A rendering of Capital Square’s planned development at 1600 Roseneath Road. (BizSense file photo)
One of the busiest developers in Scott’s Addition just got the green light for its latest project in the neighborhood.
Last week Richmond City Council approved a special-use permit for Capital Square’s planned redevelopment of 1600 Roseneath Road and 3406 Moore St., the former homes of The Dairy Bar diner and shuffleboard bar Tang & Biscuit.
Capital Square is planning to demolish the existing buildings to make way for a mixed-use development with 320 apartments and commercial space. Because the new structure would reach up to eight stories, Capital Square needed an SUP.
Many of the Innsbrook-based firm’s past developments in Scott’s Addition were able to be built by-right, including The Otis, a nearby building that spans a whole block at 1601 Roseneath Road, and Scott’s Collection, a three-building project in the neighborhood it completed in recent years.
Natalie Mason
Natalie Mason, Capital Square’s executive vice president of development, said the firm’s first time going through the special-use permit process was a smooth one.
“We started pretty early communicating with neighborhood stakeholders about what we were hoping to do on this site,” Mason said. “I think what helped is that we are already so active in the neighborhood, with over 600 units in Scott’s Addition. I think everyone really has a sense of what we build and how we build.”
City Council approved Capital Square’s SUP at its July 22 meeting as part of its consent agenda.
About a third of the development’s apartment units are planned to be “hotel apartments,” which would be furnished and available for shorter stays. Mason said Capital Square thinks there’s demand for such units from business and leisure travelers, as well as those preparing to move to Richmond.
“Maybe they don’t know where they want to live yet and they’re not ready to commit to a long-term lease, but maybe they want to try out the neighborhood. This gives them an opportunity to lease a furnished apartment for a few weeks or a few months while they explore Richmond and figure out their permanent living arrangements,” Mason said. “We’re excited about all these potential demand groups and think that this is a great location for something like this.”
Capital Square bought the 2.2-acre parcel in the spring for more than $11 million, which at the time set the local record for land sales on per-acre basis. Mason said they’d been pursuing the land for years.
“We consider this a ‘Main and Main’ location because of how amazing the location is,” she said. “We never wanted to let this property get away.”
The Dairy Bar and Tang & Biscuit were among the tenants at the existing structures.
With the SUP in hand, Capital Square is now moving onto the next phase of project design. Mason said they haven’t selected a general contractor or architect yet, and that they’re hoping to begin construction by summer 2025.
The firm is also busy with construction elsewhere in Scott’s Addition. It’s currently building a trio of buildings that’ll house another 352 units on North Marshall Street. Each of those buildings, which are rising on the former N. Chasen & Son complex, will reach seven stories, and Mason said the first phase has yet to top out.
“Once the façade starts coming together, I think they’ll all look pretty cohesive,” Mason said. “We’re on track to complete that phase in summer 2025.”
Another sizable project is in the works near the old Dairy Bar building, as D.C.-based developer Hoffman & Associates is planning to build a six-story, 367-unit building on a parking lot at 3200 W. Moore St. A spokesperson for Hoffman said last week that the development team is ramping up efforts throughout the rest of this year with plans to begin construction in the first quarter of 2025.
Over near Arthur Ashe Boulevard, fencing recently went up on the old Hardee’s at 921 Myers St., where Shamin Hotels is planning a 12-story, 299-room hotel. Shamin CEO Neil Amin said the development is still in the design phase.
A rendering of Capital Square’s planned development at 1600 Roseneath Road. (BizSense file photo)
One of the busiest developers in Scott’s Addition just got the green light for its latest project in the neighborhood.
Last week Richmond City Council approved a special-use permit for Capital Square’s planned redevelopment of 1600 Roseneath Road and 3406 Moore St., the former homes of The Dairy Bar diner and shuffleboard bar Tang & Biscuit.
Capital Square is planning to demolish the existing buildings to make way for a mixed-use development with 320 apartments and commercial space. Because the new structure would reach up to eight stories, Capital Square needed an SUP.
Many of the Innsbrook-based firm’s past developments in Scott’s Addition were able to be built by-right, including The Otis, a nearby building that spans a whole block at 1601 Roseneath Road, and Scott’s Collection, a three-building project in the neighborhood it completed in recent years.
Natalie Mason
Natalie Mason, Capital Square’s executive vice president of development, said the firm’s first time going through the special-use permit process was a smooth one.
“We started pretty early communicating with neighborhood stakeholders about what we were hoping to do on this site,” Mason said. “I think what helped is that we are already so active in the neighborhood, with over 600 units in Scott’s Addition. I think everyone really has a sense of what we build and how we build.”
City Council approved Capital Square’s SUP at its July 22 meeting as part of its consent agenda.
About a third of the development’s apartment units are planned to be “hotel apartments,” which would be furnished and available for shorter stays. Mason said Capital Square thinks there’s demand for such units from business and leisure travelers, as well as those preparing to move to Richmond.
“Maybe they don’t know where they want to live yet and they’re not ready to commit to a long-term lease, but maybe they want to try out the neighborhood. This gives them an opportunity to lease a furnished apartment for a few weeks or a few months while they explore Richmond and figure out their permanent living arrangements,” Mason said. “We’re excited about all these potential demand groups and think that this is a great location for something like this.”
Capital Square bought the 2.2-acre parcel in the spring for more than $11 million, which at the time set the local record for land sales on per-acre basis. Mason said they’d been pursuing the land for years.
“We consider this a ‘Main and Main’ location because of how amazing the location is,” she said. “We never wanted to let this property get away.”
The Dairy Bar and Tang & Biscuit were among the tenants at the existing structures.
With the SUP in hand, Capital Square is now moving onto the next phase of project design. Mason said they haven’t selected a general contractor or architect yet, and that they’re hoping to begin construction by summer 2025.
The firm is also busy with construction elsewhere in Scott’s Addition. It’s currently building a trio of buildings that’ll house another 352 units on North Marshall Street. Each of those buildings, which are rising on the former N. Chasen & Son complex, will reach seven stories, and Mason said the first phase has yet to top out.
“Once the façade starts coming together, I think they’ll all look pretty cohesive,” Mason said. “We’re on track to complete that phase in summer 2025.”
Another sizable project is in the works near the old Dairy Bar building, as D.C.-based developer Hoffman & Associates is planning to build a six-story, 367-unit building on a parking lot at 3200 W. Moore St. A spokesperson for Hoffman said last week that the development team is ramping up efforts throughout the rest of this year with plans to begin construction in the first quarter of 2025.
Over near Arthur Ashe Boulevard, fencing recently went up on the old Hardee’s at 921 Myers St., where Shamin Hotels is planning a 12-story, 299-room hotel. Shamin CEO Neil Amin said the development is still in the design phase.
This building really shows how much wasted space is being replaced with new housing that is currently being used up by old low rise one story buildings and large parking lots.
It’s very exciting to see this transformation. I can’t wait to see how Scott’s will be five and ten years from now. It has become THE boom district in Richmond. And — at least for now — it has wrested that distinction away from Manchester, which has been dormant for the past year or so, despite multiple large projects in the pipeline. I wish my father (may his memory be for a blessing) were alive to see this incredible transformation. He worked for (and later managed) a printing company in Scott’s for almost 50 years — beginning from when he… Read more »
Louis Salomonsky (RIP) referred to it as “the Gold Coast”. Scotts Addition garners the highest rents in the region, led by The Otis which I understand sold to Cap Square in excess of $400,000 per door in an unrecorded inside transfer. No other deal is close.
Wow – looks like Mr. Salomonsky (RIP) really nailed it with the nickname. So Bruce — two questions: 1.) What is Scott’s Addition’s “secret sauce” when it comes to this kind of transformation? Whatever it is, it certainly seems to be working – and the district is definitely living up to the nickname. 2.) For a while it seemed like Manchester was going to blow past Scott’s at THE boom neighborhood in the city – and now for the past year or so, it seems like development has simply ground to a halt, despite several high-profile projects in the pipeline.… Read more »
Yeah I want to know too!
To me it started out as: Cheap, creatives could colonize.
Then: Mass Hysteria. The phenom where people want what they perceive other people want.
SA’s secret sauce: 1) very few existing residents- you’re not dealing with a preconceived notion of who lives there for folks moving in and you’re not dealing with much pushback from residents (bc there aren’t many of them) as developers change the fabric of the area 2) adjacent to popular neighborhoods- you’re across the street from The Fan and The Museum District 3) easy access to interstates- since 195, 95, and 64 are at the edge of the neighborhood you can get anywhere quickly I’m sure there are some more, like existing buildings that could be transformed into apartments, tax… Read more »
Thanks, David, for the great analysis. On all of your points, I think you’re 100% spot on!
As a follow-up: Manchester WAS booming and transforming – and, in fact, had taken the lead over Scott’s as late as 2022 or even 2023. Recall that Manchester is the location of several high-profile “huge” (by Richmond standards) projects along the one asset Scott’s doesn’t have: the riverfront and its view of the downtown RVA skyline. That boom has gone dormant – and I’m wondering when the development engine will restart there.
Spot on. Also, will what has been done to Broad St. hold back its redevelopment?
I bought a condo in SA in 2020 specifically for the development. And I would imagine that most residents feel that way.
I agree about all of this, and the number one was an argument I have long used about why Manchester would be where development would be greatest — not a lot of various species of NIMBYs. So it is also with Scotts — though there are always people bemoaning tearing down all the light industrial ax throwing places for residential areas.
The hipster lament DOES have a bit of a signal in it though — does the place remain hip if there are basically less space for cool things to organically pop up, or does coolness migrate to Broad St?
I missed the boat completely on Scotts Addition; not one deal as a broker! I thought it was a butt-ugly community locked into too many “historic” low-level renovations. And it was at one time, just 20 years ago. But the oldest maxim in the book—location—turned those low level buildings into blocks for five and six story apartment buildings, luring young people from the suburbs and out of town into our version of Arlington and Alexandria of DC. It became the hip spot to live in Richmond with all its breweries, pubs and games, and the regions best shopping district, Carytown,… Read more »
Thanks, Bruce! Makes total sense. And now – after several years of those blocks of either surface parking or low-slung buildings being converted into five or six-story apartment buildings – developers are pushing higher (likely driven by demand?) building seven and eight story residential buildings. I look forward to seeing future developments in Scott’s joining the Icon with buildings 10 or more stories tall. So – to follow up about Manchester: I’ll pose the same question to you as I posed to David (above): Manchester WAS booming and transforming – and, in fact, had taken the lead over Scott’s as… Read more »
Well, there ARE some big projects in the works, right?
Perhaps it is just the expense of building right now makes Richmond in general a place where people are for now being a bit more cautious? There are areas like Austin that seem to have overbuilt a bit where the rents have come down — which is great for the residents, but if screws up the math of bldg it is best to wait until something changes like interest rates.
I don’t think Manchester has the amenities. No grocery. Limited restaurants and nightlife. Poor public transportation. And the one brewery that was there is most known for complaining about developers blocking their view, not their beer.
I live Manchester-adjacent, so it’s not an insider’s perspective, but I go to SA from time to time because what I want is there.
There’s nothing calling me to Manchester, except to maybe walk the canal wall.
Interesting that you are Manchester adjacent and don’t know there are three breweries in Manchester. Legends, Basic City, and Benchtop. Give Manchester a chance before you poo poo it.
This we sort of have in common. We considered buying one of those small residences there long ago but passed — ugliness…
Interesting what you say about Arlington — yeah, I guess that passes as great urban life in NoVa — maybe that is what all these young folks want?
If you are not aware, there have been three new apartment building that have opened in Manchester in the past year alone. The Navigator, The Commodore, and the Eddy. More are in the works. It may not be Scott’s Addition, but don’t write off Manchester yet.
Yes – I’m fully aware of those apartment buildings having been completed and that they are open for business. But that’s in the past. Those projects are completed — and there’s been little to no activity on ANY of the projects that are in the pipeline since then. Still pending are: – Avery Hall’s two riverfront towers (the ones that Legend’s was kvetching about) – Hourigan’s 20-story mixed-use building on the site of the Silos – Tom Papa’s 14-story South Falls II on the riverfront next to South Falls I – Papa’s switchover from a second Box apartment project to… Read more »
I miss The Dairy Bar and Aunt Sarah’s.