Mt. Pleasant's Effect on the Solar System

What's green, likes the sun, and never stops producing energy? Answer: Mt. Pleasant. Or maybe the answer is Anya Schoolman, the energetic head of the Mt. Pleasant Solar Coop. The latter (the coop) is an organization dedicated to helping residents of Mt. Pleasant bring solar energy to their townhouses one at a time; the former (Schoolman) is its lead sun-worshiper that has found religion in bringing the message city-wide. From humble origins three and a half years ago, the coop has grown to 350 members, 45 of whom have installed photovoltaic cells on their roofs, and has seeded similar coops throughout other DC neighborhoods. While not a collective financial institution as the name might imply, the organization helps individuals surmount hurdles associated with reducing reliance on the infamous grid. That's harder than it sounds. Schoolman says that even though subsidies make the decision a financial no-brainer, the process requires a large up-front investment and is fraught with difficulties, from installation of the panels and meters, filing tax credits, and dealing with PEPCO, to navigating the DC government's rules and adhering to historic preservation restrictions. Schoolman hopes to change that, and is on a mission. The Mt. Pleasant resident says she has worked "about half time" on the issue since it began in 2006, when her son came home and thought, apparently with little clairvoyance, that it would be a "cool" thing to do. "It really came about with my son, who was 12 at the time, and his friend. They had gone and seen Al Gore's movie (not Love Story) and really wanted to do something. At that time it was very confusing and very expensive, we got contradictory advice...the tax credit was limited to $2,000, so we told the kids it was going to be hard and that it would take a couple of years." That was optimistic. But financial incentives for solar have improved, thanks in part to those efforts. Schoolman says the average cost of installing solar is about $20,000 on a single family home, but the federal government will refund 30% of the entire cost in the form of a tax credit. On top of that, the District government rebates $3 per watt of system capacity, or about $9,000 for the average 3 kilowatt solar system. Then there are the utility companies that need to buy renewable energy purchase credits, which puts "about $900 per year" in the pockets of the typical homeowner, according to the evangelistic Schoolman. The credit is measurable thanks to an upgraded meter, which can run backward or forward, depending on which way the net energy is running. "Its a great deal. Over the lifetime, its an incredibly great investment," she says, noting that the payback time is only about three years on the typical installation. But that's not what takes the breath away from Schoolman, a natural energy force in her own right. "The most important factor is that you get a natural reduction in your PEPCO bill. Most systems supply one-third to one-half of a home's electrical needs," says Schoolman, who can rattle off energy ratings, government regulations, and average monthly kilowatt hours without punctuation. "People hate PEPCO, there's so much satisfaction in just being able to get out from under your electric bills. People email me just to say how excited they are about the change in their electric bills since they started." That satisfaction comes back to her. "Its been really fun and satisfying, if I go up on my roof I can see seven solar systems just from my roof, that's really why we do it." That subject naturally segues to the fierce debate in environmental circles about pushing small, easily adopted changes versus urging more fundamental change that, while more impactful, is less likely to be appropriated. Schoolman has an opinion: "Alot of policy makers see energy efficiency as the goal, with solar as a luxury, but installing solar is so tangible and makes it so real, that once you install solar people get really engaged in a way that they just don't with energy efficiency." Schoolman feels that energy efficiency can lead to a certain complacence, whereas with solar "once they see their bills drop it becomes a game to see how much they can save. Can they go totally off the grid? They totally understand the kilowatt usage. It becomes really inspiring and exciting."

Asked the inevitable question about its effect on property values, Schoolman notes that none of the solar-powered houses in Mt. Pleasant have tried to sell yet, so the empirical data just isn't there, but expects that this will become a strong selling point. Not to fear, she has an idea: "I think there's an emerging consensus that it would be more valuable if there were a disclosure requirement to show the years' utility bills. That way people could differentiate from these and other typical homes and it would show the relative value of solar, I think that's huge." She hopes for "another 10 to 20 houses going solar this year" just in Mt. Pleasant, but isn't stopping there. Her group has inspired 5 other coops in DC - Georgetown, Palisades, Brookland, Petworth and Shepherd Park, but Schoolman is "shooting for one in each ward." Hoping to increase the messengers and not just the message, Schoolman says she attends other coop meetings to give them logistical and practical support and encouragement. "Neighborhood roofs tend to have a lot in common, so we can share information and there are a whole host of issues with the roof types." Appreciative of the any financial incentives, Schoolman nonetheless is unimpressed with Washington DC's commitment to sustainable energy. "The only thing that limits this is that the DC rebate program has enough money to fund only about 200 houses per year," an amount she obviously thinks insufficient. "When we buy solar the money stays in our community; the installations are here - not like coal power. This is good for our local economy. We just wish they were more consistent about [the funding], it takes a while to build a base." Schoolman says the DC government "has not really made this program a priority. It was never really properly staffed and very poorly managed." 

As evidence, DC maintains a long waiting list for applications that don't yet have funding. In that crusade, Schoolman has found a kindred soul in Councilmember Mary Cheh. Cheh introduced the Clean and Affordable Energy Act of 2008 that created the Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU), a third-party utility responsible for fostering sustainable energy in the District and, among other things, requiring a study of building a sustainable energy facility within - or sponsored by - the District. The SEU is expected to come online next year, overseen by the newly created Department of the Environment (DDOE), but while details get worked out both Cheh and Schoolman have seen a lack of leadership and accountability for sustainable credits and programs. Cheh found the DDOE unresponsive and uncommitted. "They were dragging their feet and disorganized. I got them $2 million, but the money wasn't getting out the door even though the people were ready and had applied" said Cheh. In fact only about $600,000 was granted, and Schoolman and others had to pressure the District to roll the remainder over into the next year. "We had to fight to get the rest rolled over so it would be spent this year," says Schoolman. The funding now comes from a surcharge on every resident's PEPCO and Washington Gas bill, but only "a very small amount of that goes to solar, a lot more goes to energy efficiency projects." 

Schoolman complains that during the recent budget proposals solar funding was cut back from $2m to $1.1m, but she and Cheh fought to push that back up to full funding. Funding aside, both women found the District's concentration on the subject halfhearted, or worse. "I anticipated a three year period for it to come online...but they still can't get their act together. They had only one guy who wasn't even full time on this" said Cheh of the administration of energy credits and application processing. "There's no reason they shouldn't have been able to do it...they've been leaderless. They have done some good work over there, but it could be alot better." Cheh held an oversight hearing taking DDOE to task for their sluggishness, and a new Director has since been appointed by Mayor Fenty, events Cheh thinks will help focus DDOE's attention on the matter. "Mary's been an incredible leader on this" says Schoolman. Still, the two are ideologically separated, with Cheh playing the pragmatist to Schoolman's passionate visionary. Asked about the expansion of solar funding or government mechanisms to push solar conversions, or solar requirements in new developments, Cheh prefers to sidestep being too wedded to one technology. "Not overdoing technology right now might actually be a boon to us as we expand the options that we have. I see this as accelerating, but there are other things we can do too. We also want to look at geothermal and cogeneration. There are places where they use the heat generated in the city, but solar is definitely going to be part of the mix, and I anticipate RECs (renewable energy credits) expanding." 

To that effect Cheh has promoted the Energy Efficiency Financing Act of 2010, a bill introduced by the Mayor that would authorize the District to issue up to $250 million of revenue bonds to finance low-interest loans to District property owners to make energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements. Property owners would repay the loans through an assessment on their property taxes. Does the BP disaster add impetus to the demand for greener energy? Cheh thinks the District is already leading the way. "We're already getting close to being, if not number one, then at the top of the market. The problem is still racing forward without knowing where the technology is going." But the District does not quite rank at the top of renewable energy production by most measures, including those of the U.S. Department of Energy (despite hosting the solar decathlon), and many states have aggressive solar energy standards. The Councilmember points to more privatized solutions to meet the needs of sustainability. "The Willard Hotel greened its operations, it has been able to use its green approach to things. My bill requires you to benchmark your building for energy use and put it up on the internet, yearly. That gives you a comparative framework to judge efficiency." 

That approach squares with Schoolman's disclosure approach for energy costs in home sales, though the Willard has no mention of its energy efficiency on its website, taking some of the force out of the argument. Schoolman says don't wait, buy now. "Alot of people are not early adopters and are watching to see how it will go, but I always tell people that the future of the DC credit is uncertain, so now is definitely the time to do it. If anyone has any questions about this they can email me." Really? Publish your email address so anyone can write to you? "Sure, if I can't help them I can send them to someone who can." Okay, its SolarCoop(at) yahoo.com. Schoolman says there are plenty of reliable independent contractors that can help through the process, including GroSolar, Maggio Roofing, Switch Energy, Standard Solar, and Capital Sun, though the District has a list of approved contractors that must perform the installation to qualify for the credit. Surely her son and his friend (Walter and Diego Arene, both now 15) have long since found other types of sun worship and lost interest in the minutia of solar energy lobbying? "They're very involved" says Schoolman. "They come to meetings, they volunteer, they talk to the press, and explain about solar energy. Both are really into it." Perhaps Mt. Pleasant is on to something after all.

Washington DC real estate development news

Affordable Housing Comes to the Peck Site

Tomorrow the fulfillment of promised affordable housing in Ballston will be one step closer as developer AHC Inc. "breaks ground" on a parcel that was once part of the Bob Peck Dealership and Showroom site in Ballston. The project, thanks to a creative land swap between JBG and AHC during the planning process, will bring 90 units of affordable housing within a quarter mile of the Ballston Metro Station, 66 more than would have been possible without the swap. Tomorrow's celebration is not exactly a traditional groundbreaking, as JBG already began construction on the neighboring office building and the parking garage that will sit below the new residential project. But who doesn't love a party?

Designed by Bonstra Haresign Architects and developed by AHC, on a portion of the JBG Companies' land, the new building will sit on top of the 600+ space garage, which will largely serve JBG's office building. Work on the garage by JBG's general contractor, Clark Construction, is nearly complete and in July, AHC and Harkins Builders will begin work on the four-story affordable residential project. According to Curtis Adams of AHC, the project should deliver by summer of 2011.

The land swap made for "complicated real estate" admitted Adams, but "everyone agrees that the best land use came about in the end." AHC originally owned Jordan Manor, which sat across the street at Wilson Boulevard and North Wakefield Street, and wanted to develop a denser project than planning would likely allow. Nearby, JBG sought a lower density residential project to neighbor its large office project. So after some prodding and negotiating, they swapped, keeping the density all on one site. JBG will develop 28 townhouses on AHC's 1.1-acre Jordan Manor Site, keeping it lower density.

The entire development on the "Peck site" will deliver two office buildings with over 400,000 s.f. of office space (pictured at right) and 36,000 s.f. of ground floor retail space, designed by Cooper Carry.

Arlington, Virginia real estate development news

A Wedding in Washington (and Virginia): Tektonics Design Group

Tekton: from the Greek, meaning one who works with their hands. -Wikipedia

For the intrepid 11-member Richmond, Va.-based Tektonics Design Group, blazing trails into D.C. territory with a local office helmed by architect and LEED AP Will Teass, working with their hands has little to do with memories of Mr. Connolly’s freshman shop class. In fact, it has everything to do with the marriage of custom fabrication and cutting edge design, with which the firm is fast becoming synonymous. In short, Tektonics is in the details.


“There are two sides of our practice that merge,” Teass said, explaining with Principal Damon Pearson that the group, which started in a Connecticut garage, is not a signature style design firm. “We’re not a signature style anything,” Pearson affirmed, alluding to Tektonics’ maverick modus operandi.

Founded in 2003 by industrial designers Christopher Hildebrand and Hinmaton Hisler, the two principals had worked together in a New England fabrication shop before partnering and relocating to their garage digs. With backgrounds in fine arts, sculpture, blacksmithing and metal working, Hildebrand and Hisler tackled projects head- (and hands-) on with the same vision and acumen they later brought to their Mid-Atlantic practice. When joined in 2007 by architect Damon Pearson, Tektonics quickly developed a reputation for its execution of complex commercial and residential design challenges.

The View from Here

Sometimes viewed as the architect’s architects and (industrial) designers, Tektonics Design Group is often retained by the architect of record as a key component in the design and building processes. In this respect, the primary architect’s vision sets the stage for a collaboration which results in Tektonics’ quest for materials and methodology that will completely transform a space, or a particular element of that space, something Teass calls “things that are designed discretely within the context of the overall project.”

In the case of the design for a new, mixed-use church and office building near the Convention Center at 10th and G Streets NW, in downtown Washington DC, working under the aegis of Cunningham Quill Architects in D.C. and Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects in NY, Tektonics is charged with cladding a column that has particular significance for the church. Tod Williams Billie Tsien had clad the façade of NY’s American Folk Art Museum with white bronze panels wrought from sand molds taken from the texture of concrete. The result was an irregular shape and texture, which is also the objective for the column that will become the symbolic icon for the D.C. church. While not looking to replicate things entirely, Tektonics’ goal is to decide how to meet the primary architect’s (or builder’s) vision with appropriate, even locally-sourced and sustainable materials when possible, and to determine a casting process within the parameters of the client’s budget. The group also prides itself in successfully reducing cost in many cases. At a project’s inception, “…sometimes the drawings for a particular project can be an abstraction,” Teass said, admitting he didn’t want to sound pejorative. “But they can be drawn in such a way that can be very expensive, and because we’ve done so much of this before, we have a really thorough understanding of a level of detail most architects haven’t had exposure to.”
The View from Within


Operating from a nearly 11,000 s.f. warehouse in Richmond with a full millwork shop that includes CNC milling equipment and a metal fabrication shop, the group’s dexterity with metal, wood, glass, synthetics, stone and concrete has facilitated the design of such entities as a servery ceiling in the form of an overturned boat at Annapolis’ Naval Academy, a 300-ft curved stainless steel guardrail for Richmond’s Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden and a staircase for Richmond’s Reynolds Crossings building. “Every time we present this (Reynolds Crossing) project, people want to know what it looked like before,” Pearson and Teass recalled. The staircase, cantilevered off a beam inside the wall, required that Tektonics fabricate the steel cantilevered treads that are about 50 inches out. A glass guardrail sits in a bracket at the end of the cantilever. Teass explained that glass as a material “can be intimidating, but it’s actually remarkably strong, though very sensitive to movement and deflection” resulting in cracking. With this in mind, the firm ended up developing the connection detail and having the glass prefabricated with the use of templates, then installed.

In possibly one of their most rigorous design challenges, under the auspices of Rand Construction, the group has recently begun work on the redesign of a solarium – to be sited in the interior of P.J. Clark’s, the NY-based restaurant coming to Washington. The 19’ x 29’ornate metal solarium with Victorian overtures, curved roof and flat glass skylight, acquired at auction, reflects the restaurant’s vocabulary but must be modified to fit within its space. Originally designed to be outside, the solarium will arrive at Tektonics’ Richmond facility where the group, among everything else, will scale it down and fabricate the roof – its most complex component. Working under its own roof, something the group promotes whenever possible, precludes time spent in the field where laborers and materials may be subject to such variables as changing working conditions, weather and more.

A View to the Future

For Teass and Pearson, who each graduated from the University of Virginia and received masters degrees from Princeton’s School of Architecture, working in the hands-on realm of fabrication plus design was a natural expression of their respective philosophies. Teass, who spent high school and college summers employed as a millworker, believes the chasm between drawing/designing and building is a result of the intellectualization of architecture in the past 120 years, when it began to exist as a profession. People like Vitruvius and his successors were master builders, he explains, decrying the 20th and 21st century’s “disconnect” with the people who actually do the work. He does acknowledge a more recent shift, however, to a hands-on approach with the evolution of programs such as Auburn University’s Rural Studio, brainchild of architects Samuel Mockbee and D.K. Ruth, where students build homes for rural west Alabama communities. “I don’t see why they (schools) don’t all mandate it,” Pearson said.

With immediate plans to expand into a 30,000 s.f. office and fabrication space in Richmond’s Old Manchester district, and a move this month into brand new offices in D.C., Tektonics Design Group’s future appears as ambitious as its thinking.

“We are really focused on how things are put together,” Teass maintained. “It’s about the process.”

Breaking Ground and Inclusionary Zoning on Georgia Avenue

The developer of 2910 Georgia Avenue is again claiming that construction is imminent on 22 new condos, to be completed within a year's time. The matter of right development, designed by Eric Colbert and Associates, will come in at five floors, plus a penthouse, and will be no higher than 50 feet. The project was originally set to break ground in May, but faced a bit of a technical setback.

Art Linde, President of ASL Development Corporation confirmed the pending construction, "I'm picking up the building permits as we speak." Linde said there had been a few delays because of some confusion over inclusionary zoning. The rules, which kicked in almost a year ago and are fairly straightforward, require that new buildings (or groups of homes) with 10 or more units provide 8 to 10% of new units as affordable for "moderate-income households" - applicants making up to 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI).

Though the developer had previously said the entire project would be market-rate, the IZ rules require a building of this size to offer two units to moderate income buyers. Oops. Despite the snafu, Linde was eager to get to work, saying he hoped to start on Monday, but given the Friday afternoon permit pick-up that might again be a bit ambitious.

Washington, DC real estate development news

Ellis Ready to Build Broadcast Center One

Ellis Development Group will reportedly break ground on both of its Shaw projects in the same week in August; the Howard Theater and the newly-dubbed Renaissance Project, the quiescent project formerly known as Broadcast Center One. The developer, along with partners Jarvis Company, LLC and Four Points, faced a major setback earlier this year when Radio One decided not to relocate to the area (hence the new name). But the District stepped in and enticed the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) to fill a large portion of the mixed use project, purchasing an office condominium and ensuring its place in the community for years in the future. Just this week the team received news that the District Council approved $3.6 million for the UNCF, guaranteeing their relocation to Shaw at the northeast intersection of 7th and S Streets, NW, above the Shaw Metro.

The subsidy will come through real estate tax abatement over 10 years, starting in fiscal year 2012, and relocation assistance through a grant of $710,000.

With the loss of Radio One, the developers slimmed down the project to include 94,000 s.f. of office space with anywhere from 180 to 200 residential rental units. The change drops 25,000 s.f. of retail space and reduces the amount of office space by about 10,000 s.f.

Alexander Padro, the Executive Director of Shaw Main Streets, said the project should deliver in phases, office space first. UNCF is expected to occupy in May 2012. Total project costs are estimated at $144 million.

Washington, DC real estate development news

Senate Approves $8k Tax Credit Extension

The Senate yesterday voted to provide homebuyers with an additional three months to complete their home purchase. The credit, which would have expired June 30, provides an $8,000 credit against federal taxes for qualifying first-time homebuyers. The extension will affect only those sales already pending (or new backdated contracts; wait, that's not legal), but gives them until September 30th to settle. The bill has not yet been approved by the House, but is expected to pass and be signed by the President. Homebuyers in Washington DC will still enjoy the $5,000 tax credit, which extends through the end of the year.

Archstone Pushes Back NoMa Start Date

It's easy to get excited by the mere promise of progress these days; excitement, however, is still no substitute for financing. In March, Archstone announced they would be breaking ground in April on its residential project at 1st and M Streets, NE in NoMa, a project that will fill out First Street as one of the latest empty parcels on that strip, along with Constitution Square which is just completing across the street. But as June slips away, the parking lot remains, sans construction. Senior Vice President Rob Seldin of Archstone now aims to break ground in July, financing depending.

Seldin said he hopes to have a "firm loan closing and start date" in the next few weeks. Archstone's 469 rental residential units will replace a surface parking as the first of two phases; the total project will bring 1.5 million s.f.: 500,000 of which will be in the Davis Carter Scott- designed residential building (with a nugget of ground floor retail at the corner of M and First). A parking garage will provide 421 spots on three levels below grade. The new building will increase residential space in NoMa by over 50 percent. Phase 2 is also planned as a residential building. Forrester Construction is the general contractor for the project.

Washington, DC real estate development news

Shaw's Great Expectations

Shaw will have its renaissance yet. Earlier this week Alexander Padro, the President of Shaw Main Streets, provided positive updates on several long anticipated developments in the Shaw neighborhood. It should make for a busy summer and fall, beginning with Monday's groundbreaking for 1501 9th St., NW, a small development by a small business, Inle Development. It marked the beginning of the groundbreaking "season" with bigger projects, like the Howard Theater, set to follow shortly.

Inle's development will be home to Mandalay Restaurant and Cafe, a Burmese restaurant currently based in Silver Spring. Mandalay will have a ground floor restaurant with outdoor seating, a second floor bar and the remainder will be residential space for the restaurant owner and family members. The restaurant will open next summer.

Ellis Development Group and Four Points will break ground on August 22nd at the Howard Theater, marking the centennial anniversary of its opening. According to Padro, the team recently acquired and demolished a neighboring building and plans to seek approval for an alley closing so that the Theater will get a makeover and an expansion all at once. Construction should take approximately 18 months.


As we previously reported, Roadside Development will "break ground" on the O Street Market in September. At that time the developer will begin the process of bolstering and securing the existing structure with new construction likely to follow in "Spring of 2011." The two-block, mixed-use project will include 611 residential units, 86 of which will be subsidized by the city, senior housing, a 189-room hotel, a 516-space parking garage and 88,000 s.f. of retail: 57,000 s.f. Giant and 31,000 s.f. for additional vendors. The Shalom Baranes-designed project will cover two city blocks between 7th and 9th Streets, and O and P Streets and will re-open 8th Street.

Padro said this forward momentum is leading other developers, small and large alike to begin piecemeal work in other areas. Developers are "already investing in renovating some of the smaller historic buildings that are part of the larger projects." Little by little, one project at the time, Shaw's developers are bringing new energy to the neighborhood.

Washington, DC commercial real estate development news

Marriott Readies for West End Demolition

After years of sitting dormant, plans for the GW Marriott Courtyard Hotel at 515 20th Street, NW are looking increasingly active. In March, the development team was shopping around for a general contractor and in May submitted a raze permit to the Historic Preservation Review Board to demo the six-story, 420-car parking garage the new hotel would replace. The 125,000 s.f. hotel will bring upwards of 150 suites to the GW neighborhood.

Mike Tyler of MJ Tyler and Associates, a representative for the development team, said the team hopes to begin the six-week demolition in "the latter part of July." From there, construction will begin "immediately" and will last for upwards of 20 months, delivering in early summer 2012.

Developer Allstate Hotel Partnership received original project approval in 2006, but was sidelined by a lawsuit from an unhappy ANC chair and the extended financing drought. The ANC and other Foggy Bottom civic organizations opposed the development, expressing concerns about the increased traffic and the likelihood of blocked streets during construction. When asked about these concerns, Tyler responded that the team is "working through that right now" and promised it would be a "very organized and professional operation." Construction noises aside, Tyler said "we're excited to get started, it's been a long time in the works.

Designed by WDG Architecture, the new nine-story building will squeeze in between offices and residences in the West End neighborhood. The general contractor is HITT Contracting.

Washington, DC real estate development news

Pete's Apizza Dishes Out Two New Locations

The owners of Pete's Apizza (pronounced \ah-bēts\) in Columbia Heights are taking that old real estate adage: "location, location, location" literally these days. Just two years after opening their popular, New Haven-style pizza joint in Columbia Heights (1400 Irving Street, NW), the owners have turned their attention to opening two additional stores in Metro-adjacent hot spots throughout the beltway.

First stop: A converted antique/interiors store at 4940 Wisconsin Avenue, NW in the Tenleytown-Friendship Heights neighborhood, opens for business tomorrow (June 16th).

"We're right between two metro stops and [the location] has the buzz factor we were looking for," says Michael Wilkinson, a co-partner in the family and friend-run endeavor. The team toyed with the idea of locations ranging from Navy Yard to Dupont Circle but ultimately decided on the 3,400 s.f., 84-seater in Tenleytown because of its "high concentration of families," fair amounts of foot traffic, and limited (read: crappy) pizza options.

Northern Virginia gets its own slice of the strangely-pronounced, pizza craze by 2011: a Pete's Apizza is slated for the construction-laden, corner of North Clarendon Boulevard and North Garfield Street.
"What we love about this location is that we could have gone to Rosslyn or Ballston, but being situated in Clarendon gets us right into the grouping of five metro stations, within transit-oriented development" says Wilkinson.

Talks with retail brokers went faster than expected and now Pete's Apizza's Clarendon location is happening "a year sooner than we thought it would," says Wilkinson. With building permits already submitted and a construction timeline that spans three months or less, a 4,000 s.f. pizza space could be up and running as early as the end of this year.

Washington DC Real Estate and Development News

Georgetown Apple Store Opens June 18th

Which is the bigger deal - that Apple now has a Georgetown store or that Georgetown now has an Apple store? Given the recent bleeding-out of retail from Georgetown thanks to the ongoing drama at the Shops at Georgetown Park, Georgetown looks to be the big winner here. The loser is of course the hipsters who will have to find somewhere to lock their fixed-gear bikes when they get their beloved i-Pads serviced. On June 18th at 5 PM, Apple will open its first store within the confines of the District at 1229 Wisconsin Avenue, NW, just north of M Street.

The real triumph for Apple came last year when its fifth design received approval by the various powers-that-be in DC and Georgetown, including the Old Georgetown Board. Original designs featured Apple's ubiquitous glass panel front entrance, but this smacked of modern showmanship as far as the neighborhood was concerned. The final agreement included bay windows and a recessed entrance more harmonious with the surrounding neighborhood.

washington, dc real estate development news

Maryland Lags in Delivering its Share of Bike Trial

DC bicyclists got their chance to "meet the Met" (i.e. 1.5 miles of the newest section of the Metropolitan Branch Trail) earlier this month at a hula-hoop and dance-laden event hosted by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy. But it will likely take residents and smart growth advocates in Maryland upwards of eight years before they get to make the acquaintance of their own little piece of hiking and biking heaven.

The Metropolitan Branch Trail (MBT) is an eight-mile stretch of off-road trail that runs from Union Station (almost) to Silver Spring, Maryland. Built atop the old B&O Railroad corridors, the MBT will provide the area's walkers and bikers with their own car-free connections to neighborhoods and Metro stations.

Jennifer Kaleba, Vice President of Communications for the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a group dedicated to converting "unused railway corridors to biking and hiking corridors," hoped the "Meet the Met" event would give residents on both sides of the Maryland-DC border a taste of what an "integral bicycle beltway" connecting DC to Silver Spring would feel like.


A look at the 2011 Operating Budget - newly approved by the Montgomery County Council on May 27th - shows that the Trail's funding has now been doubled from its original $6 million price tag. Via the 2011-2016 Capital Improvements Program, $12.1 million will now be allotted toward the design and construction of Phase 1 and the design of Phase 2.

The bad news? Despite the 1,000 person turn-out at the DC event and the funding increase, folks on the Silver Spring side of the MBT will have to wait about nine years to take advantage of their portion of the integral beltway. And that's the new, accelerated timeline.

Just this past February, Montgomery Councilmember Valerie Ervin complained that "this project's lack of progress may signal to residents that the County is uncommitted to non-automotive modes of transportation" in a letter to Montgomery County Department of Transportation Director Arthur Holmes.

In an email to DCMud, Richard Romer, Policy Analyst for Councilmember Ervin's office, explained the Councilmember's frustrations that "So little was occurring in Montgomery County" to build the trail. "After discussion, the Council allocated funding for programming design, land acquisition, and construction of the first phase of the Silver Spring Transit Center to east of Georgia Avenue (including a new bridge over Georgia Avenue), and the design of the second phase from east of Georgia Avenue along the CSX tracks and King Street to Takoma Park."

But with design concepts for the trail still in their infancy and negotiations with track land owners expected to carry on through 2014, the most optimistic estimate coming out of County work sessions is that the final trail will not be available to non-motorists until late 2018/early 2019. Washington DC, on the other hand, has been aggressively completing its share of the bike trail and expects completion within two years.

Maryland Real Estate and Development News

Symphony Park at Strathmore

A new Montgomery County-based development firm plans to bring 112 new brownstone townhouses to the front yard of the $100 million Strathmore Music Center and Mansion. Symphony Park at Strathmore is the first signature project for Streetscape Partners, a two-year-old firm that recently won the right to develop the 18-acre site at the southeast corner of the intersection of Strathmore Avenue and Rockville Pike in North Bethesda thanks to the financial backing of Lubert-Adler Partners, LP. The community will offer new residents access to the Grosvenor-Strathmore Metro and select membership with the Strathmore.

According to Ron Kaplan, Co-managing Principal at Streetscape, the four-story townhouses will each have a deck and most will have a "mews," front green space or garden with an alley in the back for access to the two-car garage. The fourth story of each home is a loft. The project offers "significantly more open space than most of these types of developments" added Kaplan. The developer described the finishes as "real materials" meaning brick and stone and solid wood doors. The design team tried to evoke the appearance of Georgetown, and Boston's back bay, a "sophisticated" community, according to Kaplan.

Not all 18 acres will be developed for housing; the team is donating five acres for use by Montgomery County as an outdoor amphitheater for public performances, linked to Strathmore. Additionally, the plan includes a new "Symphony Park Forest," several acres of "forested land created from scratch" with the planting of 200 some odd trees to line a new walk way between the community and the Arts Center, explained Kaplan.

Kaplan described that site as "one of the best pieces of land for residential development in the whole county (Montgomery)." The land previously belonged to the American Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA) and had been under contract with residential developer Centex; Streetscape snapped it up when market conditions forced Centex to renege on its contract after several years of pre-development planning. Streetscape inherited the footprint, including the agreed upon number of homes from the original buyer and retained architects, Lessard Group, to rework the design. Though Kaplan assured his designs "increase the quality" changing the previous plans "pretty significantly." According to Kaplan, the team has all of its approvals from the County and expects to begin land development in the fall with the first model units appearing next spring. Sales will also begin this fall.

North Bethesda, Maryland real estate development news

NoMa Intersection Gets an Up(?)grade

The District announced today that it is re-routing a troublesome intersection to make it, well, possibly worse.

The intersection of Florida and New York Avenues has been an anarchist's dream - at First St. hand gestures are more helpful than lights (not to mention the open-air marketeers that seem to have philosophical differences with local drug enforcement policies).

The revised traffic pattern will make Florida Avenue one-way (northwest) for two blocks, rerouting southeast traffic off of Florida, across and onto New York, then to O Street, then back onto Florida. Northbound drivers on First St. will find themselves heading out New York Avenue, like it or not, perhaps somewhat approximating northbound 395 drivers that get sent out New York Avenue for the crime having just avoided traffic signals. Both sets of drivers will now merge as they are sent out of town via New York Avenue.

DCBond Drops Rate

The DCBond, which officially relaunched in April, is now even more appealing for those who actually qualify. The DC Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA) did low-income home buyers a favor, dropping the rate from 5.25 percent with zero points to 4.25 percent with half of a point on 30-year fixed-rate loans. For now, that is the only change, meaning the bond is currently only available as an FHA loan or a Veterans Administration loan; when DCHFA released the bond in April, industry professionals speculated that financing without FHA or VA might later be made available. DCHFA still offers buyer down payment assistance, i.e. $10,000 towards a down payment or closing costs for qualified borrowers (making less than $57,500 for individuals) who have little to no cash upfront. All loans be purchased by Ginnie Mae.