The property was formerly two elementary schools. Slater Elementary School is a purpose-built public school building that was constructed in 1891 for African-American students. Built when public education was segregated by race, it forms part of a complex of black schools along First Street, NW between Land P Streets. The John Mercer Langston Elementary School was built in 1902 to handle the overflow of students from the adjoining Slater School.
The property is located at 33-45 P Street NW (square 0615 lot 0827) and is 30,000 sf. The property is located in Ward 5, zoned RF-1, and bounded by Bates Street NW to the North, North Capitol St NW to the East, P Street NW to the South and 1st Street NW to the West.
A Request for Proposals for the property was issued on July 14, 2020. Responses were due September 30, 2020.
Public Surplus and Disposition hearings took place February 11, 2021, and the project was awarded for negotiation of the disposition to the Lebanon Village at Langston Slater Team (LVLS).
The proposed development plan is the adaptive reuse of two historically designated school buildings—the John Fox Slater Elementary School building and the John Mercer Langston Elementary School building producing approximately 40 mixed-income rental units comprised of studios, 1-bedroom, 2-bedroom, and 3-bedroom apartments, and construction of a new infill building between the existing buildings with 12 mixed-income home ownership units comprised of 2-bedroom and 3-bedroom apartments.
Through this project, the District is also piloting the services offered by Douglass CLT, which include homebuyer education, workforce development, and financial assistance programs to prevent the displacement of current and future District residents while building assets for District individuals and families. They have partnered with other mission-driven developers to secure the permanent affordability of the homes produced on the Langston and Slater Schools site.
Legislation, “The Langston Slater Surplus and Disposition Approval Act of 2024”, Bill B25-0838, was submitted for consideration by the Council of the District of Columbia on June 5, 2024, and referred to the Committee on Facilities and Family Services, and Committee on Business and Economic Development. Approval of the bill will declare the property as no longer required for public purposes and approve its disposition to the development team for the proposed development plan, Updates on the scheduling of hearings and documentation regarding the legislation may be found on the District of Columbia’s Legislative Information Management System (LIMS) here: https://lims.dccouncil.gov/Legislation/B25-0838.