MLK Gateway Community
Master Plan
A Grand Entrance to Historic Anacostia
Washington, DC

183,000 SQ FT • LEED GOLD (TARGET)

AEDC / Republic Properties of Washington, DC recently engaged Davis Brody Bond to develop an innovate master plan for this historic DC neighborhood, placing “a high priority on aiding the redevelopment efforts of the Sites to serve as the gateway into historic Anacostia, as well as the gateway to downtown via the new 11th Street Bridge.”

AEDC and our design team proposed a dynamic mixed-use program that will transform and revitalize the entry to Anacostia. Our development concept provides 183,000 sf of sustainable, community, and culturally-based mixed-use program to set a new benchmark for community development — one that will continue to grow as the neighborhood transforms and the 11th Street Bridge Park comes online. The MLK Gateway Community development plan will infuse the community with commercial and cultural amenities that reinforce neighborhood values by revitalizing housing and commercial stock, creating a grand new entrance to historic Anacostia. 

The master plan utilizes 91% of the available FAR to provide a first-class, vibrant, community oriented mixed use program that can be completed within a three-year timeframe. It encapsulates a robust 183,062 sf program composed of cultural & commercial retail, urban hydroponic farming, office space, and workforce housing inclusive of the required mixed income housing ratios. It includes a 74% occupancy rate with firm commitments from AEDC and Republic Properties and a Letter of Intent to relocate Washington DC’s historic jazz supper club Blues Alley from its current Georgetown location to Anacostia, where it will become a centerpiece of the Good Hope Road cultural complex.