|
On Thursday, November 30, Mayor Bowser broke
ground on The Wren, a mixed-use development at 965 Florida Avenue, NW that will
produce more than 430 apartment units, including 132 units of affordable
housing, and a new Whole Foods Market grocery store. Additionally, the
development comes with more than $500,000 in community benefits to support
local hiring, businesses and entrepreneurship, and street, sidewalk, and
intersection improvements at Florida Avenue and Sherman Avenue, NW.
The
community benefits include a $200,000 grant to the Community Foundation of the
National Capital Region to support job training for residents and employers
within a one-mile radius of the site; $118,462 to Shaw Main Streets for
locally-based retailers to make capital improvements to their storefronts or
other exterior improvements; $142,155 to Howard University to subsidize costs
associated with Inclusive Innovation Incubator (In3), the business incubator
joint venture between DC Government and Howard University; and $100,000 to In3
to help the incubator provide space and resources to under-resourced members.
The Wren project will
also bring improvements to the intersection of Florida Avenue and Sherman
Avenue, the sidewalks, and streetscape, making the area safer for pedestrians
and motorists.
On November 13, Mayor Muriel Bowser
and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) hosted Alexandria Mayor Allison
Silberberg and representatives from the U.S. Conference of Mayors, National
League of Cities, National Association of Counties, the African American Mayors
Association, and Americans Against Double Taxation at a press conference to
discuss concerns around the current federal tax reform bills.
Together, the leaders called on Congress to
preserve the State and Local Tax Exemption (SALT) deductions, Private Activity
Bonds (PABs), and critical tax credits such as the New Markets Tax Credit – a
tax credit that increases the flow of capital to businesses and low-income
communities by providing a modest tax incentive to private investors. The
current House tax reform bill, H.R.1, would eliminate PABs and New Markets Tax
Credits.
In
Washington, DC, the elimination of PABs would particularly devastate affordable
housing opportunities, including the production of affordable housing for
veterans and families. Since Fiscal Year 2010, PABs have funded more than 9,000
affordable housing units in the District and leveraged an additional $650
million in private equity. In total, PABs and the companion four percent
Low-Income Housing Tax Credit have helped deliver more than $2.5 billion in
total development.
 Brian Kenner participated in the Mid-Atlantic PACE Alliance (MAPA)
Conference: Winning with PACE: Game Plans for Financing Energy Improvements.
PACE in the District
began in 2010 with the introduction of the Energy Efficiency Financing Act;
since that time, the District has seen exponential growth in the Commercial
PACE sector, including a landmark year in FY17 that brought about $30M in
private capital across 10 projects in the District for sustainability measures
in the built environment. In June of this year,
Mayor Bowser announced a $25M private clean energy financing deal for the
installation of state-of-the-art energy and water efficiency measures, an 884
KW solar array, and stormwater retention systems at DC United’s 20,000 seat
Audi Field soccer stadium. The PACE note signed by the Mayor for this
project was the nation’s largest single PACE note issued to date.
In three short years,
the DC PACE program has utilized private capital for energy efficiency, clean
energy, and stormwater mitigation projects which will result in over 4 million
gallons of water and 2.3 million kWh saved; and 2,613 metric tons of CO2
avoided – or the equivalent of taking 560 gasoline-fueled vehicles off the road
for one year.
|
 Bisnow's Unifying DC, Maryland, and Virginia: Conference & Expo, was held in Washington, D.C. November 15th, and brought together the most influential business and real estate professionals from DC, Maryland, and Virginia to showcase the region and discuss how we can, and need, to work together to unify and grow the Washington region. (And attract Amazon's HQ2!)
Brian Kenner spoke on the Advancing Key Industries: Iconic Businesses Founded, Headquartered, and Growing in the Region panel with Victor Hoskins, Director of Arlington Economic Development, Jonathan Aberman, Chairman of Amplifier Advisors, and Jim Corcoran, President & CEO of Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce.
|
 On November 14, The Washington Post brought together city officials, urban strategists, innovators and technologists to discuss and debate the advancements that are shaping the future of cities across the country. They suggested new models for economic development, explored how next-generation technology is changing the public and private sectors at the local level, highlighted the latest trends in urban planning and more.
“Transformers: Cities” is part of The Washington Post’s “Transformers” series that explores how technological advances, business trends and new ways of thinking are upending industries and changing everyday life.
|
 This month, our Business Development team came up with an initiative to make sure major companies and small businesses have the help they need in the District to be successful. Through this Employer Engagement process, our team met with 100 groups in 100 days, including the Kennedy Center, Maslow Media, Georgetown University, Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, Deloitte, National Academy of Sciences, and so many more. Here at DMPED, we enjoy to see our businesses prosper and are happy to help where we can! #EE100
|
 Brian Kenner provided remarks at The Fed Tech '17
graduation event earlier this month.
The Fed Tech program pairs highly qualified
entrepreneurs with cutting-edge inventions from the US federal lab system to
conduct customer discovery and build business models around emerging
technologies. The program leverages lean startup techniques while also focusing
on the unique aspects of turning a federally funded technology into a startup.
DMPED
formalized a partnership with Hyperion Technologies in June to develop DC Fed Tech, an initiative included in
DC's Economic Strategy that will increase economic growth by supporting
technology commercialization – primarily by connecting entrepreneurs and
inventors from federal labs and supporting entrepreneurs in working with
federal labs. The fall 2017 cohort includes 13 teams, and 10 are local to DC
(including 2 teams from Project 500, 2 teams from American University).
|
 On November 15, the second NeighborUP Night Park View
took place. We like to call these events 'a party with a
purpose'. There were approx 35 attendees with a great cross section of public
housing residents and other neighbors interested in sparking conversations on
topics as broad as finding employment that sustains a person both economically
and emotionally; how new high cost restaurants can be more welcoming to long
term residents; and how to leverage the wisdom of Park View's elderly and the
energy of its youth to foster more cross generational connections.
The next NeighborUp Night Park View will be
Thursday, December 14, 6:30 PM.
See upcoming events at http://dcnewcommunities.org/
|
The D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development has a newly established $10 million public-private fund dedicated to preserving affordable housing and is seeking a fund manager to manage the money.
The preservation fund, approved by the D.C. Council for the 2018 fiscal year, is in addition to the $100 million in taxpayer money dedicated to the District’s Housing Production Trust Fund, the city’s biggest pot of money to encourage development of affordable housing.
“We know the needs are great . . . we know where properties are at risk,” said Polly Donaldson, the director of DHCD. “We are working to identify those in need immediately and have the [fund] manager be able to start up immediately on that.”
The goal of the preservation fund, Donaldson explained, is to preserve, acquire and rehabilitate the city’s existing affordable housing stock.
For full Washington Post story click here.
|
