"This is really one of the last sites left in the Mount VernonTriangle," according to Deputy Mayor Neil O. Albert. "Thisneighborhood has basically sprung up over night and this sitepresents a great opportunity to add some dynamic uses to betterserve the existing community and the new mix of office, retail andhousing."

The short-listed teams include Buccini/Pollin Group, ClarkRealty Capital, Donohoe Development Co., JBG Cos., MVT AssociatesLLC, the Neighborhood Development Co., and Potomac InvestmentProperties Inc. The firms' proposals vary of course, but all offersome mix of boutique and high-end hotels, restaurants, spas fitnessclubs, cafes and coffee shops, jazz clubs and other liveentertainment venues. Some proposals included apartments andcondos, as well as a component of affordable housing, according tothe District. Finally, all the proposals have incorporated at least100 underground parking spaces in the plans--essential, for thispart of town.

The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and EconomicDevelopment will be vetting the proposals over the next severalweeks--a process that includes public meetings where the teamspresent their plans to the community. There is some four million sfof development under way or in the pipeline for Mount Vernon, a15-block area in the center of the city.