A proposed development that would add retail, offices and residences to D.C.’s historic Eastern Market is undergoing a makeover before the first plan is even submitted to the city for approval.
According to a member of the Stanton-EastBanc development team, developers have been meeting with city officials from transportation and planning departments to review their revamped plans for the highly anticipated site. The team is scheduled to present its plans to the public at an Advisory Neighborhood Commission meeting Wednesday night.
| Community meeting |
| When: 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday |
| Where: Brent School: 301 North Carolina Ave. SE |
| Agenda: Presentation by Stanton-EastBanc, followed by questions from ANC 6B commissioners and community |
However, the sluggish economy and development market may have caused planners to retool the 510,000-square-foot project.
“We are showing them our thinking at this point based on where the market is,” said Joe Sternlieb, EastBanc’s head of government relations.
Sternlieb declined to comment further before Wednesday night’s meeting.
The city selected Stanton-EastBanc’s bid for the project — the former Hine Junior High School site between the market and Pennsylvania Avenue — in late 2009. The proposal called for more than 200,000 square feet of office space, more than a quarter of which would house the new headquarters for the Virginia nonprofit International Relief and Development.
The project also included about 150 apartments, 60,000 square feet of retail and restaurants, consolidation of the Shakespeare Theatre Company’s operations, and underground parking.
At the time, Stanton-EastBanc did not request any subsidy from the District for the project and construction was estimated to start as early as this year.
Sternlieb said developers are scheduled to deliver their plans to the Historic Preservation Review Board next month. That would set the team up to file for zoning approvals this fall.
Construction is expected to begin next summer with estimated completion in 2014.
Hine Junior High opened in 1966 and closed after the 2007-08 school year. It merged with Eliot Junior High School and reopened in the RFK Stadium neighborhood as Eliot-Hine Middle School in 2008.
