Legion Troll
A fine upstanding poster
A developer planned to turn six properties into luxury housing and sell them for top dollar.
Instead, the D.C. government has taken the six homes in some of the city's hottest neighborhoods — and plans to use them for affordable housing.
Late last month, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine claimed eminent domain and took six rowhomes owned by Insun Hofgard.
The homes — in Bloomingdale, Petworth, Columbia Heights, and Edgewood — will be handed over to the D.C. Department of Housing and Community Development, which says it plans to convert them to affordable housing for low-income residents.
"The six Hofgard properties are in highly desirable neighborhoods with high market rate values. Upon acquisition, we'll redevelop the properties as affordable housing for District residents — allowing them to live affordably in these neighborhoods," says Gwendolyn Cofield, the spokesperson for DHCD.
Starting around 2012, Hofgard bought up rowhouses in revitalizing neighborhoods, renovated them and sold them at a healthy profit.
The Hofgard homes DHCD has claimed are the following: 36 Channing Street NW, 160 Adams Street NW, 523 Kennedy Street NW, 1132 Columbia Road NW, 1422 Shepherd Street NW, and 2805 4th Street NE.
http://wamu.org/news/16/08/29/dc_takes_homes_from_developer_plans_to_turn_them_into_affordable_housing