Business

Lisa Gillespie • April 10, 2013

Filmfest DC hits D.C. again April 11 – 21, which showcases a wide range of extraordinary new films from around the world with the theme “Trust No One: Espionage and Thrillers and The Lighter Side,” a series of international comedies. Film highlights include “Midnight’s Children” from Canada based on the award-wining novel by Salman Rushdie, Oscar shortlisted “Kon Tiki” from Norway, “In the Shadow” from the Czech Republic and an entry for best foreign film at the Oscars and “A Hijacking” from Denmark. Festival locations include the Goethe-Institut Washington at 812 7th St. NW, Landmark E Street Cinema at 555 11th St. NW and the National Gallery of Art. General Admission is $11 per person to most films. For more information visit filmfestdc.org.

Lisa Gillespie •

Walgreens opened in March at 801 7th St. NW with 21,400 square feet in Chinatown. The store includes a pharmacy with a walk-in clinic, a juice and smoothie bar and a boutique beauty department with a nail and eyebrow bar. Spread over three levels, Walgreens’ newest Well Experience flagship store—the seventh in the U.S. and Puerto Rico—will employ 75 people and showcase a unique pharmacy format that offers quality, affordable care and has nurse practitioners on site. The front of the store will be open 24 hours a day with extensive, but shorter, hours for the pharmacy and Take Care Clinic. Douglas Development Corporation restored the building along with several existing properties that are being transformed into a state-of-the-art, mixed-use development that includes about 22,000 square feet of office space and 33,000 square feet of retail on several floors, including the Walgreens, Panera Bread (673 H Street)—which opened in January—and Yo! Sushi restaurant, coming soon.

Robert Devaney • March 13, 2013

The United States Postal Service has signed a contract with local developer EastBanc to sell the historic Georgetown post office building on 31st Street, as first reported by the Washington Examiner. The property is valued more than $4.5 million; the U.S. post office stays.

Anthony Lanier, president of EastBanc, said a post office will remain on the first floor of the 19th-century building which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The sale to EastBanc has been years in the making. EastBanc’s design and use for the building was reviewed by the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission, the Old Georgetown Board and D.C.’s Board of Zoning. Future use of the post office building calls for offices, a back addition with much of the new space below grade, according to the Georgetown-Burleith ANC.
Lanier’s EastBanc group owns and has redeveloped almost 60 retail buildings along M Street or Wisconsin Avenue. It is known for its development of Cadys Alley and the adjacent stores. Another EastBanc development is in the works for condos on Wisconsin Avenue to be built on the Verizon parking lot between the C&O Canal and Grace Church.

Georgetowner • March 12, 2013

J. Chocolatier’s retail shop on 33rd Street closed March 4. It will become an online operation.
“We have had a fantastic three-and-a-half years in our Georgetown location,” wrote J. Chocolatier owner Jane Morris in an email. “J. Chocolatier will continue bringing delicious chocolates to the D.C. area. . . . “We are proud to say that our Georgetown retail sales have grown every year, with increases ranging from 20 percent to 50 percent year-over-year. … In fact, we are exiting the Georgetown store up 27 percent so far for 2013.”

Georgetowner •

But, wait, there’s more: Chicago-based Forever Yogurt indicates that it is coming to Georgetown, seeking two locations. It already is set for 1728 Columbia Road, NW, in Adams Morgan. The franchise company is riding the yogurt mania wave. The company shows on its website locations — from Princeton to Panama — being prepared for new Forever Yogurt stores.

Georgetowner •

Capitol Prague Restaurant Coming: A new restaurant will fill the void left by the departed Morso. Capitol Prague Restaurant will soon set up at M and Potomac Streets, part of the Eton Court complex.

Capitol Prague will operate a restaurant and a coffee shop two doors away, said manager Petra Foist, who added, “We hope to open in mid-April.” With Czech and Slovak cuisine—schnitzel, goulash, braised pork and dumplings—as well as various beers, “it will be down-home cooking,” Foist said. Capitol Prague will be the only restaurant in Washington, D.C., with Czechvar lager on draft, she said. That beer is made by the famed Budweiser Budvar Brewery (Bud?jovický Budvar) in the Czech Republic. (Capitol Prague is still constructing its website.)

Georgetowner •

Known as D.C.’s “Shopping Playground,” Georgetown saw 26 new national and independent merchant openings in 2012, with several exciting new openings planned for early 2013, the Georgetown Business Improvement District announced last week.

“Georgetown continues to be the Washington area’s premier retail destination and the leader in bringing exclusive local, national and international brands to shoppers,” said Joe Sternlieb, CEO of the Georgetown BID. “Not only do stores want to set up their business in Georgetown’s urban retail-friendly setting, but customers want to come here because it’s not your typical mall and is a beautiful, historic place to spend your time. It’s a ‘meeting place’ for Washingtonians, and we’re optimistic that the neighborhood will only continue to provide more choices in not only shopping, but food, hospitality and entertainment as well.”

2012 marked the opening of 26 new businesses in Georgetown: From Bandolero to Luigi Parasmo Salon, Luke’s Lobster and the Washington Harbour Ice Rink. This year will include Alex and Ani, Billy Reid, Bonobos, Capella Washington, Eno Wine Bar, the Graham and Malmaison — and more to come. Visit www.GeorgetownDC.com for details.

Nico Dodd • February 28, 2013

More details have been revealed about the soon-to-be-opened Georgetown haber- dashery H.L. Poling & Sons, namely about
the individuals behind the retail concept. The duo, prep-revivalists Drew Poling and Scot Meacham Wood, now of San Francisco, Calif., were available for a few questions from the Georgetowner last Thursday. Drew Poling is an alumnus of Georgetown University who worked at the Georgetown University Shop from 1984 to 1986.

Since then, he worked as a buyer for Bloomingdale’s in New York City and in social media at UNICEF. His partner, Wood, is an interior decorator and has done visual work for Ralph Lauren. He boasts more than 500,000 followers on Pinterest. According to Poling, the two began developing the store about a year ago. The location of the Georgetown store has not been disclosed.

The concept of the store is that it is a contin- uation of the original “Poling’s” menswear shop in Ottumwa, Iowa, founded in 1910 by Poling’s grandfather. The shop was taken over by his father and closed in the mid-1990s. The two de- scribe the store as “old Ivy for modern times,” with customer service being a top priority. “We want it to be a welcoming place,” said Poling. H.L. Poling & Son’s website, hlpolingandsons. com, lists the store as “coming to Georgetown Fall 2013.” ?

Robert Devaney •

The West Heating Plant, the two-acre government property continues to get bids between two or three bidders. As of Feb. 26, the winning stood at $15.8 million, with bidding extended another 24 hours. Advised the General Services Administration: “We are now with the soft-close period. Bidders are encouraged to check back frequently to the remaining auction time.” If no one bids on the plant for more than 24 hours, the GSA will then decide if the auction is to be concluded.