WaPo Piece on Ballpark Neighborhood Development

This past weekend, there was a front page article in The Washington Post (online version here) about the impact Nationals Park has played in the development of (primarily) Near SE since the ballpark opened in 2008.  There's some mention of Southwest, although that focus was not on development, but on neighbor reaction to the ballpark (since the nearest residential units in SE are a few blocks away from Nationals Park).  From the article:

Despite the new construction east of the ballpark, the area across [South] Capitol Street in Southwest remains home to low-income housing projects where many residents were worried that baseball would price or push them out of the area.

One block west of the stadium, in front of the Friendly Food Market corner store on Half Street SW, three dealers at an open-air drug market sell marijuana and crack. With four teenagers stationed along the block as lookouts, dealers exchange plastic bags for cash in swift, well-practiced handshakes.

Despite the illegal sales in broad daylight, residents along this Half Street say baseball has been surprisingly good for them. “It made it look presentable around here,” said London Smith, 42, who found work at a stadium concession stand. “I just hope it doesn’t make it more expensive.”

Lovely. It's a bit more difficult to bulldoze all of the low-income housing projects in Southwest than it was to replace Capper Carrollsburg in Near SE, which was already pretty much gone by the time the stadium opened.  For one, funding for HUD's Hope VI program that was used to replace Capper is dried up. The District's version of Hope VI (New Communities Initiative) has been slow to get underway at places such as Barry Farm in SE and Northwest One. Also, there is still some bad blood from the last time wholesale neighborhood demolition took place in Southwest during urban renewal.

Rendering of Camden South Capitol at South Capitol & O Street.

While the focus of the article was in Near SE since that is where the stadium is located, there are a few things happening on the west side of South Capitol Street too. For instance, there was no mention in the article about Camden South Capitol, the new apartment building under construction across the street from Nationals Park (although it appears in the photo gallery). In addition, there was no mention of the velodrome coming to Buzzard Point this spring and the new stadium in the works for DC United, which would form a stadium district between Nationals Park and the proposed soccer stadium. Oh well.

Rendering courtesy of WDG Architects

Velodrome Lease Signed for Buzzard Point Site

The Washington Post reported yesterday that a lease has been signed to allow DC Velodrome, a local 501c3 non-profit corporation, to erect a velodrome on part of the 100 V Street parcel owned by Akridge in Buzzard Point. Last fall, the group probably jumped the gun a bit when listing Akridge as a partner on their website, which created speculation in the blogosphere that a velodrome would be built at 100 V Street.  Now that the lease is a done deal, Akridge has acknowledged the agreement.  From the article:

"Locating D.C.'s first velodrome on Buzzard Point is an exciting contribution to the vitality of the neighborhood and the diversity of activities available to the city and the region, while still keeping the site readily available for permanent development," Akridge President Matt Klein said in a statement.

Speaking of permanent development, it was reported earlier this week that DC United was close to signing a lease with the city to remain at RFK Stadium for two more years and that these talks could help spur a final push to build a new stadium for the team, the leading candidate site reportedly being 100 V Street.  Originally, the 100 V Street site was positioned as a secure federal campus, but the office market has been slow to recover from the latest recession and the GSA has cut back on leasing activity.

The article states that DC Velodrome plans to open the velodrome by late May or early June, but they are in the process of raising $300,000 to help assemble the track and provide free programming. It doesn't mention in the article the length of the lease, but according to the group's website, the portable cycling track would be up for 3-5 years, leased from Major League Cycling in Lancaster, PA. From the website:

Basic facilities, including a perimeter fence for security, small grandstands, public address/sound system, lights, portable toilets, and a snack bar/storage building of a temporary nature will be installed on site.  There will be parking for approximately 50 cars.

The next couple of years will bring some major changes to the area by the velodrome site.  Right around the same time that the velodrome is scheduled to open, Pepco will decommission the Buzzard Point Power Plant across 1st Street and next year, the U.S. Coast Guard is supposed to move from 2100 2nd Street to their new headquarters at St. Elizabeths in SE.

Rendering of the Buzzard Point neighborhood courtesy of Akridge

A Couple Quick Items: Scandal in the Way of United Stadium Negotiations, Wharf Presentation Next Month

- Potomac Soccer Wire reported yesterday that MLS Commissioner Don Garber blames the political climate in DC for the lack of progress in finding a permanent solution to DC United's stadium problem.  From the article:

"[United president] Kevin Payne is working hard to try to find a solution there. It is very frustrating,” said the commissioner. “I think he’s beginning to make some progress with the city council and with the mayor. If you guys follow local politics there, there’s been all sorts of challenges with local politicians who no longer will be free men, and that just makes the dynamic of negotiating that much more difficult."   

United saw tentative, but publically announced, stadium agreements with both D.C. and nearby Prince George’s County, Md. fall apart in past years and subsequently took their stadium hunt deep undercover, with little in the way of public updates.

The 100 V Street site in Buzzard Point appears to be the top contender for a new stadium, where it was leaked a couple months ago that DC Velodrome is in negotiations with Akridge to temporarily locate a velodrome on part of the site. An announcement was supposed to be made around the holidays about the velodrome, but nothing yet.

Rendering courtesy of Akridge

- Hoffman - Madison Waterfront will be giving a presentation to the community on Monday, February 27 on their plans for Phase One of The Wharf as they get ready to submit their Stage Two PUD application.  The meeting will take place during SWNA's monthly meeting, to be held at Arena Stage from 6-9pm. ANC 6D 01 Commissioner Craycraft gave a preview of what is planned on his Facebook page:

Good stuff! Lots of wood, exposed steel, native stone...salvaged, mature trees from elsewhere in the city...huge cisterns to reclaim rain water for non-potable needs. Not "blocky" and squat like Navy Yard but similar color palette.

Phase I is supposed to get underway by the end of this year or early next year and construction will last three years. I'm looking forward to this meeting!

Preliminary rendering courtesy of Hoffman-Madison Waterfront

Velodrome for Buzzard Point?

DCist reported today that DC Velodrome, a 501c3 organization, is in negotiations to lease space to build a temporary velodrome near Nationals Park. The proposed site, thanks to the investigative skills of JDLand appears to be the southern-most block of Akridge's 100 V Street in Buzzard Point. Here is a description of the proposed velodrome from DC Velodrome's website:

Preliminary (3-to-5 year) plans call for the assembly of a portable cycling track which will be leased from Major League Cycling, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Basic facilities, including a perimeter fence for security, small grandstands, public address/sound system, lights, portable toilets, and a snack bar/storage building of a temporary nature will be installed on site. There will be parking for approximately 50 cars.

According to the DCist article, the non-profit plans to raise $300,000 to operate the velodrome for the first year, with costs to decline in subsequent years. News of the velodrome negotiations come on the same day that Ward 6 Council member Tommy Wells introduced a resolution in the DC Council that would encourage the city to keep DC United in the District. While the resolution doesn't spell out how the city should proceed with building a soccer stadium, the leading site for the team as reported in the media is 100 V Street. Mayor Gray attended a SWNA meeting last week where he stated that he met with DC United officials the prior week and stated his support for keeping the team in the District. However, he also stated that the city doesn't have the money to build the team a new stadium. Rendering of 100 V Street courtesy of Akridge.