Meet Anacostia Gateway

Today I had the chance to tour Anacostia Gateway, the future home of the DC Department of Housing and Community Development, with Mike Wallach, Vice President and COO of the Anacostia Economic Development Corporation. In a perfect world, it would have been blue skies and sunny, but with this building's views, it is hard to not be impressed, however gray the day.



The Green Roof:
for some reason I didn't take any pictures of the patio part, but this roof is accessible to all building users.


you can see Grandview Estates up on the hill




a little sedum

From the 3rd Floor:







tear me down and build something in my place


good ol' mysterious Drake's


the old Green Derby. AEDC did the exterior renovation, and is currently seeking approval to build stairs out the front door

Anacostia Square:

Mike telling me about the Anacostia Square project, to be developed by AEDC and Douglas Development.

According to him, they own the entire block all the way down to the railroad tracks (except Drake's). They are currently waiting on HPRB on design issues, but it is still very much in process. Once Historic Preservation signs off on the project, then it goes into the PUD stage. (I didn't know it was a PUD until now. This is a good thing, because it means that there has to be a good amenity base in the project)


at least it can really only get better than this



Before the DDOT Building arrives:



future roundabout / traffic circle





Good Hope:

new Elks lodge signage


...and new gate: secret entrance to the Daily Planet?





From the 2nd Floor:



Honfleur Gallery! (the blue one)

FYI, they are having a show opening this Saturday called Into the Light at 7pm. Free.






I seriously hope this won't be someone's corner office

The Retail:

they are still looking for a restaurant in this corner


Industrial Bank is [purportedly] headed for this spot (dang, I was really hoping for a Wachovia..)

Lobby and Exterior:



they are still deciding which work of art to display in that back frame





Conclusion: the Gateway building is very impressive, with fantastic views of Anacostia and beyond. I am confident that once those employees move in, it will definitely inspire future neighborhood investment and growth, as well as more retail in the surrounding area.

development potential (fake sunset edition)

these buildings along MLK are lonely:


the first is part of the Curtis/Four Points assemblage
(currently in the PUD application process)


but the second -to my knowledge- is not yet part of any larger plan.

[some of] the green houses of anacostia

must. brush. teeth. (...even the air conditioner is painted a minty-fresh shade of green)


classic sage - now that is a tasteful renovation


the contrast


confused green: being painted green from beige, from beige to green, from stucco to wood, or wood to stucco?

Big K vs. Salvation Army

In honor of March Madness, I am pitting Big K Fine Wines & Spirits against its geographically closest neighbor, the still-under-construction Salvation Army building:



I admire the new signage on Big K, but they really need to repaint the side of their building with something a little less jarring, as well as replace the metal mesh and fortress door/windows to be any kind of pleasant addition to the streetscape.

Salvation Army also has the height advantage. Then again, current underdog Big K might win out in the end because it is --despite current aesthetics-- built on a more human scale and has good potential for future retail or total redevelopment success, as it is directly across the street from the proposed 9-block redevelopment by Curtis and Four Points, LLC.

Unfortunately, this matchup won't be decided for a few years...

on moving into anacostia

This article was published while I was out of the country in late December (still not sure sure how I missed it), but it was written by a Washington Post journalist that recently moved into Historic Anacostia. It is an honest account of the challenges, unique features, and pleasant surprises of life in our often stereotyped neighborhood.

It Feels Like Home, Faults and All, by Robert E. Pierre

brick wall no more

on Cedar Hill

From the Washington Post:

When Frederick Douglass moved to Cedar Hill in 1877, he had behind him a long and illustrious career as an abolitionist, women's rights activist and orator. After 40 years of struggle and activism, he was no doubt ready for a breather. And where better to kick back and relax than a nine-acre hilltop home a river away from the hubbub of Capitol Hill.

It was here in Anacostia that Douglass entertained guests and displayed his treasures, including Abraham Lincoln's cane (given to him by Mrs. Lincoln after the president's assassination), a handful of knickknacks from around the world and, most important, his library collection. A passionate reader, Douglass spent time boning up on politics, philosophy and the law, sometimes holing up with a book in the Growlery, a small "quiet time" building he constructed behind his home.

Strolling the grounds or sitting on his porch, Douglass would have been rewarded with an impressive view of the city. Check it out yourself: Start at the visitor's center, where a film will fill you in on Douglass's life. Then tour the 21-room house, which is run by the National Park Service and reopened last year after three years of renovation. Sit on the porch and enjoy the greenery or spend a moment in the Frederick Douglass Memorial Garden, which isn't much to look at in winter but comes alive in spring and summer.

And, of course, feel free to be moved by the man himself, who taught himself to read and write, escaped from slavery at 20 and went on to publish an abolitionist newspaper, write a few books, advise President Lincoln, speak out for women's rights and rouse the masses with speeches on world peace and the rights of the poor. Now that will give you something to think about.

Frederick Douglass National Historic Site,1411 W St. SE, 202-426-5961, http://www.nps.gov/frdo. Free.

the overhead mess, and some history

We need to solve the overhead wires issue. There are simply too many.

I was trying to find something on the Congressional ban of overhead wires throughout much of Washington, DC, but all I found was a blurb regarding overhead wires for streetcars--a topic still in the news this month as both Anacostia and H Street NE prepare for their lines.

This is from 112 years and 2 days ago:

Click to Enlarge




...as well as some random but interesting information on a rail line to and through Anacostia (Uniontown):

Click to Enlarge




Click Here for information on the old German Orphan Asylum

Did you know: before MLK Avenue was renamed, it was called Nichols Avenue (with the section in Historic Anacostia called Monroe Street), and before that it was called Asylum Road after St. Elizabeths. Kind of creepy, but it would be pretty sweet if that name was still around.

Click to Enlarge

1886 map portion courtesy of the library of congress

sweet roofdeck

This house on Shannon Place SE has what looks like a really awesome roofdeck overlooking the river and the rest of DC. I just wonder what the story is with the side of the house... looks like another house used to be attached.





One wonders if that large barbed wire fence along the roofline of the warehouse was put up because of the easy access from this house. That would be one giant roofdeck wonderland.

photos by DG-rad

Speed Renovation

I wish I had a before picture (think the houses to left and right, with a lot more broken windows), because this house on V Street has seen quite the transformation. And it happened in only a few weeks.



1. I wish they had replaced the iron columns with the original wood.

2. What do you think about painting brick houses? Personally, I think it adds to the uniqueness of DC, but I know others disagree...

If you're interested, the house is for sale, although not yet on the company website.

Still no DDOT Developer

The Washington Biz Journal reports today (print edition, this part not available online) that the city has yet to choose a developer for the new District Department of Transportation building adjacent to (and technically part of) Anacostia Gateway at the corner of MLK and Good Hope.

"It looks like the they will be waiting a while longer. The now-defunct National Capitol Revitalization Corp. issued a solicitation to developers, but it elicited less-than-stellar responses, according to Neil Albert, deputy mayor for economic development. He says he has cancelled that solicitation and will issue a new one in the next few months."

The good news: at least the project is still moving.



images courtesy of DDOT (PDF)

new trees

Before:

dying magnolia - not a good street tree

After:


(previously blogged about here)

before photo clip courtesy of flickr user stgermh

Layers

taken of the curb on W Street SE near where the platform connection to Poplar Point is planned to be:



photo by DG-rad

the ruins:

It is pretty difficult to not see these crumbling buildings when coming in and out of Anacostia. Last fall similar pictures made the front page of the Washington Business Journal for the supposed progress made in their restoration, and the Historic Preservation Review Board ruled in favor of preserving their facades. Where is the scaffolding? Where are the construction fences?














ahh, the contrast of old and new
...and oh, you can take down that office "for lease" sign now.

- - -

Update: okay, maybe I was premature in my "where are the fences?" comments, because reading back (on my own blog, no less), I realize that the developers said that they expect construction to start in August 2008.

the pnc bank:

as far as neighborhood-branch banks go, this one on MLK and U Street is pretty spectacular:

and the awnings:

As a general rule I am anti-aluminum-awnings...



...but there is something to be said here for the matching racing stripes.

all photos by DG-rad

Business Improvement District?

With all the news in the past couple of weeks about Anacostia Gateway being leased and Four Points LLC planning, among other things, around 855,000 square feet of new office along MLK, the topic of an Anacostia Business Improvement District (BID) is being raised.

Preliminary plans place the BID from the intersection of Good Hope Road SE and 18th Street SE, down Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE to St. Elizabeths Hospital. (click here for map)

According to a Washington Business Journal article, the first official word is from Councilman Barry, who notes that based on the program's success in other neighborhoods, "you can see why I'm so excited to start Anacostia's BID."

[Update 3/24/08: Marion Barry did not come up with this idea at all, but is trying to take credit for the loads of work done by AEDC and Main Street Anacostia on behalf of the future BID]

Yes, folks, it seems like Anacostia is seeing some well-needed rays of sunshine. The tables are starting to turn more quickly, and significant steps are being taken towards its rebirth.



photo by flickr user Mr. T in DC

the blue house, etc

This is one of my all-time favorite houses in Anacostia:

the porch fan and slick set of wheels help set it apart

And this building at 2022 MLK Ave will make a magnificent restaurant or bar one day:


It's fascinating to actually take time to look at each building -especially along the main street corridors- in Anacostia. They are all so different, yet easily hide behind the veil of vacancy.

Bury's Delicious Ice Cream

There is something very tragic about this change. Can one of my readers please restore this building at 2200 MLK Ave to its former glory? Thanks in advance. I mean, how amazing was that corner entrance?

Then:

ice cream trucks are so much less charming now...

Now:


old photo courtesy of the Library of Congress, new one by DG-rad

the Carver Theater building

Then:


Now:


Future?:


The Team:


Inside Out:


old photo courtesy of the Smithsonian Archives, rendering from the Good Samaritan Foundation, other photos by DG-rad

- - -

Then:

"This movie house, located in the Anacostia area of Washington, stood on Nichols Street (now Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue) near Talbert Street.

It opened in 1948 and sat just over 500. The Carver was designed in Streamline Moderne style by local architect John J. Zink, best known for his Senator Theatre in Baltimore, and the Uptown Theatre in Washington. Closed during the 60s, the Carver became the first home of the Anacostia Neighborhood Museum in 1967."

Source: Cinema Treasures

Now:

After seven years of delays, it looks like maybe the renovation of the Carver Theater into a student training center for the Good Samaritan Foundation might actually be underway. While no significant work has been done recently, the site has been cleaned up and one person I spoke with on the street said that workers have been there every day for the past couple weeks.

The Washington City Paper has a very good article on the current state of the theater, with history about the long delays and broken promises surrounding it.

I'm especially glad that Muse Architects is designing this project, as they have a history of context-sensitive and very high quality work throughout the region.