Washington Gateway Update

I know, I know...I've been horrendous about posting. Regardless, here is an exciting update from DCmud on the Washington Gateway project on New York and Florida Avenue.


The most exciting aspect about the design for me would be the three-story glass Bicycle Atrium. Apart from providing access between the New York Avenue Metro and the Metropolitan Branch Bike Trail, it'll have bike storage, lockers, refreshments, trail and neighborhood maps, and an automated bike pump. I don't think I've seen anything like that in the metro area so it's pretty cool that the neighborhood is getting one. At the MBT meeting, there was discussion about having a bike depot in this area but I definitely didn't envision this atrium!

I'm also excited about the plaza that's supposed to connect the three planned buildings and I can't wait to see the plaza and streetscape design. Honestly, as long as there is some great dining options, i.e., affordable to upscale, diverse cuisine, and outside seating, I'll be happy.

Heidi's Brooklyn Deli and Sister's Pizza & Mussels Coming to NoMa

Heidi's Brooklyn Deli and Sister's Pizza & Mussels have signed leases for the retail spaces next to Pound Coffee.

Both franchise restaurants are scheduled to open in April (Pound Coffee is now scheduled to open in February). The Heidi's Brooklyn Deli will be the second one to open in D.C., after the 1710 H Street, NW location and the Sister's Pizza & Mussels are is the first one located in DC. Both were founded in Colorado by Steve Naples, a New Jersey native who enjoyed Brooklyn's deli and pizza fares, as well as mussels dishes served at a Sicilian pizzeria in his neighborhood.

I love mussels so I'm especially excited about Sister's Pizza & Mussels. Has anyone been to the Heidi's location on H Street or a Sister's Pizza & Mussels elsewhere? What did you think?

Office Workers Gotta Eat

Pound Coffee is going to serve breakfast, lunch and dinner? Hhmm...I wonder what kind of dinner? I can’t think of a coffee shop off the top of my head that serves something I would consider dinner fare.

Meanwhile, the other spaces in that retail area are also being leased now and should include at least two lunch options.

UPDATED - Metropolitan Branch Trail Update

I was at the Met Branch Trail meeting tonight at Big Bear Cafe and apparently, a couple of the other Bloomingdale/Eckington bloggers as well. bloomingdale (for now) and eckington (way better than spotsylvania) both have excellent recaps of the meeting.

Also mentioned at the meeting and of special interest to Eckington are the plans to create rest areas/small parks along the NY Ave-Rhode Island Ave section. According to Heather Deutsch at DDOT, there is the possibility of a small pocket park at S Street and a small park space at T Street.

I don't think I've ridden through a bike trail in the DC metro area that didn't have several parks along the trail and I don't think the Met Branch Trail will be any different. Parks and landscaping go hand in hand with bike trails and one thing that the NE quadrant needs is definitely more accessible open space and parks.

So let's put some pressure on Pepco and get this trail built. Please contact Mayor Fenty, Councilman Thomas, and Delegate Holmes-Norton and tell them so.

I Need to Read The Onion More

I love my hubby's sense of humor.

The past couple of weeks, I’ve had some “memorable” street harassment incidents. In addition to being flashed, I’ve encountered some unwanted attention passing by the construction site at the New York Ave metro.

Although one incident was pretty creative. I hear “Hola Princesa!” through the walkie-talkie of a construction worker just about to walk by me. I realized it was coming from his co-worker half a block away who foolishly grins at me when I notice him with his walkie-talkie still in front of his mouth.

Anyways, today hubby sent me this 2001 Onion article he found, “Report: Economically Disadvantaged Men More Skilled at Communicating Attraction to Women.” Just hysterical...

The DC Council Really Wants us to Have a Grocery Store

The D.C. Council passed a bill yesterday that would provide $7 million in funding to build underground parking for the Constitution Square project at 100 M Street, NE, and help Stonebridge Development attract a 50,000 square-foot grocery store.

So perhaps Harris Teeter really is coming to NoMa?

That little tidbit of news was at the very end of the article about tax changes affecting small businesses. The Council passed a bill that would raise the exemption to the personal property tax from $50,000 to $225,000, which would exempt most small businesses.

Second, if the city collects greater than expected revenue from commercial property tax, a new formula lowering the tax rate for all commercial property tax payers would be applied to the first $3 million of a property’s assessed value. I probably need to read the bill but what exactly constitutes “greater than expected revenue”?

Pound Coffee Coming to NoMa

If office buildings are built, coffee shops will come... Pound Coffee is slated to open in mid-February at 200 Florida Avenue, NE, right outside the Florida exit of the New York Ave Metro and in the ATF building. If it does open then, I believe it will be the first shop to open in that retail space. It would also beat out a Starbucks! The owners of the Ibiza nightclub at 1222 1st, NE had said they were going to offer their own Starbucks but last I checked, no Starbucks yet.

According to Pound’s website, they will also offer Counter Culture coffee provided by a local roaster. I’ve emailed the owner, Khalil Ghannam, to ask what kind of hours the café will have and will update this post if I get a response. It would be ideal if it had evening or weekend hours…with the Eckington neighborhood and Galludet University nearby, I’m sure it would get steady traffic even outside office hours.