Yesterday, I posted about construction at the old Bi-Rite building, up the road from Wonderland Ballroom on 11th Street in Columbia Heights. Today, I reached John Andrade, owner of the future lounge/restaurant Meridian Pint, which will move into the building “any fall now,” as he put it.

Without further adieu, more details about the space: Starting in late 2008, most of the old Bi-Rite building was demolished. Meridian Pint will occupy 6,000-square-feet (humongous) and be the building’s primary tenant, with a lounge in the newly, dug-out basement level, and a restaurant on the ground level. There will be offices on the second floor.

Andrade says he expects that the building’s owner will deliver his space within four to five months. At that point, he can begin the build-out, which will take another four to five months. In the meanwhile, he’ll hire a chef. A while back, he started interviewing people—-but the process was ultimately paused as the landlord’s construction schedule changed (thanks to the usual city permitting hurdles, says Andrade).

“I definitely have several in mind, and several in line—it’s a little difficult to say ‘hey I want you to be my chef, I can’t employ you until next year,’ he says.

Bottom-line, if all goes according to plan, expect an opening “tail end of this year, beginning of next year,” says Andrade.