We need to build relationships with the businesses. But just as we need to be there for the new businesses, they need to listen to the community.

Truer words have never been spoken, and reflect my earlier comment that my local liquor store has noted that some people in the community have different demands than the clientele they’re used to serving (the old 40s and Mad Dog crowd). Perhaps we should start our own blogroll of sorts by calling out the stores that have potential/cater to a respectable clientele.

I shop at JJ Liquors in the old DMV plaza. They were more than happy to go on the hunt for my favorite wines. Not great, and they could afford to do something about the loiterers, but they listen at least somewhat. They also have their own security guy (not uniformed or anything, but he’s tossed a few people out while I’ve been there), so they clearly don’t want trouble.

I also like the MGM Roast Beef sandwich shop on Brentwood. Nice, well-decorated, clearly independent place with good food.

Beyond better transport options, what RIA needs is a mix of established business and entrepreneurs. We need some eateries with instant recognition, such as Chipotle. But we also need some originals to be proud of. I look at admiration at the young men who have recently opened a diner on Bladensburg RD NE, around Trinidad. It is not a nice location, but it has heart. I just hope that they can keep their spirit. I raved to my friends, they went… they waited 1 hour for eggs & hash browns… now they won’t go back. I hope that more people have better experiences. I hope that when new businesses open up along RIA that we support them with patience and useful feedback. We as locals need to support businesses that try to add to the neighborhood. We need to build relationships with the businesses. But just as we need to be there for the new businesses, they need to listen to the community. Together, if we work towards a common goal of making a more functional and welcoming area, we will ALL be better off for it, City, Citizens, & Business Owners.

PS: My vote for grocery store is Trader Joe’s, and put it somewhere closer to Eastern Ave/RIA so I can walk

I have used this survey to voice my concerns and give recommendations on grocers, discount stores, churches, signage, and anything else at the 4th & RIA plaza.

I moved here last year and also have a lot of disposable income. I would like to do more shopping in the neighborhood, but aside from Home Depot, Giant, and CVS, there’s not a lot that I want to spend money on.

More density on RI Ave around the metro makes a lot of sense too.

My favorite dollar store is “Dollar Tree.” It is a true dollar store where everything really does cost a dollar. They even have stores in Fairfax County and Alexandria. The best Dollar Tree is at Landmark Plaza in Alexandria. The one on Michigan Avenue is nice, but has deteriorated a bit with age. It’s important that if a Trader Joe’s/FarmMarket/Harris Teeter were to come to RIA that it maintain the high quality shoppers expect and get at their other locations. Safeway did not do this.

Ft. Totten is an example of housing development near a Metro station that has not taken off. They have a surplus of unsold condos/apartments/homes with more housing on the way. The Cafritz housing/opera/mixed use development on its own will provide a decent grocery store at that location. If not, you have to go across the District line to the Giant which I have found comparable to the one at RIA.

I don’t see a problem with focusing on bigger stores at the Metro and smaller stores elsewhere. After all, that’s how most of the city is arranged. I’m also a huge fan of independent business, and look to support them as much as possible. However, I think this area is primed to have a nice balance, with access to the Home Depot, Radio Shack, and the other chain stores around the Metro, and local businesses scattered about the neighborhoods.

I also see the value in pulling some businesses up instead of replacing them. Georgetown, the Hill, and other desirable communities have liquor stores, they just happen to be higher-end. Some of the liquor stores we have around here can be improved and part of a developing community, some have no desire to sell anything other than 40′s and cheap cigs. I found a store that will stock my favorite wines and snacks, despite being too high end for most of their current clientele, and they get all my and my friends’ business. They’ll still be here as things change, as they’ve already demonstrated that they have the foresight to sniff the winds of change. I’m also ready to admit that I like saving a buck or two and that discount stores can be a part of a desirable community. Did you know that there’s a dollar store on 8th St. SE? However, having AJ Wright, Forman Mills, and, possibly, Ross, all within a stone’s throw of each other makes other retailers think that the area can’t sustain anything better. All I’m advocating is that those who want and would patronize better businesses get out there and make some noise. Write letters to the companies and let them know who really lives here. Make noise on blogs and listservs. Talk to your ANC people (I know, I know, some of them are useless), and make sure that they understand that you will not take kindly to undesirable businesses being given tax breaks to locate here, and that your views will be loudly declared at public venues and the ballot box. Attend your ANC meetings and chime in on these types of issues.

I first moved to DC in 2002. At that time, Columbia Heights was SCARY. Eastern Market was only to be visited for weekend shopping at the market. The south side of the Capitol, right near the House office buildings, was pretty sketch-tastic. I stayed for several months, moved away, and came back in 2007. The change in the city was AMAZING. Since 2007, I’ve seen massive changes. NY Ave. was SOOOOOOOO much scarier less than 3 years ago. I have friends who were front-liners there with stories of getting shot at/near, and now I visit them without fear (I actually considered buying there, too). Potomac Ave. has improved substantially. Even the area near RFK looks to be coming along in fits and starts. U St. was alllllllmost there in 2007, and keeps chugging along steadily. The area between Nationals Stadium and the Hill was a pretty terrifying walk in 2008, and now they’re building $700K+ houses there. The housing crisis and economic collapse didn’t hit DC as hard as other places, and people are moving here because there are jobs available. These people typically want to live in the city, close to Metro, and they’re willing to invest in developing a neighborhood. Making noise will lure these people, which will lure better retailers.

The police are certainly doing their part around here…I have been amazed by their efficient and effective responses to even the slightest whiff of criminal activity. The least we can do is make some noise!

Putting a Streetcar along RIA is a no-brainer. There was one there before without the density that people keep saying is needed for economic development. (RIA has been placed in phase 2 which falls within the 20 year scope of the RIA Great Streets Plan.) Replacing this former Streetcar line will be easier and quicker than starting, completing, and connecting the one in Anacostia. Other major cities are getting involved in initiatives to restore defunct Trolley lines. So density or no density, the Streetcar line makes sense. Using Federal Stimulus money for this Streetcar restoration would be the best use I’ve seen of Stimulus Funding so far.

RIA once had a robust business corridor, which did include things like automobile dealerships, but also the bare essential businesses like grocery stores and cleaners. Using 12th Street as an example built near a Metro line, people would frequent the small businesses if quality products and services were maintained. This is the problem there and eveywhere. Safeway did not maintain quality product and services, so the people left. For any small business along RIA, if the quality of products and services are not maintained the people leave for other stores, density or no density.

I also think we need to focus big stores around/near the metro and encourage smaller development on other parts of ria. That’s my opinion.