26-34 Church LnUnder construction

A five-story mixed-use building is under construction at 26-34 Church Lane in Germantown, bringing 33 apartments and shell commercial space to a site just off the Germantown Avenue corridor. The project spans an 8,520-square-foot lot and employs a dual-construction approach—Type IA for the ground-floor commercial shell, Type VA for the residential floors above—connected through horizontal separation. The structure is cleared to build as of late June 2025, with an amendment approved in November tweaking floor layouts, stair materials, and structural details.

Market Square Apartments LLC, which acquired the parcel in 2025, is developing the site under CMX2.5 zoning, a by-right designation that allows mid-rise mixed-use in commercial corridors. The commercial space requires separate use registration and fit-out work before occupancy, leaving its eventual tenant lineup open. Accessory parking is part of the program, along with full NFPA 13 sprinklers and standpipe systems.

This project joins a notable cluster of multifamily development concentrated within a half-mile radius, including a 46-unit building at 5322 Germantown Avenue, a 40-unit project at 5230-32 Germantown Avenue, 32 units at 184 East Chelten Avenue, and 15 units at 231 East Bringhurst Street. Together, these efforts add 133 units to a neighborhood that has historically seen limited new density, signaling renewed investor confidence in Germantown's rental fundamentals.

The Church Lane site itself represents the kind of incremental infill that CMX2.5 zoning was designed to enable—vacant or underused parcels near transit and commercial strips converted into moderate-density housing without special approvals. With several similar lots scattered along the Germantown Avenue corridor, this project may set a template for straightforward, by-right development in a market still finding its footing after years of sporadic activity.