Development

Dupont Underground Slowly Rising

By Prince Of Petworth

Thanks to Paul Ruppert for sharing these photos and letting me know about the Dupont Underground Web site which says:

The Dupont Underground is coming – are you ready?

This visionary and ambitious development will bring to life 100,000 sq feet of galleries, multi-use flexible exhibition spaces, a teaching library, interactive archives, an arts café friendly to urban nomads and cloud-commuters as well as multi-media labs and arts-related retail. Central and accessible by Metro from all points across the city, The Dupont Underground will be a linking institution for the arts, architecture and design communities and establish a stimulating multi-sensory destination that will attract a new audiences to the city.

From the departure of deserted and forgotten infrastructure to the arrival of a stunning hub of creative critical mass, The Dupont Underground will establish the District as a place where innovation is an exciting, active and accessible part of daily urban life.

Through the adaptive reuse of the historic abandoned trolley station that lies directly beneath Dupont Circle, The Dupont Underground aims to establish a new landmark cultural institution to serve as a vital hub for innovative public exhibitions of contemporary art and design (including architecture, graphic design, new media technology, industrial, fashion, etc.). It aims to serve as a transformative incubator and accelerator for creative innovation and provide a physical cutting-edge locus for the diversity of the arts community to intersect. Committed not only to the current generation of artists, but to the city’s future, Dupont Underground will additionally work with the city’s public and charter schools to provide access to art programs along with apprenticeships, career guidance and professional training.

The Dupont Underground is organized by the Arts Coalition for Dupont Underground, a registered not-for-profit organization, comprised of artists, arts administrators, architects and business and community leaders working together towards transforming the Dupont Circle trolley station into a high-impact, world-class cultural destination.

I’ll be posting updates about upcoming events and fundraisers and how you can get involved. In the meantime do you think this will be a good use of the Dupont Underground?

What’s it Gonna Take for Lower Georgia Ave to Get Some Love?

By Prince Of Petworth

I’m gonna oversimplify this but in my mind U Street/14th Street, NW, Georgia Ave, NW and H St, NE were commercially decimated by the 1968 riots. U Street/14th Street, NW has had an amazing renaissance. H St, NE is slowly on it’s way to an amazing renaissance. Georgia Ave, especially lower Georgia Ave is lagging very far behind. [ DC Mud recently highlighted some of the avenue’s woes.] So I have a couple of questions – is it gonna take the installation of street cars for lower Georgia Ave to become an attractive investment? Is lower Georgia Ave not gonna be touched by investors until H St, NE gets saturated and/or becomes too expensive?

My mind is rambling so bear with me. I walked around H St, NE over the weekend and during the day, to me, it felt absolutely deserted (H St itself not the surrounding neighborhoods). I suspect that feeling/reality may change when some of the street rail construction is cleaned up. So an unrelated question is – do you think H St, NE will ever have some daytime attractions or do you think it will remain a nighttime only destination?

Ed. Note: I think the new H St, NE signs in the photo above look fantastic.

Dear PoP – What’s Up With Columbia Heights Streetscape?

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo from PoPville resident

“Dear PoP,

do you know what is going on with the sidewalk expansion/ road narrowing along 14th st and specifically at the park rd and monroe st intersections. i’ve noticed that they’ve really widened the sidewalks (a bit too much) and taken away a lot of road. on the eat side of monroe at 14th st, its barely wide enough for 2 vehicles to pass and the sidewalk morphs into the road. and i noticed today that they are doing some similar on park rd. they put some curb down and right now it looks like it will only be one lane wide. the curb may not be placed yet so i could be wrong but definitely for the past 2 weeks its been mostly one lane running westbound. am i just seeing things? do you have any info about the final plan? the “columbia heights streetscape” website wasn’t much help.”

Personally, I’m all for widened sidewalks. I know some were widened on Park Road to meet ADA requirements. Does anyone know if 14th St will be one or two lanes when all construction is completed? Following is the most recent info from DDOT:

DDOT Roadway Reconstruction on 14th Street in Columbia Heights
Single Lane of Traffic Maintained in Both Directions
Final Phase Scheduled for Completion in Mid-Summer 2010

Full press release after the jump. (more…)

Building Rehabbed and Units for sale on Girard St, NW

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

Looks like they are redoing a building at 1461 Girard St NW, between 14th and 15th.
I talked to the broker this weekend and sounds like they have 9 units, with 1 and 2 bedrooms. 2 bedrooms are 1000 + sq ft, 1 bath and in the $400s. They had a model unit open this weekend and hope to have the project wrapped in a month or so.

It’s an UrbanLand Company project they’re calling “The Chelsea”.

Nice to see these vacant buildings getting fixed up. Do you think it is a positive or a negative that this building sits across from the Girard Park?

CM Graham’s Office Responds to “Re-zoning for new Buildings on Harvard between 11 & 13th, NW”

By Prince Of Petworth

Tuesday’s discussion sparked many comments about the possibility of development on this lot. I received word from CM Graham’s office late Tuesday afternoon. I’ve been told that they will get back to me with more details Wed. afternoon. But in the meantime to clear up some people’s concerns, following is a brief update from CM Graham’s Communications Director Brian DeBose:

“This project has been a dream of the Carlos Rosario group, for about 5 years. Nothing has come of it to this point. This is a preliminary early first step. The school’s lease gives them some management control and authority over the use of the land. They have retained Holland and Knight [law firm]. And it is Holland and Knight who sent out the notice, but they have to by law make clear that the city owns the property.”

In other words, the original letter was not sent by the city but was sent by the law firm hired by the Rosario group. I will be following the proposed development of this site very closely. Should any meetings be scheduled or more details be released I’ll be sure to update.

900 Block of H St, NE Getting a 7-11. How long till Construction Begins?

By Prince Of Petworth

A couple of weeks ago DC Mud reported that:

“The H Street Connection, a 433,000 s.f. residential and retail project that will fill two full blocks along H Street, cleared a major hurdle in its path toward District approval. Developer Parcel Seven Associates (a.k.a. Rappaport Companies), has been given approval recently by the Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC), an event that is certain to make its stock go up when the project goes before the Zoning Commission (ZC) for review.”

When walking by that strip on the 900 block of H St, NE I happened to notice that there was a sign saying that a 7-11 was coming soon to 957 H St, NE. I wonder if that is an old sign or if a 7-11 really is coming before major construction begins. It actually got me thinking about how long it takes many of these projects to kick off after we’ve heard about them. When do you think this section of H St, NE will likely get developed? 5 years, 10 years? More, less?

I started thinking about it after I passed the old Kelsey Gardens spot on 7th Street, NW and realized there has been no progress there after hearing about all the plans. And also the nearby O St. market for that matter…

Letter From Linda K. Argo, Director DCRA, About Uptown ARTS Overlay District

By Prince Of Petworth

Last week week we had a huge discussion about “no New Building Permits or C of Os will be issued to eating and drinking establishments in MidCity (14th and U Streets, NW)”. The Director of DCRA, Linda Argo recently sent out a letter to clarify the situation. She writes:

“Also, it is very important to note that the Office of Planning is finalizing recommendations to the Zoning Commission to increase the 25% cap on eating and drinking establishments, as well as how the cap is calculated. These proposed amendments will be submitted to the Zoning Commission by April 26, 2010.”

Word on the street is that the increase could go up to 50%.

See full overlay map here – Uptown ARTS Overlay District

Full letter after the jump. (more…)

Dear PoP – “Re-zoning for new Buildings on Harvard between 11 & 13th, NW”

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

The residents of 13th street between Girard and Harvard just got a letter from the City saying that they are planning on building a 5-story high residential building…they reference “affordable housing”…where the parking lot of the Carlos Rosario school is. They have to re-zone to do so, as it is currently zoned for homes no higher than 3 stories, etc. It hasn’t yet been cleared by the zoning board…but since the city is behind it, it likely will. I’m not exactly sure this neighborhood needs more high rise affordable housing complexes…”

The letter says:

“The public benefits and amenities of the project include, among other things, senior housing, affordable housing, expanded programs of the Carlos Rosario School, which focuses on adult eduction for the immigrant population of the city.

You can read the full letter here – Notice of Intent to File a Zoning Application 4-6.

If movement occurs on this lot – do you think senior and affordable housing would be a good fit?

Dear PoP – Movement at 11th and Park Road, NW House

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

I noticed a party of 5 people entering the vacant (and what appears somewhat renovated) large tan house located on the corner of Park and 11th (across from Red Rocks). It looked like they were being given a tour.

Do you know the current status of this building? I’ve assumed for a while renovations were made at one point (all the windows are brand new), but I assumed the owner had gone under and ceased operations.

With the building adjacent building at 11th and Monroe rumored as purchased, I’m guessing this would make this property very worth while.”

Thanks to Kevin Wood for letting me know that the property is back on the market. You can see the listing here. It’s yours for $1,500,000.

DDOT Roadway Resurfacing on 14th Street in Columbia Heights

By Prince Of Petworth


Photo by PoPville Flickr user Jess J

From a DDOT press release:

The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) will begin roadway repairs as part of the final stage of Phase II of the Columbia Heights Public Realm Project. Crews are scheduled to begin a three week pavement excavation and asphalt paving project starting in the center lanes on northbound 14th Street from Park Road to Monroe Street, NW, weather permitting.

Construction crews will begin placing concrete traffic barriers after 9 a.m. on March 26 to cordon off the work area.

A single lane of traffic will be maintained at all times, in both directions. Motorists should be aware of transitions and lane changes due to the construction.

Businesses along this busy commercial corridor will remain open during construction with unrestricted access.

The Metrobus stop at Park Road and 14th St. will be relocated temporarily to north of Monroe St.

DDOT Traffic Control Officers (TCOs) will be positioned at the intersections during am and pm rush-hours to help facilitate traffic. Flagmen and Variable Message Signs will be utilized to assist in directing the flow of both pedestrian and vehicular traffic.

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