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I mentioned this last week at the bottom of my Willie-is-opening post, as an update, but acknowledge that that may have not seeped into the news-stream consciousness appropriately, so here's an official entry:
The neighborhood's newest retail establishment, Unleashed by Petco, says it will be opening at the Boilermaker Shops in the Yards on Monday, Nov. 3, thus beating Harris Teeter to the finish line by two days.
As you can see in the photo provided by my personal stringer, the store will be open from 9 am to 9 pm six days a week, and 10 am to 7 pm on Sundays.
The shelves are already looking well stocked, and certainly this could become a prime destination for the bajillion dog owners who live nearby. And I suppose I should make a full disclosure that I assume I will duck in there on occasion, as my not-dogs continue to eat us out of house and home. (It's a good thing they are cute.)
 

From DDOT: On Wednesday, Oct. 22, DDOT and the Federal Highway Administration will be holding a public meeting to discuss the Southeast/Southwest Transportation Improvement Study and Environmental Assessment, which is actually now a formal NEPA study (hence the presence of FHWA).
Officially, "The purpose of the study is to develop a premium transit system that improves transportation capacity, connectivity, mobility, and safety."
This is an off-shoot of the first M Street SE/SW study from 2011 and 2012 as well as the subsequent Special Events transportation study that was completed earlier this year. In other words, the study after the study after the study.
The meeting will be held at at Van Ness Elementary at 4 pm (! - I asked if that was a typo, and was told no). DDOT's announcement of the meeting says that "the public will be provided an opportunity to discuss the transportation issues and potential solutions that will be addressed in the study."
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More posts: meetings, Traffic Issues
 

ANC 6D ventured across South Capitol Street into Southeast for its meeting on Monday night, with enough items of interest on this side of the street to draw even me to attend. The rundown:
BALLPARK SQUARE: Grosvenor and McCaffery Interests, developers of this hotel/residential/retail project along the west side of 1st Street north of N Street, say that they hope to start construction before the end of the year, though at this point the building permits are still pending. The 325-unit apartment building and 170-room hotel (operator not yet announced) are expected to take about two years to complete once construction gets underway. Their "intention" is to construct at the same time the separate two-story retail pavilion nestled between the arms of the Hampton Inn on the corner of 1st and N, with an eye toward completing it before the 2016 baseball season, though no tenants have been secured at this point.
Once construction begins, the existing sidewalk will be blocked, with pedestrian traffic expected to be moved to a covered structure in the 1st Street parking lane (and bike lane), though the final configuration is still under negotiation with DDOT, with the Nationals offering input as well, given the site's location just north of the ballpark.
Also, note that the 99 M Street office building planned for the north end of this block is being developed separately by Skanska and is on its own schedule, separate from these projects. (Building permits are filed, not yet approved.)
250 M: WC Smith is asking the Zoning Commission for a second third extension to the second-stage PUD for its long-planned 230,000 square foot office building, which was originally approved in 2007, then revised in 2008, and given its first extension in 2010 (and another in 2012). This would push the required date to file for a construction permit to Sept. 2016, with construction being required to commence by Sept. 2017. WC Smith's representatives noted the current state of office development basically requires a building to be 70 percent leased before financing can be procured, but that recent activity in the office leasing market "gives us hope" (especially with about 33 million square feet of GSA leased space turning over in the next few years.) Smith's Brad Fennell said that the company is "committed to the site," feels that office space "is the right use for this spot," and has been working hard to find potential tenants. (All of which is laid out in more detail in the zoning filing.)
The ANC supported the request for an extension 6-1, with Roger Moffatt voting against.
Fun fact for readers who haven't been around for this building's history: it is actually part of the Capper/Carrollsburg Planned Unit Development. It would only occupy about half of the block bounded by 2nd Place, 3rd, L, and M--the north end of the block is slated to someday be a Capper mixed-income apartment building.
(In other WC Smith-related news, I was told that the company hopes/expects to begin pouring the slab at the bottom of 800 New Jersey/Whole Foods in two months or so.)
1244 SOUTH CAPITOL: JBG came to the ANC looking for its support for this project's Capitol Gateway Overlay Review, which I wrote about in detail a few weeks back and which is scheduled for Nov. 13.
There have been some small tweaks to the design, along with now an additional variance request to have two 20-foot and two 30-foot loading bays, since original plans to have a 55-foot bay and two smaller bays has run afoul of the teensy width of the block's alley and of Van Street, where the bays will be located. Otherwise, this remains designed as an apartment building with 290ish units and about 26,000 square feet of retail.
The ANC voted to support the project 7-0.
 

Last week the Zoning Commission heard Forest City's request for more height (and thereby additional density) in what is being called "Yards West," specifically four sites along N Street between 1st and New Jersey.
The early questions from the commission centered mainly around Peter May's contention that granting this density--which the applicants refer to as an additional 1.0 FAR but which May was happy to always refer to as "264,000 square feet"--was akin to "incentivizing something that's going to get built anyway." May expressed that the additional height and additional density were "perfectly appropriate" but that he was "not seeing the greater good that comes out of this," i.e., what Forest City would be providing in return.
Initially May zeroed in on proposed language he felt was too weak, that the eventual review of any building proposed along the Yards West M Street frontage would ensure that its design and site plan would "facilitate the provision of a public entrance to the Navv Yard Metrorail Station" on the southwest corner of New Jersey and M. (He also mentioned as an aside concerns he said he had heard recently that the explosion in residential development in the neighborhood instead of office projects was restricting the amount of available evening and weekend garage parking for stadium events.)
But then ANC 6D chair Roger Moffatt testified, noting that while the ANC voted 6-0 to support Forest City's request, it did so while strongly encouraging the Zoning Commission "to require units have more than two bedrooms as a condition of this added height and density." He continued: "ANC 6D supports growing DC into a larger population, but we don't want to exclude families who have children from being able to live in our section of the District. We believe this is an issue whose time has come and we hope that Zoning will take a step in the right direction here tonight."
A light bulb then seemed to go on, with each commissioner supporting May's request that Forest City work with the Office of Planning and the Office of the Attorney General to come up with stronger language not only on the Metro issue but on a "greater mix." Marcie Cohen spoke of families being pushed out of the city, and that Forest City needs to offer "compelling evidence" that there is no market and will be no market for units with more than two bedrooms. Michael Turnbull discussed how if a family has a boy and a girl "you are looking at a three-bedroom unit to make things work" and that "two children is not unreasonable for a lot of families."
While agreeing with the desire to have the language of the proposed text amendments looked at, commissioner Robert Miller did say that the board shouldn't treat lightly that granting the additional density would result in an additional 350 residential units to the area beyond what's already allowed, 70 of which would be affordable housing units, which is "something we need."
Finally, chair Anthony Hood admitted that the commission hasn't concentrated on the issue of units with more than two bedrooms ("I don't call it derelict because I'd call myself derelict"), and that it is something that the board needs to "start looking at this in other projects across the city." However, he seemed a bit skeptical that anything could really come of taking the extra time for the Office of Planning to work on the language in this particular case to achieve that end: "Let's see what happens. Make me wrong."
This case is scheduled to be back in front of the commission in late November.
 

I fear I am going to be run ragged by the scope of construction 'round these parts over the next few years. Fitbit tells me I took about 15,000 steps across two outings to snag this slew of photos, and I still didn't quite get everything I wanted. But let's see what's going on. (As always, click on any image to enlarge it, and then page through the slideshow of all of them).
At 1015 Half Street, the new CBS Radio space along L Street is moving along, with a ticker now hung on the building (below left) and the ground-floor studio space being built out (below right).
There's four holes in the ground in various stages of construction, though alas I missed getting pictures of the Arris apartment building at the Yards, which has reached ground level and so should be starting the showy part of its progress within the next few weeks. The Lofts at Capitol Quarter are about at ground level on the east end of their not-at-all-level footprint at 7th and L (left), while digging down down down continues at 800 New Jersey/Whole Foods (right). (The third one, the new 1111 New Jersey apartment project, isn't all that much of a hole just yet.)
(Speaking of 800 New Jersey, I noticed that the rebuilt-but-not-open H Street has had its asphalt laid and is now a good nine inches or more higher than where it meets 2nd Street. Preparation for that intersection and Virginia Avenue to be bumped up with the construction of the Virginia Avenue Tunnel?)
Getting close to topping out is the Hampton Inn at 1st and N (left). And, apropos of nothing (but needed here for layout purposes), a photo of the signage for the Subway Café at 20 M Street, which sounds to not be too long from opening.
And wrapping up the tour, here are the two buildings nearest to completion, the Parc Riverside at 1st and K (left) and the Park Chelsea on New Jersey Avenue (right), seen from one block to the south because it's So Freaking Big.
Now, everyone chime in and tell me what I missed.
If you want more photos of these projects (and who wouldn't?), just follow the links to the project pages.
 

ANC 6D07 Commissioner David Garber announced on Facebook on Friday that he will be resigning his position later this week, a little more than 2 1/2 months before his full term would have ended. (He announced a few months ago that he would not be running for reelection.)
The reason he gives for the decision to quit early is that he is moving to Shaw/Logan Circle/U Street, a location that one might note is a handy confluence of two wards (with another close by) in which to continue trying to establish a base for a run for city-wide office, if one were interested in such things. Especially if one had already spent a few years in Ward 8 followed by a few in Ward 6.
But before David skedaddles, he plans to anoint a chosen successor for his ANC seat, which he will be doing on Monday, followed by an event at Willie's on Tuesday where he will "introduce people to the candidate I think will do a great job."
If you haven't checked out the questionnaires I submitted to the three people running to replace David as commissioner for 6D07, here they are.
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More posts: ANC News, politics
 

For probably about six years now, I've been shielding my eyes and sticking my fingers in my ears and shouting LA-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA every time I looked at my poor excuse for a development map. It so desperately needed a makeover, but I never had the time, creative spark, or technological chops to turn it into anything like what I would want it to be, so I just left it alone, even during the big JDLand redesign a few months back. The map's information was accurate, at least!
But a few weeks ago I saw a blurb about Google's My Maps upgrade, now called Maps Engine Lite. You can draw lines and shapes! You can have layers (well, a few of them)! You can have Google as your maps base!
So I went off to play with it, and quickly decided that it could make a likeable enough successor to my original Web 0.1 map.
You can also always get to it by clicking on "View Full Map" on the mini-map at the top right of most JDLand pages, or the "Project Directory" link in the black menu bar.
It still isn't quite everything I dreamed of, but at least now you can zoom in, pan around, and filter the display by layers--if you only want to look at completed residential projects, or projects under construction, or projects not yet begun, or some combination thereof, click the little menu icon at top left and make your choices.
It may not be optimal for phones, and so I have to think about that for a while, but the big static list of projects is still available beneath the map if you are a words-and-not-pictures type of information ingestor.
I'll wager that my Parking Lots map will get migrated as well before Opening Day 2015.
And if you have any complaints with how it functions, feel free to let Google know!
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More posts: JDLand stuff
 

It was announced this morning (well, last night, actually) that the 11th Street Bridge Park's design competition has been won by "Anacostia Crossing," from the team of the Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA) and Olin Studio.
OMA/Olin designed a park in "a sloping 'X' shape" over both the river and the banks on its eastern side. Features include a central plaza, a café, boat launches, an amphitheater, and "a series of nets that would allow people to dangle out over the river."
One competition juror described the design thusly: " 'It is at once both a crossing and place. In its purest role it is a hyphen that connects and celebrates the physical and cultural histories of two historic and vibrant Anacostia shoreline communities, while establishing a civic expression of democracy.' "
The Washington Post has a video rendering of the park design, in addition to the many renderings available on the official web site.
As always, however, the looming question remains the full funding of the park's $40 million price tag. As explained by the Post, "The D.C. government has committed to providing $14.5 million of the $25 million construction price tag[.] An additional $15 million would provide operations funding." A capital campaign is underway to fund that $25 million difference. So, needless to say, construction won't be starting next week.
 

As to whether it *will* open Friday at 5, well, we'll see!
Willie's is located on the west end of the Boilermaker Shops, at 3rd and Tingey streets, SE.
If you want to read about the long road to this point, have at it.
In other food news, TaKorean is now going to be open on Sundays from 11 to 7.
UPDATE: In non-food Boilermaker Shops news, the Yards folks also tweeted that Unleashed by Petco is scheduled to open Nov. 3.
 

Given that the plan to redevelop the Florida Rock site along the Anacostia River just south of Nationals Park has been in the works for about 15 years now, it's worth giving a post to the news that yesterday a permit was issued to allow the initial excavation, shoring, and sheeting for the 350-unit apartment building that will be the first phase of the 1.1 million-square-foot mixed use project that's now known as RiverFront on the Anacostia.
There's been no announcement of construction financing (see update), or any sort of "Hey, we're starting!" missive, but snarky observers can no longer point to the lack of even an initial permit as a signal that the project might be about to get underway. The permit for the actual vertical construction of the building is still in process, however.
UPDATE: From GlobeSt., via a reader, showing that I was off by 24 hours: "MRP Realty and Florida Rock Properties have secured a $65 million construction loan provided by First Niagara's Commercial Real Estate Group for the development of a mixed-used residential building on the Anacostia Waterfront. Yvonne Ulrich, vice president of the Plymouth Meeting, PA-based lending group, managed the transaction for First Niagara."
This construction financing release also says that the apartment building will be called "The Riverfront." And a delivery date of Sept. 2016 is mentioned.
This building will go up at the far eastern end of the site, next to Diamond Teague Park, expanding the existing public plaza and offering some retail there as well. I wrote more about the design back in 2012, though admittedly the final zoning approvals for the project came during my hiatus and so I didn't watch too closely.
When will work start? All together now: We Shall See....
 

I have not laid eyes myself, but multiple sources in my inbox and elsewhere are breathlessly reporting a new sign on the sidewalk at 4th and M SE saying simply "Harris Teeter Opening November 5." (This post now UPDATED with a photo of the sign, retrieved by my own personal stringer.)
To say this is a long time coming is an understatement -- it was five years ago, in Sept. 2009, when the first official reports of Teeter coming to The Yards surfaced, and even then, I referred to it as "long-rumored." In 2010 the building at 4th and M with the planned grocery store space changed from office to residential.
It was in June 2011 that developer Forest City finally confirmed that the grocery store space in what was now called Twelve12 would in fact be a Harris Teeter. Work on the site began in early 2012, and now, with a little bit of 2014 left, here we are.
Almost.
 

(First off, don't forget Monday night's Near Southeast/Southwest Mayoral Forum!)
It seems like the city has been in campaign mode for about 15 months, but we are now down to the final four weeks before the Nov. 4 general election. Which also means that it's the final four weeks before the elections for Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6D.
Near Southeast is covered by two Single Member Districts--6D07 and the South Capitol-spanning 6D02--and so for the third time since I started blogging I sent out questionnaires to the candidates to try to better gauge their positions, their opinions, and their interests.
Meredith Fascett, Josh Hart, and TD Stanger are the three candidates running for the 6D07 seat being vacated by David Garber, while incumbent 6D02 commissioner Stacy Cloyd is running unopposed. All four were generous enough to reply to my multiude of questions.
While we know that I generally frown on political fisticuffs in the comments threads, feel free to mix it up in this one about your preferred (or unpreferred) candidate. Keep it civil and away from personal attacks, though.
If you are new to this whole ANC thing, here's a good explainer from, go figure, anc.dc.gov. (That's also where I pilfered the above clip art from. Couldn't resist.) The short version is that ANCs "ensure input from an advisory board that is made up of the residents of the neighborhoods that are directly affected by government action. The ANCs are the body of government with the closest official ties to the people in a neighborhood."
Also, note that the deadline to register or update one's information for the Nov 4 election is mere minutes away, on Oct 6. You can do it online at www.vote4dc.com.
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More posts: ANC News, politics
 

The plans are now coming together both inside and outside the stadium for all of the hoopla to mark the return of postseason play to Nationals Park. The updates have been coming from all directions, so let's see if we can bring a little order to the red-tinged chaos.
Yards Park "Nationals Celebration"
The pre- and post-game festivities two blocks east of the ballpark have expanded somewhat since the initial announcement a few days ago. This is all free, open to both ticket holders and schlubs, and is the work of the Capitol Riverfront BID:
Friday, Oct. 3:
* Game viewing beginning at 3:07 pm EDT.
* Post-game concert on the Yards Park boardwalk by White Ford Bronco.
* CBS Radio/106.7 TheFan broadcasting from the park.
* Local craft beverages from Bluejacket available for purchase, along with tasty cuisine from local restaurants and food trucks.
* Raffle prizes
Saturday, Oct. 4:
* Pre-game concert at 3:00 pm in Yards Park by fan favorite Hand Painted Swinger.
* Family-friendly activities such as face painting.
* Broadcasting from CBS Radio personalities with Nationals-focused commentary and interviews.
* Raffle prizes.
* Bluejacket beverages and food from local restaurants and food trucks will also be available at the festivities.
* A march to the stadium led by the Ballou High School Majestic Marching Band
At 5:37 pm EDT, fans without tickets can stay in The Yards to watch the game. Attendees can bring a picnic to the park or grab take-out from surrounding eateries, but note that outside alcohol is prohibited.
Neighborhood Establishment Specials
* Fairgrounds: Party among the shipping containers at the Nats Playoff Viewing Parties, starting at 11 am on Friday and noon on Saturday. All drinks are $5 at the Bullpen Bar (starting in the 3rd inning!), and the games will be shown on the 16x16 outdoor screen with audio. Admission is free.
* TaKorean: After 2:00 pm, all beers are $4. Show a ticket on game day before or after the game and receive $3 off your meal!
* Agua 301: Patrons wearing Nationals gear get the following Nats game day drink specials 2 hours before, during the game, and 2 hours after the game: $5 margaritas, $5 sangria, & $4.50 Corona Light Draft.
* Justin's Cafe: Progressive Happy Hour on Friday with $3 drafts, $4 rail drinks, and $5 Firefly Vodka from 5:00 pm to 6:00 pm; $4 drafts and $5 rail drinks from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm; and $5 drafts from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm. Fifty-cent wings on Saturday.
* Osteria Morini: Get a White Label Burger with house-made potato chips and a pint of beer for $15 at the bar and lounge tables before, during and after the games.
* Ice Cream Jubilee: Get a Deluxe Ballpark Sundae to celebrate the Washington Nationals' post-season games: three scoops of ice cream - Caramel Popcorn, Chocolate Chocolate, and Strawberries & Cream, and topped with homemade salted caramel sauce, hot fudge sauce, toasted peanuts, whipped cream, and Curly W waffle cone cookies, and of course, a cherry on top.
* Harry's Reserve: New Amsterdam vodka (all flavors) 1.75 ML now $16.99; Pinnacle vodka (all flavors) 1.75 ML now $15.99; and store-wide specials on beer, wine, and spirits.
* EVO Furniture: Any customer wearing any Nationals apparel will receive a free red vase with any EVO Furniture Sofa purchase! Limited Quantities available.
* Toll Brothers: Visit Parc Riverside in your favorite Nats swag & apply between October 2, 2014 & October 12, 2014 to receive one month free rent on any apartment with a December move-in & 12-month lease.
(Don't know where these places are? Check my food map!)
At the Ballpark
* A limited number of Standing Room Only tickets will go on sale at the box office on Friday at 9:00 a.m. Tickets will be sold on a first-come, first-served basis and fans can purchase up to two tickets per customer. Each ticket will be $30--note that there will be no same-dame grandstand seating sales.
* All gates will open at 12:30 p.m. - expect congestion.
* Fans entering the ballpark through all gates will receive a postseason white rally towel, while supplies last.
* Half Street will include pregame entertainment by a drumline that will begin three hours before first pitch. Stilt walkers will also be present on Half Street two and a half hours prior to first pitch.
* DJ Stylus Chris will be spinning music at the Miller Lite Scoreboard Walk. Music will begin once the ballpark gates are open until first pitch.
* Face-painting will be available at the Family Fun Area inside Center Field Gate. Activities will begin once the ballpark gates are open and continue an hour into the start of the game.
The pre-game ceremony includes the ceremonial first pitch by Olympic swimming gold medalist Katie Ledecky, game ball delivery by General Larry O. Spencer, Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, National Anthem performed by the Quantico Marine Corps Band, lineup card delivery by Taajah McDonald, Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy, and the "Play Ball!" announcement by Mayor Vince Gray.
Getting There
Sell-out crowd coming to South Capitol Street at 3 pm on a Friday? {snicker} For those not actually in the neighborhood, here's Dr. Gridlock's tips for getting to and from the ballpark. If you're brave enough to drive, here's my Parking Lot map, though I imagine the prices will probably see some inflation from the regular season amounts.
Nearby game-goers might be the most interested in the Capital Bikeshare corrals that will be set up at 1st and N for every home game--no dock blocking!
Also, not only baseball fans will benefit from the expanded Circulator hours, running until 10 pm on Friday and from 10 am to midnight on Saturday. (Winter hours for the buses started on Wednesday.)
And if, like me, you will be sitting in your office at 3 pm on Friday, feel free to take out your frustrations in the comments field below.
Did I miss anything? (I checked for announcements of promotions at Biersch and Bluejacket and saw nothing as of this point.) If so, watch for updates.
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More posts: Nationals Park
 

The Post's Jonathan O'Connell has posted a story today detailing the rise and fall of Monument Realty on Half Street--how the company snapped up parcel after parcel of land just north of the ballpark footprint during 2004 and 2005, how they spared no expense to market their holdings, and how just as they dug the hole for the residential portion of their project, the economy collapsed, taking with it Lehman Brothers, their big financial backer.
It also gets itno how it's now been sold to the MacFarlane/Lynch partnership, even though "Monument wanted to see the project through as well, but had its hands tied by the Lehman estate, which wanted to sell."
You may recognize some of the photos accompanying the piece, and I also cop to being the owner of all of the "swag" displayed in the article, thanks to attending various Monument shindigs over the years, and thanks also to being an unrepentant pack rat. I spent years holding onto t-shirts, brochures, and even trading cards all because "someday someone might want to see them." And that someday is today!
It's a good read, and I'd say that even if I hadn't provided some assistance.
 

Though my feelings are desperately hurt that I had to find out about this via a Twitter .jpg, I'll still pass along Donohoe's announcement that the Gallery at Capitol Riverfront project is now officially underway, thanks to the formation of a joint venture with MetLife, Inc.
This is the 324-unit apartment building planned for 1111 New Jersey Avenue, where site clearing work has been on-going since the demolition of St. Matthew's church a few weeks back. (So don't feel bad if you thought it already was underway.)
There will be three levels of underground parking, 11,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, and a lineup of amenities that are now more or less standard in new "luxury" developments: a penthouse clubroom/pool/deck, a second clubroom and lounge on the ground floor, a courtyard on the second floor, a fitness center, a pet spa (!), secure bike storage, and private balconies.
The Gallery won't have the Metro station built into its ground floor like, say, 55 M, but there will be a landscaped pedestrian plaza running the 125 feet from the building's front door to the subway entrance at New Jersey and M.
Delivery is expected in the summer of 2016.
It now joins the cavalcade of residential projects in the neighborhood, with Twelve12 open, River Parc/Parc Riverside leasing, and the Park Chelsea, Arris, the Lofts at Capitol Quarter, and 800 New Jersey in various stages of construction. That's a smidge over 2,100 new rental units coming from 2014 through 2016.
And who will be next? {eyes glancing furtively toward Florida Rock and 82 I.}
 

A tweet late this morning from Richie Poe, general manager of the VIDA Fitness complex at the Yards:
"It is with pride, accomplishment and tears of joy that I can finally announce @VidaFitnessDC Yards opens today at 12noon. "
And now the press release has arrived, saying that VIDA and its Aura Spa and Penthouse Pool Club have indeed officially opened today, with Bang Salon following tomorrow, Oct. 2. (And don't forget Bang's Cut-a-Thon on Sunday for Ovarian Cancer.)
I got my tour before all the equipment was placed, but I'm sure you can poke your head in the front door on Tingey Street and sneak a peek. The Post got a tour as well.
This leaves the Harris Teeter and the not-yet-officially-announced-but-totally-Banfield Pet Hospital as the Twelve12 tenants yet to open. Last word was that Teeter is shooting for an opening in early November.
 

The final installment of this week's Fence Peeking is a bit more haphazard. Let's start with looking on fences:
(Left) The new Parc Riverside signage has been hung along 1st Street by the sales trailer, though at least I have the River Parc signs recorded for posterity.
(Right) There's a bunch of new signage on the black fences along Half and N, presumably to at least in part draw attention away from the big hole in the ground behind them. One portion of the sign is a map of places to see things, eat food, drink beverages, and spend money, placed by the Capitol Riverfront BID. And it helpfully provides confirmation of the Unleashed by Petco coming to the Boilermaker Shops, and lets the cat out of the bag (ahem) that the pet hospital at Twelve12 will be a Banfield.
(Left) While we wait to see when Willie's is going to open, I did at least finally get a photo of the ready-to-go interior. (Yeah, yeah, the glass isn't technically a fence, but work with me here.)
(Right) Speaking of the spiffy new signage on the black fences across from the ballpark, I finally got an updated photo from on high of exactly what those fences are hiding. Let's imagine the potential interim uses while Jair Lynch and MacFarlane Partners decide what to build -- Urban campground? ATV track? Wildlife sanctuary?
 

The Capitol Riverfront BID is announcing plans to host a "Washington Nationals Celebration" in Yards Park for the Nats' first two playoff games, on Friday Oct. 3 and Saturday, Oct. 4. These events will feature "favorite local bands, broadcasting from CBS Radio, and family-friendly activities to celebrate the Washington Nationals' home stand during the first round of the National League Division Series postseason playoffs."
On Friday, the festivities will be held post-game, where a not-yet-named local band will play on the boardwalk while food trucks and the nearby restaurants will offer eats for your picnicking pleasure. (The start time for Friday's game will not be known until after Wednesday's NL Wild Card game, but it is expected to be either 12:07 pm or 3:07 pm.)
On Saturday, the Natitude will start in Yards Park at 3 pm, "with a pre-game concert by fan favorite Hand Painted Swinger, family-friendly activities such as face painting, and broadcasting from CBS Radio personalities with Nationals-focused commentary and interviews." (And don't forget to walk the Riverwalk to the 1st Base Gate!)
All this is free and open to the public.
UPDATE: Since this just arrived in my inbox, I'll add that the Fairgrounds is offering "viewing parties" for all home playoff games on their 16x16 oudoor big screen, with full audio.
 

If you are wanting to hear from the city's mayoral candidates about issues of interest to Near Southeast and Southwest, a mayoral forum is being held on Monday, Oct. 6, at 7 pm, in the Kreeger Theater at Arena Stage.
Co-sponsored by ANC 6D, the Navy Yard Neighborhood Association, and the Southwest Neighborhood Assembly, the event is billed as your chance to get answers on the pressing neighborhood issues of the day, such as: "Van Ness School and DCPS boundary realignment issues, how to get our long promised Community Center off the ground, how to improve Metrorail, the Circulator, timing of an M Street streetcar, parking solutions, cleaning up the Anacostia, how to attract more community serving retail, better coordination during major construction projects, pace of development and concentration of new apartment units, CSX, possible big box stores, the $1 billion South Capitol Street and Bridge reconstruction project ... "
The organizers also promise to get you home before the Nats game that night, though I fear that's a political promise that maybe should have been kept in the quiver until the full NLDS schedule is known. (The Redskins game that night doesn't start until 8:30, at least.)
And, speaking of elections, watch this space next week for the now-traditional JDLand ANC Candidate Questionnaires.
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Having gotten out of the way the vertical construction going on behind neighborhood fences, we can now move on to the "clearing" portion of this fence survey.
The roof of Nats Parking Garage C gives a great view of Yards Parcel A, and how far the site clearing has come along since the final days of Spooky Building 213.
Next up will be the creation of a park on the far end of the site, a parking lot in the corner closest to this intersection, and the new home for Trapeze School New York at far right. (Here's a map if that's too many words.)

Meanwhile, along New Jersey Avenue....
(Left) This isn't my best work, but you can compare the rubble in this photo to the lush grass-covered hill that used to run along New Jersey Avenue between L and M. All this dirt is being moved to build the 324-unit Gallery at Capitol Riverfront residential building, aka 1111 New Jersey Avenue.
(Right) Up in Whole Foods land at 800 New Jersey Avenue, the hole is still being dug. But the new block of H Street between New Jersey and 2nd is looking like a real street, though no doubt it will continue to taunt us by remaining closed throughout the construction of 800 NJ, like its sibling I Street a block to the south has sat unopened, waiting for the Park Chelsea construction to finish.

Next, do you like construction trailers? How about construction trailers on sites where work isn't yet underway?
(Left) Here's the Capper Community Center site at 5th and K, where a ceremonial groundbreaking a few weeks back was not quite enough to jolt the project into action.
(Right) Looking down upon the vast Florida Rock footprint from the ballpark, and noting the new construction trailer visible at the far end. As I mentioned a few days ago, there's not as yet been an announcement of construction financing for the planned first-phase 350-unit apartment building, nor are the initial necessary building permits approved.
 
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