Judging New Buildings – 3rd and L Street, NE

by Prince Of Petworth February 12, 2013 at 4:00 pm 25 Comments

This new rental building is called Aria on L Street. We last checked on its progress back in Oct. 2012. Like the way it turned out?

DC202

The massing not’s bad, but could the colors be any drearier? It’s a very somber aria.
- manimal
  
  dreary is right. how about some earth tones? know what a really nice earth tone is? brick.
GM

Having seen this building in person, it’s nowhere near as dreary “live” as it is in this photo. It actually blends quite nicely into the neighborhood, and is far superior to the awkward, brighter colors chosen by the new AVA apartments just a few blocks away.
- Anonymous
  
  Totally agree.
brookland_rez

I remember in 2006, there was a sign announcing a condo building on that block. After the economy tanked, it never got built and just remained a fenced off lot and sign for several years. At some point, someone spray painted on the dormant sign “Yuppies Out”. Looks like they lost.
bustyredhead

Awful colors. Also, will new building designers/builders/management stop assuming all master baths only need showers without tubs? Especially considering the rent prices.
rob

The main lobby is pretty depressing. Also, it could use some trees along L street and more brick on the facade (looks like they ran out of money)
jcm

I really like it, and I’m happy it’s something different from the usual boring DC apartment.
Joe C

Watched them build it from my apartment. We call it the square Death Star.
Craig

I refer to my previous comments.

I remain underwhelmed with any six-story apartment building with that much wood framing, and the tacked-on wooden balconies are still a distinct turnoff too. And the fact that all of their pictures, other than of the building itself, are from Constitution Square should say something.
ewillia8

I live across the street and it looked like a real cheap build throughout. These wood-framed, siding covered apartment buildings shouldn’t command the same rent as some of the other buildings in the area that use brick and concrete. Sadly, they are still charging an arm and a leg for them.
anon

not sure why people don’t like wood framed buildings… if built right they are very strong and can be much more economical when compared to concrete or brick. the builder might need to take some extra steps with sound proofing between units, but even then it might make more sense for the bottom line. I guess what I am saying is that it all boils down to builder quality and attention to detail, not necessarily the choice of building materials.
Anonymous

I think this building is actually pretty decent looking in person. Though, I have to laugh at their description on the website.

Under the “Play Here” heading all of the establishments they describe as neighborhood amenities are at least a 20 minute walk away- not around the corner. H St Country Club and Dangerously Delicious? Why not mention Boundary Road, Big Board or Le Grenier which actually are a lot closer?
- Anonymous
  
  While I don’t disagree with your general point, you’re wrong about H St. vs Boundary Road.
  
  Google says 1.5 miles to Boundary Road, and 1 mile to H street. That’s a significant difference.
  - Anonymous
    
    That can’t be right.
  - Anonymous
    
    yeah, it’s .3 miles to Boundary Road. where did you get the mile and a half from?
rf_707

Low income housing trying to look like high deisgn – Looks very massive and dreary because of the lack of windows – very closed off of from the streetscape. Looks like the projects to me.
- Anonymous
  
  It’s very reminiscent of modern-day public housing in the UK.
  
  I’m not so sure I’d want a west-facing unit. The noise and diesel exhaust fumes from the rail yard might make life unpleasant there.
brads

I don’t know if there’s another lobby on the opposite side – but the entrance on 3rd street is tiny and ugly. It’s a little white room with no artwork or decor and a sad women sitting behind a desk. I hope they aren’t finished with interiors yet.

I live a couple of townhouses down from this and I was excited when I heard the ground level would be retail space, but now that it’s not – I kind of hate this building. If I were moving to Noma for the first time – this place wouldn’t even make my top 10 list.
Nolo

This is such a tough crowd. If they use too much color (Ava), it’s ugly. If they don’t use color, it’s ugly. I’m just happy that it’s a new building that’s bringing more density to the neighborhood.
- Anonymous
  
  Oh people are NEVER happy on this board about new building. Judge judge judge, even thought I bet at least 25% live in basement apartments.
anon

I was curious about the building and I toured the property — JR 1 br, 1 br, and 1br + den.

Because it was initially designed to be condos, every unit has an astounding amount of storage. That was the biggest plus. To the person complaining about shower vs tub — some units have tubs, some do not. The JR 1br had the nicest bath — larger vanity (enough space on counter for 2 people). I suppose they think in the larger footprint bathrooms you could fit your own storage space.

I also agree that the AVA is totally horrific. Makes me cringe to walk by it. Many other buildings in the area are beige/brick (Loree, Archstone, Flats) so it’s nice that this is at least different. It wont look so out of place if the recent Uline plans come through either.
theheights

Happy to see the development, but this is another cheap-looking building that will look dated really quickly.
- Anonymous
  
  are there any buildings that don’t look dated?
Holli

Hi Everyone! There is some lively discussion on here. I like it! I am the director of marketing for WC Smith. We did not build Aria, but we are managing it. First, thank you for all of your comments. The interior design of the common areas isn’t quite complete. I invite you to check it out again in a couple of weeks.
I frequently have focus groups with DC renters. If you are really interested in providing input for the design of upcoming developments, please let me know! We would love to hear what you have to say, so we can build better homes for you! Email me your contact information and I will let you know when our next focus group is being scheduled! Thanks! [email protected]

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