Updated Waterfront Station Photos

Here are some updated photos of Waterfront Station I took back on October 11th. The first photo shows a SUV in the middle of the right-of-way of 4th Street, which should be reopened for the first time since the 1960s when the first phase of construction is complete in 2010.





The next photo is of construction on the west side of 4th Street.




This next photo is of the east side of 4th Street. It appears that construction is occurring a little faster on the east side of the street, since columns are already visible rising from the 1st floor.





The last photo is of the current Safeway, as seen through the Waterfront-SEU Metro entrance canopy.






A new urban lifestyle Safeway will be built as a part of phase one of construction, similar to the new Safeway that recently opened in Mount Vernon Triangle. I went to the new Safeway for the first time over the weekend and despite its awkward layout, it is light years better than our SW Safeway. The next time I'm at the MVT Safeway I'll take some photos, to give an idea of what our new Safeway may look like in 2010.

What Bloggers are Saying About Southwest

- DCMetrocentric reports that construction at Waterfront Station has reached ground level. I'll actually be in town this weekend and the weather is supposed to be perfect, so I'll finally have a chance to go around the neighborhood and take some updated photos, including Waterfront Station.

- Greater Greater Washington reports that a bicyclist was killed in West Potomac Park along Maine Avenue. I ride my bike around there on occasion when I ride to work, and that area can be dangerous for bicyclists.

- Imagine, DC would like a Metrorail line or light rail line to run up the median of I-95 to I-395 and connect to L'Enfant Plaza to help reduce traffic in the area.

More Demolition Coming to Waterfront Station

The development manager at the Waterfront Station project, Gordon Fraley, sent the following email today regarding the reopening of 4th Street through the Waterfront Station site: "On or about October 9, 2008, the parking area between the Waterfront/SEU Metro Station escalator and the Bank of America located at Waterfront Station will be closed to vehicles and pedestrians to make way for the demolition and construction of 4th Street, SW. The Metro station escalators and elevators will not be affected by the change. Parking for Safeway will continue to be available in the lot adjacent to the Safeway store along M Street." The map pictured above shows the two areas that will be closed for demolition. You can read my prior posts about Waterfront Station here, here, here, and here.

Waterfront Station Gets Construction Financing

Despite the fact that debt is hard to come by these days, Waterfront Associates has been able to obtain $250 million in construction financing for Waterfront Station, according to this article from the WBJ. From the article: "The financing includes the project’s first two buildings, totaling 628,000 square feet of office and ground-level retail space. The office component is fully leased to the District of Columbia for various governmental offices, and the retail component will include a Safeway supermarket, a CVS pharmacy and other retail tenants. At full build-out, Waterfront Station is expected to include 1.2 million square feet of office space, 1,000 residential units and at least 110,000 square feet of stores and restaurants." Construction has reached street level (photos to come next week after all the rain that's forecast passes us) and phase one is supposed to deliver in 2010. Update: Here is one cloudy photo I was able to take between downpours on Sunday of the cranes hovering over Waterfront Station taken from across the Washington Channel.

Safeway Wants to Redo All DC Stores

An article in this week's Washington Business Journal (paid subscribers only), describes how Safeway is in the process of redoing their stores across the city as "urban concept" stores. From the article: "The newest Safeway, at the CityVista condo complex at Fifth and K streets NW in Mount Vernon Triangle, exhibits all the features of its 'lifestyle' format, which Steve Neibergall, eastern division president, said represents the company’s commitment to fresh perishables and customer service. Safeway began the makeovers nationwide four years ago, and nine of the D.C. stores have been redone, he said, refashioned for between $2 million and $6 million apiece, sometimes to include pharmacies, floral departments and in-store Starbucks cafes. 'We want to be a place where you go to get more than groceries,' Neibergall says. All 17 stores in D.C. will be done by 2011, including completely rebuilt stores at the former Waterside Mall in Southwest and an 18th as part of new development at the Fort Totten Metro." As mentioned in my post from earlier this week, the new 55,000 SF Safeway at Waterfront Station is currently under construction and is anticipated to be complete in 2010. The new one can't come soon enough, as the current Safeway is run down and its shelves are understocked. I haven't shopped there since Harris Teeter opened on Capitol Hill a few months ago.

Progress at Waterfront Station

In Wednesday's Real Estate Bisnow, the feature story is the progress at Waterfront Station, the redevelopment of the Waterside Mall at 4th Street and M Street. According to the article, the massive hole in the ground as seen from this web cam will reach grade in the next couple of weeks. So far, Safeway and CVS have signed long-term leases and the development team is working with Bank of America. Those same three tenants are the only ones that currently exist at the site. CVS and Bank of America were moved to temporary trailers in the parking lot in the wake of construction, while the Safeway is in a separate building that will be torn down once the new 55,000 SF urban concept Safeway opens in 2010. Demolition of the old Waterside Mall occurred on November 1st, 2007. Here is a photo of the stripped interior of the Mall the day of demolition:

Here's a photo of the gold-painted wrecking ball taking down a portion of the east side of Waterside Mall:

The first two office buildings that will house two DC Government agencies (the Office of the CFO and DCRA) are expected to open in 2010, along with two residential buildings. The residential buildings will be created from reskinning and retrofitting the existing office towers that once was home to the EPA. A reopened 4th Street will also run through the middle of the site.

New Construction at Marina View

Thanks to reader A for pointing out to me that both DC Metrocentric and DCmud are reporting that the first new tower at Marina View Towers is slated to start construction this fall. The new towers are designed by Esocoff & Associates, with one tower located at the existing parking lot facing M Street and the second tower at the parking lot facing K Street. Renovations are already underway at the two existing apartment buildings, designed by I.M. Pei and built in 1962. New windows have been installed in the north tower and interior improvements are also being made. In addition to two new buildings, green roofs will be installed in all four buildings, a public garden will be created along 6th Street, the central courtyard area will be restored, below-grade parking will be constructed below the new towers, and an amenities building will be built. The new south tower will have ground floor retail, with space reserved for a restaurant. Patrons of the new Arena Stage across the street will now have more food options with the addition of a restaurant at the corner of 6th Street and Maine Avenue. One change to the original plan by builder Fairfield Residential is all four towers will now be rental. At least one of the existing buildings was originally planned as a condo conversion, but changing market conditions caused the developer to alter their plans. I recently saw signs indicating that the existing north tower is now being marketed as The View at Waterfront. With Marina View getting ramped up, along with Waterfront next door, as well as all the other projects currently under construction in the neighborhood, the number of cranes in Southwest may soon surpass the number at neighboring Capitol Riverfront. (rendering courtesy of Esocoff & Associates)

DCMud Lists Major Southwest Development Projects

This DCMud post describes major development projects in the pipeline around the city. Three southwest projects made the list, including the Southwest Waterfront, Waterfront (Waterside Mall), and the two city-owned sites at 4th & E Street, all three of which have been described in prior posts here, here, and here.

Articles About Southwest Development

Here's a Washington Times article, which was picked up by JDLand, that gives an overview of two major development projects in Southwest: Waterside Mall (AKA Waterfront) and the SW Waterfront. The article states that vertical construction is underway at Waterfront and the first phase of office buildings will be ready by 2010. Construction along the Southwest Waterfront should begin in late 2010 or 2011 with completion in 2017. The entire Southwest Waterfront project will be LEED-Silver certified. Also, earlier this week, DCMetrocentric had a post about the Southwest Waterfront which received several comments about the rendering resembling the Inner Harbor and National Harbor. The developers could be a little more daring with the architecture, especially in Southwest, which doesn't look like the rest of DC to begin with. These are probably just preliminary images, so things may change before construction actually begins. If you look closely at the rendering, you can see what looks like a streetcar running along Maine Avenue...wouldn't that be nice!

Webcam at Arena Stage

Here's another webcam, but this one shows the progress being made at the new Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater, located at 6th Street and Maine Avenue. Arena Stage is less than two blocks away from the old Waterside Mall and will bridge the new development at the mall and Marina View to the East with the redeveloped watefront to the West. In addition, this building will be a striking architectual landmark in Southwest DC. Designed by Bing Thom Architects, the new Arena Stage should be ready by Fall 2010. In the meantime, performances are being held in Crystal City and The Lincoln Theater.

Waterfront Webcam

Two webcams have been set up showing the excavation progress at the Waterfront site over the past eight months. Demolition looks to be just about complete at the old Waterside Mall, a failed town center development built in the sixties. Piledrivers are still on site as excavation is ongoing. The Office of Tax & Revenue and DCRA are already signed up as tenants in 500,000 SF of office space that will be part of phase one of this redevelopment by Forest City Washington and Vornado.