The Washington DC Economic Partnership released its annual development report last week, and although the numbers for future development aren't shocking, they are staggering: there are 159M SF of development either under construction or in the pipeline, 78% of which is within a half-mile of a Metro station.
22M SF of that pipeline is within a half-mile of the NoMa-Gallaudet station, which includes the almost comically explosive growth around Union Market (only 6% of that figure is under construction). Another 15.7M SF is in the pipeline in the Capitol Riverfront, but 22% of that is under construction now.
Despite those sizable numbers, 2015 is actually going to be a dip in the overall development pace in the District, rather than a peak. So far, $1.6B in projects have delivered, just 4.1M SF. Construction starts so far have totaled 6.4M SF, compared to a whopping 14.1M SF last year. That means 2015 is on pace to finish behind 2013 and 2014 in deliveries and construction starts.
Based on the near- and long-term pipeline, 2015 looks like an aberration, not the beginning of a downturn. Of the 162 projects under construction right now, 92 are expected to deliver next year (12.3M SF). In 2017, the district's most transformative project in decades, The Wharf (pictured under construction above) is expected to deliver Phase 1.
Another fun nugget from the report: rankings! Here are the most active developers in DC since 2010 (No. 1 is no surprise):
JBG (14 projects completed, 5 under construction, 13 in pipeline)
WC Smith (9, 7, 10)
Jair Lynch (14, 4, 3)
Douglas Development (5, 8, 7)
Forest City Washington (6, 3, 8)
Shalom Baranes Associates has been the most active architecture firm (ahead of Bonstra | Haresign and WDG) while Clark Construction has been by far the most active contractor. The full development report is available for download here.
