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Please note that JDLand is no longer being updated.
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Near Southeast DC Past News Items: 225 Virginia/Old Post Plant/200 I
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See JDLand's 225 Virginia/Old Post Plant/200 I Project Page
for Photos, History, and Details |
- Full Neighborhood Development MapThere's a lot more than just the projects listed here. See the complete map of completed, underway, and proposed projects all across the neighborhood.
- What's New This YearA quick look at what's arrived or been announced since the end of the 2018 baseball season.
- Food Options, Now and Coming SoonThere's now plenty of food options in the neighborhood. Click to see what's here, and what's coming.
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- Anacostia RiverwalkA bridge between Teague and Yards Parks is part of the planned 20-mile Anacostia Riverwalk multi-use trail along the east and west banks of the Anacostia River.
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- Virginia Ave. Tunnel ExpansionConstruction underway in 2015 to expand the 106-year-old tunnel to allow for a second track and double-height cars. Expected completion 2018.
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- Rail and Bus Times
Get real time data for the Navy Yard subway, Circulator, Bikeshare, and bus lines, plus additional transit information. - Rail and Bus Times
Get real time data for the Navy Yard subway, Circulator, Bikeshare, and bus lines, plus additional transit information. - Canal ParkThree-block park on the site of the old Washington Canal. Construction begun in spring 2011, opened Nov. 16, 2012.
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- Nationals Park21-acre site, 41,000-seat ballpark, construction begun May 2006, Opening Day March 30, 2008.
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- Washington Navy YardHeadquarters of the Naval District Washington, established in 1799.
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- Yards Park5.5-acre park on the banks of the Anacostia. First phase completed September 2010.
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- Van Ness Elementary SchoolDC Public School, closed in 2006, but reopening in stages beginning in 2015.
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- Agora/Whole Foods336-unit apartment building at 800 New Jersey Ave., SE. Construction begun June 2014, move-ins underway early 2018. Whole Foods expected to open in late 2018.
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- New Douglass BridgeConstruction underway in early 2018 on the replacement for the current South Capitol Street Bridge. Completion expected in 2021.
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- 1221 Van290-unit residential building with 26,000 sf retail. Underway late 2015, completed early 2018.
- NAB HQ/AvidianNew headquarters for National Association of Broadcasters, along with a 163-unit condo building. Construction underway early 2017.
- Yards/Parcel O Residential ProjectsThe Bower, a 138-unit condo building by PN Hoffman, and The Guild, a 190-unit rental building by Forest City on the southeast corner of 4th and Tingey. Underway fall 2016, delivery 2018.
- New DC Water HQA wrap-around six-story addition to the existing O Street Pumping Station. Construction underway in 2016, with completion in 2018.
- The Harlow/Square 769N AptsMixed-income rental building with 176 units, including 36 public housing units. Underway early 2017, delivery 2019.
- West Half Residential420-unit project with 65,000 sf retail. Construction underway spring 2017.
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- Novel South Capitol/2 I St.530ish-unit apartment building in two phases, on old McDonald's site. Construction underway early 2017, completed summer 2019.
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- 1250 Half/Envy310 rental units at 1250, 123 condos at Envy, 60,000 square feet of retail. Underway spring 2017.
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- Parc Riverside Phase II314ish-unit residential building at 1010 Half St., SE, by Toll Bros. Construction underway summer 2017.
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- 99 M StreetA 224,000-square-foot office building by Skanska for the corner of 1st and M. Underway fall 2015, substantially complete summer 2018. Circa and an unnamed sibling restaurant announced tenants.
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- The Garrett375-unit rental building at 2nd and I with 13,000 sq ft retail. Construction underway late fall 2017.
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- Yards/The Estate Apts. and Thompson Hotel270-unit rental building and 227-room Thompson Hotel, with 20,000 sq ft retail total. Construction underway fall 2017.
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- Meridian on First275-unit residential building, by Paradigm. Construction underway early 2018.
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- The Maren/71 Potomac264-unit residential building with 12,500 sq ft retail, underway spring 2018. Phase 2 of RiverFront on the Anacostia development.
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- DC Crossing/Square 696Block bought in 2016 by Tishman Speyer, with plans for 800 apartment units and 44,000 square feet of retail in two phases. Digging underway April 2018.
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- One Hill South Phase 2300ish-unit unnamed sibling building at South Capitol and I. Work underway summer 2018.
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- New DDOT HQ/250 MNew headquarters for the District Department of Transportation. Underway early 2019.
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- 37 L Street Condos11-story, 74-unit condo building west of Half St. Underway early 2019.
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- CSX East Residential/Hotel225ish-unit AC Marriott and two residential buildings planned. Digging underway late summer 2019.
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- 1000 South Capitol Residential224-unit apartment building by Lerner. Underway fall 2019.
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- Capper Seniors 2.0Reconstruction of the 160-unit building for low-income seniors that was destroyed by fire in 2018.
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- Chemonics HQNew 285,000-sq-ft office building with 14,000 sq ft of retail. Expected delivery 2021.
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Within the past few weeks I've posted a lot about the MPD move to 225 Virginia Ave. and the falderal over the surface parking lots zoning amendment including Canal Park, but if you can't get enough, the August issue of the Hill Rag has pieces on both items. And a summary of the July ANC 6D meeting, too.
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Tonight was the community meeting about the proposed consolidation of many of the Metropolitan Police Department's functions into the old Star/Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave. The session was run by council member Tommy Wells, with Office of Property Management director Lars Etzkorn and MPD assistant Chief Brian Jordan on the hot seat in front of a crowd that was decidedly not excited about the proposal in its current form.
And for a good portion of the meeting, residents were unable to get an answer as to whether or not this plan is a done deal, but toward the end Wells and Etzkorn and council member Phil Mendelson (who arrived late in the session) seemed to indicate that perhaps there's still some wriggle room on some of the plans.
To summarize for folks who haven't been following along since news of this plan broke late in 2006, the District has signed a lease for the 440,000-sq-ft building and has formulated a plan to move 1,100 MPD employees in the following units into the building: the superintendent of detectives, the violent crimes branch, narcotics and special investigations, special operations, property and evidence, and the First District station that is currently at 4th and School streets, SW.
The building is going to need a fair amount of interior work, plus the construction of a 460-space garage, so up to $100 million of that cost is being built into the yearly lease. (My previous news items on 225 Virginia can give you additional background.) And, the relocation of the 1D station clears the way for the construction of the city's new Combined Forensics Lab on that site, which is clearly a priority for all branches of D.C. government.
The biggest concerns coming from the assembled audience were the move of the First District station out of Southwest, and the issue of parking, given that the new garage to be built is 188 spaces short of MPD's identified needs. Noise was also brought up as a worry.
Despite assistant chief Jordan's description of the First District station move as being "only 5,500 feet" (in other words, a mile) and his explanations of how the officers would only be at 225 Virginia during roll call and shift change and out in their PSAs the rest of the time, Southwest residents remained clearly opposed to losing their station.
As for the parking, the Powerpoint presentation showed a plan to create 108 spaces at the DPW Trash Transfer lot at Second and K streets, SE, and use 80 street spaces on the four streets that surround 225 Virginia. Etzkorn did make a point of mentioning that the use of the DPW site will be done in such a way that ensures that the site can still be developed, as it is supposed to eventually be home to a mixed-income apartment building as part of the Capper/Carrollsburg redevelopment.
There were discussions of creating "24-7" residential parking restrictions to prevent overflow MPD parking on certain blocks in similar fashion to how parking is handled at RFK for baseball games, but the idea of police cars ever actually getting ticketed for parking illegally was met with extreme skepticism. Assistant chief Jordan did pledge that the MPD would be a "good community partner."
There were even comments about whether it's a good idea to consolidate the city's emergency response infrastructure in a single building, one that's just a few blocks from the U.S. Capitol, given the possibilities of a terrorist strike. (One woman went so far as to mention how easy it would be for evildoers to take out 225 Virginia by launching a missile from the Southeast Freeway.)
Etzkorn, taking pains to emphasize that this lease deal was created before he joined OPM, admitted that this project has been poorly handled from a community involvement perspective. The lease was approved by the council during the final days of the Williams administration, without any public meetings to discuss the viability of putting such a large traffic-creating target-rich development in such a residential area.
Mendelson said that if there's a lot of opposition to the move of the 1D station, then it needs to be looked at, and Etzkorn echoed that by saying that the Fenty administration needs to make sure that the plans are appropriate and that "this is not a fait accompli." Wells concluded by saying that everyone needs to respect that there were a lot of reasons for picking 225 Virginia and making these plans, but that he has now inserted himself into the discussion and will help to negotiate what's best for the community while weighing what's best for the city.
The participants pledged that there will be another community meeting soon. So, while you're waiting for that, keep checking back here for when I post the meeting slides, and also read Lars Etzkorn's June 7 testimony on the move (and my two summaries of that hearing). If you have strong feelings on the subject one way or the other, contacting Tommy Wells, Phil Mendelson, and Carol Schwartz wouldn't be a bad idea. And of course, as soon as I hear anything more, I will post about it.
UPDATED 7/19 with a link to the meeting's slide presentation.
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225 Virginia/Old Post Plant/200 I
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Just a reminder that Wednesday night, July 18, the Metropolitan Police Department is holding a Community Meeting on the Relocation of the Metropolitan Police Department to the old Post Plant site at 225 Virginia Ave. Tommy Wells will be in attendance, as will representatives of MPD, the Office of Property Management, ANCs 6B and 6D, and other officials. It should be a well-attended meeting: there's the residents of Southwest, who are not happy that these proposed relocation plans include the move of the First District police station from Southwest over to Southeast; and the Friends of Garfield Park and other close-by residents, who are concerned about the parking and traffic issues.
The meeting is at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 3rd and A Streets, SE, at 6:30 pm. If you want more background on this proposed move, scroll down through the "News" tab of my 225 Virgina Ave. page.
On July 18, the Metropolitan Police Department is holding a Community Meeting on the Relocation of MPD to the old Post Plant site at 225 Virginia Ave.; Tommy Wells will be in attendance as well. Word is already going around about the meeting to residents of Southwest, who are not happy that these proposed relocation plans include the move of the First District police station from Southwest over to Southeast. I imagine parking questions will also be part of the discussion. The meeting is at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 3rd and A Streets, SE, at 6:30 pm on the 18th.
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While I've been following for weeks the zoning procedures around the plans for temporary surface parking lots in the blocks north of M Street, I'm hearing today for the first time that there may be some pressure behind the scenes to delay construction of Canal Park, so that its three blocks of space could be used for temporary surface parking to help fulfill the necessary spaces for Nationals ballgames.
It is indeed true that those three blocks are covered under Zoning Case 07-08, which was approved back in May, but because of some odd tax parcel configurations (where the parcels 767, 768, and 769 actually stretch across the eastern half of 2nd Street over to 3rd and so also include the three blocks where Capper buildings were demolished earlier this year), I always just assumed that those references in the zoning requests were merely for the Capper portions of the parcels and not the Canal Park portions. Plus, plans seemed to be moving forward for Canal Park to begin construction in time for a Spring 2008 opening, so it didn't appear to be an issue (much the way that Case 07-08 asked for the ability to build temporary lots on the Pepco site in Buzzards Point even though Pepco says they wouldn't be vacating those blocks anytime soon).
However, with apparently some salivating going on in some quarters over those additional lots (where school buses currently reside), some people fear that the near-term building of Canal Park could be in jeopardy. There is a meeting on July 12 of the National Capital Planning Commission, where approval of Case 07-08 is on the agenda; if this issue of parking lots/no parking lots on the Canal Park site is something that concerns you one way or the other, you may wish follow the NCPC guidelines for participation in the meeting. And getting in touch with the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation (which is in charge of the park's development) and/or Tommy Wells's office may also be an approach you want to take.
UPDATE, 7/6: I'm now hearing whispers that the salivating over Canal Park might not actually be completely stadium-related, but also a part of the continuing need for the Metropolitan Police Department to find about 150 extra spaces to have enough parking for their proposed move into 225 Virginia Avenue....
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Last night at its monthly meeting, ANC 6D passed a resolution opposing the proposed relocation of the First Distrct Police Station currently at 415 4th St. SW to the old Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave. SE. There's a series of 11 bullet points describing the ANC's opposition, many of which were brought up at the city council subcommittee hearing last week, most notably of course being the potential impact on "community policing" if the police are no longer housed right in the community. Other issues such as parking at the new site, the "massing" of so many police functions in such a small area given that the 1D1 substation is just four blocks away, and the potential loss of easy walk-in visits to 1D if they are housed in the same building that contains high-level MPD functions such as the chief's office, the Special Operations Division, the evidence warehouse, and other departments.
I also finally got a chance to see the portions of the hearing that weren't originally broadcast, and one of the items that jumped out at me (and that is mentioned in the ANC resolution as well) is that the Office of Property Management is already looking for 10,000 square feet of "swing space" for the 1D substation, because it needs to be out of its current location by early 2009 to make way for the new combined forensics lab. Because of timing issues with getting the 225 Virginia building ready for occupancy (a project that could cost up to $100 million), 1D may not be able to move directly to the new building. (OPM said it should know within 60 days if 1D will need to move to swing space.) Both Carol Schwartz and Tommy Wells were quite skeptical of moving 1D to 225 Virginia, with Schwartz saying "Have you thought of how ridiculous that is?" (But she said it really nicely.) The council members pressed OPM and MPD about why the forensics lab couldn't be at 225 Virginia instead, but issues with ceiling heights and ventilation seemed to be stumbling points, although former OPM head Carol Mitten testified that it wouldn't be impossible. There was also a lot of discussion about the possibility of buying 225 Virginia outright, rather than leasing it.
And of course, as I mentioned in my initial summary, parking issues were a large part of the conversation as well. Neither OPM or MPD would commit to Wells's idea of a ban on employee on-street parking; and as I said last week, OPM and MPD were floating the DPW trash transfer lot at 2nd and K as a parking alternative without seeming to be aware that that lot is already going to the DC Housing Authority as part of the Capper/Carrollsburg Hope VI project. (I shouted it at the TV as loudly and often as I could, but apparently they couldn't hear me.) As described, a new parking structure built on top of the surface lot at 3rd and I would have about 520 spaces, 200 of which would be for police vehicles and another 100 for 1D staff, leaving only 200 spaces for the remaining 500 employees at this new headquarters.
Next steps? OPM is now looking at getting architectural drawings and guaranteed maximum buildout costs to the council by October (two months later than originally forecast); there is also supposed to be a parking plan given to the committee within the next two weeks, and also at some point a meeting between OPM, MPD, and ANCs 6B and 6D. A separate Zoning Commission hearing on adding the site to the Capitol South Receiving Zone originally scheduled for this week has now been postponed. I imagine there will be a fair amount of behind-the-scenes maneuvering on the project that we won't hear much about until it comes time for the city council to vote on paying for the renovations to the building.
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I must admit to dragging my feet on writing a summary of yesterday's hearing in front of the council's Committee on Workforce Development and Government Operations about the potential move of portions of the Metropolitan Police Department to the old Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave. The main issue is that the TV feed of the 4 1/2-hour hearing switched to a different hearing for 45 minutes, right at the start of testimony by representatives of MPD and the Office of Property Management, so I don't feel like I got the full picture. It's scheduled to be replayed on Channel 13 (available both on DC cable and streaming video) a couple times over the next few days, if you can't bear to deal with this broaching of my responsibilities and want to watch it yourself. (Though, as I always say, remember that the motto of JDLand is: The Site Where You Get What You Pay For.)
I'll post more once I get to see that missed 45 minutes, but I can tell you that the main issues discussed during the portions I saw were the concern of Southwest residents about losing the 1D station to a location quite a few blocks away (putting a crimp in the idea of "community policing") and where exactly 1,100 MPD employees are going to park and the problems of traffic flow and parking especially at the daily shift changes. (The double- and triple-parking a few blocks away at the 1D1 substation on E Street were frequently referenced.) MPD and OPM seemed to be talking about using the Trash Transfer site at 2nd and I as a parking solution, but unless I missed something during the non-broadcast portion, none of them seemed to realize that that parcel is part of the Capper/Carrollsburg Hope VI redevelopment, and is supposed to eventually be redeveloped with an apartment building. There were indications from Tommy Wells that he'd like to see on-street parking by MPD staff completely prohibited; alas, with the building's location being about five blocks from a Metro station (compared to being basically on top of one at their current location on Indiana Avenue), I'm sure that proposal will go over real well. I'm not sure if there's going to be additional hearings, though clearly council members Schwartz, Mendelson, and Wells had a fair number of concerns.
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225 Virginia/Old Post Plant/200 I
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If you're interested in what's happening with the proposed move of the Metropolitan Police Department to the old Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave., the Committee on Workforce Development and Government Operations hearing is being simulcast on DC Cable 13 right now, and the streaming video is available here. I'll be summarizing the hearing later today (but first I have the big Douglass Bridge briefing to go to).
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The calendar for June is quickly filling up with all sorts of meetings and hearings on various Near Southeast-related projects, and although I've been adding them to my Upcoming Events list, I thought it would be a good idea to highlight them. So mark your calendars, and if you're interested in participating, many of the links have information on how to do so.
* It's not actually in June, but on May 31 at 6:30 pm (close enough!), the Zoning Commission is having another public hearing at 6:30 pm at One Judiciary Square on Case 06-41, Camden Development/1325 South Capitol Street, this time to consider the project as a consolidated planned unit development and map amendment request to rezone as C-3-C.
* The Anacostia Waterfront Corporation public board meeting originally scheduled for last week was postponed and will now be held on June 1 at 1105 New Jersey Ave., SE, at 6 pm; agenda items include "South Capitol Waterfront Modification of Contract for Parsons Brinckerhoff" (which I believe has to do with the project to design Diamond Teague Park) and "Baseball District: Western Development Litigation" (which is the lawsuit that resulted from when the city opted not to move forward with Herb Miller's Garages Wrapped With Development Goodness plan for on-site stadium parking).
* On June 7, the DC Council Committee on Workforce Development and Government Operations is having a Public Oversight Hearing at the Wilson Building at 9 am on the proposed relocation of the Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters to 225 Virginia Ave., SE, also known as the old Star/Post plant. (UPDATED with a date change to June 7.)
* On June 12, the council's Committee on Finance and Revenue will have a public hearing at 11 am on the bill to create the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District (bill B17-0208, "Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District Amendment Act of 2007").
* On June 14, WMATA's Planning, Development, and Real Estate Committee will be meeting, and included in their anticipated agenda items is "approval of developer selection and term sheet for the Navy Yard station east entrance", which is referring to a joint development solicitation proposal back in September 2006, looking to develop the 4,400 square feet owned by WMATA above the Navy Yard station entrance at New Jersey and M with some combination of a public plaza at ground level and development above it.
* On June 16, the council's Committee on Economic Development is having a Public Roundtable on "Progress of Economic Development Projects in Southwest and Near Southeast DC," at the Westminster Presbyterian Church at 400 I St., SW, at 10 am. (This was listed in the June issue of the Southwester, I don't have a link to an official announcement yet.) UPDATE, 6/1: I've now got a copy of the meeting notice.
* And on June 20, the Zoning Commission is having a public hearing at One Judiciary Square at 6:30 pm on Case 06-32, a proposed text amendment to add Square 766 [the old Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave.] to the Capitol South Receiving Zone, a move that would allow greater height and density on the lot than under its current zoning.
So, don't ever say that this stuff sneaks through the political process without anyone knowing about it! The trick is trying to stay awake through it all.UPDATE: I should add, even though it's outside of my purview, that on June 7 there will be a Zoning Commission hearing on the updated plans for Waterside Mall on M Street in Southwest.
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1325sc, 225 Virginia/Old Post Plant/200 I, Anacostia Waterfront Corp., Capitol Riverfront BID, Metro/WMATA, zoning
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A public hearing has been scheduled for June 6 by the DC Council's Committee on Workforce Development and Government Operations on the proposed relocation of the Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters to the old Post Plant at 225 Virginia Ave. If you're interested in testifying, the directions are in the hearing announcement; and if you have strong feelings on the proposal (which I've been getting some inkling of), you should probably make your feelings known to council member Tommy Wells and also to Carol Schwartz, who is the chair of this committee.
And it should also be noted that on June 14 the DC Zoning Commission will be having a public hearing on a request to move the 225 Virginia Ave. tax square to the Capitol South receiving zone (the same zone as other properties zoned C-3-C along I Street south of the SE Freeway), which, as I understand it, would allow for a greater height and density on that spot than is currently allowed.
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225 Virginia/Old Post Plant/200 I, zoning
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