ANC Supports Workforce Housing, Net-Zero Proposals For Mount Vernon Triangle Site

• December 2nd 2015

by Nena Perry-Brown

ANC 6E came to a split decision on Tuesday night as to the development proposal it supports for the Capitol Vista site.

Last month, UrbanTurf covered the competing development proposals for the 9,600-square foot parcel at 2nd & H Streets NW (map). On Tuesday, half the commissioners at the ANC 6E monthly meeting voted to support the Voltron Partners’ proposal, while the other half supported the Vista Development Partners proposal.

The proposal from Voltron Partners would create an eight-story building with 72 units of workforce housing rented at 60%, 50% and 30 percent of the area median income (AMI). The building would also include 2,785 square feet of ground-floor retail. The development group intends to create a community benefits fund that would allow churches, schools and other nonprofits in the neighborhood to apply for grants. Voltron would also maintain a green area as a public amenity on the northern end of the site.

Vista Development Partners’ proposal sets out to deliver a mixed-income apartment complex in the District’s first, large-scale net-zero building. There would be 87 apartments, with roughly a third set aside for those making 30 and 50 percent of AMI, and there would be a job-training partnership with local restaurant crowdfunding outfit EquityEats and non-profit World Central Kitchen on the ground floor. Although the ANC commissioners are somewhat skeptical about whether the project can actually accomplish what it sets out to do (e.g. eliminate its residents’ electricity bills and generate an energy surplus through liberal usage of solar panels and other green technology), striving for a net-zero building is in keeping with the city’s priority of being a nationwide leader in energy efficiency. This project also includes a dog run/park, a playground, and a community garden.

All of the proposals will likely need relief from minimum parking space requirements due to the small footprint of the parcel. The ANC unanimously voted to submit the split-vote recommendation to the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED).

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/workforce_housing_and_community_benefits_to_come_to_capitol_vista_site/10643.