The NorThwesT CurreNT INS IDE :
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
CO MM UN ITY GU IDE Vol. L, No. 36
Serving Communities in Northwest Washington Since 1967
PETWORTH CELEBRATIONS
AU proposes new science building sparked contention among com-
■ Spring Valley: ANC backs munity leaders.
plan amid concerns on timing
By CUNEYT DIL
Current Correspondent
American University plans to construct a new three-story science building on its main campus to replace aging facilities and accommodate rising enrollment in the sciences — a proposal that has
The school filed with the Zoning Commission in late August to build the facility in a current parking lot on the western side of campus, about 500 feet away from private homes on University Avenue NW. The new Hall of Science would include laboratories, classrooms and a vivarium, as well as faculty offices for the school’s chemistry, biology, environmental
science and psychology departments. Advisory Neighborhood Commission 3D voted 5-3 on Sept. 6 to support the proposal, with dissenters arguing that the commission should have debated the application for at least another month to see if community objections emerge. “At this time, the letter is premature,” said commission memSee Science/Page 3
Heating plant revision secures ANC nod By GRACE BIRD Current Staff Writer
Brian Kapur/The Current
Saturday’s annual Celebrate Petworth event on Upshur Street NW included music, children’s activities, arts programs, history events, a dog show and fitness classes.
Plans to redevelop the long-vacant West Heating Plant inched forward last Wednesday, as the fourth iteration of designs for the proposed 110-foot luxury condo building won support from Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E (Georgetown, Burleith). Opened in 1948 and shuttered half a century later, the art deco industrial building at 29th and K streets NW has drawn divided opinions: Neighbors generally see it as an unsightly stain on the otherwise upscale Georgetown neighborhood, while some preservationists have argued that it has historic significance. In May, the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts approved a proposal that would essentially demolish the historic plant to construct a new 10-story, 60-unit Four Seasons Residences building and an adjacent public park. The project would retain the heating See Plant/Page 5
Rendering courtesy of The Levy Group
The latest design proposal deviates further from the architecture of the 1948 West Heating Plant building, located at 29th and K streets NW.
New York coffee chain plans first D.C. shops
UDC offers further details on Van Ness housing plans
Current Staff Writer
■ Development: Proposal
By BRADY HOLT
After operating exclusively in the New York City area for more than a decade, cafe Gregorys Coffee is coming to D.C. The coffeehouse is making plans to open at least three downtown locations — 19th Street NW near L Street, 1147 20th St. NW and 1000 Vermont Ave. NW — according to regulatory filings and a report on popville.com. Gregorys Coffee is primarily a Manhattan institution, with all but three of its current 26 cafes clustered in the borough. The chain has attracted enthusiastic media attention since opening in 2006, with founder Gregory Zamfotis appearing in The New York Times, GQ and local New York blogs. “If you want to see just how much has changed in
would convert office building By GRACE BIRD Photo courtesy of Gregorys Coffee
Gregorys Coffee debuted in Manhattan in 2006 and is planning its first locations away from New York.
New York’s coffee scene in the last few years, stop by Gregorys Coffee,” the Times wrote in 2014, when Gregorys still had just eight Manhattan locations. “The company … has the familiar feel of a chain store: cheerful cashiers, enormous lattes, flavored syrups. But look carefully and you’ll also see a short menu of exceptional coffees from cult roasters, preSee Coffee/Page 4
Current Staff Writer
The University of the District of Columbia is continuing to pursue an effort to lease student housing in a building near its Van Ness campus, school officials told residents at a recent community meeting. Amid ongoing negotiations with Bernstein Management — the new owner of the Fannie Mae office building at 4250 Connecti-
cut Ave. NW — tentative plans have emerged regarding the building’s conversion into an apartment house. As envisioned, the university would lease 450 to 500 beds for its students above ground-floor retail space, starting in August 2020. Although the university leases a few dozen units in nearby apartment buildings for its students, it’s never provided a true residence hall. And that commuter status deters many prospective students, university board member Esther Barazzone said in an interview. “UDC has a lot of challenges to See UDC/Page 5
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