Developer Q&A: Rappaport President Henry Fonvielle

Rappaport, in partnership with WC Smith, broke ground last summer on Avec, an eight-story, 419-unit mixed-use project comprising two full blocks on H Street NE between Eighth and 10th streets. The $201M project will include 44K SF of retail and is expected to deliver in 2019. Rappaport had built the previous retail strip mall on the site, H Street Connection, 30 years earlier, giving the developer an up-close view at the corridor's transformation. Bisnow caught up with Rappaport President Henry Fonvielle to hear the latest on the project and his thoughts on the booming H Street corridor. 

Bisnow: Rappaport has had this H Street Connection property for 30 years so you have gotten to watch the H Street corridor evolve, how much has it changed over the last decade? What do you think sparked its revitalization?

Fonvielle: The changes on H Street NE mirror those taking place in many neighborhoods, but H Street NE has a hip quirkiness that makes it a bit different. Entrepreneurs like Joe Englert created unique entertainment, food and drink establishments like The Rock and Roll Hotel and The H Street Country Club. Biergarten Haus, which looks like a small pub from the outside but holds 400 people with true Octoberfest style, is always a surprise. The Atlas Theater is the epicenter for the arts. Uber made transportation easy and now the Streetcar makes it convenient to hop around H Street NE.

Bisnow: Why did you decide now was the right time to redevelop the property from a strip mall to a mixed-use development?

Fonvielle: The rapid evolution of H Street means the highest and best use for our property was no longer a traditional shopping center with a surface parking lot. That building was a product of a public/private partnership to reintroduce retail to the corridor 30 years ago. It was still successful but not representative of today's urban taste.

Bisnow: How has construction gone in the year since breaking ground? Are you still on schedule for a 2019 delivery?

Fonvielle: We’re on track. Everything has gone extremely well. The construction team is doing a fantastic job.

Bisnow: How did you design the project to fit in with the character of H Street?

Fonvielle: Our design responds to the character and scale of H Street in three important ways. We have created eight different facades along H Street that correspond to the existing lengths of H Street buildings. We have set back the upper floors of our buildings two, three and sometimes four times to be more comparable to the existing scale of the street. Lastly, we created different facade characteristics ranging from classical to modern to allow the streetscape to have a feeling of being built over time. Combined, these concepts will create a comfortable pedestrian retail streetscape and a great place to live on H Street. Our fantastic partners at Torti Gallas and WC Smith deserve a lot of credit for creating such an incredible design.

Bisnow: Do you see your project as an eastward extension of the multifamily momentum the corridor has been experiencing with the two big projects on the 600 block? Have you been watching the lease-ups of The Apollo and Anthology as you prepare for your delivery?

Fonvielle: Definitely. We are an extension of the momentum you mentioned and we are proud that our brokerage group represented The Apollo and Insight Property Group in going after Whole Foods and landing them as the anchor for that project. We recently completed leases for City Dogs and Craft Beer Cellar at 301 H St. NE. The whole corridor is important to us.

Bisnow: Are you in talks with any potential retail tenants? What type of retail mix are you looking to create?

Fonvielle: Highly educated professionals both and young and old have been moving into the city seeking out an authentic urban lifestyle. We want to provide residents of the area with a product and experience that adds to their quality of life. The Avec is going to do just that — we will have best-in-class amenities, full-service restaurants, fast-casual eateries, specialty fitness and services that the neighborhood needs. It's still early in the development cycle to ink deals, but we will have a nicely curated collection of tenants. Our mix will have a lot of doors on the street. We're not looking for larger anchor tenants. We are seeking unique concepts that will add to the character of the street.

Bisnow: How important do you think the opening of the Whole Foods was for drawing residents, visitors and businesses to H Street? 

Fonvielle: The impact of Whole Foods is tremendous. Having a grocer of that stature really cements the fact that H Street has come into its own as a neighborhood, as well as providing a great amenity to residents and visitors.