Ward 8 residents split over proposed Therme spa at Poplar Point ahead of Oct. 28 hearing

A proposed thermal spa and wellness complex on the Anacostia River waterfront is splitting opinion in Ward 8. A council committee hearing on the plan is set for next week. The project would put the European wellness company Therme on about 15 acres at Poplar Point, the federally owned land between the Frederick Douglass and 11th Street bridges, across the river from Nationals Park.

At a recent virtual meeting of a Ward 8 advisory neighborhood commission, residents and commissioners gave the plan a mixed reception, WUSA9 reported on Oct. 21.

What’s proposed

In late September, the administration sent the D.C. Council two bills. One would move the roughly 110-acre Poplar Point site from federal to District control. The other would lease 15 acres to Therme, according to Bisnow and The Washington Sun. Both outlets report that Therme would pay $1 a year for the first 20 years. Bisnow and Hoodline describe the full term as a 60-year ground lease with an option to extend.

Published cost estimates run from about $500 million (the Sun and Hoodline) to about $550 million (Bisnow). Bisnow reports that Therme says it will pay for the project itself and has not asked for tax breaks beyond the lease terms. Concept images show thermal pools, saunas and steam rooms.

Before the land can change hands, the U.S. Park Police headquarters at Poplar Point would have to move to Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, the Sun and Hoodline report. Congress ordered the site transferred to the District in 2006, and at least 70 acres must remain parkland, according to Hoodline and Bisnow.

What neighbors said

WUSA9 reported that supporters at the ANC meeting, including a member of Friends of Oxon Run, said Ward 8 residents deserve recreation, wellness and environmental amenities close to home. Others objected to giving one company 15 acres of waterfront land. Tom Donohue, whom WUSA9 identified as an ANC leader, questioned whether the spa is the right use for the site.

Some residents asked whether local people would actually get the roughly 700 permanent jobs the project promises. Therme’s representatives said engineering, management and hospitality jobs would be open to the community, according to WUSA9.

WUSA9 also reported that moving the National Park Service facility could cost the District about $350 million, a figure that came up during the debate.

What’s next

Councilmember Matt Frumin has scheduled a committee hearing for Wednesday, Oct. 28, WUSA9 and Bisnow report; WUSA9 said the hearing starts at 1 p.m. Bisnow and the Sun also report that Councilmember Janeese Lewis George does not plan to hold a hearing this year. She chairs the committee that handles public land deals. The council’s current session ends Jan. 2. If the project goes forward, Bisnow reports, Therme hopes to break ground in about three years and open around 2033.