Friday, October 26, 2012

Six Developers Invited to Present Plans for Parcel 42


Six developers are on the short-list to present their plans for Parcel 42, the vacant, city-owned lots at the corner of 7th and R Streets, NW in DC's Shaw neighborhood, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) has announced.

Several joint proposals, low-income housing development groups, private developers, and a religious organization all made the list. In an email to DCMud on Friday, Jose Sousa, deputy chief of staff for DMPED, listed those developers. They are: Warrenton Group and Four Points LLC, POUNDS and Jubilee Housing, United House of Prayer for All People, Neighborhood Development Corporation, Tensquare LLC and Chapman Development Group LLC, and Baywood Hotels and Dantes Partners.

Those developers will have a chance to present their plans, but the long-awaited selection of a developer for the lots will not happen until 2013, the city told DCMud Thursday. The parcel is a coveted piece of real estate for developers eager to build in Shaw, a fast-growing neighborhood.  It is also a lot with some history, surrounded by a neighborhood that remembers city promises to make some units affordable.

Parcel 42
That presentation will be held on Wednesday, November 14, 2012 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Watha T. Daniel / Shaw Library at 1630 7th Street, NW. The city has invited six developers, who met qualifications laid out in a request for proposals released in April, to present their plans to the community and give Shaw neighborhood residents the chance to ask questions.  The public is invited to attend, hear and see the presentation, and ask questions at the end of the program," Sousa wrote to DCMud in an email. The city-owned parcel has sat vacant for ten years and seen some drama in the last five.

An affordable housing development plan launched in 2007 fizzled, and in 2010 protesters occupied the lot with a tent city when the city eased up on affordability requirements for the faltering project.  That development was never built.  The announcement in April marked the second time the city has asked developers to present plans for the parcel. The city asked that developers present a building that reaches the full height that zoning allows: 65 feet. It also stated a preference for a "high quality" public space component, "high quality architecture" with a "signature design."  The city and local ANC also encouraged ground floor retail, 80% AMI designation (rather than the lowest subsidized housing designation) and affordable units. In March, ANC Commissioner for the area Alex Padro told DCMud he expected the building to meet high architectural standards like the Shaw Library just across 7th Street from the lot. Padro told DCMud then, "Its gotta be a building that works financially, that activates the street, we already have a significant pocket of affordable housing in the area."

"There is no projected timetable for a developer selection at this point in time, but we imagine it will happen in late first quarter/early second quarter of 2013," Sousa said.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Which six developers did DMPED invite to present? Is there a link to the press release?

Unknown on Oct 26, 2012, 9:54:00 AM said...

I have updated the story to include the list of developers, which we just obtained.

@ShawingtonTimes on Oct 26, 2012, 11:12:00 AM said...

It's pretty easy to create residential that meets diverse needs in this day and age with the proper pressure.

This development should accomodate some very low-income units amidst all of the work force housing level and market rate units. The people who clean the toilets and make the beds at the hotels coming to Shaw's Marriott Marquis, CityMarket at O Cambria Suites, and CityCenter should be able to walk to work with the same dignity as the well heeled — not commute before and after Metro service stops out to the suburbs.

An environmentally friendly uber green building can and should reduce energy costs to zero and utilize roof storm water to irrigate surrounding green spaces.

Low utility costs also helps make housing more affordable and sustainable for the long term. Buildings account for more damaging green house gases than transportation and industry source/.

The District already leads in such development Nation wide, but officials and developers can and should do more, with a mind and heart for people, the environment while still making a hefty profit.

Q-Street said...

This development should include the affordable housing units required by the inclusionary zoning law and the rest should be market rate.

You can provide affordable housing in an urban core without artificially concentrating the socioeconomically disadvantaged.

There is a concentration of affordable housing in Shaw in general, and specifically on the blocks next to Parcel 42. It would be a 4th contiguous affordable housing complex on a problematic block that already necessitates a constant police presence.

I think the city was right to ease up on the affordability requirements in 2010, and I think we need to let the inclusionary zoning policy spread affodrable units throughout the city, instead of repeating the same failed housing policy of the past 40 years.

poo said...

market rate! market rate! MARKET RATE!

AW - i know a bunch of folks that sold out in DC to live in a huge house/condo in the burbs that don't mind the commute at all - in exchange for space.

you shouldn't speak for those folks until you've walked in their shoes.

i'm just sayin'.....

Anonymous said...

Whoever get picked insist on a strict timetable to complete. Too many DC properties are awarded to developers which sit as vacant properties for years. 5 & I which is again pushed back to 2014 if ever.

Chuck on Nov 1, 2012, 8:54:00 AM said...

I in fact worked on a design for this site and am currently working to gain the financial interest behind it. See it at: http://startarchitects.com/parcel-42/

Unknown on Nov 1, 2012, 10:26:00 AM said...

Hi Amanda, I am with POUNDS, one of the developers. Can you reach out to me. nick@poundsdc.com

Anonymous said...

CAN YOU PLEASE ME A LIST OF THE BIDDERS FOR THIS PROPERY

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