Business

Lisa Gillespie • April 10, 2013

The National Park Service, D.C. Government and the DowntownDC BID have come together to transform historic Franklin Park, with nearly five acres of green space. On March 13, the D.C. Office of Planning issued a request for proposals, for the park’s redesign, kicking off a planning process that will extend through the beginning of 2014. After engineering drawings are developed, construction is scheduled to take place in 2015-2016, coinciding with the NPS’s centennial.

Georgetowner •

The Penn Quarter Freshfarm Market, reopened Thursday, March 21 and will remain open throuh December 19, marking its 10th year. Borders Springs Farm, offering lamb products from Virginia, and Prince George’s County-based PA Bowen Farmstead, featuring a variety of meats and artisan raw cheeses, are the newest vendors. More than a dozen favorites will also return this year, including Bread Ovens, Gordy’s Pickle Jar, Floradise Orchids and Sand Hill Farm, coming later in the season. The Penn Quarter market will accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistant Program food cards and provide matching dollars. The latter will be available to people who qualify to receive an additional $15 for market purchases. The By the White House, FreshFarm Market, located on Vermont Avenue between H and I streets, will return on May 2 and open every Thursday from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. until October 31. FreshFarm Markets operates 10 producer-only farmers’ markets in the Washington metropolitan area.

Lisa Gillespie •

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.