MCB Real Estate Names David Germakian Senior Managing Director, Retail Development

MCB Real Estate, a national commercial real estate investment management and development firm with approximately $4.5 billion in assets under management (AUM), has selected David Germakian as Senior Managing Director, Retail Development, the firm announced Oct. 2.

Germakian brings more than 19 years of real estate and development experience to the role. He was previously managing director for EDENS, where he led the company's Mid-Atlantic region and specialized in the development and redevelopment of open-air retail and mixed-use centers.

David Germakian's Role at MCB Real Estate

Germakian will lead the development and redevelopment of neighborhood and community shopping centers, lifestyle projects and large mixed-use business communities across the MCB Real Estate portfolio on a national scale. His responsibilities include overseeing performance across the full project lifecycle, including site acquisition, entitlements, design and planning, construction execution, project phasing and merchandising.

He will also work to establish relationships with local community leaders, investors and related stakeholders to build consensus, uphold corporate values and drive development outcomes, according to the firm.

"MCB Real Estate is actively involved with a number of high-profile and multi-layered development initiatives, and David's measured approach, thoughtful tactics, and demonstrated track record will prove extremely valuable as our team navigates complex development processes," said MCB Principal Drew Gorman, who leads MCB Real Estate's development team. "Our company's most essential resource is its people and, with David, we have brought to our team another professional recognized for his integrity and reputation. His industry expertise, leadership skills, and innovative foresight will make David a positive difference-maker in our organization."

Germakian said he sees "tremendous opportunity in joining a platform that continues to grow the way MCB has." He added that being part of a firm with exposure to multiple asset classes "not only gives you a broader lens to draw on real time insight, but also creates the ability to drive additional value from the other mixed-use project components by establishing and emphasizing a sense of place within the retail portion."

Prior Experience at EDENS

During his time with EDENS, Germakian led redevelopment efforts at Cabin John Village and Burtonsville Crossing in Montgomery County, Maryland; Uptown Park in Houston; and Closter Plaza in Bergen County, New Jersey. He was also part of the team involved with mixed-use projects including South Bay in Boston and Mosaic District in Fairfax County, Virginia.

Germakian spent four years as an officer in the U.S. Navy, serving as First Lieutenant on the USS PREBLE, a guided missile destroyer based in San Diego, California, and completing two deployments to the Persian Gulf. He holds a Master of Science in Systems Technology from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, and a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Harvard University.

MCB Real Estate's Development Pipeline

MCB Real Estate has more than six million square feet of development projects underway. The firm's largest named initiative is VIVA White Oak, a $2.7 billion mixed-use retail, residential and life sciences development in Silver Spring, Maryland. The project spans 280 acres and has recently advanced through a legislative measure intended to unlock $420 million in bonds, along with homebuilding partnerships with Ryan Homes and NVHomes.

Other projects include Century Marketplace, a $130 million mixed-use retail and medical redevelopment in Brooklyn, New York, as well as various grocery-anchored shopping centers that are underway or slated for repositioning.

Founded in 2007, MCB Real Estate is privately held and headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The firm owns or manages approximately 23 million square feet, with nearly six million square feet in its development pipeline. Its property types include industrial, office, retail, mixed-use, multifamily and healthcare, and its services span acquisitions, development, construction, asset management, property management, leasing, marketing, financing and legal expertise.

Retail Market Context

The appointment comes as retail fundamentals remain comparatively strong, while new development faces constraints. JLL reported that 56% of surveyed retail investors viewed the market as mid-cycle, with rising rents and occupancy but without the pricing excesses associated with a late-cycle market. New supply is limited: JLL reported 7.8 million square feet of retail deliveries in the first quarter of 2026, approximately 25% below the 10-year average.

CBRE put the national retail availability rate at 4.9% in the second quarter and expects it to continue declining as construction remains limited. Marcus & Millichap projected 2026 retail vacancy at approximately 5.0%, with asking rents rising 1.2% to an average of $23.17 per square foot, and reported that retail transaction activity rose 21% year over year for the 12 months ending in June, the strongest increase among major property sectors in its analysis. A separate 2026 retail-market series reported 4.3% vacancy in the third quarter, $78.6 billion in retail investment sales over the trailing 12 months and modeled national cap rates of approximately 7.4%. The estimates differ because providers use different property universes, definitions and measurement periods.

Strong operating fundamentals do not automatically make new construction easy. A 2026 institutional-sector report said new retail development remains constrained because construction costs are often difficult to support with current market rents. Demand is increasingly concentrated in grocery-anchored properties, neighborhood and community centers, open-air formats and retail integrated with housing or employment centers.

MCB Real Estate's pipeline requires retail development to be coordinated with residential, medical, life sciences and other uses. Germakian's remit covers the full project lifecycle, from site acquisition and entitlements through construction, phasing and merchandising.

Sources

• MCB Real Estate: David Germakian Joins MCB Real Estate as Senior Managing Director, Retail Development