The DC Property Sales database has a lag time of 6-8 weeks, so pretend today is February 1--that way I can tell you that Just Yesterday the sale was completed of the Nexus Gold Club land to developer JPI, for $7.85 million. They also purchased 920 First Street (the little grey auto repair garage next to the Nexus) for $2.45 million. In 2005 and 2006 they purchased other properties on this block (Square 738) for about $2.64 million, so they've now spent just under $14 million to get 18,000 square feet of land for what will be 909 New Jersey Avenue, a 230-unit residential tower schedule to start construction Any Minute Now. Note that the owner of the garage right on the northeast corner of 1st and K has steadfastly refused to sell (and has some choice words for JPI if you talk to him), so it will be interesting to see how that section of the site shakes out. Considering his neighbor got $2.4 million for 2,186 square feet of property, who knows how much he has turned down for his lot of the same size. There's one other lot on the block still not owned by JPI (925 New Jersey, 1412 sq ft), but I haven't heard anything about purchase problems with that lot, and it was covered by a zoning variance JPI received in 2006.

On Wednesday a "shoring and sheeting" building permit application was filed for 1001 First Street, which is on the block known as Square 699N, bounded by 1st, Half, K, and L streets. It was bought in September 2005 by local developer Ron Cohen for $51 million, and was the home to nightclubs Wet, Edge, and Club 55, along with various other small businesses that slowly moved out until the block was left vacant in September 2006. As for the building permit app, shoring and sheeting is how the walls of a big hole in the ground are held up during excavation (I hope that isn't too technical of an explanation), and is another sign that Cohen is getting his ducks in a row to do .... something .... on this lot, as were the public space permits that were granted in December 2006 for the necessary water and sewer shut-off work on the site. I haven't seen evidence of raze permits, but I only started seeing those in Fall 2006 and it's possible that they were applied for earlier. What I did notice during a drive-by today is that all of the trees on the block--including a pretty huge one at 1st and L--have been chopped down (I'm pretty sure within the past week). Will we hear word of Cohen's plans soon?

More posts: Restaurants/Nightlife, Monument Valley/Half St., Square 699n, staddis, Velocity Condos, Square 701