Back in Feb. we learned that a new tavern was coming to the former El Sol space at 1930 9th St, NW (south of U Street.) There had been no movement since then but this weekend a new liquor license application was posted repeating:
“New Tavern with an occupancy load of 122. Requesting an Entertainment Endorsement to include dancing and cover charge.”
More info as it becomes available.
Hipchickindc is a licensed real estate broker. She is the founder of 10 Square Team and is affiliated with Keller Williams Capital Properties. 10 Square Team is a princeofpetworth.com advertiser. Unless specifically noted, neither she nor the company that she is affiliated with represented any of the parties or were directly involved in the transaction reported below. Unless otherwise noted, the source of information is Metropolitan Regional Information Systems (MRIS), which is the local multiple listing system. Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.
Featured Property: 976 Florida Ave NW
Legal Subdivision: Old City #2
Advertised Subdivision per Listing: U Street
Original List Price: $515,000.
List Price at Contract: $515,000.
List Date: 05/03/2012
Days on Market: 4
Settled Sales Price: $515,000.
Seller Subsidy: $0.
Original List to Net Sales Price Ratio: 100%
Settlement Date: 06/13/2012
Bank Owned?: No Short Sale? No
Type Of Financing: Conventional
Original GDoN post is: here.
The listing can be seen: here. The virtual tour can be seen here.
The even side of the 900 block of Florida Avenue NW is comprised of mostly two story rowhomes without basements, which are quite tiny and usually no more than two bedrooms and one full bath. Those who drive or bike in DC will know this as the block that you face when Sherman Ave NW turns left into Florida Avenue NW. I mention this only because Florida changes names and directions at odd and sometimes unexpected places.
Ten years ago it was still possible to purchase one of these properties in need of renovation for under $50,000. Livable properties on this block in 2002 were selling under $200,000. From 2003, the prices for these small homes increased into the $300,000’s, increased for a bit during the peak market years in the mid-2000’s, then came back down into the $300’s again in 2009 and 2010.
Until this most recent sale, the subject property had been the highest sale on the block for a two bedroom one bath property at $449,000. in 2006. This current price, which surpassed the half million dollar mark, is now the highest sale for a home this size on the block. The next highest price ever paid for a home this size on the block was Number 968, which sold for $401,500. in 2005.
Georgetown still wins the prize for high prices for teeny homes in 2012. A similarly sized two bedroom one bath attached rowhome at 1033 30th St NW settled on the 20th of June for $750,000.
641 S Street, NW
From Douglas Development:
Douglas Development is pleased to announce that WorkSpaces LLC, a strategic furniture solutions consulting agency, has leased 20,817 square feet in the historic Wonder Bread Factory at 641 S Street, NW. WorkSpaces LLC will be the redeveloped property’s first tenant since the building closed in 1988.
WorkSpaces LLC will occupy the entire third floor of the District landmark and is expected to move in immediately following completion of construction. Douglas Development anticipates construction to be completed in January 2013.
In addition to upper-level loft-like office space with industrial-style skylights, the redeveloped building, with a total of 98,000 square feet will offer 24,000 square feet of retail space. Office floor plates range in size from 12,000-22,000 square feet. Ceiling heights range from 11-12 feet. The building will also boast outdoor terrace space, lower level parking, and a combination of exposed brick walls and floor-to-ceiling glass on all four sides. The exterior design, approved by the Historic Preservation Review Board, features a colorful, contemporary new addition of glass and metal panels to complement the restored brick of the historic building.
The 641 S Street property was initially home to Dorsch’s White Cross Bakery in the early 1900s and then later purchased by Continental Baking Company in 1936, becoming the primary factory for Wonder Bread and Hostess Cake products. The building shut down in 1988 when Continental Baking moved to a larger facility in Philadelphia, and was purchased by Douglas Development in 1997.
You can see renderings of the space here:
Here’s what a reader saw inside the building back in 2009.
725 T St, NW
Great news from the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration about All Souls Neighborhood Bar:
“All Souls, LLC, t/a All Souls, (Applicant) filed an Application for a new Retailer’s Class CT License (Application) at premises 725 T Street, NW Washington DC. We find the Application appropriate for the neighborhood, and grant the Applicant a Retailer’s Class CT License.”
All Souls – Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law, and Order – 6-20-2012
9th and T Streets, NW
Then and Now by the House History Man is a series by Paul K. Williams. Paul has been researching house histories in DC since 1995, having completed more than 1,500 to date. Read Paul’s previous post here.
9th and T Streets, NW in 1934
Located on the southeast corner of 9th and T Streets, NW is the Grand United Order of Odd Fellows (GUOOF) Building, which was draped with electric lights in 1934, just two years after its opening. The occasion was the 26th meeting of the GDOOF convention, held in August of that year. Local noted African American photographer Addison Scurlock took the dramatic image at night. The GUOOF was founded in 1843 as a separate, black organization from the white only Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
The building was designed by African-American architect Albert I. Cassell, and construction began in January of 1932. The building featured an auditorium among its 30,000 square feet of space, and was built at a cost of $150,000 during the height of the Great Depression. In 2001, the then abandoned building was completely renovated and turned into the Maya Angelou Public Charter School. It went on the market in 2011 for an asking price of $9.5 million.
(Vintage Photographs courtesy of Scurlock Studio Records, ca. 1905-1994, Archives Center, National Museum of American History)
1926 9th St, NW
Back in March we learned that Cause was going to move into the old La Carbonara space at 1926 9th St, NW. While they’re still a couple months away from opening, they’ve made a lot of progress renovating the space (which they’re doing themselves!) For those who don’t recall, Cause:
is a bar like you’ve never seen. We call it a PhilanthroPub. It works like this:
Step 1: You come to Cause; eat, drink, and be merry
Step 2: Cause pays its staff, covers all operating costs
Step 3: Cause takes ALL of the remaining profit, and gives it to vetted nonprofit organizations
If you’d like to donate you can do so here, you can get your own barstool, table or beer for a year if you’re feeling very generous. They’ve raised over $15,000 and counting.
Here’s a peek inside the space:
1st floor
More photos after the jump. (more…)
725 Florida Ave, NW
Back in Jan. 2012 Tropicana Eatery closed at 725 Florida Ave, NW east of U Street. Thanks to a reader for sending word:
I was walking to work and there is a “Pizza by the slice” neon sign on the outside of the building. I walked inside since the door was open and there was a guy inside who confirmed it. They had boxes of mozzarella cheese in the fridge and a number of pizza boxes already built and on the counter. He said “maybe it will open tomorrow or the day after”.
I’m not thrilled that it’s another pizza place, but I’m happy to finally see something in that space!
7th and P St, NW
@SamsGoodMeats sends the photo above and writes:
“Kelsey Gardens demo underway. More great news for #shawdc”
From the Jefferson Apartment Group’s Web site:
Jefferson at Market Place is a mixed-use development located at the corner of 7th and P Streets in Northwest Washington, DC. The project will include 281 luxury apartments, 230 below-grade parking spaces, and 13,400 square feet of retail space.
Jefferson at Market Place will feature modern amenity spaces that will include a boutique-style lobby with a 24-hour concierge, state-of-the-art fitness center, resident business center, and community lounge with bar and gaming areas. Residents will also have exclusive access to two private courtyards on the ground floor, a landscaped roof deck on the seventh floor, and a large pool deck on the 8th floor roof.
Jefferson at Market Place is located less than three blocks north of the Washington Convention Center Metro Station and two blocks south of the Shaw-Howard Metro Station. The project has tremendous visibility with over 455 feet of frontage along 7th Street NW and will be located adjacent to the future City Market at O, a 1 million square foot mixed-use project anchored by a new 58,000 square foot Giant Supermarket.
Rendering via Jefferson Apartment Group
Old City Green is located on the southwest corner of 9th and N St, NW.
Dear PoPville,
We here at OLD CITY green wanted to let you know about some recent developments in our journey as a small business and community gathering space. As you may have heard, we were recently informed that we are losing our lease on this space at the end of August. We had been verbally told in the winter that we had two years on the lot, but a month later that was changed to just a five month lease.
Although our landlord (Douglas Development) has been very kind over the years and has gone out of their way to help us stay afloat, this short notice has a negative impact on our survival as a business and community green space. Douglas Development and CAS Riegler are joining forces to start developing a 5 story condo/mixed use building on our spot beginning fall of this year.
We have been essentially left out of the conversation, unable to compete with the multi-million dollar project slated to take place. Moving plants and beehives in the middle of summer takes its toll. Ideally, a green business would relocate in the off season to minimize loss. Having to move before Christmas, means 30% of our yearly revenue is at stake. We very much want to stay in the neighborhood as we feel that we have become a community space that is more than just a retail store. However, we are struggling to find an affordable place to buy or rent.
OLD CITY green has been called the green beating heart of the community, and as of yet our green heart has no place to go. OLD CITY green has not only provided product, but has become an educational and neighborhood gathering space as well.
Here are a few examples of how we have been a part of the community over the years:
-“Best New Shaw Business” 2009 Shaw Main Streets
-Washington City Paper’s “Best Garden Store” of 2011
-“Shaw Community Partner Award” 2011 Shaw Main Streets
-Approx. 4,000 flower bulbs over a period of 4 years planted in Shaw tree boxes during our annual “Tulip Planting” event
-4 Easter egg hunts, 8 movie nights, and a Halloween haunted garden event for neighborhood kids
-Employing teens from the neighborhood
-Teaching nutritional health and local food education in DC high school
-Teaching 12 gardening and nutrition workshops for clients at Bread for the City
-Hiring local musicians to play on site for our neighbors and customers
-Educational field trips for DC schools
-Free workshops (Seed bomb making, herbal tea, fall vegetable planting, native landscaping)
-Hosting neighborhood garden tours
– A certified Butterfly Way Station
-Offered approx. $30,000 in discounts and free product to neighborhood gardeners, local businesses and DC non-profits
-Hosted a Community Supported Agriculture program for about 100 Shaw households for three years running
-Member of “Live Green” and “Think Local First”
-Worked with non profit organizations such as Bread for the City, DC Greenworks, Casey Trees, City Blossoms, and the Neighborhood Farm Initiative
-Hosted fundraisers for So Others Might Eat, N St. Village, Shaw Main Streets, DC Children First,Metro Teen Aids, and Wangari Gardens
-Supporting and working with other local small businesses such as Chatman’s Bakery, Seasonal Pantry, Longview Gallery, Wagtime, Azi’s Cafe, etc.
-Hosting volunteer teams for beautification of the neighborhood
-Donations of labor, time and product to local churches such as Shiloh Baptist Church with Seaton Green, Salem Baptist Church, and The Immaculate ConceptionWe don’t write this to victimize ourselves, but we feel that we are an example of a bigger issue going on here. Large condos are popping up all over the place, perpetuating the “building up, not building community” problem of gentrification. If developers are going to build more condos and apartments and bring in more people, there needs to be a place for people to go to for their “green” and other specialty item needs. As local, independent businesses are pushed out of the inner city, the systemic response is to go to the big box stores (Home Depot, Costco, Target, WalMart), which take money and good paying jobs away from the local economy.
There will be a public hearing about our lot on June 26th at 9:30 in 220-S, 1 Judiciary Square, 441 4th St., NW.
It’s not easy being green,
The OLD CITY green team
9th and N St, NW
Dear PoPville,
Any idea what happened to Maruka and the jewelery shop at the corner of 9th & N across from Old City Green. I live right there and they seemed to disappear overnight. It’s been there for a while and now that Shakti yoga is gone, that end is totally vacant.
