To build a large-scale housing project in the District, developers are required to include an expensive component: plenty of parking spaces. Now as walkable communities and bike- and car-sharing services become further ingrained here, parking is becoming less crucial.
SB-Urban wants to build the micro-unit apartment building in Shaw with zero parking spaces. The young firm’s newest project is planned for 90 and 91 Blagden Alley, on sites that also front onto M Street NW and 9th Street NW, respectively. The buildings would be connected by a pedestrian bridge.
While the current zoning code mandates that a 120-unit development in that area must have 60 parking spots, SB-Urban is banking that none of the residents will need one. On Dec. 2, the developers will ask the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) to grant them a variance liberating them from the parking decree.
Already, after months of negotiations, the proposal early this month cleared its first hurdle when the Area Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F voted 4-3 to support SB-Urban’s application. The vote is considered an official neighborhood blessing for the proposal.
“A plan that doesn’t include parking automatically raised the concerns of the neighborhood,” said Walt Cain, chair of the ANC 2F’s Community Development Committee. “But they satisfactorily addressed them.”
Because of its unusual concept, SB-Urban was able to convince neighbors that future tenants would be unlikely to own cars and would not be competing for street parking spaces.
Mike Balaban, previously a regional president at Los Angeles-based Lowe Enterprises real estate, and his investing partner, Frank Saul III, formed SB-Urban in 2013. So far, the Bethesda-based firm is focused on creating small studios in historic D.C. neighborhoods. Balaban and Saul said they do not want to comment on the project until January.
According to the proposal, the complex would be comprised entirely of small studios, and would fill a niche that lies somewhere between a hotel and a typical apartment: The rooms would be fully furnished, and many amenity spaces, like kitchens and laundry areas, would be shared. Presumably, an interested renter would be able to move in with just clothes and personal items.
The developers anticipate the rooms filling with professionals who land in D.C. for short, temporary stays, and who would use bikes, public transit and car-sharing services.
Another way the developers eased concerns, said Cain, was by setting the addresses of the upcoming buildings at 90 and 91 Blagden Alley; alley residents are not eligible for residential street parking passes from the D.C. Department of Transportation. Previous plans had addressed the buildings on M Street NW and 9th Street NW.
The developers would provide renters with Capital Bikeshare passes, and arrange to bring a bike dock to the vicinity.
A car-free usage of the space appealed to some residents.
As restaurants and cafes continue to open up in the historic district and foot traffic grows, Greg Melcher, president of the Blagden Alley Neighborhood Association, said he believes that the vehicular traffic should be minimized. “Our objective should be to turn Blagden Alley into a pedestrian alley,” Melcher said. “I want the cars out of there, and this is a solution to do it.”
A series of firms have attempted to develop the space in the past, said Melcher, and five plans have been scuttled so far. “If you’re going to turn these down, what’s next?” he said. “This is a good idea.”
SB-Urban has two other apartment proposals in the early stages: a 140-unit project in Georgetown’s former Latham Hotel and a 92-unit project in Dupont Circle’s Patterson House, all filled with small studios.
Shilpi Malinowski is a freelance writer.