Page 50 - Fall 2019

Chapter Design Award in Architecture/
Citation for Design & Well-Being

Ridge Place Co-Living
Washington, DC

Suzane Reatig Architecture

Landscape Architects: Love & Carrots
Structural Engineers: MGV Engineers
Civil Engineers: CAS Engineering
General Contractor: Suzane Reatig Architecture

A few blocks west of Chapman Stables, in the Shaw neighborhood,
is Ridge Place Co-Living, a new, eight-unit development designed Courtyard at Ridge Place. Photo © Alan Karchmer
by Suzane Reatig Architecture. Located on the 400 block of Ridge
Street, NW—an east-west street bisecting the block defined by M,
N, 4th, and 5th streets—this infill project, situated a little east of the
Washington Convention Center, fits into its surrounding residential
context while employing a modern variation of Washington’s
historic row house typology.
The project’s site consisted of four adjacent, vacant lots, each 20
feet wide, bracketed by narrower, two-story historic row houses on
either side. Zoning regulations allowed for four-story townhouses,
each 64 feet deep, with two living units per lot. Historic district
requirements, however, were more restrictive, permitting only
three-story row houses with the third floors set back, so that they
would appear from the street to be two-story structures like their
neighbors. Reatig’s solution was to divide the site in half, front
and back, with four new row houses running along the front of
the site and another four in a separate structure along the site’s Interior of a living unit. Photo © Alan Karchmer
rear, with a courtyard running in between.
“Instead of the typical two-unit townhouse where units are
stacked, Ridge Place separates and spreads the units across the site
and connects them with open space via a shared passageway, a
common feature of the pre-1870 residences in the area,” the firm
said. The arrangement creates “a shared, communal courtyard—a
tranquil outdoor space that not only offers respite from city life
but serves as a gathering space for residents to mingle.”
Wood siding is uncommon in many downtown Washington
neighborhoods—but not this one. “Tiger wood siding [used]
throughout the project references wooden historic two-story
townhouses on Ridge Street, yet it provides a unique identity
for the residences,” the firm said.
On the inside, the units feature a split-level plan—an
arrangement that “allowed the buildings to be interpreted as
two-level townhomes from the street to meet the compatibility
requirements of the historic street,” the firm said. As a result, “the
levels above the shared living areas are only half a story apart,
with a bedroom and bathroom suite on each level to accommodate
co-living and autonomy on each floor.”
As a result of its site arrangement and interior design, “the
project offers luxuries that are typically considered rare in city living—
double-height spaces, access to semi-private and private outdoor
spaces, double exposures, cross ventilation, ample natural light
throughout the interiors, and private roof decks for all units.”
The result “creates a simple, nuanced approach to urban dwelling,”
acting as “an urban oasis to calm and elevate the urban row
house typology.”

48 STRENGTH IN NUMBERS Ridge Place Co-Living, with historic row houses to the left.