Watergate Revisited
A famous hotel goes condo.
Mention the Watergate Hotel and most people immediately think of former President Richard Nixon. But one Washington, D.C., developer hopes people will soon envision high-end condos instead. Monument Realty is transforming the 251-room hotel into The Watergate, a 96-unit luxury condominium community expected to open in late 2007 with top-of-the-line finishes and amenities.
The Watergate Hotel, part of a complex of six total residential and office buildings, will close its doors in late spring, with construction expected to begin this summer. Units will be priced from the $700,000s to more than $9 million. The building’s drab, dated interior will be completely gutted to make way for one-, two-, and three-bedroom and penthouse units each offering floor-to-ceiling views of the Potomac River and a sparkling spread to include Poggenpohl cabinetry, Dornbarcht bathroom fixtures, and SubZero, Bosch, and Viking appliances, plus stone surfaces collected from around the world.
The hotel’s unique architectural design (every façade is curved) dictates the placement of interior walls and living areas. “We tried to observe the geometry that architect [Luigi] Moretti has established initially when he designed the building,” says Stephen Perkins, principal of ForrestPerkins, a Washington, D.C.-based luxury design and architecture firm that is designing the building’s interior space. “You contain interior things like kitchens and baths at the core of the unit, and then you reach out with walls that then dissolve to glass as they touch the perimeter of the building.”
These lavish interiors will be matched by equally luxurious community amenities, including a spa with a full-service health club, a brand-new restaurant, valet parking, and a lounge and rooftop terrace with river views.
And with such attractions, Monica Lewinsky might be tempted to visit her old stomping ground.
–Rachel Z. Azoff