Construction Begins on CityCenterDC Project

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Clark Construction Group, LLC, with joint venture partner Smoot Construction, has broken ground on the first phase of the landmark CityCenterDC project. The 10-acre mixed-use project will create a pedestrian-friendly neighborhood in the heart of downtown Washington, D.C., blending retail, entertainment, residential, and office spaces. Being developed by Hines and Archstone, the $700 million development has a $425 million construction cost and is considered the largest downtown development currently underway in the United States. 

CityCenterDC, located on the site of the old Washington, D.C., Convention Center, is bounded by New York Avenue and H Street, NW to the north and south, and 9th and 11th streets to the east and west. The project includes two office buildings with a total of 520,000 square feet of office space, two apartment buildings with a total of 458 rental units (20 percent of which will be affordable), two condominium buildings with a total of 216 residential units, 185,000 square feet of retail at the base of all six buildings, and a one million square-foot below-grade garage with loading and service areas, central plants, and 1,555 parking spaces.

CityCenterDC also will feature a 29,000 square-foot park and a 20,000 square-foot central plaza with intricate site work, fountains, and landscaping. As part of the project

Clark/Smoot will reopen I and 10th streets through the site over the top of the new parking garage. 

The entire development has been accepted into the U.S. Green Building Council's pilot program for LEED® Neighborhood Development and is expected to receive Gold certification. The office buildings have achieved LEED pre-certification at the Gold level. The residential buildings are targeting LEED Silver and Certified ratings. 

In addition to bringing a new vibrancy to downtown Washington, D.C., CityCenterDC will provide additional benefits to the city. More than 35 percent of all contracts for architecture, construction, and ongoing operations will be awarded to Certified Business Enterprises located in the District of Columbia. Clark/Smoot anticipates more than $170 million in contracts going to more than 90 Washington, D.C. businesses. In addition, the project will create 1,700 construction jobs. The first phase of CityCenterDC is expected to be complete in 2014.

Foster + Partners of London is the design architect for the master plan phase and design architect for the office buildings and condominium buildings. The project architect is Shalom Baranes Associates, Washington, D.C. Shalom Baranes also is the lead designer of the residential rental buildings; Gustafson Guthrie Nichol, Seattle, and Lee and Associates, Washington, D.C., are the lead landscape designers.