Few developers are interested in the project, the Washington Business Journal suggests:
D.C. Deputy Mayor Neil Albert is modifying his search for developers interested in redeveloping the Park Morton public housing project off of Georgia Avenue, a sign that the city is having difficulty attracting interest in the project during the economic recession.
“Given the state of the market, we are doing everything we can to be flexible in the process and put together a solicitation that we think can generate a number of high-quality bids,” said Sean Madigan, spokesman for the deputy mayor’s offce.
In September, the District first began soliciting requests for proposals on the project, which will be the second major proposed “New Community” to enter into this development phase. I wrote about the Northwest One New Community project earlier this week. Here’s a bit more info on Park Morton from the Business Journal:
Some of the major changes to the solicitation, according to a Dec. 3 memo from Albert’s director of development, David Jannarone, are:
• The city will select one developer for all phases of development.
• A deposit is no longer required to submit.
• The city is offering “limited” pre-development funding.
• Firm commitments for other sources of funding are not required, though evidence for them should be provided.
The new deadline for Park Morton is Feb. 27. The memo and the new solicitation are posted on the deputy mayor’s Web site.
In February 2008, the DC Council approved the Park Morton Redevelopment Initiative Plan, which provides this outline:
KEY PHYSICAL PLAN GOALS
Create approximately 523 new residential units:
477 on site units broken down as follows:
317 market/workforce units
153 replacement1 rental units
7 ownership opportunities for low-income residents
46 off site replacement unitsProvide mixture of apartments, townhouses and duplexes:
• Provide approximately 10,000 square foot park
• Create approximately 4,000 square foot community center
• Connect Morton Street to Warder Street
• Increase parking options