Luxury condominium proposed on site of former Old Town Motel

After years of development, plans for a luxury condominium project in Old Town North will be submitted to the Alexandria Architectural Review Board.

BAR will consider a concept review of The Whitley – Phase 2 proposal, a six-story residential development project located at 802-808 N. Washington Street, on Wednesday, January 15th.

It’s the former Old Town Motel property, which had been deserted since before the 2020 pandemic.

The proposed concept includes underground parking and a rooftop deck. The ground floor of the condominium development also includes a fitness room, mail room, pet washroom, meeting room, and administrative offices.

Maryland-based PT Blooms is the applicant for the one- to three-bedroom condominiums. PT Blooms also owns The Whitley at 805-823 N. Columbus Street, a 78-unit multifamily building being developed on the same block.

The property, located at 802-808 N. Washington Street, was sold last October to a new owner, 808 Washington LLC, for $6.3 million, according to city land use records.

According to the applicant:

In addition to general historical compatibility, the project also incorporates existing historic buildings on Washington Street itself, particularly the Heron Building, which has similar paired windows and a base-mid-top cornice definition. Designed to be compatible with hotels (George Mason Hotel).

The facade is designed to complement the buildings on Washington Street, particularly the existing historic townhouses that are part of the project (as they are the only historic buildings in the immediate vicinity).

Facade treatments and small setbacks break up the mass to make the building appear smaller, specifically divided into pieces less than 100 feet by 80 feet, each oriented toward North Washington Street.

The front is adjacent to the sidewalk and the entrance opens directly onto the sidewalk. This design promotes a sense of place, arrival, and community. Parking is underground (with the exception of two surface spaces behind the townhouses) and loading is located behind the private alley created by this project and the adjacent 805 N. Columbus Street.

Reporter James Karam has been covering Northern Virginia for nearly 20 years. He began working with ALXnow in 2020 and has covered everything for publication, from investigative stories to feature stories and photo galleries. His reportage includes coverage from the White House, Capitol Hill, the Pentagon, the Supreme Court, and the State Department, as well as domestic and international affairs. He also covered earthquake-hit Haiti, North Africa’s Western Sahara, and civil war-torn South Sudan, as well as protests and riots across the United States, including the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. I’ve been doing it. He has photographed presidents and other world leaders, celebrities and famous musicians, and excels under pressure.