Parkside Development On The Skids

For those who've grown weary of all the Benning Road plans for development, with little action to follow, the worst fears may have been confirmed on Monday evening at the Zoning Commission hearing. The mammoth Ward 7 redevelopment project that Parkside Residential, LLC representatives told the Zoning Commission in 2006 was a "landmark Planned Unit Development," has all but lost its early momentum. Whether it's the recent rains, some runaway Gulf oil slicks, or the economic downturn, much of the initial proposal has lost traction. The Commission recently denied the request of Lano Parcel 12, LLC for a two year extension of their first Parkside PUD, which took effect April 13, 2007 and expires October of next year.

The entire 15-acre Parkside project, located between Kenilworth Park and the Anacostia Freeway, was expected to become a massive mixed use development, bringing over 1,500 units of both affordable and market rate housing, 500,000 s.f. of office space, and at least 30,000 s.f. of neighborhood-serving retail. The Kenilworth Parkside area has been targeted by the District and the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development as a site in desperate need of improvement. Given its proximity to the waterfront, the Benning Metro Station, and three of the Great Streets Programs, the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority (WMATA) and the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), among other entities and initiatives, are in strong support of the proposed transformation.

In 2008, the Zoning Commission approved the first Second Stage PUD for three of the ten building blocks. Affordable senior living housing is planned and approved for Block A, B, and C. Being that the Second Stage PUD was granted for an area less than the original First Stage approval, Parkside Residential was accorded three years to submit the rest of their Second Stage PUD applications for review by Zoning. Applications for two more blocks are currently pending, and the submission of Second Stage plans for a third block are said to be in the works and should be filed soon. This would amount to Second Stage plans for a total of six blocks out of the original ten. But that's four blocks too few. The venture's representative pleaded in a recent document that this was "significant progress given the size of the project and the recent economic conditions." The Zoning Commission was apparently unmoved, and the deadline for all Second Stage applications remains October 3, 2011. This still leaves over a year left for the parties involved to shore up resources and finalize plans for the remaining four blocks. But given the the already requested extension, and characterization of meeting such a deadline as "not possible" despite their "every effort," that seems unlikely to happen.

The Lano Parcel 12 LLC and the Parkside Residential LLC are both multiparty ventures between Bank of America Community Development Corporation, Lano International, City Interest, and Marshall Heights Community Development Organization. The majority of design plans are being shouldered by Urban Design Associates in Pittsburgh.

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