If you’ve recently been down to Navy Yard, you’ve likely seen a good deal of construction. Phase II, the second wave of expansion taking place at The Yards, the sprawling waterfront development that makes up much of Navy Yard, has been under way since 2019. Brookfield Properties is leading the development, which sits to the west of The Yards’s completed Phase I area (the section that houses spots such as Bluejacket and Albi).
Brookfield recently announced the first wave of retail that will be opening in Phase II: grab-and-go spot Foxtrot, expected to open in the coming weeks (1275 New Jersey Ave., SE), New York-based and French-inspired pastry and lunch café Maman, coming late this year (1300 Yards Pl., SE), Playa Bowls, a pitstop for acai bowls and smoothies arriving in early 2024 (1300 Yards Pl., SE), and a storefront for Jungle & Loom (1275 New Jersey Ave., SE), the local houseplant group, with a potting station for workshops. (Look for that in 2024.) Additionally, the party boat rental company Sea Suite Cruises will begin operating out of The Yards marina.
The new retail will be located along Yards Place, a pedestrian-only street that links the Navy Yard-Ballpark Metro stop with Nats Park and the waterfront. Foxtrot and Jungle & Loom will be located on the ground floor of the office building at 1275 New Jersey Ave., which houses the new Chemonics headquarters. Maman and Playa Bowls will be on the ground floor of Vela, a residential building expected to open later this year. The 379-unit space will have all the usual accoutrements you’d expect of a lux Navy Yard building: a rooftop pool, coworking spaces, and a floating glass bridge that houses its fitness center.
Several more office and residential buildings are in the works for Phase II, including Urby, a 467-unit “co-living” building with a dog run, garden plots for tenants, a café, and retail space that’s expected to open in 2025. (While tenants have their own units, the “co-living” part comes from events and shared areas intended to foster friendships between residents.) Additionally, a yet-to-be-named residential concept will house 681 units across two towers, with much of its ground-floor retail serving as an incubator for local women- and minority-owned small businesses. Groundbreaking is TBD on that project.
The Phase II project will also expand the existing Diamond Teague Park to 33,000 square feet, with a pavilion and seating for events.
Overall, Phase II will add a total of 3.4 million square feet of new development via 10 buildings, as well as 1,260 residential units, 1.8 million square feet of office space, and 33,000 square feet of waterfront green space. At that point, The Yards will be the largest waterfront development in the DC area, spanning 48 acres in total, with six waterfront acres, two million square feet of office space, 3,400 residential units, and 7.5 acres of park area.
Mimi Montgomery joined Washingtonian in 2018. She’s written for The Washington Post, Garden & Gun, Outside Magazine, Washington City Paper, DCist, and PoPVille. Originally from North Carolina, she now lives in Del Ray.
