Foreclosure for Gallery Towers

DCMud is reporting that Yeni Wong and her Gallery Towers LLC have been served notice of foreclosure for the two contiguous lots on the Northeast corner of 7th and H Streets NW. The development plans for this mixed use project involved a substantial retail component in the historic corner property with two towers setback.



Wong and Riverdale International have been major players in the revitalization of Chinatown. Before ('93) and After photos of their Gallery Square development, on the NW corner of 7th & H are displayed above.

Image Credits: Riverdale International

DCMud on future MVT development

Shaun from the DCMud development blog outlines the future development plans for the Mount Vernon Triangle.

For long time followers of this blog there isn't much new offered in DCMud's piece but they do an admirable job consolidating the high level specs into a singular comprehensive posting. For a deeper dive on the projects they mention follow the links below that reference our past coverage:

• 5th & Eye
  
• 425 Eye Street
  
• 300 K and 400 K Street Office Buildings
  
• Mount Vernon Place site plan including the Cantata
  
• The DuMont
  
• Buddha Bar at 455 Mass

The DCMud piece does confirm that WSD did not sell their parcels to JBG after Donohoe/Holland won the 5th and Eye RFP.

Douglas Development update concept for Squares 450 and 451

According to Jeff Parke's notes for last night's MVSNA meeting Paul Millstein of Douglas Development provided an update on the concept he presented last November for Squares 450 and 451.

RED=Square 450; BLUE=Square 451; ORANGE=Convention Center Hotel; GREEN=Old Convention Center

• Aim to lease properties on 1000 block of 7th Street in Square 450 for retail and restaurants very soon. No need to wait.
  
• Square 451 will be mostly office with 20k sqft retail.
  
• Assemblage of historic structures at 6th and K.
  
• Shalom Barranes is the architect.
  
• Square 450 mass will be broken up to prevent one wall effect on NY ave.
  
• Originally were going to put Waffle Shop (formerly 10th st) to 7th but think it would fit in better over by AVs at 6th and NY.
  
• The Square 451 office building will be curved along K to let historic structures elevations and facades read better.
  
• If successful the Square 451 office building will be occupied by 2013.
  
• Do not yet own the doctor’s office on the Square 451 but expect to work something out.
  
• Park service owns park on south block but Douglas will make sure it’s improved.
  
• Waffle Shop might be 2 years from completion

Does anyone have any additional interesting details to share that were not in these meeting notes? Was there any mention of the entertainment venue Millstein previously alluded to?

425 Eye Street renovations

Last December the GSA relocated ICE headquarters from their 30 year home at the Chester A. Arthur building (425 Eye Street NW) to Southwest DC. The Paramount Group, which purchased the CAAB building in 2005 for 135.5 million dollars, plans to upgrade the seven-story 384,520 s.f. class B office building to class A office space.

Renovation work has recently begun at the building which begs the question what level of transformation does Paramount have planned? I've come across an old brochure for the property which may not reflect the latest details but should be reasonably accurate. (ed note: notice the reflections of the DuMont in the windows of the rendering)

brochure excerpt:

425 Eye Street’s transformation was inspired and designed by the innovative thinkers at SmithGroup Architects. Attention to detail, commitment to sustainability, and world class design have earned SmithGroup awards around the globe. Their cornerstones of design are reflected in the material throughout 425 Eye Street.

The brochure states that the building will aspire to a LEED Silver rating. The renderings suggest that the structure will remain at the current seven story height. The biggest transformation to the exterior would be the reskinning of the building with new windows and a sleek grey finish. The west wing of the building is pictured with a glass curtain wall.


The renderings depict the ground level as being at grade with the sidewalk. This is clearly not the case as sunken terraces occupy the Eye and Fourth street frontage. It should be interesting to watch how these renovations unfold.

Gallery Tower at 7th and H

At a happy hour last night a neighbor inquired about the development plans for the NE corner of 7th & H in Chinatown. I thought I'd outlay what I know from reading other sources (mostly PQLiving). I'm not breaking any new insights here but I think there is value in revisiting topics now and again for new residents/readers.


Chinese American business woman Yeni Wong purchased the historic four story structure on the NE corner of 7th and H for 10+ million. Her plans are to develop the site as mixed use with an emphasis on retail. Past projects from Wong in the area include Fado, Capital Q and Matchbox. PQLiving reports that CVS will occupy the first floor and basement of the building after it’s rehabbed, leaving 3 more floors of retail available for lease. [Ed note: This prime spot can't do better than CVS? Ugggh. ]

Developed around Wong's four story building will be two towers. I believe the one with 7th Street frontage will be residential. The all glass tower fronting H Street has the look of an office building.

Rendering of entire mixed use project from Transwestern.

There was discussion in the comments about PQLiving about the setback of this developer (i.e. not building over the 4 story structure). Some think about from the perspective of "who would want to live on the 5 story of the adjacent building and have a view of HVAC equipment?" I totally get that argument and once had the very same thing turn me off to a condo in Clarendon. However I still feel variety in architecture and historic preservation contributes to sense of place and that trumps the impact on views from a few yet to be built condos. Afterall, with all the other positive attributes that come with that location I doubt a subpar view is going to cause a condo unit to sit vacantly indefinitely.

The Rest of Yale

Editor's note: Our first post from new contributor SteamingMyLaundry

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An artist's rendering of the entire Yale Complex, including "Yale West," is now circulating among Yale East residents. Apparently, various community organizations approved the design at some point, but this would have happened long before anyone lived in Yale East (or the other new buildings in the Triangle, for that matter). The 211-unit "Yale West" portion will be rentals. When complete, it will give the Yale Complex approximately 370 units overall.

click image to enlarge

Perhaps the most interesting feature is the proposed set of "live-work" rentals on the first floor along New York Avenue. "Live-work" units are designed to enable someone to operate a home business that needs street access. The resident would work in his art gallery, real estate brokerage, or whatever, and then live in the back. This is being pitched as a new concept, although it reminds me a lot of families who lived above their stores in colonial America.

Anyway, what do people think about the design? I can't speak for other Yale residents, but I'm very happy. There's enough space for light and air between the two buildings -- the developer (IBG Partners) doesn't propose to build the tallest section immediately adjacent to the historic buildings. And, although it's different enough from the rest of the complex not to be dull, it's similar enough to blend well.

Mount Vernon Place office building update

As I reported a little over a week ago, the recent demolitions on 3rd Street do not signify movement on the Mount Vernon Place project. The vacant buildings were razed because they were attracting vagrants and prostitutes.

However after attending the PQNA Breakfast meeting I have learned more detail about Mount Vernon Place from the presentations from Sandy Wilkes and David Mayhood. Wilkes presentation began by listing his architectual partners and unveiling an overview of Mount Vernon Place master plan complete with renderings. This information is readily available on www.MountVernonPlace.com.

Rendering of 300 K Street

After that introduction Wilkes painted a deeper picture of what we can expect with the Mount Vernon Place office buildings on K Street.

• They don't plan to build any of the K Street office buildings until a lead tenant is identified
  
• They believe the location will attract non-profits and associations rather than law firms or GSA government
  
• Considering target tenants are non-profits they believe the buildings will have some of the highest LEED green building standards in the city
  
• They are committed to significant retail on all their K Street offices and integration of public art

Rendering of offices on 400 block of K Street

It was interesting to hear that Non-Profits and Associations are considered to be the target tenant. Recent news items show that non-profits like NPR and the Sierra Club planning to move to NoMA for lower costs. Does targeting non-profits mean we can infer that price/sqft lease rates at Mount Vernon Place will be a little closer to NoMA than the Downtown BID? I was encouraged to hear that GSA was not considered a probable client. With GSA buildings comes sidewalk barricades and armed guards.

The 100 million dollar question is: When will they break ground on these buildings? Considering a lead tenant has not been identified and the credit markets are locked up I don't think *anyone* can answer this question. I can speculate that unless a lead tenant is identified in the next 3-4 months that 2009 may be unlikely.

Renderings courtesy of www.mountvernonplace.com

WBJ: A city of cranes waits and wonders

In the midst of the news about the Wall Street bailout the Washington Business Journal investigated how the further tightening of the credit market may influence construction inside the district.

A city of cranes waits and wonders: Will we be able to get financing?

Photo from flickr user afagen

Excerpt:

“[Securing financing is] a significant problem,” said John Sikaitis, vice president of research for the D.C. office of Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. “For any speculative project, both inside and outside the city — even in core locations downtown — it’s basically impossible.”

Further into the article Donohoe Development, recently awarded Triangle's 5th and Eye RFP, provides comments:

James “Jad” Donohoe IV, whose company plans a 200,000-square-foot office building at 1111 New Jersey Ave. SE, said he has no choice but to broaden his financing net to include nontraditional sources of funding, such as syndication arrangements with multiple banks, sovereign wealth funds and equity from hotels that will be part of the development.

“We’re still in the early stages now, but we’ve already been searching those things out for this and for other projects we have out there,” he said.

The Arts at 5th and I is suggested to be 18 months from breaking ground. Hopefully the commitment from the future tenants such as the Me by Melia hotel aids prospects for financing.

5th and Eye RFP awarded

The 5th and Eye RFP was awarded this morning. Si Kailian reports that Donohoe/Holland's proposal, The Arts at 5th and Eye, was selected.


Jad Donohoe laid out the high level proposal details on the Art's blog.

Our team wants to bring hotel rooms, retail, and residential housing to the city-owned vacant lot at 5th & I Streets NW. That basic outline isn't unique, but our final product will be:

• The Arts Residences at 5th & I: Residences offering city views. 96 units
  
• ME by Meliá: A four-star+ hotel with a young, international edge. 174 rooms
  International Photography Space: A curated exhibition space incorporated into the hotel, exploring world themes in art photography
  
• Café Cappuccino: A unique urban coffee house offering full-service breakfast and lunch for the neighborhood, with take away options and a pet-friendly sidewalk terrace
  
• Boisdale of Washington: A London-based cultural dining experience and live jazz club featuring contemporary and historic jazz styles, a diverse menu and a renowned selection of scotch whiskies. A neighborhood destination, Boisdale will bring entertainment options to Mount Vernon Triangle while offsetting noise concerns by locating the jazz club below grade level. Estimated 150 seats
  
• Parking: Underground parking with valet service

There's a lot more to tell - we'll be bringing you more updates over the coming days and weeks. Stop by the public presentation on Thursday to hear about what could be in store for 5th & I.

A few weeks later Donohoe disclosed that The Bike Shop expressed a letter of interest in the project.

My recap of this proposal from the public presentation in May can be found [here]. I may have the original PDF on my laptop at home - if so I will post.

UPDATE (9/19/2008 1:40PM): The press release Fenty Announces Luxury Hotel, Jazz Club for Downtown Site is now online. The below excerpt mentions that Zenith Art Gallery is now part of the proposed retail.

The 475,000-square foot project, called Arts at 5th I, will be anchored by a ME by Melia, a high-end Spanish hotel. It will also include a music venue called the Boisdale Jazz Club, a bike shop, a hardware store, book store and café. The Zenith Art gallery will also take space there.

The development will also feature 166 apartments, where 50 units will be reserved as affordable for renters earning less than 60 percent of the area median income. The developer has also proposed a 238-space underground parking garage.

MVT CID: Bill McLeod on the Mount Vernon Triangle

Recently The Triangle had the opportunity to interview through the email format the Executive Director of the Mount Vernon Triangle Community Improvement District. We chatted with Bill McLeod about issues ranging from basic daily functions of the CID to the future plans for this community. In the process we gained a greater understanding of what the CID has influence in and what solutions are steered by the market (developers) or D.C. government agencies.

What does the CID do?

The Mount Vernon Triangle Community Improvement District operates programs that promote a cleaner and safer neighborhood. MVTCID also raises public awareness about the Triangle through its website, broadcast emails, quarterly newsletters, press releases, and neighborhood events.

<The Triangle’s Clean Team works seven hours a day, seven days a week, between 7:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. They keep the neighborhood looking great by picking up hundreds of pound of trash each day. And, they provide an added benefit through outreach to those in need from the community.

In August 2007, MVTCID started safety services by hiring a Metropolitan Police Department officer (through Reimbursable Detail) Friday and Saturday nights from 6:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. In the spring, we were awarded a grant to double the police on Friday and Saturday nights – to two officers.

We recently launched three committees: Property Managers Committee, Jobs Committee, and Marketing Committee. The Property Managers Committee focuses on several issues, such as building construction, streetscape timelines, homelessness, safety, security, and other matters of interest to our property managers, business owners, and building owners.

The Jobs Committee organized two job-training fairs for residents in the immediate community looking for employment training, and we hope to host another job-training fair in the autumn. And, the committee works closely with life-skills training organizations, such as Strive DC, to assist people with resume building and interview skills.

The Marketing Committee was formed to implement strategies to promote the neighborhood, including updating the website, branding the neighborhood, and planning community activities. This year, the website was restructured, adding pages that tell the story of the neighborhood, and we updated the development map to include retail listings. Two park clean-up events were organized in partnership with the National Park Service and two walking tours were given through Walking Town DC. In June, we organized a bike ride with police officers, and this August, we will have a dog walk with MPD.


Tell us about your background. How did your past experience as Executive Director of Barracks Row Main Street prepare you for this job? Are the challenges of the job similar or mostly different?

That is a loaded question. In college I studies Social Sciences with a concentration in Sociology. I worked for the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Main Street Center for seven years before moving to Barracks Row Main Street, where I works for 4.5 years. In December 2006, I switched jobs and came to Mount Vernon Triangle CID because I knew the neighborhood well since I lived at 5th and R in 1991-2. The development of the neighborhood has been amazing.

My experience with Barracks Row Main Street totally prepared me for this job. But there are two major differences: as a BID, funding is secure, so I don’t spend nearly as much time fundraising, and we have very few volunteers since the neighborhood is not very well populated yet. I still do grant writing here and volunteer recruitment, but I’ll be ramping that up in the next year.

The challenges are similar in Mount Vernon Triangle as Barracks Row. Mount Vernon Triangle had few buildings, and Barracks Row had lots of old buildings but most of them we empty or occupied by marginal businesses.


The area is facing a potentially massive influx of new residents in the coming year. How do you see these residents fitting into the community? What are some of the most important ways for new residents to become involved in the community? And conversely, is the community doing anything to welcome or attract new residents? What concerns do you have about this influx of new residents?

I love density! New residents mean more active streets, better-used parks, more eyes on the street, and more dollars to support retail. It is a win-win all the way around – more people using facilities creating a cleaner and safer neighborhood.

There are several ways a resident can get involved. MVTCID has committees where volunteers can direct their energy: Marketing Committee, and Jobs Committee. And it time, we will add more. Plus we have neighborhood clean-ups and safety events throughout the year. And, for those really involved in the CID, we are always looking for stalwart board members.

We don’t “attract new residents” directly. I think that is best left to the developers and sales teams from the condos. But, I like to think we are marketing indirectly through our website, articles in the paper, and events like WalkingTown DC.


Papa John's, 5th Street Ace Hardware and the Results Gym Sales office have recently opened. Is there any word of unofficial ETAs for the Safeway, Busboy and Poets or Ledo's? After these businesses deliver what is next horizon? [Ed note: This question was asked prior to Safeway hanging up their banner]

Yes, Safeway is planning to open September 12, and Busboys & Poets and Results are hoping to open around that time too. Having worked with retailers for a number of years now, I know that opening dates seem to slide, especially when DCRA inspections are required. Ledo’s has not been working on its building for a while, which makes me worried. Don’t know what is going on since the owner has not been in contact with me for six months. Once the retail in City Vista opens, there will be a few retail spaces left, and we hope we can identify some local businesses to fill those slots.

455 Mass has a restaurant space, and they were talking to Lawry’s Steak House, but that deal fell through. But another restaurant is in the works. Also, I heard a UPS store is going into 455 Mass, but the sign has come down for some reason.


Have there been any recent updates on development that has yet to break ground such as Mount Vernon/Carmel Place, Steuart Investment's parcels or Bozzuto's 460 New York Ave? Has the recent softening of the real estate market changed development plans for the area or simply shifted out the time horizon?

Developers keep their business very close to the vest, so I am not privy-ed to that information. But, I suspect the softening of the housing market and now the mortgage crisis has contributed to the delay of some groundbreakings. As far as I understand it, no deals have fallen through – just longer timelines.


The Best & Final Offer date for the 5th and Eye RFP has been pushed back a couple times and is presently August 18th. What has been the CID's involvement on this process to-date? What future involvement would take place after the city awards the site?

As a BID, we are precluded from commenting on land use. I’ve gone to several meetings about the site but kept silent. Whatever developer is selected, I’m sure it will be great because it will add density to the neighborhood, and I liked all of the top four choices. We would like to see public art included in whatever is built since it is a gateway site into Mount Vernon Triangle. And, we want all buildings to be good neighbors – whether commercial or residential. So whatever developer is selected, I want them to understand that Mount Vernon Triangle will be primarily a residential neighborhood – so no loud music, build with double paned windows, etc.


The Mount Vernon Triangle Action Agenda outlined a vision for a vibrant mixed use community. A solid foundation of residential buildings has delivered in the last year. But the office component, especially on K Street, is needed to realize the goal of being an 18-hour community. One can't help but notice that the NoMA and Capitol Riverfront BIDs are poised to add a combined 25 million s.f. of office space to the city and have landed major tenants like the ATF, DOJ, DOT and NPR. How does the MVT CID meet the goal to add offices/tenants to our community in this competitive market?

The DC office market is still strong, and Mount Vernon Triangle is situated very well – on the east end of downtown. Location, location, location – are our three advantages over SW, NoMa, or the Capitol Riverfront. New office space will open on K Street and it will be great! Think of K Street on the west side of Mount Vernon Square as our vision for what will be built on the east side – only better with more retailers and cafes and fewer offices on the first floor.


The final report for the Mount Vernon Triangle Transportation and Public Realm Design Project included several recommendations for improving transportation in the Triangle. These included bike racks, bicycle lanes, redesigning New Jersey Ave, L Street and a segment of 4th Street as two-way streets before 2010. L Street has undergone its transformation. Any word on the other plans? Bike racks at City Vista would seem appropriate.

Streetscaping is a big-ticket item, and we have been working behind the scenes with DDOT, Councilmember Tommy Wells, and Councilmember Jack Evans to fund the streets and sidewalks plan in the Public Realm Study (rendering). L Street is basically done, and 4th Street will return to two-way traffic in DC’s FY09 budget. Next up will be to return NJ Avenue back to two way traffic and then new streets and sidewalks for all of K Street. Bike racks are easy in comparison and should be going in at City Vista shortly.


Economic development in the Triangle is geared around new high-rise construction, which requires a long development cycle to build. Unlike 14th Street NW or H Street NE our streets lack a stock of vacant commercial spaces to tap into on a shorter cycle via renovation. With no construction currently underway nor any new construction slated to break ground until 2009 our growth may pause after the retail at City Vista delivers. How can we work around this limitation? What tools are at our disposal?

Sadly, you are correct. There are very few old buildings remaining in Mount Vernon Triangle – partly because of the MLK riots, partly because of the urban renewal plan for Lower Shaw, and partly because of demolition by neglect and the construction of the 395 Freeway in 1962. Nevertheless, both the lack of vacant buildings and the lack of construction sites does affect the economic potential in the short term. To work around this limitation, some people have suggested adding street vendors, which I’m not convinced is ideal because of the state of street vending in DC. Others have suggested a weekly market – like the Georgetown Antiques Market. Sadly, they are not willing to move from their current home in Clarendon. Personally, I am banking on the success of Safeway to spur further development as the neighborhood is transformed by new residents, office workers, and visitors from all parts of the city.

A big thanks to Bill for participating in this chat with us. We hope to have more in the future.

Inspiration for this post was from DCMud's interview with Michael Stevens.

Building Over I-395

Late last month we discussed DDOT's plans to study cutting I-395 to Mass Ave. The Center Leg Freeway was again in the news as WBJ reports that the district is close to completing a deal to sell air rights over a 3 block stretch of I-395 to Louis Dreyfus Property Group for $63 million. The segment is just south of the Mount Vernon Triangle spanning from E Street to Mass Ave.



Developing this area over I-395 serves the District in several ways.

• Use funds to pay off a jury awarded $8.4 million settlement to development company previously awarded air rights in 1989
  
• Allow the freeway "scar" to be erased and land east and west of the highway reconnected
  
• The project could bring $400 million in revenue over 25 years and increase affordable housing stock
  
• Increases developable land for the successful Downtown BID, which is approaching full build out

Obstacles still exist on many levels. DC Council would need to provide their stamp of approval. This may not meet much resistance seeing as the WBJ article cites Jack Evans, Tommy Wells and Kwame Brown as advocates for the project while making no mention of any dissenting members. The District's plans for the money need approval from the FHA, which would have to grant an exception to rules that normally require that 90 percent of proceeds from such sales go toward federal transportation projects. Dreyfus could spend a year or more conducting environmental and engineering studies only to meet new resistance upon presenting their findings.

What could this mean for the Triangle? It's possible a few units in the Madrigal and Sonata may one day lose their unobstructed Capitol dome views. Such is life in downtown real estate. The true difference maker for us will be when development build out pushes north of Mass. Our New Jersey Ave border feels so disconnected from the remainder of the CID.

Steuart Investment Properties

Response to the recent post on the Penzance Building demonstrated that our readers are very plugged in to the development scuttlebutt in the Triangle. Being inquisitive I thought I'd ask yet another question. Does anyone know of any recent news on the properties owned by Steuart Investment Properties?

RED=Square 483, GREEN=Square N-515

The Steuart Investment Properties website has the following to say:

Square 483 (New York Avenue, 6th, 5th and K Street, NW)
The Property is located across 5th Street from Safeway and City Vista, one block east of the Washington, D.C. Convention Center and four blocks north of the Verizon Center. This entire city block, totaling 56,350 square feet, is zoned DD-C3C under the Mount Vernon Triangle Overlay. The development planned totals 535,000 square feet of office and commercial space on twelve floors with below grade parking.

Square N-515 (New York Avenue, 4th and L Street, NW)
The site encompasses 76,000 square feet of land supporting a two-building, mixed-use development and is zoned DD-C3C under the Mount Vernon Triangle Overlay. The property is located across L Street from Safeway and City Vista, two blocks east of the Washington D.C. Convention Center and five blocks north of the Verizon Center.

The Mount Vernon Triangle CID map labels Square 483 as a 550,000sf office building with ground level retail and a street address of 501 K St NW. That's the extent of what I know. Google and Washington Business Journal have come up empty for me. So I turn to our readers with great anticipation to unleash their knowledge.

Opinion Poll: Funny Business?

I've been monitoring this months poll and have been surprised to see the results jump over the last couple of days bringing the i5 development (which was previously trailing the arts development by a large margin) come to a practical tie. However, I would just like to mention that this poll was meant for the regular audience of our neighborhood blogs to voice their opinions and not for employees of the companies vying for the proposals to necessarily participate in, skewing the results.

I monitor the access to our blog quite often but since this poll has been posted there has been a large increase in traffic from this domain mail.bluegreencity.com / referral which you can see is the domain for the developers of the i5 project... I'm putting two and two together here and wondering if perhaps that large jump came from the 27 hits we've just received from that domain.

Any comments? Thoughts? Below is the traffic detail for that domain as it pertains to the Triangle blog.


On a lighter note I'm finally done with my thesis and will now be able to devote more time to posting on the blog so stay tuned for more activity on the Triangle blog!

UPDATE: I just took a nap, 3 hours and an update to the website stats later and mail.bluegreencity.com has jump to the 11th largest source of traffic to our site since march. And now the i5 proposal has jumped in the lead. Spooky?

5th & I Public Meeting recap

Tonight I attended the public ODMPED meeting of development presentations for the lot at 5th and I Street NW (463 Eye St NW).



Four developers presented for approximately twenty minutes apiece with a brief moderated Q&A forum at the end. The proposals had some common elements. These included had a prominent hotel element, retail/dining, LEED green building and an aspect relating to the Arts. The majority of the proposals included a residential component, plans to acquire adjacent lots to the RFP and affordable housing. Below I'll highlight proposal specific details.

JBG Associates LLC2

JBG has aspirations to produce a development with the biggest footprint. They aim to acquire 8 parcels across four sites to expand their development beyond the RFP lot. The plan included a 230 rm boutique hotel, retail space, over 180 market rate residential units and 34 affordable housing units. They suggested that Hotel Palomar in Rosslyn, another one of their projects, would provide a comparable for the type of hotel they envision. While they have not narrowed down retail partners the plan includes expansive retail space that they would aim to fill with local establishments geared more towards serving the neighborhood than destination retail. My notes label this project as having residential units with views of Mass Ave with the hotel a little further up Eye St.

Donohoe/Holland


The Donohoe/Holland presentation did a great job captivating the audience. The project had a branded name (The Arts at 5th and I), a website, blog, eclectic high end retail, and even read off menu items from their anchor restaurant. The plan called for a four star lifestyle hotel (Me by Meliá), Spa (Yhi), space for international art photography, a london based jazz restaurant (Boisdale) and an urban cafe with full service breakfast (Cappuccinos). Development will locate the jazz club portion of Boisdale below grade level to offset noise concerns. The building, designed by Shalom Baranes, would be mixed use with ground floor retail, 174 hotel units in the mid levels, and 96 residential units on the upper floors. If I recall correctly affordable housing is in the mix but it's not in my chicken scratch notes.

Potomac Investment Properties(PIP)
This development proposal coined itself I5 and is lead by a group of entirely DC based businesses owned by district residents. This plan is self contained on the RFP lot and has the smallest footprint. PIP feels staying small is an advantage they offer by not overwhelming the block. The hotel (Avalon Hotel & Spa) in this plan has a more modest 80 units. An open courtyard above the 2nd level engages more greenspace into the block. A City Cafe would be created in partnership with Constantine Stavropoulous (Tryst | Open City | The Diner). This proposal is also taking a different slant on the goal of integrating the Arts. Unlike the others, live music is not part of the plan. Instead working with the Cultural Development Corporation they aim to provide affordable artist studios and exhibit space.

Buccini/Pollin Group

The Buccini/Pollin group (BPG) submitted two proposals to the city. In an effort to offer a different product and feeling the community is amply served with residential market rate housing their plan solely features two hotels and retail. The two Starwood branded hotels would complement each other. Element serves the extended stay traveler while ALoft (similar to W Hotel) offers a trendy option for short visits. The large retail space would be entirely occupied by World Cafe Live. This venue would feature a restaurant, two live music spaces and the occasional event with 1000 general admission patrons. But the BPG emphatically stated that this venue is not a big box concert venue like House of Blues and would only be open to 1am on weekends. World Cafe Live has a very successful venue in City Centre Philadelphia with another location being built in Wilmington.


Thoughts? I'm glad to see the hotel and retail in all four proposals. The neighborhood needs more amenities and pedestrian traffic. My guess is that PIP proposal will appeal most to 555 Mass residents. I was partial to the Donohoe/Holland vision.

UPDATE (Fri 5/2 @noon):
PQLiving has a post on this topic. Their posting has links to the PDFs of the proposals.

Development in the Triangle: 5th and Eye.

This Thursday the former city museum will host a presentation by the 4 short listed developers of the District-owned parcel at 5th and Eye streets, NW. It is crucial that as many neighborhood residents attend as possible so we can make our presence known and have our say in what we want our neighborhood to look like in the future.

And for those of you who are tired of hearing me talk about neighborhood happenings when you've never seen me at any of them brace yourselves, I'm back in the district, ready to make my debut. Say hi to the short, dark-haired man... it's me, I'll be there ready to get in on the action.

In preparation for the meeting here are the four shortlisted developers, check them out:

• JBG Associates LLC2
• Donohoe/Holland
• Potomac Investment Properties
• Buccini/Pollin Group

The meeting will take place this Thursday, May 1st from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at The Carnegie Library at 801 K Street. This is the site of the former City Museum, smack in the middle of Mount Vernon Square.

See you there!

$2Million declined for a 200,000 property

The blog For the Love of Growth (DC That is) wrote an interesting post about the rowhouse at 433 Mass Ave that The Dumont and Penzance Building had to build around. Apparently the owner of the property turned down 2 to 3 million dollars for a property assessed at just shy of $200K. One source suggested he wanted $17 million. He has reportedly taken out a 650K loan to open a Ledo Pizza. He'll have to sell alot of pizza pies to earn 2 million. =)

The WashingtonPost has more on owner Austin Spriggs and his decision (part1 | part2).

Office Building Development in the Triangle

As MBG wrote a couple months ago, developers had grand initiative when communicating there master plans for the Triangle in 2005. There has been little in the way of communication of late.

A good deal of the planned residential development has been completed (555 Mass, Madrigal Lofts, The Sonata, Yale Steam) or will deliver in 2008 (City Vista, The Dumont). On the office side the Penzance Building at 455 Mass and 251 Mass have completed while the other office buildings have not even broken ground. The image below is from the CID.


Walking by the Penzance Building I saw a big "Office Space for Lease" sign across the 8th floor windows.

I became curious about the lack of tenant. Typically when I've read DC Mud articles about office development near the stadium or in NoMA an anchor tenant is specified. So I googled the address for in hopes of finding more information on 455 Mass. I came across one from WaPo entitled "Mt Vernon Triangle Edges upwards". The April 2006 article focuses on the Penzance Building and the strip club Louis Rogue. Penzance was looking to lineup a tenant then and still is today.

How often does an office building get built downtown before an anchor tenant is in place? Is it a common practice? Did this practice get employed in Penn Quarter? How successful was it?

For the Triangle to become the true bustling 24/7 community it has the potential to be the area needs these office buildings with first floor retail to be built. When will the row of commercial building along K Street in the Mount Vernon Place master plan break ground? Will the Wilkes/Quadrangle team wait until they have anchor tenants for each building before beginning these projects? Have other projects become higher priority for them? Do you think they are just waiting to go through settlement on more of the Madrigal Lofts before bringing in dump trucks and cranes back into the neighborhood. Thoughts?

Starchitecture in the District?

I was reading the NYT and came across this interesting article about big name architects being featured prominently in new developments across the city. There are many exotic, beautiful, and sometimes groundbreaking new designs going up in Manhattan and many of them in the residential sector. Now why is it that we seem to not have ANY of these headed our way? What little "starchitecture" we do have is woefully diluted and dated. Where are the hot young talents of today? Wouldn't you like to see them flourish in our fair city?

Architect Jean Nouvel stands in one of the apartments at 40 Mercer courtesy of New York Magazine

Why not put DC developments on the map?

So what's new: Delays, Quality Control (or lack of)

I'm back in action and today I want to talk about delays in the Triangle.

As per many neighborhood blogs it's quite obvious that we're drooling for a new safeway... But what about other delays that are really throwing a wrench in our plans?

If we can recall back in 2007 the L at city vista had some pretty big delays in delivering because the city would not give the developer whatever paperwork it is they needed to be able to turn over the building to people that had put deposits on condos. Lately however the delay seems to be more on the end of the developers.

The Dumont was supposed to deliver in the spring of this year but it's clear to most that it's probably only going to happen in the summer. While many of us keep hearing dates as early as may, most of us who are familiar with construction can see that unless they work 24/7, two months to wrap up those buildings is going to qualify as a miracle.

Interestingly enough when I was looking at our neighbor DC Jeff's blog the other day I realized that as recently as a week ago it seemed like some parts of Madrigal Lofts were still not finished. Did the developer start moving people in before they really should have to keep people from backing out of their contracts? Maybe a resident of Madrigal can enlighten us at to what's going on at the top corner of the building pictured below? Bare concrete? Tyvek?




pictures taken on February 23, 2008 courtesy of District Chatter


As an architect and someone who bought a condo in one of these buildings, it is scary to see things like this.

Developers should be pissing their pants.

This post is about me venting, so please take it with a grain of salt.

OK. So I don't care what anyone says (specifically real estate agents representing developers) the market is NOT doing well. SO why do I feel like when it comes to developers in this city is it that they refuse to go above and beyond their duties as soon as you sign on the dotted line. In case these overly optimistic people haven't noticed, interest rates are going up, people still don't want to dive in and make these big purchases; especially when you refuse to budge on your price of 540 p/sq ft. And even when I agreed to pay that you refuse to do me even the simplest of favors?! I still can't be too specific about the situation as I am still trying to work through it but you bet that once i've followed through there will be a pretty sizeable story about the incompetence of these people that work for marketing firms representing developers.

Well I have news for you Mr Condo Sales Person, I have no qualms about walking away without my deposit and when me and 10% of the 40% of condos you sold thus far do the same you are in a real big pickle.

Here are some links for our readers to take in everything in the same negative light that I am viewing the situation:

The City Paper: These Prices are INSANE!

DC Housing Prices: DC sales December 2007

Bubble Meter: More Condo Projects Going Rental

Fortune: Real Estate, Buy Sell or Hold?