Last night, four developers—-finalists whittled down from a group of ten—-presented plans for projects on the site of Hine Junior High School, down the street from Eastern Market.
The Plan Without a Plan (Presentation PDF): National Leadership Campus/Western Development Group
“We’re not developers, and we don’t have architectural plans,” announced Paul Yandura, representing National Leadership Campus.
Instead, Yandura offered an interesting charitable concept and a heavyweight financial backer: Peter Lewis of “That’s Progressive!” Progressive Insurance fame. Yandura and his partner Marsha Scott–—former Clinton administration officials, according to their bios—-run a consulting company, and were hired to help conceive this proposal and present it to the public.
With supposedly 80 percent of the financing already secure—-that’s what Scott stated last night—-the National Leadership Campus would provide subsidized non-profit office space and housing for groups struggling to pay high rent costs to exist in Washington D.C.
The group already has some parameters, presumably very flexible, in mind: 125,000 square feet of office space, 65,000 square feet of residences/extended stay residences, 25,000 square feet of training, multimedia and conference facilities, 75,000 square feet of retail and restaurant spaces, 75,000 square feet for a hotel, and 250-500 parking spaces (All of this was written on a board outside the meeting space). If chosen, the community would help build the concept step by step.