Blagden Alley Development in Shaw

Blagden Alley development is coming to the Shaw neighborhood. A mixed-use development originally called the Flats at Blagden Alley was slated for the two parcels connected at Blagden Alley, namely 917 M Street, NW and 1212 9th Street, NW, just one block from the Mount Vernon Square Metro station.  In 2007, Walnut Street Development backed out due to market conditions, but another developer, Self Help, Inc., seized the opportunity for over $9 million. Yet in 2009, the empty lots went back on the market with an asking price of over $10.9 million. In 2012, Altus Realty Partners took over the project.

The Blagden Alley development encompasses 24,279 square feet of land on two separate lots. The original plans called for retail on the ground floor of 9th Street with residences above and in a separate building on M Street. That plan included 63 residential units, 33 covered parking spaces, and 2,400 square feet of retail space. 

But the new Blagden Alley development by Altus Realty, now temporarily called Blagden Alley Residences, calls for 87 residential units -- 60 in the M Street Building and 27 condos along with retail in the four story 9th Street Building. However, the developer may decide to increase the size of the two-bedroom units and decrease the number of units overall. Altus Realty plans to make the two buildings distinct; they may not even share a name after completion.

The 9th Street building will be between a string of row houses and Squares Fashions. The top floor of penthouse residences will have a glass and aluminum exterior, while the rest of the building will be buff brick. Residents will use the alley behind the building to access parking.

The M Street building will attempt to complement the neighboring Second Empire row houses by using three vertical sections of different materials -- block, glass, and brick. The design will also make use of a historic one-story garage in the alley, with additional underground parking below the new building.

At this point, the completion date is unknown for the Blagden Alley development.