ANC Supports Movie Theater, 600+ Residences For Navy Yard

• September 10, 2013
• 14 Comments

by Shilpi Paul

Courtesy of Forest City.

On Monday evening, ANC 6D voted unanimously to support the newest plan for the Navy Yard, a high-end movie theater and mixed-use development project with over 600 residential units.

Forest City, the master developer behind The Yards, has been communicating with the ANC and larger community about the project over the last year. Forest City attended the meeting to seek support in advance of their hearing with the Zoning Commission later this month.

In addition to a 16-screen movie theater, the three-block project, located just east of the ballpark at N Place SE and the future 1 1/2 Street SE (approximate map), calls for two apartment and retail buildings, which are currently going through a design review process. There will be a total of 600 apartments.

ANC 6D commissioner David Garber told UrbanTurf that the project will have many green elements, including a green roof and green exterior wall on the 1 1/2 Street side, as well as two electric car charging stations. Retail plans include a restaurant on the 5th and 6th floors of the building, overlooking the Anacostia River, as well as an arts-focused retail space facing N Place SE.

Same rendering, with wood rather than Corian.

Perhaps most exciting is the multiplex cinema. The developers are hoping to build a high-end movie theater, Garber said, with age restrictions after 7pm. Certain halls will be reserved for those 21 and older (to keep out teenagers, rather than to play “adult” films, said Garber). Additionally, patrons will be able to reserve specific seats and parking spaces.

Forest City presented two alternatives for an accent band that wraps the facade of the main building, and are deliberating between wood or white Corian accent panels. We’ve published both renderings, so check out which you prefer. Currently, DC Water occupies much of the site, and will be relocating eventually. For this reason, Garber believes it’s unlikely that any portion of the project would be complete before 2016.

This article originally published at http://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/movie_theater_and_600_residences_headed_to_navy_yard/7535

14 Comments

1. NIMBY4Life said at 6:43 pm on Tuesday September 10, 2013:
   This is a perfect idea for this neighborhood. Very exciting.

1. sbc said at 7:54 pm on Tuesday September 10, 2013:
   glad to live near it...also glad to not live right on top of it. I really hope they don't call it 1 1/2 St. That will be a pain for people to get deliveries. How about First Place instead? That's what a lot of the in-between streets in dc do.

1. smn-dc said at 8:00 pm on Tuesday September 10, 2013:
   Wow, sounds like an innovative plan that'll draw people from other parts of the city to this area.

1. 7r3y3r said at 4:05 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   @sbc - as someone who lives on a street next to a similarly named "place", it's obnoxious. People don't notice the ST and PL and confuse my Street address for the person that lives at the same number but on the Place, and vice versa.

1. familyguywithteens said at 4:10 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   600 apartments, 16 theaters and 2 electric vehicle charging stations? A green roof doesn't make this place green - massive amount of energy to be used. Age restrictions for the movies? What they are really saying is they don't want the teens who go to Gallery Place coming there. Read what you want into that but it is real. Sounds like a playground for wannabe rich people.

1. Movieluvr said at 4:37 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   The age restricted movie theaters wouldn't be a bad idea. Sometimes grown up people want to watch a movie without obnoxious teens in the background. I for one constantly get annoyed by the teens at Gallery place! Wouldn't be a bad idea for them to serve liquor or actual meals (other than popcorn and hot dogs) either like theaters in other big cities do.

1. Mary said at 5:14 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   Oh, that'd be a cool spot for a movie theater - right adjacent to the last little bit of canal park. It'd be nice to be able to see a movie and then take a stroll. (Or walk from one of the new restaurants over there.)

1. Alan said at 5:49 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   I second the “First Place” rather than “1 1/2 Street” idea. If not that, create a new street name entirely (Nationals Street has a certain ring to it, no?)

1. Movieluvr said at 7:14 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   Nationals Street is neat!... Nationals Place or Way have an interesting ring to it too.

1. Gallery Place Gal said at 7:29 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   <i>What they are really saying is they don’t want the teens who go to Gallery Place coming there.</i> anyone who has endured obnoxious [a portion of this comment has been removed for its unsuitable nature] brats carrying on during a film will applaud this

1. SoChill said at 11:57 pm on Wednesday September 11, 2013:
   For "the Navy Yard"? Pretty sure that's a government facility. You must mean "for Navy Yard," and you've illustrated why that's a stupid thing to call the neighborhood.

1. Janbaby said at 3:24 pm on Tuesday September 17, 2013:
   @familyguywithteens: I'm sure you absolutely love going to the movies with your teens. Some of us don't. Call me wannaberich if you want, but I certainly don't want to have to tolerate your bratty kids...they're yours, you deal with them.

1. NotBabysitters said at 3:37 pm on Tuesday September 17, 2013:
   My spouse and I no longer go to Gallery Place for a movie. We had a last-straw when a pack of elementary and middle school-aged kids were there on a school-day without their parents. It was a matinee showing. They decided to shine their phones and use lasers on the screen. I applaud this theater and welcome such efforts. I went to the meet-and-greet with the theater group and they said they are there for entertainment, not to be "babysitters" and children would need to be chaperoned (and age restrictions after certain hours) to encourage the non-babysitter atmosphere (I've been to movies with crying babies too).

1. ET said at 5:49 pm on Tuesday September 17, 2013:
   A lot of the crowd will be determined by what movies are show. If you don't show the big blockbusters or the ones teens/kids are interested in they won't come. I wonder, and this is questions, is if it legal to say no one under the age of X is allowed with NO exceptions. Or will only "certain" under of the age of X be barred based on some other criteria left up the judgement of whomever is the appointed gatekeeper.