Your Next Place

By Franklin Schneider

This is the first time this victorian-style home has been on the market since 1961. I don't think you could come up with a more powerful endorsement for a place: "we liked it so much we stayed for half a century." You know how we all know that one hilarious, brilliant, gorgeous person who are always in a relationship, and when they hit the market like every five years everyone around them goes temporarily insane and dumps their significant others and basically follows them around like whipped puppies? This house is the real estate equivalent to that perfect person! Go ahead and drunk-dial it and be like, "Forreal, I've always thought you were the only person to really get me, you know that right?!" Better yet, show up out front late at night holding a boombox over your head! Hey, it worked in a movie - it must be a good idea!

Seriously though, it's easy to see why they stayed for so long. (Sadly, they're only leaving now for health-related reasons.) I mean, they really don't make them like this anymore. This house defines authenticity - it still has the original wood floors and custom moldings, six (!) fireplaces, immaculately aged wallpaper, vintage light fixtures, all of it lovingly maintained. The ceilings are 10.5 feet high and the rooms are large and spacious, there's a rare mature rose garden, and a large, private patio.


My personal favorite was the sleeping porch - some of my fondest memories from childhood are sleeping out on the screened-in porch in the summer, watching fireflies. They're right up there at the very top with my memories of that time I threw a snowball at a car, the driver got out and chased me for two or three, and ended up having a (mild) heart attack just as he was got me cornered. True story! (And people wonder why I don't want to have kids - it's because they're evil!)

1519 31st Street NW
Washington D.C.
5 Bedrooms, 3.5 Baths
$1,785,000

Washington D.C. real estate news

DC's Record Population Growth

The U.S. Census bureau reported this morning that the District of Columbia lead the nation in population growth over the past year, as many major apartment buildings came online and began occupancy.

From April 1, 2010, to July 1, 2011, Washington D.C. grew by 2.7%, seconded by the state of Texas, which grew by 2.1% during the same period. The population, which shrank for decades after peaking in the 1940's, grew 5.7% from 2000 to 2010. The District had 602,000 people as of the 2010 census, meaning an increase of more than 16,000 people during the preceding 16 months.

Most of the District's new apartment buildings have been reporting near-capacity occupancy rates, and many more large apartment buildings are scheduled to come online over the next 18 months.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Today in Pictures - National Gallery of Art

The National Gallery of Art has a new exhibit: its exterior. The 33-year-old East Building is in the midst of a major renovation that recently included the removal and reinstallation of the marble veneer - 16,200 Tennessee pink marble panels with new supports. Each five foot wide, two foot high, three-inch-thick panel weighs about 450 pounds. The I.M. Pei design, completed in 1978, is not holding up nearly as well as the John Russell Pope design of the West Building. A "systemic structural failure" of the facade's design prompted Congressional emergency aid (too big to fail?) and scaffolding to protect pedestrians. On the upside, DC is treated to an architectural undressing thanks in part to an open, vertical-access scaffolding system. Work is expected to be completed by spring 2014.






Photographs by Rey Lopez. 
 Washington D.C. real estate development news

Low Income Housing in Shaw Hits Snag Over "Air Rights"

The Lincoln-Westmoreland apartment complex expansion long slated for 7^th and R Streets NW, next to the Shaw metro station, is being held up by a land rights issue between Lincoln-Westmoreland Inc. and WMATA.
Construction of the 56-unit complex, owned by the Westmoreland Congregational Church (UCC) and designed by Shalom Baranes architects, necessitates the purchase of "air rights" for a small 400-square-foot sliver of land presently owned by WMATA. Lincoln-Westmoreland Inc. sold this sliver of land to WMATA in the Sixties for what Robert Agus, the owner’s representative and development manager for Lincoln-Westmoreland, describes as a “token fee” (“we basically gave it to them,” he says ruefully) but says WMATA is now holding out for “fair market value.”

In their defense, WMATA Director of Real Estate Steven Goldin said that Lincoln-Westmoreland is getting the same treatment everyone else gets. "We're required to ask for fair market value" Goldin said. "It's FTA (Federal Transit Administration) regulations." WMATA can't sell the parcel outright because it contains an important access hatch to an underground section of the Shaw-Howard metro structure.

Phase one of the construction project – a $9 million renovation of the existing ten-story, 198 unit property – is complete, and Lincoln-Westmoreland is well into the planning process for the new structure, says Agus. Plans for the new complex include 3,100 square feet of retail space on the ground floor, as well as a significant expansion of the small greenspace located on the south end of the property. Developers also hope to build a playground at the north end of the complex, though the prospective site for this is a divided property co-owned by the District, which could cause problems.
As for funding, Lincoln-Westmoreland received NIS grants from the District to cover redevelopment costs, and expects to work with District of Columbia Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA) in early January to work out further financing. The units are expected to be leased at 30% - 60% AMI, the lowest income level designations. A majority of the original 108-unit building is dedicated to Section 8 housing.

The several blocks including and surrounding the project were devastated during the '68 riots and were redeveloped as affordable housing in the early 1970's.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Today in Pictures - Florida Rock

Just below Nationals Stadium, Patriot Transportation Holding Inc. and DC-based Midatlantic Realty Partners LLC, (MRP) began demolishing the concrete plant to make way for RiverFront on the Anacostia, 1.1 million s.f. of residential, office, retail and public access to the riverfront. Construction is expected to begin in 2013.




Washington D.C. real estate development news. Photos courtesy Rey Lopez.

"Ultra-luxury" Georgetown Hotel Secures Financing

The long-simmering Georgetown luxury hotel project has secured financing and is finally moving forward, with an eye towards a December 2012 completion, just in time for the 2013 presidential inauguration.

The Capella Georgetown will be an “ultra luxury” hotel at 1050 31^st Street NW, the former American Trial Lawyers Association building. The five-story building, which overlooks the C&O Canal, will feature just 49 rooms and interiors designed by German firm Peter Silling & Associates. The design also calls for a public restaurant and bar overlooking the canal, but details aren't in place just yet. The project, spearheaded by Capella Hotels and Resorts, ICG Properties, and D.C.-based Castleton Holdings Inc., recently brought in Point Ford Management Ltd., an investment firm based in Indonesia, to complete financing for the project, which is estimated in the $45 million range.

"The [financing] process was challenging because of the market," says Nick Demas, Partner at Castleton Holdings LLC. "But in challenging markets there is also great opportunity. We worked through the market fluctuations and successfully secured all the funds needed to complete the project this past July. Our lender, PNC Bank, has been really supportive of the project and our partnership. And we are very excited about our relationship with our new equity partners, Point Ford Management Limited. They are terrific partners and are committed to our program of assembling an ultra-luxury hotel portfolio. As a developer, you really can’t ask for anything more."

The Capella Georgetown will cater to foreign dignitaries, captains of industry, and other international clientele (discussion at an October meeting of the Georgetown advisory neighborhood commission touched on possible entourage-related traffic jams), and the hotel will be accordingly discreet. While the interior has been gutted, the drab office building will receive only minor cosmetic changes to the exterior – new window frames and a slightly larger canopy - in deference not only to future guests' desire to keep a low profile, but also to neighborhood preferences for aesthetic continuity. By restricting the heavy redesign to the interior of the site, the developers have sidestepped the community backlash that often follows these sorts of projects. Demas says of the locals: "We are thrilled that our plan was so well received by our neighbors, the ANC and the Old Georgetown Board." And ANC2E Commissioner Tom Birch was quoted recently as praising the developers for "turning a sow's ear into a silk purse." The contrast between this hugfest and, say, the ongoing drama of the Friedman/Schrager Adams Morgan hotel could scarcely be greater.

Still, despite Demas' demurrals, this project was never realistically going to have problem attracting financing. Hotels, especially luxury ones, have proven to be safe money through the recession, and the District hotel market has historically been one of the strongest in the nation. Local occupancy rates have held steady in the low seventies, and while average luxury rates softened in the past few years, they’ve recovered to nearly the level of their 2008 peak.

This will be Atlanta-based Capella’s second hotel in the United States (its other property is in New York), and the company plans to expand into several other U.S. cities in the near future.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Your Next Place

By Franklin Schneider


Arguably the Georgetowniest house in Georgetown. This classic townhouse is located in the prestigious East Village and has been spectacularly renovated by prestigious architect Outerbridge Horsey, a name you already know if you appreciate peerless design or if you're just into vaguely amusing names.

I almost don't know where to start with this place. It's a brilliant mix of classic charm and modern amenities, from the open floor plan to the burnished hardwood floors. There's an elegant dining room (with fireplace), a palatial sitting room, and my personal favorite, a beautiful library. I always keep books around, not just to read but also for the intellectual cachet. There's nothing like a few dozen leatherbound volumes to make your date forget about how you kept saying “mer-LOTT” at dinner.



The gem of the house, though, is maybe the brightest, biggest (Pedini gourmet) kitchen I've ever seen. Just look at it. I'm pretty sure just the island is bigger than my entire kitchen. Several French doors give out onto a huge double-lot deep garden that's probably big enough for an emergency airplane landing, or at least a spirited game of lawn bowling.

The house also features the wonderfully spartan all-white elegance of Waterworks bathrooms, which is basically the Maybach of water closets. I recently read an interview with the cofounder of Waterworks and she said one of the main reasons she started the company was because she hated seeing so many pink toilets. And in these increasingly troubled times, isn't hating pink toilets something we can all unite around?

1628 32nd Street NW
5 Bedrooms, 3.5 Baths
$3,395,000

The Art of Arts and Crafts

By Beth Herman

Navigating D.C.’s perilous permitting process, razing a house in Washington is not for the faint of heart. The rocky road to tear down and the equally arduous avenue to build anew are clearly "long and convoluted," said Chris Landis of Landis Construction.

For Landis and project manager Andrew Kerr, razing a 1930s group home on a Palisades neighborhood site was an easy decision based on a leaky foundation, extensive termite damage, floors that were not level, a basement that wasn’t deep enough and a series of random renovations over time. “There were a thousand reasons why we could not save it,”Landis said, adding the decaying house was painstakingly deconstructed for as much green value as possible.

For a consulting environmental scientist client with a Mt. Pleasant Colonial townhouse, starting over on a now pristine lot in the Palisades meant the opportunity to replicate what he coveted most about the interior of his former residence, and integrating it into a gleaming Arts and Crafts style bungalow. Initially conceived at 2,400 s.f. by the homeowner himself, who was clear and specific about what he wanted, Landis said further development of the residential design produced a 4,500 s.f. space that included a below grade in-law suite. A long time domestic employee who currently assists the homeowner, and had also cared for his wife before her recent passing, would occupy the basement space which consisted of a bedroom, bath, kitchenette, family room and laundry area. Hardwood floors and ample window wells made for a warm and sun-filled environment.

Aging in style

With an eye to universal design, or aging in place, the two-story home was designed to facilitate living entirely on the first floor. “Very rarely do you find a master suite on the first floor of a house in D.C.,” Landis said, noting that even a powder room on the first level of a row house is unique. In the Palisades bungalow, a master suite, master bath with no threshold shower and study were all key first floor components, along with the kitchen, foyer, living and dining rooms, powder room and laundry closet. Two guest bedrooms and a bathroom occupy the second floor.

In an effort to replicate the Mt. Pleasant interior and also bring in elements of the client’s beach house, which was more in the Craftsman style, Landis project architectural designer Armin Bondoc embellished existing furnishings with colorful cushions and batik throws, wall hangings and artwork from the well-traveled client’s Middle East, Indonesian and Asian collections. His wife had been an avid collector and connoisseur. He also introduced custom millwork for warmth and character. In the living room, trim, columns, crown moldings and the fireplace surround were realized in darker stained cherry, with a wider 5-inch plank rift-cut oak flooring. The fireplace is an organic-looking rough-cut onyx tile mosaic about which, Bondoc said, the homeowner had some concerns but embraced wholeheartedly upon its completion.

The study floor is also cherry, with radiant heat, and a custom cherry built-in desk and flyover shelves add comfort in a rich, soothing hue. Cabinets, bookcases and shelving are finished in a casual distressed cream glaze.

Desiring a smaller kitchen, limestone-colored Silestone countertops brighten and open the space, and a pantry compensates for minimal cabinetry. A side laundry closet precludes the homeowner having to trek down to the basement, and radiant heat rises from ceramic tile flooring.

The master bedroom was kept clean and spare, per the homeowner’s dictum, with an earthy, elegant master bath boasting three different sizes of slate tile flooring and mixture of patterns. The floor is framed in ceramic tiles redolent of warm wood for added effect, and cherry cabinetry and wainscoting in the bath complete the space. To court natural light, frosted clerestory windows open the master bath to the outdoors while ensuring plenty of privacy.

To help illuminate the long foyer—which Bondoc said tends to be dark—without the use of excessive lighting, interior clerestory windows along the wall between it and the dining room direct light through whenever possible. On the exterior, flourishes such as tongue and groove IPE decking and artisan siding by James Hardie, along with hand cut rafter ends and brackets, help define and distinguish the Arts and Crafts style residence.

Ph.D. in sustainability

As an environmental scientist formerly with the IMF, and currently consulting for the Asian Development Bank on a China project, energy efficiency and sustainability were paramount for the erudite and savvy homeowner. Manifested in such elements as an energy recovery ventilator (ERV) to bring in fresh air (often precluding the need for air conditioning), a multi-zone super high efficiency HVAC system and icynene foam insulation for a tight seal were utilized. Two-by-6 construction was also employed to locate studs further apart. A rain screen, which leaves a gap between the siding and actual skin of the frame, helps insulate as well as facilitates evaporation, and a series of rain gardens and native plantings by Landis Garden Design’s Tomi Landis takes the home’s green dimension to its ultimate destination.

Rooflines are lower than those of the surrounding neighborhood as the homeowner didn’t want an imposing home, and the structure is oriented toward the rear of the lot instead of up—not for zoning purposes but with a nod to massing and the bungalow aesthetic.

“It was really nice to work with him on the design because he knew what he wanted,” Bondoc said of the homeowner. “It’s a very comfortable home.”

photos courtesy of Sam Kittner

Washington DC real estate development news

Friedman/Schrager AdMo Hotel Rebuked by Office of Planning, May Shrink

The Brian Friedman/Ian Schrager/Marriott International Adams Morgan hotel project received a mild rebuke when the Office of Planning issued a setdown report last month criticizing the hotel design as too tall, among other things. The report went on to list several other points of contention, including concerns about the roof design, the inadequacy of Champlain Street as a main thoroughfare, a dearth of information about potential transit use by hotel patrons, and an “overall lack of information and inadequate drawings.” (!!)

The most potentially problematic of the Office's objections was the height overrun, which at 92 feet was two feet over the C-2-B PUD maximum. While the Office does have the prerogative to grant a 5% flexibility height exception, an anonymous source tells DCMud that developers are now leaning towards lopping off that two feet rather than making the case that the 92-foot height is "essential to the functioning of the project."

One possible avenue to this (speculation alert!) would be amendment of the roof design, to which the Office of Planning also took exception. Looking at the mockups, the present roof design seems to consist of multiple stacked tiers or platforms ("the rooftop would exhibit multiple heights where only one is allowed"). Amending this to a flatter, more consistent design seems like an obvious two-bird-one-stone solution.

Friedman’s plan to convert the historic First Church of Christ building at 1782 Columbia Road into an 174-room Ian Schrager-designed Edition boutique hotel has traveled a bumpy road from the very beginning. Early community resistance centered around a 20-year $46 million tax abatement the city awarded the project. With the D.C. budget in tatters and the tide of conventional wisdom starting to turn against Nineties-era orthodoxy about the public value of municipal givebacks like tax abatements and publicly-funded stadium construction (many studies have shown the economic benefits promised by builders seeking subsidies have been negligible or nonexistent), many observers wondered why a luxury hotel needed handouts. (Standard rebuttal - a number of hotels in DC received similar abatements; the abatement is a vital part of the financing package, i.e. the hotel can't be built without it; the abatement is just a discount on future tax revenues - estimated at $7 million per year - none of which will reach city coffers if the hotel isn't built.)

Local critics also wondered if the location was right for a high-end hotel, pointing out the neighborhood’s lack of access via public transportation, its potential harmful effects on area rents and, again, the narrowness of adjacent Champlain Street (some online commenters astutely observed that design mockups seemed to fudge street proportions). Friedman assuaged some of these concerns by emphasizing the number of jobs that will be created by the hotel's construction (1,500 construction jobs alone), partnering with the Adams Morgan Youth Leadership Academy to provide jobs and apprenticeships to local youth, and throwing in a 4,000 square foot Adams Morgan community center.

Overall the plan calls for a conversion of the existing church building into a restaurant and bar, with the southfacing c-shaped hotel itself being built on the church's rear parcel (now a parking lot) and on the adjacent lot on Champlain, the present home of Washington City Paper and jazz radio station WPFW.

Washington D.C. real estate development news

Lincoln Theatre Brings Films Back to U Street

The District government will announce today a plan to energize the Lincoln Theatre with an (expected) blockbuster that will run for the next 4 weeks, the first such first-run movie to have premiered at the Lincoln in many years. Landmark Theatres will sponsor The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, David Fincher's $150-million Hollywood adaption of the wildly popular book, one in a trilogy of novels by the late Swedish writer Stieg Larsson. 

 In an effort to assist the city's efforts to animate the historic building, Landmark will donate all proceeds of ticket sales to the city. Screening will begin next Wednesday, the date of the film's release, with 3 screenings planned per day. Mayor Vincent Gray and Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Victor Hoskins plan to hold a press conference next week in advance of the opening. The 1,225-seat Lincoln Theatre is owned by the District, and has been under a management contract by the U Street Theatre Foundation (USTF). One month ago the District gave the D.C. Commission on Arts and Humanities oversight of the theater and announced it would look for other operators of the site to address the site's solvency after an emergency request by USTF for $500,000 to keep the theater operational, a shortfall that threatened to close the theater. 

 Landmark currently operates E Street Cinema and Bethesda Row Cinema, as well as 61 other movie theaters nationwide, making it "the nation's largest theatre chain dedicated to exhibiting and marketing independent film." "We're pleased to help the city in its efforts to revitalize the Lincoln Theater" said Landmark CEO Ted Mundorff, who hoped the partnership would augur a more profitable future for the historic venue. Alan Zich of DCRE represented Landmark in the transaction. Once a dignified theater, the Lincoln fell into disrepair and disuse after the widespread riots in 1968, finally shutting its doors in 1981. In the early '90s, the Lincoln was restored and reopened on a limited basis. In 2007 the Fenty administration attempted to resurrect the Lincoln by letting developers compete to develop the back lot, now a parking lot, promising to earmark some of the sale proceeds for the theater, a proposal that was canceled when the District did not receive the proposal it expected. 

  Top Photo the work of Mark Podger, taken from CityStream.com 

  Washington D.C. real estate news

Your Next Place

By Franklin Schneider


This amazing Woodley Park classic is ten pounds of Old World charm in a five pound satin bag. (Note: that's a good thing.) I like bleeding-edge trendy things as much or more than the next guy (you should see how I dress) but this house has a sort of sophistication and fine craftsmanship that's timeless and irresistible.

The house still has much of the original woodwork and details and boasts beautiful seasoned hardwood floors, a vast kitchen, and a spectacular dining room. Check out the ceilings. If I had a dinner party here I'd make people eat while lying on their backs. I should start doing this anyway, just for the comedic potential. Upstairs there are six large bedrooms and 3.5 baths; the master bath is Tony Montana nice. The house comes with a two car garage and multiple canopied deck areas, because everything is more enjoyable outside. Yes, even that.

Downstairs, the basement is a fine one bedroom apartment that you can rent out to defray the cost of your mortgage, or you can just use those monthly checks to buy shoes. And really, who wouldn't want to live in Woodley Park? It's scenic and you're close to everything but not actually right in the middle of it all. (I once lived right in the heart of Adams Morgan – you know how it feels to try and sleep in a busy airport? Imagine feeling like that all the time for an entire year.) A short walk to the metro, shops, nightlife, restaurants, and the zoo, which is arguably the only place you're always guaranteed to see something more miserable than you are.

2626 Woodley Place NW
6 Bedrooms, 3.5 Baths
$1,300,000

Brookland Mixed-Use Project to be Reviewed by Zoning Commission, Finally

Shortly after the first of the year, the Zoning Commission will finally review the Planned Unit Development application for 901 Monroe Street, a 220-unit apartment building with 12,700 s.f. of street-level retail, running the length of Monroe between 9th and 10th Streets.

As the Washington Examiner reported this past spring, the "hotly contested development project" was, as of last March, "deemed too controversial by a city zoning panel to move forward just yet." A hearing date has now been set for January 19th.

The joint development team - The Horning Brothers, The Menkiti Group, and property owner Jim Stiegman - will once again attempt to move forward, with the aim being to follow close behind the 9-acre, mixed-use Monroe Street Market, a $200-million transformation south of Catholic University that broke ground last month. "We're excited about [901 Monroe]," said CEO and president of Horning David Roodberg. "It'll be a nice connection to Abdo and Bozzuto's development [Monroe Street Market] on the other side of the metro tracks."

Eventually, Brookland will become "a metro-accessible destination in itself," believes Roodberg, highlighting the continuous frontage of street-level retail bays included in 901 Monroe that will seamlessly connect to the retail corridor running through Monroe Street Market (site plan at left).

Of course, some fear that the quantity and scale of new residential and retail development in the area will render Brookland unrecognizable in coming years, while others argue that's not a bad thing.

A notable aspect of the development is that the site is a 60,000-s.f. area (below, in yellow) currently fringed with several small buildings, both commercial and residential, including a long-standing local pub, Colonel Brooks' Tavern.

The tavern's owner, Jim Stiegman, started down the path to develop, back in 2006. Last year he told the Washington Business Journal that the beginning of the end for his watering hole was in 2003, when the tavern was the victim of a bungled - and horrific - robbery on Palm Sunday that left three employees dead, and his business debilitated.

It's believed that Stiegman approached the Menkiti Group with the idea to develop, and The Horning Brothers were brought on board soon after.

Eight years later, a PUD is ready to be reviewed, and once approved, the development checklist will begin: construction documents, permits, and financing, confirmed Roodberg. If zoning approval is swift - if - construction could begin as early as the fall of 2012, said Roodberg, with delivery in 2014.

Designed by Esocoff & Associates, the building has already made some concessions, including the loss of 12 percent of its density, down to 197,000 s.f. of gross floor area (from just over 220,000 s.f. sought in the initial 2010 design). The zoning application proposes somewhere between 205 to 220 residential units, mostly 1 bed/1 bath, 150 parking spaces below-grade and 66 bicycle parking spaces. The development will also create wider sidewalks through 15-foot setbacks around the property. The architecture also bears an uncanny resemblance to the Whitman Condos (see picture below), one of Esocoff's recent residential projects.

Alternatives for community benefits offered through the project include the creation of a community park on the west side of 9th Street, on property owned by DDOT and WMATA. Developers say they "found those agencies to be receptive to the idea of a community park" due to the area's shallow depth (limiting potential uses), as it's hemmed in by WMATA/CSX train tracks.

The Brookland business community has also been gunning for "significant sign pylons welcoming people to Brookland, heavy duty mounted poles and banners advertising the Brookland commercial area, potential art/sculpture in public space, the installation of six Metropolitan Police Department cameras, enhanced landscaping and various public space improvements."

The pre-hearing statement for the PUD was filed in October, and all 147 pages are available for late-night reading.

Washington D.C. real estate development news