The proposal for redevelopment of the 700 block of K Street received the nod of approval from City Council Tuesday night, opening the way for developers to move forward with the $47.7 million project. With close to 64,000 square feet of retail space and more than 130 housing units, the project is designed to revitalize a long-ignored section of K Street with a diverse tenant mix of restaurants, boutique shops and a live music venue. If all goes as planned, developers expect to begin construction in late January or early February of next year. With their unanimous vote, council members approved the environmental impact and planning commission reports, and formalized a Developer Dispositi

With a 45% ground floor vacancy rate, K Street’s health is currently struggling. In an effort to help the street improve the blocks between 7th and 13th streets, the city has been pumping million upon millions of dollars into projects to then watch little to no improvements in foot traffic, empty store fronts and public safety. The list of subsidized projects is getting longer every year and I am beginning to wonder if spending all this money to clean up J or L streets might give us more to be proud of. Right now the city has loaned Crest Theater $413,839 for capital improvements but the loan won't have to be repaid if the theater makes structural, safety, and aesthetic improvements as pa