The District has selected a partnership led by Hines and Urban Atlantic to redevelop the shuttered Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus.
The team of Hines, Urban Atlantic and Triden Development Group LLC, with partners Weingarten Realty Investors, Transitional Housing Corp. and Hyatt Hotels, among others, won the intense master developer competition over two firms, Roadside Development and Forest City Washington.
Anchored by a science and commerce center, a conference center/hotel and a bounty of green space, the Hines bid, called "The Parks at Walter Reed," was generally backed by the community (it won the support of two key advisory neighborhood commissions), offered "the best economic deal for the city," preserved vast open space and proposed 318 units of affordable housing, 73 set aside for seniors, said Victor Hoskins, deputy mayor for planning and economic development.
What it does not include is a Wegmans, the much desired grocery store chain that had signed on as Roadside's exclusive partner. But Hoskins said he hopes that Wegmans "will still look at this site."
"Ultimately it might be a different retailer," he said, "but we believe they'll give it a hard look."
(It's worth noting that the Houston-based Weingarten, which will develop all of the planned retail on the Walter Reed site, is bringing a Wegmans to its Hilltop Village project near Kingstowne.)
The star of the Roadside bid was Wegmans, but the proposal also included a new research campus for Children's National Medical Center, a military first-responder and caregiver museum, community garden, senior artist living, art gallery and a hotel.
Forest City's proposal called for five "eclectic neighborhoods," an innovation campus centered around partner Georgetown University, homes from EYA and L&M Development Partners and a 6-acre park.
All three bidders have a long history of producing highly-regarded D.C. developments, from CityCenterDC (Hines) to CityMarket at O (Roadside) to The Yards (Forest City).
Hoskins would not explain why Hines' proposal was the best economic deal, citing the onset of negotiations, but it would likely include the promise of tax revenue for city coffers and straight-up payments to the city.
The District is waiting on approval of its Walter Reed reuse plan from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, at which point it will launch negotiations with the U.S. Army for the campus's disposition. That is expected to begin within weeks with the submission of an Economic Development Conveyance Application. The selected master development team will prepare information to be used in those negotiations, said Martine Combal, director of the Walter Reed Local Redevelopment Authority.
Combal's predecessor, Eric Jenkins, is now a partner with Graves, Horton, Askew & Johns, LLC, a firm retained by Hines to provide legal counsel on its Walter Reed bid. Hoskins said Jenkins' participation was not a factor in the Hines win.
D.C. is in line to purchase 66.57 of the campus's 113 acres. The State Department is taking the rest.
The first building to be constructed as part of the Walter Reed project will be a new Engine Co. 22 fire station at Butternut and Georgia Avenues. The first Walter Reed tenants are likely to be previously selected institutional and human service providers, such as So Others Might Eat, Howard University and Help USA.
The major redevelopment isn't likely to kick off until 36 months after the District's closes the deal with the Army, Hoskins said.
A few additional details on the Hines/Urban Atlantic bid. You can see their vision here, on video.
- Innovation Core anchored by George Washington University, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology Fab Lab, and Biotrial S.A.S. A Hyatt conference center/hotel will take over the main Walter Reed hospital.
- 4,500 design and construction jobs and 1,600 permanent jobs. Total direct investment: $1 billion, with $37 million in projected annual revenues for D.C.
- Arts partners include Artomatic, FotoDC, Joy of Motion Dance Center, Flux Studios and the Washington Glass School.
Update:
Wegmans is "disappointed" with the District's selection. Full statement below.
"We are disappointed in the decision," the company said, "because we have a good partnership with Roadside and thought they developed a great plan. We will take some time to consider our next steps, if any."
Update II:
The statement from Chuck Watters, Hines' senior managing director, is below.
"Earlier today, the master development team of Urban Atlantic, Triden Development and Hines received a call from Deputy Mayor, Victor Hoskins, informing us that our team has been selected to re-develop the historic Walter Reed campus in Washington, DC. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the District of Columbia and the community on this most historic and important project. As with any major project, we have been fortunate to work with a team of dedicated people who have collaborated successfully to help realize the vision for transforming the Walter Reed campus into a dynamic mixed-use community. We thank the District and the surrounding community for their support and will dedicate ourselves to build the best project that we possibly can."