Industry Insight: Paul Robertson of Robertson Development

With his firm’s tenth anniversary coming up this August, Paul Robertson, the enterprising developer behind such U Street area condominium projects as Moderno, VISIO and MURANO, spoke to DCmud about what it takes to last a decade in the DC development game.

In addition to detailing Robertson Development projects past and present, the company’s founder and president shared his thoughts on butting heads with the DC Water and Sewer Authority (WASA), divulged his newest project and revealed how his firm has just forged a new partnership that will take their work out of the for-sale market and into some surprising new arenas.

How did Robertson Development initially come together?

I started Robertson Development in August of 1999. I had been working for Sallie Mae for about 13 years prior to that, during which time I renovated some DC town homes on the side. Having lived the past 23 years in the U Street corridor, I have seen tremendous development opportunity and progress. I always loved design, real estate, and construction, and I majored in finance so it made sense to get in the business.

In doing my first full renovations, which I ended up living in, I did the plans, pulled the permits and acted as my own general contractor. I just kind of learned things on the fly. I also used to go look at a lot of open houses in the area – still do. I saw a void there and thought there were some things that I could bring the market I didn’t necessarily see.

I networked a lot and found an agent, Ken Taylor, who helped identify two large brick townhomes on the 1400 block of N Street. I ended up buying them and turning them into eight units. That was The Rocco and The Capece. I designed the majority of the floor plans and was the GC and the developer for the project. Terry Sellheim joined the team as VP of Operations and we hired construction staff. It was a tough project to build because we added a floor to the top of each one, and did massive excavation and underpinning to create basement units the full depth of the buildings. It was a very tight sight and a very, very challenging first condo project.

Can you detail some of the projects you have done?

Prior to the completion of The Rocco and Capece, I started The Highland project, which is at 1531-1535 P Street. It is three town homes that we converted into eight units…Then we did our first new construction – again, still operating as the developer and general contractor. I have a Class A general contractor’s license from Virginia – and built Woodson Row on 12^th Street, just south of U St. That’s, coincidentally, another eight unit project, but was all new construction – triplexes over duplexes – which was very successful.

At the same time…we put together the two parcels for The Beauregard and bought property to build what became VISIO. The Beauregard was finished a couple of years ago. It’s a 45-unit building with underground parking. Tompkins Builders was the GC. We built VISIO and are now just finishing up MURANO, which is the sister building to VISIO.

Recently, we’ve co-developed Moderno, with Lakritz Adler Development who asked us to join the team early in the design phase. Prior to construction, we assumed the majority of responsibility for the project. My personal residence at the time - in Woodson Row, which is across the street - was used as a model to sell some of the units in pre-construction. The project is complete, and sales have gone amazingly well. Now I’m working as co-developer with Collins Lange Development on a new project called Truxton Row.

Can you tell us a bit more about Truxton Row? Will it be condos as well?

Truxton Row is a 16-unit condo project. Collins Lange asked me to participate, again, in all phases of the development and construction. The first thing was to re-work the floor plans to enhance their functionality and style, which I’m confident added significant value to every unit. The great thing about good design is that it doesn’t really cost anything. It takes effort, time, experience and imagination but the dividends are huge.

The project will be done in two phases; construction has now started on Phase 1. The project has eight town homes, 7 new and 1 renovated. Each home contains two units, most of which are duplexes with a few flats. Many are similar to units at Woodson Row. There are terraces and double-height living rooms and so forth. The exteriors will be very traditional. Despite the trend toward doing “lofts” and ulta-contemporary, the interior finishes will lean more toward a “transitional” and traditional look. It’s going to be very exciting project.

Why the attraction to traditional architecture over say, the glass and steel look that’s so prevalent these days?

We wanted to follow the look of the exteriors and to offer a more refined sophisticated look. It will be great to offer some classic, upscale finishes in new construction. Currently, almost all new construction has a very “contemporary” aesthetic, but that doesn’t appeal to all buyers.

Given that are you are a condo developer, how has the condo decline affected business? Is the DC market as insulated as public perception makes it out to be?

Well, I don’t think it’s insulated because certainly virtually all projects have seen price reductions – although Moderno has fared very well in that regard. But because of the high desirability and significant job creation of the metro area, we haven’t been hurt as badly as some other locations. Washington is still one of the best places to live.

What attracted you to condos? Have you ever considered pursuing a rental project?

Yes, but everything that I have looked at to this point, and actually embarked on, has lent itself more to condominium than it did to rental. Although rental has been hotter in the past year or two, we see small signs that potential new condo projects are becoming more viable again.

Which neighborhoods do you see as ripe for redevelopment? You’ve fared well in some emerging areas, like U Street and Logan Circle.

There’s still plenty of opportunity in the U Street and Shaw area, and certainly Columbia Heights, Brookland and Petworth – that’s where I see it going. But there’s still infill in better neighborhoods. It’s harder to find and certainly harder to find at a price that makes sense, but it’s there.

What are your thoughts on DC development process as a whole? Is there anything you’d like to see change?

I would take whatever steps necessary to significantly reduce the time it takes to get a building permit. They are making strides at DCRA, but, if I were the mayor, that would be a priority because it would really facilitate more development and therefore generate more tax revenue for the city.…Also, I would start an initiative to work the utilities – WASA, Pepco and Washington Gas – even though they’re not governmental agencies…because one still needs to get approvals from those utilities and often times that is a greater challenge than working with DCRA. People tend to focus on the DC government, but what they don’t often realize is the complexity and the time consuming nature of dealing with Pepco, WASA and Washington Gas.

What’s next for Robertson Development?

I’m in talks with a couple of developers about additional co-development projects. One is a mixed-use and the other 100% residential…Both will be in DC. We are really pleased that others seem to recognize the value we can bring to all phases of a project. Of course, we’ve made lots of mistakes, but it helps our partners because we try to help them avoid them in the future.

I should mention also that Robertson Development is branching out and starting another company called Robertson Walsh Design. I’ve partnered with an architect, Brandon Walsh, to start the company. We both love design, space planning, cool materials, et cetera. We are currently doing several projects including designing a vacation home in the mountains of West Virginia and doing a rooftop terrace for the local nightclub, Town. We’ll be launching a website announcing those projects and services very shortly.

If you had a dream project, what would it be? What would satisfy you the most in terms of future development?

I would like to do another project like The Beauregard because, although it is terrific, I have learned lessons from it and other projects that I would love to apply to another “large” building. It’s the challenge of doing something better than the last time, of continuing improvement and refinement. But what is most satisfying is hearing the positive response we get from the people who have bought homes from Robertson Development.

Washington DC commercial real estate news

Debonair Development Coming to Woodley Park

Woodley Park may soon become still more debonair now that the owners of the Debonair Cleaners at 2610 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Shahram and Maria Taginya, have taken on Annapolis-based developers Ashbourne Developments LLC to construct a four-story residential building directly behind their storefront. Entitled, surprisingly enough, the Debonair Residences, the project will include "up to" 14 residential units and span the length of the existing one-story commercial outlets on site - Fusion's Alley restaurant and Baskin Robbins, to name a few - from 2608-2612 Connecticut Avenue, NW, directly next to the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan Metro. A rear-entry garage will be built at basement level for residents coping with the scarcity of parking along the retail strip and be accessible from 24th Street. Plans by Studio 27 Architecture include balconies overlooking 24th, with a fourth-story roof terrace, but the historically protected commercial building facing Connecticut will be simultaneously “renovated and restored to a condition respectful of the original architecture” - i.e. the original height and roofline will remain along Connecticut Avenue. According to Ashbourne President Crispin Etherington, a June 15th meeting with the local ANC 3C went “swimmingly,” though the project’s scheduled appearance before the District’s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) has been pushed back to July for unspecified reasons. Ashbourne is currently projecting a third quarter 2009 start date for the Debonair “with delivery in the spring of 2010,” though a final construction schedule is contingent on HPRB approval. Monarc Construction will serve as general contractor.

Washington DC commercial real estate news

Shovel-Ready for 2010: CityCenter?

With the economy slowing real estate development (just a touch), developers are finding themselves on the defensive about projects in the planning stage. A skeptical public might think it a case of protesting too much, but promoters seem compelled to assuage public doubt while struggling to convince once-bitten investors. Case in point, the rumor mill was rife recently with reports that Archstone and Hines Interests’ redevelopment of the old Convention Center - the important and hugely visible CityCenter – was being taken off the table. Not so, says Ken Miller, a Senior Vice President at Archstone. In fact, despite issues with financing and retail partnering, according to Miller, DC might just be seeing the project sooner than cynics expect.

"We are within a year of breaking ground," said Miller. "We are continuously meeting and speaking with retailers that expressed interest."

And yet the project has missed several projected groundbreakings since the developers' first estimate of a groundbreaking by last January, and despite numerous assurances that the delay isn't affecting retail interest in CityCenter, no major retailers have been announced. The multi-phase, mixed-use development will commandeer 10-acres of vacant downtown property to eventually realize 400,000 square feet of retail space, more than a million square feet of office space, 670 residential units and a 400-room “high-end” hotel with its own 100,000 square foot retail plaza, under a 99 year lease from the city. It may sound a little on the ambitious side, but Archstone claims they have more than enough time – and resources – to see it through.

"At this point in time, we still have months to complete our construction documents and get our final permits and entitlements. We’re busy meeting with potential investors and banks that have expressed interest,” said Miller. “By year’s end, even though we’re in a challenging state with capital markets, we’ll be able to get the financing lined up and be able to break ground.”

The last time DCmud reported on the status of CityCenter last September, a Hines representative relayed that the project was “85% ready to go” and that the development team would seek a general contractor “in the next few weeks.” Though neither has yet transpired, there was recently one sign that wheels are again turning after a dour Spring; on April 28th, the development team met with potential contractors at a pre-bid "requirement conference."

The District Government swapped land in 2007 with Kingdon Gould, who gave up land on the site of the future Convention Center Marriott to get the northeast parcel of CityCenter from the District government (labeled 'District Parcel' in the rendering). Gould will be developing his land separately, but has also not committed in time or in scope, nor has the much discussed Convention Center Marriott broken ground yet.

Purple Line Vote Affirms Maryland "Rail on the Trail"

The metro area's arbiters of all things transit, the National Capital Transportation Planning Board (NCTPB), today voted unanimously to endorse light-rail as the preferred mode of transport for the 16-mile Purple Line project between Bethesda and New Carrollton. The light-rail option, which has already received the support of both the Montgomery and Prince George's County Executives and County Councils, along with the Coalition for Smart Growth and the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, has faced a long string of criticisms from Bethesda/Chevy Chase area residents who fear that the project will render their three-mile spur of the Capital Crescent Trail system both physically and environmentally unsound.

Trail supporters lobbed various critiques at the Purple Line prior to the vote, including claims that it would make the area unsafe for schoolchildren, lead to the deforestation of Bethesda’s last remaining green space and the system will amount to little more than a “two billion dollar trolley line.” Others reasoned that the planned location of the Purple Line’s Bethesda depot at Woodmont East is too far away from the Metro, the National Institutes of Health and the soon-to-be relocated Walter Reed Army Medical Center to have any impact on traffic in the area. Anti-light rail advocates instead proffered that the NCTPB should endorse rapid bus service from Bethesda to Silver Spring as the Purple Line’s preferred mode of transport.

“Some of my constituents in Chevy Chase will advocate…bus rapid transit on Jones Bridge Road - [an alternative that] is not supported by the residents of Jones Bridge Road,” said Montgomery County Councilmember and Purple Line Now! founder, George Leventhal. “The difficulty that we have in proposing an alternative that is preferred by both counties, and that is likely to be endorsed imminently by Governor O’Malley, is that anywhere you try to move this transitway, you encounter other problems…This alternative, which is included in our master plan and has been endorsed by both counties, is indeed the right transitway for our congested, urban, inside-the-Beltway corridor.”

Leventhal went onto to point out that his county initially acquired the Capital Crescent Trail for the express purpose of having both a “recreational hiker/biker trail” and future transit line at the same site.

“There would not be a trail today had not Montgomery County, back in 1990, acquired that right-of-way for the purpose of building what is now called the Purple Line,” he said.

Though some area organizations- most notably the Bethesda Civic Coalition's Save the Trail campaign, which collected some 18,000 signatures in support of their cause – opposed the plan, the majority of testimony submitted to the NCTPB was overwhelmingly favorable. With an estimated daily ridership of between 42,000 and 46,000, many believe that the “Rail on the Trail” will provide a crucial east-west link between Montgomery and Prince George’s Counties, resulting in an economic boom for outlying communities and a more efficient Metro system. Even frequent trail users spoke out in support of the plan, illustrating just how multifaceted the Purple Line debate had become.

“The media, unfortunately, portrays the issue of the Purple Line as black and white. You either support the Capital Crescent Trail or you support the Purple Line, but not both. That’s not the case with WABA,” said the cyclist organization's Executive Director, Eric Gilliand. “When finally constructed, the Purple Line will include a direct bike-ped link with the Silver Spring Transit Center, where it will eventually link with the Metropolitan Branch Trail coming out of DC. This is a critical bike/pedestrian transit project that must move forward.”

With NCTPB approval now in hand, the Purple Line’s next stop is with Maryland governor Martin O’Malley, who is expected to endorse the light-rail option and announce a timetable for construction by year’s end. In the meantime, NIMBYs on the other side of the Potomac can get ready for another Metro-centric debate now that plans for a proposed Silver Line, running from downtown Washington to Dulles Airport, are being openly discussed.

Founders Square Readies for Demo in Ballston

It looks like Old Man Economy might have finally started taking his pills again. After gaining approval from the Arlington County Board in July of last year, the Shooshan Company's ambitious plans for Founders Square, a five-building, mega mixed-use development in Ballston, seemed about as promising as a GM-backed pension plan. But despite slippery start dates in all types of construction, Shooshan's Vice President of Development, Kelly Shooshan, tells DCmud the project is still on track for its originally scheduled 2009 groundbreaking and that the company will be seeking a general contractor before the summer is out. "We're looking to probably be bidding the project in the middle of the summer and will probably start construction sometime in the fall or early winter," said Shooshan. Located on 4.6-acre parcel bounded by North Randolph Street, Wilson Boulevard and North Quincy Street in Ballston, the RTKL Associates-designed development will replace the industrial and non-tax paying bus lot known simply as the WMATA site, a gas station, a recycling center and a tre chi-chi Super Pollo chicken joint. Founders Square is intended to house 26,000 square feet of retail space (8,000 of which the Shooshan Company has since farmed out to Paradigm Development), 730,000 square feet of office space in two towers, and another two worth of housing for a total of 378 residential units. “The buses have been gone since March 27th,” said Shooshan. “When we start the project, it’ll start with demo…the site is just a one-story building, so it’s a very small portion of the construction timeline.” “Super Pollo will be relocating to the new retail building and there are several other tenants that have expressed interest in the other two spaces in the retail building. It’s very small retail, only 8,000 square feet. The first office building is a secured office building, so it won’t have any retail in it." The secure building will, though, have enhanced security features suitable for defense-related businesses. The development’s residential units are tentatively scheduled to hit the market as rentals and all five Founders' buildings will aim for a LEED certification. In the meantime, the developer has yet to definitively budget the project, as it is, in the words of Shooshan, “evolving over time with the present market conditions.” "There’s such a large spread right now with construction prices decreasing every minute, it’s really hard to give a formula on the whole entire project,” she said. In 2008, Shooshan completed Liberty Center in Ballston, a 21-story, 469-unit residential building. Despite continued development, the rough and tumble Arlington 'hood has somehow managed to keep its street cred intact.

Arlington Virginia commercial property news

The Dirt on...14th and U

Pawn shops no more
As any casual observer of the area can tell you, the post-riot 14^th Street that used to host DC’s finest peep shows and open-air drug markets (RIP Shop Express) is long gone. True, there are probably a dozen dollar stores hocking Obama t-shirts and incense at any one time, but the retail scene has expanded beyond just Footlocker and tattoo artistry of Pinz-N-Needlez. While Whole Foods isn't too far way, the newly-opened boutique grocer, Yes! Organic, should satisfy the immediate needs of hummus-starved newcomers. In fact, the neighborhood today boasts DC’s most impressive array of niche-centric retail with everything from gourmet confectionery (Cake Love) to pricey custom furniture (Vastu) to comic books (Big Monkey) and hand-made jewelry (DC Stem), within walking distance of the U Street/Cardozo Metro station.

Real estate’s best bet
Two blocks north of the famed 14^th and U interchange, DC's largest concentration of new condos and apartments is brewing, with more than 1000 new units of housing going up within a stone’s throw of 14th and W. Among those completed are PN Hoffman’s Union Row and Jair Lynch’s Solea condos, while Level 2’s View 14, UDR’s Nehemiah Center residential tower are under construction, and Perseus Realty’s 14W is scheduled to begin shortly. And, unlike, say, the area surrounding Nationals Park in Southeast, where neighborhood amenities are still absent after the residential building boom, U Street is already loaded with restaurants and nightlife of all stripes. And with Room & Board scheduled to open more than 30,000 s.f. of retail space next year, expect much more visibility for the neighborhood.

Eating out: it’s not just half-smokes anymore

While Taco Bell and McDonald's might be the most popular dining establishments (at least at 2 am), the inroads made by funky restaurants like Busboys and Poets, Marvin (country fried chicken and waffles--who knew?) and Tabaq have gone a long way to bringing some flavor to the neighborhood. In the past months, newly opened establishments like cajun/soul food eatery, Eatonville, and The Gibson, where mixologists design the perfect cocktail, have been abuzz in the press and are the newly-minted, go-to destinations for urbanistas city- (and suburb) wide. Even greasy spoon and DC dive landmark Ben’s Chili Bowl has moved upscale by opening a white table cloth eatery, Ben’s Next Door.  After you've over-indulged, you can work it off with an Urban Funk Class at Results Gym.


Adams Morgan ain’t got nothing on U Street
While nearby Adam’s Morgan may have one thing going for it (read: boozed-up college kids), U Street’s approach to nightlife is more diversified with culture: The Lincoln Theater and Source Theater, DC's most eccentric sports bar, Nellie's, and a laundry list of music venues (The 9:30 Club, Black Cat, DC9, and the Velvet Lounge) share space next to bars that (gasp) don’t specialize in jell-o shots and specials on Miller Lite…not that there’s anything wrong with that.

But it’s still has that old school DC charm

But if you’re really attached to the iPod adapter you keep in your tape deck, it might still be good idea to take it inside before sacking out for the night. Area car thieves have made the old smash-and-grab a fact of daily life at 14^th and U, much like five o’clock congestion or sidewalk sermons from Greenpeace. Whether it is women’s clothing, a half-empty pack of cigarettes or the kids’ car seat, literally nothing is too inconsequential a target for area miscreants. For a closer look, check out the MPD's crime map.

Nonetheless, don't be afraid to chill out. This is a neighborhood with not one, not two, but three yoga studios after all. Santa Monica, here we come.

Washington DC retail and real estate news

Architects’ Institute LEEDs the Way Downtown

Finally leading by example, The American Institute of Architects (AIA) has gotten the go-ahead from the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) to pursue an extensive renovation of their headquarters at 1735 New York Avenue, NW that would see the 36-year-old office building become a LEED-platinum certified facility - making it the first such eco-friendly "do-over" in the history of the District. In the words of NCPC, it would allow the AIA's national headquarters to serve as a "national model of sustainable design and construction."

Located just a few blocks west of the White House, directly behind the historic Octagon House, the AIA’s aging HQ would make the jump from standard downtown office complex to the apex of green design by "installing three building ventilation shafts, using recycled building materials, installing cisterns [for the collection of rainwater], creating a green roof, installing operational windows, and by installing both solar thermal equipment and photovoltaic array on the roof." With those modifications in place, it’s the AIA’s belief that their rehabbed facility will be 100% carbon neutral by 2030.

One facet of the proposed renovation, however, has earned the architects a surprising thumbs down from the local West End Advisory Neighborhood Commission, the ANC 2A. As part of their PUD application, the AIA had been hoping to relocate their in-house book and gift shop to a new street-accessible location, adjoining their building’s front plaza. The ANC sees this as a misappropriation of the PUD process because, according to ANC 2A Chair Armando Irizarry, the “proposed public benefits and community amenities package is inconsistent with the DC law since it fails to include any amenities for the immediately impacted Foggy Bottom-West End community.”

Nonetheless, the NCPC recommended that the AIA pursue a variance from the District’s Board of Zoning Adjustment to see that their plans for a newly relocated storefront can proceed unimpeded. A hearing on the matter has yet to scheduled, but if and when the AIA is successful, their newly re-modeled headquarters will join just a handful of LEED-plantinum certified developments in Washington DC. At present, there are only three: PNC Financial Services Group Inc. / Vornado/Charles E. Smith’s Gensler-designed office building at 800 17^th Street NW, Sidwell Friends' Middle School addition in Cleveland Park and the US Green Building Council’s (who themselves administrate the LEED program) 22,000-square foot office suite in Dupont Circle.

Mount Pleasant's Raven Gets Expansion, Upgrade

On the heels of a renovation to the three-story residences that wrapped up last year, one of DC's best dive bars, the Raven Grill at 3125 Mount Pleasant Street, NW, is now working on getting a new rear addition, plus an upgraded exterior, courtesy of Washington affordable housing developers, Manna, Inc.

"We're trying to make it look like the original. If you look around the Raven and the [neighboring Mount Pleasant Dry Cleaners], you can see that there are still cracks. We need a new coating that looks like original," said George Rothman, President and CEO of Manna, Inc.

Manna’s in-house development, design and construction teams worked with the Raven’s owner, Merid Admassu, for the build-out of the Antonatl Condominiums - a name invoking an El Salvadoran war hero, which you already knew. Manna resurrected the 12-unit, affordable condo out of the charred remains of 13 fire-gutted apartments above the fabled watering hole, built in 1928 and gutted by fire in 2003. Work on the Raven itself will include a 300 to 500 square foot addition to the bar’s rear, primarily for storage space. Both projects should be completed in one fell swoop.

“The [condo] construction was probably completed in December and people have been living in it…We haven’t finished the front of the building yet because we’re finding a sub-contractor to do the specialized work with those windows,” said Rothman. “Everything inside is finished and the outside, we’ll probably do that when we’re doing the addition in the rear to the Raven.”

For those fearful that their designated hangout for three dollar PBR’s might lose some of its old-school DC charm, Rothman emphasized that the bar won’t be going anywhere and should be keeping normal business hours when work gets underway in the next four to six months.

“The Raven is an institution. It will stay. That’s always been important to us” he said.

Empty DC School Demolished for Park

Two days after DC’s Office of Property Management (OPM) publicly announced their goal of moving city agencies out of leased space and into shuttered public schools, the city has decided to tear one down instead. According to documentation from District’s Office of Historic Preservation, OPM has received approval to demolish Gage-Eckington Elementary in LeDroit Park, following concerns about a lack of parking from a potential DC government tenant.

The 86,500 square foot building, which sits vacant at 2025 3^rd Street, NW, had initially been considered as a new headquarters for the DC Department of Environment, which was quick to express its trepidation about the dearth of parking in the area. The school was definitively passed over once city officials balked at the reported $18 million worth of renovations and repairs needed to retrofit the facility (as presented here by frequent DCmud talkbacker, IMGoph, on his own Bloomingdale-centric site). So, instead of parking, the DC government has decided to go with a park.

In lieu of an agency relocation, Gage-Eckington will be razed to make way for a new public park designed by Lee + Papa and Associates. A final development scheme for the recreational area was approved at a meeting of the LeDroit Park Civic Association (LPCA) on May 26^th and is set to include a dog park, a children’s garden, an environmental learning center and incorporate the already existing community garden at 3^rd and V Streets, NW that adjoins the site. According to the LPCA, “Inside demolition of [the school] is scheduled to start on or about June 1. Exterior demo is expected to begin by August 1. Construction of the park is slated to begin on or about October 15.”

The LPCA had actively lobbied for the project via their "Put the Park Back in LeDroit Park" community campaign, which began shortly before Gage-Eckington Elementary closed its doors at the end of 2007-8 school year. It was a move expected to save DC Public Schools some $659,000 in “fixed costs” per year, but at the time, DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee and Deputy Mayor for Education Victor Reinoso said specifically of Gage-Eckington:

We intend to use buildings for the benefit of our city…[and it] could be used to house an early childhood or adult education program, a student and family health center, or another city agency…The Mayor has no plans to sell the property or allow it to fall into disrepair or unmonitored use.

Not to be confused with LeDroit Park’s other Gage school, the N.P Gage School at 2035 2^nd Street, NW that was replaced by Gage-Eckington (only to sit unoccupied for 25 years), and which was transformed into the Parker Flats at Gage School by Urban Realty Advisors and Bonstra Haresign Architects in 2005.

Washington DC retail and real estate development journal

NPR to Start Work on New NoMa HQ

It's time turn down the volume on 88.5 FM and swap out your cardigan and khakis for a Hazmat suit, because work on National Public Radio's new NoMa headquarters will begin next month.

NPR's new 400,000-s.f. HQ at 1111 North Capitol Street, NE, will rise from an expansion and renovation of the Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Companies Warehouse and Repair Facility presently on site. The historically-protected (and Meads Row isn't?) 83-year-old structure, however, is rife with toxic substances, including asbestos, the removal of which will constitute the first phase of development since the project was announced one year ago.

"The abatement of hazardous materials from the inside of the building and the interior demolition [will begin] in July," said NPR media contact, Danielle Deabler. “The actual construction is anticipated in late 2010 or early 2011…Our move-in date is fall 2013.”

Given the lengthy timeline in place for a full build-out of the new headquarters, Deabler tells DCmud that NPR’s development team for the project - Boston Properties and Hickok Cole Architects - have yet to produce a final design scheme for NoMa’s newest corporate high-rise. According to the NPR rep, a picture of the supposed façade that made the rounds a few months back was merely an example of Hickok Cole’s preliminary vision for the site.

“We don’t have a rendering that we are releasing publicly right now. The only rendering that has been drawn up is the one [the architects] used to bid with. Since that most likely won’t be won’t it looks like, we don’t have a final [design] to show yet,” said Deabler.

The development team is currently in the process of selecting a general contractor for hazmat removal and construction. Final bids were due on June 2^nd and a final choice will be announced shortly. (Expect NPR's pledge drive to be even more intense this year, as well.) Meanwhile, NoMa's first hotel opened its doors last week.

DC Reveals Management and Style Guidelines for City Property

Mayor Adrian Fenty yesterday unveiled the Office of Property Management's (OPM) first-ever District of Columbia Facilities Plan - a "comprehensive strategy" for managing and consolidating the DC government's 18 million square feet plus of property and 3.7 million square feet of privately leased space in a streamlined and cost efficient manner.

The OPM plan outlines measures that will reduce the city's amount of leased space by 13% (roughly 500,000 square feet) over the next year by relocating staff to shuttered DC public schools and consolidating warehouse operations. It also provides concrete timelines for the construction of new District-owned office space - including the currently underway Department of Employee Services at Benning Road and Minnesota Avenue, NE (pictured) and the recently announced MPD Property and Evidence Warehouse in Southwest. DC Public Schools and Libraries, however, will be unaffected by the Facilities Plan, as they are governed by their own distinct agencies.

The plan includes a provision requiring all DC-sponsored projects to meet a minimum LEED silver certification. OPM Director Robin-Eve Jasper did, however, point out that the plan is “Version 1.0” and will be subject to revision as new opportunities present themselves.

"A lot of things change about property – about the needs, about the market and other things - are very dynamic in real estate. We will be regularly updating this plan to address new things that come up,” said Jasper.

In addition to the master Facilities Plan, OPM also used the occasion to announce the release of its HOK Architects-authored (and phone book thick) Workplace Design Guidelines that, in the words of District reps, “standardizes the materials and furnishings that can be used in District office buildings” through bulk purchases and codified style standards.

“This will be a common brand making sure that efficiencies bring big cost savings,” said Fenty. Because, as we all know, the best way to attract DC’s best and brightest to local government is by forcing them to all use identical mauve swivel chairs in their mass produced cubicles. Oy.

Room and Board Buys into 14th Street

Minneapolis-based home furniture retailers Room and Board have purchased a vacant, four-story building at 1840 14th Street, NW and plan to transform it into a fully rehabbed, 33,000 square foot flagship location - their first in the DC metro area. According to the broker who facilitated the purchase, Wayne Dickson of Blake Dickson Real Estate, the retail chain has big plans for the re-emergent 14th Street corridor and will use the entire space for their showroom.

"Room and Board is expecting this to be a regional draw for them...Through their catalog sales, they did a zip code analysis of where the majority of their customers were.  The building at 1840 14th Street was just about dead center in that customer base," he said.

Known to some as the Taylor Motor Building, 1840 14th Street began its life as a Ford Model A showroom, and, in subsequent decades, went on to to serve an array of uses, including stints as an arts space and church. Most recently, the building was slated for a residential makeover by Four Points, LLC, which paid some $10 million for the site. Plans for that project, the so-called T Street Flats, (or "Rapture Lofts") were announced in 2007, but never made it past the planning stages.

"Blake Dickson Real Estate has been working on that property for the better part of two years…It was most recently a church, called the Church of the Rapture, and then the initial plans by Four Points, LLC had a condo element,” said Dickson. “They bought that building at the top of the market and then later decided to go all commercial with it.”

As purveyors of handcrafted, American-made furniture, Room and Board will be among the latest in a string of upscale chain retailers, including Bang and Olufsen and Whole Foods, to set up shop along the once unfashionable 14th Street corridor - the same strip that recently lost its Storehouse furniture retailer, only to gain Mitchell Gold in its place. One block over at 14th and S Streets, NW, the JBG Companies also have plans on the boards for a new mixed-use complex with ground-floor retail. (Once that Apple Store gets announced, consider gentrification complete.)

Room and Board have retained omnipresent DC architects, Eric Colbert and Associates, to design the extensive renovation, which Dickson described as a “gut job.” The build-out is expected to take between 12 and 18 months.

Washington DC retail real estate news

Meads Row Bids Adieu to the Atlas District

Late last month, Washington DC's Historic Preservation Review Board voted down a motion for the protection of Meads Row – a series of nearly century-old structures at 1305-1311 H Street, NE that owners Tae and Sang Ryu plan to demolish to make way for a new Atlas District parking lot, much to the dismay of the ANC 6A. With no recourse now left to the ANC, the owners are free to pursue a raze for the property, although, in the view of some city officials, the Ryu's new pay-to-park will have anything but a positive effect on the increasingly developed H Street corridor.

"The 1300 block…is the heart of the arts and entertainment district of H Street,” said ANC Commissioner 6A03 David Holmes, who had been acting as the commission’s “point person” on the Meads Row matter. “It’s the most successful area of H Street in terms of its redevelopment and rebirth from the tragedies that affected it from the 1968 riots and the loss of interest in the business district….[Now] it has lots of bars, lots of restaurants, theaters and so forth. That block is based on the historic architecture of the area and the loss of any of that fabric is important to the business model of H Street.”

The four buildings in question were designed by early 20^th century DC architect, Charles Meads, who was also responsible for some 105 structures on Capitol Hill. Of those, only 73 remain today, with the remainder having been demolished to make way for the Congressional Office Buildings and Senate Park. Meads Row represents the very last remnant of Meads’ H Street properties, which once numbered seven. During their heyday, the buildings boasted an assortment of “well-to-do” shopkeepers, who lived above their storefronts in the buildings’ second-story residential flats.

The properties' history in the area, however, was of little import to the HPRB, who in their denial of the landmark application, state,"Judged only for the H Street buildings Meads work would have to be considered typical of that of Washington's designers-builders of that era." Unsurprisingly, Holmes disagrees.

“These are some of the earliest buildings along H Street and they were important because the builder was trying to set a tone for H Street…They are very upscale and would be appropriate on Capitol Hill, closer to the Capitol, but he was putting it right at the boundaries of the old city’s L’Enfant plan,” he said.

Today, most of the Meads Row properties in are in functional, though somewhat degraded, condition. 1311 H St. has been condemned by District authorities and currently boasts boarded-up windows and a damaged roof. Despite attempts from the ANC to facilitate historic restoration tax credits for the buildings, which directly neighbor the Atlas Performing Arts Center, the owners have expressed interest in no development scheme for the site other than asphalt.

“It’s as if they wanted to put [the properties] in that condition. It’s a practice we’ve seen on Capitol Hill in the historic district too…People want to put up a new three-story building and sell it, so they allow the old building to be demolished by neglect,” said Holmes. “He’s doing it simply to reduce his [tax] assessment by taking down the historic buildings and eliminating the improvements, so he won’t have to pay taxes on the land value…It’s a tragedy. These are important, attractive buildings.”

The Floridian Goes South?

Buyers at The Floridian condominium in Shaw received some unwelcome if unfortunately common news last week when they were informed they would be unable to settle on their contracts until a lien and lawsuit involving one of the lenders was resolved. The condo project at 919-929 Florida Avenue, by Kady Development, has been funded by "a number of different" lenders, including Bank of America. Contract holders have had their settlements delayed until the disputes are resolved.

"The situation is that the seller, about three weeks ago, disclosed to all of our potential purchasers and [current] owners that he is having an issue with the lender and hopes to get it resolved within - what he said at the time - a month, but that he couldn’t be certain. So, we've been working with anyone who is under contract and new potential buyers and telling them that information,” said Gerard DiRuggiero of Urban Land Company.

“[We] can’t settle [contracts] at the moment. So, it’s just weekly updates and we’ve cleared that with all the buyers. Again, people are remarkably flexible and we’re giving them the information that we know. The residents seem to be handling it well and they love the building and the location,” said DiRuggiero. The Florida Avenue project sits amid several sites that were intended for development, such as the Atlantic Plumbing site, but that never materialized.

However, as of last week, the 118-units in the development’s dual, Eric Colbert-designed 8-story towers boasted an occupancy rate of 50% according to the sales team, though DC government records show only 29 recorded sales - after having begun sales in October 2005 and beginning settlements in the first half of 2008. Like the Metropole, a nearby project which was taken over by the lender in April and has been all but invisible since, the Floridian’s sales center at 913 Florida Avenue, NW, remains technically open for business…for now, at least, but without a date certain for resolving the issue. The project was built by Tompkins Builders.

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Tweaking Hine or Six to Four

Two weeks after publishing a short list of potential developers for a dilapidated Eastern Market school, the Washington DC government has announced that it has cleaved two of the six developers from the list. District officials announced that Quadrangle Development and Equity Residential/Mosaid Urban Partners were off the list to develop the Hine Junior High School at 335 8th Street, SE, leaving four contenders.

The 43-year-old, 131,300 square foot educational facility was shuttered in 2007, in order to redirect $6.2 million worth of school funds toward leasing costs for the District of Columbia Public Schools' headquarters. Developers have proposed a variety of retail, non-profit, housing and office uses for the building. The four survivors are:

1. The Bozzuto Group/Scallan Properties/Lehr Jackson Associates/E.R. Bacon Development, LLC/Blue Skye Development/CityStrategy, LLC

2. National Leadership Campus/Western Development Group

3. Stanton Development Corporation/Eastbanc Inc./Autopark Inc./The Jarvis Companies/Dantes Partners

4. StreetSense/DSF/Menkiti Group

A few lucky District officials will host a discussion panel on the property on June 10^th at Tyler Elementary at 1001 G Street, SE. The meeting will begin at 6 PM and is open to the public. Eastern Market will officially reopen on June 25th.