Category Archives: Neighborhood Development

Press Release: Art Place at Fort Totten Phase 2 Groundbreaking

Posted by nextstoprp in Cafritz Art Place at Fort Totten

THE MORRIS AND GWENDOLYN CAFRITZ FOUNDATION ANNOUNCE GROUNDBREAKING OF PHASE 2 OF ART PLACE AT FORT TOTTEN 

Mayor Bowser Joins Foundation Leaders and Community Stakeholders For Official Ceremony at the Mixed-Use Development

WASHINGTON, D.C. – FEBRUARY 12, 2022 – The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation today celebrated the official groundbreaking for Phase 2 of its two million-square-foot mixed-use development, Art Place at Fort Totten. Joined by Mayor Muriel Bowser, D.C. Councilmembers Janeese Lewis George and Kenyan McDuffie and members of the community, the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation shared its vision for the future of Art Place which is estimated to generate over $1.7 billion in economic impact and over 7,000 total jobs across both phases.

“We are on a mission in DC to make sure neighborhoods in every part of our city are filled with opportunity and that Washingtonians have access to those opportunities,” said Washington, DC Mayor Muriel Bowser. “We are grateful for this investment from the Cafritz Foundation, and there is so much to look forward to – from a new children’s museum, to a new grocery store, to more child care. This is a transformative investment in DC families and we look forward to coming back to cut some ribbons.”  

The anticipated delivery of Phase 2 in early 2025 will continue Fort Totten’s transformation into a creative and walkable destination with the addition of a 24,000-square-foot Aldi, 27,000 square feet of retail space, additional indoor and outdoor spaces for the community to enjoy and more. 

“ALDI currently operates more than 45 stores in the greater D.C. area and is excited to be a part of this new development in the Fort Totten neighborhood. We are thrilled to bring area shoppers high-quality, fresh foods that they love, at low prices every day,” said Jeff Baehr, ALDI FRE Division Vice President. 

Phase 2 will also deliver three residential buildings, including 294 apartments, as an extension to The Modern’s 520 units, and multiple cultural, culinary and community venues. The Foundation’s plans also include a 35,000-square-foot food collective curated with local artisanal food and beverage vendors, a 32,000-square-foot interactive art experience, including a 27,000-square-foot Explore! Children’s Museum, and over 40,000 square feet of community event space. Once complete, Phase 2’s offerings will combine to create an experiential hub of activity. 

“As we mark the beginning of construction for Phase 2, I am inspired by the role Art Place has and will continue to play in the Fort Totten community,” said Jane Cafritz of the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation. “This new space will be an experiential world rooted in art, creativity, and participation of all residents and visitors and we look forward to bringing the community together in these new and exciting spaces.”

At full build out, Art Place will include nearly two million square feet of multifamily, retail, cultural, art, public and entertainment spaces. Art Place’s Phase 1 currently includes The Modern apartments, Love and Care Development Center, Ramdass Pharmacy, ShiningStars Pediatric Dentistry, T-Mobile, DMV Urgent Care, and Rocketship Public Schools. The groundbreaking comes on the heels of the official opening of Onelife Fitness Sports Club at Art Place in January 2022, which brings an additional 40,000 square feet of cutting-edge health and fitness space to the Fort Totten community. 

For more information on Art Place, please visit www.artsplace-dc.com.

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About The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation

The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation is the largest private, independent, local foundation dedicated exclusively to the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. The Foundation is the legacy of Morris Cafritz–one of Washington’s leading commercial and residential builders from the early 1920’s to the mid-60’s–and is committed to improve the quality of life for residents of the area. Since 1970, the foundation has granted awards totaling more than $447 million. In just the last ten years, $185 million has been awarded to more than 961 organizations in Community Services, Arts & Humanities, Education, Health and the Environment.

Renderings courtesy of the Cafritz Foundation

Chick-fil-A Signage is Up

Posted by nextstoprp in Chick-fil-A
Chick-fil-A under construction at 220 Riggs Road NE, January 14, 2022

A neighbor told me last night that the Chick-fil-A signage was installed so I took a quick picture today from the 3rd Street side. It is a little hard to tell from the picture, but there is bit of landscaping installed behind the construction fencing.

January 2022 Development Roundup: Gym is Open

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development

Here is a new year roundup with the status of a few neighborhood development projects to the best of my knowledge.

1. Art Place at Fort Totten

Onelife Fitness is open at 5198 South Dakota Avenue NE as of today January 10, 2022. I am excited both to have a pretty nice gym in walking distance and to finally have an anchor in place for the first phase of Art Place at Fort Totten (called the Modern at Art Place) that was completed in fall 2017 (hooray!).

Pictures of the gym below

As for the second phase (called the FEZ at Art Place), at a public hearing on December 13, 2021, the DC Zoning Commission voted (5-0-0) to approve the developer’s application for a modification of significance (this was filed after Meow Wolf dropped out of the project). Just waiting for the official order to come down and then we can expect to see construction activity begin for the second phase. The second phase will consist of a food hall, Aldi grocery store, Explore! Children’s Museum, immersive arts space and performance venue, additional retail, 294 residential units (with 30 reserved below market-rate for artists and 3 additional units reserved below market rate for other individuals), and 494 vehicle parking spaces. The developer is also extending 3rd Street NE in front of the Aventine apartment building.

2. Chick-fil-A

Chick-fil-A under construction at 220 Riggs Road NE, January 2, 2022.

Construction continues for a Chick-fil-A on the corner of 3rd Street and Riggs Road NE. Last update we received on this was that the restaurant will open sometime in March 2022. There has been talk about having a job fair. Stay tuned.

3. Riggs Park Place

Riggs Park Place under construction at South Dakota Avenue and Riggs Road NE, January 2, 2022.

Anyone passing by the corner of South Dakota Avenue and Riggs Road NE can see the townhomes at Riggs Park Place under construction. The 90 townhomes make up the first phase of the project. Just a few homes remain to be sold, and the first move-ins should be coming this spring. The second phase will consist of a multifamily building with approximately 90 rental units reserved as affordable housing for seniors and a few units of permanent supportive housing, along with about 10,000 square feet of ground floor retail. The second phase is not expected to get started until 2023. See this December 2021 update from EYA.

4. Lamond-Riggs Library

Lamond-Riggs Library under construction at 5401 South Dakota Avenue NE, January 2, 2022.

DC Public Library officials have been keeping us up to date with periodic construction reports on the rebuilding of the Lamond-Riggs Library. The new library should be opening sometime in spring 2022. The interim library is open at 395 Ingraham Street NE.

I have heard rumblings that some residents want to name the rebuilt library after a longtime resident who passed away in 2018. Interesting fact: The original library was designed by African-American architects who were brothers, Charles Bryant and Robert Bryant. Their firm Bryant and Bryant lives on in successor firm Bryant Mitchell. It is my understanding that Robert Bryant and his wife Shirley Bryant lived in Riggs Park on 4th Street NE (and Mrs. Bryant still lives there today).

From DC Public Library:

https://www.dclibrary.org/localblackhistory

Local architects Bryant and Bryant designed the current Lamond-Riggs Library in 1979. The $2M library opened in 1983. Both Bryant brothers, Charles and Robert are now deceased and their legacy lives on through Charles Bryant II, also an architect.

If the library is going to be named after anyone (and I have my thoughts about naming buildings after people), how cool would it be to be named after these two historical figures who are responsible for the original library as well as a number of other buildings around the city (see Washington Post obituary and The American Institute of Architects obituary of Charles Bryant).

5. Metropolitan Branch Trail

MBT Brookland to Fort Totten extension construction, January 2, 2022.

The extension of the MBT from Brookland to Fort Totten is almost complete. View the project website at https://www.metbranchtrail-forttotten.com. The last little (and most complicated) bit that will curve around the green line tunnel at Fort Totten Metro still needs to be done.

In late 2021, the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) presented on the full design for the next phase, the Fort Totten to Takoma extension. The project website for this phase is https://metbranchtrail.com/met-branch-trail-fort-totten-to-takoma. A traffic signal was installed at 1st Street and Riggs Road NE just before the end of the year, but it is not clear if it is actually operational, as it remains a blinking red. (Note: The light became active on January 14, 2022). This traffic signal was expedited ahead of the rest of the Fort Totten to Takoma extension. A bike signal will be added later.

DDOT has also started design of the final piece of the MBT from Blair Road to Piney Branch Road. View the project website at https://metbranchtrail.com/blair-rd-to-piney-branch.

6. 6101 Sligo Mill Road NE

We covered this project in these posts. The plan was for the developer to tear down the existing vacant building and construct a new one with 50 rental units. The developer started holding community meetings, and then DC’s Office of Planning (OP) said not so fast. Apparently, OP does not want the building torn down and has asked the developer to see about preserving at least some of the building (it is an attractive old building). The developer previously stated it has taken so long for this building to be developed into housing because its layout is not conducive to housing. In response to OP’s concerns though, the developer is reworking its plan to see if they can preserve some of the building. For right now, things are in a holding pattern.

Chick-fil-A anticipates March 2022 opening

Posted by nextstoprp in Chick-fil-A

The new Chick-fil-A under construction at the corner of 3rd Street and Riggs Road NE is anticipated to open in March 2022. Representatives shared an update with the leadership of the Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association in late November:

  • Site Construction at 75% complete
  • Building Construction at 25% complete
  • Forecasted Opening March 2022

After the new year closer to the opening date, representatives will attend a meeting to provide more information about operations (such as operating hours and hiring) and to answer questions from residents.

Chick-fil-A under construction, 3rd Street & Riggs Road NE, December 8, 2021

Onelife Fitness anticipates January 2022 opening, now hiring

Posted by nextstoprp in Cafritz Art Place at Fort Totten

Onelife Fitness, the new gym located at 5198 South Dakota Avenue NE, anticipates opening in January 2022. The gym is preselling memberships as interior construction continues. Check out rates and amenities at https://www.onelifefitness.com/gyms/fort-totten. Monthly payments do not begin until the gym opens. Individuals can also go to the preview center located on the corner of South Dakota Avenue and Ingraham Street NE by appointment to check out the offerings. Email forttotten@onelifefitness.com or call (202) 459-4664.

The gym is offering hard hat tours to new members. I took at look at the progress of the interior buildout over the weekend. The gym looks to be quite spacious with high ceilings and great light. There are zones for cardio, strength training, group fitness classes, spin, and boxing. There will be a saltwater pool, sauna, whirlpool tub, and hydromassage (kinda cool to see what a pool looks like as it is being built). During the tour, they did mention that certain things like the sauna might not be available immediately when the gym opens (COVID and all). The general manager, Chris Barrett, also mentioned that the gym will have a hospital-grade air filtration system that will run 24/7.

Probably not an issue for neighborhood residents, but the gym will offer three hour validated parking. The gym will open at 5:00 am on weekdays for the early birds and later on the weekends. One thing people have asked about is onsite childcare. Right now there are no plans to offer childcare onsite, but keep asking.

The gym is hiring for a number of positions. Fitness and non-fitness related positions are open. Check them out at https://www.usfitnesscareers.com. Let your neighbors know. It would be great to have local residents fill these positions.