RSS FeedL’Occitane Coming To F Street! (931 F St NW)
Developers continue to fill out the 900 block of F Street. Continuing the trend of lining the block with boutique stores, we find that L’Occitane just had permits approved to build out its third store in DC (Union Station and Georgetown are the other locations).
05/13/08
931 F ST NW
$250,000.00
INTERIOR RENOVATION TO RETAIL COSMETICS STORE ON GROUND FLOOR MEP WORK INCLUDED PER PLANS . HISTORIC
L OCCITANE
DDOT to Examine Pedestrian Safety Near Verizon Center
Anyone who has walked past the Verizon Center on a busy Friday night knows that the area is not exactly pedestrian friendly. Now the District’s Department of Transportation (DDOT) is taking notice and making the Penn Quarter area an important part of their “pedestrian safety strategy.”
The Washington Post article detailing DDOT’s plans points out that one of the primary areas being examined is the corner of 7th and H Street where the video advertising billboards may be contributing to the unsafe nature of that corner.
“In addition to the volume of traffic brought on by development, the problems there involve the high-tech video billboards that emulate New York’s Times Square and are a distraction for drivers and walkers. First District police Cmdr. David Kamperin said he thinks the huge screens were at fault for a hit-and-run accident along Seventh Street NW that seriously injured a woman.”
Pedestrian safety is a topic that has been discussed on this blog several times, and I’m glad to see that the District is taking pedestrian safety in our neighborhood seriously. And since a number of PQ residents deplore those billboards (both as safety hazard and annoyance), I wonder whether this might be the end of the giant screens?
The Future Of Downtown’s Homeless
Believe it or not, the above photo is not staged. It was someone’s G Street “cardboard condo” for about three weeks last year downtown. Walking home last night, this writer saw a “blue plastic palace” in this same location (we bet the condo fees are low!). Having temporary structures like this pop up and stay around for days at a time on a city street clearly indicates a homeless problem. Fortunately, Mayor Fenty isn’t letting the matter fester (he has it on his 100 Days and Beyond checklist) and on April 2 of this year he announced new supportive housing policy initiatives, next steps in addressing this societal problem downtowners contend with daily. We don’t want to parrot the press release as it describes a fair amount of detail and includes a link to the March 2008, 20-plus page Draft Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) Unit Generation Report [PDF] describing current progress and future planned progress towards generating 6000 affordable housing units. Of those 6000 units, 2500 are dedicated to housing the most vulnerable, those who are homeless (2000 for individuals and 500 for families).
The good news for downtowners is that these initiatives will allow the city to close the Franklin Scool Shelter by October 1, 2008. Additionally, this spurred on the Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) and Mount Vernon Square Neighborhood Association (MVSNA) to host a special meeting this evening with key heads of DC’s homeless social services organizations as speakers. The rest of the story? You’ll have to read past the break… Continue Reading >>
PQNA Breakfast Meeting This Wednesday (Reception Next Week)
Breakfast Meeting (May 21st)
Please join us on May 21 for our next Pennsylvania Quarter Neighborhood Association breakfast meeting at The Caucus Room, located at the NE corner of D and 9th streets, NW.
The Caucus Room will serve a continental breakfast between 8:30 and 9:00. Announcements will begin at 9:00 and will be followed by Lisa Wiersma’s presentation of the City Vista residential and retail development at 5th and K streets, just north of Penn Quarter in the Mount Vernon Triangle. Lisa is Development Manager and Assistant Vice President for Lowe Enterprises, the developer, and is intimately involved with the entire development, including the residential and retail mix.
Please RSVP via email to joann (at) PennQuarter (dot) org. When responding, please include the first and last names and affiliations of all people attending; it makes it much easier for Jo-Ann to create an attendance list.
Evening Reception at Penn Quarter Sports Tavern (May 28th)
The Penn Quarter Sports Tavern at 639 Indiana Avenue, NW has invited us to sample appetizers and complimentary drink specials at a Penn Quarter happy hour on Wednesday evening, May 28, from 5:00 to 7:30pm. Archives-Navy Mem’l-Penn Quarter is the closest Metro station and just steps away.
Please RSVP to Matt Hunter at pqsportstavern (at) gmail (dot) com or by calling 202.279.1900 no later than 5:00pm, May 27, if you plan on attending.