Break In To Move In: 87 Units Coming to the Watergate After Zoning Approval

• May 1st

by UrbanTurf Staff

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The DC Zoning Commission has given the green light to transform the upper floors of the iconic Watergate Office Building into residential use, clearing the way for 87 new homes at one of the city's most storied addresses.

The approval on Thursday authorizes Friedman Capital Advisors to convert floors six through eleven of the building at 2600 Virginia Avenue NW (map) into a mix of 76 apartments on floors six through nine and 11 for-sale condominiums on the top two floors. Eric Colbert and Associates is leading the design.

The project was reviewed as a "Modification Without Hearing," a streamlined zoning process that allows changes to an approved planned unit development without requiring witness testimony before the Commission. 

To ensure a smooth integration of the new residences into the existing complex, the developer will implement a dedicated valet system for residents. Under the plan, residents will drop off their vehicles at a residential entrance, keeping traffic flows organized across the property.

The building carries no small amount of historical baggage. It was on the sixth floor where a team of burglars broke into the Democratic National Committee headquarters in June 1972. The botched operation and its subsequent cover-up unraveled the Nixon presidency and gave the English language a suffix that has been appended to political scandals ever since. More than fifty years later, the floor where operatives rifled through files and planted listening devices is set to become someone's living room.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/break_in_to_move_in_87_units_coming_to_the_watergate/24584.