Randall PUD Revisions Submitted

Now that Lowe Enterprises has been brought on as a developer partner in the redevelopment of Randall School on I Street to a mixed-use project, revisions have been made to the previously approved (and recently extended) PUD. One major change to the previous PUD is the removal of an annex building for the museum, which results in a larger courtyard separating the historic Randall School building and the proposed apartments. In addition, the design of the apartment building has been revised to further open up the courtyard – a portion of the wings of the apartment building was pulled away from the historic building. The courtyard will be open during the day and closed at night with gates. 

West view of courtyard

The east and central buildings will contain an approximately 32,000 SF modern art museum. The museum entrance has been shifted to the east building, which will allow the center building to be fully restored. Originally, a restaurant was planned in the east building’s auditorium, but instead this space will contain museum space with larger pieces of art, as well as ancillary retail (café, bookstore, gift shop). A mix of commercial, retail, and non-profit uses are still planned in the west building, but a mezzanine level will be added to increase the amount of usable space. 

Museum entrance moved to east building

Meanwhile, the residential entrance will now be in the center of the apartment building on H Street. The number of units have been reduced from 520 to 489 units. While the number of units have been reduced, the percentage of units set aside as affordable will remain – 20% of the units will be set aside as affordable to households earning up to 80% of Area Median Income. Most of the units will be apartments, but a portion may be built as condos. The parking garage entrance has been moved to the northeast corner and a total of 301 spaces are planned. The ground floor of the apartment building might include retail/service uses and two-level units might be created. Penthouse configuration and trellis placement are also changing slightly. The Bing Thom-designed apartment building has been refined by Beyer Blindle Belle, simplifying the façade to allow balconies and to further distinguish the historic Randall buildings from the new construction.

Former design 

Current design

If approved, abatement of the historic buildings are expected to start in late 2018, then demolition of the non-historic portion, which would likely put the start of construction in 2020. 

Renderings courtesy of Lowe Enterprises

Construction Update at L'Enfant Plaza

Construction has resumed at 500 L’Enfant, an office building along 9th Street at L’Enfant Plaza. The foundation and loading dock was constructed back in 2015, but the project was put on hold until an anchor tenant was found. In January, it was announced that the Urban Institute would lease 121,000 SF of space, covering the first six floors of the 12-story building. Over 400 employees are expected to make the move by March 2019. The building itself will likely be completed in 2018, but then tenant buildout will take several months. 

Elsewhere at L’Enfant Plaza, construction is ongoing at the International Spy Museum on 10th Street. The museum will relocate from Penn Quarter to L’Enfant Plaza in 2018. In addition, renovations have been underway at the future Hilton Washington DC National Mall hotel. The hotel will also reopen in 2018.

Signs of Life for Randall School Project?

There was a feature in Washingtonian about the Mera and Donald Rubell, who own the Capitol Skyline Hotel and have teamed up with Telesis to redevelop the former Randall School at First and Half streets into a modern art museum, restaurant, and 500+ multifamily rental apartments in two high-rise buildings. The revised project was approved back in 2014, but nothing has happened at the site. Earlier this year, it was announced at a community meeting that the development team added Lowe Enterprises to the project. In the Washingtonian article, it states “after years of delays, the couple is poised to break ground.” Unfortunately, the project architect Bing Thom (who also designed the remodeled Arena Stage) won’t be able to see the project to fruition since he passed away this week. 

Rendering courtesy of Bing Thom Architects

Photo Tour Part Three: Museums

There are currently two museums under construction in Southwest. Construction on The Museum of the Bible at 4th and D streets started in 2015. The 430,000 square-foot Museum of the Bible will include three exhibit floors that will tell the impact, narrative, and history of the Bible. Construction is expected to be completed by the fall of 2017.

Over on 10th Street at L'Enfant Plaza, construction began this summer on the site of the relocated International Spy Museum. The new International Spy Museum will occupy 140,000 SF, much larger than the current facility in Penn Quarter and will allow for three levels of permanent exhibition space in addition to event space. It's scheduled to open in the spring of 2018.

Renderings courtesy of SmithGroupJJR and Rogers Stirk Harbor + Partners

International Spy Museum Renderings

Although it appears that plans are moving forward to bring the International Spy Museum to L’Enfant Plaza, the deal is not done yet. In an email to SWTLQTC, Matthew Blocher from JBG stated: “It is important to note that we are in discussions with the Spy Museum, though contrary to the reports in various media sources, we do not have a deal at this point in time. We are very excited about the possibility of the Spy Museum coming to L'Enfant as we believe that it would provide an incredible amount of energy to this area of Southwest, similar to their impact when they opened in the Penn Quarter.” 

Nevertheless, a revised concept plan for 900 L’Enfant Plaza was presented to the Commission of Fine Arts (CFA) on April 16, which included a six-story building facing 10th Street that would be used as the new home of the Spy Museum. Behind the museum is a courtyard and office building. Previously, 900 L'Enfant Plaza was planned as strictly an office building. Below are some additional renderings of the proposed museum and office building, designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners, that would be located in the plaza. 

In a letter to developer JBG dated today, the CFA stated their support for the idea of the International Spy Museum to move to L’Enfant Plaza and general concept. From the letter: 

They commended the project team on the planning and design of the building and site, expressing support for the concept of projecting the museum’s west facade into public space for this particular program and location. 

However, the Commission has concerns about the positioning of the proposed buildings and some design elements. The development team will need to go back before the CFA with a revised concept submission. 

If the International Spy Museum relocates from Penn Quarter to L’Enfant Plaza, it could serve to draw people south from the National Mall on their way to The Wharf. The addition of 600,000 to 700,000 annual visitors to the area (the current number of visitors to the Spy Museum) would help transform this office-heavy area of Southwest and dovetails with the SW Ecodistrict Initiative, which calls for a better mix of uses, including museums, residential, and hotels. 

Renderings courtesy of the Commission of Fine Arts

Truck Crashes into Hirshhorn

According to The Washington Post, a UPS truck traveling on Independence Avenue crashed through a concrete barrier and into the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden at approximately 8:30 pm last night. From the article:

Outside the building, according to officials' accounts, the truck ran through the low concrete structures that serve as flower pots and provide protection. Linda St. Thomas, spokeswoman for the Smithsonian Institution, of which the circular-shaped museum is part, said the truck came about one foot into the building...The museum, described as a low cylinder perched on legs, exhibits art on the two floors above the ground level. No art was affected by the crash, officials said.

Since no art was damaged in the crash, the museum is expected to reopen today.

The Hirshhorn has plans to create a temporary inflatable structure in the courtyard twice a year, starting in May 2011, and is in the process of receiving approvals.

Update: The Washington Post has another article about the crash, this time describing why the UPS truck didn't cause more damage to the building - the concrete planters in front of the museum.

Randall School Redevelopment Profiled in Big Apple Media

In all the hoopla surrounding the opening of Safeway and 4th Street last week, I forgot to write about the NY Times article describing the planned redevelopment of the Randall School site on I Street by the Rubell family and Telesis Corporation. Back in February, it was announced that the Telesis/CACB team would buy the site from the Corcoran, which conducted a nationwide search for a development team to take over the project. They plan a boutique hotel and art museum in the historic building and multifamily housing on vacant land behind the building, however, the Corcoran will not be moving their College of Art + Design to Randall. New details about the development in the article include the number of hotel rooms planned - 225 keys. Several local officials are quoted in the article, including Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells and ANC 6D Commissioners Ron McBee and David Sobelsohn. Wells was intrigued by the new proposal, but is concerned about getting the full value of the property, which is being sold for only a quarter of the assessed value of $26 million. McBee wants the developers to provide community space, but is also excited about the planned museum. Sobelsohn would like for local residents to receive free admission to the museum, but sees the development plan as a great improvement over what is currently at the site - a vacant building. We'll see what kind of community benefits the ANC Commissioners ultimately will seek when the Telesis/CACB team come before the ANC, probably later this year. The sale also has to be approved by the DC Council, since the original sale by the city to the Corcoran stipulated that the intended use of the building would be a college, which won't be the case under the new development plan.

What Bloggers Are Saying About Southwest

- JDLand tweets about an article in the Navy Times, which describes efforts to bring the Navy Museum to the Southwest Waterfront, although the Navy itself isn't on board yet. Back in January, Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells voiced his support for the move in a letter to Navy Admiral Gary Roughead.

- Over on DCMud, there's a post about the continued space needs of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), even though their headquarters is being moved to St. Elizabeths in SE. The U.S. Coast Guard, which currently resides in Buzzard Point, will be one of the first agencies to make the move to St. Elizabeths, as their new headquarters is currently under construction. According to the DCMud post, the GSA will issue a request for proposals (RFP) for 1.1 million square feet of space to suit the needs of DHS. Constitution Center has 1.2 million square feet of empty space in a highly secure environment, so that complex is an obvious candidate for the RFP, but the space needs don't necessarily have to be filled in one building.

Wells Supports Navy Museum Move to SW Waterfront

The WBJ's Breaking Ground Blog posted a 1/25/10 letter written by Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells to Admiral Gary Roughead in support of moving the Navy Museum from the Navy Yard to the Southwest Waterfront, due to its proximity to the National Mall, millions of dollars of investment by the city in the area, and a partnership with the National Maritime Heritage Foundation. As a part of the redevelopment of the Southwest Waterfront by the Hoffman-Struever team, their plans call for a cultural component focused on education and maritime history....a Navy Museum would fit the bill.

Holocaust Museum Shooting Suspect Dies

The Washington Post reports that James von Brunn, the 89-year old suspect from the June 10, 2009 shooting at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, died today at a hospital in North Carolina. Von Brunn was awaiting trial for the murder of museum guard Stephen Johns and was at the hopsital because he suffered a gunshot to the face during the June 10th shooting.

Hirshhorn Museum Looks to Expand

The Washington Post reports that the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculptural Garden has plans to create a temporary structure twice a year (in May and October) starting in 2011. The museum is located at the corner of 7th Street and Independence Avenue to the west of the Air & Space Museum on the National Mall.From the article:

On the drawing board is a 145-foot-tall temporary inflatable structure that's intended to sit in the concrete-bound courtyard and balloon through the top of the building...Made of a strong vinyl material, it will protrude like a mushroom, providing a strong contrast to the doughnut-shaped main building...The estimated budget for the inflatable addition is about $5 million...and the museum plans to raise an additional $5 million for storage and programs. The plan has been presented to the Hirshhorn's board and the Smithsonian Board of Regents, and the staff is planning informational meetings with the National Capital Planning Commission and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.

The inflatable addition, as seen in the above rendering from the Post article, was designed by Diller Scofidio and Renfro.

Museum Momentum

A representative from the National Women's History Museum tells Southwest...TLQTC that on October 14th, the House of Representatives passed bill HR 1700, which will allow the GSA to sell a parcel at 12th Street & Independence Avenue to the musuem's organizers. The vacant parcel can accommodate up to 300,000 square feet of space. Now, the bill goes to the Senate. The bill was passed thanks to the efforts of the Right Here. Right Now. campaign that organizers have implemented to get the public engaged in the quest to get legislation approved. Once Congress allows the sale to occur, the museum will need to raise $250 - $300 million in order to build the complex. Above is a map of the location of the proposed museum, from the National Women's History Museum website.

Museum Suspect to be Arraigned Today

According to an article in today's The Washington Post, James W. von Brunn, the suspected shooter at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum shooting on June 10th, will be arraigned today at U.S. District Court. Museum guard Stephen T. Johns was killed in the shooting, and von Brunn was shot in the face by another security guard who returned fire.

Update: The Washington Post reports that the judge decided to defer the arraignment until von Brunn undergoes a mental competency exam. A hearing is scheduled for October 14th.

Alleged Museum Shooter Indicted

According to The Washington Post, alleged U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum shooter James von Brunn was indicted today by a federal grand jury. von Brunn was charged with seven counts, including the first-degree murder of museum guard Stephen T. Johns back on June 10. If convicted, von Brunn could face life in prison or even the death penalty.

Shooting at Holocaust Museum

The blogger.com website has been down all day, so I wasn’t able to post a link to the story that has made national news – the shooting at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum on Wednesday afternoon, where museum guard Stephen Johns was killed. The museum is located at 100 Raoul Wallenberg Place, just south of the National Mall, and has been open since 1993. Here are a few links from The Washington Post, NBC 4, Fox 5, and CNN. The museum will remain closed tomorrow in honor of Stephen Johns.

Update: Suspected shooter James W. von Brunn is still too ill to appear in court, according to an article in The Washington Post. von Brunn was shot in the face by security guards after he was suspected of fatally shooting guard Stephen Johns and is currently being treated at United Medical Center in Southeast.

Update #2: A hearing is scheduled for von Brunn on June 30th, according to an article in The Washington Times.

Update #3: The June 30th hearing was postponed until July 10th, because von Brunn still can't leave the hospital, according to an article in The Washington Post.

Update #4: According to The Washington Post, Von Brunn is still unable to appear in court, so his hearing has been postponed again until July 30th.