It won't shock anyone who passes by here with any regularity, but the main topic was the neighborhood's current building frenzy, described as "the largest development boom in its history" (ahem), one that is expected to last at least through 2018 and that was responsible for 32 percent of all apartment construction starts in DC in 2015.

The neighborhood's population is up to an estimated 4,800 residents, with that number expected to rise above 9,000 in the next three years, thanks in large part to the nine residential projects currently under construction and at least another seven (and probably more) in the near-time pipeline.

There don't appear to have been any announcements of new retail or anything, though I do see confirmation of the rumors I've heard that 82 I Street is going to be named ORE 82.

One thing that hasn't been important up to now but will be going forward is that the Capitol Riverfront boundaries and the JDLand Coverage Area are not a 100 percent match, because the BID includes Buzzard Point and hence the coming development thanks to DC United's stadium.

Read both the slides and the report for more details, and then just keep coming back here to read about it all As It Happens.

In what is described as a response to "the office market's demand for more column free spaces and more natural light flowing into the interior offices," Brandywine/Akridge and architect HOK have reduced the distance between the edge of the building and its core to 45 feet. New terraces on the 3rd, 4th, and 9th floors have been added as well, while keeping the "strong three story presence" at Half and M "to allow the building to 'hold' that important corner."

These changes have resulted in a decrease in the building's gross area floor space of about 22,600 feet, making the building just a smidge under 247,000 square feet overall, which includes nearly 21,000 square feet of retail.

The filing with the Zoning Commission, which is technically a modification of the Capitol Gateway Overlay Review approved back in 2009, includes these before-and-afters (or, in this case, "Approved"-and-"Revised"), which of course is a guaranteed approach to getting them shown on JDLand.

As seen above, 25 M will stand in between the pending JBG project to the south and Monument Realty's National Association of Broadcasters HQ to the west, both of which are looking to get started at some point in 2016.

No hint in the filings as to when 25 M might get underway, though the big question would be whether it would be built "on spec" (like Skanska's 99 M a block to the east) or whether tenants will need to be lined up first. The filing does say though that the developers believe the new design "is a significant and necessary change that will result in a higher quality building," which will allow the project "to move forward in an expeditious manner."

The first one has already happened (oops), but there are additional sessions on January 14th, 19th, 21st, 26th, and 28th. They are all from 11 am to 2 pm, and are being held at the ballpark, entering via the Centerfield Gate at Half and N Streets, SE.

"Based on the railroad’s network-wide operational constraints, including consideration for maintaining scheduled commuter operations, the demolition work must occur during the early morning hours of each weekday: workday preparations and safety inspections will start as early as 4:30 a.m. and actual demolition activities will start as early as 5:30 a.m., continuing to late morning. This work is planned to begin on Monday, January 18, 2016, and is estimated to continue into late March or early April." There may also be overnight work on Sunday nights in late January and early February, beginning between 7 and 9 pm.

As one might imagine, this is not expected to be a quiet process.

In its newsletter about the demolition, CSX says that it has "coordinated extensively" with DDOT to optimize when the work will occur in order to "limit the impact on the community to the greatest extent possible." Mitigation measures to be deployed include installing "noise-dampening blankets" on perimeter fencing and at "appropriate locations north, south, east and west of the demolition site."

The closest buildings to the demolition site are the DC government's 200 I Street office (known to some as the renovated old Post Plant), which as you can see in the photo will have a front-row seat to the work. Then there are some Capitol Quarter townhomes only a little further away, at 3rd Street.

The company also says it will be using "best-in-class demolition equipment to minimize mechanical noise generated from the equipment itself," and that the plan is to have the demolition debris collected by trucks operating within the tunnel itself that will then haul the material westward along the path of the tracks to the open yard at New Jersey Avenue.

In addition, construction crews and vehicle operators are being directed "minimize travel near adjacent residences and businesses and restricting all possible site access to only the western entrances from H Street and 2nd Street before normal project hours, limiting or avoiding entirely any traffic at the 3rd Street entrance to the work area before 7 a.m."

And because the work can't be done in the dark, there will be temporary lighting erected as well, which is supposed to be "directed away from adjacent properties."

With good timing, the next quarterly open house on the project is scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 28 at the Courtyard Marriott, but CSX is also ready to answer questions on the work through its web site or the project's toll-free number, 800-494-1049.

Would it make you feel any better to know that in the same newsletter CSX says that the project is "on schedule" to be completed in 2018? The company says that "significant progress" was made in 2015, and that "more than half of the necessary support pilings have been drilled, 4,500 truckloads of soil have been excavated, [and] 4,400 cubic yards of concrete have been poured[.]"

Yeah, I didn't think so.

In the meantime, here are two photos I took earlier this month that don't really have to do with the demolition itself, but do show the progress of excavation along Virginia Avenue west of 7th Street, and then peering down into the hole west of 5th Street to see just how far down they've gotten.

This study was a follow-on to the Office of Planning's Southeast Blvd. Planning Study, which came about after residents expressed displeasure with the initial efforts seen in the Barney Circle-Southeast Blvd. Transportation Planning Study.

And what does the feasibility study say? DDOT's report determines that changing the current Southeast Blvd. from the limited-access quick route between 11th Street SE and Barney Circle to a street with connections to its north and south and development along the footprint is feasible, but the transformation "would be neither inexpensive nor quick."

The study then goes through the issues that make clear this would not be a snap-the-fingers-and-make-it-so proposition:

*Ownership: There are two small parcels within the study area owned by the National Park Service--and we know quickly either arranging for a change in ownership or "coordinating" with NPS can go. The study refers to it as being clear "that there would be significant process requirements and challenges to disposing the NPS and incorporating them into private development." That the process to "surplus" any excess land along the footprint not needed for the road(s) itself is governed by the Federal Highway Administration would also not point to a lightning-quick resolution.

* Transit Garages: The inclusion of some location that would allow for the parking of tour buses, transit buses and streetcars {cough}--a big part of DDOT's wishes for the area but something that residents are not particularly keen on--"could be provided at Southeast Boulevard that takes advantage of the location and topography of the site to minimize visual impacts to surrounding neighborhoods and so that vehicles accessing the facility would not use residential neighborhood streets."

* Cost: The study's "cursory assessment" says that constructing the transportation elements of the project would cost around $120 million, with a transit garage adding about $65-70 million in costs (in 2015 dollars). This includes reconfiguring Barney Circle into an at-grade signalized traffic circle, raising Southeast Boulevard to the same level as L Street, and constructing a four-lane street that includes sidewalks, bike facilities, and traffic signals. Plus some contingency costs built in.

* Schedule: The graphic at right breaks out a not-short ballpark timeline of 10 years for both the "transportation" portion of the project and the land redevelopment project.

With all of that, DDOT says that the first step forward is to restart the Barney Circle and Southeast Blvd. Transportation Planning Study begun in 2013, though even that now has a road block, that this Environmental Assessment now can't be completed "until a financial plan for project implementation is identified and included in the regional Constrained Long-Range Transportation Plan (CLRP)." DDOT advises interested groups "to continue discussions with a broad spectrum of stakeholders during the EA to confirm community support for the project, engage with AWI Signatories, and evaluate project costs and funding options."

This final draft was presented to ANC 6B's Transportation Committee on Jan. 6, and Capitol Hill Corner reports that DDOT's representative told the committee that there were no "fatal flaws" in any of the Office of Planning's three concepts for reimagining the road--but that it will be "up to ANC 6B to push the project forward" by requesting the environmental assessment.

I am skimming it all, so if this project is of interest to you, be sure to read the feasibility report, and perhaps attend ANC 6B's meeting on Jan. 12, at which a draft letter will apparently be considered to support going ahead with the EA.

You can also wander through my posts on the subject from the past few years, especially on the completion of the OP study back in July and the three general concepts advanced for how to remake this stretch of land that currently serves as such a barrier between Capitol Hill/Hill East and the Anacostia River.

With apologies for wide angle lens images that make the Capitol dome look much smaller than it does in person, it's still plain to see that the construction of 82 I/801 New Jersey/Apartment to Be Named Later has taken a bite out of the "centered" view of the dome that New Jersey Avenue has enjoyed up to now.

The question as to why this project has been able to build so much closer to the curb line than others (which has not only affected the view shed but also caused many pedestrian movement-related issues over the past year) is one that is tied up in the gritty industrial history of that particular block, along with the phrase "by right."

Back so long ago it was even before I was born, the block north of I Street was a massive rail yard, as you can see in this 1939 photo but also in this portion of the 1909 Baist survey map for this area (you'll definitely want to see the enlarged and wider version of this map, as well as others of the neighborhood between 1903 to 1921 that I all but forgot were posted here on JDLand until I was writing this).

You can also see the footprint remnants of the old Washington Canal running diagonally toward New Jersey from the right side of the image up toward New Jersey and I and Square 695.

What you can also see on that map is the distinct property lines on surrounding blocks, where buildings stop and the official city-owned "right of way" begins, the width of which was based on the width of the street, so that a wide avenue such as New Jersey has a wider ROW than smaller streets nearby.

You can then also see that Square 695 has no extra ROW built in, except for a small portion on the western end.

This block is also not covered by the Capitol Gateway Zoning Overlay, and the design for 82 I fell within the requirements of its C3C zone (i.e., it's a "by right" project), so there were no submittals to the Zoning Commission, no input from the Office of Planning, etc.

And that's why the building is now "jutting" out into New Jersey, and why the excavation for the garage went right up to the curb line, and why the sidewalk won't be anywhere near as wide in this block as in others, though note that the ground floor is set further back from the curb than the stories above it, as seen in this rendering.

But seriously, take some time and browse the old maps.

I ended 2015 with a quick look back at the major development news of the neighborhood over the previous twelve months, so it would be fitting to not get too far into 2016 without a look ahead. But it is to be remembered of course that crystal ball gazing is inherently dicier, which is why I like writing posts that look back a whole lot more than I do ones that look forward.

The PSA has had monthly public meetings for many years now on Saturday mornings, but it has been decided that attendance by not only residents but representatives of other agencies would be better if the meetings were held on weeknights. A make-up meeting for December is being held on Wednesday, Jan. 6, at 7 pm at the Capper Seniors Building at 900 5th St., SE, then the meetings are expected to be on the 3rd Wednesday evening of each month going forward.

You can go to the meetings with concerns, or with questions about particular incidents, or ideas, or anything else having to do with crime and "order maintenance."

Also, if you haven't joined the MPD-1D mailing list, that's another location to keep up with crime reports or ask questions of 1D's commander Jeff Brown.

Then, in the next photo, taken about three minutes later, you can see the eastern end of the Bixby again, from L Street looking south down 7th.

See those vibrant reds and yellows and reddish-browns at the far right of the first photo? That's the exact same side of the building as the "white" and "beige" section seen in the far left of the second photo.

You folks who paid attention in earth sciences class also know that it isn't just the fact that the sun doesn't get as high in the sky from November through February, but that it doesn't rise or set as far to the north as in other months, meaning that even getting out earlier or later in the day to take pictures doesn't really help a whole lot, especially since its light is also weaker earlier/later.

I'm now also battling with plenty of other spots that weren't problematic in years past but are now, thanks to shadows of completed buildings being cast across narrow streets, which makes it even harder to just try to go early/late to get a better light angle.

(At some point I'll have to cry uncle in some spots and wait for less brilliantly sunny days to get photos, but my addiction to bright blue skies is pretty intense. And I also know nobody really cares other than me, but I didn't want anyone to think that I actually believe some of these photos are of any level of quality.)

In the meantime, while I wait for the salvation of mid-March to arrive, enjoy some of my mostly-shadow-free photos from Saturday. (Though you probably want to click to enlarge them, and go to the project pages linked to on the homepage map for more details and photos.)

I've also updated some before-and-after sliders, if you want to be further stunned and amazed by some of the transformations in these photos.

"Time to back up the U-Haul, honey--we're heading to New Jersey Avenue!"

The nice folks breaking down the inside of the tent told me that they expect to open in their new digs in a couple of weeks.

The move is underway to clear what's known as Parcel O at the Yards for two residential projects expected to get underway this year, a 138-unit condo building by PN Hoffman and a 190-unit rental project by Forest City.

New Restaurants

I think the pictures speak for themselves in this section.

Tingey Street saw the opening of Pacers Running, Hugh & Crye Menswear, and Banfield Pet Hospital.

The Hampton Inn at 1st and N and the new Trapeze School space at New Jersey and Tingey snuck in under the wire for 2015. (This section will be considerably larger next year.)

At the Ballpark

Nats Park saw the NHL Winter Classic, new food offerings, and the Taylor Swift invasion. (But not the October games many had been expecting.) Plus, there was the announcement that the 2018 MLB All-Star Game will come to Half Street.

Farewell

The "new neighborhood" is now old enough that some establishments are exiting. We said goodbye to Sizzlin' Express and Buzz Bakery, and await the Italian-themed retooling of the Park Tavern. Plus the Hill Country gameday BBQ pop-up at South Capitol and N will be no more, with development now underway in that spot.

Underway

A mere seven development projects (four residential, two hotel, one office) broke ground in 2015, to go with the mere seven development projects already under construction. (Need a map to keep them all straight? You're in luck!)

Coming soon, an equally speedy summary of what's on tap for 2016.

The Barracks Row mainstay restaurant left its longtime home further north on 8th Street a few months ago, opting to relocate in the former Chicken Tortilla space at 1100 8th St., SE.

It's open for lunch from 11 am to 2 pm, then opens again for dinner at 5 pm. (At least, that's what they told me on the phone, though the maybe it's just open straight through from 11 am to 10 pm, as the sign says.)

(The photo also shows that what appears to be its original blue-and-white sign made the trip down 8th Street as well.)

This makes two restaurants that have opened in this spot recently, with the Ziaafat Grill having arrived next door back in September.

I wandered in off the streets without the official JDLand camera, but my S6 stood in pretty well as I took some quick photos of the public areas, and of the views off the roof deck, even though that space doesn't appear 100 percent ready yet. (The door was unlocked, honest!)

The official web site for the location probably tells you more than I can about amenities, etc. It looks like the rates are pretty low for dates over the coming days (starting at $99 if you arrived on Monday the 21st), but I'm guessing that won't be the case for long. And there are rooms that are specifically labeled "Ballpark view."

I tossed together a photo gallery that isn't exactly a barn-burner, but here are a few highlights. Apologies that the shots of the ballpark from the roof are ghastly, but I pretty much couldn't have picked a worse time of day in December to try to take photos to the south-southwest. I think you can get the idea.

More in the gallery.

As for the space at street level between the wings of the hotel, directly on the corner, that land is not part of the Hampton footprint--it's part of the Grosvenor F1rst/Residence Inn project immediately to the north, and will eventually be home to a two-story retail building, which you can see in this F1rst rendering that helpfully doesn't include the Hampton Inn.

Do you like them even more if they are made with images that are actually in focus and not washed out, and aren't taken by robots with fish-eye lenses, as some offerings out there are?

Then you are in luck, because the crack JDLand staff of developers has finally come up with a more automated way to display sliders of various locations around the neighborhood.

You can now watch for them on project pages, in the Photo Archive, and even via a browseable list.

It also means there's another way to see and inspect my oldest photos in a larger format, which is a nice addition.

I hope to next come up with a way to add them into the random before-and-after display on the JDLand home page, but for now, I'm at least glad that the light bulb went on for how to make using them a much less onerous process. (Actually *creating* them is not quite as easy, though--but I'm going to keep slowly plugging away at making them for all of my favorite angles.)

Right here is where you'd think I'd include one or two of them--alas, they won't work in a blog post. But here's thumbnails of just some of the locations that have been slider'ed, so click a thumbnail and slide away, and note that below the sliders are the full lineup of photos I've taken for that location, proving that the sliders aren't faked (these days, you never know what people will be suspicious of!). More to come.

Then browse the whole list, which is also filterable by street.

UPDATE: I'm continuing to add them, so I've made the list of sliders sortable by date, most recent additions/updates first.

The building, seen on the left side of this rendering, will have about 12,000 square feet of ground-floor retail as well as below-grade parking, and is expected to be finished in 2018. It was designed by Handel Architects and WDG, and it's not hard to see brick-and-glass echoes of Arris, its cousin across 4th Street.

The financing was provided by Grosvenor Americas' Structured Development Financing program, for those of you keeping score at home.

According to the sign erected a few weeks back, sales are supposed to start this spring.

And at the same time Hoffman's condo project is being built, Forest City will be building its own rental building immediately to the south, with 190 units in two towers (as seen on the right side of the rendering and in other renderings on the project page).

This is the site where the trapeze school has been camped for the past few years, and it's why they are moving to their new digs at New Jersey and Tingey Any Minute Now.

Hoffman's building (technically known at this point at as Parcel O-1) will be the first condo project in the Yards, and will also be the first condo project to get underway in the neighborhood since Velocity started its construction in 2007--and looks to be on the vanguard of a mini-wave of condo offerings, as both developments at Half and N just north of Nats Park are slated to have condos, along with perhaps a future project at Half and L and one on Square 767 on the old Capper footprint.

The Capitol Gateway Zoning Overlay requires buildings just north of the ballpark to "minimize unarticulated walls," and there is no doubt that this design, by ODA Architecture of New York, passes that test, with "extensive modulation" through the use of "balconies [and] extensive landscaping incorporated into the elevations." (This mondo-articulated approach to building design seems to be an ODA hallmark, as you can see from the company's portfolio.)

The condo portion, on the south side of the building at Half and N facing the ballpark, would have approximately 224 1- and 2-bedroom units, while the rental portion on the north end would have 200 units, mostly studio and 1-bedroom units but also with about 10 3-bedroom units. (And the units will have irrigation systems for the balconies, to keep that greenery nice and lush, though I'd still suggest branded watering cans placed strategically as well.)

The rendering above is the view at Half and N, like you were standing at the Nats Park ticket booths looking to the northwest, on the site currently home to the southern portion of the Fairgrounds. Here's a few more drawings, looking down Half Street toward the ballpark (maybe from just a little south of Buffalo Wild Wings) and looking down from On High.

The residential entrances would be on Van Street, facing JBG's just-underway residential building at 1244 South Capitol, which also has two stories of retail, as you can see in the rendering at below left, looking north on Van from N. In the below-right rendering, you can see at left the "Via," a wide pedestrians-only alley that will run along the north end of this project and the south end of Brandywine's planned 25 M Street office building.

For zoning geeks, this filing is actually a modification, revising the design that Akridge received approvals for back in 2009, which planned one office building and one residential building for this portion of the west side of Half Street. A graphic included in the new filing gives a handy siteplan comparison of the modifications, and made me laugh as I realized the line drawing of the new design looks like it could have been drawn on an Etch-a-Sketch. These massing drawings are also worth a look, to give an idea of exactly how the building undulates along Half, as well as how the condo (green) and rental (orange) units are situated.

The only thing that will probably dismay observers is that it's likely the project won't get underway until after the 2016 baseball season ends, making it likely that it won't be completed by the time the Major League Baseball All-Star Game arrives at Nats Park in July of 2018, though the exterior should at least be finished by then.

And because JBG gets a gold star for the thoroughness of its filing, I'll just toss in a few more of the renderings they included, showing the building's interior courtyard (open to Van Street and the west) and the anticipated view from inside the ballpark, with the view of this new building flanked by 1244 South Capitol and the Jair Lynch condo/rental/retail project coming to the Half Street Hole site.

I've added a few of these renderings to the project page, which of course also has a big pile of Before photos and some history of the lot--part of the corner of Half and N has a history that's a bit spicier than we normally discuss around here.

Next, we'll wait to see how the zoning commissioners feel about such an outside-the-box design.

If you spent any time on social media on Wednesday, you were probably hard pressed to avoid the avalanche of photos and videos and updates from the newsroom's "decommissioning" celebration (some of which I took/shared), but it really was a nicely done send-off that deserved the saturation coverage. (Be sure to watch the video here looking back at the old building and at how newspapers used to be produced, including lots of Watergate-related memories.)

Even as a relative newbie at the Post compared to some people (I've only been there 18 years, while the reigning longtime employee, Marty Weil, arrived in November 1965), there's certainly wistfulness about all of the memories, but there's no getting around the fact that that space had long outlived its ability to keep up with the times. And so we will now be in a state-of-the-art space, befitting the parallel change from being a newspaper to being a news/media company.

In the meantime, at least there doesn't appear to have been much news in the neighborhood, though I did at least take one photo lately, of the clearing progress at 1244 South Capitol. So I'm not completely useless.

Continue talking amongst yourselves, and hopefully normal output will return here before too much longer. (Except then there's that new Star Wars movie coming out, and then Christmas, and and and...)

But those little tidbits aren't really the main headline: it's that this information is now found on TheCollectiveDC.com, a combined web site for the Park Chelsea, Agora (i.e., the building currently under construction that will have a Whole Foods on the ground floor), and the Garrett, the planned but until now unnamed third building that will round out the development of the block bounded by New Jersey Avenue and 2nd, H, and I Streets, SE.

It's a vast web site that I won't try to summarize here, except to tell you that there are long lists of amenities, as well as hints of a golf simulator, an indoor basketball court, a tennis court, "indoor green space," and the lap pool we already knew about.

The site says that the Park Chelsea--"at the intersection of elegance and opportunity," will offer "classic, New York-style architecture" when it opens in the first quarter of 2016. Agora, just up the street at the "intersection of style and possibility," will have "contemporary architecture" and "minimalist interior finishes" when it arrives in early 2017 (with the Whole Foods probably needing a few months longer for its build-out). The Garrett, just around the corner at the "intersection of activity and accessibility," will feature "industrial-chic design" when it opens, perhaps as early as 2019.

It's getting so you can't keep all of these projects straight without a scorecard. Let me help you with that.

Plus, the neighborhood is getting a Christmas tree for the first time, in the park's southern block between L and M, and the Capitol Riverfront BID is inviting all residents to help decorate the tree on Saturday morning, from 9 to 11 am. Bring an ornament for the tree and canned food to donate to the Capital Area Food Bank, and get a taste of coffee or hot chocolate from Philz, the new coffee shop that will be coming to Tingey Street in a few months.

The tree will then be illuminated at 6 pm on Saturday, Dec. 5, with Dupont Brass providing the seasonally appropriate music.

The market will feature all manner of items, including clothes, jewelry, accessories, pet toys and apparel, artwork, printmaking, and "home enhancements." Food will also be available for Dirty South Deli, Ben's Chili Bowl, Bluejacket Brewery, Ice Cream Jubilee, Agua 301, District Doughnut, and more.

If you want your visit to be a bit more hands-on, there will be workshops to make greeting cards, wreaths, and more. And of course the ice rink will be open.

(*Sorry to just quote a big chunk of text--today's my last day in the old building at the Post and I arrive with the first wave in the new building on Friday, so life continues to be just a wee bit hectic.)

And my hesitancy appears to have been rewarded, because as a reader noticed, the 1111 development is now "Insignia on M," and its marketing (and presumably management) is now being handled by Bozzuto.

The building, currently under construction right next to (but not truly on top of) the east entrance to the Navy Yard-Ballpark Metro station on the northwest corner of New Jersey and M Streets, SE, will have 324 units (a mix of studios and 1- and 2-BR units), and 11,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, along with the increasingly standard amenities found in new "luxury" buildings.

The building's progress up to now has not been lightning quick, with vertical construction only beginning to reach ground level nearly 15 months after site-clearing began. (Digging a big hole immediately next to a Metro station and tunnel is not undertaken lightly.)

At least with this change there's finally some new renderings available of the design by WDG Architecture. The one at the top of this post shows the view looking south along New Jersey Avenue from L Street, the same view as seen in this photo from a few days ago, standing near the small patio space at the Courtyard Marriott (though without that big white building in the distance).

Here's a few additional renderings that I purloined from the official web site, showing the roof view (left), and the ground-floor retail facing M Street (middle) and L Street (right, with the lovely pink of Ann's Beauty and Wigs clearly shown at right). You can see more renderings at the official web site and at Donohoe's site. And there's my project page, for more history and photos.

And this is not really the most major change this project has seen, because originally 1111 New Jersey was going to be a 250,000-square-foot office building, before the decision was made in 2013 to go residential.

This is the second renaming I've posted about this week, after the Lofts at Capitol Quarter appeared to get re-dubbed as The Bixby, though I think the Housing Authority maybe ain't all hep to that notion.

But that's not all! There's another residential project that has an official name previously unmentioned here, and it is...