14th & Wallach Residential Project Going for 2nd Try

Architect Eric Colbert will take his revised design for L2 Development's residential and retail project at 1905-1917 14th Street NW back to HPRB this week, two months after the rejection of his initial design.

This time around, the U Street Neighborhood Association made a motion, on August 11th, to "provide a letter of support [for the project]."

In early August, Wallach Place residents - many of whom opposed the project at the HPRB meeting in July - were also largely in favor. Craig Brownstein of U Street Dirt said, "Almost uniformly, the Wallach folks found the new iteration of the design a marked improvement. It was a huge step forward."

On August 15th, the Design Review Committee of ANC1B supported (6-1) a motion to recommend that the ANC give its full support of the revised design at its meeting on September 1st, which it did. However, as noted in the Design Review report, committee member Joel Heisey felt that the "Georgetown red brick is out of place on 14th Street" and requested that there be a consideration of "something more in keeping with the limestone and beige appearance of most of 14th Street’s structures."

Steve Callcott, HPO staff reviewer for the project, has recommended the HPRB approve the revised conceptual design, but continue to work with Colbert on "the storefront design, development of window specifications, and detailing of the masonry and metal cladding."  Callcott also praised the revised design: "Both in massing and design, the compatibility of the project has been significantly improved. With slight reductions in the building mass and the use of different architectural vocabularies, the weight of the building is broken down into smaller scaled elements that will coexist much more compatibly with the surrounding smaller historic buildings."

Although the building's height (7 stories) and 16,000 s.f. footprint remains unchanged, an approximate reduction in mass of 4,000 s.f., due to more significant step-downs, has taken the number of residential units from 154 to 144 units.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

New Plan for Oldest Apartment in DC

In the past five years, the 123-year-old Harrison Flats at 704 3rd St, NW - the eldest conventional apartment building in the District - has changed ownership three times; a change that has brought three different plans for restoration and reuse of the historic landmark to the Historic Preservation Review Board.

The latest plan, by current owner the Zuckerman Brothers Inc., is for a 12-story hotel with ground-floor restaurant and/or bar (rendering from ANC 6C meeting posted in June) designed by R2L:Architects.

In June of 2010, the Zuckerman Brothers purchased the property for $8.5 million. The plan will be reviewed by the HPRB this Thursday, the 22nd. ANC 6C approved the project in June, when presented by Goulston and Storrs' Andi Adams, R2L's Sacha Rosen, and owner Stuart Zuckerberg.

Two previous plans, both approved by the HPRB, were submitted in 2006 and 2008 (11-story office addition). Tim Dennee of the HPO, said that the three proposals in the last five years have been for "additions of roughly the same size, but the amount of demolition proposed has increased each time." In large part, this is due to significant deterioration of the building within the last seven years; resulting in much of the property having been deemed structurally unsound by an engineer. Dennee wrote in his report, "The condition of the building has declined dramatically in the years since the staff first toured it (about 2004)."

Tim Dennee's staff report states that although the Harrison was designed as apartments, the federal government leased the building in 1889 to use as an executive office for the Census Bureau, a move which resulted in the north addition "structured for office loading and to be 'fire proof,' with a system of steel columns and beams supporting brick and concrete floor arches, [whereas] the original, south section had been conventionally framed with wood."

Designed by John C. Johnson and Charles E. Gibbs, in 1888, the 5-story building (with basement level that served as a cafe around the turn of the 20th century) is an example of Romanesque Revival architecture. As use of the Harrison Flats has evolved over the past century, some may know the building as the "Astoria" (as it was renamed in 1899) or the "Canterbury" (in 1941).

Now boarded-up, and vacant for the past eight years, the property is currently being used by a small contingent of the District's homeless population.

Update: Renderings from the ANC meeting in June show the design before slight changes, requested by the ANC, were made to the project by the development-and-design team and re-presented to the ANC in September.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Your Next Place

By Franklin Schneider

This fantastic house is perfect for a family; bright, expansive spaces, a massive deck and fenced-in yard, and it backs right up to Archibald-Glover Park. Totally close to everything, but feels like a country house. If it was any more perfect it would be Emma Watson.

Inside, there are acres of gleaming hardwood floors, and oversized windows. The open floor plan gives the house a real sense of flow; no matter where you are in the house, you could quickly and easily find a family member to annoy. (“Hey Dad, do you ever wish you dated more before you got married?” I actually asked my father this question one time; he didn't even answer, he just stared straight ahead like a POW being tortured.) This house is huge, inside and out. Five bedrooms and 3.5 baths in, and a backyard that seems as big as a football field. Beyond the fence is the lush greenery of the park, bisected by a burbling little creek. The previous owner actually used stone recovered from the creekbed to build a fireplace mantle in the house. Where else in DC are you going to be able to do something like this? When I first moved to Shaw, years ago, my uber-artsy girlfriend at the time built a mobile out of crack vials from the alley behind our rowhouse. Yeah, not quite the same.

There's also a crap ton of parking, and a rear gate that leads to a dog park, tennis courts, a playground, and some other stuff that I couldn't see because my vision had suddenly clouded over with a bright green fog of pure envy.

3310 Idaho Avenue NW

$1,193,310

5 Bedrooms, 3.5 Baths

Resurrection: Coming Home to Two Hundred Years of Military History

By

Beth Herman

En route from France on the USS Olympia, the body of World War I’s Unknown Soldier passed through the history-imbued Washington Navy Yard on its way to the Capitol Rotunda, and ultimately Arlington National Cemetery. Created to build and maintain ships more than 200 years ago, and becoming the world’s largest naval ordnance plant by World War II, the Navy Yard—and especially its 221,500 s.f. foundry building — were home to the design and construction of weapons used in every war from 1883 until the 1960s, when the Yard became the ceremonial and administrative hub for the U.S. Navy.

"We focused on that history—so much history,” said Sabine Roy, owner and principal of SR/A Interior Design LLC, when the firm was commissioned by developer Forest City Washington, with SK&I Architectural Design Group, to turn the brunt of the landmark building into a singular residential property: Foundry Lofts, 301 Tingey Street SE. “We based our design on research with the naval archives, the Library of Congress, historical photographs, antique documentation–whatever we could do,” she affirmed.

Informed by 200 years of military lore, Roy said the structure’s context allowed the firm to be more “modern and urban” in its interior design concept, noting a combination of new construction (which this facility was not) and modern may result in an environment that is too cold. “But with an historic building, you already have this warm, worn look,” she explained, adding it’s been “humanized.”

That said, attracting active professionals to its 170 units and amenities was a programmatic priority, high on the list of design determinants. Boasting elements such as a sunken conversation area in the concrete lobby and a courtyard—where war ships were once fashioned—reincarnated into a sleek social club, the addition of an outdoor fireplace, cinema, and rooftop garden terrace with seating and art make Foundry Lofts a rare residential experience.

Anchors away

Fraught with pendulous columns that supported an industrial floor plan, the building was also higher than the street and not meant to be entered from the sidewalk, but rather the water, so ships could be launched, Roy explained. Consequently the concrete lobby floor had to be elevated a few feet to street level, though a designated seating area, replete with new fireplace and modern art, was left below grade for a sunken effect.

According to Roy, the foundry had been constructed as a “rectangular donut with enormous courtyard in the middle for ships.” With SK&I Architectural Design Group creating 170 residences—33 of them newly-constructed two-level penthouses on the 5^th and 6^th floors, all are designed to discharge on one side into a windowed corridor that directs residents’ attention to the 4,400 s.f. social courtyard below.

An indoor courtyard-adjacent space, designated as a party room, was extended further into the courtyard, with a modern outdoor fireplace—glowing winter and summer— visible from inside as well. Atop the party room, a rooftop terrace with metal sculptures and Asian-style grasses create a Zen garden effect, according to Roy, with soft, strategic lighting limited to showcasing the art. From a large stair, residents can descend into the courtyard to play bocce or relax in hammocks, or on colossal square ottomans that seat up to five, and which are lit from the center. Old movie nights at the courtyard’s outdoor cinema will be a lot of fun, Roy suggested, envisioning classic black-and-white movies and martini parties for residents and their guests.

Columns, canons and carpeting

“When we entered the building,” Roy said of the team’s initial foray in early 2010, there was nothing new though it had been cleaned up. You just saw the structural columns and old heating systems and exterior walls.” All in all, she said, it was “an emotional experience when you think about the consequences of what was built here—what it did to the rest of the nation.”

In an effort to retain much of the historical fabric, a legion of pendulous structural columns was left alone including one “smack in the middle of the lobby,” Roy said. A challenge due to their size and girth, the designer said the lobby column, specifically, became a focal point, with a dressing added to accommodate adornments such as flowers. A Civil War-era canon unearthed during renovation that had later seen action aboard the USS Raritan was installed in the lobby, and will help distract from the behemoth column. The juxtaposition of the historical lobby with contemporary fabrics, furniture and modern art in the space is a further manifestation of Foundry Lofts’ aesthetic.

With dislodged historical components like the repurposed canon integral to the building’s design and sustainability, the latter is achieved on many levels. Roy said all elements—carpeting; furniture; paint; backings—are recycled content or post-consumer recycled material. The party room is bamboo, and courtyard flooring is earth-friendly Trex.

According to Forest City Washington’s Senior Vice President of Development Ramsey Meiser, Foundry Lofts’ mixed-use component includes three retail spaces, two of which have been leased to Pot Belly’s and Kruba Thai and Sushi, which will be open in the first quarter of 2012.

“This building is so unique in its adaptive reuse of an existing building,” Meiser said, noting he is buoyed by marketplace reaction and the results of preleasing efforts for residences which will be available at the end of October or beginning of November of the current year.

LCOR, JBG: More Density in North Bethesda

LCOR plans to break ground before the end of the year on its third building - a 19-story, 341-unit apartment - within its recently enhanced North Bethesda Center. Construction of the residential building, the "Aurora", will commence before the end of the year, confirms LCOR's vice president Mike Smith.

JBG is also looking to begin construction on its own North Bethesda project - North Bethesda Market II (NoBe II, rendering to the right) - shortly after the first of the year. JBG's 4.4-acre site plan was submitted on August 24th and is now under review. JBG development executive Greg Trimmer indicated that the developer is just waiting on the county. "We are cautiously optimistic we will get full site approval early in 2012, and plan to begin construction immediately [after approval]."

NoBe II is located north of JBG's North Bethesda Market; there could be a III and IV as JBG owns more land to the south and west of the two sites, but for now, NoBe II is its sole focus in the area. NoBe II will be completed in one phase, taking 2-to-3 years, said Trimmer.

Meanwhile, LCOR's focus for the moment, the Aurora (rendering below), was designed by WDG, and will be built by BE&K; the building's site plan hearing will be held on the 22nd.

Both LCOR and JBG tacked on significant density to their North Bethesda projects in the past year, after the White Flint Sector Master Plan was passed by the Montgomery County Council in March of 2010.

Due to the increased zoning envelope permitted by the new White Flint Sector Plan, LCOR upped the square footage of planned construction on its 32-acre site by 40 percent: from 2.7 to 4.5 million square feet. JBG did the same, also increasing its F.A.R by 40 percent: from 2.4 to 4.0.

Revisions to LCOR's development have been a joint effort, having partnered with FX Fowle earlier this year. FX Fowle was brought on to assist with creating a new, enhanced vision for North Bethesda Center and give it a "fresh look," said Smith.

The enhanced North Bethesda Center plan by LCOR and FX Fowle is for approximately 1.4 m s.f. of office, 310,000 s.f. of retail, 2.4 m s.f of residential, a 350,000 s.f. hotel, and a 15,000 s.f. library. Initial plans by LCOR were to construct eight buildings on site, however Smith said that now the development team aims for "up to 10 high-rise buildings for the property." A Site Plan for 7.4 acres (3 parcels) of the development was submitted on July 29th and is now under review.

Both Trimmer and Smith applauded the foresight of Montgomery County in passing the new Sector Plan last year. Trimmer also gave his company, JBG, a nod, when questioned whether creativity was more apt to flourish on projects located outside of the District; Trimmer said, "I have to credit JBG. We've made a distinct strategic decision to increase the distinctiveness of our architecture and differentiate our projects."

What Trimmer refers to at the moment, North Bethesda Market II (pictured above), was designed by Studios Architecture and is comprised of a "striking" 339-unit residential tower (300-feet tall, surpassing its own accomplishment to the south), a 6-story office building, theater, restaurant, two retail spaces and a public plaza.

Other developers with investments in the area, and looking to go dense are: Federal Realty, with its 24-acre Mid-Pike Plaza (Site Plan for 16.3 acres was submitted on August 3rd) and Promark, with its 11-acre North Bethesda Gateway (no Site Plan submitted yet).

In January of this year, the Montgomery County Planning Board approved the sketch plans for all three of the aforementioned projects: North Bethesda Market II, North Bethesda Gateway and Mid-Pike Plaza. The sketch plan submission is a relatively new step in the approval process (not as exciting for developers) that came with the new White Flint Sector Plan.

Trimmer added, "White Flint is a very good development opportunity; it has strong existing amenities and a large portion of underutilized land."

Another reason developers might eye the North Bethesda area is the 10-percent commercial property tax increase (part of the new Sector Plan) that will help finance an estimated $208 million in construction (and infrastructure improvements) during its lifespan. Last December, Montgomery County officials projected that new growth in the White Flint area could bring in as much as $6.8 billion.

update: Greg Trimmer with JBG, not Trimmen

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Zoning Commission Hearing Petworth Safeway Case Today

The Zoning Commission will consider approval of the Petworth Safeway PUD and related map amendment during a public hearing today.

ANC 4C has submitted a letter in support, highlighting the 9-1 vote in favor of the project at the ANC meeting on May 10th. An adjacent neighbor also submitted a detailed letter in support (see case report for details).

Co-owners Duball and Safeway seek to rezone the property at 3830 Georgia Avenue, NW to allow for a mixed-use, Safeway-anchored, 5-story multifamily residential project designed by Torti Gallas and Partners, expected to be underway this time next year.

Marc Dubick, president of Duball, previously worked with both Torti Gallas and Safeway as the project executive for CityVista DC in Mount Vernon Triangle.

Dubick said after a slew of community meetings, he feels there is substantial support for the Petworth project and hopes for Zoning approval today in order to move one step closer to commencing the construction document/permitting process; Dubick said 18 months of construction on the project will begin nine months from the time full approval is given.

The 1.56 acre property being developed is at the southwest corner of Georgia Avenue and Randolph Street, NW, one block from the Georgia Ave-Petworth Metro stop.

Replacing the "stinky" Safeway, will be a new 62,400 s.f. Safeway and 86 below-grade parking spaces, both components of the development will be owned by Safeway; Duball will own the 5-story, 220-unit residential building and 135 parking spaces devoted to residents (located below the Safeway parking pad).

Washington D.C. real estate development news

CSX Assessing Southeast Tunnel

Last night, a public scoping meeting was held in conjunction with the commencement of a District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Environmental Assessment (EA) of the CSX Transportation Virginia Avenue Tunnel project, a nearly $160-million rehabilitation of the tunnel between 2nd and 11th Streets in Southeast under a section of Virginia Avenue. Starting now, people will be able to officially lodge their comments/questions/concerns about the project, up until October 14th. Further down the line, another meeting will be held to reveal more specifics of the project, and to consider alternatives based on information gathered from impact statements and studies. 

 The project's immediate concern, the EA process - to access any potential impacts of the project - is in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), and could take approximately one year to complete. If all goes well, the 4-to-6-year improvement project, announced in 2009, will unearth and re-construct the now buried, century-old freight line; proposed improvements have been stated as being done "to address current infrastructure needs as well as community and safety concerns" and allow for double-stack intermodal container freight trains. This past May, CSX committed to an additional $160 million investment - nearly the amount needed to get the Virginia Avenue Tunnel project off (or more literally, into) the ground - bumping up CSX's total investment in the greater National Gateway initiative to around $575 million. The entire National Gateway project is an $850-million public-private partnership being done to improve freight transportation between the Mid-Atlantic ports and the Midwest and Gulf of Mexico - a massive project which got its land legs a year earlier, in May of 2008. 

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Builders Break Ground on New Northwest One Residence in NoMa

Yesterday, developers broke ground on the first residential project Northwest One New Community at 2 M Street, NE, a 12-story, 314-unit residential building in NoMa. Led by developer William C. Smith + Co. along with The Warrenton Group, opening of the $92 million building is expected in late 2013.

Nearly a third of the units will be designated for low-income tenants, with 59 units set aside for former the Temple Court residents (30% of AMI), demolished to make way for this project, and 34 units available for those making 60% of AMI, with retail on the first floor.

Construction was initially expected to be underway in March, but was delayed due to lack of funding. Northwest One was approved by the City Council in 2005, began gearing up in 2008 and the new Walker-Jones School, followed by the first residential component, the SeVerna, which broke ground last summer. 2 M Street was designed by Eric Colbert & Associates.

There will be 4,100 s.f. of ground floor retail and an 8,000 s.f. courtyard above two levels of underground parking, offering between 184 and 192 spots. The 290,000 s.f. building will be concrete, "clad with masonry, decorative metals and soaring full height windows," according to WCS. 2 M Street is estimated to be taking $82 million of the total $700 million needed for NW1, which includes in all: 1,600 units of mixed-income housing, and 220,000 s.f. of commercial/retail space.

NW1 is one of five projects being realized by the New Communities Initiative, a public-private partnership to develop areas that exhibit "high rates of poverty and unemployment, as well as blight and deterioration of the housing stock." The other four projects are Barry Farm (Ward 8), Lincoln Heights (Ward 7), Richardson Dwellings (Ward 7), and Park Morton (Ward 1). WCS Construction is building the residence.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Local Grocer to Open Second Location, in Rockville Town Square

Ellwood Thompson's, a grassroots grocer out of Richmond, Va., is opening a second location in Rockville Town Square next spring - a 15,000 s.f. grocery store offering organic and locally sourced products, to be called Dawson's Market.

The recently secured deal was announced yesterday by Federal Realty. Ellwood Thompson's had planned to open a second store in DC USA - the 500,000 s.f., big-box shopping center in Columbia Heights - in 2007, but backed out in 2010 after negotiations fell flat.

Ellwood Thompson's was then approached by Federal Realty for the Rockville Town Square location; the leasing management company had previously signed (also in 2007) the financially doomed A&P for the Rockville site, as was reported by Rockville Patch, but A&P backed out of its lease last year, clearly for different reasons.

Ellwood Thompson's seems to be a likable operation: a local independent market with "a strong commitment to the farm to table movement," sourcing product within a 100-mile radius, and partnering with "small family-owned farms in [the surrounding] community." ET is the largest independent organic market in Virginia, with nearly 30 years in business, after growing from one (Eric Walters) to 120 employees.

Specifics of the new location are currently being fleshed out, such as which local farms will become partners, whether a bakeshop or cafe will be incorporated, etc. Paige Bishop, director of marketing for Ellwood Thompson's said that because the lease has just been signed, "We'll know more details at the beginning of February." And, although the goal is for an April opening, much will depend on what kind of winter descends on the area between now and then.

With strict standards for offering only organic and natural products with the underlying mission stated as being "to help people discover and celebrate a healthy relationship with food," managing the birth of the Rockville operation is a high priority and further expansion isn't in the cards, or on the table, confirmed Bishop, "We have no other expansion plans."

Although its easy to figure that a charismatic local character named Mr. Ellwood Thompson opened the store back in the '80s, an assumption that would be wrong - the market is named after the streets that intersect at its location: Ellwood Avenue and Thompson Street.

Rockville Town Square was completed in 2007, and Jill Powell, senior marking specialist for Federal Realty confirms there are "some small shop leasing opportunities [still] available at Rockville Town Square."

Maryland real estate development news

Northwest of Heaven

By Beth Herman

It's off of Foxhall in NW D.C., but for preeminent interior designer Thomas Pheasant, the property is about as close to heaven as he can get.

Purchased three years ago, the designer's 6,000 s.f. residence - including a formidable Greek Revival-style pool house he built — took 18 months to renovate, becoming “almost unconsciously a kind of retrospective of years of (his) designs,” Pheasant said. Recognized worldwide for his noble furniture collections that span two decades, the fourth generation Washingtonian has filled his residence with an amalgam of his own furniture and collected artifacts ranging from antique mirrored consoles, tables and chairs, to a restored 1930s French Baccarat chandelier discovered in a Paris shop, and small bronze accent tables in the bedroom.

“There were certain pieces I designed for the house—sort of the centerpieces of each room, but most are from designs I did 15 years ago through my studio, or for my Baker collection, or my McGuire collection,” the designer said. Items culled from storage, due to size constraints of a prior home in Georgetown, also include art acquired over years of travel that gild the Foxhall-adjacent residence. “It was amazing to me how everything just went into that house,” Pheasant said.

Jettisoning the former 1,800 s.f. Georgetown dwelling in which he and his partner had lived for a considerable amount of time, the designer had undertaken a challenging, two-year search for real estate that moved him.

“When I saw that first house in Georgetown,” Pheasant reflected about the previous space, “I thought I could just turn it around in a year and move out. But because of my work, I’m the last one on my list of things to do.” He was there for 21 years.

With regard to his current residence, maintaining that he could have gone into a modern house or a Georgetown townhouse, Pheasant said that because he travels so much he’d specified absolutely no pool and no big garden to maintain as priorities. When the agent called to describe a house that was clearly in the wrong neighborhood, with a pool and behemoth gardens to boot, something about its immense privacy superseded everything else and Pheasant bought it. “The backyard has the potential to transport me far away from the city,” he recalled of his decision, adding that visitors are quick to embrace the property’s serene, pastoral qualities.

Character reference

Referencing an eclectic national clientele with enormously varied tastes, Pheasant’s transformational philosophy involves making a home a better version of what someone bought—because homeowners usually have a significant, “romantic” connection to it, the designer said. “It’s important to do this without changing the home or making it a different style, so I try to listen to what people are saying about the way they want to live,” he explained. Applying those principles to his own residence, Pheasant said he was initially chagrined that the property was only 10 or 12 years old.

“If I was going to move into a new house, I’d have wanted to be part of the design of it with the architect,” he said, reiterating that the property’s privacy factor is what trumped everything else and ultimately sold him. That said, making it a better version of what it was included infusing it with “strong character”—or the kind of soul found in an older home.

Gutting the interior to produce results in a modern classical vein, Pheasant proceeded to open up the interior to the outside.

A center hallway designed to flow from the front straight through to the back of the house allows one to see all the way through to the garden upon entry. The kitchen, dining room and living room all empty into the center hallway (the former can be isolated when the urge strikes), with mahogany doors and ivory paneling in each room, along with other shared finishes, providing an elegant common denominator.

With an eye to green building, Pheasant said all millwork, wood doors and furniture from his collections are recycled and/or sustainable materials. A NASA-developed invisible film called V-KOOL, blocking the majority of the sun’s heat and fading properties, was utilized on the multitude of south-facing windows and skylights. Radiant heat provides comfort from the ground up in winter. Expensive to install, it modifies heating costs.

Of Paris, Peace and Palettes

On a trip to Paris 10 years ago, the designer said he ran into a friend who had just purchased an apartment.

“I wasn’t looking for a place,” Pheasant said, “but it struck me that I was working all the time, and I’d never even had the time to look for a getaway house somewhere in Middleburg as I’d hoped. My life was going by so quickly.”

A meeting sans “seriousness” with a real estate agent nevertheless produced an apartment in deplorable condition off of Boulevard Saint-Germain, the property stripped of its moldings and character. Seduced by its light—banks of windows existed on both sides which most French quarters do not possess—as well as French doors that looked out across the Seine toward the Louvre and Basilique du Sacre-Couer, the designer jumped in with both feet, restoring the apartment to its former style. “I ended up fully renovating the apartment and designing a lot of furniture for it here in Washington, and shipping it to Paris,” Pheasant said, having nixed his original idea about peppering it with French flea market finds.

Noting that the palette for his Washington home is in sharp contrast to the Paris apartment, Pheasant said he looks out at green all the time from the former. In Paris, tones of grey and limestone on interior walls and furnishings reflect the surrounding cityscape, yet the same sense of balance and serenity permeates each residence.

Returning home to the lower level of the D.C. property, Pheasant created a lush library/office space that precludes what used to amount to marathon office visits on weekends. “I’d go for an hour on a Saturday and end up staying eight hours,” he conceded. The space is executed in a rich chocolate brown, which distinguishes its climate from that of the main floor.

“Sometimes I like coming home on Friday, closing the door and then forgetting everything until Monday,” Pheasant said of his D.C. residence overall, acknowledging he’s always evolving as a designer. “It’s a really nice place to relax.”

photos courtesy of Gordon Beall and Durston Saylor