Mount Vernon Church Ready to Add Office and Retail Space to Property

Since 1917, the Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, at the northwest corner of Massachusetts Avenue and 9th Street NW, has served those in search of spiritual guidance. Starting in 2009, though, this corner will also welcome office workers and shoppers, as United Methodist and developer CarrAmerica (with Clark Construction handling the actual construction) are planning to demolish two of the property’s education buildings and redevelop some of its underutilized land to make way for a new $130 million, 250,000-sf office building project that will also contain 7,000 sf of retail and 220 underground parking spaces. United Methodist will retain 35,000 sf of this new 12-story building for its ministerial work and use, in partnership with the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church, Wesley Theological Seminary, and Asbury United Methodist Church. Meanwhile, United Methodist will dedicate $5 million of its proceeds from this sale to finance the preservation and renovation of the church’s original 1917 sanctuary. In addition, sale profits will be used to create an endowment to sustain and support the church for years to come. United Methodist’s project, which is expected to break ground in the Fall of 2007, is one innovative example of how to adapt to a changing real estate landscape and prepare for the future influx of new residents and workers to the Mount Vernon area.