"This is really one of the last sites left in the Mount Vernon Triangle," according to Deputy Mayor Neil O. Albert. "This neighborhood has basically sprung up over night and this site presents a great opportunity to add some dynamic uses to better serve the existing community and the new mix of office, retail and housing."

The short-listed teams include Buccini/Pollin Group, Clark Realty Capital, Donohoe Development Co., JBG Cos., MVT Associates LLC, the Neighborhood Development Co., and Potomac Investment Properties Inc. The firms' proposals vary of course, but all offer some mix of boutique and high-end hotels, restaurants, spas fitness clubs, cafes and coffee shops, jazz clubs and other live entertainment venues. Some proposals included apartments and condos, as well as a component of affordable housing, according to the District. Finally, all the proposals have incorporated at least 100 underground parking spaces in the plans--essential, for this part of town.

The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development will be vetting the proposals over the next several weeks--a process that includes public meetings where the teams present their plans to the community. There is some four million sf of development under way or in the pipeline for Mount Vernon, a 15-block area in the center of the city.