11th and Park then:

11th and Park now:

3400 11th Street–no longer home to the dumpy old Bi-Rite building

This piece is a compilation of information from a series of blog posts I wrote earlier this week—It will appear in this week’s newspaper.* 

Since “Tivoli North” is being considered as a new name for Columbia Heights, why not “DC USA Hill”? The mall that holds Target, Best Buy, Marshalls, Staples, and Bed Bath & Beyond is the area’s defining feature.

But 11th Street NW, while still home to at least one vacant storefront with some old doors, toilets, and an abandoned stove, is making inroads as a distinct neighborhood spot.

There are some small restaurants, a performance space, a clothing store, and Wonderland Ballroom, where customers and their dogs turn 11th and Kenyon into a petting zoo on summer evenings.

Now several new developments are in the works. Read More “11th’s Hour: New Developments on 11th Street in Columbia Heights” »

3400 11th Street–no longer home to the dumpy old Bi-Rite building

Okay, wrapping up the last bit of reporting on 11th Street in Columbia Heights, and all the latest developments there. (A mini-article about the corridor is coming out in this week’s newspaper.)

Anyway, last week, I reached John Andrade, who will be opening up a new restaurant/lounge at the corner of Park and 11th Street.

The new building he will occupy is being constructed right now (that’s it—above). Previously, I’d heard the second floor would become offices. Not so anymore, according to John Goldman, the building’s owner, and the CEO of real estate/design company 3DG. Read More “Yoga/Martial Arts Studio Possibly Coming to 11th Street” »

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. Read More “Columbia Heights News: Meridian Pint Coming Late 2009″ »