<!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]-->Happy Holidays From CPRO!

Seasons greetings from your friends at the Columbia Pike Revitalization Organization! We have had quite an exciting year filled with major construction progress at the Halstead, 55 Hundred, and Siena Park projects (click here for more info), streetscape improvements, expansion of our small business networking group, and record crowds at our Blues Festival, Home Show, Taste of the Pike, and Farmers Market, and much, much more! We thank all of you for your involvement and support, and are especially grateful to our Board of Directors, volunteers, and all of our members. If you are not yet a member, please consider joining today (click here for a list of CPRO members and to access a membership form). CHEERS! 

 

The group behind the Irish-owned McGinty’s Public House in Silver Spring has signed a letter of intent to lease a 6,400 sq. ft. space in the new Halstead at Arlington for a full service restaurant and pub. Tentatively called “P. Brennan’s Irish Pub,” the establishment will be located in the former Arlington Hardware store space on Columbia Pike just off S. Walter Reed Dr. Meanwhile, the partners who are developing the new Lost Dog Café at the Halstead expect to submit their application for a building permit to the County next week and hope to begin interior construction of their space in January. The 60-seat restaurant is expected to open in May of 2009. Other parties interested in retail opportunities at the Halstead should contact Lindsey McGaw of KLNB retail at 703-722-2707. Interest in the Halstead’s rental apartments continues to grow, with an initial set of residents moving in this weekend. And, Bozzuto Management is holding an Open House this Saturday, December 13 from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm in the building’s residential lobby at 1028 S. Walter Reed Dr. Food and refreshments will be served. Call 866-798-6550 for more information. Tell them CPRO sent you!

 

On December 10 a citizen-based advisory working group determined that plans for development of 4707 Columbia Pike are substantially compliant with the Columbia Pike Form Based Code. Panel members applauded developer Bob Eisenberg and his architect, SK&I, for their efforts to design a project that reflects the community’s vision for that site. The review was performed as part of a process that should result in administrative approval of the development by County staff in the months ahead. The 4-story project by Heritage Property Co. is planned to include ground floor retail, 63 residential units, and underground parking.

 

<!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]-->Like so many businesses that line Columbia Pike, within Atilla’s Restaurant lies a story of an immigrant who came to this country to fulfill his dream of living a good life. When Zulkuf Gezgic arrived without much money, he knew he had to work very, very hard. He started out as a cook at Attila’s restaurant in 1994, and after spending more than two years as a cook, Zulkuf bought the restaurant from Atilla Kan in 1997. Today, he is the owner, manager and chef for Atilla’s Restaurant… Zulkuf  is a man of few words. But listen carefully, and you’ll hear his quiet passion for good food and entertaining. As he offered me “the world’s best hummus” to take home, he insisted that I warm the pita bread before I sampled the hummus (it IS he best I’ve tasted). And if you get hooked on the pita bread as well (not hard to do), you can order it by the bagful to take home. Using more hand gestures than words, he attempted to describe how he makes yogurt from scratch. Then he described Kazandibi, a popular Turkish dessert, as magical – an egg-less milk pudding that is white on one side, and brown on the other. Nothing, according to Zulkuf, like flan. And it’s delicious… Click Here to read the rest of this delicious story!

 

Reston-based JCA Architects (www.jcaarchitects.net) has designed a temporary Giant pharmacy and a building permit has been secured for the interior construction at 2408 Columbia Pike (the vacant storefront next to Rappahannock Coffee). The new facility is intended to serve customers during construction of the new Penrose Square development which will include a new Giant grocery store and pharmacy. However, closure and demolition of the existing Giant grocery and pharmacy remains on hold pending finalization of the Penrose project’s financing package. Final details regarding interim grocery services through free round-trip shuttle service to another Giant location are still being sorted out.

 

CPRO is pleased to be one of 46 local nonprofit organizations to receive a 2008 Community Enhancement Grant from the Arlington Community Foundation (www.arlcf.org). The grant project “Helping Columbia Pike’s Elderly Navigate a Corridor in Transition” will allow CPRO to focus more intensively on reaching out and engaging with area seniors to keep them informed about changes coming to the Pike and to make adjustments in how they obtain services. To get involved in this effort contact Pam Holcomb at 703-892-2776 or via email at pholcomb@columbiapike.org.

 

Arlington County is about to begin construction of streetscape improvements along the Pike between Garfield and Oakland Streets.  The County, in coordination with the utility companies and contractors, has installed all utility lines in the newly constructed utility-duct system under Columbia Pike and connected the new underground service lines to all area businesses.  All Verizon overhead lines and County overhead lines for traffic-signal communications have been removed.  Now, Dominion and Verizon services and Arlington County traffic signals operate from the new underground facilities.  Comcast is currently finishing up their work and removal of the remaining overhead wires and utility poles is expected to begin by late January 2009.  This will improve the appearance of the area and eliminate problems associated with downed power lines. Arlington will also be upgrading a water main between Glebe Road and Oakland Street in coordination with the streetscape improvements. Plans reported in last month’s e-newsletter to improve sidewalks and add street trees and ornamental lighting beginning in January 2009 remain on-track.  Project costs will be shared equally by VDOT and Arlington County. For more information about this work or other Columbia Pike streetscape projects, please visit www.arlingtonva.us/des

 

We are also proud to report that CPRO’s very own Amy McWilliams is performing in Signature Theater’s exciting and ambitious production of Les Miserables. For more information, go to www.sig-online.org.  And, just down the street from Signature at Theater on the Run (3700 S. Four Mile Run), Columbia Pike resident Mark Rhea, co-founder and Artistic Director of The Keegan Theatre (www.keegantheatre.com) has mounted a production of Love, Peace, and Robbery that has received great reviews from the critics.

The 28,000 sq. ft. lot at 7^th St. and S. Glebe Rd is now under contract. The empty parcel has long been owned by Arlington United Methodist Church which is located across the street. It is zoned for single family homes, and it is expected to be subdivided into 4 or 5 lots. Just south of the Pike on S. Glebe, the first of 3 new town houses at Majestic Oak has sold for $680,000, and the new owners have happily moved in. According to Monika Griffin of Courtland Homes, construction of the next set of townhouses will begin as soon as the next existing unit is sold.

Growing concerns over hazards caused by the clay composite field at Thomas Jefferson Park have moved local groups to call on the County to replace it. Frequent dust clouds created by windy conditions or regular play on the field have reportedly affected air quality in the adjacent middle school and caused some respiratory problems. Nearby residents say they are left unable to open their windows. Consequently, the civic associations of Arlington Heights, Ashton Heights, and Lyon Park, and the Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry PTAs have all requested that the field be replaced with natural or synthetic turf. County staff are currently considering alternatives and are expected to propose a response. Anyone with comments or experiences related to the field may contact Arlington Heights Civic Association President, Juliet Hiznay at 703-685-2596.

The next two Sundays, December 14 December 21, will be your last chance to enjoy the Columbia Pike Farmers Market this year. Vendors will be there selling holiday greens, fresh produce, organic meats, baked goods, handmade chocolates, soaps, and fresh eggs and milk, coffee and tea, along with some arts and crafts. Come and stock up, because after 12/21 the market will be on winter hiatus—not to return again until Sunday, May 3!

As always, the CPRO staff welcomes your input. Email your suggestions, questions, comments, and offers of assistance to Jim Whittaker at jwhittaker@columbiapike.org; Pam Holcomb at pholcomb@columbiapike.org; or Amy McWilliams at amcwilliams@columbiapike.org  or call 703-892-2776.  Know someone who would like to receive the CPRO e-Newsletter? Please send us email addresses and we will add them to our distribution list.   As always, for more information about what’s happening on the Pike go to www.columbiapike.org.