New Hotel Coming to the West End

One of the hottest areas for development these days is the District’s West End, the once-quiet stretch of Northwest Washington between Dupont Circle and Georgetown (north of Foggy Bottom) best known in the past for its unremarkable office buildings and lack of retail … well, excluding the long-gone and missed Cineplex West End Theater and the original Goldoni restaurant on 22nd Street between L and M Streets, and the more-recently gone and not missed Lulu’s nightclub on M Street. But new development is quickly awakening this area, starting a few years ago with the building of the Ritz-Carlton hotel/condo at 22nd and M Streets, followed by the Columbia Residences development and The Atlas on 25th Street, the new Trader Joe’s grocery store, and still more to come. The most recent news now comes with Perseus Realty’s announcement that it plans to build a new luxury hotel for Starwood Capital Group called "The One" at 2201 M Street, the site of the former Nigerian Embassy, just across the street from the Ritz. While Perseus still needs to gain approval for the project from the DC Zoning Commission (as it would exceed current zoning permission), the developer envisions a LEED-certified “green” hotel, with a glass and greenery-filled atrium stretching from floor to roof visible from the exterior. In all, the building would be 125,000 sf and 110-feet tall. Perseus expects to submit its formal zoning application in late July.

Update: The Washington Business Journal is reporting the hotel will officially be called "1 Hotel & Residences," and the $100 million, 5-star hotel will feature 180 rooms, a "double skin," vine-covered surface to insulate the building, and solar water heating. Ground is expected to be broken in summer 2008, with completion in late 2009.