RSS FeedCorridor Round Up: E Street
Here at GP Living, we thought we’d profile some of the corridors that grace our neighborhood starting with a look at E Street. A small corridor has taken shape between 7th and 13th Streets with some recent openings adding to the mix in the heart of the corridor between 11th and 12th. Here’s the round up…
Retail
- Cinema – E Street Theatre
- Banks – Citibank, SunTrust, Independence Federal Savings Bank, Chevy Chase Bank
- Shops – Barnes and Noble, Penn Camera, T-Mobile, Coup de Foudre Lingerie, Washington Wine and Liquor
- Food – Qdoba Mexican Grill*, Gifford’s Ice Cream & Candy Co.*, Maggie Moo’s, Ollie’s Trolley, Cosi, Starbucks, Cafe Phillip, Harry’s (Hotel Washington), Ben and Jerry’s (Washington Welcome Center)
- Food and Fun – ESPN Zone, Hard Rock Cafe
- * recently opened
An honorable hometown mention goes to the recently opened Gifford’s (11th and E); the original location opened in 1938 in Silver Spring. PQ Resident remembers going to the first Bethesda location as a hungry fourth grader in search of a hot fudge sundae on a warm summer night. An honorable web site mention goes to Coup de Foudre Lingerie (11th and E) with the educational and perfectly G rated “Tips for Men” section to assist those males who are helpless in the significant other department.
Penn Camera, Wendy’s and McDonald’s made way for the Artisan condo at 915 E Street which looks to deliver approximately 160 units starting in the Fall of 2006. Many of the windows are already in and the construction elevator and crane are staying busy. PQ Resident learned that a few studios ($300s) and 1 BRs ($400s) remain available for purchase. JBG, also the developer of 555 Mass Ave, is looking to lease the 6,500 SF of ground level space for a restaurant or gallery operation (PDF). The good news is that DC photographers’ favorite, Penn Camera, relocated some time ago from below the signature Kodak sign (still visible at the Artisan construction site) further east to 840 E Street.
The newest office building at 9th and E, will be the future home of Piper, Rudnick, Gary and Cary. Delivery is expected in the fall of 2007 with 322,000 SF of rentable Class A office space. More office workers equals more retail business and a draw for people to live downtown; this building replaces one of the last paved parking lots in the area with a developed property.
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E Street soon will have the critical elements needed to extend a living community westward. PQ Resident misses those Big Macs and Frosties, however a tasty burrito and the choice of three ice cream shops will more than make up for the loss. He counted only a handful of retail vacancies, so let us know if you hear of any further openings along the corridor.
If only someone would start a wine bar in the now vacant Ginger Cove restaurant at 822 E Street. What do you think is needed next?
It’s Friday…Be Fun and Be Arty
One of the Penn Quarter’s very own galleries, the Numark Gallery at 625 E Street (next to The Residences at Terrell Place), is hosting an Adam Ross opening of recent work tonight from 6:30 pm to 8 pm tonight, April 21. It looks like rain is on the weather menu today so the convertible gallery’s garage door will have to be put to use another day.
Rain or not, get out of the office on time and meet some new people…be fun and be arty.
Where Did Balducci’s Go?
You may have walked by the storefront on the east side of 7th Street between D Street and E Street, NW, and seen the black signs. Or, maybe you overheard someone in real estate talk about it. Was it the press coverage that caught your eye? The eagerly awaited “it” is (but now was) a Penn Quarter installment of Balducci’s, a nationwide gourmet grocer with four stores in the Washington metro area.
PQResident talked with a Balducci’s representative in the DC area corporate office who indicated that construction on the Penn Quarter 7th Street store that was supposed to open in the May/June 2006 timeframe has been halted and the project has been aborted. A recent change in corporate strategy now has the company focusing on the New York metro area kicking off with the December 2005 reopening of a new Balducci’s flagship store on Eighth Avenue at 14th Street in Greenwich Village (OK, maybe it’s Chelsea). The black banners announcing the DC store are now gone, the construction office removed and the architectural drawings that could once be seen from the street are nowhere to be seen. Balducci’s added that there are no plans in the foreseeable future to resume construction on 7th Street leaving the Penn Quarter without a much awaited and needed neighborhood grocery store.
For now, PQResident will have to continue patronizing the nearest Safeway (4th and M, SW at the Waterfront Metro) and Whole Foods (14th and P, NW) to keep his kitchen stocked.
Maybe this is an opportunity for Wild Oats (Natural Marketplace) to get a toehold in DC?
Edit: Link to WaPo’s article a day later.
Poste Reinvents Hotel Monaco Courtyard in Gallery Place
The Washington Post lets us know that Poste, in the historic Hotel Monaco, has a gem of a outdoor space.
The best happy hour (4-7pm) deals seem to be $4 glasses of wine and $4 truffle fries – yum. No reservations are needed to grab a table in the courtyard for drinks or a whole meal.
If anyone checks this out, let GPLiving know what you think!