Design of New Southwest Branch Library Comes Into Focus

In early January, DCPL submitted an application to the BZA in order to build a new, standalone Southwest Branch library at 900 Wesley Place. The existing library was built in 1961 and no longer serves the needs of a growing community, where thousands of new multifamily units are coming online within the next five years. After a series of public meetings, DCPL developed a plan for the library which provides separate spaces for children and adults.

On the first floor, patrons will enter the new library using an entrance on the northwest corner of the building. Upon entering the library, the north side of the building will be the Market Place. The west side of the building will contain two multipurpose rooms and the book drop. Space dedicated to Children’s Services will occupy the remaining area on the first level, as well as restrooms. Staff will enter the building from an entrance off K Street. A terrace on the northeast corner and a reading porch on the north side of the building will open towards the playground at the adjacent 3rd and I Street SW Park. The second floor will contain a series of study/meeting rooms, space for Teen/Adult Services, an adult patio, staff areas, and space for the Friends of the Southwest Library. A portion of the floor on the second level will be open to the first floor below.

Designed by Perkins + Will, the new Southwest Library takes cues from the modernist design of the neighborhood with the use of wood, metal panels, glass, and a distinctive crinkle roof. The new library will be similar in size to the existing one at 20,792 SF, but there will not be a basement due to concerns over flooding since it is below the floodplain. Parking will be provided for seven vehicles, a reduction in the number of spaces currently available at the library by two. A landscape buffer will screen the parking area from the sidewalk along 3rd Street. Green features will include, among other things, a green roof, photovoltaic panels, and bioretention areas, sufficient to secure LEED-Gold status for the building.

DCPL is seeking approval for the project and has requested three special exemptions from zoning regulations. One special exemption has to do with parking – zoning requires a government building of this size to have nine spaces, but DCPL wants to build seven surface spaces. Since the library is close to the Waterfront Metro station, two Metrobus routes, and within walking distance of most of Southwest, DCPL contends there will be sufficient parking. The second special exemption is for long-term bicycle parking – DCPL will provide one less space than required. Finally, the third special exemption is lot occupancy – it is required that up to 40% of the lot be occupied by the new building, but the design calls for 47% lot occupancy. All three special exemptions have been requested in order to maintain the current design of the new library. At its December 2017 meeting, ANC 6D voted 3-0-2 in support of the BZA application.

If approved by the BZA, demolition of the existing library will likely take place this fall, after an interim library location is found. Construction will take a little more than a year and the new library will be complete in early 2020.

Renderings courtesy of DCPL

Anchor Tenant Signed for 500 L'Enfant

Urban Institute will take 121,000 SF of space at 500 L’Enfant, covering the first six floors of the 12-story office building.  The economic and social policy research nonprofit founded by President Lyndon Johnson in 1968 will relocate its headquarters and over 400 employees to L’Enfant Plaza from the West End by March 2019. After the podium for 500 L’Enfant was built, work stopped on the project due to the lack of an anchor tenant. Now that one has been secured, construction is expected to resume in February. Upon completion, 500 L'Enfant will be a LEED-Gold certified, 215,000 SF building with a direct connection to the shops at L'Enfant Plaza and the Metro station by the same name.

In addition to 500 L’Enfant, the former L’Enfant Plaza Hotel is currently undergoing renovations and will reopen in 2018 as the 367-key Hilton Washington DC National Mall hotel. Also scheduled to be completed in 2018 at L’Enfant Plaza is the new home of the International Spy Museum, which will be located along 10th Street. 

Renderings courtesy of ZGF Architects LLP

Design Revealed for Ward 6 Temporary Family Housing Facility

Design concepts were unveiled last night at a community meeting to discuss the planned Ward 6 short-term family housing facility to be built at 850 Delaware Avenue. The site is currently occupied by a District-owned building that contains Unity Health Clinic. A new health clinic is planned as part of the new housing facility, located primarily on the lower level of the building with an entrance on I Street. The proposed building, designed by Studio 27 Architecture, will be seven stories tall and will house up to 50 homeless families at one time. On the ground floor of the building, there will be a dining room and kitchen, as well as a computer lab and administrative space. A fenced off play area will be created along Delaware Avenue. Each residential floor will have a common area on the north side of the building with TVs and seating where programming will be administered – these rooms will have views of the Capitol building due to their location along Delaware Avenue. In addition to the larger play area along Delaware Avenue, each floor will contain an outdoor play area. The design of the building maintains the view shed of the Capitol dome along Delaware Avenue by gradually stepping back the façade, creating small green spaces throughout. There will also be a large green roof, which helps the building obtain LEED-Gold certification. 

Back in February, the community was alerted to the fact that the city selected 700 Delaware Avenue (a site adjacent to Blind Whino) as the location of the Ward 6 short-term family housing facility. The Bowser administration wanted to close DC General and place a family homeless shelter in each ward of the city. After some community concerns were raised about the proposed 700 Delaware Avenue site, how it was selected, and the cost to the city for leasing it for the shelter, the DC Council changed the location to the District-owned 850 Delaware Avenue site. An Advisory Team was created to allow a variety of voices from the community to provide input on the plan and design for the project, including the ANC, Council member Charles Allen, and neighbors Greenleaf, Capitol Park IV, and Telesis (developer of the Randall School project). 

The facility's design will be refined over the next few weeks and the city will submit an application with the Board of Zoning Adjustment in January for the project, with the hope of starting construction after approval by November 2017. The Ward 6 facility is anticipated to open by the summer of 2019 when a Good Neighbor Agreement will be drafted. 

Rendering courtesy of Studio 27 Architecture

Library Planning Meeting

A community meeting will be held on Wednesday, November 30 at 7pm at the SW Branch library (900 Wesley Place) to discuss the modernization of the MLK Library downtown. In addition, there will be discussion on plans for a new SW Branch library on the existing site, for which DCPL recently released a RFP for design-build services. DCPL will select the winning Design-Build team by March 2017 and will begin the design process in the spring. An interim library will be built, which will occupy approximately 3,000 SF in existing retail or commercial space within a reasonable distance from the current library. The budget for the new library and interim facility is $11.7 million. Construction of the interim library will begin in the middle of 2018 and the old library will be demolished once the interim facility is complete, around August 2018. The new library will then be built with an anticipated completion date of December 2019. The new library will be at least LEED-Gold certified.

Tangentially related: The Friends of the SW Library will have a Holiday Book Sale on Saturday, December 10 from 10am to 3pm. Sale proceeds support events and supplies for the SW Branch library.

New Standalone SW Branch Library; PN Hoffman Wins Waterfront Station Project

At this morning’s “March Madness” economic development event, DMPED and other District agencies offered several parcels across the city for development. One such parcel is located in Southwest – the Southwest Branch Library at 900 Wesley Place. The current Southwest Branch Library is a 21,600 SF building with three levels and was built in 1965. A mini-makeover was done in 2011, but funding for an extensive renovation was removed from the budget a few years ago. The library will be replaced with a standalone facility designed to achieve LEED-Silver certification.

The library’s future was hotly debated in 2014 when DMPED, OP and DCPL proposed to move the library to the city-owned NE parcel at Waterfront Station, which would have been part of a mixed use building with residential, retail, and the library. That proposal was shot down by the community in favor of keeping the library at its current location and build a new, standalone library, which the city intends to do. 

Earlier concept for a SW Branch Library on 4th Street.

As a result, DMPED released a RFP after last year’s “March Madness” event for the Waterfront Station site at 1000 4th Street without the library requirement. Several redevelopment teams responded to the RFP with three of them making the final cut last summer. While a decision was expected back in November, DMPED finally announced today that PN Hoffman’s bid was selected. 

PN Hoffman’s presentation was unique in that the amount of proposed retail space was more than double the amount proposed by the other teams and prospective retail tenants were announced. The development plan includes 443 rental apartment units, 22,500 SF of community-oriented retail, and a 10,000 SF, 200-seat black box theater, all in a LEED-Gold building designed by Torti Gallas. The 133 units of affordable housing includes 34 units at up to 30% of AMI and 99 units at up to 50% of AMI. Retail would be located on 4th Street, wrapping around to a new private drive on the north end of the site. A letter of intent has been signed by Constantine Stavropoulous, the owner of Tryst, Open City, The Diner, and The Coupe to open a diner at the corner of 4th Street and the private drive. Other retail uses such as a daycare center and artist space could be located on the north side of the development along the private drive, which serves as a connector between the Southwest Library branch and the SW Duck Pond. The private drive could be closed off at times for arts-focused events. The proposal was the preferred choice of ANC 6D, which will get to weigh in again once PN Hoffman goes through the second stage PUD process. 

The RFP for a design-build contract for the new library will be released this fall. A flyer about the project says the following: 

The new Southwest Neighborhood Library will reflect the program and goals of the library and the needs of the District of Columbia residents who use it. The building will incorporate forward-thinking approaches to urban design, architecture, engineering, and environmental technologies in the public realm. The new Southwest Library will be a destination that will attract and support hundreds of users per day, and promote a vibrant, mixed-use neighborhood and active street environment. 

According to SWBID Director Steve Moore, DCPL will receive $1 million in next year’s budget for planning the new library. There will more than likely be community involvement in that planning process. 

Renderings courtesy of DCPL and PN Hoffman

A Few Quick Sunday Afternoon Items: Stadium Update, Wharf Planner Awarded, New Businesses to SW?

Now that the DC Council has received legislation on the DC United stadium deal in Buzzard Point, more voices are making themselves heard regarding their position on the pending deal. An editorial in this week’s Washington Business Journal (subscribers only) gave its support for the stadium deal, starting with this statement, “We have never been closer. If the D.C. Council does not approve the deal for a new D.C. United soccer stadium, the deal will die. D.C. United will leave. And Buzzard Point will languish for another decade.” Ward 7 Council member Yvette Alexander recently tweeted her support for the stadium (since deleted), while Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells has expressed reservations about the deal, according to a City Paper article, because the Council recently cut streetcar funding (two streetcar lines are planned to terminate in Buzzard Point near the stadium). Council Chair Phil Mendelson was quoted on WJLA that he doubts the stadium deal will be voted on by the Council before the fall, so the next mayor will have the final say whether the deal goes through. The first DC Council hearing on the stadium deal will be on June 26 at 10am.

Rendering courtesy of Gensler

Perkins-Eastman, master planner of The Wharf, received a 2014 Charter Award by the Congress of New Urbanism in the category of Best Neighborhood Plan. From the Digital Journal article: 

Washington, DC's mixed-use Southwest Waterfront development, aka The Wharf, is designed on the premise of reconnecting the city with its waterfront and creating a place that residents can be proud to call their own. Stretched across 27 land acres and 24 water acres, with 1.9 million gsf of building area comprising the first of three phases alone, this neighborhood revival has long been a glimmer in DC residents' eyes and now construction is underway, with a projected completion date of 2017 for Phase 1. The entire development is targeted for LEED-ND Gold, with all new buildings planned to achieve a minimum of LEED Silver. 

Rendering courtesy of Hoffman-Madison Waterfront

It was reported over the past week that two new businesses may be considering Southwest for their headquarters. First up is Pigmental, a newly formed digital animation studio that is relocating from California to the District. The Washington Post reports that the company is considering moving to either Georgetown or the Southwest Waterfront. The article didn’t state where in Southwest they are looking, but I imagine one of those places isn’t The Wharf, since the first phase isn’t scheduled to open until 2017. Pigmental is planning to begin operations with about 24 employees, with the possibility of expanding to 60 people. Another firm looking to move to the Washington metro area is McCormick & Co., the Baltimore-based company known for making Old Bay Seasoning. In a WBJ article, the author speculates that if McCormick chooses to relocate to the District, a logical place would be The Wharf, although the company is looking for over 300,000 square feet of space and the first office buildings at The Wharf are under 300,000 SF.

Rendering courtesy of Hoffman-Madison Waterfront 

The Wharf Breaks Ground

Representatives from the Hoffman-Madison Waterfront team, political leaders, and neighborhood residents gathered in a large tent at the site of the former Kastles Stadium this morning for a groundbreaking ceremony to start construction on The Wharf project along the Southwest Waterfront. This day has been a long time coming…more than eight years have gone by since Hoffman-Madison Waterfront first began the process, which included countless community meetings, seven DC Council votes, three acts of Congress, and one Great Recession, but groundbreaking is here at last. By next year, eight cranes will become a fixture along the waterfront to join the 57 other tower cranes across the city.

A choir from Amidon-Bowen Elementary School started off the program with two songs, followed by an invocation from Reverend Martha Clark of St. Augustine’s Church. Then, Monty Hoffman from PN Hoffman took to the stage and introduced the partners in the project, while describing the long process that culminated with this morning’s ceremony. In describing his interactions with Ward 6 Council Member Tommy Wells for instance, Hoffman noted that Wells had four main themes that he wanted addressed with the project: 

1. Sustainability – The Wharf will be LEED-Gold certified and will have a cistern system that will be able to handle up to two inches of rainwater, along with a co-generation plant that will provide electricity to the parking garages. 
2. Inclusiveness – Over 200 units will be set aside as affordable housing for a variety of income levels, starting as low as 30% of AMI. 
3. The Lower 30 Feet – The designers took great care in the pedestrian experience by designing the lower levels on a human scale. 
4. Keep Bufus! – King Ribs was the first vendor to appear on the waterfront and will remain once the project is complete – Bufus’ barbecue was available for all to enjoy after the groundbreaking ceremony, along with food from other waterfront establishments, including Cantina Marina, Jenny’s Asian Fusion, and Captain White’s Seafood. 

Next up was David Brainerd from Madison Marquette who provided some specifics about The Wharf:

• 1,350 residential units 
• 700 hotel keys 
• 900,000 square feet of office space 
• Ground floor retail 
• Wharf Hall that will bring “top music acts from around the world” 
• A series of mews and alleys leading to Jazz Alley, which will include a movie house 
• Market Square adjacent to the Maine Avenue Fish Market that will be “the hub of food activity for the whole Mid-Atlantic” 
• 10+ acres of public space 
• 500 boat slips 
• Four piers, including a recreation pier, transit pier, District Pier, and the existing Pier 4 
• A mile-long cobblestone-like waterfront promenade  

Following Brainerd were speeches from politicians, including DC Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Congressman Darrell Issa, Mayor Gray, Wells, Ward 2 Council Member Jack Evans (who used to represent SW back in the 90s), Ward 4 Council Member Muriel Bowser, Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Victor Hoskins, and ANC 6D Vice Chair Andy Litsky, whose single-member district includes the liveaboard community at the Gangplank Marina. Litsky had a few memorable lines (one of them referenced the name of this blog), but the one that probably elicited the most applause was his description of creating a first class waterfront where “we won’t need a casino to keep it afloat.” (For those who don’t know, a MGM Grand casino hotel is coming to National Harbor downriver in Prince George’s County.)

After the speeches, the VIPs went outside in the rain and ceremoniously turned some dirt that was set up for the event. The waterfront setting allowed for the John Glenn water boat from the fire department to spray water along the Washington Channel following the photo-op. The program ended with a catered lunch and live music from a jazz band. Despite the rain, it was a well-attended event, which several of the speakers noted, including Gray and Bowser. After all, this is a $2 billion development in the Little Quadrant That Could (Can).

 Rendering courtesy of Hoffman-Madison Waterfront

Hard Hat Tour of Sky House

Ahead of its grand opening on December 2nd, the folks over at Sky House gave a media tour today of the east tower building. Some of the finishing touches are still being made to the building, so the photos still show construction activity. Sky House is the adaptive reuse of the former EPA towers at Waterfront Station, with the east tower having the address of 1150 4th Street.  Construction of the east tower began in February 2012 with the west tower beginning a few months later. This will be the second apartment building to open in Southwest this year - Camden South Capitol opened in April. Vicki Davis and Alan Lederman from Urban Atlantic led the tour of Sky House. JBG is also a partner in the development and will manage the property. 

Former EPA building in early 2012.

Sky House East Tower.

There are a total of 530 units in both buildings, with the east tower having 266 units and the remaining 264 units in the west tower. Twenty percent of the units will be affordable for households earning up to 50% of Area Median Income (AMI), which is $43,000 for a family of two. Both buildings will be at least LEED-Silver, with energy-saving LED lighting and recycled materials among some of the green features.

Concierge desk.

Overlooking what will be lower level of fitness center w/ weights.

Some of the unit features include electronic key entry, hardwood floors in the living areas, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, movable islands, glass enclosed showers, ceiling fans in the bedrooms, walk-in closets, and floor-to-ceiling glass windows. That floor-to-ceiling glass in the living area comes in handy for several units that contain bedrooms without windows. Instead, most of these interior bedrooms have glass near the ceiling to allow natural light into the rooms. LED lights have also been installed by those glass panels to provide additional mood lighting in the evenings. Most of the units have 9’6” ceiling heights, but units on the third and 12th floors have 12’ ceilings.

More on DC United Stadium Deal

 

Yesterday morning, Mayor Gray and Jason Levien from DC United, along with City Administrator Allen Lew and property owners in the stadium footprint, announced a deal to build a new, LEED-certified 20,000 to 25,000 seat stadium for DC United in Buzzard Point at 2nd and R streets. At the press conference, the mayor explained the complex deal that will bring a new stadium to Southwest, or as Lew stated, “a giant jigsaw puzzle.” The cost of the $300 million stadium will be split between the city and the team. According to the term sheet signed by Gray and Levien after the press conference, DC United will spend $150 million to build the stadium while the District will spend $40 million (up to a maximum of $50 million) on infrastructure improvements/environmental remediation and approximately $100 million for land assembly; however, the city intends not to actually use cash to purchase land for the stadium, but instead will do a series of land swaps. 

Mayor Gray at the press conference.

A land swap that has been agreed to already is between the District and Akridge, which owns a portion of the stadium site – the block bounded by 2nd Street to the west, S Street to the north, First Street to the east, and T Street to the south. The block is the northern part of Akridge’s 100 V Street project, which was initially designed to be a secure complex for a federal tenant. In exchange for the two-acre parcel, Akridge will get the Reeves Center building at 14th and U streets, NW, a functionally obsolete building in a rapidly developing part of the city. The employees at the current Reeves building would be relocated to a new Reeves complex to be built in Anacostia at Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue and Good Hope Road, SE.  Meanwhile, Akridge would still retain the southern two blocks of their 9-acre site in Buzzard Point, which presumably would be developed as a mixed use project similar to what they have planned to the north of Nationals Park on Half Street, SE instead of a secure federal complex. A rendering was displayed at the press conference of their proposed development on 14th Street, NW, but not for their remaining land at 100 V Street.  It sounds like they got a great deal.  

Stadium footprint is highlighted in red. A future streetcar station will be located adjacent to the stadium.

Agreements have not been reached yet with Pepco or Mark Ein (owner of the Washington Kastles franchise), the other two private landowners at the stadium site. While the term sheet dictates that the District must come to an agreement with Akridge and Ein by January 1, 2014, there is no deadline for an agreement with Pepco on the operating substation since it’s expected that it will take longer to reach consensus for that parcel. The stadium design will allow construction of the playing field to be complete and operational without the substation block, which is on the southeastern block of the four-block stadium site.

Aerial view of the stadium. Courtesy of Gensler

The team will be permitted to develop ancillary uses within the stadium footprint to enhance the game day experience (retail, hotel, etc.), but that development should be designed in such a way that it provides amenities to the surrounding neighborhoods on non-game days. From the looks of the overhead rendering, the playing field will take up two blocks from R Street to T Street and one block from 2nd Street to First Street, so the stadium can be built even if Pepco doesn’t give up their land. First Street will curve towards Half Street north of T Street and appears to be a pedestrian plaza (at least on game days). Ancillary development will occur on the east side of the stadium footprint from First Street to Half Street.

The National Defense University at Fort McNair is across the street from the stadium site.

The term sheet states that the District will “pursue (i) re-sequencing options so as to advance construction of the Buzzard Point/Downtown streetcar line and (ii) the construction of a streetcar stop adjacent to the Stadium Site.”  No details are mentioned whether the streetcar line would be completed before the stadium is completed in 2016.  The reconstruction of Maine Avenue for The Wharf project will be going on before then, so I imagine streetcar tracks could be installed at that time for the portion of the line from 6th Street to 7th Street. The District will not provide parking spaces at the site and it’s unknown how many parking spaces will be provided on site by the team for fans.

Night time rendering of stadium. Courtesy of HKS.

At least 51% of the jobs at the stadium (excluding United players, coaches, training staff, and front office management) will go to District residents. In addition, at least 35% of operation contracts for the stadium, including security, food service, janitorial services, etc., shall go to businesses certified by DSLBD. Throughout the term of the ground lease, the team is not permitted to leave the District of Columbia or move its principal offices outside of the city. In addition, the team must make reasonable efforts to locate its practice facilities within the city. The terms of the ground lease are still being negotiated, but it will most likely be for the estimated useful like of the stadium (25 to 35 years).

DC United Managing Partner Jason Levien and Mayor Gray sign the term sheet.

Upcoming milestones for the project include:

• October 1, 2013: A transaction agreement will need to be completed that explicitly states the terms between the District and DC United.
• January 1, 2014: The District must have site control of the stadium site, except for the Pepco substation block, as well as DC Council approval and Congressional approval (if necessary). DC United must provide evidence that it has the ability to fund the construction of the stadium within 30 days of the District completing the above tasks.
• March 1, 2015: The District must have the site prepared for construction, including infrastructure work and utility relocation, demolition of existing buildings on the stadium site (except for the Pepco substation), environmental remediation, as well as any street or alley closings.  In addition, DC United must have obtained all Zoning Commission and Zoning Adjustment approvals, as well as advanced the stadium design at least to the design development completion level.
• July 1, 2015: DC United needs to enter into a construction contract for the stadium.
• January 1, 2017: The stadium shall be substantially complete, but both parties are aiming for completion by March 1, 2016, in time for the beginning of the 2016 MLS season.

If the two parties do not reach the milestone dates, there are options available for either party to walk away from the deal.

The press conference and stadium deal has been widely reported in the press.  Here are links to some of the articles:

• The Washington Post
• Washington Business Journal
• The Washington Informer
• Housing Complex
• Greater Greater Washington
• The Blade
• NBC 4
• Fox 5
• ABC 7
• WUSA*9

What Will Happen to Randall Recreation Center?

 

For several years, Randall Recreation Center at South Capitol and I streets has been underutilized. Next door to the recreation center are a community pool, tennis & basketball courts, ball fields, a playground, and a forlorn plaza area. While the ball fields, pool and sports courts are heavily used, the recreation center is currently devoid of programming. There have been efforts by local organizations, such as the Near SE/SW Community Benefits Coordinating Council (CBCC) and SWNA, to get financing and bring some programming to the recreation center. Funding has been secured by the Gray administration’s “Play DC” initiative to build a new playground and renovate the plaza area to make the entrance to the recreation facility more inviting and user-friendly, with construction to occur later this year. 

DPR's renovation plan for the Randall site, developed after community meetings in 2012.

Meanwhile, the Department of Parks and Recreation is supposed to release a Request for Proposals (RFP) to select a non-profit provider of services to Randall Recreation Center. Related to the upcoming RFP, KIPP DC proposes to build a new, LEED-certified charter high school designed by StudiosArchitecture on the site of the current recreation center along South Capitol Street that will accommodate 650 students. There would be space on the ground level for a facility run by Georgetown University Medicine. In addition, KIPP DC would refurbish the existing Randall pool and ball fields, move the basketball courts to the northwest corner of the site, and build a brand new community center and pool house adjacent to the pool. KIPP DC has an ambitious schedule and plans to deliver the new school by the summer of 2014.

A birds-eye view of the proposed KIPP DC campus and new recreation center.

However, KIPP’s plans are incompatible with those of the developers of the former Randall Junior High School site next door. Telesis/Rubell (the Rubell family also owns the Capitol Skyline Hotel across the street from the rec. center) bought the former school from the Corcoran and plans to bring a contemporary art museum and restaurants to the historic buildings as well as build 400,000 square feet of apartments and townhouses. Telesis’ Marilyn Melkonian has pledged to find financing to renovate the existing recreation center. In addition, the Randall Recreation Center could be designated as a historic landmark as one of the few remainders of buildings that existed prior to Urban Renewal, which could complicate KIPP DC’s plans.

An earlier concept for the Randall School site.

At the same time that this is all happening, the Office of Planning is preparing to embark on a Small Area Plan for Southwest at the behest of Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells. There is a large amount of public land in SW, including the Randall Recreation Center site, and typically, a Small Area Plan provides residents, land owners, developers, city officials and District agencies with a framework and recommendations to guide future development in the study area. The Small Area Plan will take about eight months to complete, but by-right development can still move forward while the plan is underway. ANC 6D voted to support the creation of the Small Area Plan and stipulated that no decisions be made on the Randall Recreation Center site until the Small Area Plan is completed. SWNA supports the measure as well. The CBCC also supports the creation of the Small Area Plan, as long as is doesn’t preclude continuing negotiations with KIPP DC, Telesis/Rubell, or any other interested parties in the Randall Recreation Center site.

Randall Recreation Center.

Each of the plans for Randall has their pluses and minuses. KIPP DC would build a brand-new community center, but what about the increased traffic from 650 students and faculty coming to the site each school day? Is a brand new community center and refurbished fields worth bringing a new school into the community where only students from KIPP DC’s elementary and middle schools would be able to attend? Would Telesis/Rubell still move forward with their plans next door if the charter school is built? Telesis has pledged to find financing to help renovate the existing recreation center, but is it guaranteed that financing would be found? How long would it take to get sufficient financing under either scenario to fund programming? There are a lot of questions yet to be answered.

Rendering courtesy of Studios Architecture

CFL Ribbon-Cutting on Monday

After several years in the making, the Consolidated Forensic Laboratory will have a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday at noon. The LEED-Gold building, located at 4th & E Street contains green elements such as a solar shade louver system, a green roof, and chilled beams. The CFL will be home to MPD's Crime Lab, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, and the DC Public Health Lab. A total of 300 - 350 employees will be housed at the facility. The Washington Post reported last week that the new crime lab division will be run by civilians instead of MPD officers.

The site was formally MPD's First District headquarters before it moved to Bowen Elementary School on M Street and the building was demolished in early 2010.

Construction Update Part I - Sky House

The former EPA headquarters east tower at Waterfront Station has lost the concrete skin from its former use as an office building. Construction is progressing at the site and the skeletal remains by early 2014 will become Sky House I, a 265-unit apartment building developed by Urban-Atlantic and The JBG Companies.  A rendering of the building is below, designed by Wiencek & Associates.

Amenities will include a fitness center, e-lounge, club room, demonstration kitchen, rooftop swimming pool & deck, garden area with fire pit, pet washing station, and shared garage parking with the office component of Waterfront Station. 

Meanwhile, a construction trailer and demolition equipment have arrived on-site at the west tower. Completion of Sky House II will be a few months behind phase one and will bring an additional 252 units. Ten percent of the units in both phases will be affordable for households earning up to 50% of Area Median Income. The buildings will be at least LEED-certified, but will aim for Silver. 

Wharf PUD Presentation Recap

This evening's monthly SWNA meeting was a presentation of the Stage Two PUD for phase I of development at the Southwest Waterfront (called The Wharf) by the Hoffman-Madison Waterfront team. The presentation was held in the Kreeger Theater at Arena Stage. At the presentation, the developers and master planner gave a description of what is planned for parcels 2, 3, 4, 11, and public places including District Pier, Transit Pier, Waterfront Park, and 7th Street Park.  The Stage Two PUD application was submitted to the Zoning Commission on February 3rd. A description of what's planned for the parcels can be found here. 

Monty Hoffman from PN Hoffman gave his vision for the project and mentioned some of the refinements made to the plan since the Stage One PUD was approved in the fall.  For instance, the proposed traffic circle in front of Arena Stage has been removed from the plan. At the water's edge, wooden fending has been added to wrap around the bulkhead and provide a nicer face to the shoreline, especially at the District Pier and Transit Pier. Earlier in the process, a streetcar line was proposed for Wharf Street, but that has been shifted to Maine Avenue due to safety concerns. An extra mews was added to separate the office building and hotel planned for parcel 3. In addition, the facades have been broken down at street level to have more of a human scale to them. The Hoffman Madison Waterfront team is working with Washington Gas on building a Co-Gen plant on Maine Avenue that would use clean-burning natural gas to power the rest of the development. As a result of the Combined Heating and Power Facility (or Co-Gen plant), over 1,000 coal cars per year will be saved since most of the city is powered using coal fuel. 

Pier Mews by the Intercontinental Hotel in Parcel 3b

Next up was Stan Eckstut from Perkins Eastman who gave an overview of what's planned in the development. As much attention was given to the water plan as the land plan, and in fact, the water plan was done first.  Eckstut mentioned that the only other city in the US that has a comprehensive water plan for their waterfront is Baltimore. Along the water's edge at The Wharf, there will be a continuous bench (about 2,000 feet) instead of a railing, so people can enjoy the water more easily. Lighting will be near the base for safety purposes at night, as well as blue lighting along the water's edge to serve as a way to define the waterfront that can be seen from passersby crossing the Case Bridge into the District.  

Aerial view from the water

The Transit Pier is triangular in shape and is located near Parcel 2. This is where most of the dinner cruise ships, water taxi, and charter boats will dock. Music barges will also dock here for festivals.

Transit Pier

Down-channel from the Transit Pier is the District Pier, which will serve at the ceremonial entrance for tall ships and other vessels from around the world that visit the city. The District Pier is very large - 650 feet long (more than twice as long as a football field), stretching from Maine Avenue out into the Washington Channel.  The public space created here will be larger than comparable spaces in other cities, including Covent Garden in London, outside of Faneuil Hall in Boston, or Harborplace in Baltimore. District Pier is designed to serve a variety of purposes, with permanent scaffolding along the sides to facilitate the set-up for events and festivals throughout the year. For instance, the pier can serve as a venue for the National Cherry Blossom Festival, or become a large ice rink in the winter. Closer to Maine Avenue, there will be a large water feature called Water Court next to where people will emerge from a parking garage underneath the District Pier. At the channel end of the pier, there will be the Dock Master building with a pavilion affording views out to the water and back towards the city. 

District Pier

On the land side of the development, the design of the retail space along the wharf and Maine Avenue will vary, but will be smaller format with no big box retail. Along the wharf there will include mostly restaurants, as well as kiosks, while Maine Avenue retail will focus more on neighborhood-serving retail. Meanwhile, retail along the mews will be cafes, and some entertainment venues along what is dubbed "Jazz Alley" between Parcel 4 and Parcel 5. 

Example of retail along Maine Avenue

The design of the buildings will include more masonry than glass in most areas, with the exception of the condo building planned for Parcel 4.  Buildings facing Maine Avenue will more closely resemble the design of buildings in the city, while the wharf-facing buildings will have more windows to allow views out to the water. In addition, at least 50% of the roofs will be green. Parking will all be below grade, which is rare for waterfronts in the US and will accommodate around 1,500 cars. Nearly the same amount of bike parking spaces will be provided. A second Capital Bikeshare station will be installed at 9th Street and Maine Avenue to join the one already at 7th Street (which will move slightly from its present location to be closer to Maine Avenue). 

Example of retail at District Pier

Located between Parcel 3 and Parcel 4 will be the Yacht Club Piazza, next to which will be the Capital Yacht Club clubhouse.

Yacht Club Piazza

Next to Parcel 5 (which is owned by the JBG Companies and is not a part of this PUD submission) is 7th Street Park, a more formal and quiet green space where 7th Street Landing is currently located. Adjacent to the park is 7th Street Pier, which is not included in Phase I of development.

7th Street Park

Next to Parcel 11 is the 4.2-acre Waterfront Park, the details of which can be found here.  The park will be built in Phase I despite being disjointed from the rest of the development because the ANC requested this space be completed early in the process as a concession to the existing community.

Pergola at Waterfront Park

After Mr. Eckstut's presentation, Shawn Seaman from PN Hoffman went over the sustainability measures planned for the development. The Wharf will seek LEED-New Development Gold, while the individual buildings will strive for a minimum of LEED-Silver. An elaborate 675,000 gallon cistern system will be constructed to capture the more than 25 million gallons of runoff each year that currently dumps into the Washington Channel due to the lack of permeable surfaces at present. The captured runoff will be recycled to the greatest extent possible, including the provision of chilled water for the Co-Gen plant. Solar power may also be used for lighting throughout the development.

There was a question & answer period after the presentations that lasted nearly an hour. Questions included parking concerns, types of retailers, housing preferences for existing neighborhood residents, recreational opportunities, and traffic disruptions during construction, among many others. All of the questions and answers will be posted soon on the project website. 

Next in the timeline is a set down hearing with the Zoning Commission in April, followed by a presentation to the ANC and vote in May. Public hearings will be held in June and July, with approval anticipated by the Zoning Commission in the fall and groundbreaking in the first quarter of 2013.

Renderings courtesy of Hoffman-Madison Waterfront