Last post, I discussed the dramatic effect that the influx
of young professionals into the
District has had on our local real estate market. Now, let’s shift our focus to the equally remarkable effects of the migration of young professionals and
development dollars within the
district on the property values and the lifestyle amenities available in many
reemerging Washington neighborhoods.
It doesn’t require forty years of wandering (or wondering!)
to understand the exodus of young professionals from upper NW DC to
neighborhoods farther east. When I was
shopping for a condo in 2003, I looked at a unit in Logan Circle but decided
that the area was “not ready for prime time” and was therefore too risky of an
investment. Since 2003, home values in
Logan Circle have soared 60% and Logan has become one of the city’s most
desirable locales. A few more investment
decisions like that and I might be joining Big Bird in the unemployment line! What I failed to realize at that time was
that the waves of young professionals that were continuing to stream into DC had
to live somewhere and housing in Upper NW was simply becoming too expensive. Just like air flowing from an area of high
pressure to one of low pressure, over the past ten years young professionals and
development dollars have increasingly flowed east within the city seeking to
find and profit from more affordable housing options. This
infusion of youth and capital has brought with it a renewed focus on modern
urban design - emphasizing transit-oriented development, sustainable building,
and increased access to retail , nightlife, and community resources - to some of DC’s most historic and beautiful
neighborhoods*.
THE GREEN LINE IS THE NEW RED
LINE
With 32% of all new
18-to-34-year-old households in the District since 2000** concentrated within ¼
mile of its stations, the tremendous growth around the Green Line is representative
of the eastward migration of young professionals and development dollars as
well as the District’s efforts to foster the growth of “Live, Play, Work”
communities throughout the city. Here
are three Green Line neighborhoods that have seen and will continue to see
dramatic changes to their look, feel, and property values:
DEVELOPMENT
UPDATES: THE CHANGING FACE OF DC
Petworth (20011)
·
Between
2009 – 2011, four major residential and commercial developments delivered near
the Georgia Avenue/Petworth Metrorail station. Park Place (161
apartments and 17,000 sq. ft. of retail space), Residences at Georgia Avenue
(72 apartments and a 11,500 square foot Yes! Organic Market), The
Griffin (49 apartments) and 3Tree Flats (130 apartments) have
created a new neighborhood center. Furthermore, Safeway is planning to
replace its current 21,000 square foot store with 220 residential units above a
modern 62,000 square foot grocery store.***
Shaw (20001)
·
Home to
the 2.3 million sq. ft. Washington Convention Center that hosted
204 events and more than one million people in 2011. The historic Howard Theater recently reopened after a $24 million renovation. Cultural investment has also been made with
the opening of the new, award-winning, Watha
T. Daniel/Shaw Library and new public art throughout the neighborhood. CityMarket
at O Street, a $260 million development, promises to be the neighborhood’s
new epicenter in 2013 and will be anchored by a 72,000 square foot flagship Giant Food supermarket, a 182-room Cambria Suites Hotel, 626 residential
units and 560 parking spaces. The 1,167-room
Marriott Marquis convention center hotel is under construction and
scheduled to open in 2014.***
Southwest Waterfront (20024)
·
The openings of the
Mandarin Oriental Hotel, the newly expanded
Arena Stage and the new 55,000 square foot
Safeway and are just part of the cultural, hospitality, and retail
offerings that enhance the urban vitality of this rapidly developing
neighborhood.
The master plan for
The Wharf (www.swdcwaterfront.com) includes 1,200 residential units, 400,000
square feet of office space, 200,000 square feet of retail space, 625 hotel
rooms, 100,000 square feet of cultural space, a 400 – 500 slip marina, 12 acres
of open space and 1,900 – 3,050 parking spaces. The project will be a part of
the USGBC’s LEED Neighborhood Development program and the first LEED-Gold
certified mixed-use project in DC. Phase I is expected to start in late 2012.***
*While this has resulted in tremendous property value increases and
investment returns for early movers, it is important to note that the changes
that have already occurred and those that are planned in the near future have
had and will continue to have very real and not always positive repercussions
for long-time residents of these areas. A recent study examining housing trends found
that the ZIP codes covering Shaw, Ledroit Park, Bloomingdale, Columbia Heights,
Mt. Pleasant, and Logan Circle are three of the top twenty fastest gentrifying
ZIP codes in the entire country.
**GreenPrint of
Growth, January 12, 2012 by RCLCO.
*** Source: Washington DC Economic Partnership (www.wdcep.com)