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Near Southeast DC Past News Items
In the Pipeline
25 M
Yards/Parcel I
Chiller Site Condos
Yards/Parcel A
1333 M St.
More Capper Apts.
Yards/DC Water site
New Marine Barracks
Nat'l Community Church
Factory 202/Yards
SC1100
Completed
Thompson Hotel ('20)
West Half ('19)
Novel South Capitol ('19)
Yards/Guild Apts. ('19)
Capper/The Harlow ('19)
New DC Water HQ ('19)
Yards/Bower Condos ('19)
Virginia Ave. Tunnel ('19)
99 M ('18)
Agora ('18)
1221 Van ('18)
District Winery ('17)
Insignia on M ('17)
F1rst/Residence Inn ('17)
One Hill South ('17)
Homewood Suites ('16)
ORE 82 ('16)
The Bixby ('16)
Dock 79 ('16)
Community Center ('16)
The Brig ('16)
Park Chelsea ('16)
Yards/Arris ('16)
Hampton Inn ('15)
Southeast Blvd. ('15)
11th St. Bridges ('15)
Parc Riverside ('14)
Twelve12/Yards ('14)
Lumber Shed ('13)
Boilermaker Shops ('13)
Camden South Cap. ('13)
Canal Park ('12)
Capitol Quarter ('12)
225 Virginia/200 I ('12)
Foundry Lofts ('12)
1015 Half Street ('10)
Yards Park ('10)
Velocity Condos ('09)
Teague Park ('09)
909 New Jersey Ave. ('09)
55 M ('09)
100 M ('08)
Onyx ('08)
70/100 I ('08)
Nationals Park ('08)
Seniors Bldg Demo ('07)
400 M ('07)
Douglass Bridge Fix ('07)
US DOT HQ ('07)
20 M ('07)
Capper Seniors 1 ('06)
Capitol Hill Tower ('06)
Courtyard/Marriott ('06)
Marine Barracks ('04)
 
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Campers Are Back at Capitol Quarter
Yup, there's a new bunch of campers now staked out in front of the Capitol Quarter sales office at 4th and L, even though the next release of market-rate houses isn't expected until July.
More posts: Capper, Capitol Quarter
 

Council Subcommittee Subhearing on MPD Move to Post Plant
If you're interested in what's happening with the proposed move of the Metropolitan Police Department to the old Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave., the Committee on Workforce Development and Government Operations hearing is being simulcast on DC Cable 13 right now, and the streaming video is available here. I'll be summarizing the hearing later today (but first I have the big Douglass Bridge briefing to go to).
 

Lawyers, Runs, and Money
Both today's Post and Examiner cover a "scathing" new audit (which you can read for yourself at the DC Auditor's web site) about the money being paid by the city to law firm Venable for legal work tied to the still-going stadium land eminent domain cases going well above and beyond the $1.87 million initial budgeted. According to the Examiner, "Venable was awarded the contract in 2005, during Mayor Anthony Williams' administration, for one year plus four option years, at no more than $950,000 annually. But the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of Contracting and Procurement 'did not develop and document a realistic projection of costs, or the source and amount of funding available for such services,' the audit reported, and no one in any agency monitored the deal to ensure the firm's billings were appropriate -- many were not." And it wasn't just those offices that dropped the ball; the Post adds, "All contracts worth more than $1 million must be approved by the D.C. Council. However, it appears the Venable contracts were renewed several times without the matter ever appearing before the council, Nichols's report found."
So, now what? All sorts of big problems with getting the money, because of the $611 million stadium cost cap? Examiner: "The D.C. Council nevertheless approved an emergency resolution Tuesday to pay Venable up to $3.8 million over the next two years [after paying them $1.2 million the first year] 'in support of the District's eminent domain litigation to determine the amount of just compensation due to the owners of parcels of land on the ballpark site.' The firm has performed many hours of discovery in preparation for mediation and trials expected to start later this year."
(The problems with the Venable contract were initially reported about a month ago.)

More posts: Nationals Park
 

JPI Adds Project #4: 23 I Street
The speed of events is leaving me breathless these days. Today JPI held a groundbreaking ceremony at 909 New Jersey Avenue, where digging is about to get underway for the 237-unit residential building to be built on that block (former home of the Nexus Gold Club). You can see the obligatory photos of Dignitaries-With-Shovels here. (Yes, I did get my invite after all. Thank you!)
But there was big news tucked into the press release touting what JPI is now calling its "Capitol Yards" neighborhood along I Street (with 70 and 100 I Street across the way from 909 New Jersey about to sprout out of their deep hole): the announcement of plans for 23 I Street, a fourth JPI residential project on I Street, slated to have 421 residential units and as much as 35,000 square feet of retail space. Its location would be on the south side of I Street between Half and South Capitol, from Half over to (and including) the current Wendy's lot. (The moribund Exxon station does not currently appear to be part of the plans.) Construction wouldn't start before 2008. I haven't added it to my main map yet, but I've put up a few boring shots of what the block looks like as of now.
With that, the number of not-spoken-for lots in Near Southeast has just about dwindled to zero. Pretty much there's the block on New Jersey across from Capitol Hill Tower (though Akridge now owns a portion of it), the Exxon at South Capitol and I if JPI doesn't grab it, and the Metro Chiller Plant on the southwest corner of Half and L, which might not be made available anytime soon. (And I'm assuming that the rumors of Monument Realty picking up the Sunoco site at 50 M are true.) Everything else west of 7th Street is now spoken for. So if you were hoping to make your millions in Near Southeast and you haven't already staked your claim, your time's just about up, unless you can wrest some parcels out of some other developer's hands.
UPDATE, 6/11: Five days later, here's the Post's blurb on Capitol Yards.
 

New Florida Rock Designs Now Posted
I've now added to my Florida Rock page the new proposed site map and some watercolors illustrating the revised design of "RiverFront on the Anacostia." As I said yesterday, the architect has written to the Zoning Commission asking if these new plans are in line with what the ZC was looking for when it sent the planners back to the drawing board in February (by the way, here's the transcript of that meeting); the commission will be addressing this letter at its Public Meeting on Monday, June 11. It would be expected that then more hearings would be held on the new designs later this year.
I've tried to highlight the changes and new features of the plan beneath each of the new images, but apologies in advance if my text comes up short; I'm not exactly known for flowery prose and colorful descriptions.
More posts: Florida Rock, zoning
 

Amendment Allowing Strip Club Relocation in Near Southeast (An Analysis)
Tucked in the stories (Post and WashTimes) about the bill that passed its first reading in front of the council yesterday--allowing the relocation of the strip clubs that have left Near Southeast because of the arrival of the stadium and surrounding development--was word that an amendment to the bill had passed allowing clubs to relocate to certain zoned areas within 5,000 feet of the ballpark. People are already e-mailing me with the vapors, so here's what I've been able to find out.
The circle covered by a one-mile radius around the stadium site stretches across all of Near Southeast, most of Buzzards Point, a fair amount of Southwest, and even into Anacostia and small portions of Capitol Hill. But the text of the amendment says that the clubs can relocate "in any C-3, C-4, or C-5 zone within 5000 feet from the Baseball Stadium footprint"; once you take into account those restrictions, when you look at the zoning maps you'll see that there are very few locations that have those zone designations; in Near Southeast, the only areas meeting that criteria are the land bounded by South Capitol, I, M, and New Jersey (what I call the "North of M" area) and the area just south the freeway over to the Post Plant. In Southwest, the area between I, M, South Capitol, and 2nd St. SW, and the Waterside Mall parcel, are the only C-3/4/5 zones within the 5,000-foot radius. And across the river in Anacostia there is only one small area zoned C-3-A.
But, given the character of the areas in Near Southeast where these one-time strip club relocations would be allowed, it would appear to be a remote possibility--after all, what the clubs generally look for are large spaces with low rents, and with most C-3 parcels in Near Southeast now purchased by developers with grand plans for shiny new buildings, it would seem that the large-space/low-rent options east of South Capitol are few and far between. Unless the club owners decide to build big tents beneath the freeway.
 

Florida Rock Project Revised, Rechristened
When last we left the planned redevelopment of the Florida Rock site that sits on the Anacostia River just south of the new baseball stadium back in February, the Zoning Commission had surprisingly sent the architects back to the drawing board, concerned with how the project's design was fitting in with its new neighbor to the north and with the its now-prime location as a gateway to the Capitol Riverfront area. It's been quiet for a few months, but I received word today that Florida Rock Properties and Davis Buckley Architects and Planners have a revised design for this project, as well as a new name--RiverFront on the Anacostia--and are requesting that the Zoning Commission review the new plans (described as "a holistic re-thinking", especially of its public spaces) to confirm that they "respond positively" to the concerns expressed by the ZC back in March.
There are still two office buildings, a residential building, and a hotel, but the configuration has now changed to create three distinct public spaces, including a large new commercial public plaza called "The Pitch" (with sculptures of a pitcher and catcher on a grassy mound) directly across from the grand staircase of the ballpark and next to the proposed Diamond Teague Park. There is also a "multi-story transparent atrium space" called "Potomac Quay" linking Potomac Avenue to the riverfront, and a large oval "Piazza Cascade" with a central water feature that is at the center of three of the four buildings on the site. The esplanade and bike path running along the riverfront remain unchanged.
Although the overall density of the development remains unchanged (4.4 FAR for those of you in the know), residential space is now 557,700 square feet or 2.2 FAR, which is 50% of the density (up from 40%); to achieve this, the residential building and the hotel building (which in the new plan would have two residential floors on top) would be 130 feet high; the east office building by "The Pitch" would be 92 feet high, and the west office building 112 feet. The amount of retail has also been expanded, to 85,000 square feet.
I hope to have electronic versions of the new site plan and some early watercolor imaginings of the revised design within the next day or so, and when I post them I'll include better descriptions of what the new design is hoping to accomplish. (Yes, I'm looking at hard copies right now, so I can see all these designs and you can't. Nyaaah! But hopefully you won't have to wait too long.)
The Zoning Commission has put this request for review of the new plans on the agenda for next Monday (June 11); if the commission indicates that the revised design is on the right track in terms of how it responds to the issues that the ZC brought up in February, then there would be a hearing scheduled on this proposed modification for the second-stage PUD, probably in the fall.
UPDATED to fix the incorrect amount of total residential space, which is 557,700 square feet.
More posts: Florida Rock, zoning
 

AWC and NCRC to be Folded into Mayor's Office
From the Washington Business Journal, first word that Mayor Fenty won the battle of wills on the fate of the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation and the National Capital Revitalization Corporation, as apparently the city council voted today to fold both agencies into the mayor's office, under the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Development. An alternate plan pushed by council member Kwame Brown had called for the creation of a new single quasi-independent "Economic Development Agency" that would have assumed control of a few of the largest projects currently under the auspices of the AWC and NCRC, with the rest going to the deputy mayor; that idea now falls by the wayside. Deputy Mayor Neil Albert (whose plate just got a whole lot fuller) is now tasked with creating a plan for the integration of the two agencies into his office, to be presented to the council in August and to the city in a series of public forums this summer. I'll add more links as the additional news stories come down the pike. To start, here's the press release from the mayor.
UPDATE, 6/6: Here's the Examiner's story. And the Post story.

 

WMATA Plans for Southeastern Bus Garage Going Forward
A few days back, I posted about the WMATA board's approval on May 24 of a resolution to take first steps toward moving the Southeastern Bus Garage at Half and M to a new facility at DC Village in Southwest; however, when it was approved, there was an amendment added by council member Jim Graham that required that the city come up with a plan for relocating the homeless families currently living in the shelter at DC Village within seven days, or else the WMATA board's resolution wouldn't take effect. It took a few days of digging, but today I've been forwarded Mr. Graham's confirmation that the resolution did indeed take effect, meaning (it would appear) that an agreement on finding new accommodations for the homeless families has been reached. There is a WMATA Planning, Development, and Real Estate Committee meeting on June 14, so at that time we should hear more about the next steps laid out in the May 24 resolution (holding a public hearing on the project, advertising the Phase 1 construction contract, negotiating with the city to aquire the DC Village property, applying for a Federal bus facility grant, and authorizing the sale of the garage and its parking lot).
More posts: Metro/WMATA, staddis
 

DCSEC's Latest Report on Ballpark Progress
I gave you the short-and-sweet update yesterday on the progress at the Nationals ballpark, but if you want the real nitty-gritty of all aspects of the project, here's the 10-page Monthly Report submitted by the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission to the City Council on May 14 (posted on Councilmember David Catania's ballpark page). It describes the current state of the schedule, budget, procurement, design, construction, coordination, and public outreach. For example, you can learn from it that approximately 65% of the stadium's structural steel and concrete is now in place, as well as 58% of the precast concrete. Typical daily manpower on the site in April? 432 workers.
One piece of development-type news in the report: the DCSEC is "drafting a request for proposals for the sale of the First Street retail development rights as a means to offset any hazardous material cleanup costs in excess of the budgeted amount and to provide the non-program retail required by the Zoning Commission final order while remaining in conformance with the Council cost cap legislation."
Also, as I've mentioned in other posts, it's expected that the draft Transportation Operations and Parking Plan will be released sometime in June.
But, if you're interested in the state of, say, the sand filters or the service level slab-on-grade concrete, this is the document for you.
UPDATED because the original headline made it sound like the DCSEC *might* report, as opposed to this being their report for the month of May. Oops.

 

What To Do With the AWC
Today's Post has an overview of the tussle going on between the mayor and the council over what to do with the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation (AWC) and the National Capital Revitalization Corporation (NCRC). The council is voting today on whether to create a new quasi-independent agency, the Economic Development Authority, that would oversee the largest of the land projects in the city, while letting the smaller ones fall under the mayor's office for planning and economic development. The council is supposed to vote today on Brown's proposal.
 

Maryland Commuter Buses and the Douglass Bridge
From yesterday's Post "Get There" Blog, Dr. Gridlock reports that the Maryland Transit Administration is asking for comments from Southern Maryland commuters about how the agency should handle the diverting of buses and altering of schedules during the two-month shutdown in July and August of the Douglass Bridge. The column says that the "the commuter bus staff is inviting riders to talk it over with them on Wednesday [JUne 6] between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. at the Hall of States building [at 444 N. Capitol Street NW, between E and D streets], Room 283. Make sure you have a photo ID with you, because the security staff at the front desk will ask to see it." Don't forget that WMATA has already announced its plans for altering bus routes and fares during the shutdown, and the Bridge Bucks program has now been launched, where DDOT will bribe pay commuters to switch to buses, trains, or vanpools during the "Extreme Makeover."
More posts:
 

Ballpark Construction Progress Update; Signage Contract Awarded
For those of you not obsessively checking the Stadium Construction Cam at five-minute intervals, I've got a few recent highlights of the stadium construction's progress you might be interested in:
A 200-foot-tall crane is now in place along South Capitol Street, which will be used to help construct the Nationals' new office building adjacent to the ballpark.
On the north end of the site, concrete columns are now being poured for the two aboveground parking garages.
Inside the stadium itself, along the first-base line, the first area of "cast on slope" seating is almost complete; in addition, the drilling of what will end up being nearly 100,000 holes for anchoring the seats in the stands has begun, and workers are also now installing the cast-in-place aisle steps between the seating sections.
And, away from the camera's glare, drywall framing is in progress in the locker rooms and other service level areas.
But if you decide to drive down there for a visit, beware of dust clouds, massive potholes, and heavy construction vehicles. (Actually, right now that description pretty much applies to all of Near Southeast between South Capitol Street and New Jersey Avenue. Enter at your own risk!)
UPDATE: And the Washington Business Journal is reporting that a small DC company, Gelberg Signs, has been hired to make and install more than 3,000 signs for the stadium, in a contract worth more than $1 million, with the work starting next month. The contract was awarded under the ballpark's Local, Small, and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program. Gelberg has been in business since 1941. UPDATE II: Here's the press release.
More posts: parking, Nationals Park
 

Protest March in Near Southeast on Tuesday
The antiwar group US Labor Against the War is protesting against the oil law that many in the U.S. government want to see the Iraqi government pass; the group contends that the U.S. company BearingPoint is the one writing the law, and so on Tuesday at 5 pm they will be holding a demonstration at BearingPoint's offices at 80 M Street SE, followed at 5:30 by a march to the U.S. Capitol--here's their flyer about the demonstration. And joining in the protest are people who are supporting the three Marine reservists facing possible disciplinary action for wearing parts of their uniforms during antiwar protests (read this Washington Post story for details on the Marines' tale). So, if you see some tumult on Tuesday, that's what it is.

More posts: 80m, M Street
 

Square 696 Sold for $69.4 Million
Thanks to the latest update of the DC Property Sales database, I can now report that the entire block known as Square 696 (bounded by 1st, I, K, and Half) changed hands on April 12; the Pedas family sold its three lots, totaling 54,700 sq ft, for $49.834 million; Potomac Development Corporation received $19.544 million for the 19,600-sq-ft lot on the northeast corner of the block (home to a firewood business for many years). The database lists the buyer as "99 I Street SE LP"; we know from the signs that have gone up that the square is being developed as an office/retail project by DRI Development Services (a wholly owned subsidiary of Transwestern). No details yet on exactly what's coming, or when. (And a hat tip to the Pedas family, who adds this $49.8 million take to the $51.6 million payday they were part of when Ron Cohen bought Square 699N one block to the south in Sept. 2005 and the $4.5 million garnered from their sale of the Domino's lot at the corner of South Capitol and M in August 2005. Apparently you can make some money in this real estate biz.)
With this transaction now official, I've created a DRI/99 I Street page, with not-terribly-exciting photos of the block and my previous news items, and have added it to my main map and project directory.

 

Fun With Approved Building Permits (Velocity, 909 NJ)
I'm not sure how often readers look at my DC Government Feeds box on the home page, but I wait with baited breath each day as they're released, hoping for some tidbit of news; and today there's a double reward in the Building Permits list.
First, at the Velocity Condos lot at 1001 First Street, a sheeting/shoring/excavation permit has now been approved, so that digging work can begin on the three-level underground parking garages that will serve the two condo buildings that are the first phases of this project on Square 699N, the block that used to be home to Wet/Edge and Club 55. (I'm trying to make the switch away from the 699N designation, so for a few weeks I'll be referring to both the old and new names.) The first condo building is scheduled for completion in 2009; we should see the official web site launching soon, and the sales center at Half and K opening this summer. If you can't bear to wait to see what the first building is going to look like, I've added a rendering to my Velocity page (scroll down a bit); there are others on ADC Builders web site, but you'll need to click on "Portfolio", then on "Planning", then on "L Street Project" to page through them. (Damn Flash sites!) These renderings have been there for a while, but I've only recently confirmed that they are indeed of Velocity; but I've also been told that far nicer ones will be available with the official web site comes online. Anyway, look for the digging to begin along the west side of First between K and L soon.
The other issued building permit is for 909 New Jersey Avenue, the site of the old Nexus Gold Club and where JPI is building its second residential project in Near Southeast, across the street from the soon-to-be-above-ground buildings at 70/100 I Street. Quoting directly from the permit, but with typos fixed: "INSTALL ONE 40X70 TENT: NO LIGHTING GENERATORS COOKING PROPANE OR HEATERS. TEMPORARY USE FOR GROUNDBREAKING CEREMONY EVENT ON JUNE 6TH 2007." Fun! So if you see a big party at New Jersey and I on Wednesday, that's what it is. Alas, I haven't been invited; but there's still time to contact me, JPI!
 

June Hill Rag Roundup
Just a heads up that the June issue of the Hill Rag (not yet online) has a number of round-up stories that might be of interest, ranging from reports on the May ANC 6D meeting and the Zoning Commission's approval of surface parking lots (see my already-posted reports on these events here and here) to a story on the two recent public roundtables on Community Benefits (my preview of the meetings here) and the story of the DC students who recently produced a documentary on the Anacostia River. There's also an overview of how the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation is moving forward with the plans for Hill East. The Hill Rag can be picked up at many businesses and street corners around the Hill.
More posts:
 

Coming Soon -- Velocity Capitol Riverfront
The mixed-use project on Square 699N (the block bounded by Half, K, L, and 1st, which was cleared of all of its buildings during April) now has a "placeholder" web site--Go to http://www.velocitydc.com, and you'll see a "Coming Soon" image for Velocity Capitol Riverfront. (Does "Velocity" refer just to the first 14-story condo building getting underway soon on the northwest corner of 1st and L, or the entire development? I don't know.) This first phase of the block's redevelopment is expected to be completed in 2009, and the sales center should be opening this summer; eventually there will be a "sister" residential building built at Half and K; the final phase could be office or hotel or Whatever The Market Will Bear When the Time Comes. For pre- and post-demolition photos, see my now-renamed Velocity page.
(And what the heck, I'll give myself a public pat on the back for guessing the URL--I've been checking it for weeks, wondering if I was right or not, and today finally got my payoff.)

 

Capitol Quarter Camp Out About to End - For Now
EYA has just sent out an e-mail announcing that they will accept reservations on the next five market-rate homes at Capitol Quarter starting tomorrow, June 2, at 11 am. So the tent city outside the sales office at 4th and L will presumably be folding up shop--at least until the next batch of campers arrives in anticipation of a July offering.
More posts: Capper, Capitol Quarter
 

1325 South Capitol's Zoning Hearing
On Thursday night the Zoning Commission had another hearing on Case 06-41, Camden Development's 276-unit residential project at 1325 South Capitol Street. It's been a long trek for this project, having been caught in limbo as the Capitol Gateway Overlay was expanded to include their location and as the city's Inclusionary Zoning law came into being, and so they were back for another hearing because it was decided that in order to properly handle the case it needed to be resubmitted as a Planned Unit Development--I can't bear to try to get anymore specific than that, so here's the transcript from the March ZC hearing on the matter. The submitted plan last night was basically same as at their February hearing (here's the transcript).
Commissioner Turnbull led the questioning, and he seemed exasperated by the western facade of the project, expressing much concern it since will be facing the low-rise residential neighborhood in Southwest; even though the developer had added some additional articulation since the last hearing, he considered it "bland" and remarked that it's not just the back of a building, because it's very visible to the surrounding neighborhood. Turnbull also asked for information on where the affordable housing units will be in the building, wanting to make sure they wouldn't only be on the west side of the building; the developers responded that they are spread throughout floors 1-6 on three sides of the building. Turnbull also took issue with the non-green design of the roof, but the developers explained that they had to put the air conditioning mechanics on the roof to lessen the noise impact on the neighbors. The other two commissioners present, Hood and Parsons, expressed their strong support for all of the issues brought up by Turnbull.
Joel Lawson of the Office of Planning testified in support of the project, mentioning that the landscaped courtyard in the back will be a "nice feature" for neighbors; he said that additional articulation of the rear of the building would be fine, but that OP was happy with the current massing. It was also noted that ANC 6D supports the project as well. And the wife of one neighbor who had originally wanted to testify in opposition to the project announced they were now supporting it, after the ANC negotiated a deal for the neighors at 2, 4, 6, and 8 O Street to be able to lease parking spaces in the project's garage for 50% off the market rate.
The commission asked for documentation on the affordable-housing unit layout and some additional work on the rear side of the building; the submittal, response, and draft order process is to be completed by June 21, with a vote to be scheduled soon afterward.
 
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