National Museum of Crime and Punishment Details Emerge

$16.95 admission fee for adults

I would expect nothing less from a place with “punishment” in its name.

Sounds really cool. I hope they create a great presence along 7th!

early this week on the way up 7th, I saw construction workers unloading a lot of materials into this site include drywall, metal wall spacers/joists and other miscellaneous stuff. there’s a big square hole on one side of the floor inside the site.

I have to admit that I’ll probably go in this place once when it opens to say I did it and that’s about all. but I say let the tourists bring their dollars and keep the ‘hood vital.

This sounds so depressing. Museum of Crime and Punishment?

We need (In my opinion)more shops, cafes, and bars to keep the hood vibrant…

Not another line of tourists on the sidewalk!

Sad face for that space.

a museum of Crime and Punishment does sound a little strange, but as for drawing tourists, they do help businesses in the neighborhood….

Yes, cafes, bars, etc are nice.
But museums and attractions actually bring in a greater number of people, buzz — and money. With every new attraction, 3 or 4 new ancillary businesses will develop (restaurants, stores.)

If it’s like most museums, I’m sure this one will have a Punishment Cafe in the lobby where you can wash down your Death By Chocolate with a nice Bloody Mary.

Yes, and that cafe will be priced for tourists, not residents.

I remember John Morgan on tv ads for his law firm when I was a kid in Orlando. He always had a cheesy grin and would say “FOR THE PEOPLE.” I thought he was an ambulance chaser. I guess now he’s in the tourist trap business.

I’m not sure I understand comment #4. Don’t attractions like this bring in the people that shop in the stores and dine in the cafes? Downtown doesn’t have the population density to support our vision of a vibrant retail and restaurant scene, unless you add in the office workers, tourists and local suburban dwellers looking for some urban action. We have plenty of empty storefronts, so I say we should open our arms to anyone who wants to join us in the revitalization of the city. Bring it on!

I don’t understand comment #4 either. A place such as the Spy Museum clearly brings in people to the neighborhood, as does the Reynolds Center. If anything, I’d say that the neighborhood should encourage MORE of this type of development. We’ve got enough bank branches and cell phone stores, a museum with drawing power is a great benefit for the neighborhood.

Of course, there’s always that sub-set of people who think that D.C. would be just a fine and dandy city if we could just get rid of all the tourists–but we know that’s not really true.

I don’t like it when (pay for admission)museums use up space to show “film”. I can do that at home.

Sorry guys, to put things in perspective I live in Paris for the moment.

I guess it’s a different world over here. Yes, it’s much denser than the PQ, I realize this. But the area of the city I live in is actually the least dense arrondissement.

And how is it that U street, Adams Morgan and Dupont which seem to have much less density than the PQ manage to have a good handful of small, locally owned, chill places?

I just love that I don’t see any lines of tourists, and lots of local, affordable, and beautiful places to sit, eat and drink at. And no these are not places that survive off of tourist euros. Maybe the government helps them out a little bit more than ours does.

I’m definitely not one of those who thinks DC is just fine and dandy. In fact I wish I didn’t have to come back until grows out of it’s disney-world tourist phase and becomes more of a real, liveable city.

The City Vista development seems to be heading more in the direction I’m thinking. A grocery store, a gym, a couple of restaurants, a late night hangout, a hardware store… the kind of stuff that makes a neighborhood for the people that live in it, not just for a couple from hundreds of miles away looking for a vacation.

But I understand. baby steps.

My apologies, I need to learn to proofread my posts before I click submit!

Yikes!

For those who think popular tourist attractions bring in money to DC or the neighborhoods – the District is a notorious destination for tourists who cannot afford DC prices. They stay in cheaper lodgings in Virginia, mostly go to our world-renown free museums and institutions and eat outside the district. They travel around on buses, not cabs or even Metro. Their splurge is the Hard Rock Cafe. They are eating at Fuddruckers (where staff is making low wages) not higher end restaurants where professional staff makes a decent wage. So, please don’t look for tourists for business. However, the District also attracts sophistocated visitors from other countries who DO spend money on restaurants, hotels and cultural attractions. They work in embassies, are getting educated here, conducting business or come in for conferences. But, I don’t think higher-educated visitors are going to go to the Museum of Crime and Punishment or the wax museum. We need more genuine high end attractions and boutiques and fewer tourist traps. That is the key to a sustainable and thriving neighborhood. Let’s aspire to world-class.