A new mixed retail-apartment building at 3232 Georgia Avenue NW is almost finished, says Juan Powell, principal at
Neighborhood Development Company. NDC is putting the finishing touches on the affordable housing unit, nicknamed
The Heights, right now and should have their certificate of occupancy within the week, he adds.
The six-story apartment building will offer 69 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments ranging in size from 700 to 1270 square feet for residents making 60 percent of the average median income (AMI)—and in a couple cases 50 percent.
Mi Casa Inc., a local nonprofit helping low income families find affordable housing, partnered with NDC on the development of the property.
The ground level of The Heights will offer 10,000 square feet of retail space, and Powell says they are looking into a number of restaurants to fill the space.
We’ve had great discussions with a number of restaurants and some smaller retailers that service the neighborhood,” he says. “We’ve had a lot productive conversations with retailers, but we haven’t finalized with one yet.”
The building will have its own underground parking for both residents and patrons of the retail space and a number of gathering places for the residents. On the top floor will be a green space with benches and other outdoor furniture, and the second floor will also have a patio space of roughly 500 square feet for people to enjoy the good weather on. There will be a community lounge on the second floor as well, with flat-screen TVs and casual seating along with a kitchen.
“We believe it’s [Georgia Avenue] the next major corridor in the city to experience great development growth,” says Powell. “The infrastructure is there, [it's a] major thoroughfare… so between the public transportation system and the commercial space, we’re in a corner really ripe for future development.”
Georgia Avenue has seen an explosion of development in the recent years and NDC is a very big player in that development. NDC not only has The Heights at 3232 Georgia Avenue, but also a 112-unit mixed-use building being developed called The Vue at 3333 Georgia Avenue; a 72-affordable apartment building called The Residences at 4100 Georgia Avenue; and a 32-unit apartment mixed-use building at 5832 Georgia Avenue called The Lofts.