(Washington, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, and community leaders celebrated progress at the Walter Reed Marketplace, which will consists of a new Whole Foods Market, retail, condominiums, apartments, and a co-living residential community. This redevelopment is the result of a successful community-driven process led by then-Councilmember Bowser and now by Mayor Bowser, following the transfer of the Walter Reed Campus to the District Government in 2016.
“When it’s finished, Walter Reed will truly have it all – including retail,” said Mayor Bowser. “The Whole Foods isn’t just a big deal for Walter Reed, but the entire surrounding community. What we’re doing here is once again proving DC’s ability to use federal land to deliver the resources and amenities our residents and communities need.”
The groundbreaking celebrates construction underway at the Hartley, which will be anchored by leading natural and organic grocer Whole Foods Market. In 2019, the Mayor announced that Whole Foods Market would be the anchor retail tenant after meeting with executives at South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas. The Hartley will include residential units that sit atop 90,000 square feet of dining, shopping, and entertainment. Today’s ceremony also marks the start of construction on two new residential buildings, the Kite House and 1155 Dahlia Street. Kite House, the development’s second condominium building, and 1155 Dahlia Street, The Parks’ first co-living residential development, flank a spacious plaza fronting Georgia Avenue that will welcome the community into the Marketplace.
“I celebrate today’s groundbreaking on the Walter Reed Marketplace, which will bring 500 much-needed housing units and a grocery store to the community,” Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton said. “I have prioritized getting federal land transferred to D.C. control, including the site of the former federal Walter Reed Hospital, which was transferred to D.C. in 2016. I very much appreciate Mayor Bowser’s efforts to increase housing availability in the District. Moreover, at a time when the District is growing at a rapid rate, Whole Foods, the first retailer on the Walter Reed campus, is a signal that businesses understand that it is good business to give the community what it needs and wants.”
The Hartley, the centerpiece of the vibrant Walter Reed Marketplace, will include 323 rental units, with 32 affordable units, in addition to the Whole Foods Market and other retail amenities. Situated on one acre at The Parks, Kite House will offer one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes. Upon completion, expected in early 2023, the property will include 109 for-sale units, including nine affordable units, and 11,000 rentable square feet of retail. The co-living residences at 1155 Dahlia Street, expected to be completed in 2023 will be comprised of 60 units designed to help diversify and amplify available housing in Ward 4 and provide more residential options to District residents. The property encompasses 248 fully furnished co-living bedrooms, with 38 designated as affordable. It will include two-, three-, four-, and five-bedroom units, with a full-service gym, club room, coworking space, and two outdoor terraces.
“Today is a special day for the District’s redevelopment of the historic Walter Reed Army Medical Center site in Ward 4,” said Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development John Falcicchio. “This catalytic project underscores how District Government can put federal land to productive use. It’s also rewarding to deliver this combination of quality retail and housing, which will help us meet Mayor Bowser’s bold goal of deliver 36,000 new units, 12,000 of them affordable, by 2025.”
This development represents a significant milestone in the Bowser Administration’s redevelopment of the 66-acre former Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus in Northwest Washington. The District and its partners convened over 100 public meetings throughout the planning process, which began in 2009; a strong example of what can be accomplished when residents have a voice in shaping the future of their neighborhoods. In meeting the local and federal requirements necessary to acquire the Walter Reed site, the District underwent an extensive planning process, steeped in community engagement and resulting in the development of two Council-approved plans.
“We are thrilled to introduce additional housing and retail to this vibrant and growing community. Together with the Hartley, Kite House and 1155 Dahlia Street will form the active hub of this mixed-use destination project – the Parks Marketplace,” said Katie Wiacek, Managing Director at Hines, which is developing The Parks at Walter Reed along with joint venture partners Urban Atlantic and Triden Development Group.
Today’s ceremony follows previous activity at the Walter Reed Campus led by the Bowser Administration. In 2016, Mayor Bowser announced that the District and U.S. Army came to terms on a license agreement that expedited construction of the District of Columbia International School (DCI) at the campus, ensuring 800 students had a facility by the 2017 school year. The following year, DCI became the first public building to open at the Parks at Walter Reed. In 2018, Mayor Bowser opened the all-new Engine Company 22, which now serves as the home of Engine 22, Truck 11, and Ambulance 22. In 2019, Mayor Bowser made veterans the first residents to move into the reimagined Walter Reed Campus with the opening of HELP USA Veterans Housing, which delivered 77 units of permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless veterans. In 2020, the campus delivered 80 affordable senior units in the Abrams Hall Senior Apartments. This year, The Brooks and The Vale opened, delivering 89 condominium residences, including eight affordable units, and 301 apartments, including 30 affordable units.
At the start of her second term, Mayor Bowser set a bold goal to deliver an additional 36,000 units of housing – including at least 12,000 units of affordable housing – by 2025. By further equitably distributing these goals across the District's ten planning areas, Mayor Bowser made DC the first jurisdiction in the nation to create affordable housing goals by neighborhood. With 16,550 new housing units delivered since January 2019, the District has reached 46% of that goal. During that same period, 3,758 affordable units have also been delivered, which represents 31% progress toward the affordable housing goal. You can track the District’s progress toward #36000by2025 at open.dc.gov/36000by2025.