Rosslyn's Subsidized Residential Tower

Affordable housing developer APAH is finalizing the exterior of Queens Court, a 249 unit apartment building built exclusively for subsidized housing.  The residential tower replaces 39 subsidized garden-style apartments, and will be restricted to those making 80% or less of the area medium income, with set-asides for those making as low as 40% of the AMI.

Arlington acquired the 1-acre hilltop site in 1995, and broke ground in April of 2019 with a projected cost of $80m for the project.  The 12-story building on the western edge of Rosslyn will have views over the Potomac River and Georgetown University

Project:  Queens Court

Address:  1801 N Quinn St., Arlington, VA, 22209

Developer:  APAH

Architect:  KGD Architecture

Design: Oculus

Construction:  Donohoe Construction

Use:  100% dedicated affordable housing

Expected Completion:  Winter 2020/2021

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Buchanan Gardens Celebrates Grand (Re)Opening

The newly renovated Buchanan Gardens in Arlington celebrated a grand opening yesterday, after an 18-month, $32 million renovation by low income housing provider Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing.

"Buchanan Gardens was built as a state-of-the-art garden apartment community for the post-war boom in 1949," said Nina Janopaul, APAH President/CEO.  “It housed generations of families in its original condition.  With APAH’s extensive renovation we have modernized this 111-unit, 100% affordable property to 21st century standards and created committed affordable homes for the next sixty years.”

The rejuvenated development now boasts three-bedroom family units, a dozen barrier-free units, a community room, and a new playground.  Designed by Wiencek + Associates and constructed by Hamel Builders, the new Buchanan Gardens follows EarthCraft Virginia guidelines and features energy efficient roofs, windows, insulation, low flow toilets, and Energy Star appliances.  There's also a new stormwater management system and rain gardens, as well as new tree plantings.

Units will be made available to families making 60% or less of AMI, which works out to about $64,000 for a family of four.  The renovations, which broke ground in April 2011, were funded jointly by the Virginia Housing Development Authority, the Arlington Housing Investment Fund, Low Income Housing Tax Credits, and grants from the Capital One Foundation and the Freddie Mac Foundation.

APAH, a leading developer of affordable housing along Columbia Pike, acquired Buchanan Gardens in 2009.

Arlington, VA real estate development news

Today in Pictures - Views at Clarendon

The Views at Clarendon is now complete after two years of construction and 5 years of lawsuits. The building was a collaboration between Arlington County, which lent money to the project, the First Baptist Church of Clarendon as the landowner, and the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH). The project began construction in October of 2009, tacking on a high-rise of 46 market-rate and 70 subsidized units to the existing church. Now ready for rentals, the residential portion has been christened Vpoint Apartments, with the first tenant scheduled to move in tomorrow. According to a spokesman for the community, 45 of the apartments have already been preleased.










Arlington, VA real estate development news. Photos by Rey Lopez.

County Rolls Out Arlington Mill Next Wednesday

Arlington will roll out the pomp next Wednesday for Arlington Mill, a community center on Arlington's Columbia Pike that will soon be followed by an affordable housing project. The county demolished the previous buildings last spring, and will likely start actual construction next month.

The community center portion of the project will cost an estimated $24 to 25 million and include a gym, learning center, public plaza and garage, crafted by architects at Davis Carter Scott. Residences on the north side developed by Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH), and designed by Kishimoto Gordon Dalaya Architecture (KGD) are scheduled to begin construction in 2012 with a targeted completion date of late 2013. No general contractor has been selected yet.

Under Arlington's agreement with APAH, the county will build the garage for both the community center and the residential portion, and APAH will then reimburse the county for its expense. "We are hoping to close and break ground...sometime towards the end of Q2 2012" says David Perrow, Project Manager for Arlington Mill. The affordable housing provider will be waiting in the wings, starting work on housing when the county finishes construction.

Residences will include 121 "tax-credit units" that will be open to individual making 60% or less of area median income. In return for affordable housing, the state of Virginia has granted APAH a $2.13m tax credit per year for 10 years, a credit that can be marketed to a financial partner. "We can sell that on the equity market," says Perrow. Construction of the community center should complete by next summer.

Arlington, Virginia real estate development news

Where are Virginia's Green Apartments?

Arlington Virginia, one of the most affluent counties in the U.S, takes a predictably green approach to development. Burnishing its green credentials, Arlington was the first jurisdiction in the country to adopt an incentive system to persuade developers to build sustainable, efficient structures, enacting a green program as early as 1999. Alexandria partnered with Virginia Tech’s Department of Urban Affairs and Planning to design a new collaborative planning process, called Eco-City Alexandria, to foster sustainable building. So far, surprisingly few residential developers have taken up the counties on their offers. Since Arlington's Green Building Incentive Program went into effect in 2000, permitting extra height or density for obtaining LEED certification, just three residential developments in the city of Arlington have earned the USGBC's green ranking, only one of which received additional density. In Alexandria, only one new condo and one apartment achieved a LEED ranking. Arlington's 220 Twentieth in Crystal City is LEED certified, the lowest certification available, while Arlington's Parc Rosslyn, a subsidized housing project built by APAH, earned a Silver designation, one step better. 

Just recently, Lyon Place in Clarendon was awarded LEED status (the leasing office was unable to identify which kind). In Alexandria, Cromley Lofts earned Virginia's first LEED designation with an impressive Gold ranking (the 3rd highest of 4 levels) in 2007, but since then only the Station at Potomac Yards has achieved the USGBC's stamp of approval. The Crescent in Falls Church has also recently earned LEED recognition, and most recently the Macedonian obtained EarthCraft certification. In Washington D.C., by contrast, numerous residences have the distinction, including the Alta, WestEnd25 (Gold), Flats130 (part of LEED-ND, a more nebulous neighborhood designation) at Constitution Square, Capitol Quarter (Silver), Georgia Commons, Gables at Takoma (Silver), Residences at Square 80, and Solea condos (Gold). The USGBC website, though providing an incomplete and inadequate list, puts Arlington's LEED projects at 34 (for all building types), and Washington D.C.'s LEED projects at 141. Developers have long complained that the LEED certification process is rigid and costly, requiring a longer process, more paperwork and greater expense both to build and get certification. Another factor is public demand, which most agree puts very little premium on green construction. But Joan Kelsch, Arlington's Green Building Program Manager, says that shortcomings in the initial program have been addressed, and that a wave of LEED certified buildings is about to hit the market. In 2009, the county tweaked its incentives, raising the incentive for housing developers and lowering incentives on office construction, which were building in green with or without the incentives. "Any large office building getting built is going to be LEED certified, because the market is demanding that now. That's not true of residential buildings." Of residential buildings, Kelsch says "they typically get 6-12 units [in extra density], depending on the size of the building." Kelsch says the lack of LEED certified projects has more to do with timing. "I think the fact that we don't have alot of them finished is not necessarily an indication that the program hasn't been successful, there's just been a lull in construction and there are many in the pipeline. We think its been very successful." Kelsch also notes that 24% of residential units approved between December, 2003 and December, 2008 were intended to be certified as LEED, some of which are under construction or have been built and are seeking certification. Others, like the Tellus, simply haven't been built. But numerous other projects have been designed without green features. Virginia also recognizes the EarthCraft brand of sustainable certification, which several developments have opted for but which Arlington's Green Building Incentive Program does not recognize. According to Kelsch, the county has considered giving bonus density for meeting EarthCraft, which the state now uses to reward subsidized housing projects. Though the trend is for better, greener buildings, neither the county nor the public are yet demanding it. Until one of them does, it seems builders will not always see the advantages of green. Arlington, Virginia real estate development news

Buchanan Gardens Groundbreaking Tonight

Developers will launch the redo of Buchanan Gardens tonight at 5pm. The sprawling affordable housing complex built in 1949 will undergo $32m in renovations at the hands of low-income housing provider Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH). The buildings will be gutted and renovated over the course of the next eighteen months.

Financed through loans and grants by the Virginia Housing Development Authority and the Arlington Housing Investment Fund, and with Low Income Housing Tax Credits and grants from private foundations, the housing will be available to those making 60% of AMI or less.

Wiencek+Associates and Hamel Builders will transfigure the 111-unit building into a more modern, greener version of itself, with new energy efficiencies and water saving features. Construction is expected to complete in December of 2012. APAH purchased Buchanan Gardens in December of 2009.

Arlington, Virginia real estate development news

Arlington Mill Ready to Build

Demolition of the community center on Arlington's Columbia Pike is slated in the next two weeks to make way for Arlington Mill, a community center, garage and a low-rise affordable housing complex. "We're just waiting for our electricity to be rewired and then we can get started," said George May, Construction Bureau Chief of Arlington County.

The first phase of the project has a projected cost of 24 to 25 million dollars to build a new community center with a gym, learning center, public plaza and garage, designed by Davis Carter Scott. Residences on the north side developed by Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) and designed by Kishimoto Gordon Dalaya Architecture (KGD) are scheduled to go under construction in 2012 with a targeted completion date of May 2013.

APAH will be applying for the Low Incoming Housing Tax Credit March 11th. The group is slated to build 122 subsidized residences in the second phase of the project, which starts after completion of the community center. In the original plans, 192 residences were to have been built, with 61 slated for affordable housing. Public Private Alliance was unable to secure financing for the market-rate apartments so the county went back to the drawing board in the planning stages, said Maureen Markham, Arlington County Development Specialist. "We had a couple of rough years for the housing market and funding, but things are looking up," she said.
Arlington, Virginia real estate development news

Church and Housing Provider Vindicated in Clarendon Case

A church's involvement in affordable housing subsidies by the state doesn't violate the Constitution. So says another court in the ongoing battle at The Views at Clarendon, which has cleared yet another legal hurdle in its battle to build an apartment building heavily subsidized by the government in place of the First Baptist Church of Clarendon. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit this week upheld a ruling, issued last May, that found that Arlington did not violate the state or U.S. constitutions by subsidizing the church-led project.

The struggle may finally wrap up 5 years of lawsuits 7 years after the Church hired the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) to advise on an affordable housing project. The Church later sold the land to The Views at Clarendon Corporation, a non-profit, for $5.6m, with plans to build 46 market-rate and 70 affordable apartments. The Church retained 3 of 7 seats on the board, and will retain two floors within the new structure and a small building on the side. That lead to a neighbor arguing in Peter Glassman v. Arlington County, et. al that the subsidy amounted to unconstitutional support to a church, an argument that has been repeatedly rejected by both state and federal courts.

The news is a relief for the housing provider, not least because it began construction on the project last January (tearing down) and has just now begun building the 10-story structure, and the courts have refused to enjoin construction. While the case could be appealed - back to the same appellate court or to the U.S. Supreme Court - "further appeals are unlikely to be successful" says Raighne Delaney, an attorney Shareholder with Bean, Kinney & Korman, a law firm representing the non-profit. With plaintiffs having exhausted all automatic appeals, further appeals would be heard only at the discretion of the court.

"The county got a great bargain here," said Delaney. The nature of the bargain was a $13.1m loan the county gave to the developer, for which it got 70 subsidized apartments, with the feds kicking in a $14.5m loan and $20m grant for the project thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. "Constitutionally, the only thing that mattered here was what the church got out of it. Even if it was a bad deal, the government is allowed to make bad deals," said Delaney, who stressed that the transaction is unbeatable for the county. Delaney said the real test is not whether the state is doing business with the church, but whether there is any "excessive entanglement" with the church. "The answer to that really is no. The state is not disallowed from doing business with the church, prohibiting regular business with the church would be a sort of anti-religious bigotry, and that's not allowed either."

Arlington Virginia real estate development news

Clarendon: Urban Planners Taken with New View of Urban Churches

Late last year, the Views at Clarendon emerged unscathed from a cloud of lawsuits and officially kicked off construction. Now one of the region's more intriguing mixed-use projects is on schedule, and attracting national attention as a model for unique partnerships. The Views at Clarendon Corporation's mixed-use, mixed-income building will hold 70 affordable apartments and 46 market rate apartments, not so outstanding by itself, but that it was done through the auspices of the church is turning the heads of urban planners around the country.

As the First Baptist Church of Clarendon faced a budget shortfall a decade ago, it could have reacted in the typical fashion, selling out to a developer and moving to a cheaper, less urbanized community. That would have shut down the church's daycare center and local mission. Instead, the church chose to protect its historic building, stay local, keep the daycare center and double down on its mission by setting up a non-profit corporation to run an affordable housing project. First Baptist - now the Church at Clarendon - sold its air rights to the non-profit, of which it held 3 of 7 board seats, allowing the non-profit to cater to low-income and disabled residents, consistent with the church mission. Other urban churches have retained a portion of the new structure after selling its land, but the model of expanding its influence is a new one. Architect Michael Foster, a principal of Arlington's MTFA Architecture, thinks of this as a paradigm shift. "This has really been watched closely, and nationally, for mixing an existing church at the base of the building in this way. Most mixed-use is office-retail-residential. One that's dominated by public housing is not totally unprecedented, but as a land-use model, it helps us all think a little differently about preserving the role of churches and communities."

Not all the attention has been positive. Local groups tried to stop the in-fill project, then protested that Arlington's subsidies for the new non-profit Views at Clarendon constituted an Establishment Clause violation, and the organization found themselves twice in the chambers of the Virginia Supreme Court and several times the subject of Washington Post news fodder. Vindicated by the courts, the non-profit has now nearly finished excavating the site and underpinning the church, and expects to start building up by next month. The church "sandwich" will give them two floors as a condominium and a 3-floor building on the side, the non-profit will own the apartments above and the parking garage below.

Of the 70 affordable apartments, the majority will be priced at 60% AMI, six of the apartments will be 100% accessible (visitable and adaptable), 12 units will have "support of services" provided to those with disabilities, and six of them will be offered to families under 50% AMI. The church will continue to operate the 180-child daycare center, Arlington's largest, as well as expanding its urban ministry, all within a block of Metro. Foster, the project architect, thinks this will help churches remain active in the social fabric, and that the importance of this should not be underestimated. "This represents a dramatic change in how the church engages the community," and that planning organizations are taking note. "We've been getting many calls about this" says Foster, whose firm is also working on a similar type of project in Bethesda, with the church as developer rather than outgoing owner. The non-profit Views has hired Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) as a consultant to help them achieve their affordable housing vision.

The old steeple will remain the tallest structure, with the new building rising just below the steeple height by design. Foster says the building is meant to adapt a mid-rise to colonial architectural style. "The base of the building is designed to fit in with the colonial heritage with the church steeple and remaining school. Its not really meant to be pure colonial, and not meant to be neoclassical, but it does represent what remains on site and the compatibility with the adjacent neighborhood."

Arlington, VA Real Estate Development News

County to Develop Arlington Mill Residences as Low Income Housing

As promised at the Arlington Mill Steering Committee meeting in September, during which details for the five-story, Davis Carter Scott-designed Community Center were presented to the public, Arlington County has selected Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) as the official developer of the residential portion of the Arlington Mill project. Groundbreaking on the Community Center is expected in early spring of next year, while construction on the 122-unit Arlington Mill Residences is expected to begin in June of 2012.

The low-rise apartment building, designed by local firm Kishimoto Gordon Dalaya Architecture (KGD) will offer six efficiency units, 18 one-bedroom units, 73 two-bedroom units, and 25 three-bedroom units. The entire building will be marketed as affordable housing, the majority of the apartments offered at 60% AMI, with a smaller portion (roughly a tenth) priced at 40% AMI. Developers boast that the design both complies with Columbia Pike Form Based Code and "will be constructed utilizing green building design and will be Earthcraft certified." Earthcraft offers a sustainability designation less rigorous than LEED certification. An open field for public use will provide ample green space for residents, and hoping to further encourage green transportation and exercise, developers designed the site with a direct link to the neighboring Four Mile Run park and bicycle trails.

Developers have projected the total cost at $30 million. To lighten the financial burden, APAH will seek financing from the Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA) through permanent mortgage financing and Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. Paradigm Companies will serve as general contractor and property manager, Studio39 is slated to shoulder landscaping design duties, and VIKA will assist the team as civil engineers. Paradigm and APAH worked together with Arlington officials to complete the Parc Rosslyn affordable housing project in 2008.
Arlington, VA Real Estate Development News

Clearer Views at Clarendon

The Views at Clarendon Corporation (VCC) is one step closer to realizing its vision for a 10-story affordable housing project in the center of Clarendon now that a U.S. District Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit against the Views at Clarendon on all counts. With a victory in hand, developers hope to start construction within months on 46 market-rate and 70 affordable apartments one block from the Clarendon Metro station.

Planning for the development began back in 2003, when the First Baptist Church of Clarendon conducted an assessment that soon lead to the vision for the subsidized apartment community, but has been mired in lawsuits almost since its inception. Several groups of parties have contested the development as a violation of the Establishment Clause in the U.S. and Virginia constitutions, and have fought the use of county tax dollars on a project that would buy land from the church - a struggle that has twice landed in the lap of the Virginia Supreme Court and was covered extensively recently by the Washington Post. While this week's ruling is expected to be appealed, the decision is a welcome ruling for the project's promoters.

The Bozzuto Construction Company began site preparation work in January, and developers expect the project will begin construction in earnest this summer. The legal decision comes 7 years and 5 lawsuits after the Church hired the Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing (APAH) to consult on the need for affordable housing in the region, a study that culminated in the Church selling the land to a non-profit entity for $5.6m, with a set of plans for a 10-story building. The Church intends to use its funds, party derived from the sale, to purchase back two floors within the new development.

Nina Janopaul, President of APAH, says the ruling is consistent with fairness of the transaction. "There are many, many precedents for church and affordable housing projects, including the Macedonia project here in Arlington. We did the same thing there; in a slightly different set of circumstances...the church in this case gets compensation for the sale of its property, as is appropriate." Janopaul says the transaction was arms-length and did not disproportionately benefit the Church. "The sale price was well below the $14m appraisal for the property. That's pretty reasonable for a full acre of land in the heart of Clarendon...Clarendon literally has no affordable element in any of the new housing that has gone up."

Arlington developers face of choice of providing affordable housing or contributing to a fund for that purpose, some of which was used to provide a low-interest loan to the non-profit owner of the project. Janopaul says that while repayment of the loan to the county is always a struggle for a low-income housing provider, the market rate element of the Views will expedite that process. "Mixed-income properties are a little more robust in paying back those loans."

The residence is being designed by Arlington- based MTFA Architecture, Inc., which plans to achieve LEED Silver status for the project. Views at Clarendon will be operated by Bozzuto Management.

Arlington Virginia real estate development news