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.

In early June, wine bar Room 11 is scheduled to open at the corner of Lamont Street. Besides bottles “from all over, especially from less traditional wine-making areas: South America, South Africa, and Australia,” the establishment will also serve cheese, charcuterie, sandwiches, small plates, and desserts, says Paul Ruppert, one of the business’ partners.

And by next fall, when Room 11’s outdoor patio closes, another new establishment should be nearing completion. One block up, construction crews are erecting a two-story building, which will house Meridian Pint, a 6,000-square-foot restaurant and lounge, says owner John Andrade. The top floor could become a yoga/martial arts studio if two business owners can reach an agreement, says property owner John Goldman.

If the plan works out, Meridian Pint will be serving draft beers at the “tail end of this year, beginning of next year,” says Andrade—though after suffering previous delays, he joked that the opening was coming “any fall now.”

*For more on Room 11, click here; For more on Meridian Pint, click here; For more on the yoga/martial arts studio possibly coming to 11th Street, click here.

Image by Intangible Arts, Flickr Creative Commons

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.

The building's top floor may become a yoga/martial arts studio.

Goldman is talking to the owners of two existing businesses, which would share the space and just operate at different times.

"They’re in conversation with each other," he says about the business-owners. Goldman, who says he bought the old Bi-Rite property for $1.1 million, hopes to reach an agreement within a month.

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.