neighborhood news
Five New Restaurants Set to Open at Skyland Additions to Create New Food Destination by Elizabeth O’Gorek
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n March, developers Rappaport and WC Smith announced the signing of leases for five new restaurants at Skyland Town Center (2219 Town Center Dr.). The establishments, most of them locally based, will bring new and diverse dining options ranging from Mediterranean and South American flavors to standbys like pizza and chicken sandwiches to the neighborhoods surrounding the 18.5-acre, mixed-
use development in the city’s Ward 7. Skyland Town Center is located at the intersection of Alabama Avenue, Naylor Road and Good Hope Road SE. The project has persevered through many challenges. Legal entanglements over property acquisitions, as well as a sudden decision from Walmart in 2016 to back out of opening a Skyland store, set construction years behind schedule.
But once completed, Skyland will be the site of more than 450 homes, a grocery store, a medical office building and up to 156,000 square feet of retail, including the five new restaurants. “I know it’s taking time, but what we’re seeing at Skyland is a development that matches the vision of the Ward 7 community —a site with new housing, a grocery store, good amenities, and jobs and opportunity for DC residents,” said Mayor Muriel Bowser. “I look forward to the continued groundbreakings, and I look forward to all the ribbon cuttings even more.” District officials, including Ward 7 Councilmember Vincent C. Gray (D) have been working for years to get more retailers to open on the east side of the Anacostia River. Skyland is seen by many as a crucial piece of those efforts.
Mix of Retail, Residences
Customers enter the new CVS, open at Skyland Town Center (2219 Town Center Dr.). Photo: E.O’Gorek/CCN
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E a s t o f t h e R i v er D C N e w s . c o m
In addition to the five new eatery openings, the Crest at Skyland Town Center, a 290,000 square foot residential property, will begin leasing and welcoming residents this spring. The building will include 263 homes and amenities such as a fitness center, courtyard pool and grills. The units are a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments. Of the 263 units, 53 are set-aside for those earning up to 80 percent of Median Family Income (MFI) and 26 are designated as workforce units (80 to 120 percent MFI). “Today’s announcement of the additional amenities coming to the Skyland Town Center is the result of decades of hard labor,” said Councilmember Vincent Gray in a March 24 release. “I am pleased to have relentlessly worked during my time as
