Overview Maritime Plaza Boathouse Row East M News Items
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The easternmost portion of Near Southeast is bounded by the 11th Street Bridges, the Southeast Freeway, Pennsylvania Avenue's Sousa Bridge, and the Anacostia River. Maritime Plaza is an office development at the northwest corner of the area (along 12th Street south of M) on what was once a huge Washington Gas property. Running along the water's edge, and even continuing east past the Sousa Bridge, is Boathouse Row. (image from Google Earth)
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There are two street entrances to the East M area from the west: the lovely M Street entrance (showing the equally lovely 11th Street Bridges)... (10/03)
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... and the lovely O Street entrance. Now we know why this area isn't exactly hopping! (10/05)
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Here's a four-step panorama of the area as seen from the 11th Street Bridge's M Street exit ramp). First, looking to the northeast, with Maritime Plaza dominating.... (11/05)
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Then the east-northeast... (11/05)
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... Then the east, where Water Street runs along Boathouse Row.... (11/05)
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... And then to the southeast, where someday the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail's construction should cleanup the waterfront considerably. (11/05)
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In some spots along the river, you can be mere steps from it and it doesn't seem much like a waterfront. (11/05)
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Then, once you get to the river bank, it's not exactly a natural delight. (11/05)
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M Street is the northern boundary of this area, and some very nice streetscaping was done to it as it runs past Maritime Plaza. (10/03)
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However, once you get past the traffic circle at the northeastern edge of the development, M Street becomes downright rural. A local developer tried to build a residential project on this land south of M and north of Boathouse Row, but could not get the necessary zoning changes passed. (10/03)
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If you continue along M Street, eventually you get to Pennsylvania Avenue's Sousa Bridge; this road continues east/northeast, but the bridge marks the easternmost boundary of Near Southeast. (8/23/08)
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Turning around under the Sousa Bridge to see the view when arriving in Near Southeast along M. (8/23/08)
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Lincoln Property Company's concept plan for Maritime Plaza. The first two phases (Buildings I and II) have already been completed, offering 345,000 sq ft office space, and housing contractors working with the Navy. Phases III and IV are each 175,000 sq ft/7-story office buildings; there are also plans for a 250-room 8-story hotel at the southwestern edge of the property. A full-size image of the concept plan shows complete development area (and you can read the text on the drawing!). It shows plans for a parking lot or possible Phase V 3-story office building on the eastern edge of the project. No timetable has been announced for construction of the rest of the project.
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M Street east of the 12th Street, with one of the Maritime Plaza buildings to the south. Plans are for Maritime Plaza to eventually add two more office buildings and a hotel. (10/03)
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A view of Maritime Plaza from 12th and Water Streets, peeking from beneath an 11th Street Bridge overpass. The proposed hotel site is on the empty lot in the middle of this photo. (10/05)
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Looking south past Maritime Plaza I--the Phase III office building will be built at the left of this photo. (10/05)
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The west fronts of Maritime Plaza I and II--despite the nice landscaping, there's no getting around the fact that two big ole' freeway spans separate this area from its neighbors. (10/05)
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Anacostia Community Rowing Center
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The Anacostia Community Boathouse Association boathouse, seen during the second Youth River Sports Day. (8/23/08)
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The second structure, for which the Association received a $300,000 restoration grant. (11/05)
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The upstream span of the 11th Street Bridge doesn't look quite so bad from here. (10/07)
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... And here's the downstream pier. (11/05)
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A wider view of the boathouse's docks, on the second Youth River Sports Day. When people tell you that the Anacostia Community Rowing Center is "nestled" between the 11th Street Bridges spans, they aren't kidding. (8/23/08) |
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A late-fall view of the upstream pier at the boathouse. (11/05)
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The entrance to the boathouses and docks, from O Street. (11/05)
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A peek inside the boathouse. (8/23/08)
Boathouse Row
As you continue east along Water Street, there are additional Anacostia River marinas
that many people aren't even aware of. In 2008, the city began work on a Boathouse Row Master Plan, seeking to "to provide upgraded public facilities, improve environmental conditions, preserve existing functions and utilize remaining land to enhance and expand boathouse, marina, dock and water recreation uses." The land, long owned by the federal government and managed by the National Park Service, is being transferred to District control in late 2008.
Looking at Boathouse Row from across the Anacostia River. (12/08) 
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East of 12th Street and south of Water Street are some District DPW facilities. (10/05)
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If 13th Street were to be drawn through to the Anacostia River, it would arrive at the waterfront approximately here, which as of now is just an open parking area with access to the water. (10/05)
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This portion of Water Street, heading east toward M, can surprise visitors with the overgrowth, so close to the riverfront. (8/23/08)
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The entrance to the Eastern Power Boat Club, at 1301 Water Street. (8/23/08)
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The District Yacht Club, at 1409 Water Street. (8/23/08)
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The entrance to the Washington Yacht Club, just before Water runs into M Street. (8/23/08)
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The intersection of Water and M streets, with a National Park Service sign pointing visitors to the various marinas. (8/23/08)
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Along the stretch of M Street between Water Street and the Sousa Bridge, work is underway on the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail. (8/23/08)
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If you continue along M Street, eventually you get to Pennsylvania Avenue's Sousa Bridge; this road continues east/northeast, but the bridge marks the easternmost boundary of Near Southeast. (8/23/08)
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Turning around under the Sousa Bridge to see the view when arriving in Near Southeast along M. (8/23/08)
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News Items Posted For This Project (Get All Latest Near Southeast News via RSS, E-Mail)
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• Tidbits From the Past Few Days (Foreclosure, Marines, WMATA Cuts, 11th Street Bridges, 1015 Half)
(1/21/10 10:35 AM) Rounding up some new and Tweeted tidbits, now that I've recovered from cranking out the State of the Hood: * (h/t "reader X") The second foreclosure sale held yesterday for the boarded-up apartment building and surrounding lots at Potomac, Ninth and L brought no bids above the $2 million starting point, so the properties will now return to the lender. An earlier auction back in October had brought a $2.461 million winning bid, but that deal fell through. The properties were originally bought by ICP Partners in 2006, along with the gray building at Eighth and Potomac, for $9 million. * Via ANC 6B03 commissioner Norm Metzger, the Marines have created a web site for their " Community Integrated Master Plan." The site describes this planning process as evaluating "community-military development partnering options" because "[t]here are unmet facility needs and security requirements at Marine Barracks Washington and a potential to meet common community and military needs through the process" and that their goal is "to use a coordinated planning process to create a win-win in meeting the development needs of the local community and Marine Corps." Now that that's cleared up, you can go to the open house they're having on Jan. 27 from 5 to 8 pm in the North Hall of Eastern Market, to "assist the planning team in identifying issues, concerns, and potential opportunities for military-community development partnering." * One of many service reductions proposed by WMATA to help close their FY2010 budget gap is to shut down one of the two entrances to the Navy Yard metro station on weekends. (They don't say which one.) The public hearing on their various proposals is Jan. 27 at 5:30 pm. UPDATE: From Michael Perkins, in the comments, it would be the west entrance, at Half and M. I wonder if this would only be when there are no stadium events? * Via the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce's Twitter feed, there will apparently be one more Lower 8th Street visioning session, on February 22. After this final session, the group will forward its recommendations to the Office of Planning on what sort of development should be emphasized for these blocks south of the freeway. * In Sunday's Post, Dr. Gridlock took a look at the 11th Street Bridges project, telling drivers what to expect as the construction unfolds, and that the "new bridges will forge a link between Maryland, the District and Virginia that has been missing since the original highway plan for the District was abandoned decades ago. And it will create a new link between neighborhoods on both sides of the Anacostia while relieving them of some of the commuter traffic that spills onto local streets." * As part of the start of work on the bridges, a raze permit application has been filed to demolish the old red brick buildings between the current bridges that housed the Anacostia Community Boathouse, whose operations are now moving up-river to a temporary (maybe permanent) home at the Anacostia Marina. * A little time spent trolling through public records shows that within the past month a bunch of the liens brought against Opus East when they liquidated and stopped work on 1015 Half Street have been settled. No indications from the new owner ( Douglas Wilson Companies) as to when construction might restart, despite their statements back in October that it would be happening soon. • Tidbits (ANC 6D, Boathouse, Georgia Ave, Cupcakes!)
(1/11/10 12:00 PM) A few items of note: * Tonight is ANC 6D's monthly business meeting, at 7 pm at St. Augustine's Church, Sixth and M, SW. But, as is so often the case, there's no agenda yet released. However, the commission should be voting on whether to support the liquor license application of Justin's Cafe, which was approved by the ANC's alcohol/beverage subcommittee last week. Other than that, the lineup will just be a bundle of surprises! UPDATE: The agenda is now posted. * The folks with A rower from the Anacostia Community Boathouse Association has started a blog to track the move of the boathouse operations away from its current home in between the 11th Street Bridges up-river to the Anacostia Marina. The move is happening because the new bridges are going to necessitate the demoition of the two existing boathouse buildings. ( UPDATED with a new name for the blog, along with a clarification) * The Hill is Home has a "Lost Capitol Hill" post about the original Georgia Avenue, SE, which is now Potomac Avenue. On these maps from the early 1900s of Near Southeast, you can see Georgia Avenue in 1903, but not in 1909. (If you haven't wandered through these maps before, they're worth a few minutes. Go to the main page, click on a section of the neighborhood, and then you can use the links to go from 1903 to 1909 to 1915 to 1921. *The Curbside Cupcake folks are venturing into Near Southeast these days, and will be at New Jersey and M tomorrow (Tuesday, Jan. 12) from noon to 1 pm. (They set up shop there for a while last Tuesday, too.) * And, while outside my boundaries, I think it's worth mentioning that Big Chair Coffee opened at 2122 MLK Avenue in Anacostia this morning--And Now, Anacostia has a pile of photos of the place, which is one of the only (if not the only) coffee house east of the river. • Construction Underway on New 11th Street Bridges
(12/29/09 11:40 AM)  On a chilly morning (with winds high enough to scuttle the planned boat tour), DDOT announced that work is officially underway on the new 11th Street Bridges, the $300 million four-year project to build three new spans across the Anacostia River to provide both expanded freeway access between I-295 and the SE/SW Freeway and a new local-traffic bridge connecting Anacostia and Near Southeast. Pile driving in the river is expected to start within the next day or two (it was supposed to start today, but the winds scuttled that, too). Engineers said it should be at least 18 months before there are any changes to the traffic flow on either side of the river. The biggest changes in the configuration of the bridges will be the new ramps allowing for access from southbound I-295 to the bridges and from the bridges to northbound DC295, meaning that much of the neighborhood cut-through traffic and bad flow on Pennsylvania Avenue should be mitigated, though residents who oppose the expansion of the bridges' capacity--such as the Capitol Hill Restoration Society-- differ with DDOT on the benefits of the project. The third span--a "local street that happens to cross a river," in the words of DDOT's Bart Clark--will be built with streetcar tracks included in the two curb lanes, and will also include wide pedestrian/cycling paths, bulb-out bridge overlooks (where you can stop and look at the view without impeding the flow), and even osprey nest perches down by the water. This span, allowing local traffic to cross the river without having to mix with high-speed freeway traffic as it currently does, will reach street level at O Street on the west side of the river, which will also make for an easy connection to the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail. And all new bridges will be built with shoulders, to help lessen backups when there are accidents. One additional change in all of this is that the Anacostia Community Boathouse operations, which are currently nestled between the existing spans, will be permanently moved northeast, to the Anacostia marina, and the old red brick buildings will be demolished. (A temporary structure is being built to get their operations moved by spring.) For the next few months, pile driving and some off-roadway clearing and minor lane shifts on DC-295 will be the extent of the construction, but by late spring or early summer there will begin to be work underway on both O Street and M Street I've added new graphics to my 11th Street Bridges page that show the plans for the new bridges. It will be an interesting project to watch over the next few years. In addition, demolition work on the existing ramps to and from RFK has perked back up again, and there will be lane closures on the portion of the freeway that connects to Pennsylvania Avenue within the next few weeks. (If you saw the variable message sign at the Sixth Street SE exit that said "Freeway to be closed on or about 1/9/2010," it was a bit of a verbiage boo-boo that was meant to alert drivers to the coming lane closures, and is being fixed.) There was a decent amount of press at the briefing (both Dr. Gridlock and Bob Marbourg were in the house, so you know it was serious), and I'll be updating this entry as stories come online, most of which will no doubt give more focus to the changes coming to the east side of the river than I have here (though I have posted some enlarged graphics that show both sides of the river). Here's the DDOT press release, fact sheet, and FAQ. UPDATE: Links to Dr. Gridlock, WTOP, and City Paper. And WUSA. (I won't bother with pieces written right off the press release.)
• Next Week's Events (Justin's Cafe Liquor License, Boathouse Lighting, ANC6B)
(12/3/09 9:17 AM) A couple events on the calendar for the week of Dec. 7 to highlight: * On Wednesday, Dec. 9, ANC 6D's ABC committee will be having its monthly meeting (in advance of the full ANC meeting on Dec. 14), and on the agenda is "presentation of plans by Justin Ross re Justin's Cafe planned for 1st & L Streets, SE." This is the first step in the (long) process for Velocity's restaurant to get its liquor license, although I haven't yet seen an announcement/posting for their official ABRA hearing (maybe it'll be in tomorrow's DC Register). The meeting is at 7 pm at King Greenleaf Recreation Center, 201 N Street, S.W. * The Anacostia Community Boathouse Association will be having its annual Boathouse Lighting and Awards Ceremony on Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 6:30 pm. This year's honorees include Tommy Wells, winner of the ACBA's "Champion" Award, who will get to flip the switch to turn on the holiday lights. The boathouse is at 1115 O Street, SE, nestled between the two spans of the 11th Street Bridges.
• Reminder: Youth River Sports Day on Saturday
(8/7/09 10:00 AM)
• 11th Street Bridges Open House (+ Boathouse News)
(7/31/09 1:02 PM) On Wednesday, August 19, there's going to be an 11th Street Bridges Open House, billed as an update for Ward 8 residents about the status of the bridge replacement project. (But I'm guessing people from other wards can come, too.) It's from 7 pm to 8:30 pm, at the Union Temple Baptist Church at 1225 W St., SE. (This is on the heels of a Tweet from Tommy Wells just a few minutes ago that says "Succesfully moved an amendment to protect Anancostia Community Boathouse Assoc. Re: 11th st bridge const." I don't know anything more right now than what that says, but if you're a boathouse patron, keep an eye out for additional details. There have been concerns and issues between the boathouse association and DDOT about where to relocate ACBA during the estimated five-year construction project, and also getting commitments that the boathouse has a location to return to when the new bridges are completed.) • 12th Street Ramp Closures This Weekend (?)
(7/23/09 8:05 PM) DDOT hasn't sent out a reminder, but I'll post it anyway: the M Street/Washington Navy Yard exit off of I-295 North, along with portions of M and 12th streets, are supposed to be closed this weekend to continue work on the demolition of the ramps to RFK. The closure times are listed as being from 6:30 pm on July 24 through 6:30 am July 27; access to the boathouses and ramps along Water Street will be open, and the 8th Street SE exit off of I-295 North can still be used. They've posted three maps showing the detours that will be in effect.
• Reminder: 12th Street Ramp Closures This Weekend
(7/16/09 7:33 PM) A reminder that the M Street/Washington Navy Yard exit off of I-295 North, along with portions of M and 12th streets, will be closed this weekend and next to continue work on the demolition of the ramps to RFK. The closure times are listed as being from 6:30 pm on Friday, July 17 through 6:30 am Monday, July 20 and from 6:30 pm on July 24 through 6:30 am July 27; access to the boathouses and ramps along Water Street will be open, and the 8th Street SE exit off of I-295 North can still be used. They've posted three maps showing the detours that will be in effect.
• Upcoming Events, and Other Linky Goodness
(7/14/09 12:14 PM) * This Sunday (July 19), there's going to be a "Grill-Off" at Nationals Park before the 1:30 game against the Cubs. Phil Bucco, who oversees the menus at the ballpark, will be competing against Teddy Folkman, the executive chef at Granville Moore's. It'll be an Iron Chef-like challenge, where the chefs won't know the ingredient they're working with beforehand. The event starts at noon, but the first-come first-served seats (in the Nats Family Fun Area) can be grabbed starting at 11 am, when the gates open. Plates will be judged at 1 pm. * On Tuesday, July 21, the BID is hosting a "Mental Mapping" event, where they're asking residents to "Sketch out your shopping route to assist in a study about neighborhood retail needs." It's at Capitol Hill Tower at 6:30 pm; RSVP to rsvp@capitolriverfront.org. * On Saturday, Aug. 8, the 3rd Annual Youth River Sports Day will be held at the Anacostia Community Boathouse, from 10 am to 2 pm. Rowing and paddling instruction, guided river tours, and more will be offered; my photos from last year's event give a taste of the activities. * This is a ways off, but SWDC Blog reports that the next ANC 6D meeting, on Sept. 14 (no August meeting) will be held in Southeast, at the Courtyard by Marriott at New Jersey and L. I've been attending ANC meetings off and on for six years, and this is the first one I remember that will be crossing South Capitol Street. * Even farther off (well, the next day), Urban Land Institute Washington is holding its third Urban Marketplace Conference and Expo, which brings together "the private, nonprofit, and public sectors to explore redevelopment opportunities and best practices in emerging neighborhoods and corridors across the Washington metropolitan region." One of the day's discussions will focus on the ballpark district (and I'm one of the panelists). Early-bird registration ends July 31. * In non-event news, Fox 5 reports on how the Nationals' problems on the field "are making the city's $700-million stadium look like a bad investment." To wit: "Before the stadium was built, the city projected average attendance at 34,708 per game and tax revenues from tickets and merchandise of $15.1 million for this season. The reality, average attendance is about 23,213, ranking the Nationals 24th out of 30 teams. Based on attendance figures through June, the city now estimates tax revenues of about $8.9 million. The office of the Chief Financial Officer says tax revenues could increase because average attendance has improved slightly since June." However, "The office of the Chief Financial Officer estimates the city will raise $50.2 million through its Ballpark Revenue Fund, more than enough to make the $32-million bond payment on the stadium with money left over. The bulk of that however does not come from the Ballpark itself, but rather from a utility tax and a business tax in the city." * Since I was out of town this weekend, I missed all the Elton/Billy hullabaloo. Here's a pile of reviews and blog posts having to do with the big show. * For your (off-topic) Real Estate Development Collapse reading pleasure, a long piece on Williamsburg, NY: "Most unsettling are the cases of the developers who seem to have vanished, leaving behind so many vacant lots and half-completed buildings--eighteen, to be precise, more than can be found in all of the Bronx--that large swaths of the neighborhood have come to resemble a city after an air raid." • Temporary 12th St. Ramp, Related Closures Coming
(7/8/09 1:17 PM) Just out from DDOT, an advisory that the M Street/Washington Navy Yard exit off of I-295 North, along with portions of M and 12th streets, will be closed over two upcoming weekends to continue work on the demolition of the ramps to RFK. The closure times are listed as being from 6:30 pm on Friday, July 17 through 6:30 am Monday, July 20 and from 6:30 pm on July 24 through 6:30 am July 27; access to the boathouses and ramps along Water Street will be open, and the 8th Street SE exit off of I-295 North can still be used. They've posted three maps showing the detours that will be in effect.
• Brief Morning Linkage (Ballpark, Boathouse Row)
(4/9/09 8:58 AM) Some very quick links: * The Nats unveiled the new statues of Frank Howard, Josh Gibson, and Walter Johnson in the Center Field Plaza at the ballpark yesterday; here's coverage by WTOP, City Paper, WashTimes, and Nats320. But the Post's art critic isn't too impressed. * The Post's Marc Fisher ruminates on the the futures of both the Nats and the unfinished neighborhood surrounding their new home: "But despite the optimism each new season brings, there is a growing unease, questions about whether fans will really support the team and whether the city's investment will provide the promised returns. Times and moods change." And Fox5 has its own look at the neighborhood in advance of the Nats's home opener.
• The $6 Billion Neighborhood (Better, Stronger, Faster)
(3/15/09 10:38 PM) It certainly doesn't feel like it's the case, so you might be surprised to find out that the District of Columbia thinks that Near Southeast is worth about $1.5 billion more than it was a year ago, at least in terms of the latest tax assessments now available. With a total assessment last year of around $4.5 billion for the blocks bounded by the SE Freeway, South Capitol Street, and the Anacostia River (to just west of the Sousa Bridge), this bump up edges the neighborhood's "worth" to just over $6 billion. A chunk of that change is coming from the first official assessment of Nationals Park, valued at $999,982,800 (geez, Mr. Tax Assessor, just round it to $1 billion and be done with it), a rise of nearly $650 million from the assessed value of just the land last year. Blocks that saw projects get completed in 2008 ( 70/100 I, 100 M and Onyx, and 55 M) got hefty bumps in their valuations, while other spots ( 20 M, the Capper blocks, USDOT, Maritime Plaza) saw their assessments go down. I created a report comparing 2008 and 2009's numbers overall and by block, though I wouldn't swear to the exactness of each number down to the penny (but they're probably close enough). As for the trend of the overall valuation of Near Southeast over the past nine years, it's still *up*: 2001: $221,096,652
2002: $428,312,487
2003: $640,209,280
2004: $771,006,345
2005: $894,123,520
2006: $1,781,481,650
2007: $2,539,618,280
2008: $4,467,137,880
2009: $6,004,334,490
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Blog Tags:
stadium, jpi, 70/100 i, 100m, onyx, square 0743nwest, monument/half st., 20m, capper, dot, maritime
• Midweek Mish-Mash
(3/11/09 1:50 PM) Lots of little things to pass along: * Per Dr. Gridlock (because I forgot to check myself), tomorrow the WMATA board will be voting to discontinue the N22 line that runs between the Union Station, Eastern Market, and Navy Yard Metro stations. The city will be replacing it with a Circulator bus that is also supposed to stop at the new Capitol Vistors Center (but will not include the daytime loop over to Maritime Plaza at 12th and M). You can read the report to the board for a summary of the public comments received on the proposed change. * Another Anacostia Waterfront Forum is being held, on March 17 from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm at the MLK Library. This month's topic is "The Economics of Developing the Anacostia Waterfront" and will feature Deputy Mayor Neil Albert, Alex Nyhan of Forest City (who works on the Yards), and others. Here's DDOT's release on the February forum. * I mentioned a few days back the summer concert series being put on by the BID; they've now released a flyer with the lineup of acts (so you can see them all on a single page rather than browsing through their events calendar). * Potholepalooza! And it's also a good time to mention that DDOT has started its own Twitter feed. * I've been remiss in not mentioning the city's new web site, consumer.dc.gov, devoted to consumer protection issues, with a focus right now on targeting unlicensed towing businesses, auto repair shops, and home improvement contractors. And DCRA has been Twittering for a while now (if you follow them you've gotten to read my pleas to get the building permits feed flow unstuck, which they took care of yesterday. Thanks!).
• Imagining the Future of Boathouse Row
(12/17/08 10:28 PM)  On Tuesday night the Office of Planning and the Deputy Mayor's office held a third public meeting as part of the planning process undertaken this year for Boathouse Row, the stretch of land along the western shore of the Anacostia from the 11th Street Bridges upstream. Much of this area has been owned and managed by the federal government for years and years, but is part of the batch of parcels being transferred back to DC (and on Thursday the mayor will be announcing was supposed to be announcing that this swap is finally complete, but the event has been postponed because of a scheduling issue with the Secretary of the Interior). With the District preparing to take control of the property, and with the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative looking to transform the city's relationship with the river, it was decided to take a step back and do some "visioning" of what this area could be if given the proper TLC. (Michael Durso of DMPED also took great pains to emphasize that there are no plans to dispose of this land to developers or other interests.) One big surprise for this newcomer was that the city does not expect to begin any of the transformation of this area for another *ten* years or so, given the constraints of large close-by projects starting in the next few years such as the 11th Street Bridges rehabilitation, remediation of the contaminated Washington Gas site east of 12th Street, and WASA's Deep Tunnel project. (And I will admit that hearing that ten-year timeframe made me feel a little less bad about having come to this planning process so late in the game!) Also, the slides from the Tuesday meeting aren't yet posted online, so I think I will wait to delve into the details of all of this until those are available. But the study has now boiled down the wants and needs of various stakeholders into two concept alternatives, one of which imagines a $38 million project, $23 million of which would be dredging to allow for deeper-water boats farther up river (at least, that's how this non-boating-savvy blogger understood it), and the other which determines uses of the riverfront and the water if dredging does not take place, at a cost of about $13 million. Both concepts incorporate sustainable design, linked open spaces allowing for activities such as picnic areas, and amenities and shared uses like a small canteen and bike racks (and perhaps a bike rental oulet). It's expected that the final report will be released in early January, followed by a 30-day comment period. In the meantime, the operations of the Anacostia Community Boathouse Association will be moving from its spot in between the 11th Street Bridges spans to the marina just east of the Pennsylvania Avenue/Sousa Bridge (outside my boundaries!) in 2009; both Boathouse Row design concepts have ACBA returning after the bridge work is completed, perhaps with an expanded presence on the land just east of the bridges. (Also, for people interested in the planned "boulevardization" of the old Southeast Freeway lanes that run from 11th Street to Barney Circle: it was mentioned that this project probably won't happen for another 10 years. But the planners did do some blue-skying of how this work--and perhaps the relocation of the CSX rail lines that also cut off Boathouse Row from its neighbors--could someday allow for this isolated patch of land to be reconnected to Capitol Hill and the rest of the city.)
• Reminder: This Week's Flurry of Events
(12/15/08 12:32 PM) Though I'm ready to give a stern talking-to to the folks who thought jam-packing the time just before the holidays with so many events was a good idea, here's a reminder of all that's happening Near Southeast-wise this week: * On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, the BID is putting on a Holiday Market at 1100 New Jersey Avenue. It will run from 11:30 am to 6 pm, and will feature "local artisans selling handcrafted jewelry, pottery, crafts, watercolors, photography, and more." * On Tuesday at 6:30 pm is a community meeting on the planning process for Boathouse Row, which I wrote about recently. It's at Watkins Elementary, 420 12th Street, SE, and is being held by the Office of Planning. There's a pile of information from the city on this Master Plan process, if you want more information. * Also on Tuesday, the city council will be having its final vote on the Taxation Without Representation Street bill, along with a pile of other legislative items they'll be trying to get out of the way before the end of the year. * On Wednesday at 6:30 pm the Anacostia Community Boathouse Association is having its annual Boathouse Lighting and Community Awards Ceremony. City Administrator Dan Tangherlini will be honored, and then will flip the switch to illuminate the boathouse's holiday lights. The boathouse is at 1115 O Street, SE (between the spans of the 11th Street Bridges). * The Capitol Riverfront BID is having its Annual Meeting and "State of the Capitol Riverfront" at 11:30 am on Thursday. * The group of urban planning students at the University of Maryland who have been studying the lower part of Eighth Street will be presenting their " Connect Barracks Row" findings at a public meeting on Thursday from 7:30 pm to 9 pm at the Navy Yard Car Barn, better known as the Blue Castle, at 770 M Street, SE. You can see the presentation from their Oct. 29 community meeting and read a little more about the project on their web site. These are all listed on my Events Calendar. I wish I could live up to my normal obsessiveness and say that I'm going to be at every one of these, but real life is intervening all over the place. • Flurry of Mid-December Meetings and Events
(12/4/08 4:44 PM) I passed along word a few days ago about the Dec. 18 Connect Barracks Row information meeting, and now there's three other events scheduled for mid-month. So get your holiday shopping out of the way to clear calendar space: * On Dec. 16 at 6:30 pm is a community meeting on the planning process for Boathouse Row, which I wrote about recently. It's at Watkins Elementary, 420 12th Street, SE, and is being held by the Office of Planning. There's a pile of information from the city on this Master Plan process, if you want more information. * On Dec. 17 at 6:30 pm the Anacostia Community Boathouse Association is having its annual Boathouse Lighting and Community Awards Ceremony. City Administrator Dan Tangherlini will be honored, and then will flip the switch to illuminate the boathouse's holiday lights. The boathouse is at 1115 O Street, SE (between the spans of the 11th Street Bridges). * The Capitol Riverfront BID is having its Annual Meeting and "State of the Capitol Riverfront" at 11:30 am on Dec. 18; I'm going to attend mainly so I can get my first peek inside 100 M Street, which will be hosting the luncheon.
• Boathouse Row: Pictures (Finally), and a Master Plan
(11/21/08 11:44 PM)  Back in August, I finally took a little time to drive down the practically hidden section of Water Street east of 12th to get some photos of Boathouse Row, the stretch of marinas between the 11th Street Bridges and Pennsylvania Avenue's Sousa Bridge. Of course, all I really got were photos of their entrances (I'm way too shy to have actually driven in), but even pictures of their gates and signs are probably of interest to most people who've never taken this particular field trip. A mere three months later, I've finally posted them on a revamped East M/Boathouse Row page, where there first are photos of the Anacostia Community Rowing Center, followed by the new images from further up Water Street. (I also tinkered a bit with my main East M page.) Of course, as I'm writing this I'm realizing that it would probably be even better if I went across the river and took photos of the row from Anacostia Park--I'll add that to my To Do list. There's actually a Master Plan underway for Boathouse Row by the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development and the Office of Planning. By doing this, " the District seeks to provide upgraded public facilities, improve environmental conditions, preserve existing functions and utilize remaining land to enhance and expand boathouse, marina, dock and water recreation uses." The DMPED info page on the Master Planning Process has a lot documents with much detail from the public meetings that were held over the summer and on Oct. 2 (which they don't seem to do a very good job of advertising, because I never heard about them). A handout from last week's Anacostia Waterfront Information Fair says that the Draft Master Plan is expected to be released by the end of this year (and I'm hearing there will be a public meeting in mid-December); the Oct. 2 meeting slides give a good summary of the plan alternatives being considered (and there's additional info on those here), along with long-range visions for the area. • Mayor Talks About Progress Along the Anacostia; Status Updates on Parks, Bridges, and the River
(11/14/08 2:56 PM) This morning Mayor Fenty held a press conference at Nationals Park with various city officials to highlight tomorrow's Anacostia Waterfront Information Fair, and also talk up the recent progress and near-term next steps for the more than $8 billion worth of economic development, transportation, and infrastructure projects in the pipeline along the Anacostia River (not only in Near Southeast, but from the Southwest Waterfront all the way up past RFK). Having sworn off taking any more photos of The Mayor at the Microphone (unless he shows up in a Hawaiian shirt and swimtrunks or something), I decided to record the 20-minute event instead, so that the five or six of you interested in hearing the remarks can do so. (It's a 2.6-mb MP3 file; the first few seconds are rough, but then it settles in.) If you listen, you'll hear how the mayor managed to cajole the notoriously camera-shy Stan Kasten into saying a few words about what's happening along the river and in the neighborhood from the point of view of the area's largest tenant. Deputy Mayor Neil Albert, DDOT Director Frank Seales, Office of Planning head Harriet Tregoning, and the director of the city's Office of the Environment George Hawkins spoke as well. There was some discussion throughout (and especially at the end) about how the slowing economy might be impacting both the city's plans and developers' projects, but the mayor remains optimistic. The press release from the mayor's office sums up the main points of today's event, but here's the Near Southeast-specific highlights from both the remarks and some other chatter of the day. First up, news of the three big parks: The city "will break ground at Diamond Teague Park by the end of 2008." (And the guide for tomorrow's fair says that the park will be completed in spring 2009, which is the same date we've been hearing for a while.) The mayor also touted the operating agreement with Forest City Washington to build and maintain the $42 million, 5-acre Park at the Yards (but you knew about this already), as well as the the agreement with the Canal Park Development Corp. to build the $13.1 million, three-block-long park. (No mention of school buses.) Then there's the bridges: Reconstruction of the 11th Street Bridges is scheduled to begin in mid-2009. (The shortlist of firms vying for the design-build contract was announced a few weeks ago.) Whether we actually see heavy equipment moving in mid-2009, or whether this just marks the first part of the design-build project is not quite clear. I was also told that the contract to demolish the flyover ramps to and from RFK could be completed soon, and that demolition would happen not long after the contract is signed. Plus, the final Environmental Impact Statement for South Capitol Street and the Douglass Bridge is expected in spring 2009; that's when we'll hear which of the four bridge designs has been chosen. As for the river itself, the city has started real-time water quality monitoring, updated automatically online 24 hours a day. There's also now the Anacostia 2032 Plan "to make the Anacostia River boatable, swimmable, and fishable in 25 years." And a Green Summer Jobs Corps was created earlier this year to "engage youth in the cleaning and greening of District neighborhoods and parks and to introduce them to green-collar job opportunities." Finally, a planning process is underway to revamp Boathouse Row, the stretch of boat clubs along the Anacostia between 11th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. (I took a bunch of photos near the boathouses a few months back, and have been lazy about ever getting them posted, though you can see a few boathouse-free shots of the environs here and here.) There's more about projects elsewhere along the Anacostia, but other bloggers get to cover those. Will update this post if there's any media coverage from today's event, and will have a fresh post on Saturday after the fair. I imagine I'll Twitter a bit from those festivities (like I did from today's); remember that if you aren't a Twitter-er, you can read my tweets on the JDLand homepage--check 'em out frequently, because I do sometimes post news there first, before I write full blog entries. SATURDAY FAIR UPDATE: They're now going to be providing free shuttle bus service from the New Jersey & M Metro entrance to/from the ballpark, from 12:30 pm to 5:15 pm. (After they heard somewhere that the Half and M subway entrance is going to be closed on Saturday.)
• Reminder: Anacostia Waterfront Community Fair on Saturday, at Nationals Park
(11/12/08 4:18 PM) A reminder that this Saturday (Nov. 15) at Nationals Park is the second Anacostia Waterfront Community Fair, with representatives from not only developers but city agencies manning booths with all sorts of information about all the projects planned along the Anacostia River corridor. It's from 1 pm to 5 pm, and will also have (according to this DDOT press release) "free bus tours to several locations being revitalized on both sides on the waterfront, such as Poplar Point, Waterside (formerly Waterside Mall), Boathouse Row, and Southwest Waterfront." And refreshments, too! (Let me also just state for the record that I was planning on posting this reminder today, even if I hadn't gotten a robocall just a few minutes ago from Deputy Mayor for Economic Development Neil Albert inviting me to the shindig.)
• Photos from Youth River Sports Day at the Boathouse
(8/27/08 9:15 AM)  Saturday was the Youth River Sports Day at the Anacostia Community Boathouse, and there was a good turnout of parents and kids learning how to row or paddle or just getting acquainted with the Anacostia River. I took a batch of photos, all from dry land. (If the captions have any incorrect terminology, let me know.) The ACBA is going to have to temporarily relocate from this spot during the five-year reconstruction of the 11th Street Bridges. They may be moving a couple hundred feet upriver to a site owned by Washington Gas (as laid out in the final Environmental Impact Statement for the project), or they may end up on the eastern side of the river closer to the Sousa Bridge. They are working with DDOT and are hopeful they can get the plans straightened out before too much longer. • Mishmash: Capitol Quarter Framing, River Sports Day, Ballpark Stuff
(8/21/08 8:30 AM) * Watch for the beginnings of framing of the first Capitol Quarter townhouses within the next few days. * Don't forget the Youth River Sports Day at the Anacostia Community Boathouse on Saturday, from 10 am to 2 pm. * Via the Post: "The Washington Nationals' ballpark has received the U.S. Green Building Council's National Capital Region's Project of the Year award. The award honored the ballpark's commitment to preserving the environment." Here's the Sports and Entertainment Commission's press release on the award, which was announced on Aug. 8. * Speaking of the Sports Commission, the WashTimes reports that they've hired their lawyers--from Seyfarth Shaw's Chicago office--as they prepare to enter arbitration with the Nationals over whether the ballpark was "substantially complete" at the time it opened on March 30. And: "While the sports commission and the Nationals are expected to enter into arbitration to resolve the issue of substantial completion, the two sides are still negotiating over a number of related issues, including who should pay for certain items such as tarps, wireless networks, and video cameras. The two sides are scheduled to resume talks on August 25."
• Youth River Sports Day at the Boathouses, Aug. 23
(8/8/08 2:06 PM)  The Anacostia Community Boathouse Association is having its second Youth River Sports Day on Saturday, Aug. 23 from 10 am to 2 pm, at their boathouses nestled between the 11th Street Bridges spans (1115 O Street, SE). The 10 member organizations of the ACBA are banding together to help teach kids (and grownups) how to paddle in outrigger canoes and dragon boats and how to row in big training barges--or you can just take a slow tour of the Anacostia River. The events are free, though the ACBA does ask you to register so they know how many people are coming. If you want more background on the boathouse operations at O Street, there's now an interesting history page on the ACBA web site. (If you want to receive day-before reminders about this event, or other events in the neighborhood, sign up for the JDLand Twitter feed. In addition to reminders and random thoughts, JDLand twitter readers get an added bonus: they knew a few hours ago that I was going to be posting about this today--it's like a sneak preview for the blog.) • 11th Street Bridges Replacement Moving Forward
(8/1/08 12:57 PM)  I'm a little late on this, but apparently on July 2 the " Record of Decision" was signed for the 11th Street Bridges replacement project--this is the official sign-off from the Federal Highway Administration on the selected design for the revamped bridges, with one eight-lane span carrying highway traffic and a second carrying "local" traffic (including perhaps light-rail, if it ever happens) between Anacostia and Near Southeast. There's a two-page FAQ about the project, if you don't feel like wandering through the entire Final Environmental Impact Statement to figure out what's going on. You can also read my entries from when the EIS was released last year for some summaries of how Near Southeast will be affected by the new configuration (or look at the low-rent graphic I created). According to the ROD, DDOT will be paying the National Park Service just under $1 million for 1.5 acres of Anacostia Park that will be used as part of the bridge project, and will also be footing the bill for some other "mitigation measures" and "enhancements" spelled out in the ROD's Attachment A. Attachment C details how the Anacostia Community Boathouse Association's operations will be temporarily relocated during construction from the two brick buildings nestled between the bridge spans to a spot just a bit further northeast along the riverfront, in the 1200 block of Water Street, SE. Attachment D is a list of all the "environmental commitments" agreed to by DDOT to avoid, reduce, or mitigate various impacts of the project. In the meantime, DDOT is soliciting Letters of Interest from those interested in doing the bridges's design/build, and is having an informational meeting on the project on Monday (Aug. 4). Letters of interest are due Aug. 13, and DDOT is expecting to release the Request for Qualifications in mid-August. They appear to be expecting to begin construction in 2009, with the project lasting five years. (I *swear* I read somewhere in all of this that they would plan to first build the new interchanges between the bridges and the Anacostia Freeway, but I'm now completely unable to find that verbage.)  The FAQ mentions that the existing flyover ramps to and from RFK (the ones that head east over M Street) are supposed to be demolished "this summer", but I've been unable to get any details from DDOT as to whether that's still happening. I'm also not sure whether that's part of the bigger plan (not technically part of the bridge replacement project) to completely do away with the current below-grade freeway to Pennsylvania Avenue and replace it with "Southeast Freeway Boulevard", running at-grade from 11th Street eastward. ( Read the EIS for more on that.) How much is it going to cost? The ROD says that a cost review meeting in December "indicated that the estimate was consistent with an 80th percentile probability that the year-of-expenditure project cost would not exceed 465 million dollars." Those of you well versed in bureaucracy-speak can translate that as necessary.
• Master Plan Underway for Boathouse Row
(7/30/08 12:46 PM) Earlier this month the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development and the Office of Planning had a public meeting as part of their work to create a master plan for " Boathouse Row," the stretch of marinas, docks, and boathouses along the west/north bank of the Anacostia River northeastward from the 11th Street Bridges. I'm only now finding out about this process, so apologies for not posting about it sooner, but you can see the documentation from the public meeting and also an earlier advisory committee meeting if you want more information. I've got a small smattering of photos of the area closest to the 11th Street Bridges, but must admit that I haven't so far spent much time venturing further along to document what's there. (I'm lucky I can keep up with everything west of Seventh Street!) • Free Learn-to-Row Clinic on Sunday at Boathouses
(4/18/08 2:47 PM)
• Waterfront Fair Tidbits (250 M, Bridges, More)
(1/26/08 7:22 PM) This afternoon's Anacostia Waterfront Community Fair appeared to be very well attended, at least during the 90 minutes or so I was there. (Even Marion Barry showed up.) There were three long tables of displays and information from city agencies, commercial developers, and non-profit organizations, and Near Southeast was well-represented-- JPI, Velocity, Monument Half Street, Williams C. Smith ( 250 M Street), Forest City ( Capper/Carrollsburg, The Yards), the Anacostia Community Boathouse Association, and the ballpark all had people on hand. (There was also plenty of swag--hope you didn't miss out on your DC WASA lanyard!) Two news items I came across: * First, confirmation that 250 M Street will start construction in either late spring or early summer, although they don't yet have any office or retail tenants to announce. * Second, the Draft Environmental Impact Statement for South Capitol Street (including a new Frederick Douglass Bridge) is going to be released on February 8, with a public comment period to follow. There are two build alternatives that would reconstruct South Capitol Street and the Suitland Parkway (and its interchange with I-295), but neither has been identified yet as a "preferred" alternative. (No design from the four options for a new Douglass Bridge has been chosen yet, either.) There will be public meetings in late February about the Draft EIS, and the web site will be updated soon with information on the draft. I'll write more about this when the Draft EIS is officially released, but it's this study that will decide whether a big traffic oval is built at South Capitol and Potomac, and whether the South Capitol/M interchange could be reconfigured into an "at-grade" intersection (i.e., no more tunnel). I should have asked about the status of the reconfiguration of the 11th Street Bridges now that that EIS is complete, but I could never get close enough to the table to talk to anyone. (See update below.) Other developments such as the Southwest Waterfront and Hill East had displays as well, but since my brain can't process anything outside of my borders, you'll have to hunt down information on those projects elsewhere. UPDATE: I'm finally looking through the pile of flyers I picked up, and here's a few timelines in the official brochure for the event (they're called "targeted schedules", so best not to pen them in just yet): * Douglass Bridge Replacement: Begin construction Spring 2010, complete in Winter 2015. * 11th Street Bridges Replacement: Begin construction Spring 2009, no completion date listed. Also, the 500,000-sq-ft office building by Forest City at the site of the old Capper Seniors building at 600 M has a Spring 2009 start date in one of Forest City's flyers. The other Yards start/completion dates in the brochures are on target with what I've written about previously (see my Yards Phase I page for details). • Add Boathouse Row to the Holiday Lights Lineup
(12/3/07 9:44 PM) Just a few hours after the Nationals turn on the holiday lights at the ballpark this Wednesday, the Anacostia Community Boathouse (nestled between the spans of the 11th Street Bridges) will have its own ceremonial lighting, as part of the annual Boathouse Lighting and Community Awards Ceremony. The awards are for individuals and groups "who have shown an outstanding committment to advancing ACBA's mission of sponsoring rowing and paddling programs that foster physical fitness and camaradarie, connect neighborhoods along the Anacostia to the waterfront, and build a spirit of environmental stewardship through increased recreational usage." Receiving the ACBA Champion Award will be former mayor Tony Williams, in recognition of his work as the architect of the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative. Not only does former Mayor Bowtie A. Baseball get the award, he also gets to flip the switch to illuminate the boathouse. And the other marinas along the Anacostia Waterfront will also be lighting their clubhouses for the holiday season. The awards ceremony and lighting start at 6:30 pm, followed by a public reception.
• For Sale Signs at 8th and Virginia and 9th and M
(10/17/07 8:40 AM) Recently a sign has gone up on the old Miles Glass building at 8th and Virginia advertising an "assembled lot sale" for eight lots along Virginia and along L, totally nearly 27,000 square feet and having a combined assessed value in 2007 of $6.761 million. The sign seems to indicate that the group sale does not include the Wrenn Barber Shop/Braiding Salon building at 1005 8th, nor the Miles Glass/Al's Diner lot next door at 1003 8th, which was bought on July 19 for $620,000 by "1003 8th Street LLC" (though I'm only now figuring out that the Miles Glass building is part of that 1003 8th lot). The assembled lot sale is being handled by real estate agent Barbara Miles, whose father was the founder of Miles Glass. (And she says that the family did take the cool old Miles Glass sign for themselves, which I'm glad to hear because I'm a sucker for cool old signage.) And another new sign has popped up on the beige two-story building at 900 M Street, advertising lease or sale of this 9,624-sq-ft lot, with Lincoln Property Company, owners of Maritime Plaza at 12th and M, as the contact. Assessment records show the owner as "Paramount Investments," but I don't know if Lincoln manages the property or if they've purchased it or what (the public version of the property sales database runs about six weeks behind actual sale dates). It was assessed in 2007 at $2.651 million. If anyone knows anything more about these sales, drop me a line.
• Design for 11th Street Bridges Reconfiguration Chosen
(10/5/07 6:10 PM) Here's some late Friday news for you: the 11th Street Bridges Environmental Impact Statement has been completed, and a preferred plan for the reconfiguration of the bridges has been chosen, at an estimated price of $465 million, taking an estimated five years to complete. No start date has been announced. You can read the summary, check out the Preferred Alternative and the other alternatives, plow through the entire thing at once (36 MB), or pick and choose the sections you want to read. When even the summary is 24 pages long, it's hard to give a quick description of what is being recommended, but here's my best shot: * There will be two new bridges built on exactly the alignments of the existing two bridges, allowing the use of the existing piers but requiring their widening to allow for wider bridges. Two new ramps will be built on the east side of the Anacostia River, providing access at last to the northbound Anacostia Freeway from the Southeast/Southwest Freeway and to the freeway from the southbound Anacostia Freeway. One of the two bridges would be dedicated to freeway traffic, and the other to local traffic, with the total number of **freeway*** lanes unchanged, but with four new local lanes and with added paths for bicyclists and pedestrians, as well as "accommodations for transit," such as the proposed light rail system. As for what would happen to the interchange with the bridge in Near Southeast, it's hard to digest, but this is what I'm seeing by looking at the diagrams in the Alternatives section (here's a Google Maps satellite view of the current bridges, which you might need): * The current on/off ramps at N Street would be moved to M Street (see page 15), with local traffic and paths to and from Anacostia being routed on the western of the two bridge spans (officially known as the Officer Welsh Bridge), and traffic bound for the Anacostia Freeway routed onto the 8-lane eastern span. This also means that the local traffic coming north from Anacostia would be routed along a newly two-way portion of 11th Street up to M. * The exit ramp now between Ninth and 10th streets would be moved to Ninth Street. * There would also be a new entrance to the westbound freeway from 11th Street (perhaps taking some of the pressure off the Third Street ramp?). (In a separate project, the existing Southeast/Southwest freeway between 11th Street and Barney Circle is apparently going to be downgraded to a new Southeast Freeway Boulevard, which would be accessed by exiting the freeway and going across 11th Street at-grade. As part of this, the sneaky little route to Pennsylvania Avenue from 9th Street and Virginia Avenue would be removed, too.) As for the impact of the reconfigured bridges on the boathouses nestled between them on the west side of the river, the EIS says that "it has been determined that construction of any of the build alternatives, including the Preferred Alternative, will not require the whole or partial demolition of either of the two ACBA buildings." Boathouse operations would have to be relocated during construction, but the documents state that DDOT is committed to maintaining the operations during this time, having agreed to provide temporary structures on a Washington Gas-owned space a few hundred yards to the north. (See Section 7.3 for more about the boathouse impact.) Finally, the document states that the bridges project will not impact the Virginia Avenue Park at 9th and Virginia. I doubt anyone is still reading at this point, so I'm going to quit while behind and hope that all sorts of media outlets give some real coverage, and take me off the hook. If you're at all interested in this, especially in the impacts east of the river that I haven't addressed, I suggest browsing the entire document. You'd be amazed how much detail is in there. There's now a public comments period, through November 20. See the EIS web site for more about the entire study process. If you're not real familiar with this area of Near Southeast, visit my East M Street page for photos and links. UPDATE, 10/11: I erred in this above item when stating that the total number of lanes would be unchanged from the current configuration; having misread the EIS wording that referred to the number of freeway lanes being unchanged. The two spans currently have eight freeway lanes, which will be the case with the new bridge; but those eight lanes will be carried on a widened version of the upstream span, and the downstream span will carry four local lanes.
• More on End of MPD Move to 225 Virginia
(9/26/07 10:22 AM) I was out of town during last Thursday's oversight hearing on space needs for public service agencies, and since The Post published a piece the next day on the big news--the confirmation that the police department's move to 225 Virginia Avenue is indeed off--I've been dragging my feet on posting my notes from the hearing, which I watched on a replay Monday night. Here's what Office of Property Management director Lars Etzkorn said in his opening remarks about 225 Virginia: "While initial plans focused on co-locating several police functions in this leased building, a review of estimates revealed that total improvement costs exceeded the $100 million provided for in the lease. Hard costs alone were estimated to exceed $150 million. In addition, there were issues with compatibility in implementing the full program in the neighborhood. These include MPD's 24-7 operations and parking demands for 658 vehicles. Currently, we are examining potential alternative uses for the space, including the possibility of using it as office space for government agencies." During questioning by Tommy Wells, Etzkorn said that he anticipates being able to come to council members by the end of October with recommendations on uses for 225; Wells remarked that the city needs to make sure that "we don't stack a bunch of uses" in the building without thinking of their impacts on the surrounding area. There was a lot of back-and-forth between Etzkorn and Phil Mendelson about whether the police move to 225 is in fact called off--I don't think it's too much of an editorial statement to comment that Etzkorn clearly embraces bureaucracy-speak and well-parsed statements, which frustrated Mendelson to no end during the hearing. When Mendelson asked if everything that was planned to go to 225 is now not going there, Etzkorn's response was "the recommendation is that they not go there." Mendelson pressed repeatedly on 225 remaining an option for various police agencies, given that there are currently no other viable alternatives on new locations coming from OPM (though lots of possible locations are being reviewed). And there were disagreements between Etzkorn and Mendelson about whether the 225 landlord has indeed been told to stop work on the buildout plans, which Mendelson said he'd been told had not been stopped but which Etzkorn said were in fact stopped but that the landlord had been asked to do some pricing of potential other uses for the space. One other tidbit mentioned in the hearing I had never come across before--there were apparently plans late in the Williams administration to move the headquarters of the Office of Corrections to leased space at Maritime Plaza at 12th and M, SE, but those were called off earlier this year. And, as I'm finishing up, I see that Voice of the Hill has posted its piece on the hearing (on their newly redesigned web site!), which also covers the issues surrounding the possible move of the MPD 1D headquarters in Southwest, since the hearing did cover more than just the issues surrounding 225 Virginia.
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Overview Maritime Plaza Boathouse Row East M News Items
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