Grimke School Project Overview
The Grimke School redevelopment site includes 1923 -1925 Vermont Ave NW and the adjacent parking lot at 920 U Street NW. The project is one of eleven shuttered District schools in various stages of redevelopment through the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED). Grimke School is located in the Shaw-Cardozo/U Street Corridor neighborhood of Washington DC.

Developer
Community Three Development
Architect
Torti Gallas Partners
Arts Administrator
Cultural DC
Contractor
Unknown
Status
Under construction
Delivery
TBD
Pricing
TBD
Address
1925 Vermont Avenue NW DC 20001
912 U Street NW DC 20001
Location
Grimke Arts - Grimke School Redevelopment Project Details
After a brief hold following the resignation of the DMPED’s originally selected developer and architect in early December 2016, Community Three Development and Cultural DC reached agreement with the agency to move forward with their plan. The development will offer 30,000 square feet of office space, 4,000 square feet of cultural use space and an 11,000 square foot African-American Civil War Museum. The gym will be razed in order to create 25 residential units.

PHASE I
- 30,000 square feet of office space (includes space for new headquarters of Torti Gallas + Partners0
- 11,000 square foot African-American Civil War Museum
- 4,000 square feet of cultural use space
PHASE II
- 4 floor addition to the gymnasium site for 40 residential units. 30% of which will be dedicated to affordable housing (12 units). Six for households earning up to 50% of MFI and six for households earning up to 80% MFI
- 21 parking spaces (6 covered, adjacent to the residential building, 10 uncovered adjacent to the east side of the school building, and 5 uncovered on the south side of the school building).
Community Engagement
DCOZ documentation for the Grimke Arts - Grimke School Redevelopment project.

DCOZ Case Files for Grimke School & Arts
9½ Street
The centerpiece of the Grimke redevelopment is 9½ Street, bookended by two new mixed‐use structures designed to blend with existing historic buildings. At the intersection of U and 9½ Streets is The Fold, a new six‐story condominium building with ground‐floor retail. Completing the remainder of the Street is The Thread, an adaptive‐reuse of a 1920s auditorium into for-lease apartments and work spaces. The ground floor along 9½ Street contains several live‐work “Maker Units,” designed with individual commercial storefronts affording future artists and creatives the flexibility to live, work or do both.
Completing the development is the adaptive reuse of the former Grimke School, renamed in 1934 for Archibald Grimke, an American lawyer, intellectual, journalist, diplomat and community leader in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The new Grimke School includes an extensive historic restoration effort and will house approximately 65,000 square feet of loft‐style office and cultural arts space, including the new permanent home of the African American Civil War Museum and the international headquarters of the architecture, urban design and placemaking firm Torti Gallas + Partners.
The Fold
40 new condominium residences at the Grimke School Redevelopment, under construction August 2019 through fall 2020.
Grimke School Redevelopment Reference
History and reference links for the Grimke School Redevelopment project.
Grimke School History
Built in 1887 as The Phelps School, the school was renamed in 1934 for the Grimke family.Archibald Grimke, a former slave, lawyer, intellectual, journalist, diplomat and community leader in the 19th and early 20th centuries. A graduate of freedmen’s schools, Lincoln University and Harvard Law School, he later was appointed as American Consul to the Dominican Republic from 1894 to 1898. He was an activist for rights for blacks, working in Boston and Washington, DC. He was a national vice-president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), as well as president of its Washington, DC branch. The 37,926 SF property was later used as headquarters for the DC Department of Corrections and the DC Fire and Emergency Medical Services. The Grimke Elementary School is a contributing building to the U Street Historic District.
Grimke School Redevelopment History
DMPED hopes to reach agreement with Community Three Development and Torti Gallas by March of 2017. In late 2016, ANC iB issued a Resolution including a deadline for signing by Roadside Development and Sorg Architects, the team selected by DMPED to redevelop the Grimke School site. The deadline was not met and Roadside/Sorg withdrew. Second place finalist Community Three Development was offered the opportunity for a second time. Since the long, drawn-out process of approval began, C3D has initiated several new projects. It is not known at this time whether they would have interest in revisiting the Grimke development, or, if so, they would stick to their original plan.
The winning bid was Roadside Development and architect Suman Sorg, who owns a building adjacent to the Grimke School project. Their plan included a total of 42 condominium units with 13 Affordable Dwelling Units at 50% and 80% AMI. Anchored by the African American Civil War Memorial’s 13k SF museum space, the project also called for leased office space for creatives, approx. 3k SF of retail space, nearly 7500 Sf of performance space, 35 condos and 7 townhomes. Early signers were City Dance, Step Afrika! and Imagination Stage.
The Government of the District of Columbia (the “District”), through the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (“DMPED”), issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) to (1) rehabilitate and reuse the approximately 52,000 gross square foot historic Grimke School building located at 1923 Vermont Avenue, NW, (2) develop approximately 10,000 square feet of space inside the Grimke School building for use by the African American Civil War Museum (“AACWM”), (3) redevelop the approximately 14,000 square foot portion of the lot area behind the Grimke School building, AND (4) redevelop an approximately 5,900 square foot lot adjacent to the historic Grimke School located at 912 U Street, NW in Ward 1 on June 4, 2014. The RFP closed on August 28, 2014.
Grimke School Project Proposals
Runner-up Community Three Development with architect Tori Gallas Partners plan proposed new 2.5 story townhomes in place of the existing gym facing 9 1/2 Street, a 10,000 SF Museum, 1,500 SF creative space for U Street Arts League and a 4,400 – 4,500 SF office space for Torti Gallas Architects shared with U Street Arts League. The entire proposed project would include approx. 48 parking spaces, of which 33 are off- street (5 spaces at U Street site, 28 spaces at the school site). View the proposals:
Community Presentations Overview October 14 and October 18, 2014 Community Three Development – Grimke Community Presentation Community Three Development – Grimke Community Presentation Questions and Answers Redevelopment Partners – Grimke Community Presentation Redevelopment Partners – Grimke Community Presentation Questions and Answers Roadside/ Sorg Architects – Grimke Community PresentationRoadside/ Sorg Architects – Grimke Community Presentation Questions and Answers Grimke Community Presentation – Additional Questions and Answers
Additional Links