Crescent Resources, LLC Announces Acquisition of Potomac Yard Real Estate Unit of Duke Energy to Implement Approved Plan for 300-acre Site

ALEXANDRIA, VA and ARLINGTON, VA -- (March 23, 2001) -- Crescent Resources, LLC today announced it has purchased the 300-acre Potomac Yard site located in the City of Alexandria and Arlington County, Va., from Commonwealth Atlantic Properties Inc. (CAP). Terms were not disclosed.

The transaction includes the continued involvement of select CAP executives in what is now the initial phase of the site plan approval and ensuing build-out process for the former railyard as Crescent develops the property according to City and County approvals.

"Crescent's purchase of Potomac Yard will allow the approved plans to
become a reality for the many Alexandrians and Arlingtonians who had a hand in
crafting what will be a vibrant and valuable new part of both communities,"
said Daniel B. Kohlhepp, Crescent's regional vice president for the mid-
Atlantic region.

"We are excited to have a role in helping to make the promise of Potomac
Yard a reality, and we are dedicated to continuing the hard work on the Yard
that CAP began in concert with City and County officials and with the
community many years ago," he added. "We are also fortunate to be starting
with a well-crafted plan that has the support of the surrounding communities."
"Our primary objective at Crescent is to create long-term value and
enhanced quality of life in the projects we build and manage," said Arthur W.
Fields, president of Crescent Resources, LLC. "Our commitment to a quality
development at Potomac Yard means creating a place that both enhances the
quality of life for our neighbors as well as for the project's future
residential and commercial tenants."

For many years, Potomac Yard served as the switching yard for the
Richmond, Fredericksburg & Potomac Railroad (RF&P), the owner of the Yard. In
the early 1990s, rail operations ceased. Discussions and alternative proposed
plans about how to best use the land have postponed the productive development
of the Yard for many years.

A fund managed by the New York investment bank Lazard Freres purchased
RF&P, including Potomac Yard, in 1996, and changed the company's name to
Commonwealth Atlantic Properties Inc. CAP worked closely with the National
Park Service, Alexandria Planning Commission and City Council, Arlington
Planning Commission and County Board, neighboring civic associations and
community interest groups, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, state and
local environmental bodies, and the Metropolitan Washington Airports
Authority, among others. CAP also hosted and participated in hundreds of
community meetings and other presentations.

As a result of these efforts, CAP received unanimous approval of its
development plans from Alexandria in September 1999 and Arlington in October
2000.

The plan for the Alexandria portion of the site is highlighted by a new
Town Center. The plan also includes 1.9 million square feet of office space;
a 625-room hotel; 135,000 square feet of neighborhood retail; and
approximately 1,900 residential units.

The plan for the Arlington site includes 2.8 million square feet of office
space; a 625-room hotel; approximately 100,000 square feet of neighborhood
retail; and approximately 800 residential units. The plan also calls for a
25-acre park north of Crystal City, which will be owned by Arlington County.
The approved plans provide for creation of high-quality mixed-use
communities of townhouses, apartments, hotels, retail stores, offices,
substantial active and passive open space, pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods,
parks and playfields, and a transit-oriented transportation system. Net
fiscal benefits to the Arlington and Alexandria communities over a 20-year
period are projected to exceed $500 million.

Crescent Resources, LLC is a land management and real estate development
company. Formed more than 30 years ago by Charlotte, N.C.-based Duke Energy,
the company has land interests in eight states in the southeastern and
southwestern United States. In the Washington, D.C. market, Crescent is
developing the 101-acre Commonwealth Centre at Westfields in Fairfax County,
Va. Plans call for an eight-building, 1.5 million square-foot corporate
campus.

Over the last decade, Crescent has developed more than 12 million square
feet of commercial office and industrial space. The company carefully attends
to the amenities, architectural features, landscaping and property management
to foster a good working environment for its clients. Consequently, Crescent
renews leases with more than 95 percent of its tenants. During that same
time, Crescent's residential communities have become known as some of the
finest in the country and include Sugarloaf Country Club in Atlanta; The
Peninsula, The Point and Ballantyne Country Club in Charlotte, N.C.; and
Oldfield in Hilton Head, S.C.

CAP is a private company based in Washington, D.C. and owned by a fund
managed by Lazard Freres Real Estate Investors L.L.C., an affiliate of Lazard.
CAP developed and will continue to manage the 600,000 square-foot Potomac Yard
Retail Center located in Alexandria. It has also developed and owns numerous
other major commercial properties nationally.