MRP/JBG Venture Could Bring Harris Teeter North of U Street

• February 3rd 2014

by UrbanTurf Staff

MRP Residential and The JBG Companies announced Monday that they have signed a letter of intent to form a joint venture to develop 965 Florida Avenue NW (map). And that means that the U Street Corridor will likely eventually get a Harris Teeter.

Back in July, the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) gave the go-ahead to the team made up of MRP Realty, Ellis Development Group to redevelop the sought-after Florida Avenue NW parcel. JBG was on one of the teams that lost out on the bid. The initial plans that the MRP/Ellis team had in mind for the site include a 370,000 square-foot mixed-use building with a residential component and a market made up of stores and small grocers on the ground-level.

“The JBG-MRP co-development team plan to work with District officials and members of the community and plan to provide a W Street connection and bring a full-service grocery to the neighborhood,” James Iker, a managing partner with JBG, said in a press release. “Our partnership has crafted a venture that will deliver these critical neighborhood needs and meet established city goals to transform the area. We are excited to be working again with MRP.”

The mention of a full-service grocery refers to the Harris Teeter store that JBG had in its original plans. With the new joint venture, it appears that is back on the table.

Update: From MRP Residential spokesperson Julie Chase: “We have not signed any leases, but a grocery of that quality and scale is what we are targeting.”

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/mrp_to_collaborate_with_jbg_on_965_florida_avenue_will_bring_harris_teeter_/8078.