You have all been waiting for news about the development of the building located at the southwest corner of 14th & T Streets, NW. (See my previous post for the history of this building.) And, many of you have already been in touch following yesterday's report of an agreement for the purchase of the building by Room and Board , the contemporary classic furniture company with locations in the West and Midwest.
Your feedback on this prospect has been resoundingly positive, many pointing out that Room and Board would complement our neighborhood retail, which is shaping up as a burgeoning center for furniture, art, home accessories and housewares. The area seems to be evolving from our history as an 'auto showroom corridor' to 'design showroom corridor.' And, with the density of our residential stock increasing, the proportional local demand for home furnishings (combined with the attraction of city-wide and area-wide shoppers) should provide ample business for the many retailers located here.
Room and Board would join our diverse retail offerings for furniture and housewares, which include:
Goodwood
Urban Essentials
Dragonfly Asian Antiques
Home Rule
Go Mama Go
Millennium Decorative Arts
Hunted House
RCKNDY
Muleh
Vastu
Reincarnation Furnishings
Capital Carpet & Furniture
Mitchell Gold
Miss Pixie's
Ruff and Ready
Simply Home
Timothy Paul Carpets & Textiles
and more... (plus, there's a new design/lighting business coming to 14th soon)
The interesting aspect of this prospect is that the location will be readapted and restored according to the requirements of the Historic Preservation Review Board and will bring back the luster of this beautiful building. And, like the Mitchell Gold store further south on 14th Street; the new West Elm at the former Woodward and Lothrop building; the Design within Reach in Adams Morgan; the building at 14th + T can effectively house a national company while retaining its distinctive, historic character and complementing the surrounding retail.
More updates soon.
