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Councilmember Robert C. White, Jr. 2
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A PROPOSED RESOLUTION 5
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IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 8
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To declare the existence of an emergency regarding the need to provide financial relief and 12
other assistance to the current owners of the condominium units at the River East at 13
Grandview Condominiums. 14
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RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this resolution 16
may be cited as the “Relief for River East at Grandview Condominium Owners Emergency 17
Declaration Resolution of 2024”. 18
Sec. 2. (a) In 2011, the Department of Housing and Community Development 19
(“DHCD”) provided a loan to Stanton View Development LLC (“Stanton View”) to cover 20
predevelopment and acquisition costs for a Ward 8 property at 1260 to 1272 Talbert Street, 21
S.E., Washington, DC 20020, at which Stanton View planned to develop 46 for -sale affordable 22
housing units. 23
(b) In 2014, Stanton View transferred the property to Rivereast at Anacostia LLC for 24
development, who decided instead to develop rental units and who received a Housing 25
Production Trust Fund (“HPTF”) loan from DHCD, with the support of the Council, to do so. 26
(c) By the end of 2016, Stanton View and DHCD agreed to convert the property back 27
to the originally proposed ownership units, and the project was finished and just about ready 28
for move-in. 29
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(d) From July 2017 to February 2019, 46 households purchased homes at 1262 Talbert 30
Street, S.E., in a building that has been called several different but similar names: River East at 31
Grandview, Grandview Estate, Grandview Estates, Grandview Estates II, Gardenview, River 32
East, RiverEast, River East at Anacostia, River East at Anacostia Metro Station, River East at 33
Grandview, and, simply, Talbert Street (“River East at Grandview”). 34
(e) Many of the 46 households were led by Black women becoming homeowners for 35
the first time using the District’s Home Purchase Assistance Program (“HPAP”), and the 36
newly formed community included retirees, recent graduates, young couples, veterans, parents, 37
and parents-to-be. 38
(f) By August 2021, the community faced an insurmountable obstacle: An engineering 39
firm hired by the Condominium Association gave an emergency recommendation to fully 40
evacuate the building within 2 weeks due to serious structural concerns within the brand- new 41
building into which many had just poured their savings, hearts, and future plans. 42
(g) Since the evacuation almost 3 years ago, River East at Grandview owners have 43
worked diligently to untangle the tremendous financial, legal, and emotional web into which 44
they were thrown. 45
(h) Owners have described horrific experiences stemming from this tragic outcome, 46
including diminished mental health, persistent frustration, immense stress, distrust and 47
disappointment, and fear over their next steps. 48
(i) The District has provided some support, including immediate cash assistance and 49
case management to find rental units at the time of the evacuation, as well as ongoing rental 50
support that the Executive said will end in June 2024. 51
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(j) However, River East at Grandview owners remain responsible for their first trust 52
mortgages, despite being unable to move back into a building that has been deemed unlivable 53
and worth $0 in value. 54
(k) For years, owners – represented by the River East at Grandview Condominium 55
Association – engaged with the Executive to attempt to find common ground on a solution, 56
while groups of owners also sought relief and accountability through the courts. 57
(l) By the fall of 2023, there was still no resolution, and the owners continued to suffer 58
in a state of limbo. 59
(m) In November 2023, the Committee of the Whole and the Committee on Housing 60
held a joint roundtable to hear from the River East at Grandview owners, the Department of 61
Buildings (“DOB”), and DHCD over what went wrong and how to determine and implement 62
next steps. 63
(n) Later that month, DHCD, DOB, the Department of Insurance, Securities, and 64
Banking (“DISB”), representatives from Chairman Mendelson’s and Housing Committee 65
Chairperson Councilmember Robert White’s offices, and River East at Grandview 66
Condominium Association board members met to discuss a path forward. 67
(o) At the November meeting, DOB representatives confirmed the inhabitability of the 68
building, indicating it is unlikely that any part is salvageable and the ultimate outcome may be 69
complete demolition. 70
(p) At the same meeting, DHCD confirmed that owners would not be able to leave with 71
equity in their purchase because the building has no value. 72
(q) From December 2023 through March 2024, owners continued to engage with 73
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DHCD, as DHCD sought to produce a relief proposal in time for implementation ahead of the 74
rental assistance cut-off in June. 75
(r) On March 8, 2024, DHCD held a meeting with River East at Grandview owners to 76
introduce them to the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America (“NACA”) and 77
discuss the potential for partnership with NACA in securing new homeownership opportunities 78
for owners. 79
(s) Founded in 1988 by Bruce Marks and Reverend Graylan Hagler, who was also co -80
chair of DC’s recent Black Homeownership Strike Force, NACA seeks to provide affordable 81
homeownership opportunities to communities who have systematically been kept out of the 82
real estate market through reducing barriers to ownership. 83
(t) Since the March 8
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meeting, NACA counselors ha ve completed individual housing 84
counseling sessions with a majority of the River East at Grandview owners. 85
(u) The counseling sessions, and the feedback from owners, have highlighted the 86
critical need for deep financial assistance for many River East at Grandview owners to 87
successfully compete in today’s housing market and to finally move on from this dilemma. 88
(v) The Mayor and the Council strongly support the provision of new homeownership 89
and mortgage opportunities for the River East at Grandview owners, including the elimination 90
of their existing River East at Grandview mortgages, any future obligations associated with the 91
River East at Grandview mortgages, and any negative impact of the River East at Grandview 92
mortgages on obtaining new mortgages. 93
(w) These measures are immediately necessary to ensure that River East at Grandview 94
owners can access stable housing before their rental supports expire and to begin to provide an 95
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overdue solution to 46 households who have endured ongoing uncertainty and stress since the 96
devastating loss of their River East at Grandview homes almost 3 years ago. 97
Sec. 3. The Council of the District of Columbia determines that the circumstances 98
enumerated in section 2 constitute emergency circumstances making it necessary that the 99
Relief for River East at Grandview Condominium Owners Emergency Act of 2024 be adopted 100
after a single reading. 101
Sec. 4. This resolution shall take effect immediately. 102