WASHINGTON, DC-The Hotel Rouge will open its doors next week to a city that, like most other tourist destinations in the US, has seen its number of visitors dwindle since Sept. 11. But owners LaSalle Hotel Properties believe the uniquely designed 137-room boutique hotel will garner the attention of international travelers, as well as those seeking something out of the ordinary.

DALLAS-Hendricks & Partners reports the office and multifamily real estate markets suffered steep declines in the third quarter. However, the multifamily advisory firm says the region will have little trouble bouncing back.

BALTIMORE, MD-Taking on a large block of space at One Charles Center, Johns Hopkins University creates a more logistically desirable locale for The Fund for Johns Hopkins Medicine and the university's School of Professional Studies in Business and Education.

DINWIDDIE, VA-The Civil War Preservation Trust purchases 29.7 acres of land where Confederate and Union troops battled 136 years ago. The property, acquired from an undisclosed private owner, is purchased for $70,000.

COLUMBIA, MD-Representing janitorial product wholesaler Lagasse Inc., Grubb & Ellis arranges the lease at Gateway Commerce Center. The distribution center will be Lagasse's second Maryland location.

NORTHERN VA-Commercial Real Estate market researcher REIS, Inc. says that the tech-laden area of Northern Virginia is being hit hard by rising vacancy rates. The company expects the region's vacancy rate to increase from 7.4% in 2000, to 10.4% by year's end.

GERMANTOWN, MD-A Wellness Center to serve the Montgomery County area gets underway as Bethesda, MD-based Suburban Hospital Healthcare System breaks ground on the 60,000-sf facility. Area residents will be able to take advantage of the center's offerings -- which will include a high-tech fitness center -- sometime in late 2002.

BALTIMORE, MD-L.I. Square Corp., developers of the proposed Residences at the Ritz-Carlton Inner Harbor are not saying just yet if they came to an agreement with owners to purchase the land on which to build the property. The $165-million project has been in the works for over two years and construction was originally scheduled to begin this past spring.