ANC Opposes Extension of Waterfront Station PUD

At last Monday's ANC 6D meeting, representatives from Waterfront Associates came before the commissioners to request their support for a 2-year extension of their PUD for two parcels at Waterfront Station - the District-owned NE parcel next to CVS and the West M Street parcel in front of Station 4 and Z-Burger. On the NE parcel, which will one day be a multifamily building with ground floor retail, the District is not ready to issue a RFP because they say that land values are still depressed in the area and they would not get a sufficient amount of income from the sale/lease of the land to a residential developer at this time. On the West M Street parcel, which is planned as an office building with ground floor retail, the development team does not want to construct an office building without a tenant because the commercial real estate market has not rebounded yet and GSA (a major source of tenants in Southwest) has halted new requests for office space.  They continue to pursue any solicitations for office space that come on the market, but they aren't optimistic that they can land an anchor tenant before the current PUD expires early next year. 

Waterfront Associates decided not to ask for an extension on the East M Street office parcel in front of Safeway since the PUD on that site doesn't expire until April 2015. On the NW parcel next to Westminster Church, they will soon submit plans for a 300+ unit rental apartment building with 4,000-5,000 square feet of ground floor retail on 4th Street. They will come back to the ANC within the next couple of months to get approval for that building, but they weren't able to give much details on the project since they are still finalizing the design.

After hearing the presentation, the commissioners voted unanimously to oppose supporting the extension. Some of the reasons for their disapproval include the lack of care that the development team and the District have made with regard to the interim use of the vacant parcels in question. On the NE parcel, there is a muddy pathway made by people who traverse the lot. On the M Street parcel, the trailer that once housed Bank of America was removed last month, but there is a random staircase left over from when Waterside Mall was in existence and the rest of the lot has not been grassed over yet like the others. Another reason for the disapproval was due to the lack of retail (especially a bank) at Waterfront Station. There are four vacant storefronts in the existing office buildings and the phone number posted on the windows of the spaces for potential tenants to inquire about availability was incorrect (that has since been corrected).  The development team no longer owns the retail space (it was sold to USAA along with the two office buildings last year) but they are willing to act as intermediaries between the ANC and the new owners. They mentioned that USAA has some proposals for tenants that they are currently reviewing so there may be some movement on the retail front soon.

In other ANC news, DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton is working with USPS to negotiate with The Ruben Companies, who owns the SW post office site at L Street to keep the post office open beyond the point when the current lease expires at the end of 2012.  Also, the Gangplank Slipholders Association and the Hoffman-Madison Waterfront team have come to an agreement that will allow the slipholders to stay in the Washington Channel during the transition phase while The Wharf is under construction. In addition, the agreement will preserve the current management practice in place that will allow boats to maintain their value if they are sold to liveaboards.

L'Enfant Plaza 2.0

L’Enfant Plaza’s retail center transformation continues moving forward, which began back in 2009. The retail center, two office buildings, and a hotel at the massive complex are owned by The JBG Companies and the renovated retail center was designed by SmithGroup. Now open at the food court: Potbelly Sandwich Works, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Starbucks, Crumbs Bake Shop, Roti Mediterranean Grill, Au Bon Pain, Frozen Yogurt Indulgence, Gourmet Too, Mina’s Boutique, Nash’s Mens Wear, 4-U, Hallmark Cards, Gateway Newsstand, Jay Jewelers, a sports injury rehab center, and a post office. A few other retailers are still scheduled to open over the next few months, including Five Guys and Mamma Ilardo’s.  Several of the restaurants are open beyond 5pm during the work week and are also open on Saturday. 

Hallmark Cards is one of the retailers who moved from the old retail promenade to the renovated center. 

Construction on Phase II is underway and demolition will soon begin on the western portion of the existing retail center with completion scheduled for the third quarter of 2013. Many retailers have expressed interest in coming to Phase II of the retail center, according to Matt Ginivan of JBG, who attended the International Council of Shopping Centers conference last week at National Harbor. Some of the targeted retailers at Phase II include sit down restaurants, as well as a fitness center and child care facility.

Rendering of the atrium interior planned for Phase II

A couple of weeks ago, the Commission of Fine Arts approved designs for the grand glass atrium entryway planned for the plaza in Phase II; however, ZGF (Zimmer Gunsul Frasca) needs to go back to the drawing table on the planned office building on Frontage Road since the commission requested a number of changes to those preliminary designs. 

Rendering of atrium exterior on the plaza.

Meanwhile, renovations are also underway on the east office tower, which includes the addition of glass to the lobby area to give it some “pop” and compliments the glass atrium planned for the plaza. The hotel above the east office building was recently renovated and construction on a new extended-stay Homewood Suites hotel will get underway at 9th and D Street this summer. The addition of windows at the food court, as well as the new atrium and office lobby improvements in the east tower will add more light throughout the complex. Eventually, an office building is planned for the plaza itself, but those plans are still preliminary.  

Glass additions to the east office building lobby are visible in the background.

Even though L’Enfant Plaza is geographically close to the residential area of Southwest, access to the complex by foot is daunting. In the intermediate and long-term, there are plans to make improvements. The developer is looking to eventually improve pedestrian connections from the south with the construction of the proposed Frontage Road office building.  As a part of the Southwest Ecodistrict initiative, there are plans to remake 10th Street into a pedestrian-friendly street that will better connect L’Enfant Plaza to The Wharf development and the rest of Southwest. In addition, the DC Office of Planning has been working on the Maryland Avenue Draft Plan in conjunction with the Southwest Ecodistrict which calls for a new south entrance to the L’Enfant Plaza Metro station.

Renderings courtesy of SmithGroup

A Few Quick Items from Monday's ANC 6D Meeting

- The boundaries of Police Service Areas (PSAs) in MPD's First District will change next year. The PSA that falls in Southwest will change from PSA 104 to PSA 105. The PSA meets every third Thursday of the month, usually in the community room of one of the residential buildings in the neighborhood.

- As mentioned previously, the SW post office at Half & L Street will close once its lease expires at the end of 2012. The USPS is looking for a new location for the post office in the neighborhood. If one can't be found in Southwest, a temporary one may be set up in Near SE until an appropriate space can be found in Southwest.

- The Urban Forestry Administration will clean up Town Center East Park (adjacent to the SW Library at I Street and Wesley Place), do some general pruning of trees, and remove dead tree stumps (pending an environmental assessment since the site of the park was once a funeral home).  Jack Chapman, an arborist from the Urban Forestry Administration, said he would inspect the park soon and see which trees may need to be removed. He mentioned that the street trees bordering the park might be removed since they are impeding the growth of the trees in the park and would be replaced with understory street trees.

- The ANC unanimously approved the designation of a group called "Friends of Lansburg Park", which would allow the organization to join the Parks Partners program under DPR and use SWNA's 501c3 status to do fundraising to make improvements to the park. The underused park, located along Delaware Avenue behind First District headquarters and across the street from Greenleaf Gardens, has been thought of as a place for a community garden, dog park, skate park, and playground, among other ideas. The "Friends" would organize a charrette with the community to help plan its future. However, individuals have not identified yet who would run the "Friends" group.

- Joseph Dorsey from DDOT gave an update on the reconstruction of Maine Avenue from the 14th Street ramp to 12th Street. The project was originally supposed to last about three to four months, but close to six months later, construction has not been completed yet due to weather delays. Substantial completion of the project is near, though. About 97% of concrete has been poured, granite curbs are installed, lighting is in place, and the road has been paved. The road has been narrowed from two lanes to one and the sidewalk has been expanded to allow improved access between the Tidal Basin and the Southwest Waterfront. Parking will be restricted in this area. A bike lane will eventually be installed on the road and should serve as a traffic calming measure. New trees will be installed next spring since it is so late in the season. The project cost about $2 million and despite the delays, is still on budget.

- The organizers behind the inaugural SW ArtsFest this past September have filed for 501c3 non-profit status and are looking for a Treasurer. They plan to do another SW ArtsFest next fall and will coordinate with the other Ward 6 festivals that occur around September and October so their event doesn't overlap with other festivals.  

SW Post Office to Close

At tonight's ANC 6D meeting, the commissioners confirmed that the Southwest Post Office, located on Half and L Street, will close at the end of 2012 when its lease expires. The main reason for the post office closure is because of the lease expiration, not cutbacks by the Postal Service, so the search for a replacement space is under way. There is no indication of what will replace the current post office building, but the Ruben Companies owns the post office site (along with several other parcels on both sides of South Capitol Street) and has plans for office and possibly residential development on their other sites. USPS is looking to sign a 10-year lease in the area that can accommodate retail sales, post office boxes, and distribution, similar to the current facility. If distribution cannot be done on site, then it will be done at the main Brentwood facility, but packages would be picked up at the new local post office. Commissioner McBee mentioned that a 4,000 SF space is available at the 1101 4th Street building at Waterfront Station. A centrally located post office on 4th Street is preferable to the Commissioners, but if that space doesn't work out, they will be in talks with other area developers in Near SE to locate a temporary post office there until a site in Southwest becomes available. A temporary Near SE post office would still serve the 20024 ZIP code even though Near SE is located in a different ZIP code.

On a related note, according to the Washington Business Journal, the Ford post office that was originally slated to close will now remain open, thanks to the efforts by Congresswoman Norton.

Southwest Has Two (Several) Post Offices, but for How Long?

According to the Washington Business Journal, the Southwest Station Post Office at 45 L Street is one of 19 post offices in the District that's slated to possibly close due to financial difficulties at the United States Postal Service (USPS).  The USPS leases the 16,200 SF space at 45 L from The Ruben Companies, the same developer that owns several parcels in the area, including 1101 South Capitol Street (where a KFC/Taco Bell once stood), and the former Exxon gas station on the same block as the post office, the sale of which JDLand posted earlier this month. The current post office lease at 45 L expires at the end of 2012. There's no indication of what would replace the post office after that date, but 1101 South Capitol Street across the street is planned as an office building.

There is a second post office in Southwest, located in L'Enfant Plaza's retail center adjacent to USPS headquarters.  However, it is a much smaller storefront (about 8,500 SF) and is only open on weekdays.  With the prospect of the 45 L Street station closing and the ongoing renovation at the retail center, perhaps the L'Enfant Plaza Post Office will remain open on Saturdays. The current L'Enfant Plaza post office is located near the entrance to the retail center off of the plaza on 10th Street, but isn't easily accessible for those with disabilities (that may change once a glass atrium entryway is built on the plaza that is part of JBG's renovation of the retail center). The new post office will be about the same size as the current one and will shift more to the east from its current location. Parking is more of a challenge at L'Enfant compared to the 45 L Street location.  There is metered parking on 10th Street, but during the day those spaces are mostly full. Having the only post office in the neighborhood at L'Enfant Plaza will force Southwesters to patronize the area more so than they do now (or not, since I only go to the post office on average about once a year).

The red X marks where the post office will be located.  The red circle shows phase one of the retail renovation, or the food court, that was completed this spring.  The red arrow shows the entrance to the food court from the HUD courtyard.

Above renderings of the glass entryway to the L'Enfant Plaza retail center and floorplan courtesy of SmithGroup

Update: As commenters have noted, there are more than two post offices in Southwest.  Besides the Fort McNair, NASA, and Ford Building, there are post offices at the Department of Agriculture and the Rayburn Building - maybe more.  However, these post offices primarily serve those who work in those buildings or military bases, since it's cumbersome for regular folks to walk in to these facilities. The Ford, Rayburn, and Department of Agriculture post offices are slated to close.