Bozzuto Group to Do Another Major Mixed-Use in D.C.

By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor

Washington, D.C.—Giant Food of Landover, Md., has picked the Bozzuto Group as partner for its development of Cathedral Commons, a mixed-use project in northwest Washington, D.C. The project will include 137 apartment units and eight townhomes, more than 500 parking spaces, and 128,000 square feet of retail anchored by a redeveloped Giant Food supermarket location.

Cathedral Commons will be on about four acres on Wisconsin Avenue between Macomb St. and Idaho Ave., bordering the neighborhoods of Cathedral Heights and Cleveland Park. The residential portion of the property will feature a mix of amenities that include a boutique hotel-style lobby, lounge areas and a library, fitness center, clubroom, conference room and residential courtyards.

Giant has maintained a store at the location for more than 50 years, which is showing its age. Redevelopment plans call for a brand-new 56,000-square-foot supermarket that will feature an expanded offering of products compared with the current location. Partnering with the Bozzuto Group on the retail portion of the project will be Maryland-based Southside Investment Partners LLC.

Cathedral Commons has been some time in coming—plans were first proposed in 1999, and after the D.C. Zoning Commission approved project in 2009, local objectors tied it up in court. The D.C. Court of Appeals has yet to make a final decision about the zoning. Still, the developers expect to start construction on Cathedral Commons in spring 2012, with the opening of the new Giant Food tentatively scheduled for late 2013.

The Buzzuto Group is no stranger to major mixed-use developments in the nation’s capital. The company is also a partner in the development of the Monroe Street Market near Catholic University, a mixed-use project that began construction only last month. Southside Investment Partners LLC is a developer and owner of retail properties throughout the Mid-Atlantic region.