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After a few days of knocking out the exterior brick walls and windows from the inside by driving Bobcats into them over and over, the showy demolition began at old Capper Seniors this morning, as the wrecking ball started bringing down the western wing of the building. Not the prettiest morning for pictures, but maybe the glum light is apropos. You can look at my main old Capper Seniors page for the basics, or the Expanded Project Archive for photos of the demolition from considerably more angles. (And don't forget to click on the Click to see all available photos of this location. on any of these pages if you want to see the images in between the first and last ones.) It's going to be a slow process, and the demolition is not expected to be finished until the end of December.
The 238-unit building originally opened in 1958 as one of the multiple new high-rises at the Arthur Capper public housing project; but by the early 1970s, crime and drug use and government neglect had already turned the building into such a wasteland that even the then-director of public housing for the city later described it as a "fearsome place" where "there was danger to life and limb to any ordinary citizen who wanted to live there." In 1973, it was finally boarded up, and plans were announced to renovate it into a 292-unit building for elderly tenants, with reopening planned for 1976.
But the renovation plans went awry as well, thanks to battles between the city and the Department of Housing and Urban Development over plans for a health clinic within the new building, along with escalating cost estimates, and fights over the bids on the project. Construction finally began in November 1978, scheduled to take 14 months but eventually stretching to three years as incomplete construction documents and a lack of project oversight by the housing authority brought delays, firings, and lawsuits. In late 1981, it finally reopened, but crime was never eradicated, especially as non-seniors began living in the building. The last of the tenants were moved out early this year, with some choosing to move to the new Capper Seniors #1 a few blocks away at Fifth and Virginia.
While this seniors building at 601 L Street was a home to many people for many years, I'm not sure it's a building to be mourned. It's also now the last remnant of what were once the sprawling Arthur Capper/Carrollsburg projects that stretched from 2nd Street to 7th and from Virginia to L. It's taken seven years, but with this demolition, all Capper/Carrollsburg buildings will be gone.
(As for the other impending demolition, I took a quick spin past 1345 South Capitol this morning and didn't see any action, though some construction equipment has been put in place.)
 

Saturday's Post has a piece on the new turf at the ballpark, giving specifics about the grass itself, the installation, the drainage system, and more. Of course, you can look at my Stadium Interior Photo Gallery for pictures taken last Monday if you want to see lots of images of the field midway through the turf's arrival, or check the Stadium Web Cam for the gazillionth time to see it now that it's completed. There'll be a ton more media coverage of the ballpark's progress on Tuesday, when the mayor and other bigwigs come to the stadium to celebrate the new field.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

The second camera angle at the Stadium Web Cam site is back in business, providing a full view of the press box that's now been painted red as well as complete coverage of far left field, where it looks like the turf installation will be completed today. To see it, choose "Centerfield" in the dropdown box at the top of the page.
UPDATE: And the turf is now finished. Kinda looks like a baseball stadium now!
More posts: Nationals Park
 

A notice in this week's District Register says that JPI has applied to remediate the land it recently purchased at 23 I Street, as part of the District Department of the Environment's Voluntary CleanUp Program. Quoting: "The application identifies low to elevated levels of Total Petroleum Hydrocarbons (TPH) and Benzene in soil and TPH, Benzene, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether (MTBE) in groundwater." JPI is planning a 420-unit residential building with ground-floor retail on the site, with construction expected to begin sometime in 2008. The VCP application for 23 I is not yet online, but you can see JPI's 2005 application for 100 I Street and the city's 2006 application to clean up the stadium site to get the idea.
 

On Nov. 6, the city council passed the final version of Bill 17-0159, which creates a new Southeast Water and Sewer Improvement Benefit District, where landowners will be subject to a special assessment to fund $12.45 million in upgrades already underway to the water and sewer infrastructure under streets near Nationals Park.
To be lazy, I'll quote my own description of the bill, from a post back in July: "It was decided to take care of these upgrades now because the streets that the pipes lie under--South Capitol, Potomac, First, N, and I--are scheduled to be reconstructed in the coming months as part of the streetscape improvement project before the Nationals ballpark opens, and it was thought best to take care of the sewer work now rather than having to dig up newly renovated streets. Landowners (including the city and the U.S. government) would be assessed based on total land area and the gross building area as allowed by zoning for each parcel of land that abuts or benefits from the improvements, and would be able to pay their assessment either in an up-front lump sum or over time."
The specifics are all laid out in the bill (which was passed with an amendment-in-the-nature-of-a-substitute that rewrote the bill's original language), but if you're one of the landowners in this assessment area, I'm guessing you have high-priced attorneys who you're paying to sort out exactly this kind of stuff for you, so I'll gleefully refrain from going into any greater detail.
The infrastructure work on these streets is expected to continue until February, in concert with the streetscape improvements being done at the same time (new curbs, sidewalks, streetlamps, etc.).
More posts: DC Water (WASA)
 

On Wednesday morning at 11 am, demolition began at the old Capper Seniors building at 601 L Street, SE. And, 24 hours later, a lot of progress has already been made on getting rid of the exterior windows and walls. I was amazed to see that, instead of swinging the wrecking ball, workers are actually working inside the building, driving Bobcats into the brick exterior walls over and over to punch them out, turning the building into a skeleton before the actual bringing down of the skeleton begins. (Don't hit the gas instead of the brake, boys!) I've created an Extended Project Archive for this building, to see the before-and-afters from lots of different angles beyond the basics on the main old Capper Seniors page (which also has some photos taken from the interior of the building last week) so take a look at today's photos to see how the work is progressing.
(And speaking of demolition, fences have now gone up at 1345 South Capitol, and workers there are telling neighbors that demolition could begin tomorrow [Nov. 9]. We'll see!)
 

Word has officially gone out that next week (Nov. 13) the mayor and other city bigwigs will be at Nationals Park to "celebrate the new, freshly-laid playing field" -- for those who want specifics, the turf is 13-month-old Kentucky Bluegrass sod, arriving in strips 5/8" thick and 65" long. At the same event, team president Stan Kasten will "share information about the seat relocation process for season ticket holders." The turf installation is moving along today, with right field now finished and work progressing out from the infield to the center- and left-field walls. And the last panel of the HD scoreboard has been installed.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

Nov 7, 2007 2:09 PM
The daily feeds of crime report data that the city makes available have now been expanded to include a "narrative" explaining what happened. (These narratives have been available for a long time in other places, but not in the city's own daily data feeds.) So you'll now see these explanations here on my home page, in the DC Data Feeds/Recent Crime Incidents section. And, if you never scrolled down far enough to know that I have this data, then you'll be surprised to find that I display Near Southeast public space permits, building permits, property sales, and requests to the city-wide call center (which is now pretty much all-parking-enforcement-all-the-time).
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Nov 7, 2007 8:47 AM
Time to go back to watching grass grow on the Stadium Web Cam--this morning workers resumed laying the turf, in right field. And you can also see that there's just a few more panels left to complete the HD scoreboard.
UPDATE: And I should note that the second web cam, in centerfield, is down again. The construction folks are aware, and are working on it.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

Nov 6, 2007 10:30 PM
From Wednesday's Post: "District officials are outraged that the Washington Nationals plan to go to Maryland for major events celebrating the team's first season in the city-funded $611 million stadium complex. The baseball club's charitable arm will host its annual black tie 'Dream Gala' at Gaylord National, a new hotel across the Potomac in Prince George's County, and the team will hold its FanFest, a day-long celebration, in Bethesda. There are no firm plans, as of yet, to hold a kick-off event in the District, though the team says it is working on that. 'I guess we're like Charlie Brown or Rodney Dangerfield. We can't get respect,' council Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D) said yesterday. 'This is just an outrage.' " Read the article for lots of choice quotes from other council members. And the Examiner covers the skirmish as well.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

Nov 6, 2007 12:58 PM
I haven't really done before-and-afters for the inside of Nationals Park (at least when compared to the obsessive coverage of the stadium's exterior), but if you want to look back at how far the ballpark has come in a very short time, you can look at my latest interior photos from yesterday and then wander through these pages from 13 months, six months, and four months ago.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

Nov 5, 2007 7:47 PM
The mid-fall late-afternoon light was a bit hard to work with, and someone didn't think to clean the lens before starting out, but if you can tolerate these transgressions you can check out my new photos from the interior of Nationals Park. Yes, including the turf (though they've stopped installing it over the past few days so they could finish off some last tasks in left field; look for the greening of the outfield to start again later this week). And here's the link again to the Stadium Web Cam, since these photos will be out-of-date almost immediately.
UPDATE: Damn, thought I had a scoop with these photos, but WUSA-9 got inside this weekend. There's some video as well, from up in the stands and in the locker room. But I guess I can say that they don't have that "exclusive" anymore.
More posts: Nationals Park
 

Nov 5, 2007 6:36 PM
A press release went out this afternoon announcing that the Velocity Condos project at First and L sold 10 units during its first five days of sales. Here's the breathless opening text: "If any skeptics still doubt that the rapidly revitalizing Capitol Riverfront, surrounding the new Nationals baseball stadium, will be DC's hottest new address, they need only look at the initial sales success of one of the neighborhood's first new condo buildings. Velocity held its official Grand Opening on October 26, and homebuyer response to this sleek, contemporary new condo community wowed even its developer, The Cohen Companies."
 

Nov 5, 2007 1:49 PM
Apologies for the late notice, but tonight ANC 6D is having an "presentation meeting", to break out the issues that people and organizations want to bring in front of the ANC but which don't require an official vote. This is an attempt to shorten the monthly business meetings, which can run for hours and kill numerous brain cells of all in attendance. The meeting will be at 25 N Street, SW, at either 7:00 or 7:30 pm (now confirmed). Items on tonight's agenda include WASA talking about lead pipe replacement in the neighborhood and an update on Arena Stage construction and schedule.
There's also going to be a presentation by a group called the Coalition of Concerned Citizens of Eastern Washington, who are raising questions about the various road and bridge projects planned along the Anacostia and who have been contacting city officials over the past few months requesting that a new "traffic mobility study" be undertaken. (Here's their flyer and a copy of a letter to Mayor Fenty they sent back in August.) I imagine this group will also be interested in the Nov. 16 hearing before the City Council's Committee on Public Works and the Environment on "Major Bridge Construction Projects in the District".
 

Nov 5, 2007 1:27 PM
Today the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District (which covers both Near Southeast and Buzzards Point in Southwest) has launched an interactive map, allowing users to browse the neighborhood's developments, attractions, retail, parks, and transportation options. [Insert self-pitying comment about watching my readership flee here.] You can click on points of interest or additional details and distances to other attractions, or filter the map to only display different types of data.
 

Nov 5, 2007 12:23 PM
You can't tell from the street, but there is some demolition-like work underway today on the roof of the old Capper Seniors building at 7th and M. However, the showy stuff with a wrecking ball will probably start later in the week, perhaps on Wednesday. It would be fab if folks who have a birds-eye view of the building could drop me a line if you see the wrecking-ball-crane getting into place, since the building is out of range of any handy web cams.
 

Nov 4, 2007 8:33 PM
As I took two ventures out over the weekend to take pictures (and cursed the skies for only seeming to be cloudy when I was hitting the shutter, so be prepared for rotten lighting), I came to realize that my desire to capture the changing skyline means that I pretty much have to take photos at every intersection between New Jersey, I, South Capitol, and N, because there's hardly any spot covered by those 10 blocks or so that isn't seeing a big change to its view.
The new player is 55 M Street, with the signature steel beams above the Metro station now visible from two blocks in any direction. And I had to capture the brick work on 70 I, and the continuing climb of 100 M, and the preparations for glass hanging on the sides of Onyx, which gave me way too many photos to post, so it's probably just as well that I have no ballpark photo updates for you. (But be patient, there might be some coming soon.) You can see all of this weekend's photos here, or check out the Expanded Project Archives if you want to see the new photos paired with their "befores."
A couple things to note: 1015 Half Street now has signs marking it as a construction zone, and apparently all that stands between it and the start of excavation is waiting for permits from DCRA. (Snicker.) And Tingey Street, behind DOT, closed last week, I imagine for infrastructure work and perhaps streetscape work as well.
Looking ahead, this coming week should see the start of demolition at old Capper Seniors; I'll be lurking there pretty regularly for the next few weeks, I imagine.
And by the way, a general hat tip to the various folks who have said "hey" when coming upon me taking photos over these past weeks and months. Always nice to talk to people who read the site, and I also always appreciate everyone's kindness in not running over me when I'm standing in the middle of the street.
 

Nov 3, 2007 4:34 PM
I received word earlier today that immediately on the heels of the nine home sites that EYA released at Capitol Quarter as scheduled at 11 this morning, they decided on the spot to release an addtional nine units, which have probably been snapped up by now and which complete the market-rate homes that make up Phase I of the project. (Phase 2, with no announced timetable, will be the townhomes on the blocks south of I Street between Second and Third.) There will still be additional workforce-level income houses to be offered, but those will be filled through a different process (last time it was a lottery) and no dates have been announced. (And low-income rental units are sprinkled throughout the development as well.) Bet it was a wild scene at the sales center when word of the additional units hit the people standing in line....
More posts: Capper, Capitol Quarter
 

Nov 3, 2007 1:23 AM
The deadline for submittals for the redevelopment of Poplar Point passed on Friday, with seven proposals coming into the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development. (I'm using the hook that one of the proposals is from Forest City, developers of The Yards and the Capper/Carrollsburg revitalization, as an excuse to go outside my boundaries.) The Washington Business Journal has the story, including that only two of the seven proposals include a soccer stadium.
More posts: Capper, The Yards
 

Nov 2, 2007 7:24 PM
At Thursday's meeting of the National Capital Planning Commission, the Commission on its consent agenda "commented favorably" on concept designs presented to it by the city or Diamond Teague Park, the new public plaza planned for the foot of First Street along the Anacostia River (across from the ballpark).
The NCPC staff recommendation provides some good detail about the plans for the park, including a not-too-pretty site map, which I've added to my Earth Conservation Corps/Diamond Teague Park page. Yes, a water-taxi pier is still part of the plan, along with piers for fire, police, and EMS services. There will also be "educational piers" along the waterfront to allow visitors to walk out past the riverline--the NCPC calls this one of the few portions of the Anacostia's shoreline that hasn't had a concrete bulkhead built on it, which "represents a unique opportunity to showcase the diverse environmental restoration challenges faced with the Anacostia River."
This concept design is a revised version, after the Commission of Fine Arts suggested some changes in September, and so presumably the city will be returning to the CFA with this updated design sometime soon. There are also many more steps to go before this park will become a reality, including things like permits from the Army Corps of Engineers and the National Park Service. (You might want to read this story from today's Washington Business Journal about the needs for river dredging to keep up with all the planned uses of the city's rivers.)
In the meantime, you can see on my ECC/Teague page a photo of the park footprint as seen from the viewing platform across the street at Nationals Park to see how having a inviting public space could help draw stadium-goers the short distance to the river.
 
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