Washington D.C. Development News

[desertpunk]

Ontario Theatre Canopy and Marquee Live On in New Condos

The long-held suspicion that the Ontario Theatre would be destroyed rather than repurposed was confirmed in February when the demo trucks arrived at Columbia and 17th NW. The theatre had several lives as a first-run theatre, a Spanish-language theatre and a punk rock venue before being vacated by discount shops and falling into disrepair. There had been talk of putting up condos on that site for years and the developers at Peterson Companies have released this rendering and announced that the project will include 80 residences and 9,000 square feet of retail. Not all traces of the theatre will vanish: the mid-century modern canopy will be appropriated into the architecture as will the old poster cases and marquee. The $30 million project will start construction this fall.

[desertpunk]

More Cranes For U Street: 15th and V Starts Construction in July

Between Louis at 14th, the street repairs and this development at 15th and V, the U Street area is turning into construction central. The 15th and V development, which will have 95 apartments over nine stories is slated to start construction in July. It will be in what is currently the parking lot of the Paul Laurence Dunbar apartments but what had previously been the elite Dunbar Hotel and...an apartment building.

[desertpunk]

Trump Finalizes 60-Year Lease for DC’s Old Post Office Building, Luxury Hotel Could Open by 2016

Donald Trump told The Commercial Observer that his upcoming hotel in Washington DC’s Old Post Office Pavilion “will be as luxurious as any hotel in this country and beyond.”

The Trump Organization announced yesterday that it had completed negotiations for a 60-year lease to redevelop and manage the 114-year-old property at 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue. Redevelopment is expected to begin in 2014, with a roughly 260-room hotel slated to open in 2016. The agreement between The Trump Organization and the US General Services Administration will now go to Congress for a 30-day review period.

“It’s going to be really great,” Mr. Trump said. “There’s tremendous potential. We’ll make it magnificent and return the building to its original glory.” The agreement states that $200 million of private sector funds will go toward the restoration of the federal building on the corner of Pennsylvania Avenue and 12th Street in the heart of the nation’s capital.

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[desertpunk]

D.C. Delivers Tower Crane for Building The Mall's Final Museum

Right now the space to the right of the Washington monument at 1400 Constitution Avenue NW is a giant pit, but a massive tower crane will be delivered and installed there this week and through the weekend. The project: the National Museum of African American Cultural History which broke ground last winter. It's a shame that we couldn't yet include this building in the Architectural Walking Tour around the National Mall because the shimmery copper exterior and unique basket-like shape are unlike any other building in the vicinity. However, the museum hopes to open in 2015.

http://www.archdaily.com/220462/upda...ma_f100618_f2/


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