St. Elizabeths Project is Set for Next Phase of Development

November 25, 2025

Community leaders and residents gathered at the Old Congress Heights School on November 18 to discuss positive developments at the St. Elizabeth East Redevelopment Project in Ward 8. The historic 182-acre former mental health campus is being transformed into a mixed-use development featuring residential units, retail spaces, entertainment venues, and healthcare facilities, with several amenities already operational including an arena and medical center. Plans were announced for a new Congress Heights Library near the Metro station and two workforce rental buildings called The Martin and The Malcolm, developed by Omar Karim of Banneker Development.

Who is affected

Congress Heights residents and Ward 8 community members
Monica Ray, president of the Congress Heights Community Training and Development Corporation
Jaspreet Pahwa, director of planning for the D.C. Public Library
Omar Karim, founder and owner of Banneker Development
Washington Mystics and Capital City Go-Go teams (current tenants)
Black developers and professionals working on the project
Young people who will use the recording studio
Future residents of workforce rental housing

What action is being taken

Omar Karim is building two mixed-use residential developments (The Martin and The Malcolm) for workforce rentals. The D.C. Public Library is constructing a new Congress Heights Library to replace the Parklands-Turner branch. Community engagement sessions are being held with area residents to discuss developments.

Why it matters

This redevelopment represents a rare opportunity for Black-led development at a massive scale, with the combined parcels equaling the size of The Wharf development. The project addresses critical community needs in Ward 8 by providing healthcare access (the only comprehensive hospital in that part of the District), affordable workforce housing, entertainment venues, and public amenities like a Metro-accessible library with features requested by residents. The transformation of a historic mental health campus into a thriving mixed-use community demonstrates economic investment and self-determination in a historically underserved area of Washington, D.C.

What's next

No explicit next steps stated in the article

Read full article from source: The Washington Informer