogram services and a variety of gifts. “I love to sew and create items that are fun, bright colors and different,” McNamara wrote in an email. The Bethesda business “personalizes gifts for the whole family, and we try to monogram while you wait!” Mostly Monograms also sells baby gifts, women’s and men’s accessories, Scout items, monogrammed sandals, candles, linens and hats. The store, open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, is at 5110 Ridgefield Road, No. 207. Its phone number is 301-919-6321 and its website is mostlymonograms.com.
Schuler joins investment firm Stephen Schuler, a veteran investment adviser and former president of Maryland Capital Management, has joined Bridgewater Wealth & Financial Management of Bethesda as principal and chief investment officer. Schuler brings to Bridgewater about $200 million in client assets, increasing its total assets under management to $500 million. The company’s website is bridgewaterwealth.com.
Psychologist launches tutoring service John Leddo, an educational psychologist, has opened a new online tutoring service to help students prepare for SATs and do homework, with individual feedback provided via artificial intelligence engines. Leddo uses “his knowledge of psychology and artificial intelligence to create an affordable, interactive, software-based learning tool,” according to a statement. Education Online is at 10408 Insley St., Silver Spring, and is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Its phone number is 800-7639133 and its website is eollearning.com.