1/12/01: Rumor has it that the former owners of Tracks are planning to bring a gay nightclub to the Duron paint store location at the NE corner of 15th & P. (The Crunch gym at SE corner has been confirmed.) Hamburger Mary's (14th & RI Ave) is due to open in early February. Upstairs portion of restaurant will feature a bar, pool tables, and music videos. One more article on Fresh Fields - WP's review of the prepared food: see "Fresh Fields Comes Downtown," http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37638-2001Jan9.html The building planned at SE corner of 7th & E will house a grocery store (possibly Safeway or Giant). This is the same site as the Woolly Mammoth theatre, as well as 418 apartments. Opening could be end of 2002. See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A31219-2001Jan8.html Meanwhile, residents of Capitol Hill are lobbying Trader Joe's to come to their neighborhood. Former masonic lodge at 1438 U St will be Cada Vez, a restaurant/dance hall/rental hall. See http://www.cadavezonline.com Cobalt's opening is being delayed by overworked contractors. Dupont Silver has packed up 1613 Conn Ave and will reopen in former Apartment Search space at 1645. Owners of Georgetown's Toka Salon (famous for Monica Lewinsky's hair) will open Cafe Toka at 1140 19th St (M & L Sts - coincidence?) in March. Shoe shop at P St is finally closed and for sale. Store was last of its kind. Though a total dump, it represented a type of owner/operator personal service which seems to have disappeared. Phillips Collection expansion is drawing heat. See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39791-2001Jan9.html, http://www.washtimes.com/metro/default-2001110223745.htm, and http://www.washtimes.com/metro/default-200119223614.htm "The Diner" - new diner run by Tryst developer - is now open, two doors south of Tryst (18th St). Ground has finally been broken for Adams-Morgan garage/condo project on former parking lot site on 18th St. See http://www.adamsmorgan.net/parkinglot/ Felix's next-door expansion will be called "Spy Lounge" and might include beds as furniture (something I was tantalized by years ago in NYC). See WP story "A Daring Rescue: An Adams-Morgan Town House Was All But Scrap. Now It's Sculpture" - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A42847-2001Jan10.html Firehook will build a new location in Georgetown at M and 32nd. NY Times ran a nice profile of Arena Stage - see http://www.nytimes.com/2001/01/10/arts/10AREN.html National Capitol Planning Commission has released list of 102 sites for future monuments. Included are two around Dupont: Site 47, at Mass & Florida & 22nd & Q; and Site 70 at the tangled intersection at 16th & Florida & NH & W (currently home to 3 concrete triangles). See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A11213-2001Jan2.html for list and http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A11214-2001Jan2.html for article. The Millennium Gate Foundation is making plans for a belated millenium gift at Barney Circle - see http://themillenniumgate.org/ NPS has funded study for extending Mt Vernon Trail further north, to Chain Bridge. Friends of Peirce Mill has begun repair work on the mill which stopped working in '93. See http://www.peircemill-friends.org/ See WBJ article "D.C. becomes magnet for retail even as suburbs explode" http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2001/01/01/newscolumn2.html See WP "Downtown Deluxe" article on intown luxury pads - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A11461-2001Jan2.html See WP story "Designs for New Museum Offer a Reference Point" re City Museum to be built at Mt. Vernon Sq: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A39496-2001Jan9.html (See also http://www.hswdc.org/CityMuseum/CityMuseum.htm) Neglected to mention that last issue's comments re renaming of U St metro came from http://ustreet.listbot.com - it's worth joining if you live in the Cardozo/Shaw neighborhood. (see also http://www.ustreet.com/csna/) Green Line extension opens tomorrow, to Branch Ave. New maps already indicate two extensions of the Blue Line, new NY Ave stop, and new (and aggravatingly klutzy) names for U St and Mt Vernon Sq. See similar map at http://www.wmata.com/USINGMET/systemmap.htm Also Coming Up: Thursday, Jan 18: 3rd 3rsday open house of 7th St's art galleries from 6 to 8. (Fun!) Thursday, Jan 18: Inaugural gala at Lincoln Memorial featuring RICKY MARTIN. See http://www.inauguration-2001.org/events.htm for complete schedule and http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A44548-2001Jan10.html for story. Tuesday, Jan 30: NBM Smart Growth Planning tools for the 21st Century - see http://www.nbm.org/Calendar/Lectures.html (free!) Through Feb 10 - "Twelfth Night" presented by Glamonstrosity, a UFO update of the Shakespearean classic, at Metro Cafe (Thr/Fri/Sat) - $12. Best regards Michael |