Hine School Development Can Move Forward After Court Denies Appeal

(Updated at 10:20 a.m. Saturday) The construction of more homes, stores and office space near Eastern Market can now advance.

The D.C. Court of Appeals rejected a request to send development plans for the Hine Junior High School site back to the D.C. Zoning Commission, court documents show.

The long-awaited decision clears the way for the transformation of the property across from the Eastern Market Metro station. The $150 million development by Stanton-Eastbanc, LLC was approved by the Zoning Commission in Oct. 2012. The companies will build a seven-story complex with retail space, offices, underground parking and more than 150 residential units, some of which will be affordable and designated for seniors.

The D.C. Court of Appeals previously ruled in favor of the developers in August, dismissing objections to the project’s height and mass.

“Although the record contains many objections to the project’s size, it is also replete with evidence upon which the Zoning Commission based its conclusion to the contrary,” that ruling said.

Stanton Development Corporation principal partner Ken Golding said the developers are pleased to begin the project they first pitched in 2009.

Remediation of the building will start in mid-February and last a few months, Golding said. Then, the raze will begin and take two to three months. Construction will last a total of two-and-a-half years, with a completion date of late 2017 or early 2018.

Marci Hilt, one of the Hill residents behind the legal action, said she and other members of the Eastern Market Metro Community Association were disappointed by the court decision.

“We were hoping they would send it back to Zoning and do something about the height and density,” she said. Many neighbors fought the developer for years over the size of the complex.

EMMCA will now work to ensure Stanton-Eastbanc is transparent with the community as the project advances, Hilt said.

“I don’t think there’s anyone on Capitol Hill who didn’t want the development built,” she said. “It was just the mass of it.”

“We’re excited to begin finally. It’s at least five years in the making,” Golding said.

Photos via HineSchool.com