The DowntownDC BID is attracting more people to work, visit and live in Downtown with new retail openings, varying transportation options, a dramatic and sustained decline in crime, more high-end restaurants, more casual dining options, convenient access to work, new hotels and world-class entertainment, arts and culture. Even though the office market is currently flat, the DowntownDC BID area (where place has become a competitive advantage) has seen growth in restaurants, hotels, retail and entertainment. The DowntownDC BID area has seen a renewed interest in parks and corridors, including the highly-anticipated restoration and renovation of Franklin Park into a multi-use active park through a partnership of the National Park Service, D.C. Office of Planning, D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation and the DowntownDC BID.
Large-scale grocery stores are still unavailable in the DowntownDC BID area, however, the new Walgreens in Chinatown (and a soon-to-open location at 12th and F streets NW) provides healthy food and fresh produce and the new Market Bistro Kitchen (MBK) market sells locally-produced goods. Red Apron Butchery at 709 D Street offers fresh, high quality meats to residents and workers. The DowntownDC BID area boasts three farmers’ markets with two new markets scheduled to open in 2014. These markets operate and sell locally-produced meals and produce and provide fun menu ideas for Downtown chefs.
New records were set in 2013 for cultural and entertainment venues in Downtown with attendance up 2.5 percent from 2012. The vast variety of cultural and entertainment venues in Downtown represent 23 percent of D.C.’s cultural and entertainment seats, offering something for everyone. (See page 56 in the Culture and Entertainment section for a complete listing.)
The number of sidewalk cafes in the Downtown BID continues to grow. Ninety-five restaurants in Downtown included sidewalk seating areas in 2009; in 2013, 165 restaurants invited patrons to sit outside. Sidewalk cafes are often seen as a reflection of a feeling of safety in an area as well as a contributing factor to the vitality of a street.