Rumors of a New DC Whole Foods Gain Traction

• June 12, 2013
• 6 Comments

by UrbanTurf Staff

Courtesy W.C. Smith BZA Application.

Whole Foods, the high-end grocery store whose arrival sometimes signals the resurgence of an urban area, may have its sights set on another DC neighborhood.

In an article on The Hill is Home, ANC 6D Commissioner David Garber revealed that the committee recently received a BZA application for a new W.C. Smith mixed-use development adjacent to the Park Chelsea complex with a 36,000 square-foot retail space set aside for a “full service grocery store and a 2,300 square feet “brew pub.” But the clues don’t end there.

Garber pointed out that 36,000 square feet is too big for a Trader Joe’s and too small for a Wegman’s and is the same size as the new Whole Foods store in Foggy Bottom. It could be another large grocery chain, but a Harris Teeter is under construction not too far away. He also noted that Whole Foods is one of the only grocery stores in the country with a brew pub feature.

The last clue? Just look at the green lettering in the rendering above.

For Garber’s article, check out The Hill is Home here.

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/rumors_of_a_new_dc_whole_foods_gain_traction/7193

6 Comments

1. Tom A. said at 7:29 pm on Wednesday June 12, 2013:

   Hmm, a few years ago, a Whole Foods there would have been sign of a redeveloping neighborhood.  Now they’re just following the money.  I wasn’t here in 1997, two years before the Whole Foods opened on P Street, but I don’t think 14th and P was anywhere close to as swanky as the Capital Riverfront/Navy Yard is today.

1. Chris in Eckington said at 7:45 pm on Wednesday June 12, 2013:

   Tom A. you are 100% correct.  When Whole Foods (or more precisely Fresh Fields)opened at 14th and P, it was sort of a catalyst for increasing development in Logan Circle.  The same cannot be said for the Whole Foods in Foggy Bottom, or this one coming to Capital Riverfront.

1. Carrie said at 9:54 pm on Wednesday June 12, 2013:

   no… PLEASE send us Trader Joes!!!

1. Bernardo said at 9:10 am on Thursday June 13, 2013:

   Trader Joes decision makers. We would appreciate more stores in DC.

1. anon_1 said at 11:39 am on Thursday June 13, 2013:

   WF used to leverage their reputation as a turnaround agent to gain remarkable tax breaks.  Municipalities are getting wise, but the developers are increasingly offering the incentives.  the developers always follow the money

1. Dana said at 3:12 pm on Thursday June 13, 2013:

   Sorry guys, but Trader Joe’s development model is to basically follow Whole Foods.