Brookfield Properties, the company behind The Yards in Navy Yard as well as the extensive , plans to build a big tech campus in the Capital subarea, further adding to its decades-long renovations project.

Speaking with about the intent to pitch the site to tech companies out West, Greg Meyer, the head of Brookfield Properties’ Washington region properties, said the proposed site would be the large grassy plot of land located at M and First Streets SW.

Meyer told the proposed campus would ideally be three buildings that would come close to 1 million square feet in size.

The proposal would rival the tech campus currently being developed across the Anacostia River in Arlington, Va.

But Laura Montross,Ěý director of communications for Brookfield’s District office, said the possibility of the project coming to fruition any time soon is slim given the District’s height limitations and other building restrictions.

Montross said while the big tech campus might not happen, the company has its sights set on moving forward with another project that is part of the .

While the full project is expected to be completed by 2030, construction on Yards Place is expected to begin in the next few months.

The project is the most recent chapter of a decade-plus improvement of the Capitol Hill subarea. Redevelopment began in 2008 with the construction of the . Further development came in 2010 with the opening of The Yards, a 42-acre residential and business hub.

Phase I included 2,800 new residential units and 2,200,000 square feet of office and retail space. The centerpiece of the development is Yards Park, a waterfront recreation area, boardwalk, and outdoor performance space.

Yards Park was developed as a public-private partnership and is operated by the Capitol Riverfront BID.

Brookfield Properties’ intentions to further develop the area have been met with positive responses.ĚýAdvisory Neighborhood Committee representative Jared Weiss (SMD 6D02) said he is excited for the potential of Phase II.

“I think just about anything that draws more people to this area is a good thing. It is a beautiful part of D.C. that’s probably still underutilized, even given all the recent construction,” Weiss said.

He said one real challenge the project might face are transportation issues as street parking in the area is “already at a premium” and on certain game days it is an “absolute nightmare.”

“The more public transit can be thoughtfully planned, the more likely it is that the area can be used the best it can,” Weiss said.

Brookfield’s Phase II renovation will make it the second waterfront development and the largest in the D.C. region.

Announced in February of this year, Phase II will see the construction of 10 buildings spanningĚý 3.4 million square feet that will provide office space, mixed-income residential offerings, restaurants, retail and public amenities.

“We’re excited for these new additions to the neighborhood and to continue the tradition of our community-wide events and activations in our many open-air public spaces,” Toby Millman, senior vice president of development for Brookfield Properties, said in a statement.

The major attraction of Phase II will be Yards Place, a pedestrian-only street that runs from the Navy Yard metro station to Diamond Teague park on the Southwest Waterfront.

The street will be curbless and cobblestone and will span an estimated six blocks of the Phase II project.

While the full project is expected to be completed by 2030, construction on Yards Place is expected to begin in the next few months.

The project is the most recent chapter of a decade-plus improvement of the Capitol Hill subarea. Redevelopment began in 2008 with the construction of the $600 million Nationals Park stadium. Further development came in 2010 with the opening of The Yards, a 42-acre residential and business hub.

Phase I included 2,800 new residential units and 2,200,000 square feet of office and retail space. The centerpiece of the development is Yards Park, a waterfront recreation area, boardwalk, and outdoor performance space.

Yards Park was developed as a public-private partnership and is operated by the Capitol Riverfront BID.

Brookfield Properties’ intentions to further develop the area have been met with positive responses.

Advisory Neighborhood Committee representative Jared Weiss (SMD 6D02) said he is excited for the potential of Phase II.

“I think just about anything that draws more people to this area is a good thing. It is a beautiful part of D.C. that’s probably still underutilized, even given all the recent construction,” Weiss said.

He said one real challenge the project might face are transportation issues as street parking in the area is “already at a premium” and on certain game days it is an “absolute nightmare.”

“The more public transit can be thoughtfully planned, the more likely it is that the area can be used the best it can,” Weiss said.

Brookfield’s Phase II renovation will make it the second waterfront development and the largest in the D.C. region.

The post Big tech campus, pedestrian-only street among projects eyed by longtime Navy Yard developer first appeared on 91ÇŃ×Ó.

According to the 2020 Census, the Capitol Riverfront saw one of the largest in the region, and developers are jumping at the opportunity to try their hand in the market.Ěý

But Southwest D.C. native Colletta Paylor said the plethora of new development had squashed green space throughout the neighborhood, and it’s become a pattern.Ěý

“When I was growing up, we had a lot of playgrounds that were surrounded by parks and stuff. Every four blocks is literally a condo now, “ she said.ĚýĚý

D.C.-based developer is one company looking to add to those rows of concrete towers. They have been negotiating with the ANC 6D for months over their designs for a new residential high rise on 850 South Capitol St. SE.Ěý

The proposed design is a that extends under the Interstate 695 freeway.Ěý

But the design is centered in a unique location. The land is in the , which means it is exempt from regulations. In other words, WC Smith does not have to include any retail or affordable housing options for the neighborhood.

Commissioner Rhonda Hamilton vocalized her concerns about the lack of affordable housing following WC Smith’s presentation during the October ANC meeting.

“I don’t think it’s fair that you bring a project with no real benefits to the community…and then you want us to embrace it,” she said.Ěý

Commissioner Jared Weiss said with affordable housing is an issue developers shouldn’t ignore, even if they’re not required to take action.Ěý

“I believe I speak for a lot of my neighbors in saying that we have no interest living in an area that is totally exclusionary to certain types of people. We want to live in a neighborhood where everyone is welcome,” he said.Ěý

In response to the attack on the plan’s lack of affordable housing during the October ANC meeting, WC Smith Attorney Leila Batties of Holland & Knight said city leaders need to look at WC Smith’s track record in Washington, D.C.Ěý

“[WC Smith] has for more than 50 years been a leader in providing housing opportunities and amenities throughout the city for some of the city’s most deserving communities and families,” she said.

Former ANC 6D Chair Gail Fast told 91ÇŃ×Ó that legally, developers don’t have to seek approval from the ANC for their final plans, but they do go through a design review process with the commissioners. During that review, the ANC can make suggestions and ask for changes.

“ANC’s have what’s known as great weight,” Fast said.Ěý

So while the ANC can’t change the fact that the building won’t include any units for lower-income individuals and families in the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood, Commissioner Jared Weiss said, the ANC asked WC Smith to add something else that would benefit the community.Ěý

“We feel it is our responsibility to get the benefit for the community we can. But a developer such as this one is only legally required to do very little. So it becomes a negotiation,” he said.Ěý

WC Smith responded, and came back with a design for a dog park and run. The park will be placed underneath the 695 freeway in a space that would have otherwise gone un-utilized.Ěý

Commissioner Andy Litsky said this was a decent addition, but ultimately he told WC Smith to be more ambitious.Ěý

“This was one of only a couple of options. It was the easy one, and that’s what you went with. So I’d like to see more under the Expressway,” he said.Ěý

Locals agreed. Paylor said while the addition of a dog park might look good on paper, in her experience, accommodations added by developers only benefit a small population.

“They don’t benefit the actual community that is from there; it’s more so for the people who can afford to live there,” she said.Ěý

91ÇŃ×Ó reached out to WC Smith for a comment on their design negotiations with the ANC on South Capitol Street, but did not hear back in time.

Fast said there are many ways developers can benefit the community, they just need to get creative.Ěý

“It could be a park, it could be a playground, the community benefit could even be contributions to the schools,” she said.Ěý

Another way the commissioners get developers to accommodate the neighborhood is through what Litsky called “community serving retail.”

“Community serving retail would be like a tailor, barbershop, a cleaners, something with service, versus just bars and restaurants,” he said.Ěý

An example is a project green-lighted in September by the same ANC. It is expected to bring , where a grocery store didn’t previously exist.Ěý

WC Smith is scheduled to bring their final designs for 850 South Capitol St. SE to the Zoning Commission for approval on November 8th.Ěý

The post Southeast city leaders negotiate a dog park out of developer WC Smith amid controversial design review first appeared on 91ÇŃ×Ó.

Ward 6, which encompasses neighborhoods like Navy Yard, Southwest Waterfront and Buzzard Point, has seen major development over the last decade, leading to a high influx of residents to the ward.

Ward 6’s nearly 40% increase in population within the last decade accounted for almost of the District’s entire population growth, which reached , according to the 2020 Census report.

Based on estimates from the council, new boundaries to Ward 6 are needed to place at least in surrounding wards.

The redistricting process

Redistricting, a process that is undertaken by the District every 10 years to rebalance the population in all eight wards, ensuring they each have roughly the same population, will officially begin next month.

The process, which was supposed to begin in April this year, was delayed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic delaying the release of the 2020 Census.

According to Sam Rosen-Amy, the chief of staff for At-Large Councilmember Elissa Silvermann, who sits on the subcommittee for redistricting, rebalancing ensures the constitutional principle of “one person, one vote.”

Rosen-Amy said when rebalancing the wards, the populations inside do not have to be exactly the same, but that they need to be within “plus or minus 5% of the average-sized ward.”

Amanda Farnan, the communications director for At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson, who also sits on the subcommittee for redistricting, said Councilmember Henderson looks at graphs, among other factors, to also ensure new lines will create equity in political representation.

“For Councilmember Henderson, that really just means looking at black and brown communities and making sure that when we redraw these lines, we’re not diluting the voting power of diverse boards,” Farnan said.

Farnan said the councilmember, along with others on the subcommittee for redistricting, have held hearings to allow the community to voice their concerns for what the new boundaries should be.

“Many people talk about their own neighborhoods and how they want to stay together as a neighborhood,” Farnan said.

She said Esri Redistricting, a platform helping jurisdictions experiment with redistricting lines, created a new to allow D.C. residents to redraw the lines themselves and send them to the council for consideration.

Ward 6

There are currently 103,197 people in Ward 6, which experienced a 41.9% over the last decade.

“Just to put that into context, the next ward that grew over the last 10 years was Ward 5, which saw about just under 20% increase in population,” said Farnan, the communications director for At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson.

Farnan attributed several reasons for the explosive growth, including “federal agencies, moving their operations towards Ward 6, and also public private partnerships like The Wharf and the Navy Yard.”

Advisory Neighborhood Committee representative Jared Weiss (SMD 6D02) said the ward’s location on the water and its availability of space for high rise condominiums and apartments are also reasons why the ward has attracted so much growth.

“There’s a synergy between the big projects, the housing, and the geographic location of those neighborhoods that has contributed to the spike in population,” Weiss said.

Farnan and Rosen-Amy both said the process of redistricting does not mean affected individuals will be actually moving, but that their political representation might be changing.

“It just means in total, more than 17,000 people need to be put into a different ward,” Rosen-Amy said.

The ward will get new boundaries to bring it down to “around that sweet spot” of 86,000, Farnan said.

Changes to Ward 6

Advisory Neighborhood Committee representative Jared Weiss (SMD 6D02) said over time, Ward 6’s representation and make-up has changed through redistricting.

“I can tell you that the area covering ANC 6D used to be in Ward 2. And that there was a time in the 1980s when we had nine commissioners,” Weiss said.

While the council has yet to meet on the different possibilities for Ward 6’s new lines, Sam Rosen-Amy, the chief of staff for At-Large Councilmember Elissa Silvermann, said all options are on the table.

“All the borders of Ward 6 could change, that doesn’t mean they are going to, but they all could change. And that’s what we’re trying to get a better understanding of our residents with what changes what they like to see,” Rosen-Amy said.

Rosen-Amy said regardless of how the changes occur, it has to be done this year. “There’s no way around it.”

D.C. Council has started hosting community conversations to discuss possible changes.

The community conversation for Ward 6 will be held Tuesday, Oct. 26 at 8 p.m.

The conversation will be hosted by Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen and will include a presentation on the redistricting process by At-Large Councilmember Elissa Silverman.

is required and a Zoom link will be provided after.

The post With ballooning population and extensive development, Ward 6 could see major boundary changes during DC redistricting first appeared on 91ÇŃ×Ó.

A by the narrows in on the Navy Yard neighborhood at the confluence of the Potomac and Anacostia rivers, naming it the fastest growing neighborhood in Washington D.C. over the past five years.

From baseball and soccer fans heading to Nationals Stadium and the newly renovated Audi Field to workers zipping to their nine to five jobs on electric scooters, planners say the current road conditions don’t best support that growth.

Ted Jutras, the Vice President of Planning and Development for the Capitol Riverfront BID said fixing those transportation corridors is at the center of his work.

“We’re building almost an entire new downtown along the waterfront south of the freeway,” he said. “So, the traditional auto-oriented infrastructure that exists right now isn’t going to work anymore.”

The Capitol Riverfront Mobility Project aims to fix exactly that. It focuses on expanding accessibility along M Street SE: a mile and a half stretch in Southeast and a major corridor connecting the Navy Yard neighborhood and District Wharf.

Jutras said his team is working on two potential re-designs for M Street.

Both Capitol Riverfront BID designs repurpose the outside lanes of M Street into either one or two protected bike and bus lanes during rush hour while allowing them to be used for general traffic or parking outside of that time.

The designs are centered around the idea of “micromobility.” The goal is to provide all residents and visitors to the Navy Yard neighborhood with safe and reliable modes of transportation that don’t include driving a car.

Zack Baldwin, the Associate Director of Mobility, Data and Research at Southwest BID, said they hope by providing those accessible forms of micromobility, people will “choose bikes or scooters to pick up groceries or go to the doctor, instead of using a car.”

These designs are being considered at the same time widespread development is happening all around M Street.

From new high rises just down the street at to the under construction, D.C. residents like Conor Shaw tell 91ÇŃ×Ó,Ěý “it’s easier to put in bus and bike lanes when everything else is changing too.”

Jutras placed getting ahead of the immense growth in the Navy Yard neighborhood and implementing a final design for M Street as a top priority.

“We want to make sure we’re being proactive about planning for the future, not just waiting for all these things to arrive, and then massive congestion and then trying to work backwards to solve the problem” said Jutras.

Dr. Karthik Balasubramanian, who lives near M Street, thinks this project is long overdue.

“I think it’s great…and it should have been done like 10 years ago,” Balasubramanian said.

Dr. Balasubramanian is looking at the project from an equity standpoint. He stressed that increasing micromobility is crucial to achieving accessibility for everyone, and as it stands now, M Street does not support everyone’s needs.

“You have to have a certain amount of money to have a car and if you don’t have a car, this whole thing is not useful to you,” he said.

Zack Baldwin said applying those designs on M Street will be a challenge, and dedicated enforcement will be important.

Jutras agreed and said a plan is still in the works, stating,

“All it takes is one or two UPS trucks or Uber’s, Lyfts’ causing people to not be able to see pedestrians crossing, and then all of a sudden, all those good intentions go out the window pretty quickly.”

Once his team submits the final designs, Jutras said it is up to the and the to enforce proper lane use.

“It’s not a fully sufficient plan for mobility for all the growth that’s coming…we’re taking a small bite out of the apple,” he said.

Celeste Newman, who lives on the Wharf, is hopeful that this project will set a standard of equitable accessibility across D.C.

“I just hope that as this continues, the city continues to focus on all the residents and having accessibility for everyone who lived here and will live here,” she said.

Conor Shaw agreed and said M Street should be the first step to creating a whole system of accessible roadways.

Shaw said, “These are the fights we’re gonna have to win if we want to create a real network that allows people to get everywhere, not just down one corridor.”

But the mobility study doesn’t just stop on M Street.

The under the study focuses on increasing connectivity to and from the area of Buzzard Point along the Southwest waterfront.

The two designs include micromobilty options like bikes and scooters, with the other option focusing on creating a direct metrorail line to Union Station.

Planning for both initiatives began two years ago, with the partners named as Capitol Riverfront Mobility BID, , DDOT and design consultant .

“Everyone is better off when you choose a bike, or when you choose a scooter when you choose to walk,” Dr. Balasubramanian said.

Project coordinators are hoping to get more during outreach events in the coming weeks.

Developers will wrap up the second phase in the next few months, with formal design recommendations submitted to DDOT by the end of this year.

The post Proposed redesign of M Street SE seeks to increase safety, mobility first appeared on 91ÇŃ×Ó.

A proposed extension to Metro’s Blue Line could bring Buzzard Point its own metro stop, giving a much-needed boost to the area as it continues to undergo a major transformation into a business and economic hub.

WMATA Finance and Capital committee announced the proposed extension on Sept. 9 during a meeting.

The extension is an update to a commissioned by WMATA pre-pandemic to examine the capacity and reliability of the Blue, Orange, and Silver lines.

The proposal suggested an extension of the Blue Line through several new stations, including Georgetown, then passing through Buzzard Point over to the National Harbor then to Virginia.

The proposal is estimated to cost, but the project would still need to be approved by WMATA’s board and D.C.

A proposed new station would act as a major boon to Buzzard Point, a neighborhood on the peninsula in the southwest quadrant of Washington, D.C.

While the response to the proposal has been positive, there are still members in the Buzzard Point community who remain apprehensive.

“While not a catalyst for the current growth cycle in Buzzard Point — a subarea of Capitol Riverfront that is already experiencing substantial redevelopment — this alternative would provide even greater connectivity and improved north-south accessibility for the neighborhood as a whole,” said Bonnie Trein, the communications director and chief of staff of the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District (BID) in a statement Sept. 22.

Trein said regardless of the outcome and considering that a Buzzard Point connection “is most likely 15 years away,” the Capitol Riverfront BID will continue to push for “improved mobility infrastructure and services to ensure that residents, workers and visitors can move to, from and within the neighborhood safely, affordably and reliably.”

Trey Sherard, a riverkeeper with an environmental organization formed to clean up the Anacostia River, said the addition of a metro system to the area will not significantly impact the Anacostia River, which the subarea rests on.

Sherard said contrary to expected conflicts between development and the environment, redevelopment in D.C. actually produces a net positive for the river as “redevelopment of that parcel brings that parcel under the new stormwater regulations,”

“In the District, the rules for redevelopment are so strong in favor of stormwater protections that frankly, when a site redevelops, we almost always see a net positive for the river,” Sherard said.

He said the fact that the District is already so developed helps a lot in terms of yielding that net positive.

Unlike Sherard and Trein, Buzzard Point’s Advisory Neighborhood Committee representative Fredrica Kramer (6D05) doesn’t understand the need for WMATA to spend so much money when the area could more easily benefit from other transportation services.

The only form of public transportation that currently services Buzzard Point is theĚý, which does a complete loop around V and 1st Street SW.

Kramer said it did not make sense for WMATA to spend millions of dollars digging up the area when other cost-effective services exist as possibilities.

Kramer, along with other ANC members, said they want a full transportation study done by the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) before anything else is done.

Kramer said WMATA’s proposal is unnecessary as there are already metro stations in the area located in Navy Yard and Southwest Waterfront.

“By the time they think about this and fundraise for it, Buzzard Point will be fully built up with huge buildings,” Kramer said.

In addition to WMATA’s proposal, the Riverfront BID is planning a complete of the area.

The Riverfront BID’s efforts in Buzzard Point will mark the last area in the Capitol Riverfront to be redone following the continuing efforts at Navy Yard and Southwest Waterfront.

The $250 million renovations will include the construction of several different office buildings, apartment buildings, a hotel, and mixed-recreational space.

According to Kristin Connall, development manager of Akridge Investment firm, one of several major investors in the redevelopment project, Akridge is planning to develop an estimated 2 million square feet of the 7-acre site.

“That 2 million square feet is comprised of about anywhere between, depending on what shakes out, 8-10 buildings. And those buildings are a combination of apartments, hotels, offices in phase two, and ground-floor retail everywhere,” Connall said.

Connall said Akridge’s project will be completed in two phases, similar to the reconstruction of .

She said the phases are almost equal in size, with both being an estimated one million square feet each.

Phase one of reconstruction efforts is expected to begin in 2022.

The post Proposed Blue line extension could add metro stop to Buzzard Point’s ongoing redevelopment first appeared on 91ÇŃ×Ó.