A Stroll Down 4th Street

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There is a lot of construction activity either underway or planned along 4th Street with something going on at almost every block from the National Mall to N Street. Above is a map of construction projects along the corridor with a summary of each project listed below from north to south.

Going south on 4th from the National Mall, the first project that comes up is the reseeding of the lawn on a section of the Mall stretching from 7th Street to 3rd Street. 

After crossing Independence Avenue, the west side of the street in front of the Department of Education will be transformed into a memorial to President Eisenhower. The memorial will take up the rectangle bordered by 6th Street to the west, Independence Avenue to the north, 4th Street to the east, and the Department of Education headquarters to the south. There’s been a lot of controversy over the memorial’s design, done by famed architect Frank Gehry.

Image courtesy of Gehry Partners, LLP

On the next block between C Street and D Street, renovations continue at the Mary E. Switzer federal building. Interior work is being done, along with the creation of green space along C Street that will replace the surface parking lot that once was there.

At the northwest corner of 4th & E Streets, the new Consolidated Forensic Laboratory (CFL) is nearing completion.  I took a tour of the building last fall (unfortunately we were not allowed to take photos inside) which will include a forensic lab, MPD test firing range, and the coroner’s office.  Interior build-out is underway.

On the southwest corner of the intersection, a new office building with the address 400 E Street will replace the parking lot, and a new Engine 13 firehouse will be on the ground floor on the 4th Street side. In addition, there will be space on the E Street side for DC Central Kitchen and KidPower. A sign on the lot says the building will deliver in the 4th Quarter of 2013, but I don’t see that deadline being met since a major tenant hasn’t been lined up yet for the office building and construction has not begun.

Rendering courtesy of WDG Architecture

On 4th Street from School Street to I Street, a bike lane has been created on either side of the street.  The bike lanes were supposed to be installed a couple years ago shortly after the I Street to M Street segment was done, but better late than never I guess.

Potomac Place Tower, the condo conversion by Monument Realty at 800 4th Street has sold over 80% of its 396 units and is the largest condo project currently selling in the city.

The northeast and northwest parcels of Waterfront Station are currently slated for residential.  Construction on the northwest parcel may begin in 2014 once Sky House Apartments are completed a couple blocks south. The District owns the northeast parcel and the timetable for issuing a RFP has not been determined yet.

Construction at Sky House I Apartments began in February, the conversion of the former EPA towers at Waterfront Station by Urban Atlantic and the JBG Companies. Upon completion, both buildings will contain 530 apartments with 20% set aside as affordable housing for households earning up to 50% of Area Median Income (AMI).

The two vacant lots (well, one of those lots has a Bank of America trailer) at Waterfront Station fronting M Street are slated for office buildings.  No timetable has been set yet for construction.  

Tiber Island is planning to redo the stark, wind-swept plaza area that connects the four towers at the complex with a new oval-shaped fountain, seating, a pergola, and plantings.

 Rendering courtesy of SmithGroup

1345 South Capitol to Restart Soon

The apartment building boom that occurred over the past few years in Near SE (AKA Capitol Riverfront) has now crossed South Capitol Street. After more than three years of delays due to the economic downturn, Camden Property Trust will finally start construction at 1345 South Capitol Street this quarter, according to Bisnow. This will be the first brand-new apartment building to start construction in Southwest since the 1970s, although Potomac Place Condos began construction in 2003 as apartments. The 276-unit, 8-story 10-11-story apartment building designed by WDG Architecture will be located directly across the street from Nationals Park and contain about 3,300 square feet of ground floor retail. Twelve of the residential units will be reserved as affordable housing. Since “high-rise” residential construction in DC usually takes about two years to build, look for the units to be ready for occupancy by 2013. Due to its location on South Capitol Street, Near SE blog JDLand used to track this project before The Little Quadrant That Could came into existence in 2008, so check out her 1345 South Capitol page for some additional background.

(Renderings from WDG Architecture’s website)

Update: I spoke with a representative from Camden Property Trust and got some more details about the planned apartment project. The project will cost $88 million to build and construction is scheduled to begin in March. Leasing will commence in April 2013 and construction should be complete by June 2013. Among the planned project amenties is a rooftop deck with a pool and a total of 250 parking spaces. However, the project will not be LEED-certified.

Potomac Place Tower Delayed Again

The general contractor at Potomac Place Tower, the condo conversion project at 800 4th Street, has filed for bankruptcy. This is is an excerpt from an email sent to the owners of Potomac Place Tower last Wednesday by the management company describing what happened:

The general contractor, Dietze Construction Group, filed Chapter 11 today. Apparently, Dietze had not been paying its subcontractors, despite being paid by the Declarant [Monument Realty], and the pattern of non-payment wasn't confined to this project. The developer is working expeditiously with the subcontractors to resolve the matter, which is expected to take between 14-21 days. In the interim, there will be no settlements or significant progress in the Phase III renovation schedule. We will forward an update when new dates are set for the items remaining, including the presently vacant Phase III units, canopy roof repair and community room upgrade. Due to the fluidity of the matter, there is very little information available at this time. However, we will do our best to update you on the matter on a weekly basis until the project resumes normal pace.

The news was confirmed in an article in Friday's Washington Business Journal. Since Monument Realty isn't able to demonstrate a clean title to the condo units due to the liens placed by subcontractors on Dietze, about 25 settlements have been affected. This is the second time that renovations have been delayed at Potomac Place Tower - back in late 2008, construction was halted at the condo conversion when Dietze placed a lien on the building, because Monument lost the financial backing of Lehman Brothers.

Update: A representative from Monument Realty states that sales are still occuring at Potomac Place Tower, but some settlements have been postponed due to the bankruptcy of Dietze.

What Bloggers Are Saying About Southwest

- DCist picks up a story from the Examiner which describes the Bellevue community's displeasure with the design for the new Washington Highlands library. London architect David Adjaye was chosen last October to design the new library, which will be located on Atlantic Street. Check out this post from April for a description of the planned amenities at the new library. (The above rendering of the library is from the DCPL website.)

- The ArchiCritic at DCMetrocentric makes a return visit to SW - this time to Capitol Park, the residential neighborhood of townhomes and multifamily towers located north of I Street and south of the SE-SW Freeway between 4th Street and Delaware Avenue. For the most part, the critique of Capitol Park was a positive one, noting how the design of the neighborhood makes it one of the most pedestrian friendly areas of DC, despite its lack of commercial space. The critique describes the area as a "modernist interpretation of a medieval neighborhood plan on a Baroque city." There has been some infill development in the Capitol Park neighborhood since it was built over 40 years ago during urban renewal. Potomac Place Condominium was built in 2004 where parking lots for Potomac Place Tower and an adjacent park was once located.

- DCMud reports that The View at Waterfront Apartments have been sold at foreclosure to Titex Marina View, LLC. The two-building complex recently underwent extensive renovations and Fairfield Residential, the previous owner, had plans to build two new towers on the parking lots of the apartment community, but the new buildings have been scrapped (for now).

Potomac Place Tower Back on Track

Renovations and sales at Potomac Place Tower (PPT) condos, located at 800 4th Street, will now continue since local developer Monument Realty has been able to find a new lender to finance the project, according to a press release on Monday. Swedbank, AB, a Swedish-based bank, is the new lender on the project. Back in December, Southwest...TLQTC first reported on the work stoppage at the condo conversion project, due to the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, and the subsequent liens placed on the property. The news of PPT restarting sales comes just a couple weeks after Waterfront Tower, a new condo conversion project nearby, began marketing. Perhaps the thought of having a competing condo project in the market helped negotiations move along for the developer and the lender. Natasha Stancill, Director of Marketing at Monument Realty, tells Southwest...TLQTC that the renovations at PPT should be complete by the first quarter of 2010. Approximately 15 units in the North Tower and 100 units in the South Tower are available for occupancy within the next 30-45 days. Another 100 units in the South Tower will be available for occupancy by year end. The final 35 units in the North Tower will be available in the first quarter of 2010. Prices range from approximately $180,000 for a studio to approximately $330,000 for a two bedroom. Below are a couple of photos of unit interiors in a model unit at PPT, courtesy of Monument Realty. To the left is a photo of the kitchen and on the right is a view of the living room with a balcony.

Yard Sale at Potomac Place This Weekend

There will be a yard sale this Saturday at Potomac Place Tower, located at 800 4th Street. As a part of the yard sale, SW resident Audrina Lange will have a booth and will participate in Share Our Strength's Great American Bake Sale, which aims to end childhood hunger. Her booth will be open from 12pm - 4pm. Here's a link to her bake sale page.

Additional Liens at Potomac Place Tower

In last week's Washington Business Journal (thanks for the tip, reader DavidSW), there was a brief article (subscribers only) about the troubles that developer Monument Realty has experienced with liens at Potomac Place Tower, a condo conversion project at 4th & G Street. From the article:

At the end of May, at least three contractors filed suit in D.C. Superior Court to enforce more than $1.3 million in mechanic’s liens the contractors filed against the last of three condominium buildings Monument is building at [Potomac Place] near the Southwest waterfront.

Back in December, Southwest...TLQTC first reported on a lien placed on the condo building by general contractor Dietze Construction. (Above is a photo of Potomac Place Tower taken in December 2008)