City Center Rising

DC's largest active real estate project lies in the heart of downtown, on the site of the old convention center. (The new convention center is he low slung glass building, second from the left in this photo.) City Center, as planned, will include 330,000 sf of retail space, up to 400 hotel rooms, 1M(!) sf of office space and almost 700 housing units. Not all at once mind you. But, in three phases. 

Construction will last years and include the reopening of 10th St NW. Obviously this is a multi-use project and that's great. As far as the architecture, I'm not so sure. I don't expect any daring or even mildly interesting buildings. A shame really. We have a chance to spice up the east end and break away from glass and prefab concrete boxes, but the renderings are headed in that general direction. Plans do call for 30,000 sf of open space, including a park on the New York Ave side and a central east-west pedestrian plaza from 9th to 11th Sts. So, that's good. Very exciting project for downtown DC!

Flap Over Billboards Just a Prelude

Some residents in DC's Penn Quarter/Gallery Place neighborhood are at odds with a plan that would allow more video screen billboards to be erected on and around 7th and H Streets NW. There are already video billboards in the area at 7th and F, 7th and G and three television-like boards directly above the Metro entrance at 7th and H. The current proposal would more than double the number of locations with video kiosks on street level, new video billboards in the Gallery Place Walk area (7th and G) and vertically mounted video billboards on the façade of 777 7th St, a residential building.

This seems to be an issue that will persist even after the current episode is settled. Looming large is the future development at old convention center site, renamed City Center DC. There are grand plans for the prime real estate now occupied by a vast parking lot. Bound by New York Ave, 11th Street, H Street and 9th Street, the new development will include entertainment, retail and open public space; all above, below and adjacent to each other. The East End/Downtown area has been a shopping destination for years. Now the entertainment sector is rising with Museums (public and private), nightclubs and sports venues. Add to that a vibrant and growing residential base and well, there you go. Unfortunately the residents are sometimes pit against the casual visitor in the fight for amenities.

The billboards are not meant to appeal to the residents of Penn Quarter only. The advertiser's audience is also made up of the office worker, bus rider, hotel guest, convention attendee or museum goer. There will always be the built-in animosity between commercial and residential interest. And that clash only has the potential to worsen over time. Can some of that be avoided? Yes, probably. I urge the city, developers and potential residents to set firm guidelines now before City Center begins to take physical form. Otherwise this will be just one in a series of roadblocks for a Downtown otherwise still on the a joyride of commerical and residential comeback. Let's make the ride smoother for all invested parties, especially the residents who are the most permanent fixtures in any vibrant city.

Serena Willams and the Washington Kastles in PQ, Tonight!

Only days after an EPIC Wimbledon men's final and another historic women's final, DC is ready to showcase its slice of the world tennis pie. The Washington Kasltes play their first home match of the year in World Team Tennis league play. Our star player is Serena Williams, she of two Wimbledon titles and runner up in this year's Wimbledon final. Sadly tonight will be your only chance to see Williams play for our team. Its her only scheduled appearance. The match is sold our according to the Kastles. The Kastles play right in the heart of downtown Washington DC! The "stadium" (quite a temporary looking thing it is...) is located at 11th and H Streets NW, site of the old convention center. Take the 42 bus, or Metro to Gallery Place, Metro Center or Mt Vernon Square and walk.

If you can't make tonight and still want to see some stars, you may have to wait for the stars of other teams to visit. John McEnroe of the NY Sportimes will be in town on July 15 and Anna Kournikova of the St Louis Aces will be in DC for the final Kastles match on July 23. Tickets for tonight's game were listed at $40-$60. Tickets for all matches range from $25-$60. I can't go tonight, but the team looks novel enough that I want to try to attend at east one match, stars or no stars. Good luck Kastles!

To An Illiterate, Smoke Free Society

Two news notes.

1. A big announcement came down two days ago concerning the Old Convention Center site. We all knew that the mega-parcel north of Penn Quarter was slated for commercial and retail development. But many of us had hoped for a coup of sorts, in the form of a brand new main public library on that site. How nice that would have been. A jewel of a new facility in a central location without all of the baggage of the current MLK Library at 9th and G. We could have had a fresh start, something residents, including the young ones, could get excited about.

Alas, a dream deferred. Mayor Adrian Fenty announced that the last piece of the site would be devoted to a luxury hotel and major retail. Some of the names floated around as the "major retail": Target and Crate and Barrel. Uhm, check please? So much for literacy. I understand. Why miss the chance to tax the hotel or whatever ended up in that space. A library would have cost money to build AND would yield no taxes. Maybe we could have sold the naming rights. What about The FedEx Reading Center at the DC Public Library. We'd all refer to it by that name... for a small fee of course. Maybe my wish about Carnegie becoming the new main library wasn't so silly after all. If you will it, it is no dream, right...? And hold the hate mail: I know that DC is still one of the most literate cities in the country.

2. Smokers, haha. Just keeps getting worse. The DC Council plans to double the tax you pay on a pack of cigs. That's a jump from $1 of tax to $2. May not seem like much to a non-smoker, but think about instantly paying another dollar for that latte you get daily. Of course the latte won't kill you. Not by lung cancer anyway. Just give up smokers. Soon you won't be able to smoke on sidewalks, in your car, or in your home. Good luck with that. Last year was the first full year of DC's smoking ban, eliminating smoking in restaurants, clubs and virtually any public indoor space.

Could This Be Our New Flagship Library?

Here's one vote for moving the District's main library to the Carnegie building in Mt. Vernon Square. The city's main library has resided in the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library building at 9th and G Streets NW since 1970. The Carnegie Library, so named because its construction was made possible by the philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie, opened in 1903 in this part of town formerly known as the Northern Liberties. The MLK building is architecturally significant for sure, but what's to say that it has to remain a library?

The MLK building has served dutifully as the central library, but with DC being named one of the most literate cities in the U.S., the residents need a more inviting, prominent space for their flagship library. The Carnegie building would provide this. With failed, non-starter-type attempts to use the building as something other than a library (part of UDC campus, City Museum, National Music Center) the site seems destined to return to its original purpose. What better way to reinvigorate the DC Public Library system? They've struggled over the last few years, closing libraries for renovation and not completing the job (the Shaw Library was closed December 2004, subsequently demolished and remains an empty lot to date). To their credit, DCPL has re-appropriated the construction contracts and opened temporary library facilities.

The development of the Old Convention Center site was finalized this month and a newly constructed main library was not in the mix. According to the Washington Business Journal, the city-owned portion of the site will most likely be sold to a developer and become retail or housing. With an ailing MLK building and an available, historic property in our hands, the city has a chance to elevate a public good to the same level its elevated the private good in terms of downtown development. We should strive not only for the best and brightest new condos and retail options, but for the best and brightest public facilities and opportunities. Let's get on the phones and email to our councilpersons and push for the face lift and repair of the Carnegie building as the new DC Central Library, the gem of public libraries in the U.S.

"Old Convetnion Center Site" Redevelopment on Hold; To be Rezoned, Rebranded

The pace of rezoning, designing and planning the details of the "Old Convention Center" site is slowing according to the Examiner. Mayor Fenty, who is becoming a mini-Mayor Williams when it comes to development and gentrification, wanted the project to pick up speed and possibly brake ground within his first year of office. Looks like it may take another year for that milestone to be met.

The site is at the other end of the 42 bus line at 9th and H Sts NW. Now its used as a parking lot. Too bad its not closer to the new Nationals stadium, which (allegedly) will be lacking several thousand spaces for the expected number of drivers next spring. I've never seen the "Old Convention Center" parking lot full at any time of day or night. Its been put to various uses over the last couple of years. Remember Cirque du Soleil setting up camp?

The city is also working on "re-branding," or renaming the site. I guess "Old Convention Center" isn't as alluring as some of the other condo/retail made up names in the area; like the Joule, the Solea, or Zoso. Let's be honest, there's no way I'd be up to telling my parents back home that I'm moving into a place called the Joule. Joule? Isn't that a unit if measurement for energy? Come on people. What, Websters ran out of real words? What happened to naming apartments and condos after the neighborhood, or geographical features? All I'm saying is I hope whichever firm gets the $15000-$20000 to consult with the city and name the place gets it right. No way I'm taking my parents to a place called the Mole, or the Calorie when they come to vist. No way.