Three Van Ness properties are under contract to a single buyer that intends to build apartments on two of the lots. The buyer: Highcrest, a DC-based developer. The properties: the former Van Ness Burger King and drive-thru, a portion of the parking lot on the other side of the alley behind the restaurant, and the […]
The Van Ness Days Inn intends to sell its adjacent parking structure for redevelopment
The owner of the Days Inn property at 4400 Connecticut Avenue wants to sell the parking structure behind the hotel for redevelopment, and is seeking ANC 3F’s support on the first step toward clearing the way for a sale: Reducing the number of parking spaces it must provide for guests. Speaking on behalf of the […]
The story of 3007 Albemarle, and the two-year quest for permission to make it a two-home property
by Marlene Berlin 3007 Albemarle Street NW is not like many of its neighbors. The street address is courtesy of a north-south sliver of land connecting the bulk of the lot to Albemarle Street. At .7 acres, or 30,618 square feet, it is nearly as large as three of the lots directly to the south, […]
Burger King says it “has to say goodbye” to Van Ness
by Marlene Berlin The owner of the Burger King franchise at Van Ness is talking again about closing the location. “Potomac Foods being the last standing Burger King operator in the District, and 40 years of service to your community, it saddens us to have to say goodbye,” wrote Mark James, Potomac’s vice president of […]
The Van Ness Burger King, up against a zoning board deadline, seeks to waive an order to repave parking lot
by Marlene Berlin Ahead of a three-year deadline, the owner of the Burger King franchise in Van Ness is seeking to waive a requirement that it resurface a parking area to allow for stormwater infiltration. The accessory parking lot behind the Burger King and across the alley is zoned for residential use, so every three […]
Comp Plan revisions make further proposed changes to future land uses on Howard Law campus
by Barbara Kraft Representatives of Howard University met this month with two representatives of a group of Upton Street and Tilden Street neighbors over Howard’s plans for its 22-acre West Campus, which includes its law school, and changes to the future land use designation the Office of Planning (OP) has proposed as part of revisions […]
Wanted: A housing policy that centers racial equity (Opinion)
by Kesh Ladduwahetty Ward 3 has come under particular scrutiny recently for its egregious lack of affordable housing, as well it should. But the Mayor’s proposal to address the issue, which the DC Council has very slightly modified, has carefully avoided the 800-pound gorilla: racism. In failing to define the actual problem, they have failed […]
See what DC’s proposed Comp Plan would change in Forest Hills and give ANC 3F your feedback by Jan. 10
by Marlene Berlin 12/16 update: The Bowser administration has announced new deadlines for public and ANC comments. The dates have been updated below.) DC’s proposed land use road map doesn’t send Van Ness and Forest Hills veering off its present course. The draft Comprehensive Plan amendments presented at the December 7th Ward 3 meeting at […]
Community meeting Thursday, June 7 on 4250 Connecticut renovation
4250 Connecticut’s new owner plans to renovate and modernize the 37-year-old office and retail building when Fannie Mae moves out in November. Bernstein Management presented some early plans at ANC 3F’s March meeting. Bernstein is seeking to modify the 1978 and 1980 Planned Unit Developments (PUDs) that allowed this structure to be built in the […]
Opinion: DC’s Comprehensive Plan and the future of Van Ness
by Marlene Berlin (Writing as 2018 President of Van Ness Main Street) DC’s Comprehensive Plan, adopted in 2006 and updated in 2011, is going through another round of updates. The plan will guide future land use in the District, setting standards for such things as the density of our commercial areas and neighborhoods. Why is […]