(Washington, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser, the DC Housing Authority (DCHA), the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED), and community members cut the ribbon on The Rise at Temple Courts, the long-awaited first phase of the Northwest One community at 2 L Street, NW in Ward 6. In total, The Rise at Temple Courts will deliver 220 residential units, including a total of 150 dedicated affordable homes, of which 65 will be replacement units and 85 will be affordable dwelling units (ADUs). Within the ADUs, 11 homes will serve as permanent supportive housing units.
“Northwest One is the site that ignited the New Communities Initiative,” said Mayor Bowser. “Years ago, Golden Rule and Temple Court residents advocated for change, which took longer than originally envisioned, but today we’ve delivered on the promise made by our city more than 15 years ago. This revitalization sets the bar high because we are delivering over 150 units of affordable housing within walking distance to job opportunities, retail, and transportation.”
The New Communities Initiative – which began during the Administration of Mayor Anthony Williams – was conceived to revitalize severely distressed public housing and the surrounding neighborhoods into vibrant, mixed-income communities. With the ribbon cutting of The Rise at Temple Courts, Mayor Bowser is delivering on a project that has been years in the making and marking a significant milestone in bringing residents back to the Northwest One community.
The New Communities Initiative called for a redevelopment of the Temple Courts Apartments project, a privately owned 211-unit project–based Section 8 building. Temple Courts Apartments, located at 33 K St NW/Square, was acquired by Northwest One/Temple Courts Redevelopment in 2007 with funding provided by DMPED. The grant from DMPED included the agreement that all of the 211 extremely low-income units were to be reconstructed so that all of the Temple Courts residents would have new units as part of a redevelopment of the site.
“Mayor Bowser has ushered in the next chapter of the New Communities Initiative by delivering on the promises of the past,” said Deputy Mayor John Falcicchio. “Years ago, the District committed to our residents the transformation of Northwest One, Park Morton, Lincoln Heights, and Barry Farm into mixed-income communities full of opportunities for their residents. At Northwest One, The Rise at Temple Courts are the first on-site NCI homes to deliver; at Barry Farm and Park Morton, construction is underway to do the same; and at Lincoln Heights-Richardson Dwelling, we have delivered 100s of replacement units in the neighborhood.”
invested $13,800,000 in funding for the redevelopment of the first phase of Northwest One. Throughout the years, DMPED worked closely with the former Temple Courts residents and the Washington Interfaith Network to move forward on the Northwest One plan to create a request for proposals for the site that spoke to what the former residents of Temple Courts wanted to see. On September 22, 2016, DMPED issued an RFP to solicit proposals to redevelop approximately 3.5 acres of land located at 1010-1024 North Capitol Street and 33 K Street, NW. DMPED received nine responses to the RFP and selected Northwest One Development Partners, LLC, which is a joint venture among MidAtlantic Realty Partners, LLC, Taylor Adams Associates and CSG Urban. The DC Council approved the disposition of the site in January 2019.
“The D.C. Housing Authority is focused on residents first and we are proud to provide 65 right-to-return replacement housing units for our residents, of which almost half were sourced from our waitlist,” said DCHA Executive Director Brenda Donald. “Our partnership with the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development for New Communities Initiatives is crucial to helping us provide housing as DCHA is an integral component of the affordable housing ecosystem in the District.”
November 1, 2020, construction started on Phase I. Construction was completed July 27, 2022, with new residents beginning to move in August 2022. Phase I is a seven-story mixed-income residential building. The 65 replacement units for former Temple Courts residents and their families are at 30% of AMI and below, the 85 affordable units are at 60% of AMI and below, and there are 70 market-rate units. There are also 80 parking spaces on site.
Once completed, Northwest One will be a vibrant mixed-income community that will include approximately 700 new mixed-income rental units, of which 211 will be public housing replacement units for the former residents of Temple Courts and Golden Rule.
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