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A schematic of the Stanton design for the Hine site.
Photo: Courtesy Stanton Development.
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The District has picked a local development team led by Stanton Development Corporation and EastBanc to turn the 3.5-acre Hine Junior High School site into a mixed-use development that could reshape the neighborhood.
The Stanton-EastBanc plan has about 500,000 square feet of total development – 200,000 square feet of office space, 60,000 square feet of retail and restaurants, and 150 apartments. International Relief and Development, a nonprofit currently based in Virginia, will move its 200 employees to the site, and the Shakespeare Theatre Company will consolidate its administrative staff into the site. The plan also includes 150 below-ground parking spaces, but Stanton-EastBanc representatives said at community meetings earlier this year that that number could go up in the final plans.
Mayor Adrian Fenty said the plans for the site “will make a great neighborhood even greater,” citing the Stanton-EastBanc ties to the community.
Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells also praised the pick, saying that this will “preserve the character of the historic Eastern Market, yet also create new family housing and retail that supports the community.”
Wells said there will be a “community driven process” to finalize the project and ensure that it fits in the neighborhood.
Reopening C Street
The winning proposal calls for the reopening of C Street SE between Seventh and Eighth Streets, with a large piazza located halfway down the block. The street would be closed for special events and the weekend, and the weekend flea market would move to the piazza.
Retail is planned for the ground floors of both sides of C Street, as well as in the new buildings slated for Seventh Street and Pennsylvania Avenue. Office space will be located above the retail on Seventh Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, and residential units will be built along Eighth Street and the north side of C Street.
The building heights vary throughout the planned development. The residential unit on C Street would be four floors, with the rest of the site having a mix of five- and six-floor components.
The development will also include more than two acres of green roofs and roof gardens, in addition to a courtyard slated for the center of the project.
The development team’s proposal is not finalized, and it could take a while before work begins on the project. The developers will have to seek zoning changes for the site and get the project through a planned unit development process.
EastBanc founder Anthony Lanier told Real Estate Bisnow that groundbreaking could happen late next year, but a city announcement of the Stanton-EastBanc pick said work won’t start until 2011 at the earliest.
Support from the Hill
Stanton-EastBanc’s proposal received support from the Capitol Hill Restoration Society in June. The society’s letter to city planners said that the proposal was the best plan for the Hine site because it reflected smart growth and sustainable development, provided more affordable housing units than other plans, offered the best parking plan and would not hurt the weekend flea market.
Other groups offering support for the plan include the Stanton Park Neighborhood Association and the Market Row Association.
The Stanton team also had a number of Capitol Hill allies because of its previous work in the area. The developer worked on several buildings at the intersection of Seventh Street and Pennsylvania Avenue just across the street from the Hine site.
Eighth Street SE resident Derek Farwagi said that Stanton “has done some good work,” and city officials have done a good job keeping the community informed, but he is concerned about the scale of proposed development and what that could do to the community.
“I’ve always questioned the need for such a huge development in a historic neighborhood,” he said. “It doesn’t … sit right.”
Farwagi is associated with Eyes on Hine, a group representing 13 households on the block of Eighth Street adjacent to the Hine site. He said Stanton’s preliminary proposal reflects the city’s decision to “maximize revenue” out of the land without necessarily matching the development to the surrounding community. Norma Wright of the Eastern Market Metro Community Association has publicly shared similar concerns since the developer announcement.
The height of the development, particularly along Eighth Street, is of particular concern to Farwagi. The proposal calls for the highest point on Pennsylvania Avenue. The development would be shorter on Eighth and Seventh Streets – between 40 and 50 feet tall.
Farwagi noted that the height could change because other groups have advocated for lower heights. ANC 6B commissioners did not support a particular development plan when weighing in on the issue earlier this year, but their guidelines for the Hine site recommended a height limit of 60 feet on Pennsylvania Avenue and reduced heights elsewhere.
In addition to building height, Eyes on Hine members are concerned that preparatory work on the site (Farwagi said the existing buildings are “infested with asbestos”) could endanger area residents. Farwagi hopes city planners also take a look at traffic effects on the area, particularly on Eighth Street.
“It’s going to be a pretty dramatic change,” he said.
ANC 6B Commissioner Kirsten Oldenburg said the city’s pick of Stanton-EastBanc is just the beginning of a lengthy process, and the community will have many future opportunities to weigh in and help shape the future development. |
