It contains the city's historic Maine Avenue Fish Market, hotels, residential buildings, restaurants, shops, parks, piers, docks and marinas, and live music venues.

The redevelopment was intended to reconnect the neglected and isolated portions of the southwest quadrant with downtown Washington, D.C., and make the area accessible and attractive to pedestrians while enhancing the existing community.

By 1945, the Southwest Waterfront had become a target for urban renewal,[13] and the District of Columbia Redevelopment Act allowed the U.S. federal government to acquire a property using eminent domain.

The cleared land was redeveloped into housing complexes and federal office buildings and was used for the construction of highway I-395, which now runs between the waterfront and the National Mall.

[16] PN Hoffman originally partnered with Struever Bros. Eccles & Rouse of Baltimore on the project,[17] but the company was dismantled as a result of the 2008 financial crisis.

[19] Hoffman-Madison Waterfront broke ground on the second phase of the project in March 2019, and it opened in October 2022, culminating in a total redevelopment cost of $3.6 billion.

The Wharf operates a free jitney service that shuttles passengers from the Recreation Pier across the Washington Channel to East Potomac Park.

A retrofitted camper known as Camp Wharf offers supplies for s’mores, including marshmallows, chocolate, graham crackers, and sticks for roasting.

Public transportation options include water taxis, metro, multiple Capital Bikeshare stations, and a free community shuttle.