Thursday, March 13, 2008
HT Confirmed @Constitution Square
I have confirmation that Harris Teeter has entered into a lease at Constitution Square, which is located adjacent to the NY Ave metro station. This will not be a dinky little store, but a full service 50k sqft outfit. The Department of Justice also recently signed a 15 year lease in the project. Look for a groundbreaking this spring with delivery in 2010.
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36 comments:
That's exciting news - - it's nice to hear that some significant long term projects continue to move forward despite the current market conditions. Now, if we could just get Trader Joe's to commit to the project across the street from Senate Square, we would really be in business.
woohoo! ... i'm doing a little jig in my cube
dang! inked beat me to it!
i said there were two big announcements coming.
so.. there's still one more.
:o)
Mr. Poo-
Why not enlighten all of us now...?
Come on Poo - is the other one that you're moving back to Iowa?
Idaho, perhaps?
Poo Poo,
I will buy you a drink if it's that Trader Joe's is committing to the lot across from Senate Square.
Barracuda
i really can't say anything yet.
fyi, on this map, consitution square is number 20:
http://www.nomabid.org/files/development_map.pdf
trader joes + h street community market @ 3rd & h would = HEAVEN
hoping it can happen.....
yay for quality grocery options!
Yeah, it's big news. Think this: When Williams gets his drink on with his neighbor, it ain't gonna be from the goods at that liquor store adjacent to Senate Square.
With big news like this and the Abdo story, I wonder if Poo soiled himself. :P
Two Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) border H Street NE:
1. Capitol Hill (map)
2. NoMA (map)
The Cap Hill BID extends all the way down Penn Ave SE. Can H Street NE join one of these two BIDs instead of creating our own? It would lower overhead and admin costs, thus saving money for H Street NE merchants.
I saw them surveying the parcel this morning, and construction crews on site. I don't think it will be long before they break ground.
Very exciting.
Hallelujah! I love HT. Us North Carolinians are gonna feel right at home in NoMa.
Now that Harris Teeter will be at Constitution Square, Trader Joe's will not even think of H Street as a new location. Supermarkets have a formula of location, population, nearest similar store, and demand. Unless there is an proven reason for Trader Joe's to be at 3rd & H Street, or any store of that size, none will want to be there. Let's think of other options or find out what the developer has been looking into.
Maybe Sheila Johnson can be convinced to open a Market Salamander there.
derek,
you have a good general point, but there are always exceptions to the rule. point in case: the trader joe's on leesburg pike sits DIRECTLY across from a whole foods. for a city like dc, in the area in which we live (one that has been starved for supermarket options for years), believe me: it's a distinct possibility for trader joe's to consider the location even more now that they're not going to be lone pioneers. they also have a different target audience.
anyway, it's a good generic point you make, but success stories are usually the exception to basic common paradigms.
It would be interesting to see if Ms. Johnson would be up for opening a couple places on H Street, especially near her new home. That stretch is still pretty bare.
What the strip really needs still is a world class gym. Yes, I know the small gym (sorry, I always forget the name) is there already, but that's more of a specialized experience.
To solidify the 'arrival' of the strip you really need a large, world-class gym.
And maybe some sort of outstanding sauna / spa. I remember seeing an article in the Post on how the Korean community has been opening up these amazing spas in the burbs. I'd love to see something similar on H.
Hillman and Poo Poo -- do you guys smoke crack together and then post on this blog?
Normally, I also like to poke fun at poo poo's and hlllman's comments, but what was wrong with the last two posts? There is a Trader Joe's across the street from Whole Foods in Fairfax, a big time gym would attract a lot of business in the area, espically with all the office space getting built in this area. Given the potential growth of this neighborhood, having two high end grocery stores and a gym be so bad... I wouldn't mind a bowling alley, so I can show off my cool shirts and my mean backwards hook:)
what the heck is a specialty gym? please don't downplay willpower like that, the owner is a nice guy and it's a nice gym. everyone should check it out when they get a chance, it's one of the better-run businesses on h st. i've been a member since it opened and they have been gradually upgrading and getting even better ever since. i believe by the end of this month members will have scan cards for 24 hour access. everyone should at least check out willpower...
I'm not 'downplaying' Willpower.
I'm sure it's lovely.
But it can't possibly handle all the gym traffic for a growing neighborhood.
That doesn't make it any less nice. It just means it's not big enough to serve the entire market, especially when Senate Square and other condos come on line.
Willpower is a nice gym and Will Baily is a nice person, but after a year of membership I found that the place just didn't offer enough to meet my needs so I finally dropped my membership.
Maybe if Anwar could buy the Community Church next to Willpower, Will could lease that space from him too and then expand his gym.
Before endorsing a large chain gym where one pays $90-100 a month in fees and then has to wait 30 mins for a cardio machine; go try Willpower. My family cancelled our memberships to the "mega-gym" in Southeast by Garfield Park, and haven't looked back. And while your there, try out the stationary cycle in the chamber that makes it feel like your cycling up Mt. Everest.
I tried Willpower for a year. I like Will. But his gym is too small. If it was ever more than the three of us regulars that showed up in the mornings you had to wait for the treadmill. I always dreaded it if that fourth person decided to show up. I also didn't care for the Afro-centric talk radio I had to listen to in the mornings. So I quit. I wish him luck.
the gym is a good starter for H street.
but it'll be replaced soon enough.
great folks, but the vision is much greater for H street.
it's not good enough anymore to just be "better that what we had".
but thanks to those folks for pioneering the area.
maybe we can do something for them on one of those heritage trail signs when they're obsolete...
Poo Poo and the rest of you criticizing Willpower, take a look in the mirror. Have you done anything close to what Will has for this street? Have you risked it all to run a business in a developing neighborhood? Have you tried to balance the interests and desires of a clientele as diverse as on H St?
My guess is Poo Poo will say, "Yes, of course, I've done that, I'm the amazing Poo Poo." But for all the "Anons," wake up. Support the local businesses or you'll be stuck with the Dollar Stores and single-liquor sales. If you can't get a good workout in that gym, you don't know what you're doing. It has everything anyone needs, especially after the recent upgrades.
If you've been to Willpower but weren't satisifed, go back, Will's added tons of new cardio equipment, reconfigured the layout and upgraded the sound system. If you don't like the radio station, politely (and I know that's a stretch for some of you) ask him to change it or turn it down. Here's an idea, there's a fancy new gizmo called an Ipod. It actually lets you listen to any music you like - no "Afro-centric talk radio" in there.
Oh, and those suggesting Will expand. I'm sure the business accepts cash or check to help pay for it.
I for one appreciate his willingness to take a chance. I see that he's investing in his business by continually upgrading despite the fact that only "three of us regulars" are in the place at any one time.
I suspect those of you complaining about a $1.66/day gym membership are the same people bitching about Napa's high cost, Joe E's many bars, Granville's seating policy and any other number of things.
I'd ask, What have you done lately to make H St better? I'm guessing not much.
Uh, I never criticized Willpower.
I simply pointed out the obvious - that it is a small gym that can't possibly expect to serve the entire area, no matter how nice it may be.
But beyond that, it's a bit silly to suggest that anyone that points out something as obvious as the fact that the sole gym in the area is not large enough to serve a growing neighborhood must then open a business on H Street is, well, ridiculous.
Not that it really matters, but, yes, I have opened businesses in developing neighborhoods, including here in DC.
So perhaps I know of what I speak.
I'm all for Willpower. I hope he has decades of tremendous success.
But the simple fact remains - H Street would be well served by a much larger, world-class gym and spa facility.
That doesn't mean Willpower can't flourish as well.
Willpower has not paid its rent for months. It will not be in business for very much longer.
Prey Tell, how did you aquire such slanderous information?
i also heard (yes, it's rumor) that willpower is out of line with their rent.
fwiw...
RE: tired of poo (and hillman)
tired of you.
finish your GED, and then get back to the blog, PLEASE. can't wait to hear back from you...
Doesn't surprise me. Will (of Willpower) did not cater to the changing demographics of the neighborhood. He seemed more interested in going in a different direction (or staying in an old pattern) - that is why I finally dropped my membership after a year. I wish him well though - don't want another empty building on H.
do most of you's shop at the hechinger safeway?
i'm closer to the brentwood giant, so i hit that when i need to.
how big are either of those grocery stores? cuz 50,000 square feet sounds like a lotta harris teeter.
Apparently 50,000 sq ft is the going size for grocery stores in these PUDS/developments.
I was also wondering about where the neighborhood food shops. There is always lots of comments about wanting a decent grocery store, but the Safeway at the Hechinger Mall seems close enough.
I shop at the Giant too, but only because I used to live on Rhode Island. It feels familiar, you know?
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