Construction (or Destruction) Starts at The Eden was originally published on Housing Complex on Mar. 02, 2009, at 6:36 pm
In late January, I wrote about The Erie and The Eden, two small boutique buildings by neighborhood developer Dennis Lee. At the time, The Erie was completed, and The Eden was slated to start construction in the Spring, according to Lee.
Soon after the story came out, a fence went up in front of the building site. Then came some posted plans (perhaps a nod to the neighbors’ request for information and transparency.) Some ANC commissioners and other locals I interviewed still thought there was wiggle room left to protest the proposed building:
“Dennis Lee’s projects are the third rail of development in Adams Morgan,” says Bryan Weaver, also an advisory neighborhood commissioner, citing Lee’s four-unit project on top of 2424 18th St. NW, home to bar/restaurant Leftbank. With that building, Lee blocked others’ views of-you guessed it-the Washington Monument…
In August, an associate of Lee’s came before Weaver and Wilson’s ANC asking for a raze permit. The ANC vehemently opposed it, and Weaver says it’ll continue to fight for the rowhouses.
“This must be one of the things that compels people to become pro-historic district,” he says. “To see buildings come in and knock down the physical history of the neighborhood. Some kind of protection to keep the character of that street would be nice.”
Well, now might be a good time to give up that dream. Here’s the latest update on The Eden.
