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Groundbreaking revitalization moves
up Georgia Avenue with the recent ceremonial
launch of the Lofts at Brightwood -
- a multi-million dollar condominium complex
to be developed by the Ward 4-based
Neighborhood Development Company.
Even though the July 23 groundbreaking
marks the beginning of construction,
community members and
NDC residents who attended the event
seem eager to have the new complex in
the neighborhood.
“There's universal support and excitement
to get this building done,” said
Steve Cassell, vice president of NDC.
The Lofts project, located at 5832
Georgia Ave. NW, is the latest of several
NDC developments that have been completed
or are in the works.
The complex has 32, one-and-two
bedroom upscale lofts, duplexes and flats,
ranging from about $190,000 to
$375,000 per unit depending on the
square footage.
Some of the perks include a rooftop
terrace, an underground parking garage,
central location and a first floor sit-down
restaurant, called Meridian Restaurant and
Bar. Meridian will feature up-scale diasporan
cuisine and an eclectic lounge atmosphere.
NDC President Adrian Washington,
a Ward 4 resident, said he hopes to generate
more business and development in
the area through this project and move
away from the troubled history of the
site.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the property
was home to the infamous Ibex nightclub,
which stirs up unpleasant memories
for many longtime area residents.
The club was shut down in the late
1990s after a police officer was killed at the
site. “This building has really been an eye
sore,” Washington said. “It's something that
the neighborhood has just deplored for ages
now and we're taking a building that was
a detriment to the neighborhood and improving
it and bringing new vitality.”
Council member Adrian Fenty called
the lofts “a landmark neighborhood economic
development project,” saying, “It's
new housing on Georgia Avenue at a location
that used to be the site of a notorious
nightclub. In the scheme of things
it's hard to imagine a better scenario.”
Condo sales officially begin in October,
Cassell said, but several people have
already reserved lofts in the new complex.
Sarah Thankachan is one of the new
owners as of this past December.
She said she had been looking for several
months when the lofts caught her
eye and matched her price range.
“I was really excited about being a
part of something new,” she said. “I saw
this as an opportunity to bring to the
Brightwood community the same kind
of development that's going on in Columbia
Heights.”
Developers certainly have the approval
of K. Yuen, owner of the Lowest
Price Gas Station across the street.
Yuen said he thinks the development
will “bring everything up to the year 2005
and beyond. The neighborhood certainly
has all the glory and I think this will
bring back all the yesterday glory, all the
modern amenities and make the city in
the upper northwest lively again,” he said.
The Lofts at Brightwood is expected
to be completed between April and June
2006 - around the time when NDC will
be picking up the ceremonial shovel for
another Ward 4 development.
Unique to the company's next project
is that it will be a 100% affordable
housing development.
Tentatively named “Residences on
Georgia Avenue,” the complex will include
75 affordable apartments and condominiums
with ground level retail.
The complex will be located at 4100
Georgia Ave., across the street from company's
headquarters in Petworth. For information
on the condominiums contact
the Neighborhood Development Group
at 202-722-2765 or visit www.neighborhooddevelopment.
com.
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