1123 – 1129 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE
Early concept for residential/retail development at 12th and Pennsylvania Avenue, SE. The white portion is a historical structure incorporated into the new development.
View of the proposed concept looking west. The dimensions of the site’s former one story building remain as a distinct element of the building’s design.
This view shows how the proposal fits into the Frager’s block.
Proposal Unveiled to Develop Former Frager’s Paint Store Parcel at 12th and Pennsylvania, SE
by Larry Janezich
Tuesday night, ANC6B’s Planning and Zoning Committee heard representatives of PGN Architects present a proposal for the redevelopment of 1123-1129 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, a series of retail shops which include the former Frager’s Paint store, an Asian restaurant, and Pizza Iole.
PGN Architect Jeff Goins described the proposal as a very early concept, intended to brief the Committee on the intent of the property’s owner. No formal actions toward redevelopment have yet been taken, but over the next couple of months, the architects will take the proposal before the Historic Preservation Review Board and meet with the community to explain the details of the project. Commissioner Kirsten Oldenburg, in whose single member district the project resides, will host community meetings where PGN Architects will explain the details of the proposed development, which lies in the Capitol Hill Historic District.
The proposal would comprise 30 to 32 residential units with 5,000 square feet of ground floor retail. .
The reaction of the Committee to the proposal was generally positive, with Chair Nick Burger expressing his personal reaction to the proposed design, calling it “cool, not boring, distinctive….punchy.” The architects had considered a more conventional approach along the lines of Butterfield House, but had opted for another design inspired by modern structures in historic neighborhoods in Paris and Lisbon, as well as the Stanton Development building at 7th and Pennsylvania which houses Le Pain Quotidien.
CAPITOL HILL CORNER 
With all due respect, this architecture is as punchy as any campus chemistry department building built in 1974.
Exactly. And I reference the Butterfield House all the time as an excellent example of a modern building in a historic district. It’s very thoughtfully done.
Ha..exactly. They really seem to be turning Pa. Ave. SE into another K st.
It seems very appropriate for the block.
how is that design appropriate for a historic district?
I think he means it’s fits in with the condoization of the Frager’s space. The nostalgia police are appeased by incorporating the facade of an older building, as historic preservation becomes as substantial as a movie set. I’m not a fan of saving bits and bobs of a building as sentimental gestures to the past. I’m even less a fan of “hostage” architecture, as in this case, where a new structure engulfs the “saved” exterior dimensions of the old store. As for the “shotgun” house, I don’t think fetishizing the remnants of a “deconstruction” (fancy name for demolition) and “incorporating” (fancy name for recycling) them into a a po-mo mashup has anything to do with historic preservation either. For the next generation, blissfully unaware of all the “curation” that lies behind such projects, will just look at these buildings and think, WTF?
At least it isn’t red brink panel with black / grey trim around glass.
Parking’ Parking, Parking’ where will the parking be for these 30 or so vehicles.