The switch from office to residential development has characterized the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood in recent years. The arrival of both the national and District transportation departments helped put the neighborhood on the map for many D.C. residents. But since the recession, the office market has stagnated across the city as the federal government and private firms have opted to reduce their space requirements per employee.  

As of last year, according to the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District, 50 percent of the eventual office development in the neighborhood was built out. By 2017, the BID projects, that figure will be 51 percent—an increase of just one percentage point over four years. In the same time period, the BID forecasts, residential development will have jumped from 24 percent to 47 percent, hotel development from 16 percent to 58 percent, and retail development from 22 percent to 50 percent.

The population within the BID's borders has grown from 1,100 in 2009 to more than 4,000 today and is expected to surpass 5,000 next year. There are six apartment buildings currently under construction. The neighborhood currently lacks a supermarket but will soon have two: a Harris Teeter set to open in September, and a Whole Foods that's broken ground.  

In addition, two developers have recently announced plans for condominiums in the neighborhood. PN Hoffman will build  130 condos at the Yards complex, and MRP Realty and CAS Riegler Companies  won a bid this month to build 126 condos at the Metro chiller plant site. "That's a really positive sign for the neighborhood," says Stevens, who believes that ownership housing will deepen residents' personal investment in Capitol Riverfront.