I love when I read good news about Prince George’s County and our surrounding neighborhoods like Ivy City. Today I wanted to make sure you got to read some encouraging news:

City Winery is coming to Ivy City- and this sounds exciting folks: City Winery, as we reported, is expected to include a 300- to 350-seat concert venue, winemaking operation, restaurant, bar, private event spaces, and rooftop bar. It is scheduled to open in late 2017, bringing concerts, food and wine classes, private events and dining with it.

Prince George’s County Home Sales are Up!  According to figures released last week, the number of homes sold in the county during the first quarter of 2017 was up 12.3 percent over the same period in 2016, with a 22.4 percent increase during the month of March, according to statistics provided by the Prince George’s County Association of Realtors.

In addition, average and median prices grew by 13.0 and 13.6 percent respectively, as compared to the same quarter in 2016.

“Given that the winter months are traditionally a slow time in residential sales, we are very pleased with the level of activity in the first quarter,” said PGCAR President Pat Downtin. “The rise in average and median prices also adds to our optimism about the spring market. We hope this level of market activity will encourage more engagement by buyers and sellers alike.”

Retail Development news in our county:  “You can’t have economic development if you’ve got crime,” Prince George’s County Economic Development Corporation President and CEO Jim Coleman said.

With the police department leading historic drops in car thefts and violent crime, county government turned to job growth.

“It’s turned around because of all those things coming together,” Ianucci said. “Education, public safety and a real focus on economic development.”

The county is attracting higher paying industries, like medical and high tech, and is leading Maryland in job growth. Rising incomes means successful retail, like the Woodmore Town Centre, home of the county’s Wegmans. It will soon have a Nordstrom Rack.