American Institute of Architects Opens New DC Center Tomorrow

How stressful is it for the architect chosen to design a new center for architects? According to the winning team at Hickok Cole, not that stressful. Hundreds of architects will have their chance to judge the design tonight as the DC chapter of the American Institute of Architects unveils the District Architecture Center. The new Penn Quarter showroom, an 11,000 s.f. retail space for architects and public education of architecture, will offer free admission to the public beginning tomorrow to "learn more about the importance and impact of architecture design and the profession," and will kick off the week with a series of public lectures throughout the week.

Hickok Cole won the design competition from 16 submissions to design the architecture headquarters, beginning a full renovation this May that is still wrapping up in advance of tonight's private unveiling. The remake transforms the two-story retail space on 7th Street - once the Obama souvenir shop - into offices, classrooms, and instructional space that serves to educate AIA members while pulling in foot traffic to engage and instruct with videos and links to DC's better examples of architectural design. The AIA wants you to appreciate the sense of transparency:

[the space has] two distinct volumes: a wood room that signifies solidity, and a glass room that suggests openness. Together, the two rooms produce a sense of warmth and openness. The use of glass walls and a glass ‘bridge’ for the center classroom in the heart of the building extends the feeling of openness and makes the building appear more spacious, while connecting it to the lower level. Natural daylight flows through the street storefront into the glass volume, and down to the lower level.

With interior walls composed almost entirely of glass, most of ground floor is visible from the street, back to the rear board room, filled in between with polished concrete and walnut floors and a two-story glass box that serves as offices (below) and a meeting room above. A floating glass bridge serves to connect the two meeting spaces while illuminating the subterranean office space. Exposed I-beams lend a design motif to the center, with railing stanchions and desks imitating the shape and color of the original beams. "We tried to create as much transparency as possible," said Tom Corrado, an architect with Hickok Cole that was responsible for executing the design vision.

The $1.9m makeover (about $400,000 over budget, alas) was contrived to achieve a LEED Gold ranking within the 1917 Oddfellows Building, and precedes, just barely, the 125th anniversary of the AIA that will be celebrated in Washington D.C. next year, drawing architects from around the country for the convention.

While conspiracy minded architects might note that Hickok Cole was not only the winning bidder, but also on the AIA DC board and judged the competition (and a major donor to the center), Michael Hickok assures DCMud that the competition was blind and - really, truly - judged as anonymous bids.

Hickok shrugged off the pressure from being judged on his work by the many architects that will use the space, saying the design was routine. "You do what you do. We didn't give this more attention" than other projects. Hundreds of architects are likely to be on hand tonight to judge for themselves if the inspiration was worthy of DC's public face of architecture. For those that can't make it to the center, check out the DC architecture app for your phone.

Brookland Artspace Lofts On Display Tonight

Brookland Artspace Lofts, affordable live-work artist apartments with ground-floor gallery space at 3305-3313 8th Street, NE, will host an open house tonight offering West African dance performances, salsa lessons and loft tours, starting at 6pm. The Lofts, developed by Artspace, are Phase 1 of a mixed-use arts campus project that includes the renovation of Dance Place, located next door at 3225 8th Street in the Brookland neighborhood. 

The overhaul of the dance center will comprise Phase 2 and is now in the planning stage. Heidi Kurtze, Director of Property Development for Artspace, said Dance Place is working on its Capital Campaign, assisted by Artspace, and hopes to have Phase 2 underway by the end of 2012. The $13.2-million artist loft portion of the real estate project was funded in part by the Department of Housing and Community Development, which provided $10.4 million in stimulus funding and $1 million in low-income housing tax credits; the project also received a Dept. of Housing and Urban Development Neighborhood Initiative Grant. The 4-story, 57,000-s.f. commercial building, designed by Hickok Cole and built by Bognet Construction, devotes 48,900 s.f. to residential space and 8,100 s.f. to shared, community use on the ground floor. There are 23 parking spaces below grade, and 41 live-work studios, with 39 of them for individuals (artists) making less than 60 percent of the area median income. 

Although the initial Artspace plan was to set aside half of the 39 units for individuals making less than 50 percent of the area median income, a modification to the project was made in March of 2010, because the project would not be economically feasible "with half of the units made affordable at such deep levels of affordability." In conclusion, two of the 41 units can be rented out at market rate if necessary, but both are currently set aside for use by Dance Place. Brookland Studios was formerly on the property, and was razed to make way for the new loft building, which broke ground in April of 2010 and delivered at the end of June. In making the interior artist friendly, the transportation of large art materials and/or finished pieces was taken into consideration, and so the building features wide hallways, hospital-sized elevators, and lofts with open floor plans, ranging in size from studios to two-bedroom units. A green roof was installed by the non-profit DC Greenworks, under the direction of project manager Andrew Benenati, and on one exterior wall of the building is a mosaic of tiles, installed by community volunteers. 

The lofts are 100-percent occupied, Kurtze verified, and residents represent a variety of art mediums, with the breakdown approximately, "One-third performance artists, one-third visual artists, and one-third other, including film makers, set designers, poets [etc.]." Creativity might flourish from the mingling of varying talents: "Residents are already getting together for Sunday night dinners," said Kurtze. Over 100 applications came in from artistic hopefuls looking to rent a loft, however not all met the Artspace requirements. Those who did went before a selection committee, and none who made it this far were turned away. 

Washington D.C. commercial real estate news

CSIS Headquarters Under Construction Next Month

In exactly one month, September 26th, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) will begin construction on its new headquarters at 1616 Rhode Island Avenue, NW.

While a misleading "symbolic groundbreaking" took place in May, the event was mostly fanfare, done in large part for the benefit of the Board, confirms CSIS's external relations department. Four months later, CSIS will move dirt.

The new $100-million headquarters, designed by Hickok Cole Architects, will be 9 stories, 130,000 sf, and should achieve LEED-Silver certification, with substantial help from a green roof. HITT Contracting is the general contractor on the project.

CSIS is moving from its current, 50-year location at 1800 K Street, NW, when the project completes in the fall of 2013. CSIS bought its new 15,400-sf property in the Golden Triangle in 2007, for what was reported to be just over $31 million. With the sale came the working PUD which was approved by the DC Office of Zoning in August of 2009.

CSIS's new home will be sandwiched between the Human Rights Campaign headquarters, and the University of California Washington Center building, which sits on the other half of the PUD site. The property fronts 230' of Rhode Island Ave and the new structure will take up virtually all - 99.5% - of the site, which once held the Gramercy Inn, but has been a parking lot for some time.

Update 9/28: According to a CSIS spokesperson, ground breaking has been pushed back to mid-October, or "worst case scenario November 1st," due to subcontractor liaisons affecting the sheeting and shoring portion of construction

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Stonebridge, District Kick Off Conversion of Washington Star Printing Plant Tomorrow

The District government and developers will commemorate the start of conversion of the old Washington Star printing plant tomorrow, turning the featureless, carton-like exterior in the shadow of the Southwest Express into a more modern structure designed by Hickok Cole. In a redevelopment plan the city inked with StonebridgeCarras in July of last year, the Washington DC government will pay to transform the building then rent it back from the developer for a 20 year period. Tuesday's ceremony will market "the official beginning of redevelopment," according to a press release.
The District government began leasing the property in 2007, but failed to use the building, then purchased the property last year for $85.2m, though it has not occupied the space. Actual construction began on the property last month. The revised building has been designed to earn a LEED Silver certification, incorporate the largest green roof owned by the District of Columbia, and provide space for a public gallery to "showcase the vast art collection of the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities."

The city will continue to own the land in a lease-leaseback arrangement with StonebridgeCarras. The city will lease the property to the developer, which will finance construction of the renovation, then lease it back to the city for $8.4m per year to be used as office space for several District agencies. The property will revert to the District at the end of the 20-year agreement. The District government will build a data center and is seeking an occupant for the 50,000 s.f. of available space.

Washington DC real estate development news

GW to Add Science Building and Go Solar

George Washington University has another construction project in the works. Thanks to funding from Square 54 and low construction costs from favorable market conditions, the university has approved replacing an 8-story, 1200-space parking garage with an 8-story, 400,000 s.f. science and engineering complex with buried parking. The university also has separate plans to green its residences by adding what it says will be DC's largest single solar power network.

Although the city has not yet approved the science building, GW expects to start the $275m project within a year. The university’s project team includes Philadelphia-based Ballinger Architects, as well as Hickok Cole Architects, Boston Properties as the project manager and Clark Construction for pre-construction services, all of which are working on Square 54. The LEED-Silver designed building will double the space on the GW campus dedicated to science and engineering.

"The board’s decision to build the Science and Engineering Complex marks an important milestone in the development of George Washington into a world-class research university," said GW President Steven Knapp.

The science building, at the corner of 22nd and H streets, NW (see map, above), will feature two levels of below-ground program space, approximately 350 underground parking spaces and a retail venue on the ground floor along Eye Street.

The building is expected to be completed in late 2014 with occupancy expected in early 2015. Project planning has been underway since 2006. GW is using ground lease payments from Square 54 as part of the financing for the new project, and has been working to redistribute the lost parking as part of the Campus Plan, but has yet to release any details about where the 850 lost spaces will go.

At the same time, GW will implement "the largest source of on-site solar power in the District of Columbia," for "thermal" solar power, that is, not photovoltaic cells. The new solar thermal system will heat water for three residence halls, subtracting "about 70 tons of carbon annually," according to the school. The university intends to generate 10 percent of energy from on-campus renewable sources by 2040, and reduce carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2025, and by 80 percent by 2040 when it reaches "carbon neutrality." The remaining carbon emissions will be "mitigated" through the purchase of local offsets, such as planting trees. "This is just one of the very fist steps we are taking" says Michelle Sherrard of GW, of the solar conversion.

Skyline Innovations, a one-year-old Washington D.C.-based solar energy company, will install the solar thermal units on Building JJ, 1959 E Street and Ivory Tower free of charge and sell the hot water the systems produce to the school for a fee tied to the price of natural gas. According to Aaron Block, Director of Market Development for Skyline, the company assures lower energy costs for the user with no start-up costs by guaranteeing a lower-than-market rate for energy, which it finances by retaining the renewable energy credits. That makes Skyline the number one provider of solar energy in DC (it subcontracts installation). GW won't reveal the amount that it saves with its thermal energy conversion.

The system works by converting sunlight to thermal energy via hot water rather than electricity. An array of rooftop panels collect solar energy and convert it to heat. A series of tanks in the basement loop into the rooftop collectors, a heat exchange allows the heat to be converted from the closed-loop system into the public water.

With all the new construction, the GW Hatchet reports that Foggy Bottom residents are angling for a new Metro entrance as the completion of Square 54 adds more users of the single-entrance Metro station.

Washington DC real estate development news

Hickok Cole to Design New AIA Center in DC

The Washington D.C. Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA|DC), in partnership with the Washington Architectural Foundation (WAF), recently revealed that a team from Hickok Cole Architects has been awarded the task of designing the new District Architecture Center (DAC) at 421 7th Street NW in downtown Washington, D.C. AIA received 17 contest entries from firms throughout the District, but the six-person jury could only select one winning design. Winning the week-long, rapid-fire design competition doesn't just earn the architects an ego boost, they also get the design contract and a $6,500 prize. Coming in second place, and sure to be heckled at the office, was another team from Hickok Cole; but losing doesn't taste quite as bad with a $3,500 check.

Members of the winning team include: Devon Perkins, AIA LEED AP; Jason Wright, AIA LEED AP; Lori Geftic, IIDA, LEED AP; Matt Starr, Assoc. AIA; Rod Letonja, AIA, LEED AP; Shelly Mrstik, RA, LEED AP, and Thomas Corrado, LEED AP. The working drawings were spawned from "a conviction that the project should express light, transparency and a connection with the city." More specifically, the design team penciled a two-story space that employs a healthy dose of glass so that a sense of openness, as well as natural light (sunlight, not the beer), spills throughout the entire building. When reached for comment on their winning design, the media staff at Hickok Cole played Steel-Curtain-style defense, sternly denying DCMud's prying questions: "we cannot release any more information than has already been put out there." What kind of dirty secrets could be hiding behind an innocent design competition? That's the kind of perilous journalistic digging that should be left to Bisnow; let's just hope this blog is not in too deep already.

Sigal Construction has agreed to act as general contractor, and construction is expected to begin in March of 2011, putting an optimistic delivery and move-in date in the late summer of next year. Initial sketches must be elaborated and expanded upon, as finalized architectural drawings are to be completed by the end of December to avoid delays. Besides anchoring educational outreach efforts and operating as the Chapter House for AIA|DC and for WAF, the Center plans to also feature a gallery dedicated to showcasing architecture and design talent from around the capital city.

Washington, D.C. Real Estate Development News

DC Redesigns Empty Printing Plant Near Ballpark

The District has finally come up with a plan for a long-vacant building in southeast DC that once served as the printing plant for the Washington Star, turning a physical and fiscal black-eye into what District officials say will be "a bold move" to improve the neighborhood. The District government began leasing the property in 2007, a controversial arrangement when the city failed to use the building. DC purchased the property outright last year for $85.2m in the hopes of converting its liability into productive space and has now partnered with development giant StonebridgeCarras. The five-story building at 225 Virginia Avenue remains the largest empty building near the Nationals Stadium.


Scotching plans to add on to the five-story building, the city will now renovate the interior and redesign the exterior to add "a lot glass that will allow natural sunlight to filter through the building," according to Jason Yuckenberg of the Department of Real Estate Services for the District. The revamp will also earn a LEED Silver certification, incorporate the largest green roof owned by the District government, and provide space for a public gallery to "showcase the vast art collection of the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities."

The city will continue to own the land in a lease-leaseback arrangement with StonebridgeCarras. Details on how the city selected StonebridgeCarras were not immediately available, but according to Yuckenberg, the city "approached a number of people in the community about working with us on this project." StonebridgeCarras principal Doug Firstenberg tells DCMud the city's first RFP for the building went nowhere, after which the developer came up with the current lease plan financed through a private placement bond issue. Ultimately what they wanted was to own the building through creative financing" says Firstenberg.

Under a signed agreement, DC will lease the property to the developer, which will finance construction of the renovations, then lease it back to the city for $8.4m per year to be used as office space for several District agencies. The property will revert to the District at the end of the 20-year agreement. The District intends to build a data center and is seeking an occupant for the 50,000 s.f. of available space, stipulating that the data center tenant, a typically heavy energy consumer, "not adversely affect the LEED certification process" according to Yuckenberg.

The current structure, which has "virtually no windows, and is really drab and dreary," acknowledges Yuckenberg, is surrounded by ongoing improvements to the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood, including EYA's Capitol Quarter housing project and adjacent Canal Park, which is expected to break ground within the next few weeks. The street will get its own revamp when CSX scrapes off Virginia Avenue to add capacity to the train line below it. Construction is expected to begin in November; the District has already begun interior demolition to make way for construction. The development team will include architects from DC's Hickok Cole, Davis Construction as a general contractor, and Rand Construction for the interiors. Firstenberg expects full occupancy by June of 2012.

The property was originally intended to be a 1^st District Police substation and evidence warehouse for the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), which has since moved elsewhere. After two years of paying $6.5 million in annual rent (nearly $550,000 a month), the District raised the ante by purchasing the site. Washington DC officials say the move will "save District taxpayers more than $60 million over the previous arrangement."

The District recently issued a Request for Offers (RFO) to sublease the 50,000-s.f. data center, responses to which are due by July 30, 2010; the city will sponsor a site visit for the space tomorrow.

Washington DC real estate development news

Baby Steps Made, But Fight for Fillmore Music Hall Still Uphill Battle

Early last month the Montgomery County Planning Board approved preliminary plans for the Fillmore Music Hall and accompanying hotel and office buildings to built in Silver Spring; and just yesterday the Board gave a big thumbs up to the development team's most recent master plan and official plat. But a project that began in a buzz of ho-hum, high-fiving excitement has been slowed by lagging negotiations, and now a lawsuit filed recently by the owner of the 930 Club threatens to cast a dark cloud on groundbreaking celebrations set for later this fall.

The recently approved master plan roughly details the impending construction of a 135,300 s.f., 14-story hotel, a 12-story office building (5,500 s.f. reserved for retail use), and a 22,882 s.f., three-story music hall integrating the historic JC Penney facade and sides. The plan also calls for significant improvement to portions of the sidewalk and three street frontages.

Designers claim that the aesthetics of the planned structure fit with the surrounding buildings: standing mostly square, with no tower setbacks or height variance, and no significant differentiation of design or materials above the lower levels. The facade of the planned hotel reflects the fenestration and style typical of the era during which the adjacent Montgomery Arms apartment building was constructed. The JC Penney frontage, soon to be face of the Fillmore Music Hall, will be renovated in hopes of imitating the original San Francisco-based Fillmore West. Sporting dark red walls, vintage rock posters, and crystal chandeliers, the interior will also recall the first Fillmore, with the ability to house a standing room capacity of 2000 people. Hickok Cole Architects will design the new venue, along with the planned hotel and commercial buildings at Georgia Avenue.

The less daunting of the projects, the Fillmore Music Hall, will be constructed first. Upon completion of the building, the land and Music Hall will be donated to the County. This peculiar arrangement was part of the negotiations between the County and Lee Development Group (LDG) that made this entire $110 million redevelopment project possible. LDG's donation of the Music Hall will qualify as their public-space contribution required for their adjoining hotel and office space project. But the Fillmore Music Hall and its accompanying land (worth $3.5 million) hardly seems like a donation when Montgomery County and the state of Maryland have each agreed to subsidize the project to the tune of four million dollars, leaving LDG to foot only the remaining two of the ten million dollar budget. The transaction will afford LDG 15 years to complete the bordering project under current land use regulations, thereby protecting them from any financial complications or delays that may arise from future zoning rule changes or planning officials' interference. Once in the hands of Montgomery County, the Fillmore will be rented out to worldwide concert promoters and corporate entertainment giant Live Nation (their recent proposed merger with Ticket-master is currently stalled by anti-trust concerns). In 2008 Live Nation signed a $3.26 million, 20-year lease with the County, ending a tiresome six year negotiation process. Drawn out discussions with the Birchmere had previously unraveled.

All this might sound dandy to local concert goers, but Seth Hurwitz and his Bethesda-based company I.M.G., Inc, which owns the 930 Club and operates Merriweather Post Pavilion, finds the deal too sweet to be fair. Seemingly threatened by the new competition, and disenfranchised that he was not involved in negotiations for the lease of the new venue, Hurwitz has filed a lawsuit against the state alleging that the proper procedures for conducting financial feasibility and cost analysis studies, as required prior to allocation of funds, were not followed. The State and County believe they've done all that is required, but have not officially responded to the lawsuit. Until the lawsuit plays out, the state of Maryland is prohibited from matching the County's four million dollar pledge, but officials still expect ground to break later this fall, and to open the doors of the Fillmore in the fall of 2011. Local officials contend that the new development will not only be a tremendous new source of tax revenue and profits, as well as provide job creation, but also establish Silver Spring (with the AFI Theater right down the street) as a go-to destination for music, arts, and entertainment.

Renderings are courtesy of LDG. Silver Spring real estate development news

GW Site Wrapping Up

Thanks to a recent topping out, Square 54 now dominates the corner of Washington Circle nearest the Foggy Bottom Metro. A little more than two years after breaking ground, Boston Properties and general contractor Clark Construction are well underway building and filling the new mixed-use campus. Gossip about tenants includes a Whole Foods filling a large portion of the retail, though the only officially announced leases belong to law firm Hunton & Williams, NIH Federal Credit Union and lunch time favorite Devon & Blakely.

Square 54 will bring 335 rental units, 440,000 s.f. of office space, an open central courtyard and retail plaza on I Street, over 80,000 s.f. of retail space (including the mystery supermarket), and over 1,000 underground parking spaces. The project is a partnership between Boston Properties and George Washington University, which owns the 2.6-acre site. The site was formerly part of GW Hospital; Boston has a 60-year ground lease on the land.

The residential portion will include 292 market-rate rental units and 43 units set aside for affordable and work-force housing. According to the developers, the residential portion of the project will deliver in May 2011 and begin leasing in January or February of that year. Residents will have access to approximately 250 parking spaces and at least three car-sharing spaces will be available for resident use.

The commercial/retail building will deliver in March 2011, according to Richard Ellis, a Project Manager for Boston Properties."All of the retail space is currently accounted for," according to Ellis. Ellis's calculations generously include the 15,000 s.f. under lease negotiations with a potential grocer, though he declined to comment on the Whole Foods rumors. Hunton & Williams signed on for 190,000 s.f. of office space in the commercial building and according to Jake Stroman, a Senior Project Manager at Boston Properties, the total leased office space and space under lease negotiation is 315,000 s.f., leaving 125,000 s.f. of office space up for grabs.

The project was designed by Connecticut-based Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, LLP and Sasaki and Associates, the architect of record was Hickok Cole; Boston recently hired design team Carlyn and Company Interior Design to work on the residential interiors.

Washington, DC real estate development news

NYU's Student Housing Still On Track Downtown

New York University's College of Arts and Sciences is moving forward with plans for 75,000 square foot, LEED gold-certified "multipurpose center" at 1307 L Street, NW. This week the University received updated Board of Zoning Adjustment approval for the downtown site, which it purchased in 2008 for $7.3 million. The NYU-DC Center, the educational/dormitory facility will house some 150 students studying off-campus each semester.

The Hickok Cole-designed 9-story complex will feature a lecture hall, seminar rooms and office space for NYU’s Office of Government and Community Affairs and John Brademas Center for the Study of Congress, below five-stories of student housing. The facility will also offer temporary living space for visiting professors. The slim 60-foot wide lot posed a design challenge to the architects, luckily students are adept at living in diminutive spaces, especially New Yorkers. Rooms will be arranged in four-room suites. A balcony along the building façade will act as a visual separation between the student housing and the academic areas below.

The BZA exception removes the developers requirement to provide parking or loading areas. The location lends itself to a walkable lifestyle, blocks from the White House and the legion of summer internship opportunities.

A groundbreaking is planned for September of this year, the first student would likely arrive in 2012. Once completed, the Center will serve as NYU’s thirteenth off-campus (but first domestic) study abroad site.

Washington, DC real estate development news

ArtSpace: Lofty Ambitions in Brookland

Today, Dance Place and Artspace will break ground at noon on a new $13 million, government-sponsored arts campus, Brookland Artspace Lofts, at 3225 8th Street, NE. The site, three blocks from the Brookland Metro, is currently occupied by the Brookland Studios and existing Dance Place. The project will bring new affordable artist housing and performance space to the northeast community and mark the "beginning of a new era in urban development," according to a press release. Lofty ambitions.

Artspace's affordable live/work units will house struggling artists and their families, providing them with gallery and studio space. Thirty-nine of the units will be available to households earning less than 60 percent of the area median income; two units are set aside for Dance Place.

The four-story building will top out at 48 feet so as not to stand out in the low-density neighborhood. Artspace is adding a green roof as part of a community service project and will partner with DC Greenworks for installation. According to Jim Bognet, president and co-founder of general contractor Bognet Construction Associates, “the building will also feature a mosaic tile installation that will be provided by community volunteers." DC-based Hickok Cole Architects designed the building.

Though an initial plan called for an additional building for Dance Place to create a "campus," the team has scaled back their ambitions to an overhaul of the existing dance studio. “Artspace will support Dance Place in its effort to renovate its existing theater space" said Heidi Kurtze, Director of Property Development for Artspace Projects, Inc. in a press release. The two projects will potentially be linked by an outdoor plaza and performance space between them.

The District Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) will provide $10.4 million in stimulus funding and $1 million in low-income housing tax credits in recognition of the role of the arts in revitalizing neighborhood.

Washington, DC real estate development news

Adams Row Condominiums

Adams Row is a loft-style building jointly developed by PN Hoffman and Adams Investment Group (AIG). Condos originally started selling from $325,000 for open and contemporary loft-style condos. Located just off the main strip of Adams Morgan, the 70,000 s.f. condominium is home to 68 units, with features such as granite countertops, marble baths, stainless steel appliances, and polished chrome fixtures. An underground garage offers parking; most of the units are economically sized, squeezing an extra bedroom into a small space. Architectural design by Georgetown-based Hickok Cole featured a post tension concrete structure with an industrial look on the interiors, and a mixture of brick and glass curtainwall in the facade. Adams Row completed in 2005; sales began in 2004 and sold out in 2006.

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Brookland Gets its Art On

One of the first new developments in the Brookland Community to actually break soil may be close at hand, as the Dance Place and Artspace forge ahead with plans to create a $13 million arts campus. The trickling begins as developer Artspace seeks subcontractors, with bids due February 5th and the first phase of construction scheduled to begin in March. The site is currently occupied by the Brookland Studios and an existing Dance Place building on 8th Street, just three blocks from the Brookland Metro Station. First on the boards: a 41-unit artist live-work building, with a new or renovated dance studio for phase 2. Artspace's affordable live/work units will house struggling artists and their families, providing them with gallery and studio space. Half of the units will be available to households earning less than 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI), with the other half set aside for households earning less than 50% AMI. The four-story building will rise no higher than 48 feet in the low-density neighborhood. A unique twist - residences will feature open interiors, wider hallways and hospital-sized elevators, allowing for the transport of large art materials or finished pieces of art. The southwest corner of the ground floor will naturally be available as a performance space that opens to the plaza, connecting to the new Dance Place once the latter is complete. The 57,000 s.f. project will provide 22 parking spaces below grade and should complete by the Summer of 2011. The building will have a green roof and Artspace will be partnering with DC Greenworks for the installation. For phase 2, Heidi Kurtze, Director of Property Development at Artspace, says the team will spend much of 2010 "researching" and raising funds before deciding on the design for the dance studio. Preliminary plans submitted to the Office of Planning called for a new two-story theater and two-story storage space on the ground floor of a (possibly) four-story building with classrooms, changing room and office space on the top floors. Though Kurtze said without enough capital the team might have to renovate the current building, rather than the preferred option of a new structure. Artspace has been working with Dance Place since 2007. Kurtze described the relationship as a "true collaboration with a local arts organization that is already thriving in the community." The development team selected Bognet Construction Associates as the general contractor, designs for the residential building are by Hickok Cole Architects. The new plans come at at time when other large-scale developments in the area are still crawling through the planning or pre-construction periods. Project's like EYA's Chancellor's Row and Abdo's project with CUA are still a long way from realizing the promised renaissance in Brookland. 

Update: The District Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) is a partner in the Artspace project. DHCD will provide $10.4 million in stimulus funding and $1 million in low-income housing tax credits to the Artspace residential project in recognition of the role of the arts in revitalizing neighborhood, according to DHCD spokesperson Angelita Colon-Francia.