Wardman Hotel Strategy Team
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 28, 2022
Contact: Gail Sonnemann, 202-286-0845, gsonnemann@gmail.com
Political support is strong in Ward 3 for more mixed income affordable housing at the former Wardman Hotel site in Woodley Park. As of today, three Democratic council candidates, Deirdre Brown, Henry Cohen, and Trisha Duncan affirmed their support for requests in the Wardman Hotel Strategy Team’s (WHST) March 5 letter to Mayor Bowser which asks for stakeholder meetings, large tract review and financial incentives for more affordable housing.
In candidate forums Ward 3 Council candidates cited the opportunity for affordable housing at the Wardman. At the DC Women in Politics forum on March 21, Monte Monash said the site of the former Wardman Park hotel is “ripe for affordable housing.” Deirdre Brown demanded the city “hold developers accountable, especially at the Wardman and [at] Friendship Heights, including the Lord and Taylor site,” at the DC for Democracy March 24 forum, Beau Finley also mentioned the Wardman, adding later that it is “a great opportunity to build affordable housing, and maybe social housing.” There are nine Democrats and one Republican running for the Ward 3 seat.
In the March 5 letter to the mayor, the WHST points out that current housing development approaches are highly unlikely to meet the mayor’s goal of 1990 affordable units in Rock Creek West (Ward 3) by 2025. For example, the three largest developments, now underway or planned (City Ridge, Upton Place, and the Wardman), will together generate only 193 affordable apartments, in stark contrast to the 2,086 luxury, market rate units planned.
To reach her Ward 3 housing goals, the WHST letter asks the mayor to bring all stakeholders together with the owners, Carmel Partners, to realize Deputy Mayor John Falcicchio’s commitment to “maximize the residential potential of the site with an emphasis on affordable housing and attainable, middle-income housing.” WHST urges the mayor to use, not only the city’s policy tools, but also its ample funds to compensate Carmel for more affordable housing, including, if necessary, the use of eminent domain.
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