COMSAT Laboratories Building

The COMSAT Building is going to be reviewed by the Montgomery County Historic Preservation Commission (HPC) for potential historic designation. The building was also considered for designation and adaptive reuse through the Clarksburg Gateway Sector Plan. After analysis and financial feasibility studies, the preliminary recommendations of the plan will not call for the historic designation of the building.  

If the HPC recommends designation, the Planning Board will review the building based on the criteria for historic designation and other factors before making its recommendation to the Montgomery County Council.  

Background 

The COMSAT building, situated at 22300 Comsat Drive in northern Montgomery County, occupies a largely undeveloped parcel within the Clarksburg Sector Plan. This 200-acre site is part of the Clarksburg Gateway Plan and is adjacent to I-270, providing access and visibility from the highway. While the site is currently only accessible by car, it is proximate to the planned MD355 BRT route and along the path of a planned Bus Rapid Transit route connecting Clarksburg and Germantown.  

Historical Use  

Completed in 1969, the COMSAT building was constructed as a research facility and headquarters for the Communications Satellite Corporation (COMSAT). The nearly 500,000-square foot building was designed by the world-renowned architect Cesar Pelli, famous for designing the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur and the World Financial Center in New York City. COMSAT Laboratories is an early and iconic example of the High Technology design that became common in research technology corridors in Montgomery County and across the nation. 

COMSAT Laboratories hosted the Research & Development branch function of COMSAT. Throughout the time that COMSAT owned and occupied the building, major scientific breakthroughs took place in it, including the invention of real-time international phone communication, and live television broadcast. COMSAT owned and occupied the building entirely until 1997, when it sold the property. Despite the sale, COMSAT continued leasing space in the building until it became completely vacant shortly thereafter. In 2015, Lantian Development purchased the 204-acre COMSAT Campus and has since continued to own and perform routine maintenance on the building. 

Since 1969, the COMSAT laboratories stands as an icon of avant-garde local research and the harbinger of the “high technology corridor” that came to define upper Montgomery County. This building’s architectural and historical significance make it one of the purest “high technology” statements in Maryland. 

Timeline and Evaluation Process