Thank you,
Becky

All was fine in the beginning, but Tenacity decided to tackle the brick work on the outside and whoever they hired did such a sub standard job that moisture seeped in to the point of black mold developing around the window and wall. The problem was so bad that the entire wall had to be replaced. This didn’t solve my moisture problem. Another moisture problem developed and it took Tenacity more than a year to fix the problem.

If you live here and packages are delivered, don’t be surprised if they are stolen. UPS and other delivery companies will deliver and you will sometimes get a notification on your mailbox and sometimes you won’t. It’s been my personal experience that your package will get stolen from the workout room after Cap City (Tenacity’s building management company) signs for it. Word of warning: get a PO box.

People have gotten stuck in the elevators (don’t let the certifications fool you), the controls haven’t been replaced since the building was built in the 60s.

There are however even more disturbing things to be wary of…

The financial status of the developer, Tenacity, is somewhat suspect since, on several occasions, Pepco has entered the building and posted shut off notices for the utilities. Every time when asking Tenacity the answer is always “Oh yeah, it’s a mixup”.

Just as a practical matter, remember that you are making the biggest investment of your life when buying your home. Takoma Overlook is located in Ward 6 where the majority of crime takes place in Takoma Park. Couple that with the absolute overflow of the less than desirable elements in the apartment building next door and you might, rightfully and correctly, be rethinking your decision. Remember that you have to actually re-sell your place and frankly knowing now what I do I ** NEVER ** would have bought here because I doubt that I’m going to get my money back.

If you are thinking of buying here, do yourself a favor, don’t.

Latisha is absolutely right. The layout of the kitchen and living room is odd. They also cheaped out on some things; they put a pedestal sink in the bathroom when there is enough room for a vanity. There weren’t enough closets in the one-bedroom, either.

What happens to a those of us that are current on all of our affairs if this association goes bankrupt? The individual units are electrically metered but the water is communal. I can’t afford to move out as my property value has already dropped will below what I owe

We currently reside in a 1BR basement on Capitol Hill, SE but looking for a change while staying within Pennsylvania and F Street, New Jersey to 4th Street, SE.

Thank you.
Best,

Alexandria
alexandria.bassett@gmail.com
ghwhitten@gmail.com

DC-based Tenacity Group is still converting rental apartments to condos in its massive Takoma Overlook apartment complex, formerly known as Hampshire Towers. Tenacity Group bought Hampshire Towers in mid-2006 for $15.3 million and, after major renovati…

DC-based Tenacity Group is still converting rental apartments to condos in its massive Takoma Overlook apartment complex, formerly known as Hampshire ……

DC-based Tenacity Group is still converting rental apartments to condos in its massive Takoma Overlook apartment complex, formerly known as Hampshire Towers. Tenacity Group bought Hampshire Towers in mid-2006 for $15.3 million and, after major renovati…

Your story was featured in postonfire.com! Here is the link to vote it up and promote it: http://postonfire.com/BusinessMoney/Arlington_County_Begins_Construction_Of_The_Pentagon_City_Park...

The Pentagon City Park, a 46-acre Park which had long served as an industrial site including a brick factory and staging area for construction of the Pentagon, is expected to be replaced with a building next summer….

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The Pentagon City Park, a 46-acre Park which had long served as an industrial site including a brick factory and staging area for construction of the ……

DC Bond is again made available through the DC Housing Finance Agency. The program offers an affordable, fixed rate mortgages to both individuals and ……

The Pentagon City Park, a 46-acre Park which had long served as an industrial site including a brick factory and staging area for construction of the Pentagon, is expected to be replaced with a building next summer. The Arlington County began its plan …

DC Bond is again made available through the DC Housing Finance Agency. The program offers an affordable, fixed rate mortgages to both individuals and families seeking their first home in the District, which means that those who have owned a home in DC …

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Your story was featured in postonfire.com! Here is the link to vote it up and promote it: http://postonfire.com/BusinessMoney/Equity_Residential_Acquires_The_Dumont_Favorite...

Urban Investment Partner, a subsidiary of Urban Investment Partners, starts to rehabilitate The Matheson, a large century-old row home at 1451 Harvard Street, NW in DC’s Columbia Heights neighborhood. Renovations are expected to be completed by July an…

Equity Residential has recently acquired 425 Mass, formerly known as The Dumont, for $167 million. The luxury DC property is located in the Mount Vernon Triangle area, just a few blocks away from the Capitol. Judiciary Square, the Federal Triangle. K S…

Urban Investment Partner, a subsidiary of Urban Investment Partners, starts to rehabilitate The Matheson, a large century-old row home at 1451 Harvard……

Equity Residential has recently acquired 425 Mass, formerly known as The Dumont, for $167 million. The luxury DC property is located in t……

Urban Investment Partner, a subsidiary of Urban Investment Partners, starts to rehabilitate The Matheson, a large century-old row home at 1451 Harvard Street, NW in DC’s Columbia Heights neighborhood. Renovations are expected to be completed by July an…

Equity Residential has recently acquired 425 Mass, formerly known as The Dumont, for $167 million. The luxury DC property is located in the Mount Vernon Triangle area, just a few blocks away from the Capitol. Judiciary Square, the Federal Triangle. K S…

In addition, PPT has had numerous problems and Monument Realty has NOT been responsive on time (or at all). Just to mention a few and ones you would want to check out when you visit the property:

- EXTREMELY thin walls and ceilings (you can even hear neighbors turning in their beds at night)
- The AC and heating units in the apartments are so extremely loud, you can barely sleep at night. They kept the OLD structure and it is not good at all!
- The common areas have been completely deplorable since people started
moving in, in 2007! I believe some updates are being done now… but definitely not enough!
- Gas leaks AND water leaks have been reported throughout the building.
- There have also been complaints about hot and cold water… sometimes people have one OR the other, but not both.
- There have been a lot of reports about RATS! The gym smells like dead rats all the time.
- And before you move in, make sure they have changed the elevators. On several occasions the doors would open and the elevator would be on another floor! Talk about dangerous!

Monument Realty leaves A LOT to hope for. The building is NOT in excellent condition and the developers are not very honest.

It is a big investment to have to deal with so many issues. Do your research before you think about investing!

Ripley Street North, Home Properties’ mixed-use development formerly known as Kettler’s Midtown Silver Spring when it received county approval, will appear before the Montgomery County Planning Board this week….

I’m writing concerning the “Dupont Down Under” and what will become of this location in the future.

Approximately 2 months ago, I submitted to Paul Williams, Executive Director of “Historic Dupont Circle Mainstreet” who was compiling suggestion from local residents of Dupont Circle to deliver to your office, some well thought out suggestions of what I felt would be good use of the location making it a major in city attraction for years to come, while generating an opportunity for up & coming Artist, Crafters & Designers to take the next step to become established new business owners.

At that time, I referred Paul to a similar project in NYC named The Limelight MarketPlace, which is still underway, but due to hold the Grand Opening in late April. The LimeLight MarketPlace will be located in NYC’s Chelsea section. The LimeLight is a Huge Old Church that was in past years one of NYC’s hottest gay/straight nightclubs. It then closed and sat vacant for several years. It is now being converted into a Boutique Market Place – giving preference to up and coming Artist, Crafters & Fashion Designers at an affordable price. By affordable, I’ve been told that they have structured a POS System for all merchant vendors to tie into (required) and the merchant vendors would pay their lease fees based on their sales volume each month, making this an affordable venture for any up and coming start up Artist, Crafter & Designer. This is something that I believe would work very well in the Dupont Circle area, while giving an opportunity to up and coming Artist, Crafters & Designers in the DC area. I myself am a well established and still up and coming Handcraft Jewelry Designer. I’ve currently been looking for a location to open a store in this area and have become very frustrated with the over inflated leasing rates. Here’s a couple of links to the LimeLight MarketPlace websites if you would like to check it out.

http://www.limelightmarketplace.com/

http://www.facebook.com/pages/New-York-NY/Limelight-Marketplace/123977387675

Additionally, a friend and well known local Belt & T-Shirt Designer, Jon Wye, who started out at Eastern Market several years ago…has signed a lease at the LimeLight MarketPlace in NYC and is in the process of preparing for his store opening late in April. He actually has some pictures of his proposed store build out on his website that might interest you, since it’s a similar project as to what I’m suggesting for the Dupont Down Under. Pictures are on the Home Page of his website….just page down. Exciting times for a local DC Designer that ended up opening his first store in NYC and not in DC due to the high lease rates and little opportunity for up and coming business owners to find affordable opportunities to get started here in the District of Columbia.

http://www.jonwye.com/

As far as leasing requirements for the “Dupont Down Under” Project, I would suggest that there would be strict leasing guidelines that would need to be established & met to ensure that NO national & commercial chains be permitted to lease space in this venue. Additionally, I would suggest that a jury committee be tasks with reviewing & interviewing each lease candidate for quality and proper balance & fit for this venue. This would ensure continuity throughout this project…such as not too many vendors in any specific category, giving an even balance of categories throughout the Artist, Crafter, Designer Market Place.

I would also make these permanent lease agreements, perhaps in 1-year contracts, making it easier for start up vendors. The space would not be your usual large store spaces, but smaller spaces to afford more variety for shoppers throughout this market place like setting. The LimeLight Market Place was able to get 80 smaller store spaces out of their location. There is a floor plan on their website.

I would definitely not make this a place where the vendors rotate weekly or anything like that. We have plenty of open-air markets throughout the DC Metro area for those types of vendors. This venue would be an opportunity for those vendors that would like to take the next step towards becoming an established new business owner.

OK, I’ve covered the Artist, Crafter & Designer Market Place Portion, but I understand that there are several sections to the “Dupont Down Under” and my suggestions for the remaining sections are as follows. Make a quaint, up scale, eclectic Jazz, Blues, Martini Lounge section…not nightclubs or just bars. This is something that would definitely be a draw to the area. Other things to consider for other sections would be…..NY Style Deli’s, Wine & Cheese Market’s and places like that. Also, I understand that a one time back when the old “Dupont Down Under” was being proposed, there was a Gym that was interested in the East Section and I think that this might also be something to consider.

Now, here’s probably the most important part of all this. Once the decisions have been made and all starts to move forward, there must be established 1 and only 1 Grand Opening date for all sections of the entire “Dupont Down Under” with a heavy hitting advertising campaign, which is heavily endorsed by not only the city, but by the Arts community and other related sponsors. This is a must to ensure the total success of this type of project for years to come. It must be something that is advertised as the place that everyone wants to be and the place to go in DC for years to come. It needs to make news in order to be successful. Also, all 9 entrances need to be open for access to all areas of the Down Under and these entrances should all be designed for maximum exposure to the “Dupont Down Under” so that people see these coming from any direction in a way so that even someone driving by will notice and ask….”What’s the “Dupont Down Under”. MAXIMUM EXPOSURE!

As a patron, I know I would frequent a place like this. Actually, I thought that the original attempt of the Dupont Down Under was suppose to be more like this….so, you can imagine my disappointment the first time I went there upon opening several years ago….only to find mostly fast food chains…UGH. We have plenty of them around already. Let’s not make that same mistake again.

OK, I know this was long, but I’ve live in DC for many years and feel pretty strongly about this particular project. I’ve seen this city make so many mistakes with various projects over the years and I’d like to see this one become something that will revive the Dupont Area and keep giving people another reason to come here to Dupont for years to come, while supporting the Arts, Crafts & Designers & up and coming start up businesses at establishing themselves.

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