ANC Sides With Neighbors, Votes to Oppose Tree House on Capitol Hill — Advisory Neighborhood Commission ANC 6B voted yesterday to recommend that the District Department of Transportation to deny the public space permit that allowed a Capitol Hill resident to build a tree house that extends two feet into a public alley. [Capitol Hill Corner]
Rose’s Luxury Makes Eater’s Top 38 Restaurants in the Country — Popular Barracks Row eatery Rose’s Luxury made Eater’s list of the 38 essential restaurants in America. [Eater]
Capitol Crossing Set to Begin Vertical Construction — Capitol Crossing, the massive development project that will sit above Interstate 395 will become more visible as vertical construction begins soon. [Washington Business Journal]
Massachusetts Avenue NW near I-395 will be off limits to car drivers for several hours this weekend due to construction work on the Capitol Crossing development.
Numerous partial and full street closures are scheduled for Massachusetts Avenue and H Street NW between 2nd and 4th streets for the duration of August, including this weekend, according to the D.C. Department of Transportation. The construction will bring:
- Full street closures on Massachusetts Avenue between 2nd and 4th streets from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
- Full street closures on Massachusetts Avenue between 2nd and 4th streets, and H Street between Massachusetts Avenue and 4th Street, on Mondays and Tuesdays from 7 p.m. to midnight.
- Occasional weekday single and double-lane closures on Massachusetts Avenue and H Street from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Any other closures in the area this month will be announced as they occur, DDOT spokeswoman Michelle Phipps-Evans said.
DDOT and Property Group Partners are working on the installation of a high-voltage electric line, as part of the Capitol Crossing development over I-395.
The development’s first building at 200 Massachusetts Ave. is expected to be finished in 2017. Construction on Capitol Crossing’s four other buildings is slated to conclude in 2019.
Photo via Google Maps
Drivers who use I-395, H Street NW and Massachusetts Avenue NW may need to reconsider travel near the Capitol Crossing development construction during the next two months.
Massachusetts Avenue and H Street will close between 2nd and 4th streets NW starting today, every Monday and Tuesday through July, according to the District Department of Transportation. The closures will run from 7 p.m. to midnight.
Massachusetts Avenue also will lose lanes to closures on weekends, and occasionally weekdays, through July.
“Traffic delays are very likely to occur,” DDOT said.
Drivers heading north on I-395 also won’t be able to get off at Massachusetts Avenue NW for the next two weekends.
The 2nd Street NW off-ramp of I-395 to Massachusetts Avenue will close this Saturday and Sunday and next Saturday and Sunday, according to DDOT. With access to the ramp blocked, crews will demolish a retaining wall in the area as part of the Capitol Crossing development construction.
The closures will begin at 7 a.m. each of the Saturdays and end by 5 a.m. the following Mondays.
DDOT urges drivers to exit I-395 at either D Street NW or New York Avenue NW during those times.
Drivers can expect “heavy congestion and delays” in the area, according to DDOT.
Last month, Mayor Muriel Bowser urged locals to be patient as crews work to build Capitol Crossing.
“We invite all of our neighbors and commuters to pardon the dust while we’re making progress,” she said.
Construction of the $1.3 billion Capitol Crossing development over I-395 officially began this morning, with the assistance of Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Mayor Muriel Bowser and other shovel-wielding dignitaries.
The three-block development, which is just west of the Georgetown University Law Center, will feature 2.2 million square feet of office, retail and housing space. Capitol Crossing will span between Massachusetts Avenue NW to the north and E Street NW to the south and 3rd Street NW to the west and 2nd Street NW to the east, bridging the Capitol Hill and East End neighborhoods.
The development’s first building at 200 Massachusetts Ave. is expected to be finished in 2017. Construction on Capitol Crossing’s four other buildings is slated to conclude in 2019.
Norton said there has “never been a project of this complexity” in D.C. In addition to the buildings from Property Group Partners, the construction also will bring new ramps to I-395 and reconnect G and F streets NW over the freeway.
Bowser asked locals to be patient as work on Capitol Crossing continues. Since construction started earlier this year, D.C. has closed lanes around the area to help builders. A contractor working on the project also struck an 8-inch water main in March, snarling traffic.
“There will be challenges ahead,” Bowser said. “We invite all of our neighbors and commuters to pardon the dust while we’re making progress.”
During the groundbreaking ceremony, representatives of Property Group Partners didn’t say which retailers will fill the 70,000 square feet of retail space the developer has set aside for them. But Mario Batali’s Eataly Italian market may come to Capitol Crossing, Washington City Paper reported last year.
The Capitol Crossing development project will bring more road closures around I-395’s 3rd Street Tunnel, beginning this weekend.
Between 2nd and 4th streets NW, Massachusetts Avenue and H Street NW will start to have road and lane closures as early as 8 a.m. Saturday. The construction work is expected to continue for five months.
According to the District Department of Transportation, drivers can expect:
Massachusetts Avenue will be closed at 2nd Street on Saturday, April 11. Detour signs will point motorists around the work zones to use H, I, K and 5th Streets.
During this phase, H Street westbound will no longer connect directly through Massachusetts Avenue. Instead, H Street will continue straight from 2nd Street toward the intersection of 4th and Massachusetts. Motorists traveling to H Street can turn south (left) onto 4th Street and west (right) back onto H Street.
Additionally, work on 3rd Street between E Street and Massachusetts Avenue will also begin during this phase. Drivers can expect lane closures on 3rd Street. Parking will be restricted on 3rd Street for the duration of this work.
Besides Saturday’s closures, there will be continuous closures on Mondays and Tuesdays, from 7 a.m. to 12 a.m. the next day; Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, from 7 am to 3 pm; and Saturdays and Sundays, only as needed, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Construction for the mixed-use Capitol Crossing development started in February. The project is expected to affect traffic for four years, after a previous plan was scrapped to shut down part of the freeway to reduce the total work time.
Photo via 3rd Street Tunnel Project
(Updated at 12:40 p.m.) Lane changes and ramp closures on I-395 start tonight to facilitate years of work on the Capitol Crossing development project.
The District Department of Transportation announced the first phase of traffic changes, which will mainly occur between 9 p.m. and 8 a.m. Northbound and southbound traffic between D Street and New York Avenue NW will be affected.
Here’s what drivers can expect, according to DDOT:
The I-395 southbound off-ramp to [3rd Street] will be closed permanently during this phase. There will be no vehicle parking on the ramp, and motorists should seek alternative routes.
The southbound travel lanes will be reduced to a single lane of traffic on a limited number of weekdays during off-peak hours, from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m.; and on certain weekends from midnight to 7 a.m.
The I-395 northbound 3rd Street Tunnel on-ramp will close on a limited number of weekdays during off-peak hours from midnight to 5 a.m.; and on certain weekends from midnight to 8 a.m. During the 3rd Street on-ramp closures, traffic will be diverted to the 3rd and D Street on-ramp.
The northbound travel lanes will be reduced to a single lane of traffic during off-peak hours from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. for a limited number of weekdays; and on certain weekends from midnight to 8 a.m.
Additionally, DDOT warned drivers to expect delays at:
- New York Avenue and the 3rd Street Tunnel entrance
- New York Avenue and 4th Street NW
- New York and New Jersey avenues NW
- 2nd Street and D Street NW
- 3rd and D Street Tunnel Entrance
Construction of the Capitol Crossing mixed-use development is expected to affect traffic for four years, after a previous plan was scrapped to shut down part of the freeway to reduce the total work time.
Fines for speeding in work zones will be doubled. For more information on the work, see the dedicated Third Street Tunnel Project website.
Image via Google Maps
Man Found Stabbed in Hotel Was Hill Resident — The 30-year-old lawyer found stabbed to death in an upscale hotel near Thomas Circle on Tuesday lived near 4th and East Capitol streets NE. Police released video of a suspect. [Washington Post]
Convenience Store Caught Selling Synthetic Marijuana — The store in the Mobil gas station at 814 Bladensburg Road NE will be forced to close today after officials found the store selling synthetic marijuana marketed as potpourri. This is the first such closure in the District. [WAMU]
Fans Pulled Smoke to Passengers Trapped on Metro Train — The National Transportation Safety Board found that the fans meant to ventilate the train trapped near L’Enfant Plaza on Jan. 12 actually pulled in deadly smoke. They also found that Metro was not properly prepared to handle smoke in stations. [Washington Times]
Ugly Mug Expansion Under More Community Review — Neighbors of the Barracks Row bar The Ugly Mug have another month to weigh in the owner’s plan to add seating and a retractable roof. ANC 6B opted to take more time to reach an agreement with the owner. [Capitol Hill Corner]
Third Street Tunnel Construction — Starting Feb. 24, lanes of I-395 near the Capitol Building will close overnight. Construction of the Capitol Crossing mixed-use development is expected to affect traffic for four years, after a previously plan to shut down part of the freeway was scrapped. [WTOP]
The developer of the Capitol Crossing project and the Federal Highway Administration are discussing temporarily closing part of I-395 to speed construction.
But Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton says they haven’t appropriately sought input from local members of Congress and the public.
Norton said in a statement issued today (Monday) that she had not received notice of the proposal that could clog the commute.
“Impacts of a closure would fall directly not only on the District, whose streets in the area are already saturated, but equally on regional and D.C. residents, who need participation, time and planning before a major highway is closed,” she said in a statement.
Norton demanded a meeting with the FHWA, the District Department of Transportation and regional members of Congress. That meeting was scheduled, her office said in an update.
The developer, Property Group Partners, says closing the highway between New York Avenue and D Street NW for 15 to 18 months would cut part of construction time in half, The Washington Post reported. The long-planned project will create residences, retail, offices and the Mario Batali restaurant and store Eataly, according to Washington City Paper.
Photo via Facebook/Congresswoman Norton
