National Harbor
www.nationalharbor.com
$4 billion National Harbor Opens and gets a new website

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At over $4 Billion, this is the largest single mixed-use project on the east Coast perhaps the nation. Factually, it will have the largest combined convention center and hotel on the East Coast. All on more than 300 acres.

I have high hopes for this project and believe that it is the key to a major turnaround for Prince George's County. I see it as the premier business hub for the County.

Status
Under Construction

http://www.nationalharbor.com/uploadedimages/Experience/bWeis_3.jpg

Quick Facts,


7,300,000 sf of master plan mixed-use community in Prince George?s County, MD
2,500 Residential Units
4,000 hotel rooms and convention center
1 million sf of retail, dining, and entertainment
500,000 sf of class "A" office space
Additional office space build-out available at the Riverview at National Harbor with 1,430,000 sf.


Advantages,


The Only location in the D.C. area with full rights to an open expanse of Maryland's Potomac River.
Only location with prestine water front views of Washington, D.C. for corporate tenants.
Direct access to the new Woodrow Wilson Bridge.
A wealthy existing demographic of high income residents with homes worth $500,000+
Fairy system in planning.
Future right of way for a yellow line extention
Direct proximity to the largest combined conventioncenter\hotel on the east coast.



Restaurants

(% indicates currently open for business)

* Rosa Mexicano
* McCormick & Schmick's (%)
* Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante
* Ketchup
* Grace's Mandarin
* Potbelly Sandwich Works (%)
* CakeLove
* Ben & Jerry's (%)
* Starbucks
* Johnny Rockets
* Redrock Canyon Grill
* Bobby McKeys
* Cadillac Ranch
* Public House
* Timothy Dean Bistro (expected August 2008)
* Maggiano's Little Italy
* Old Hickory Steakhouse[1] (%)
* Moon Bay Coastal Cuisine[1] (%)
* National Pastime Sports Bar & Grill[1] (%)
* Pienza Italian Market[1]
* Sauciety (%)
* Foster's Downeast Clambake [2] (%)
* Ruth's Chris Steak House[3]


Retail

* Urban Chic[7]
* Fossil, Inc.
* Ann Taylor Loft
* Victoria's Secret
* Godiva Chocolatier
* South Moon Under
* Life Is Good
* Stonewall Kitchen
* Govinda Gallery
* Art Whino
* Erwin Pearl Fashion Jewelry
* Pajama Party
* Strictly First Glass
* The Williamsburg Shop
* Key Provisions
* AMERICA![8]
* Harley Davidson[9]
* Occasions to Remember
* Olympic News
* JoS. A. Bank


Tenants

National Children's Museum(140,000 sq\ft)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/26/AR2007072602045.html
Relache(TM) Spa
McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurant (8,000 sq\ft)
http://washington.bizjournals.com/washington/stories/2006/09/11/story12.html
Pose, Club and Ultra Lounge
Ketchup — a signature restaurant of The Dolce Group in Los Angeles, whose celebrity ownership includes Ashton Kutcher, Wilmer Valderrama and Tara Reid — will offer a mix of American comfort foods. - Gazette

Gallagher’s — a high-end New York-style steakhouse. - Gazette

Sequoia restaurant — Ark Restaurants Corp

Grace’s Fortune

Rosa Mexicano

Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante




Gaylord National

http://www.gaylordhotels.com/gaylordnational/

http://www.gaylordhotels.com/gaylordnational/images/NationalNight_large.jpg

comments
One of four massive state-of-the-art meetings, entertainment and convention facilities, Gaylord National will anchor the National Harbor site. It will be the largest combined Hotel and Convention center on the east coast. It has been approved for an expansion of 500 additonal hotel rooms, brining the total up from 1,500 to 2,000.

Quick Facts,


42-acre resort
2,000 hotel rooms, including more than 100 luxurious suites
470,000 square feet of flexible convention, meeting, exhibition and pre-function space
Spectacular 18-story, 1.65 acre multi-level atrium
A high-tech entertainment sports bar, a coffee shop and a high-energy night club atop the hotel tower, offering spectacular views to our nation?s capital
Rel?che, a 20,000 square-foot luxury spa, salon and fitness center
Estimated project cost $565 million
1,850 permanent jobs
1,135 indirect jobs (Prince George?s County)
1,018 construction jobs
$51 million annual payroll
Taxes generated: $3.2 million in year one; $346 million 2008-2037






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Progress

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Sounds huge. I wonder if this will become the CBD of Prince George's County.

Its a great project for Prince George's County and metro area. However, with all that said, if its not accessible by buses, but particularly trains then its no as bright a spot as it could be.

The proposed Purple Line that would optimally parallel the inner Beltway in a circle formation is whats needed, and the fact that its (National Harbor) location right outside of the Beltway and across from Alexandria is a perfect reason to construct a station at National Harbor.


Obviously, thats not the developers decision, but something for the future to consider

The proposed Purple Line that would optimally parallel the inner Beltway in a circle formation is whats needed, and the fact that its (National Harbor) location right outside of the Beltway and across from Alexandria is a perfect reason to construct a station at National Harbor.



Great point. Yet another reason to build the Purple Line... :ohno: Hopefully O'Malley will see the light.

Very nice place! :yes: Go, Maryland!!! :)

There is a right of way for a yellow line extension on the new Woodrow Wilson bridge. There will also be a fairy system connecting to D.C. and Alexandria. Also a new interchange specifically for the harbor is just about completed.

I'm sure metro and Prince George's will provide public bus service to there.

I share your high hopes for this development. PG County has the highest number of out-of-county commutes in the state and in the Washington region, and it really needs to build its job base. Developments like this, Konterra (is that still going to be built?), and metro's recent announcement of ToD around several county metro stations are heartening. It seems like PG County of all inner suburban DC area jurisdictions has the most room for development near or in the beltway, so I look forward to seeing how this turns out. PG doesn't have the best reputation, but I've always thought it had a lot of potential and got left behind by Montgomery and Fairfax. Cheaper housing costs and easier commutes should work in PG's favor.

Also: the Purple line is supposed to have a stop here and then eventually go over the Potomac to Alexandria, though that would be after the first phase, and since even that may never happen, who knows. I'll be rooting for both the purple line and PG county's long term prospects.

Also: the Purple line is supposed to have a stop here and then eventually go over the Potomac to Alexandria, though that would be after the first phase, and since even that may never happen, who knows. I'll be rooting for both the purple line and PG county's long term prospects.

As long as the Purple Line isn't slow moving light rail then it will be great for PG County. I can't understand how the Purple Line is barely covered in the news and garners very little public support.

Does anyone know when more plans about the SW Washington waterfront redevelopment will be released? How will that compare to what is being done in PG?

The southwest waterfront in it's first phase, won't be nearly as large as what's going on at Natl. Harbor. It'll cost close to 400 million dollars and consist of 2.3 million sq. ft. It has the size somewhat, but isn't designed to serve the same purpose.

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Sorry they're not bigger, but that's the best I can do right now.

No thats great. I appreciate your help.

As long as the Purple Line isn't slow moving light rail then it will be great for PG County. I can't understand how the Purple Line is barely covered in the news and garners very little public support.

Agreed. Unfortunately I doubt we'll see any movement too soon with the ICC sucking up transit funds. I don't have anything against the ICC's purpose, just its outrageous cost. I never really understood the push for light rail for the Purple Line, I say stick with the proven winner that heavy rail is. If only we could have the ICC, Purple Line, Silver Line, and the Red Line in Baltimore all at once.. :ohno:

Agreed. Unfortunately I doubt we'll see any movement too soon with the ICC sucking up transit funds. I don't have anything against the ICC's purpose, just its outrageous cost. I never really understood the push for light rail for the Purple Line, I say stick with the proven winner that heavy rail is. If only we could have the ICC, Purple Line, Silver Line, and the Red Line in Baltimore all at once.. :ohno:

The Silver Line is good to go right? I thought they just have to decide whether they're building a tunnel through Tysons before construction begins. When we have rail out to Dulles, the next logical step will be a Green Line extension to BWI.

As long as the Purple Line isn't slow moving light rail then it will be great for PG County. I can't understand how the Purple Line is barely covered in the news and garners very little public support.


I agree with that, I can't understand how supporters of the initiation of any "Purple Line" in the Silver Springs-Bethesda area would support light rail for a route as important as the "Purple Line" would be. ICC is of course sucking up unnecessary funds that could go into rail transit, but even with that said, a heavy rail Purple Line is a must.

Why would anyone in their right mind (commuters), take a relatively slow light rail train from say Prince George's County to Fairfax County or vice versa, when they could hop on the same route and go be going up to 40 mph or more on heavy rail. Any person who supports the Purple Line would be wise in long term thinking to support heavy rail, even it means extra funds to put some tunnels underneath those dense residential neighborhoods of suburban Maryland, it would be well worth it.

I'm not against light rail trains, but in a market that already has an established heavy rail line, light rail should be an important peripheral mode of transportation, especially on a route as large and with as much potential connectivity as the Purple Line.

Here is a Sierra Club of the DC metro version of what the Purple Line's route would look like...........and what do u know!!??.......a National Harbor stop is right there.

Purple Line map
http://www.sierraclub.org/dc/sprawl/purple-line/purple-line-map-large.html

^^ I agree that DC should stick with heavy rail simply because the system is already heavy rail and heavy rail is the most efficient mode of transit, but for the reasons you mentioned, I'm a little curious - how many commuters are really expected to use the Purple Line? Assuming it eventually gets expanded to circle the entire metro as shown in the link, it will mostly be connecting residential areas and not high employment centers, no? Only Alexandria is a very big employment area, right? And wouldn't most who work in Alexandra be more inclined to live south of the city rather than in Largo, Bethesda, Silver Spring, etc.? I admit the system looks awesome with the Purple Line circling it, but it is my impression that circular transit lines have more or less proven ineffective where they have been built because they don't really connect any place of interest. Has any of this been addressed or am I way out in left field with this?

By the way, when is that entire circulating Purple Line estimated to be complete, or is it even an official proposal yet?

Thanks

^^ I agree that DC should stick with heavy rail simply because the system is already heavy rail and heavy rail is the most efficient mode of transit, but for the reasons you mentioned, I'm a little curious - how many commuters are really expected to use the Purple Line? Assuming it eventually gets expanded to circle the entire metro as shown in the link, it will mostly be connecting residential areas and not high employment centers, no? Only Alexandria is a very big employment area, right? And wouldn't most who work in Alexandra be more inclined to live south of the city rather than in Largo, Bethesda, Silver Spring, etc.? I admit the system looks awesome with the Purple Line circling it, but it is my impression that circular transit lines have more or less proven ineffective where they have been built because they don't really connect any place of interest. Has any of this been addressed or am I way out in left field with this?

By the way, when is that entire circulating Purple Line estimated to be complete, or is it even an official proposal yet?

Thanks
Arlington is probably the 4th or 5th largest job market on the Purple Line after Tysons, Bethesda, Arlington and Silver Spring. Bethesda alone is home to 3 fortune 500 company headquarters, the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda Naval Medical Hospital and soon, Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital. Many people commute to Bethesda, Tysons and Arlington now and live on the East side of the city or far out on the West Side because of ridiculously high real estate costs in inner Montgomery and PG County. I-270 (a 14 lane road!) and the Beltway between 95 and 270 is absolutely ridiculous. The Beltway over the Wilson bridge is possibly worse. There is definately the need for the Purple Line.

Yep, the Silver Line is pretty much a done deal, though unfortunately it looks like it's going to be elevated through Tyson's. As for the potential green line extension, I think increased service between Washington, Fort Meade, BWI, Baltimore, and Aberdeen is a must for smart growth, but since all those lay along MARC lines improving the commuter service would be the best way to do that in the short term, as I'd rather save money for the purple line and the red line in Baltimore. O'Malley made improving MARC a central pillar of his transportation plan, and I'd imagine perhaps the feds would be amenable to funding it because of BRAC, just like Fairfax has gotten road improvements around Fort Belvoir out of them. Still, the state is headed for tight times fiscally and O'Malley made an awful lot of promises, so I have my fingers crossed.

As for the usefulness of the Purple Line, I think it's guaranteed to get a good amount of use. Washington seems to have an unusually high number of jobs in the suburbs because of how small the city is in relation to its metro area, so a suburb to suburb line was bound to spring up, especially since that kind of travel is in many cases impractical with the current system. Also, the residential areas the line would pass through are denser than most American cities, and in the long term it has the potential to encourage ToD in the inner surburbs. Another point that frequently isn't mentioned is that the lines through the city are so clogged, the purple line would also divert a good amount of traffic from them, especially as heavy rail, increasing the capacity of the system as a whole. All in all, I think the line will not be mostly used so much for long trips as for short trips to hop between other lines and transit modes or get to nearby suburbs.

^^ I agree that DC should stick with heavy rail simply because the system is already heavy rail and heavy rail is the most efficient mode of transit, but for the reasons you mentioned, I'm a little curious - how many commuters are really expected to use the Purple Line? Assuming it eventually gets expanded to circle the entire metro as shown in the link, it will mostly be connecting residential areas and not high employment centers, no? Only Alexandria is a very big employment area, right? And wouldn't most who work in Alexandra be more inclined to live south of the city rather than in Largo, Bethesda, Silver Spring, etc.? I admit the system looks awesome with the Purple Line circling it, but it is my impression that circular transit lines have more or less proven ineffective where they have been built because they don't really connect any place of interest. Has any of this been addressed or am I way out in left field with this?

By the way, when is that entire circulating Purple Line estimated to be complete, or is it even an official proposal yet?

Thanks

If the Purple Line appeared today in heavy rail format, there would already be 6 out of 17 rail stops with established and large employment and retail centers: Bethesda, Silver Spring, University of Maryland, National Harbor (U/C), Alexandria, and Tysons Corners. I guarantee there are 10s of thousands of people that would abandon their cars if they could get to those employment centers more easily by train. The other 11 stops, most especially in Prince George's County are currently going through a lot of development change or are being looked at as potential mixed development sites.

Besides, just the fact that a circular route could connect "far off" places better, and provide riders various options in getting to their destination is worth whatever it would cost to build the Purple Line.

I think the Metro board and local people have looked into the Purple Line obviously, but there is no formal declaration to have it completed right now. The moronic ICC roadway, the Silver Line to Dulles, and now even a proposed Green Line exstention to BWI are all vying for support and money. I have no idea how much a preliminary study of a completed Purple Line would cost, but thats definitely something to ponder and examine.

I just got a map of the BalWash area off Zillow.com showing a heat map of real estate prices per square foot. It shows the neccessity for East to West transport links so that residents who can't afford expensive land can get to jobs in expensive land areas.

http://img512.imageshack.us/img512/1907/zillowmapzx1.png (http://imageshack.us)

I see the Purple Line creating an extremely high amount of development in PG County.

The purple line is a suburban heavy rail line. It's not meant to be a city line at all. And that's fine for the DC region. People needing to get from Rockville to Reston or vice versa have no other option but making a big U. Having the Purple Line would alleviate this. The only thing about heavy rail is financing. These days, heavy rail is expensive as hell. A line running a couple miles through G'town was quoted at something like 4 billion. We need to get better financing for these projects and expanding the metro should be something that is aggressively pursued. Light rail is fine in some areas, I'd like it along Columbia Pike, along with other places, but not as an alternate to heavy rail. Within the city, we should see what more we can do with heavy rail, but again, it is just so expensive. I hope we can fill it in over time. In the meantime, BRT and streetcars would be great and will work when implemented.

I think the purple line will happen, but price is the main thing. I think Tysons will be above, but just recently there was another effort by people and businesses in the area to show that it's feasible to build below ground. One way or another, next yr this time, we'll know what's happening.

With metro, there's also a need for a new tunnel over the Potomac. The green line extension will take some time IMO. MARC has potential, but a green line extension is the most desirable. I would like the DC area to improve its network of commuter rail, if we had something like NY's, that would be incredible, but I don't think that's happening. Developments like Konterra will need metro though, so they need to be given first dibs on the green line extension.

And on top of all of this, I think the people in charge understand development and growth better than they did 15 yrs ago, perhaps it's too late for the most part, but we will develop denser and more organized in the future allowing metro to focus on those spots as opposed to development being scattered so it's harder to provide mass transit.

Well the Georgetown metro segment was a special case where the soil conditions would have demanded extremely costly tunneling. It just wasn't worth the investment to serve an area with relatively low population density and transit dependency. If we have to pinch our pennies I don't know how I'd feel about a LRT purple line. On the one hand, it would be immensely cheaper, but I don't think LRT inspires development or attracts riders the same way heavy rail would. I would prefer to just wait and build it as metro in pieces. Maryland is just going to have to see how the budget situation is going to work out in the next few years as it weighs the options.

The green line is actually fairly feasible now that I think about it, as it would get PG, Howard, and AA money, the latter two of which have few transit obligations to finance. Plus, it would be more likely to get the feds' support as it would serve Fort Meade, and I know getting better transit, specifically metro, was a theme in the Howard executive campaign. There was ambitious talk of building a spur into downtown Columbia, which should be getting more densely rebuilt as a new urbanist town center in the long term, so long as area NIMBYs don't pressure the local politicians too much. But with that said, I think the purple line is the best transit project under consideration north of the Potomac in the DC region at this time, along with the District's streetcar initiative.

As for commuter rail, I doubt we'll see much more of it in the DC area, the rights of way just don't exist as Washington never had the industrial base other NE corridor cities had and many of the ROWs that do exist have been neglected. Plus, VRE hasn't been doing so hot lately, though MARC is a different story. Looking at what Philly, New York, Boston, and Chicago have certainly is jealousy inspiring.

Heavy rail is the way to go if you're looking to kick start development definitely. And I agree about commuter rail. I think in the future you'll be able to get to Richmond to B'more with VRE and MARC, but I don't think we'll see the infill of stops like in other places either. Green line to BWI is a huge undertaking and should be well worth the investment, b/c it will accelerate development. It will definitely get a sizeable amount of money from the fed. It will be great to have all three area airports accessible my metro someday.

[QUOTE=drewbwhite;10756694
The green line is actually fairly feasible now that I think about it, as it would get PG, Howard, and AA money, the latter two of which have few transit obligations to finance. Plus, it would be more likely to get the feds' support as it would serve Fort Meade, and I know getting better transit, specifically metro, was a theme in the Howard executive campaign. There was ambitious talk of building a spur into downtown Columbia, which should be getting more densely rebuilt as a new urbanist town center in the long term, so long as area NIMBYs don't pressure the local politicians too much. But with that said, I think the purple line is the best transit project under consideration north of the Potomac in the DC region at this time, along with the District's streetcar initiative.
[/QUOTE]
Howard and AA would only pay a small percentage. Metro is payed for based upon the number of stations in each jurisdiction and population density. The number of stations in Howard and AA would be a small percentage of the total, thus they would never be paying much anyway. I've read that there is currently a proposal in congress to give $150 million per year (inflation adjusted) to Metro to account for Metro usage by the federal government's and other events associated with Washington being the nation's capital (i.e. Reagan Funeral, inaugurations etc). The bill has already been passed by the House, but not by the Senate. Also, I agree that the Green Line extension is likely to get federal backing because Ft. Meade has so many government employees and is gaining more with BRAC.

Here is the article from the Post on Federal Funding: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/07/17/AR2006071701315.html
If VA and MD don't create a dedicated source of funding I'm moving to Canada. ITS NEARLY FREE MONEY!

Here it is and look...more transit news, thanks xzmattzx! How about that Yellow line exention to National Harbor? Any news on that?

Which one should we keep open? Or is there a way to merge the 2?

Since I can't upate the other thread, I'm going to continue to update this one as news and progress is reported.

National Harbor signs up eateries
Upscale restaurants expected to open next spring
by Liza Gutierrez | Staff Writer

National Harbor is bringing an upscale dining lineup to Prince George’s County with an ambience that its developer says evokes trendy dining hot spots in Hollywood and Manhattan.

Also, a Florida company this week announced it plans to build 250 vacation timeshare units at the development.

The Peterson Cos. of Fairfax, Va., which is developing the $2 billion, 300-acre mixed-use project in Oxon Hill, announced that Ketchup, Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante and Rosa Mexicano will join Grace’s Fortune and McCormick and Schmick’s along the waterside.

Letters of intent also have been signed with the Ark Restaurants Corp. for its second Sequoia restaurant and Gallagher’s, a high-end New York-style steakhouse. The company’s other Sequoia location is along the Potomac River in the Georgetown Harbor area of Washington, D.C.

With this surge of upscale restaurants at National Harbor, some in the industry are seeing the transition of Prince George’s County and ‘‘its coming of age,” said Fred Rosenthal, co-owner of Jasper’s restaurants. The new restaurants will only add to the dining experience in the county, he said.

Prince George’s will get the recognition it deserves as a great place for travelers to visit and eat, while also providing more interesting dining concepts for the growing county population, he said.

Ketchup — a signature restaurant of The Dolce Group in Los Angeles, whose celebrity ownership includes Ashton Kutcher, Wilmer Valderrama and Tara Reid — will offer a mix of American comfort foods. True to its namesake condiment, the restaurant features a variety of homemade ketchups and sauces, according to a company statement.

Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante, another Dolce Group concept, will offer ‘‘classic Italian food presented in an exciting and elaborate way,” according to a statement.

The restaurant and its ‘‘sleek lounge” will also be able to host private events and large dinner parties.

Rosa Mexicano will bring ‘‘its signature style of authentic Mexican cuisine in a stylishly, festive atmosphere,” while Gallagher’s will offer steak and seafood options amid dark wood décor.

The restaurants are expected to open next spring, when the 2,000-room Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center also is expected to open.

Vacation units planned

Wyndham Vacation Ownership of Orlando, Fla., said it finalized a deal with The Peterson Cos. to purchase the right to build an upscale 250-unit vacation ownership resort on nearly 2 acres. Terms were not disclosed.

Construction on the 11-story tower, with one-, two- and three-bedroom suites, is expected to begin this fall, with opening slated in late 2009.

The company has operated a similar resort in Old Town Alexandria, Va., since 1999.

Economic Development
Harbor spillover will flow dollars to neighborhoods
Washington Business Journal - March 23, 2007
by Joe Coombs and Erin Killian
Staff Reporters

National Harbor will pump nearly $1 billion in tax revenues into Prince George's County during the next 30 years, but the project's fiscal strength could produce a ripple effect beyond the shores of the Potomac.

Thousands of conference attendees and tourists are expected at National Harbor on any given week, and plans are ramping up to push those crowds toward Alexandria, Mount Vernon, Georgetown and possibly the new Nationals baseball stadium in Southeast D.C. via water taxis. Talks also are under way to create a hydroplane service that would jet National Harbor's guests to and from Reagan National Airport. Old Town businesses are mobilizing to handle the throngs, and a study is progressing on building a dock system near First Street SE on the Anacostia River.

With all that activity, the Potomac River could become the region's new conduit for commerce, says Kent Digby, vice president of National Harbor operations for the lead developer, Fairfax-based The Peterson Cos.

"The connectivity is very rich," Digby says. "Don't underestimate what this could do for the river and the region's economy. If you've got a few thousand people here for a convention, and you want to get to Alexandria or Georgetown, would you get in a car or on a bus? Why not use a boat?"

National Harbor already has signed a deal with Alexandria-based Potomac Riverboat Co., which has been running water taxis between Georgetown, Alexandria and Mount Vernon since 1983. As part of the agreement, Potomac Riverboat has bought two new 99-passenger boats for $3 million that will be ready for the extra service in the spring of 2008, says Willem Polak, the company's president.

Water taxis will run from National Harbor to Old Town every half hour, to Georgetown three times a day and once daily to Mount Vernon.

"We've really been a tourism business, but this makes us a transportation business," Polak says. "It's going to benefit the economies on both sides of the river. Parking in Alexandria's historic district is always an issue. This could keep hundreds of people a day off the roads."

National Harbor's first phase is slated to open in the spring of 2008 and will include a 2,000-room hotel and 470,000 square feet of convention space developed by Nashville, Tenn.-based Gaylord Entertainment. Several other hotels on the property are preparing to break ground; the entire project will bring in $942 million in taxes for Prince George's County and create 13,000 jobs during the next 30 years.

The city of Alexandria is also preparing for the increased number of visitors who will arrive on the water taxis by encouraging the city's businesses to extend their hours and clean up their storefronts.

The Alexandria Economic Development Partnership estimates that about 40 to 50 people will arrive in Alexandria every half hour, which could add up to about 1,500 people a day.

The partnership teamed up with the Alexandria government, Alexandria Chamber of Commerce and Alexandria Convention and Visitors Association to form the National Harbor Collaborative. The group held its first meeting March 13, and 120 people showed up, including many Old Town restaurant and retail owners.

"This is a great opportunity to stress to the business owners there's a role they need to play in their lighting and cleaning, facade improvement," says Stephanie Landrum, acting executive director of the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership. "Our hope as a city is that the impact would be felt beyond King Street and Union Street."

Adding the National Harbor stop to Potomac Riverboat's schedule should be easy. But proposed connections to the Nationals baseball stadium and Reagan National may come with obstacles.

Next to Reagan National, the Potomac is too shallow for water taxis, so Peterson is pursuing the purchase of a $3 million, 55-passenger hydroplane that would shuttle people between the airport and National Harbor. Peterson representatives have had several discussions with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority to date, but there are still several questions to be answered, says Tara Hamilton, an authority spokeswoman.

"We're on a fact-finding mission right now," Hamilton says. "We're starting with what they'll need physically, such as the docks, the infrastructure and the utilities. It's fair to say we're interested, but we're still trying to assess how it would all work. If the physical requirements are feasible, then we'll have to address the security aspects."

It's unlikely that an airport water dock would be ready when the first segment of National Harbor opens in 2008. At that time, the Nationals' new baseball stadium in Southeast is expected to be ready, and waterfront planners are looking into building a dock system near the Earth Conservation Corps offices on First Street SE.


To date, representatives of the Anacostia Waterfront Corp. haven't had any discussions with Peterson or Potomac Riverboat about running the water taxis there for baseball games. But that should change in the coming weeks, says Nia Francis, a project director with AWC.

Work Underway on National Harbor’s First Residences

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., March 5, 2007 — One National Harbor, the first condominium building at the National Harbor, is now under construction. The luxury residences will include 253 upscale condominiums, 40,000 square feet of first-class retail space, underground parking, a rooftop pool and terrace, an exercise room, spectacular views, and other high-level features. Designed by WDG Architecture of Washington, D.C., the building is being constructed by Clark Residential of Bethesda, Md. Sales of the condominiums, which will be managed by McWilliams/Ballard, are expected to begin in the summer of 2007, with prices for one bedrooms starting in the $300,000s, for two bedrooms starting in the $400,000s and for penthouses starting in the $600,000s. To be part of the priority preview list, log on to www.NationalHarborLiving.com. Rising from the banks of the Potomac just south of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in Prince George’s County, Md., National Harbor is a 300-acre, mixed-used development that will include five hotels (including the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, the largest such facility on the East Coast), thousands of residential units, tree-lined promenades with scores of shops and offices, a marina and much more. Created by Washington, D.C.-area developer, The Peterson Companies., the project will command a mile and a quarter of the Potomac. The Peterson Companies and its affiliates have had a major impact on real estate development in the Washington, DC, area for more than 30 years. The firm is one of the largest privately owned development companies in the region.

Destination for Dining
With Restaurants on the Menu, National Harbor Hopes to Attract a Crowd

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/30/AR2007033002201.html

By Anita Huslin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, March 31, 2007; Page D01

A year from now, after a new $2 billion town center opens on the banks of the Potomac in Prince George's County, business professionals will come for meetings at the new hotel and conference center. Boaters will dock at the marina and shoppers will arrive to spend money in the retail stores, if all goes as planned.

But National Harbor's greatest achievement, at least in the eyes of many local residents, would be putting a wine-and-dine destination on the county map. In a community where big-box retailers are easier to find than white tablecloth restaurants, the value of the project will likely be judged by the quality of its eateries. Its success may be as well.

Peterson Cos. of Fairfax is banking on upscale cuisine to keep people attending conventions on the grounds and draw business and leisure diners to its 300-acre project. To that end, it has assembled a core group of a half-dozen restaurants that it hopes will set the tone for the rest of the project, creating a draw for upscale retailers and lifestyle-entertainment companies to join the project.

Several should be familiar to Washington area diners: Sequoia, McCormick & Schmick's, Rosa Mexicano and Grace's Fortune, all of which have establishments in the area. Gallagher's Steak House is coming from New York. To appeal to the more scene-conscious diner, the developer is bringing in Ketchup, a nouveau American cuisine restaurant, and Dolce Enoteca e Ristorante, which offers contemporary Italian food. Both were developed by Los Angeles restaurateurs, who have drawn in Hollywood clientele to boost the cachet of the businesses.

"Now we're going to have a place to go and have quality restaurants," Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson said through a spokeswoman. "It's going to be a new experience. And it's one we have deserved for a long time."

Although Prince George's civic leaders have for years sought something more than a Sizzler steakhouse in an office park, turning a scrub of woods into restaurants with have-to-be-there buzz is no easy task. Even in Manhattan and Chicago, assembling a concentration of sustainable, blue-chip restaurants in one spot has been a challenge. At National Harbor, developers hope the restaurants and retail stores will be frequented by tourist and convention travelers staying at the 2,000-room Gaylord National hotel being built on 40 acres next door. When fully built, National Harbor is expected to include 2,500 residential units, 500,000 square feet of office space, about 3,000 more rooms in four additional hotels and a vacation timeshare.

Without a traditional department store, movie megaplex or large-format bookstore to anchor the project, developers said, it is even more critical to create a mix and mass of restaurants that would attract crowds to a development that is supposed to feel like a town center.

"Even more so than retail, if you choose the right restaurants, they animate a project like this," said Jason Spillerman, a consultant with Vibrant Development, which is working on the National Harbor project and specializes in adding retail, dining and entertainment to such projects. "Traditional retail hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. With the restaurants [at National Harbor] you stretch the day into three parts that provides foot traffic for a longer period."

Retailers tend to follow restaurants into new venues, developers said. And with sales of $750 to $1,000 per square foot, compared with $350 for retailers, restaurants can be big moneymakers in projects like National Harbor, industry data show.

In projects where a developer creates a town center-like space, the idea is "to re-create this urban environment that acts like the social hub of the suburbs," said Yaromir Steiner, founder of Steiner and Associates, which specializes in designing and creating "traditional" urban settings with shopping, living and working.

As early as the start of the 20th century, the strategy was used to draw occupants to new development. Developer J.C. Nichols created a town on the outskirts of Kansas City in the 1920s by building department stores, hotels and restaurants to anchor the homes he was selling.

In recent years, as "foodie" culture has become a leisure activity for many Americans, destination dining has eclipsed retail's appeal for creating a unique experience, Steiner said.

All of the restaurants that have committed to coming to National Harbor have establishments elsewhere. That adds a degree of consistency to service, said Marc Menick, vice president of retail for National Harbor. All appeal to a well-heeled, upper-middle class customer.

"Clearly they're not focusing on restaurants that could be found in lifestyle shopping centers or many other suburban restaurants throughout the metro area," said Michael D. Beyard, a senior fellow at the Urban Land Institute who studies retail and urban entertainment development. And the mix would appeal to different groups, Menick said.

The dark-paneled dining room of Gallagher's, for example, would likely appeal to the expense-account crowds with its porterhouse steaks and filets. Sequoia offers vibrant cocktails, while waiters at Rosa Mexicano make fresh guacamole at the table. Grace's Fortune offers Asian fusion. The L.A.-styled restaurant Ketchup offers chic versions of classic American dishes, such as Kobe beef sliders and sweet-potato tater tots, while its affiliate Dolce Enoteca adds a California accent to its Italian dishes. Their sleek, modern spaces, with white leather booths and glowing red ball lights overhead are designed to attract a hip, style-conscious clientele, Menick said.

In coming months, Peterson officials said, the firm plans to round out the offerings with recognizable chains with different price ranges.

Chef Jeffrey Buben, owner of Bistro Bis and Vidalia in the District, has been on the local restaurant scene for 25 years. He said it might be more difficult for National Harbor to draw the upscale, independent restaurateurs who appeal to the D.C. business clientele.

"It's a little bit off-market from what we do, but it's a great project," he said. "It just goes to show how huge this area is becoming. At the same time, it's one less reason for people to come into the city."

Work Underway on National Harbor’s First Residences

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., March 5, 2007 — One National Harbor, the first condominium building at the National Harbor, is now under construction. The luxury residences will include 253 upscale condominiums, 40,000 square feet of first-class retail space, underground parking, a rooftop pool and terrace, an exercise room, spectacular views, and other high-level features. Designed by WDG Architecture of Washington, D.C., the building is being constructed by Clark Residential of Bethesda, Md. Sales of the condominiums, which will be managed by McWilliams/Ballard, are expected to begin in the summer of 2007, with prices for one bedrooms starting in the $300,000s, for two bedrooms starting in the $400,000s and for penthouses starting in the $600,000s. To be part of the priority preview list, log on to www.NationalHarborLiving.com. Rising from the banks of the Potomac just south of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge in Prince George’s County, Md., National Harbor is a 300-acre, mixed-used development that will include five hotels (including the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, the largest such facility on the East Coast), thousands of residential units, tree-lined promenades with scores of shops and offices, a marina and much more. Created by Washington, D.C.-area developer, The Peterson Companies., the project will command a mile and a quarter of the Potomac. The Peterson Companies and its affiliates have had a major impact on real estate development in the Washington, DC, area for more than 30 years. The firm is one of the largest privately owned development companies in the region.
Penthouses for 600 thousand? Jesus Christ! Ridiculous!

Couple of points regarding transit:

1. The Purple line will be light rail, not Metro, and there are currently no plans to extend it west of Bethesda into VA. I'm sure once the Bethesda-New Carrollton span is complete talks will begin on an extension into VA, but it's a long way off.

2. National Harbor's best shot for rail access will be as an extension of the DC streetcar under construction in Anacostia.

3. I would be totally against a Green line extension north towards Baltimore. MARC can do the same job better, faster and cheaper. The only road block is the political idea that Metro is a one-size-fits all solution to everything, which is completely incorrect.

I agree w/ all three. I don't think connecting the purple line into VA will take place anytime soon. I think for the other side, water taxis is probably the soonest new form of transit we'll get. I think we need to get more water taxis going though all around DC.

What about the yellow line extension? I think that makes the most sense above all. BTW, Welcome to the Forum Cirrus.

A Yellow line extension to National Harbor, as far as I know, is an idea only, and not on any plans (unless I've missed something). Virginia will probably come out actively against the idea since a) their money is tied up in Tysons and with BRAC issues, and b) National Harbor will compete with Old Town Alexandria. DC won't like being bypassed and so will also probably oppose the idea. MD would go for it, but won't have the money thanks to the ICC, Purple line, Corridor Cities Transitway, Baltimore's Red and Green lines, and their own BRAC issues. It seems to me a Yellow line extension is 20 years away at best.

The streetcar, OTOH, is already on plans, would enjoy active political support from both DC and MD (VA wouldn't care), and would be much, much less expensive. Seems like a winner to me.

I think streetcar sounds like a good idea. I do think that getting connection between natl. harbor and old town is something that both sides want. Water taxis are good, but they may want something else too.

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0407/412942.html

Go to the link to see the video.

One thing I'm somewhat concerned about with the National Harbor is the depth of the Potomac around that section. I first learned to sail on the Potomac and I know that the area in the center of the river just downstream of the Wilson Bridge is very dangerous. I checked some NOAA Navigation Charts and realized the depth is as low as 2 ft right in the center of the river just by the Wilson Bridge. Right by the Virginia side of the bridge is where the dredges came through giving a swath of 20 to 30ft depth that continues further upstream. In order to safely access the area around the National one has to carefully come in from the South not to far from the PG County shoreline. I think NOAA needs to put in some navigation aids to make sure people don't go into the shallows towards the river's center. Also, the navigation charts indicate that there are quite a few (submerged) wrecks just around the National Harbor that could pose a threat to boats with higher drafts (like the Odyssey or any Tall Ships that come by).

Alexandrians Gird For National Harbor, MD: As Project Rises, So Do Hopes and Fears

By Kirstin Downey
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, April 10, 2007; Page A01

http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/graphic/2007/04/10/GR2007041000195.gif

Old Town Alexandria, an urban jewel box of some 6,000 meticulously preserved historic buildings, is bracing for change.

In a few weeks, city officials plan to unveil an ambitious proposal to redevelop the waterfront, a plan conceived as a way to make the city more of a tourist mecca.

Meanwhile, the largest public works project on the East Coast, the rebuilding of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, is hurtling toward completion in the city's southeast corner. The new bridge, a key link in the nation's most heavily trafficked north-south corridor, raises the possibility that Old Town will become a stopping point along the way for even more vehicles. A network of conjoined bike trails will funnel hundreds of cyclists from Virginia to Maryland and back.

And just across the Potomac River, on the Maryland side, a $2 billion hotel and convention project known as National Harbor is jutting ever larger into the sky, bristling with construction cranes. A battery of water taxis will ply the waters between the two shores, disgorging an estimated 500 to 1,000 tourists and conventioneers each day onto Alexandria's narrow streets.

A major transformation is underway in this 258-year-old city of 135,000 residents. Longtime Alexandrians are starting to look across the river with a combination of concern and elation about how National Harbor might change their city's character. They are starting to wonder about the increased traffic, the additional parking and signage that will be needed, the capacity to handle the crowds and the possibility that long-established businesses will be pushed out to make way for a crush of tourists who want to buy tacky T-shirts and fudge.

"For a long time, it was below the radar," said Christopher M. Campagna, a seventh-generation Alexandrian. "People now see it coming out of the ground. Now it's meaningful. It's big. It's real. It's 'Oh God, what will it do to us?' "

Landscape architect Geoffrey C. Stone, an Alexandria resident, is frankly worried.

"People don't want to see the destruction of our core historic fabric," Stone said. "It's a conundrum -- the one thing that makes us attractive is our historic character. We don't want to destroy the thing that makes us attractive."

National Harbor is a project that many people thought would never become a reality. The property, in Prince George's County, was for centuries a forested green expanse across from the bustling industrial waterfront in Alexandria. Then the site was proposed for the much-ballyhooed PortAmerica complex, with a 52-story office tower envisioned as its centerpiece, but the project fell into disarray and went into foreclosure in the 1990s during the savings and loan crash. The site was denuded into a muddy wasteland.

But Fairfax-based developer Milton V. Peterson resurrected the concept, and National Harbor, the largest non-gambling hotel and conference center on the Eastern Seaboard, is scheduled to open for business in April 2008. Nine hundred thousand room nights have been booked, with reservations made up through 2012, and some conventioneers are already clamoring for hotel space in Old Town.

While some Alexandria residents are watching with trepidation, many others, including city officials and much of the business establishment, are thrilled and optimistic about the commercial opportunities coming their way. They have had a series of planning meetings to figure out how to prepare for the visitor onslaught and reap the maximum reward for city taxpayers, who have been weighed down by rising property tax assessments.

"This is the largest opportunity we have seen in Alexandria in a while," said Stephanie Landrum, acting executive director of the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership, who envisions Alexandria becoming a gateway for tourists to Virginia and the state's numerous historic destinations. "So many new people are coming into the region from just across the water," she said.

Happiest of all are the owners of the stores and restaurants along King Street.

"It will bring some new energy to the city," said Glenda Giovannoni, president of Old Town Food Service, which owns the Fish Market restaurant and Pop's Ice Cream. "Anything that brings people is good."

Giovannoni hopes the new developments will spur a large-scale return of the most profitable clientele, young and childless urban professionals, adding that many of the restaurant's longtime patrons now show up with kids in tow, asking for high chairs instead of tall schooners of beer.

Fred Parker, founder of Hard Times Cafe, also on King Street, welcomes the prospect of more people arriving with a craving for spicy fare.

"Traditionally, the chili business slows down in the summer, but hopefully this will give our business a boost in the hot weather," Parker said.

Jay Thomas, who owns a Kwik Kopy printing shop near the waterfront, is weighing the pros and the cons. He began getting nervous about the potential effect on parking and auto congestion, which could make it hard for his regular patrons to reach him, after he began noticing the immense scale of the construction projects underway. He said local tourism officials have tried to reassure him by stressing that any losses he might suffer would be offset by the potential to score new contracts selling marketing materials to conventioneers.

"It was a little scary, a threat, when it first began coming up, but [officials] are taking the position it is an opportunity," Thomas said.

Parking is a major concern. Alexandria is developing plans to encourage people to walk or bicycle from place to place, and it has set aside $200,000 to create a shuttle bus to transport visitors from the waterfront to the King Street Metro station. Officials say they hope the transit service will be free to encourage people not to drive. They believe the half-dozen parking garages scattered throughout the core of Old Town can accommodate most of the motorists.

"Building more parking garages is not an attractive option, because it only adds to the numbers of cars on the road," said Richard Baier, Alexandria's director of transportation and environmental services. City, regional and state transportation officials will gather in Alexandria on April 19 to explain plans for dealing with auto congestion, including traffic problems relating to National Harbor and the Wilson Bridge, and Baier said residents with questions should try to attend.

Others question whether an increase in tourists could end up drawing businesses that cater to vacationers: fudge stores, tattoo parlors and funky T-shirt emporiums. Landrum, of the economic development partnership, is quick to quash that vision: She says the city's zoning ordinance and special use permitting process will allow officials to weed out what she called "down-market uses and undesirables."

Many residents seem to agree that the prospects are mostly positive.

"I think it will be a success, and I think Alexandria will benefit," said Bill Harvey, who lives in Alexandria's Carlyle development on the edge of Old Town.

But not everyone is convinced yet, especially those who fear being displaced because of economic activity generated by the mega-developments. They fear that the historic buildings will be preserved but not the residents who have lived in them.

"Alexandria is a historic town, and there is value for Alexandria in preserving what it has been," said Chuck Benagh, a resident of the Hunting Towers complex near the Wilson Bridge. "The human part is a big part of any community. Once you deport your elderly, you make it other than what it was."

Gaylord's Potential Has D.C. Squirming

By Anita Huslin
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, June 11, 2007; Page D01

http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/photo/2007/06/10/PH2007061001051.jpg

Depending on where you're standing, the growing skyline of the new Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center is looking like either a boon or a bane.

In 10 months, the Washington region's newest hotel and convention center will open, with its 2,000 rooms, more than 10 acres of indoor meeting space, spa, shops and restaurants on the Potomac River in Prince George's County -- and the competition in the District is squirming.

Business circles buzz about flirtations between Gaylord and groups long loyal to the District. Washington hotel and convention officials launch interventions to thwart defections. Inevitably, however, some occur.

The Air Force Association has grown out of the District's largest downtown hotel, the 1,348-room Marriott Wardman Park, and is moving its annual Air & Space Conference and Technology Exposition to Gaylord National in 2009. The District-based Council on Foundations will go there next year. The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, which is holding a national conference this month at the D.C. Grand Hyatt, will go, too.

"They're hiring all of our sales staff from our hotels they want to take as much business as they can from the city," said Emily Durso, president of the Hotel Association of Washington, D.C. The sheer size of Gaylord National is daunting. "It's as if you move all the Baltimore hotels and the Baltimore convention center to Prince George's County."

Gaylord's 48-acre property on the Potomac -- the fourth in the Nashville company's portfolio, which started with Opryland and includes resorts near Orlando and Dallas -- has already booked nearly a million room-nights, many of them with groups and associations that have met at its other hotels. Nearly 80 percent of its business will be with conference and convention groups that look for all-inclusive meeting and resort facilities -- a niche that no property in the District targets exclusively, said Sheldon Suga, general manager of Gaylord National.

This, however, is of little comfort to D.C. hotel and convention officials who are struggling to fill their group reservation books. The ease of being able to schedule a conference and set aside a block of hotel rooms in the convention facility or within walking distance at overflow hotels at National Harbor is an advantage, industry officials say.

"Certainly in D.C., where the leisure and transient corporate business is so good, you end up having to book more hotels with smaller room blocks" for a conference, said John Graham, president and chief executive of the D.C.-based American Society of Association Executives. "A more desirable model is fewer hotels with larger room blocks. . . . I think Gaylord is going to provide a nice addition to the space in D.C. for our community."

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have been considering Gaylord as a meeting site, in part because of high security costs in the District. Hotel and convention officials appealed to the city to help prevent "the irreversible precedent of ceding our ground to Prince George's County," Durso wrote in a letter to the D.C. administrator.

"The inclination to yield to Prince George's County dramatically impedes our city's marketing efforts and our economic and political capital," [B](WOW, OMFG) Durso said in the letter, which was also signed by Bill Hanbury, president and chief executive of the D.C. Convention and Tourism Corp. "We would specifically lose over $11 million in yearly spending if the World Bank/IMF meetings do not come to Washington, D.C."

Gaylord National markets itself as a self-contained destination, noting security features such as a single-access road, which could be closed to protesters. But at the same time, it is dependent on its proximity to the District. The center highlights its regional connections, including water taxi service to Georgetown and Alexandria and a menu of concierge services. Their client and guest services will help personalize forays into the District, arranging tickets to shows, museums and sporting events, Suga said.

All of which means the District will have to work harder for its customers, said Stephen S. Fuller, regional economist for George Mason University who also serves on the board of one of the construction companies building the Gaylord hotel.

"They're going to have it all in one package," Fuller said of Gaylord. "It does point up the deficiency in the District's offerings. They should've had a hotel up and running already next to the [D.C.] convention center and they know it. Gaylord has 2,000 rooms sitting right there that will be opening" in April.

Plans are in the works for a hotel next to the D.C. convention center. But otherwise, the D.C. hospitality industry's strategy has been to respond to threats as they arise. When the city hotels lose bookings to Gaylord, Durso said, "You try to figure out, okay, in the future when I have to go to that kind of business again, what do I do differently? It really doesn't always boil down to price; it boils down to values."

Those "values" reflect the District's appeal for the non-convention crowd -- tourists, businesspeople and political or diplomatic visitors. One Washington hospitality executive, who spoke only on condition of anonymity for competitive reasons, said the District will always beat Gaylord when it comes to cachet.

"This is no slam on Gaylord because they are very astute competitors, and they will be very successful," the executive said. "But they've become the Wal-Mart of the tourism industry, where they pick off Ace Hardwares off the corner."

That may work for the masses, the executive said, "but you're not going to tell the finance minister of Saudi Arabia where to stay. He's going to stay at the Four Seasons or Ritz Carlton, or go to dinner at one of the very exclusive restaurants in Washington, D.C. That ambience, that level of service just isn't going to be part of the Gaylord product."

While Gaylord declines to discuss its marketing and sales efforts, its promotional materials tout its hotel spa, a 14th-floor VIP cocktail lounge overlooking the Potomac and glittering boutiques. It's a different face for a company otherwise known for such offerings as Old Hickory Steakhouse and Wild Horse Saloon.

Gaylord National "will increase the reach of Washington's appeal to a group of people who might otherwise would've thought Washington was a little staid, or a little too sophisticated or boring," Fuller said. "I think we're going to get some repeat visitors out of this."

Gaylord's Potential Has D.C. Squirming

"They're hiring all of our sales staff from our hotels they want to take as much business as they can from the city," said Emily Durso, president of the Hotel Association of Washington, D.C. The sheer size of Gaylord National is daunting. "It's as if you move all the Baltimore hotels and the Baltimore convention center to Prince George's County."

....

This, however, is of little comfort to D.C. hotel and convention officials who are struggling to fill their group reservation books. The ease of being able to schedule a conference and set aside a block of hotel rooms in the convention facility or within walking distance at overflow hotels at National Harbor is an advantage, industry officials say.

....

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have been considering Gaylord as a meeting site, in part because of high security costs in the District. Hotel and convention officials appealed to the city to help prevent "the irreversible precedent of ceding our ground to Prince George's County," Durso wrote in a letter to the D.C. administrator.

"The inclination to yield to Prince George's County dramatically impedes our city's marketing efforts and our economic and political capital," [B](WOW, OMFG) Durso said in the letter, which was also signed by Bill Hanbury, president and chief executive of the D.C. Convention and Tourism Corp. "We would specifically lose over $11 million in yearly spending if the World Bank/IMF meetings do not come to Washington, D.C."

...


Plans are in the works for a hotel next to the D.C. convention center. But otherwise, the D.C. hospitality industry's strategy has been to respond to threats as they arise. When the city hotels lose bookings to Gaylord, Durso said, "You try to figure out, okay, in the future when I have to go to that kind of business again, what do I do differently? It really doesn't always boil down to price; it boils down to values."


Wow, they need to grow some balls. Honestly, this wouldn't be so bad if the Hotels and Conference centers stopped dicking around and actually spent some time and money to update their services. Hopefully this competition will encourage DC to upgrade and create world class centers all over.

DC doesn't need more "centers", it needs a bigger convention hotel next to the convention center. The huge Marriott planned for that site has been in the works for years; now it just needs to get built. There's another article in today's Post about hotels in DC, except it concentrates on the fact that the hotel industry in the city is absolutely BOOMING. Biggest problem though is just the lack of a bigger convention center-adjacent hotel. Didn't need an entire article to say that.

DC doesn't need more "centers", it needs a bigger convention hotel next to the convention center. The huge Marriott planned for that site has been in the works for years; now it just needs to get built. There's another article in today's Post about hotels in DC, except it concentrates on the fact that the hotel industry in the city is absolutely BOOMING. Biggest problem though is just the lack of a bigger convention center-adjacent hotel. Didn't need an entire article to say that.

I didn't mean build new stuff, I meant hopefully this will send a message to all parts of DC to upgrade their facilities and finally build that Hotel next to the DC Convention Center. A lot of businesses in the district know that they will be guaranteed business no matter what and thus they are not that inclined to upgrade to top-notch facilities, this leads them to be prime victims to outside the city development. This competition should be really healthy.

DC doesn't need more "centers", it needs a bigger convention hotel next to the convention center. The huge Marriott planned for that site has been in the works for years; now it just needs to get built. There's another article in today's Post about hotels in DC, except it concentrates on the fact that the hotel industry in the city is absolutely BOOMING. Biggest problem though is just the lack of a bigger convention center-adjacent hotel. Didn't need an entire article to say that.

Exactly. And, those Washington Post writers are also in competition with each other because each of them writes with a particular jurisdiction.

The start of construction for the 1,500-room convention center hotel should begin in 2008. Additionally, it will include additional meeting and convention space in it as well.

They already are. The only reason this is making news (yet again) is because it's Prince George's County stealing some of DC's thunder. This is new for PG. In DC the real estate boom continues, except now attention has turned to the still-booming hotel and commercial markets. The article failed to mention the sizes of the convention centers. DC's will still be more than 5 times the size of Gaylord's.

They already are. The only reason this is making news (yet again) is because it's Prince George's County stealing some of DC's thunder. This is new for PG. In DC the real estate boom continues, except now attention has turned to the still-booming hotel and commercial markets. The article failed to mention the sizes of the convention centers. DC's will still be more than 5 times the size of Gaylord's.

Exactly. And the additional meeting space and convention space in the new hotel will be linked to the DC Convention Center by underground passageway, thereby making it even larger than what it is today.

It is also one of the Fenty administration's top priorities now.

They already are. The only reason this is making news (yet again) is because it's Prince George's County stealing some of DC's thunder. This is new for PG. In DC the real estate boom continues, except now attention has turned to the still-booming hotel and commercial markets. The article failed to mention the sizes of the convention centers. DC's will still be more than 5 times the size of Gaylord's.

And it's still losing business to National Harbor? I guess the dog shit of the D.C. area has some bite after all?

And it's still losing business to National Harbor? I guess the dog shit of the D.C. area has some bite after all?

Yes, that is what happens when you start from zero. You get a little market share.

And, the National Harbor is a great project. I wish them success! Also, congratulations to Prince Georges County. This scale of commerce for the county is long overdue.

That's like going from 0-60 in 1.5 seconds! The angst from D.C. is surprising. As if 68 square miles wasn't enough, should they give the enitre county too?

Silver Springer,

With all due respect - it is also mixed with much, much exaggeration and hype! This is something new for Prince Georges County. DC's convention and meeting capacity is so much more than Gaylord's single project. Just the DC Convention Center by itself is several times the size of Gaylord's project. And, there are so many other conventions and meetings held in other facilites around DC.

Gaylord's project will get some business, but it is a single project and its capacity is limited to that couple hundred thousand square feet of space compared to DC's couple million square feet of space.

And, it is worth mentioning that MacFarlane Partners, owners of DC United, is in talks with DC to build a new convention and meeting facility next to the proposed new DC United soccer stadium at Poplar Point which is just on the other side of the Anacostia River to the $13 billion Capitol Riverfront business district in SE DC and the new baseball stadium.

Like I said, this scale of commerce in Prince Georges County is long overdue. Good luck!

I agree with revitalizer. It's just like when downtown Silver Spring began its revitalization it got all the headlines. DC isn't displaying any angst, the Post writers are creating it by quoting Gaylord officials. They're targeting different markets and both can and will exist successfully together, especially once the DC convention center hotel is completed in a couple years.

Downtown Silver Spring was always targeted to meet the neighborhood needs not to be a regional draw. Silver Spring is healtheir and a lot more competitive because of Discovery, AFI and the mixd-use project.

Pennster, I don't know why you don't see the same bitching that D.C. has about National Harbor is the same bitching D.C. has about NPR considering a move to Silver Spring.

National Harbor is almost as large as the CBD and Silver Spring is the largest urban node outside D.C. proper. Revitalizer, I know your rooting for D.C. but lets not try to down play the size of National Harbor, at $4 billion dollars it's largest single mixed-use project on the east coast.

This project would be a huge deal in Fairfax and Loudon and any other jurisdiction in the D.C. area. So to say "finally Prince George's is getting growth long overdue" is not really grasping the scope. Like I said, for a county that was totally neglected by the rest of the D.C. area for so long this is like a quantum leap by any standards. And if this was all that was happening in Prince George's that would be amazing enough but there are other sizeable projects going on that will transform the county.

When there are posts on this forum about how Fairfax is the"job center" of the region and you have Fairfax officials saying "We like to think we're the downtown and D.C. is the suburb" you are no where to be found to oppose such comments.

I wish D.C. good luck too but please get off your high horse, the arrogance is making me nauseous, "We'll use Bethesda Chevy Chase ambulance service at Montgomery County tax payer's dime or use Prince George's County as a dumping ground but otherwise we can't stand to be next to those Marylanders".

It's also surprising coming from Marylanders on this forum who should be more concerned about the well being of their own state. No one is up in arms about trying to move FedEx field and Radio One D.C. News Flash! D.C. is a seperate jurisdiction not bounded by Maryland laws nor does it add to Maryland coffers. They aslo can't stand to be next to us so please get off their you know what.

And it's still losing business to National Harbor? I guess the dog shit of the D.C. area has some bite after all?
......yeah, no kiddin'. and a very vicious bite at that.:lol:

D.C. isn't bitching. It's only natural that another (newer) convention center would draw business away from the only other convention center in the immediate region--that's the nature of economics. But I have no doubt that the DC convention center will be perfectly fine in the long term. Remember, you're speaking of a $4 billion project in the same forum where the $13 billion revitalization of the Anacostia waterfront/harbor is being discussed. Granted, it's not all one huge project, but it is cohesive and contiguous, and in my opinion of much larger importance and will have a much larger economic effect on the region than National Harbor ever will. Maryland and especially Virginia should be shaking in their boots, but they're not (at least as long as Post writers don't create the shaking for us) because this type of large-scale development, while of extraordinary size, is fairly normal for a large city like D.C.

And you of all people, Silver Springer, know that Silver Spring grew up as a very regional draw, and it now continues to operate as such. DC knows what their problem is with regard to the convention center and National Harbor and are working to fix it. I'll defend DC almost as much as I'll defend Maryland, and to be blunt, I like D.C. a lot more than Prince George's County--after Silver Spring I have more roots there than anywhere else, despite the fact that it is a jurisdiction separate from Maryland.

Silver Springer, I am not even going there with you.

It is also nice to know that some readers on this forum can separate hype and divisional tactics from real and factual information. I applaud those readers on here! Thank you!

I don't think you guys are accounting for the fact that if National Harbor is a success, it will prove Prince George's County is capable of being a successful hub for business. If that happens, we're going to have a whole new competitor in the regional economy. I think everyone (Montgomery and Fairfax included) should be worried about this because we all might find ourselves losing a lot of jobs to our cheaper neighbor to the East in the coming years.

Look what happened when the cheap land of Loudon County was unleashed on Washingtonians!

I don't doubt the fact that National Harbor is pretty small compared to the DC economic engine, but I think everyone should be worried that National Harbor could show everyone that PG has grown up and is capable of sustaining business. I think National Harbor is a huge opportunity for them.

Honestly, we really shouldn't be arguing amongst ourselves as much and be more concerned with the bullshit the other forums talk about us. I got into a discussion in the Miami forum and they told me to "shut up because my city was tiny compared the them." DC is really unique in that it has three jurisdictions all competing with each other, no other major city has that problem. We can all support our local areas, IMO, my order of preference is North Bethesda, Silver Spring, Equal of the District and the rest of the MD suburbs, then Virginia. That's the order in which new developments will affect my life, I didn't pick them because I like them over each other. On the other hand I'm not trying to sound like we should be happy-go-lucky with each other; it does bother me a lot that MD is so full of Nimby's that you can't build higher than ten stories without twenty of them crawling up your ass. Virginia has been much luckier and I think Montgomery County especially needs to grow some balls and realize if they want to compete successfully with Virginia they need to stop allowing developments out in Clarksburg and focus all of the resources on the inner areas. The allegiances are hard to deal with, but we just have to make due and just realize the entire region is due to have another huge explosion in the next 5-10 years.[/rant]

And to Silver Springer, as for FedEx, I would rather have it in a downtown or urban setting than in it's current location in the middle of nowhere. Primarily, I think a prime location in Maryland would be in the Hyattesville area. They are revamping that, and a Stadium would encourage retail growth and help to revive a depressed area. If no one wants to take that initiative, I would support it being integrated into the exploding SE waterfront.

This Maryland versus Virgina versus DC stuff is idiotic. We need to be one cohesive region. I'm glad that PG has National Harbor. They needed it badly. National Harbor won't stop DC's Convention or hotel business.

Silver Springer, your reference about DC using Montgomery County ambulance service is so lame. Did you know that Montgomery County, DC and Arlington share some of the same (DC) water?

Silver Springer,

Fairfax County officials can say whatever they want about their county. And we all know that they have a lot of office space but nothing in Fairfax resembles a real downtown or comes close to the office space that DC has. Plus, DC is building more and more commercial offices and condos. Have you been downtown lately? DC is king.

This Maryland versus Virgina versus DC stuff is idiotic. We need to be one cohesive region. I'm glad that PG has National Harbor. They needed it badly. National Harbor won't stop DC's Convention or hotel business.

Silver Springer, your reference about DC using Montgomery County ambulance service is so lame. Did you know that Montgomery County, DC and Arlington share some of the same (DC) water?

If it's lame don' use it, maybe I won't pay so much in taxes. As for water, do you mean Maryland's Potomac River?

Children's Museum Finds a Home in Maryland
D.C. Fixture Set for Pr. George's

By Jacqueline Trescott and Ovetta Wiggins
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, July 27, 2007; Page B05

The National Children's Museum announced yesterday that it has agreed to move across the Potomac to Prince George's County, the second D.C. landmark to be lured away by developers of the National Harbor project in recent months.

The move offers a permanent home for the museum that has had a vagabond existence since closing its Capitol Hill building three years ago and provides another reason for tourists and residents to visit the $2 billion development rising along the riverbank.

"The waterfront location is wonderful, and, combined with the forest area, it provides extraordinary outdoor venues for the museum and visitors," said Kathy Dwyer Southern, the museum's president. The museum will occupy 140,000 square feet, and its officials will revive a fundraising campaign to secure $130 million. They plan to open the facility in 2012.

For National Harbor developer Milton Peterson, the contract with the Children's Museum marks the success of "many months" of negotiations with the staff and members of the museum board. The museum will help link the riverfront project to the nation's capital, a concept that Peterson has been hammering home in public appearances and private meetings with other potential tenants.

The museum will eventually occupy a prominent spot on the main thoroughfare of the National Harbor town center and will have a designated slip on the main pier on the Potomac, which can be used for educational tours for children. The museum will anchor a section of the project dubbed "Kids Village," which could eventually have a children and family-oriented hotel and a theater and art exhibits geared toward youngsters.

To help lure the museum from sites it had been considering in the District, Peterson said he would give the museum the land, enabling it to concentrate its fundraising on construction and startup costs. The museum also is seeking as much as $40 million in financial incentives from the county and state and other public sources, officials involved in the deal said yesterday.

Prince George's officials said they are delighted about the museum's decision to move across the river. "This shows Prince George's is on the move," said Jim Keary, a spokesman for County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D). "And there are so many other things that are on the horizon."

Some D.C. officials questioned the move.

"We're mystified by the National Children's Museum's decision to relocate to Prince George's County," said Mafara Hobson, spokeswoman for Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D). "The move definitely puts the museum in a position to serve fewer children, whereas the District is a central location with a great deal of Metro accessibility."

D.C. Council Member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), who represented the district where the museum was once located, said: "I'm very sorry to hear it is moving out of the District. It's a great loss. . . . But I guess they had to make a business decision."

It's not the only thing headed to Prince George's. In the spring, Peterson announced that he had bought "The Awakening" sculpture for $750,000 in a confidential agreement with the Sculpture Foundation and that he plans to make it part of his waterfront development.

The sculpture had been at Hains Point since 1980 and was considered part of the landscape there. Also, the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, set to open at National Harbor in April, has drawn many of the District's hotel and convention bookings.

The children's museum, founded almost 30 years ago, left its home near Union Station in 2004. It was a victim of the surging development along the H Street NE corridor and the expectations of young visitors who wanted more bells and whistles. The property was sold for $24 million.

The next plan was to relocate to L'Enfant Plaza and open a state-of-the-art museum in 2008. But, Southern said, "the developers simply got to a point in time when their plans and timelines changed significantly," she said. "They came to us and shared that with us, and we did continue conversations with them."

Southern said the museum is abandoning property in the city, not the residents. When it opened, she said, visitors were equally divided among residents of the District, Maryland and Virginia.

"We will continue our strong legacy of serving kids in the region, and the city's kids are a very important family to us," Southern said.

In the meantime, the museum will continue to be "a museum without walls," organizing traveling exhibits and programs in schools.

Staff writer Anita Huslin contributed to this report.

Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center Breaks Industry Record

One Million Room Nights Sold 10 Months Before Opening
July 17, 2007: 01:41 PM EST


NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., July 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center has sold its one-millionth room a record 10 months before opening. This announcement breaks the hospitality industry record for the total number of room nights pre-sold before a hotel opening.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20070717/NETU094 )

The industry record was previously held by another Gaylord property, the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center in Kissimmee, Fla., where one million rooms were sold approximately one month prior to its February 2002 opening. The Gaylord National Resort will debut on April 25, 2008.

"No other resort in the history of hotels anywhere has sold this many rooms so far out from opening," said Mike Mason, senior vice president of sales, Gaylord Hotels. "It's astounding when you consider we still have 10 months to go before a single guest walks through the door. I was very proud when we set a record in 2002 in Florida, but this is incredible. It speaks volumes about the convention demand for the capital region."

The one-million rooms pre-sold includes all room nights under contract with groups scheduled to hold events at the property beginning April 2008 through 2018. Currently, the resort is only accepting group reservations. Individual reservations will be accepted starting January 1, 2008.

"We're introducing an incredible amount of new business and tourism to the mid-Atlantic region that will impact the area in many positive ways," said Tina Sampson, vice president of sales and marketing, Gaylord National Resort. "This destination practically sells itself. Once meeting planners see how special and incredibly exciting this property will be, coupled with the fact that we cater to their needs all under one roof, they want to know where to sign."

Leaders of two of the meeting and convention industry's most prominent associations weighed in on the significance of this record-breaking announcement. Bruce MacMillan, CA, president and CEO of Dallas-based Meeting Professionals International (MPI) was pleased to hear about this achievement.

"This remarkable achievement is a testament to the power of the Gaylord Hotels brand in the meetings and events industry," said MacMillan. "I congratulate Gaylord National on reaching this extraordinary milestone, and look forward to supporting the Gaylord team as they continue to fuel our robust and thriving industry."

John H. Graham IV, CAE, president & CEO of Washington D.C.-based American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) said he looks forward to Gaylord playing a pivotal role in the success and growth of association meetings in the Washington D.C. region and throughout the country.

"Selling one million room nights 10 months out shows the incremental value associations find in the Gaylord brand," said Graham. "The model of providing meeting rooms, sleeping rooms, entertainment venues and much more all under one roof continues to resonate positively throughout the association community because it strategically addresses the unique and challenging logistical needs of associations holding annual meetings, conventions and trade shows."

Not a typical hotel, Gaylord National will immerse guests in the lore and legacies of the historic, mid-Atlantic region. Complementing the resort's world-class amenities will be a spectacular view from the soaring 18-story, glass atrium, which overlooks the Potomac River, nearby Washington D.C. and Old Town Alexandria. Or, just steps away, the National Harbor complex will boast dozens more dining, shopping and entertainment options, as well as continuous water taxi service to nearby destinations like Old Town Alexandria and Georgetown.

About Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center

Opening April 2008 along the banks of the Potomac River in National Harbor, Md., Gaylord National is located less than eight miles south of the nation's capitol. The largest convention resort on the Eastern Seaboard, the Gaylord National offers 2,000 guest rooms; more than 470,000 square feet of convention, meeting and exhibit pace; seven acclaimed restaurants and eateries; Relache(TM) Spa; and a soaring 18-story glass atrium. National Harbor is a new 300-acre waterfront community located in Prince George's County, Md., offering world-class dining, retail and entertainment options. For more information, visit http://www.gaylordnational.com. Gaylord Hotels is owned and operated by Gaylord Entertainment , a leading hospitality and entertainment company based in Nashville, Tennessee. For more information, visit http://www.gaylordhotels.com.

Marketing effort leads tourists past Harbor
Project’s access to Virginia and the District raises concerns that visitors will overlook Prince George’s
by Judson Berger | Staff Writer

When the 300-acre National Harbor project in Oxon Hill opens for business next spring, tourists and convention-goers from across the country will be able to swing into the resort from all points in the Washington region.

They can take a water taxi from Georgetown in the District or zip across the Woodrow Wilson Bridge from Alexandria, Va., and take an interchange directly into the waterfront complex containing a world-class mix of upscale restaurants, clubs, hotels and shops.

But this seamless accessibility to Northern Virginia and the District has raised concerns that visitors to National Harbor, billed as the new jewel of the capital region, will have little reason to set foot anywhere else in Prince George’s County. Local officials and businesspeople are hoping marketing efforts will help pitch National Harbor as an entry to Prince George’s – not the lone attraction.

‘‘What we don’t want to happen is for people to just visit National Harbor and think that they’ve seen all that the county has to offer,” said Kwasi Holman, president of the county’s Economic Development Corp.

Holman said the county is laying the groundwork to launch a new marketing campaign for local attractions to coincide with the opening of National Harbor next spring. He said the marketing budget would draw from private donations as well as public dollars.

Jim Keary, spokesman for County Executive Jack B. Johnson, said once the county signs a contract with a marketing company, the campaign will not be limited to National Harbor.

‘‘Historically, marketing in the county has been hit or miss. There has never been a long-term strategy to identify what this county is about,” he said. ‘‘We have to [show National Harbor visitors] that National Harbor isn’t the only thing in Prince George’s County.”

At the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, the centerpiece of the project, spokeswoman Amie Gorrell said there are already plans to direct visitors to local attractions.

She said the hotel lobby will have a brochure rack for businesses in Prince George’s, the District and Northern Virginia, and that Six Flags in Largo would probably be one of the local destinations visitors are directed toward. She said local businesses and restaurants would be able to buy advertising time on the in-room channel at the hotel and buy space in the in-room magazine.

‘‘Our attendees are gonna want to know what is there to do in this region?” she said. ‘‘A lot of the time they’re like, ‘D.C.? Been there, done that. ... What else is there to do in the region?’”

Project designers envision a festival atmosphere every day along the Potomac River, as the resort plays host to events like food and wine festivals and national yacht shows.

However, marketing efforts by The Peterson Companies, the developer of National Harbor, are still being directed toward spots outside the county.

Marketing Director Rocell Viniard said the company is developing an interactive online map showing visitors places to go around National Harbor. The project is expected to wrap up in about a month and, in its early form, will concentrate mainly on the destinations of the water taxi service, which includes trips to Georgetown and Alexandria.

Viniard said the site eventually would include Prince George’s attractions.

Peterson’s marketing efforts are still in their early stages, as efforts are still under way to lure business tenants to the project. Viniard said the developer would begin marketing to consumers regionally in early 2008 and nationally about a year later.

National Harbor promotional materials list the project as part of Prince George’s County, but they already are carving out a unique identity. Viniard said earlier efforts to obtain a separate ZIP code were unsuccessful so National Harbor still shares a ZIP code with Oxon Hill. But the developer lists the project address as National Harbor – its own city.

Michael Hill, a developer whose D.C.-based company Emerge Homes builds homes in southern Prince George’s, said without the proper marketing nudge, National Harbor could be ‘‘like an oasis.”

‘‘The bottom line is there hasn’t been enough in terms of creating Prince George’s County as a destination,” he said.

Hill said the planned easy access to the District and Northern Virginia from National Harbor has not been replicated in Prince George’s. He said areas like Fort Washington, with its national park, need to be promoted alongside National Harbor, so that visitors are ushered elsewhere in the county.

M.H. ‘‘Jim” Estepp,” president of the Greater Prince George’s Business Roundtable, said the best thing the county can do is be ‘‘good hosts” for the waterfront complex.

‘‘I honestly believe that the biggest thing that we can do as a county is have people take us seriously in the marketplace and in the region,” he said. ‘‘Ninety percent of marketing is perception, and we have had perception problems from time to time.

‘‘National Harbor has the ability to cross the length and breadth of this county ... It is the signature project, and the economic growth is going to spin off from that.”

This is all good news, does anyone have any additonal information on hiring? I do know that gaylord is now hiring for various positions, but you need a bachelors degree and i do not graduate until May. It would be great not have to commute to work and I do all my living right in National harbor.

This is all good news, does anyone have any additonal information on hiring? I do know that gaylord is now hiring for various positions, but you need a bachelors degree and i do not graduate until May. It would be great not have to commute to work and I do all my living right in National harbor.

They are hiring, I would get in contact with their temporary Landover office ASAP.

If you're into the hospitality industry, then I don't see why you couldn't apply now since the real work won't begin for about six months. You would simply be doing training till then.

Some reporter sounds angry.

D.C. miffed; Nats move gala to Maryland
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Filed under: WASHINGTON , Michael Neibauer , Nats, gala

Nov 7, 2007 6:46 AM (3 hrs ago) by Michael Neibauer, The Examiner
WASHINGTON (Map, News) - D.C. leaders are furious that the Washington Nationals' 2008 fundraising gala will be held at National Harbor in Prince George's County, while the District continues to fork over cash for the team's new Southeast ballpark.

Nationals' owner Ted Lerner was offered a deal he couldn't refuse: free use of the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center for the Washington Nationals Dream Foundation Dream Gala 2008. Gaylord agreed to "underwrite the total cost of the evening," one team official said, which leaves more money for the various youth organizations that benefit from the fundraiser.

The deal was worth roughly $250,000, a Nationals' spokeswoman said.

Meanwhile, District taxpayers continue to spend millions to build the Lerner family a sparkling $611 million stadium on the Anacostia River - a ballpark slated to open in April, around the time of the annual gala.

Mayor Adrian Fenty and D.C. Council Chairman Vincent Gray were both said to be irate. But Neil Albert, deputy mayor for economic development and planning, avoided confrontation. In a statement, Albert said he was personally assured by a team co-owner that "throughout this coming baseball season and well into the future, they will hold many events in the city and we look forward to participating in those events."

"I'm very disappointed to learn of the decision of the Nationals to hold their annual gala at National Harbor and hope in light of information that the city and businesses are paying for the stadium that they would reconsider that decision," said Ward 2 Council Member Jack Evans, a huge Nationals' backer.

The Nationals' gala is the latest in a string of items D.C. has lost to National Harbor. Milton V. Peterson, chairman of National Harbor developer The Peterson Cos., will relocate The Awakening sculpture from Hains Point to his Maryland beachfront. Peterson also lured away the National Children's Museum, which was slated as the centerpiece of a revitalized L'Enfant Plaza.

The foundation fundraiser, with tables in 2007 ranging from $500 to $60,000, has historically been held at the Mandarin Oriental. The Gaylord is slated to open in early 2008.

mneibauer@dcexaminer.com

lol @ DC.

^^well, to be honest, DC should've expected this. i wonder how much it's actually going to hurt them in the long run.

^^well, to be honest, DC should've expected this. i wonder how much it's actually going to hurt them in the long run.

Why do you say this...

^^well, i didn't mean anything personal by saying this. i'm just noticing that alot of businesses in the district are makin' the decision to leave for the national harbor. you have to admit, it is truly an impressive-looking project.

Oh I wasn't taking it personally...

Yes I live right by the project...however i am in school in Nashville so I can't wait to fly home and see how things are coming!

I wonder what this place looks like now. I havent drove past it in awhile.
I really cant wait for National Harbor to open.

It is a very big project!! :) Good news !!

National Harbor reaching contractor goals
Targets being met for county, minority participation
by Liza Gutierrez | Staff Writer

http://www.gazette.net/images/2007_1128/ctrharborbg113007a_rgbb.jpg

Developers of National Harbor have been hitting and sometimes exceeding the mark set for local and minority business participation, although local agencies are working to boost the lagging involvement from Prince George’s minority firms.

The TAC Cos., a minority-owned consulting company in Oxon Hill, is helping handle the procurement process at National Harbor and the Gaylord Resort and Convention Center there. It works with contractors seeking opportunities at the $2 billion, 300-acre project site in Oxon Hill, and mediates any problems that may arise on the job, said Ron Adolph, TAC president and CEO.

The developers, Peterson Cos. of Fairfax, Va., and Gaylord, of Nashville, Tenn., procure services either directly or through general contractors, Adolph said.

The latest TAC report noted local and minority participation at National Harbor hit 36.1 percent, said Kent Digby, vice president and director of operations at the site for Peterson.

An agreement between Peterson and Prince George’s County requires that at least 20 percent of the work at National Harbor, with a goal of 30 percent, be performed by companies based in the county and⁄or minority businesses, Adolph said. Gaylord is required to have at least 15 percent minority business participation, with a 20 percent goal.

There is no specific requirement for hiring Prince George’s minority contractors.

More than 4,000 companies have registered for contracting opportunities since TAC started working on the project, over the past several years, Adolph said. Contractors have not entered this process lightly, but it has been more difficult than some had anticipated, he said.

Although Peterson and Gaylord have ‘‘always” met or exceeded their goals, some in the county want to see more contracts go specifically to Prince George’s minority companies, Adolph said.

Hubert ‘‘Petey” Green, president of the Prince George’s Black Chamber of Commerce, agrees.

However, ‘‘a lot of that work is not what the small-business community in Prince George’s County has the capacity to do,” Green said.

There’s a perception that because Prince George’s is a majority-minority county with many minority-owned businesses, project participation at National Harbor should reflect that, Adolph said. But many of those businesses that have come forward aren’t able to fulfill the work, he said.

National Harbor is an upscale, high-level, mixed-use development and ‘‘a very complex project with very large bid packages,” he said. There have been some contractors that have not been able to qualify or compete successfully, despite work they have done in the past, he said.

Casey B. Stringer, founder and managing member of the Broughton Construction Co., a minority-owned company in Baltimore, agrees.

The situation is improving and there are more minority-owned companies that do have that capacity than in the past, Stringer said. But in a room with about 100 contractors, there may be fewer than half that can perform the type of work required for some of the projects at the Gaylord site, he said.

Broughton Construction is working on the low-rise section of the Gaylord property, which encompasses the hotel lobbies, ballrooms and meeting rooms, and also some retail space.

‘‘Because we are a general contractor, we rely heavily on our subcontractors,” Stringer said. ‘‘I was able to build a partnership with good contractors, and that’s how we were able to perform this job.”

If a company that works with TAC isn’t hired for the job, TAC investigates to see if there’s a way to get that company back into the process, Adolph said.

Groups work to boost involvement

James A. Dula, president and CEO of the Prince George’s County Chamber of Commerce, has been meeting with Peterson Cos. officials to see how the chamber can help Prince George’s minority-owned businesses secure contracts, he said.

‘‘My sense is that we have had some frustrated people because they did not really understand the process,” Dula said.

‘‘National Harbor is a huge project. There have been many attempts to do things in a way where all the county would benefit,” he said. ‘‘But in the future, we would like to see processes that include local small and minority businesses more in the contractual portion. And we’re working with all entities to do that.”

Partnering is key, and businesses must come together as a team and use their past experiences to get some of the work, Green said.

Many of the small contractors Green has met do not want to partner, he said. He thinks some may not have their books or financials in order, which is required when joining forces with another company, he said.

Green once met with a group of landscapers seeking work at the site, although they had not previously handled projects similar in size and scale. He suggested they come together and combine their workforces, but they didn’t, and later complained about not securing a contract at the development, he said.

‘‘We’ve conducted a couple training classes on partnering and joint venturing,” Green said. ‘‘You can lead them to the water but you can’t make them drink.”

CECA, a minority-owned engineering and architecture consulting company in Lanham, is responsible for most of the building inspections at National Harbor, said L. Terry Carnes, founder and president. The company also completed some previous work on the Gaylord site.

CECA’s longtime relationship with ECS Mid-Atlantic LLC, a geotechnical engineering and construction materials testing company in Chantilly, Va., created a partnership that was poised to win contracts at National Harbor.

‘‘When projects like National Harbor come up, and you already have a track record, companies seek you out because you’re not a question mark,” Carnes said.

‘‘People go with what they’re comfortable with,” Carnes said, referring to established companies with a strong record, or people who look and talk like those awarding the work. ‘‘Is it fair? Absolutely not.”

Carnes wold like to see ‘‘ a little more pioneering” to increase involvement for minority-owned companies in the county, he said.

The county’s Economic Development Corp. initiated a monthly National Harbor Day, where it brings in contractors that have signed up for opportunities to meet face-to-face with TAC representatives, review plans and explore opportunities, said Kwasi G. Holman, president and CEO of the group.

The agency keeps an extensive database of qualified companies and makes sure they’re aware of the latest procurement opportunities at the site, he said.

Holman’s group works with TAC to ensure that the group understands what will be required from the companies, then it works with companies to make sure they are ready to perform, he said.

It’s also going to be difficult for companies that have not been bonded before to get work at the site, Green said.

‘‘If you’ve never been bonded, you can’t be the prime contractor,” he said. ‘‘In Prince George’s County, we have settled for subcontracting positions for so long, and have made a comfortable living, that we’re not trying to become the prime contractors.”

Bureaucracy can hold businesses back, but some just don’t know how to get to that next level, he said.

This report originally appeared in The Business Gazette.

National Harborat a glance

1 million square feet of retail, with 20-25 restaurants

500,000 square feet of office space

2,500 residential units

Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center:

2,000 guest rooms

470,000 square feet of flexible convention, meeting and exhibition space

1.1 million room nights booked to date

Other hotelsWestin 195 rooms

Hampton Inn & Suites 151 rooms

Residence Inn by Marriott 162 rooms

W aloft 150 rooms

Wyndham Vacation Resorts 250 time-share rooms

300-acre project is contractors’ ‘Super Bowl’
By Liza Gutierrez | Staff Writer

Companies, minority or otherwise, must navigate multiple screening levels to earn consideration for a project at National Harbor.

They must demonstrate a specific expertise and experience, and show that they have the financial capacity, staff, equipment and lines of credit to do the work, said Ron Adolph of the TAC Cos. Then they must compete on price, he said.

‘‘National Harbor and the Gaylord hotel have a who’s who of general contractors and major contractors. You’re competing with the best in town,” Adolph said.

This competitive environment is like going from a high school to college football team — ‘‘it’s another speed,” he said.

‘‘We’re in the Super Bowl down here.”

Some small companies have partnered with larger ones on joint ventures. And small companies have come together as a consortium, although that is not ‘‘an easy situation,” Adolph said.

It’s tough for a group of small companies to piece together a $30 million bid and compete against a company such as Miller and Long of Bethesda — a nationally recognized concrete construction firm — with its extensive capacity, he said. ‘‘Those consortiums have had some hard times.”

The 300-acre waterfront property will be undergoing development for 15 to 20 years, and the different components include development and now operations, for both National Harbor and Gaylord, said spokeswoman Rocell R. Viniard. Contracts for operations are typically one-year deals that can be renewed, she said.

The development teams award construction bids, and the operations teams put contracts in place for ongoing projects such as painting, landscaping, security and janitorial services, said Kent Digby of developer The Peterson Cos. ‘‘There is a true distinction.”

Companies grow all the time, so if one didn’t win a bid two years ago but is twice the size now, it can return for another try, he said. National Harbor is happy to work with small firms — ‘‘we just want very high-quality small companies that perform well,” Digby said.

Depending on a company’s capabilities, one contract may be awarded for work covering two buildings, or two separate contracts may be offered, Viniard said.

Digby advises that small companies ‘‘don’t make the mistake of bidding more than you can do well.”

Viniard said she could not estimate the total number of contracts that will be awarded for work at National Harbor.

‘‘It’s so hard to really determine that because there are so many companies out there, and we have so many buildings under construction,” she said.

Digby also highlighted the opportunities that will be available from retailers who are responsible for their own space and may need contractors for flooring, wallpaper, window washing and other projects. If there are 100 retail tenants, then there are 100 additional opportunities for work there, he said.

‘‘There’s a misperception that National Harbor⁄Peterson Companies is doing all the hiring for this entire project, and that’s not the case,” Viniard said.

Whenever a new hotel or new retailer is announced, that should throw up a flag that it may need a contractor to handle work on its site, she said.

I drive by the National Harbor project area very frequently. I am amazed at the progress of the development. This will be a very happening and exciting part of Prince George's County Maryland.

I can't wait until it's completely finished.

Thursday, Dec. 20, 2007
Jobs beckon at National Harbor
But worker flight to new Gaylord Hotel may leave other hospitality employers strapped
by Liza Gutierrez | Staff Writer




Thousands of job-seekers are expected to flock to the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center’s hiring fair next month to fill nearly 2,000 openings.

More than 8,000 people have already expressed interest in working at the National Harbor property through the company’s career Web site, said Jesse Stewart Jr., vice president and director of human resources.

Applicants who register in advance at www.gaylordcareers.com may attend the event from Jan. 30 to Feb. 1; those who have not registered may attend on Feb. 2. Gaylord is still finalizing details about the hiring fair and plans to announce them on its career site.

Positions open run the gamut from administration, front desk clerks, bar staff, convention crew set-up, massage therapists for the spa, building maintenance and security. ‘‘We’re a city in and of ourselves,” Stewart said.

The hiring process will go more smoothly if people apply online before the event, Stewart said. After that, it’s a matter of reviewing applicants’ backgrounds to see if they match Gaylord’s corporate culture, he said.

Consideration has already started. ‘‘We’re in the process of filling positions now,” Stewart said.

However, the magnitude of job opportunities from Gaylord and other National Harbor projects — including four other hotels and a time-share resort — may cast a dark cloud over the region’s hospitality industry, already crunched for labor.

‘‘You’ll see quite a shift in [the] labor force from a lot of venues in the area, whether it be D.C., Virginia or Maryland, to Gaylord,” said Mary Jo McCulloch, president of the Maryland Hotel and Lodging Association. People are excited about the brand-new hotel and convention center in Oxon Hill, and may just want to try something new, she said.

There’s also a strong sense of community at Gaylord, which it has communicated to the area, McCulloch said. The Nashville, Tenn., company thinks highly of employees and treats them well, ‘‘which encourages people to make the move,” she said.

McCulloch’s take on the region’s hospitality industry: ‘‘We just plain don’t have enough workers.”

Gaylord drew 13,000 people to the hiring fair for its Florida resort and convention center, with 18,000 applications submitted. About 12,000 people showed up for jobs at its Texas location, with 22,000 applications submitted.

Gaylord expects a similar response at National Harbor, said spokeswoman Amie Gorrell.

Although the region has a tight labor market for hospitality workers, Gaylord has the ability to hire employees with experience, and also train new workers, said John A. Boardman, international vice president and executive secretary-treasurer of the Unite Here union, Local 25 mid-Atlantic region. Unite — formerly the Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees — and Here — the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union — merged in 2004.

‘‘It will be challenging, as with any operation opening, but I think Gaylord’s history speaks to their ability to be successful,” he said.

If the Gaylord workers decide they want union representation, 1,000 to 1,100 workers could be unionized, Boardman said. The union does not yet know if it will work with other employers coming to National Harbor, he said.

Interest in hospitalityprogram grows

Gaylord donated $1 million to cover startup costs for the Hospitality and Tourism Institute at Prince George’s Community College in Largo, including curriculum, equipment, faculty salaries and program marketing.

The donation was part of the company’s commitment to community and its core value of citizenship, and not part of its own staffing plan, Stewart said.

‘‘Their interest was in building a program at the college that would meet the long-term workforce needs of the county,” said Dan Mosser, the college’s vice president for workforce development and continuing education.

Gaylord has made similar donations in other communities where it has located, but ‘‘this is the largest step that we’ve taken in this regard in terms of financial support. So it is unique,” Stewart said.

The college has a hospitality management program that had been struggling for many years, Mosser said. A redesigned program was offered starting in the spring, and roughly 17 students enrolled, he said.

By fall, enrollment jumped to 120, Mosser said. The buzz about National Harbor and the Hospitality Institute is probably driving that, he said.

Gaylord is also actively involved in setting up the program and the curriculum, and the initiative also reaches out to high school students to stir interest in the industry, Stewart said.

Many of Gaylord’s leaders started from the bottom and worked their way up, Stewart said. ‘‘I started in the basement of a soul food restaurant chopping vegetables. I had to get promoted to wash dishes,” he said.

Sheldon Suga, Gaylord’s senior vice president and general manager, started out taking tickets at banquets, and Ed Brogan, director of rooms, was once a bellman, he said.

‘‘That’s what’s great about this industry. You can start at any level and rise to where you’re capable of growing,” Stewart said.

The college institute has an associate’s degree program for hospitality service management, and another for culinary arts set to begin either next summer or fall, Mosser said. Students can also opt for certifications including ServSafe for food service and Beverage, Education and Server Training for bartending.

Mosser said he would not be surprised if many in the college program land jobs at Gaylord and other venues in National Harbor.

Roughly 20 percent are non-degree registrants seeking continuing education for professional development, he said. Most of the students are part-time, generally taking classes during the day and working at night.



Copyright 2007 Post-Newsweek Media, Inc./Gazette.Net

Damn...looking from Baltimore it just seems like the DC area just has funny money to build stuff like this.

^^well, remember, this project is considered seperate from D.C. the district itself actually views this development as a MAJOR competition, and ultimately it will be.

here's a nice navigation of the entire project when it's finally completed. check it out......

http://map.mapnetwork.com/destination/dc/nationalharbor/

seems to be coming along nicely.......

http://www.nationalharbor.com/uploadedImages/Business_Opportunities/Design_and_Construction/Design_Content/Progress_Photos/110707_aerial_3.jpg

http://www.nationalharbor.com/uploadedImages/Business_Opportunities/Design_and_Construction/Design_Content/Progress_Photos/110707_aerial_3.jpg

^^ That's crazy, making an urban harbor out of nowhere.

^^ That's crazy, making an urban harbor out of nowhere.

I hope that after all the original buildings are constructed that whatever future projects are nice to make an urban area for PG county. I love the look of this project and who knows it may become its own city! :)

I am really optimistic about all this wonderful development. Whn I drive over the Wilson brige, I have always been truly fascinated by this thing. hopefully It'l be done soon.

I don't mean to be one of those enviro-fags, but are they creating an environmentally friendly plan? That would be a huge boost to D.C., ecspecially with the Potomac being the most polluted river feeding into the chesapeake, other than the James River.

The development? It is dope, to say the least yo. Maybe D.C. can gear itself up for an Anacostia re-development plan, who knows?

What happened to being "one region"?

Nationals' Events in Maryland Anger D.C.
Locations Offend District Officials

By Nikita Stewart
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, November 7, 2007; A01


District officials are outraged that the Washington Nationals plan to go to Maryland for major events celebrating the team's first season in the city-funded $611 million stadium complex.

The baseball club's charitable arm will host its annual black tie "Dream Gala" at Gaylord National, a new hotel across the Potomac in Prince George's County, and the team will hold its FanFest, a day-long celebration, in Bethesda.

There are no firm plans, as of yet, to hold a kick-off event in the District, though the team says it is working on that. "I guess we're like Charlie Brown or Rodney Dangerfield. We can't get respect," council Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D) said yesterday. "This is just an outrage." [sounds far more like the story of Prince George's County than D.C. don't you think?]

Last fiscal year, $36 million in business and nonresidential utility taxes, including those from hotels, were collected to help repay the money borrowed for the stadium.

Stan Kasten, president of the Nationals, said the Dream Foundation chose Gaylord National, at the new National Harbor development, because the hotel came free of charge. Money raised at the event goes to D.C. children, he said, including the Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy to teach baseball to children.

In March, the foundation paid about $250,000 to have the event at the Mandarin Oriental hotel, where Ethel Kennedy, widow of Robert F. Kennedy, served as honorary chairman. One of the highlights of the evening was a tribute to RFK Stadium, where the team played temporarily. Next year's gala is also being planned for March.

"What about the fact that there is a whole lot of money going to D.C.?" Kasten asked, adding that the $250,000 can now go directly to the foundation.

He added that the team is holding events all over the region because the Nationals consider themselves a regional team. They are in the process of scheduling several events to promote Opening Day, and some would be held in the District, he said. The plans just haven't been solidified.

Council members dismissed Kasten's reasoning.

"We gave them a $611 million free stadium. I think that entitles us to have their gala at our businesses," council member Carol Schwartz (R-At Large) said.

Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1), who voted against the final baseball stadium deal in 2006, called the move "offensive."

"That's like taking a stick and poking your eye. What a level of ingratitude. The timing is worse than ever. We're opening the $611 million stadium and . . . to have the annual banquet in Prince George's County, that's staggering," he said. "I would hope that we could work this out."

Gray called a closed-door meeting with council members yesterday to discuss the situation and how to address it. Minutes later, council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2), one of the Nationals' biggest cheerleaders and chairman of the committee on finance and revenue, was on the phone with Kasten. Evans was one of the most irate members yesterday, telling Kasten that "the Nationals have an obligation to hold their gala here." Gray was trying to contact Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) to dial up Nationals principal owner Theodore N. Lerner.

Kasten, interviewed after his conversation with Evans, said there are no plans to change the venue.

Fenty, one of the loudest critics of the stadium when he was a council member, did not directly respond to requests for comment. Neil O. Albert, deputy mayor for planning and economic development, however, issued a statement on behalf of the administration.

"I have personally spoken with Edward Cohen, co-owner of the team and he has assured me that throughout this coming baseball season and well into the future, they will hold many events in the city and we look forward to participating in those events."

A few council members learned of the plans over hors d'oeuvres at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center on Monday, where city officials were celebrating the renaming of the building in honor of the city's first mayor under Home Rule.

Emily Durso, president of the Hotel Association of Washington, D.C., said she learned about a month ago of the team's plans and called Nationals executives. "I said, 'Please tell me this isn't true.' "

"They're moving all of the events to the suburbs," she said. "The Bethesda one was, like, uh-oh, is this a trend? I've told them we understand that they are a regional team, but the hotels here pay for the stadium."

The hotels have also been working closely with the Nationals to help create buzz for Opening Day in the spring. There are promotions in the works that include signs at the desks of concierges, baseball caps to be worn by front-desk employees and a program that would allow guests to buy game tickets at the hotel.

The Nationals considered holding FanFest in the District, but the convention center and hotels could not accommodate the team's late January event date, said Chartese Burnett, the Nationals' vice president of communications. The Lerners are based in Bethesda. Meanwhile, Prince George's County is ready to welcome the Nationals, said Denise Roberts, a spokeswoman for Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D).

"National Harbor is the biggest talk of the town," she said. "Naturally, organizations are going to want to have events here."

D.C. Council members said the Maryland events are the latest inconsiderate act by the Nationals. Two weeks ago, the team announced in a news release that fans could park for free at RFK, property controlled by the city, although the city has not approved the plan.[What does this have to do with Maryland? So much for 68 square miles.]

"This once again truly demonstrates why we should have been a little shrewder about selecting owners for the Nationals," council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) said in a statement. "They haven't even gotten into the stadium yet and they are taking their events elsewhere. We would hope that the Lerners would rethink this decision. After all, this is not the Maryland Nationals. They are the Washington Nationals, and they should be holding any event concerning Washington in Washington." [ONE REGION INDEED!]

Staff writer Rosalind S. Helderman contributed to this report.

What about teh Washington Redskins? They play in Landover. For goodness sakes, the Gala is just across the river. Not in Baltimore. On the other hand, DC is kinda screwed anyway. With the stadium being just across the river, people may still desire to stay at Nation Harbor and take shuttles to the game. The National Harbor is in a prime location. DC needs to start working on the Anacostia if it wants to keep visitors in the city.

What a bunch of douchebags. Their conduct alone indicates why the event is happening in PG.

If anyone doesnt mind me asking,where is National Harbor,Maryland??

If anyone doesnt mind me asking,where is National Harbor,Maryland??

Its located in Oxon Hill/Fort Washington Maryland (Prince Georges County).
just south of Washington, DC.

What a bunch of douchebags. Their conduct alone indicates why the event is happening in PG.
:ohno:yeah, really. what a bunch of soar losers. that' a damn shame. ANYWAY, they'll get over it.......

Anything new going on here...other than the thousands of people that Gaylord recently brought on board?

^^nothing really. still building up.

Wasn't there a proposal for a really tall tower for the National Harbor at one time? :?

Yea there was...I don't know what proposal it was but I believe it was to be a 30 story tower...It was some time ago though.

Would have been cool to have had one or two high-rises in the mix. :)

I agree 100%!

Wasn't there a proposal for a really tall tower for the National Harbor at one time? :?

PortAmerica, by Lewis circa 1984-87. The 52-storey tower would have been the tallest building between Philadelphia and Atlanta (at that time).

The FAA (too close to National Airport), the National Planning Commission (would have dwarfed the Washington Monument) and finally the economy killed the project, or more precisely: induced a state of hibernation for over fifteen years. Later renditions called for a 22-storey tower, which were also zapped.

I’d scan a few pics of what was originally proposed, but the ‘ole scanner is still on the fritz. Here’s a view of the 22-storey concept: http://www.dcestonian.com/baltimore/dc/port_america.pdf

Well now that I see that...I am glad it was never built. :banana:

Well now that I see that...I am glad it was never built. :banana:
http://beyonddc.com/nonweb/_PortAmerica/rendering03a-tower.jpg

Above is the Port America tower looking to be 900'ft!!!!

I used to think the same thing but I kind of like the monumental design of Port America and of course the height. The recent changes they made to National Harbor don't look as good as the original from a distance. I hope it looks better in person.

There is plenty of land for height though. Unlike Montgomery, Prince George's County is gung-ho about economic development, I don't think they would have a problem if someone proposed a 30 story highrise on the site today.

Remember there is a huge office component to National Harbor that's rarely discussed.

Think of National Harbor as the economic spring board that Tysons Corner was but far more urban and significant from the get go.

^^ Very true...There is also land south of NH right off 210 where there could be either a residential or office tower

That's the old 52-storey version from 1987. It was reduced in height due to objections from the FAA and National Planning Commission. They barely approved the 22-storey building...

http://beyonddc.com/nonweb/_PortAmerica/rendering03a-tower.jpg

Above is the Port America tower looking to be 900'ft!!!!

I used to think the same thing but I kind of like the monumental design of Port America and of course the height. The recent changes they made to National Harbor don't look as good as the original from a distance. I hope it looks better in person.

There is plenty of land for height though. Unlike Montgomery, Prince George's County is gung-ho about economic development, I don't think they would have a problem if someone proposed a 30 story highrise on the site today.

Remember there is a huge office component to National Harbor that's rarely discussed.

Think of National Harbor as the economic spring board that Tysons Corner was but far more urban and significant from the get go.

Awesome! But it never had a chance....

^^yeah, really!! 900 feet? right outside of the nation's capital? they would've truly had a fit over this.......

Well...I like the NH we have now a lot more!:)

I went down to the nhbr yesterday and sales claims to only have 2 condos left in Fleet street building and are sold out at One National Harbor...plus I was told that Maggiano's will be coming as well as either Mortons or Ruth's Chris...

I love National Harbor. I cant wait until it opens up this spring, it will be truly amazing.

This is such a great project !! opening this spring? well, I have to go down there and get a feel of the place.

National Harbor Wants Clean Cabs, Cabbies

By Rosalind S. Helderman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, March 19, 2008; B04



The developers of Prince George County's massive National Harbor are setting down rules to make taxicab service at the 300-acre project as spiffy as the rest of the $3 billion development.

Cabbies have been told that to operate at the facilities' seven hotels, restaurants and stores, their vehicles must be "clean and presentable inside and outside," and drivers "presentable with a neat and clean appearance." Vehicles with an "unpleasant odor" or "body damage" will be banned.

"Please wash your car prior to arriving at National Harbor," drivers were told in fliers distributed by the project's management.

The rules were laid out by the developers at two recent meetings for drivers held in anticipation of National Harbor's opening in April. Representatives for the development call the rules reasonable measures for logical organization at a site, which is expected to generate new business for the county's 775 taxicabs.

Members of the county's Taxicab Board, an advisory panel with members appointed by County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D), have expressed concerns that the developer may be overstepping its power to regulate cabs on county roads.

"Some things, they just don't have the authority to do," said Ronald Smith, who owned county cabs for 20 years and is chairman of the taxi board. "How can they set fees and decide who comes in and out?"

Under the rules, drivers will have to display a National Harbor permit, which will be awarded to drivers who attend yearly orientation classes organized by the project's developer, Peterson Cos.

Drivers will not be allowed to cruise the roads at the site looking for fares, but instead must gather in a central staging area to be dispatched to hotels and restaurants.

National Harbor may eventually charge drivers $1 every time they leave the staging area, to help recoup costs for paving and lighting the idling zone, said Kent Digby, a vice president for Peterson of Fairfax.

National Harbor will be anchored by the 2,000-room Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, which will open April 25. Five more hotels are scheduled to open over the next year. Stores and restaurants are planned, as well as 10,000 square feet of office space and condominiums.

Digby said the company is not trying to set rules for the public roads that run through the development. He said, however, that the roads have little pull-off room and would be frequently clogged with construction equipment as the development grows. The company's decision to set up one taxi stand is an attempt to institute order, he said.

"This is a program for them to get good fares without being in double-park areas," he said.

As for rules forbidding dirty cabs, unkempt drivers or damaged cars, Digby said the company is "looking for the best of the best."

"We want to see clean cabs," he said. "Not to be confused with a little bit of salt spray. We're talking about reasonable standards."

He said the company is gathering input and wants to work with taxi drivers to make the program run smoothly. The $1 fee, which was met with vigorous complaints from some drivers, may never be charged, Digby said.

"We've got a very expensive piece of dirt that we're putting the staging area on," he said. "I don't think it's unreasonable to look for a fee. But we're not doing anything until we're running smoothly and logically."

By law, only drivers with Prince George's taxi medallions will be able to pick up fares at National Harbor. Of those, 160 are owned by Silver Cab, the county's largest taxi company. John Lally, an attorney for the company, said Silver Cab believes National Harbor's guidelines are reasonable.

Silver Cab also operates a central dispatch office that uses a Global Positioning System to pair waiting fares with the closest cab. Including its own taxis, about 550 cabs in Prince George's use the system, with cars not owned by Silver Cab paying the company $7 a day to participate.

National Harbor has told drivers it plans to use the dispatch system to call cabs from the central staging area to meet waiting fares in the development. Lally said the system allows the company to track cars, ensuring they are awarded fares on a first-come, first-served basis. It will also allow them to easily track cabs in case of customer complaints.

"They have all the same challenges as at National Airport -- coordinating a whole lot of people and connecting them with reasonable transportation," Lally said. "I'm sure it's open to modification as things get rolling, but they've got to set some rules."

Independent companies that have chosen not to contract with the Silver Cab dispatch service object to the requirement.

"They cannot compel people like me or independent drivers to go and work with someone else," said Anthony Obasanjo, founder of the Prince George's County Taxicab Drivers Association and a member of the Taxicab Board. "This will be a home where we know we can make a living. We're excited. But we don't want them to block some drivers out."

The Taxicab Board is limited to issuing advisory opinions. The board has asked the county's Department of Environmental Resources, which regulates county taxis, to look into the issue.

"This issue has recently been brought to our attention," department spokeswoman Carol Terry said in a statement. "We're in the process of reviewing it and talking to National Harbor about it. We realize time is of the essence, due to the opening of National Harbor at the end of April. We'll move quickly to resolve this matter

^^welcome to SSC, sunevashinin!!

Yes, welcome! :)

thanks for the welcome!

The place to be
When the massive waterfront Gaylord resort opens Tuesday, thousands will begin pouring into Prince George’s, triggering new development, jobs and revenue
by Daniel Valentine | Staff Writer


In a dining room at the massive Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, Mirek Von Springer instructs a group from Fort Washington and Largo on the subtle points of wine.

‘‘And this Chardonnay is different,” Von Springer, the national chain’s chief wine expert, tells the trainees, motioning to a color-coded map of France in the background.
On Tuesday, the trainees will be taking orders from guests at the new $865 million hotel — the first portion of the massive National Harbor development in Oxon Hill to open and one of the largest combined hotel and convention centers on the East Coast, Gaylord officials say.

‘‘Prince Georgians can be proud to have something like this,” said Kwasi G. Holman, director of the county Economic Development Corp. ‘‘It’s a harbinger of things to come.”

The Gaylord hotel, the anchor for the $2 billion, 300-acre development along the Potomac, will soon become a waterfront mini-city of high-class stores and dining, National Harbor developer Milton V. Peterson said.

‘‘People in Prince George’s are always saying, ‘We don’t got no classy restaurants,’” Peterson said. ‘‘Well, you do now, sweetheart.”

One of the first is a McCormick and Schmick’s seafood restaurant expected to open this spring. By next year, more than 23 stores and restaurants will be operating at National Harbor.

Meanwhile, the rush is on.

As officials for Gaylord toured with reporters through the new hotel Friday, their voices were drowned out by the whine of power tools, knocks from construction in other rooms and fire alarms.

‘‘At this point, we’re going round the clock,” said Gaylord spokeswoman Amie Gorrell.

The first guests to pay $299 a night for accommodations will be a Saturn auto company convention on Tuesday, Gorrell said. Exhibitors with the Army Aviation Association of America will literally fly in by helicopter later next week, actually landing on the site and becoming the first group to fill the 2,000-room hotel to capacity.

All that is before the Nashville-based company hosts a black-tie dinner April 25 for the grand opening of what will be Gaylord’s fourth hotel. Over the next year, five more hotels and condo towers will open across the site, joining the boutiques and restaurants.

The Phase I launch comes after more than 30 years of stops and starts, lawsuits and public wrangling.

‘‘Yes, it’s been a long time,” Peterson said. ‘‘But when you do something this drastic, it takes a while.”

At one point, the project was known as PortAmerica, a waterfront residential and office complex that featured a 52-story skyscraper overlooking the river.

Environmental concerns held up the permits and approvals for years. Developers also faced scrutiny from aviation agencies over whether the height of the tower would block planes trying to land at Reagan Washington National Airport across the river in Alexandria, Va.

By the mid-1990s, officials of PortAmerica were filing for bankruptcy, and Peterson, a Northern Virginia builder whose past projects include Tysons Corner Mall and the redevelopment of downtown Silver Spring, purchased the land in 1996.

Gaylord, which specializes in conventions and large groups, announced its partnership with Peterson in 2000. For years, Peterson went back and forth with county and regional planning boards about environmental issues and approvals. Later, neighboring residents filed a lawsuit seeking to block the project before settling in 2004.

Peterson expressed his frustration about the delays.

‘‘You and California are the worst,” he said. ‘‘Every brick, you have to get approved. You can’t live like that.”

It took an act of Congress to get the project moving. In 1999, lawmakers agreed to bypass a required National Capital Planning Commission review of the site. Another hurdle cleared five years later, when the residents agreed to drop their lawsuits after Peterson agreed to a host of concessions.

Disputes have also persisted over minority-owned business and county contracting opportunities at the site. Developers originally agreed to reserve 30 percent of business to minority-owned or county-based businesses, but the requirement was later scaled back to 15 percent. Officials for Peterson and Gaylord said they still haven’t been able to meet that guideline for minority-owned businesses due to inadequate bids, although they will try to boost the contracts in the future.

But the true breakthrough came when regional governments overcame opposition and agreed to build a 12-lane expansion of the Wilson Bridge, said Jon Peterson, a senior project vice president and son of Milton Peterson.

‘‘We wouldn’t be where we are without that,” he said.

County officials predict that National Harbor will pay off in the future. Although Prince George’s officials expect to pay an average of $6 million a year to provide police, fire, public works and other services to National Harbor, the benefits are expected to be far greater.

With a 5 percent hotel tax, fees from the sales of luxury condos and other taxes, county officials estimate that National Harbor will bring in about $1.53 billion in revenue through 2037. That’s an average of $65 million a year.

Some county residents are already seeing a regular paycheck from the project. Of the 1,800 new employees Gaylord hired earlier this year, about 600 are Prince George’s residents, Gorrell said.

By the time National Harbor is fully built out, more than 5,000 people are expected to work there.

Bigger events are also on the horizon. A Texas political society has already booked Gaylord’s massive ballroom for President George W. Bush’s farewell party early next year, and officials for the hotel said the size of the center may help position Washington as a potential contender for a future Democratic or Republican National Conventions.

‘‘Prince George’s could finally stand up and challenge Alexandria,” said Gaylord General Manager Sheldon Suga.

Business and city officials across the river have taken notice of that, too. Alexandria is spending $2.3 million on efforts to attract the millions of people expected to come to National Harbor each year.

City investments have included new waterfront lighting and a trolley to whisk National Harbor visitors travelling by water taxi to the historic downtown.

‘‘The good thing is that Alexandria is going to be exposed to visitors who would not be coming here otherwise,” said Stuart Litvin, executive director for Alexandria’s Economic Development Partnership. ‘‘It’s not like they’re taking something away from the Washington area. They’re bringing more.”

National Harbor and hotel officials said the water taxi service will leave every 30 minutes beginning in April.

National Harbor’s centerpiece is a wide, tree-lined boulevard running from the shores of the river up a hill, leading to a stage for entertainment — an inspiration Peterson drew from a visit to Barcelona, Spain. The Boulevard, named American Way, frames the Masonic Temple in Alexandria in the center of its waterfront view.

It’s that view that brought Peterson to the project, he said.

Peterson said he did not pick the site because it was in Prince George’s County.

‘‘We picked it because it’s a fabulous property on the Potomac River,” he said. ‘‘That’s the world’s capital right there.”

The lure of living within minutes of Washington has already led to robust sales at the site, which developers said appear to make it immune from the declining national economy.

The 450 condos being built for the first phase are already 90 percent sold out, Peterson said, and Gaylord officials said they have already confirmed 1.3 million bookings at the hotel through 2018.

Officials say it’s just the beginning. Coming years will bring more big stores and attractions, including the National Children’s Museum, expected to open in 2012.

‘‘This county’s come a long way,” Peterson said. ‘‘It’s the land of opportunity.”

E-mail Daniel Valentine at dvalentine@gazette.net.
http://www.gazette.net/stories/032708/prinnew172016_32367.shtml

I've read things like this countless times...yet I still become excited with each new post!

I hear ya... It's good to hear positive news out of Prince George's County since the media seems to play on the negative. I believe Natl Harbor will be catalyst for new development up the 495 corridor from Indian Head Hwy to Penn Ave. Southern Prince George's will have the Harbor to anchor the southern part of the county, Westphalia in the middle, and Konterra on the northern side of the county in the next few years. The tide is turning in the county, let's hope the residents support these developments...

^^wow, what a project!!

Even with the petty attacks from around the way you'll do fine!!!

National Harbor's Gaylord Resort Celebrates Grand Opening

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0408/514400.html
posted 5:53 pm Fri April 25, 2008 - OXON HILL, Md.

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Prince George's County officials and developer Milton Peterson gathered Friday afternoon to formally celebrate the opening of the first phase of the $4 billion National Harbor project in Oxon Hill.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony officially opened the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center.

The project on what was once an Indian burial ground, and later a gravel mine, was the result of a public-private partnership first discussed in the 1990s.

The county issued $160 million in bonds for roads and sewers and put the review process on the fast track. Peterson invested and borrowed more than $800 million and agreed to use minority or local contractors for much of the construction work.

Thursday, April 10, 2008
National Harbor to Host Cirque du Soleil

http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/0408/510606.html

posted 8:26 am Fri April 11, 2008 - Oxon Hill, Md.

The National Harbor has landed another high-profile attraction.

Cirque du Soleil plans to bring a show to the waterfront development beginning October 30. The Montreal-based circus is known for its elaborate acrobatics.

Officials say the show will stay for several weeks, but many details have yet to be worked out - including where in the 300-acre development the circus will perform.

Other attractions at the National Harbor include the "The Awakening" sculpture, which gives the appearance of a giant coming out of the ground, and the not-yet-built National Children's Museum.

The National Harbor is on the banks of the Potomac River in Prince George's County.

I wonder where? One would think it would be at the Gaylord, but it must not be since there is no mention of it in the article.

^^it's gonna' be on a pavilion next to the gaylord.

Hope you guys don't mind if I post some pics from my visit to the site this weekend.

It was sunday mid-morning, and Mother's day, so there weren't a ton of folks wandering around in the overcast skies. :shrug:
And sorry for the different sizes of the pics. :(


Now for some pics:


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The parking garage I trusted with my new car.

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Art at the entrance

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Where are we?

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Room for future growth.

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Cranes at work.

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One of three current piers reaching out into the Potomac.

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Looking back at the project.

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A little further to the right.

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A low flying visitor.

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Another pier near the main concourse.

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Ready for action.

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Need a ride to Alexandria?

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This statue use to be at West Potomac Park.

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"Got anything in a size 462?"

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Some details and advertising.


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A bit closer.

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The main Promenade.

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Some construction shots


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More detilas and ads

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Construction screen showing the future.

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More construction.


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Some buildings occupied/ partially occupied


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The Westin Hotel

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Nearly ready for occupancy.

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Now for the Gaylord Resort and Convention Center


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It's a big rascal

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The Gaylords nicely landscaped gardens near the Potomac.

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Inside there's a good sized atrium, and a little village like facility.


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Sorry about the reflection from the window.

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Kind of a jungle.

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Seems like an exciting project for the area.



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I just hope this guy isn't a harbinger of the future.;)

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Hope you enjoyed the little tour.:D

Very very good!!! Some on here was bitching about how it would turn and the quality of the structures...I'm glad I can see they turned out better than expected, Gaylord National is probably the highest quality structure of all.

GO PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY!!!

Amazing ! this project is turning out great. It's not even finished yet but it looks really nice. I just added it to my summer-must-do list :wink:.

P.s: Great job in the landscaping , all around.

And the Gaylord holds two thousand rooms? I have never seen anything like it.

$4 Billion National Harbor gets new website

http://www.silverspringscene.com/blog/wp-content/themes/SilverSpringScene/images/nh1.jpg

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I think this needs to be a sticky over 21,000 views, WOWSER!

^^ Very cool!!

^^yeah, looks like a winner for p.g., for maryland!!!:okay:

I love driving back into MD along the wilson bridge and seeing all the amazing progress that's being made

National harbor could end up being a lot like Harbor East in Baltimore:banana:

I love driving back into MD along the wilson bridge and seeing all the amazing progress that's being madeyeah, i agree. it looks even better at night with the lights & all. very impressive!!:okay:

yeah, i agree. it looks even better at night with the lights & all. very impressive!!:okay:

I'd love to see that! I'm so glad that P.G. Co got this development, and it looks like they're doing a really great job at it too.

That looks NICE.

It's great that PG county got this project. I'm glad that it's in PG but i'm surprised that it isn't being built in MoCo or NoVa. It seems like there's never any development in PG, despite the need that Pg has for development, everything always seems to get built in NoVA orMoCo.

There's really no room in MoCo or NOVA to put a giant project like this I dont think, especially right on the waterfront... PG County was *really* lucky, I think, with this location. It's *right* off the Beltway, at the end of 295 and only a few exits away from 95.

Are there any plans to connect National Harbor to the rest of the DC region with some form of mass transit (metrorail or the streetcar)?

Are there any plans to connect National Harbor to the rest of the DC region with some form of mass transit (metrorail or the streetcar)?

Yes, for like the 50th time, there is a yellow line right of way, That would reduce traffic on the Woodrow Wilson significantly, I do not know why I'm not hearing more about it. It wouldn't be that expensive of an extension.

There's really no room in MoCo or NOVA to put a giant project like this I dont think, especially right on the waterfront... PG County was *really* lucky, I think, with this location. It's *right* off the Beltway, at the end of 295 and only a few exits away from 95.

Nor would MoCo allow a development on their waterfront.

Yes, for like the 50th time, there is a yellow line right of way, That would reduce traffic on the Woodrow Wilson significantly, I do not know why I'm not hearing more about it. It wouldn't be that expensive of an extension.

Okay. Sorry, I wasn't aware that you had answered this question numerous times in the past. No need to get all worked up over it.

Nor would MoCo allow a development on their waterfront.

Does Montgomery even have a waterfront on the potomac.

Okay. Sorry, I wasn't aware that you had answered this question numerous times in the past. No need to get all worked up over it.

No need to apologize and nothing personal, just wish it was common knowledge, more so I wish politicians were talking about it more and get it done already.

Montgomery County's "waterfront" is all under the jurisdiction of the C&O Canal National Historic Site: No development.

Montgomery County's "waterfront" is all under the jurisdiction of the C&O Canal National Historic Site: No development.

Well, that and the actual riverfront area isn't suitable to any kind of development. The land around the river in MoCo is steep and rocky, especially around the fall line. Not very buildable.

does anyone have an update for this amazing project? PG county just gained new respect with this project! great for pg county :okay:

Well, that and the actual riverfront area isn't suitable to any kind of development. The land around the river in MoCo is steep and rocky, especially around the fall line. Not very buildable.

Not true. Ever been to White's Ferry or any part of the river in the northern half of the county?

Not true. Ever been to White's Ferry or any part of the river in the northern half of the county?

Can't build up there. It's the Agricultural reserve. Although, i would really like to see them do something like that there.

This project is so impressive. What a rareity

^^yep, truly!!:okay:

Can't build up there. It's the Agricultural reserve. Although, i would really like to see them do something like that there.

Point is, if there weren't restrictions, you'd easily be able to build on a large portion of MoCo's waterfront. It's a great thing it is mostly protected, though. It's a great place to experience wildlife and great recreation so close to home. Unfortunately the Virginia side doesn't check development very well in its most sensitive areas.

Ah yeah, well that's true. I always thought it'd be neat if they made a town on that island across from Leesburg.

NHBR should really start kicking when Fleet St. gets rolling

I think national harbor is too far from the downtown, i wish it was in walking distance of downtown. It would be ok if there was a metrorail station there, i guess eventually the purple line will go through there but for now it seems like it's hard to get there.

I think national harbor is too far from the downtown, i wish it was in walking distance of downtown. It would be ok if there was a metrorail station there, i guess eventually the purple line will go through there but for now it seems like it's hard to get there.Yesterday, my mom mentioned the One National Harbor condominium building. She was telling me how she was interested in buying a timeshare there. I have only been to National Harbor once, and it was nice. it's secluded, but nice. It's going to do alot for tourism in this state.

^^a timeshare? if it were my parents, i would tell them don't do it. financial-wise, it's not worth it in the long run.:ohno:

Yesterday, my mom mentioned the One National Harbor condominium building. She was telling me how she was interested in buying a timeshare there. I have only been to National Harbor once, and it was nice. it's secluded, but nice. It's going to do alot for tourism in this state.

Timeshare at National Harbor? She'd be better off getting one on the coast. How far is she from National Harbor? It may almost be better to drive if she's close and staying at a nice hotel for a day or two. I have the best of both worlds. I'm equidistant from the inner harbor in Baltimore and National Harbor. Both are cool day trips, but if you live close, never for more than a day or two. Time share in Key West would be the greatest. Ever been?

Inaugural Taste of Maryland Comes to National Harbor

By Mary Wells - WI Staff Writer
Thursday, 25 September 2008

More than 30 restaurants served up their tastiest dishes at the inaugural Taste of Maryland (TOM) held at the National Harbor in Prince George's County on Sat. Sept. 20 and Sun. Sept. 21. The theme for the inaugural event was "Family, Food and Fun."

"I'd say that between 6,000 to 8,000 people came on Saturday and a few less came on Sunday," said Hubert "Petey" Green of the Advisory Committee for the inaugural Taste of Maryland. Hopefully, we will have this kind of participation on the waterfront for many years to come," Green said.

Karlesha Mitchell and Jeanine Trusty came from Virginia to taste the crab cakes. "I heard that Maryland has the best crabs and we figured the crab cakes would be good. We heard it over the radio, so that's why we came all the way over here from Virginia," they said as they stood in line to use their taste coupons to sample the crab cakes from Sherrie's Crab Cakes.

"I brought my family because I was curious after a friend e-mailed me a flyer she got online about the Taste of Maryland. I also heard it on the radio and TV," said Valerie Keels. "I brought the kids over to take a look at the back-to-school fashions modeled by school kids. My kids also enjoyed the Moon Bounce and I enjoyed the bands.”

There was something for everybody, including those who haven't registered to vote or need to change their address. Grover Robinson and Tracy Robinson (no relation) manned the voter registration booth of Soul Factory Church.

"We've had quite a few to stop by not only to change their addresses, but others to register for the first time," Grover Robinson said.

Also generating interest was the social security information table, manned by Lester M. Austin, public affairs specialist for the Social Security Administration.

“Very soon, we will start getting 10,000 baby boomers a day signing up for social security. If you are a breast cancer or prostate cancer survivor before you get to 62 or 65, where do you go if you can't go back to work?” Austin said.

Vendors like Yola Sports Design, specializing in sequin covered footballs, basketballs, golf balls and baseballs, with customized numbers or personalized favorite team logo and colors, made a big hit.

"My wife, a first year breast cancer survivor, was looking for a way to raise funds for eligible patients being treated for cancer and is setting up a nonprofit organization to donate to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for LIVE auctions at the Jason Campbell Golf Classic, the Bobby Mitchell/Toyota Hall of Fame Golf Classic and Darrell Green/Art Monk 28 Hall of Fame Golf Tournament. Children love the items, too," Austin said. For more information, contact sales@yolasportsdesign.com.This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Christine Daniels, creative designer of "Until All Are Safe," who works with the Prince George Public Schools, showed some back to school fashions.

“We build self esteem in children,” Daniels said.

“In His Image" designer Laquanta Turner said, “People don't know who they are in God. We work with all ages and show them how to project themselves on the runway and build self esteem for them and the whole family,” Turner said.

The School of Martial Science & Fitness put on a martial arts show for students.

“It’s a sport that the whole family can take part in. They learn skills which build up self esteem so they don't have to resort to fighting,” said Yusef, the owner of the school and one of the instructors.

Petey Green, whose Black Chamber of Commerce hosted the Tate of Maryland, is also is sponsoring the Prince George's Classic, which begins with a week of activities beginning Sept. 29 through Oct. 5, including the Battle of the Bands at Comcast, a Step Show at Roosevelt High School, a college fair at Prince George's Plaza Mall and a football game at Bowie State University Bulldog Stadium.

For more information, visit www.tasteofMaryland.org, and www.PrinceGeorgesClassic.com.

J.W. Marriott, Jr., Opens Residence Inn National Harbor Hotel Today
CEO Blogs About Diverse-Owned Extended-Stay Hotel in Maryland's New National Harbor

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Last update: 4:33 p.m. EDT Sept. 18, 2008
BETHESDA, Md., Sept 18, 2008 /PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Today, J.W. Marriott, Jr., chairman and CEO, Marriott International, Inc. participated in the grand opening of the 162-suite Residence Inn by Marriott in Oxon Hill, Prince George's County, Maryland.

"I think this is one of the finest Residence Inns I've ever seen," said
Bill Marriott. "There are very few hotels in the Washington, D.C. area that
offer views of the Potomac River, but this hotel boasts some of the most
spectacular river views around. This hotel is first class and I'm very proud
of it." Visit Bill Marriott's blog -- Marriott on the Move
( http://www.blogs.marriott.com) -- to see what else he has to say about the
Residence Inn by Marriott National Harbor
( http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/wasnh-residence-inn-national-harbor-
washington-dc) and visit his Flickr site
( http://www.flickr.com/photos/billmarriott/sets/72157607362394771) to view
pictures of the grand opening"

Located just south of Washington, D.C. and a short drive from Alexandria, VA, the Residence Inn National Harbor ( http://www.nationalharbor.com) Washington, D.C. is part of the new National Harbor community, where visitors will find numerous businesses, popular restaurants and specialty shops within walking distance. The hotel will operate as a Marriott managed property and is owned by Integrated Capital, LLC, of Los Angeles, Calif. -- the company's eighth Marriott-branded hotel.

"We are thrilled to partner with Marriott once again," said Kenneth Fearn, founder of Integrated Capital, LLC and a shining example of Marriott's Diversity Ownership Initiative ( http://www.marriott.com/marriott.mi?page=diversity_ownership). "Marriott has the best hotel ownership program in the hospitality industry and more importantly, our values of diversity and inclusiveness are aligned. It's truly a great partnership."

The Residence Inn National Harbor Washington, D.C. showcases contemporary decor and finishes that reflect the comforts and luxuries of a modern American home. Each suite features a multi-functional living area with 32-inch high definition flat panel LCD television; fully equipped kitchen with stainless steel appliances and granite countertops. The hotel offers daily housekeeping services, complimentary grocery shopping services, luxury bedding, free high-speed Internet access and same-day dry cleaning service.

"We are pleased to introduce Residence Inn hotels in the Oxon Hill area," said Tim Sheldon, senior vice president, brand management, extended stay for Marriott International. "This new hotel was designed to be a home away from home and provides a residential atmosphere and spacious accommodations for guest comfort."

A complimentary hot breakfast buffet, HomeTouch is available each morning in the lobby area. Other hotel facilities and services include an indoor swimming pool, billiards room, exercise room, a bar/restaurant serving drinks and light fare, weeknight social hour, a patio equipped with a gas fire pit that overlooks the Potomac River and a business center. The hotel also offers 1425 square feet of meeting space to accommodate small meetings and functions of up to 110 people.

A leader in extended-stay lodging, Residence Inn offers more than 550 hotels in 47 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Mexico. Residence Inn participates in the company's award-winning Marriott Rewards program, which enables members to earn their choice of points toward free vacations or frequent flyer mileage in their preferred airline program for dollars spent at more than 2,500 Marriott hotels in 56 countries.

For more information or reservations, call the Residence Inn National Harbor Washington, D.C. hotel directly at 301-749-4755, the Residence Inn toll-free number at 800-331-3131, a travel agent or visit the Web site at www.residenceinn.com.

Visit http://creativeservices.0catch.com/boilerplate/ for Marriott
SOURCE Marriott International, Inc.

http://www.marriott.com

Copyright (C) 2008 PR Newswire. All rights reserved End of Story

Amistad Schooner At National Harbor

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/17/AR2008091701741.html

The Freedom Schooner Amistad is docked through Monday at National Harbor.

The ship is a re-creation of La Amistad (meaning friendship), a vessel that became a central part of the first human rights case in U.S. courts argued on behalf of enslaved Africans.

In the Amistad incident of 1839, Africans who had been kidnapped and sold into slavery took over the ship as it sailed from one Cuban port to another. After weeks at sea, the ship was seized off Long Island, N.Y., and towed to Connecticut, where the Africans were jailed on charges related to the takeover.

Their case eventually went before the U.S. Supreme Court, where former president John Quincy Adams argued successfully on behalf of the Africans. In 1841, those who survived were returned to Africa.
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The Amistad's visit to National Harbor commemorates the 1808 signing of the U.S. law abolishing the African slave trade. While docked, the Amistad is open to the public for free tours.

An exhibit associated with the vessel is on display through 5 p.m. Monday in the Prince George's County Administration Building at 14741 Governor Oden Bowie Dr. in Upper Marlboro.

Amistad Replica Visits National Harbor
By Odell B. Ruffin - WI Staff Writer
Thursday, 18 September 2008

Mouse over to see a larger version and captionA replica of the slave ship La Amistad arrived at National Harbor on Tue., Sept. 16. The ship will remain docked, and is open for tours until Sept. 22. Photo by Maurice G. Fitzgerald

The Freedom Schooner Amistad arrived at the National Harbor for its National Homecoming on Sept. 16. The Amistad is a replica of the original vessel called La Amistad that was an integral part of the first Civil Rights case heard by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1839. A brief prayer was conducted by Donald George, Amistad’s International Multicultural Educator, prior to entry of the ship.

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“It’s [Amistad] a symbol of hope and inspiration because in the past it was dark, gloomy and brutal. We are using the example of the past to build up the present, so that future will look brighter for the next generation,” George said.

Through the Atlantic Freedom Tour, Amistad crew and educators share the history of the slave trade and highlight the way that legacy reflects in today’s social, political and cultural character. Thousands of school children have visited the ship during its year-long tour, and its approximately 50 public ceremonies and sailing events.
Mouse over to see a larger version and captionCarolyn Johnson reads some of the history of La Amistad at the Prince George’s County Administration Building on Mon., Sept. 15. Photos by Maurice G. Fitzgerald

“I am involved because of the history; in my school they didn’t teach us this. So after I finished college, this was something I knew I wanted to be a part of,” said crew member Mukanku Mpoyi, a Howard University graduate who started as a volunteer.

(Mouse over image to enlarge)

Prior to the public’s first look at the inside of the ship, Mpoyi shared some insights on the history of the slaves’ passage as he described how 49 men were packed in a small space chain to one another.

“If a man died, it would be two weeks before they removed him. Meanwhile, you had sharks that would follow the ship because they smelled food,” said Mukanku.

Sailing more than 14,000 miles retracing the infamous middle passage starting in London, England to the U.S., the Amistad returns home furthering the cross Atlantic discussions of humanity and justice that the ship represents.

“We feel privileged and indeed honored to host and be the first mid-Atlantic Freedom Schooner Amistad stop during the vessel’s tour,” said Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson. “It is my sincere hope that the community will take advantage of this historical and significant educational opportunity.”

In spring of 2007, Freedom Schooner Amistad embarked on its first transatlantic voyage, joining international agencies and organizations in the U.S., Canada, Great Britain, Europe and West Africa as part of the international commemoration of a most significant milestone, the 200th anniversary of the abolition the Trans-Atlantic slave trade in the former British Empire.

“As we honor the 200th anniversary of the abolition of Atlantic Slave Trade, I could not think of a better time for the youth to understand the importance of the Amistad,” said Dr. John E. Deasy, superintendent of Prince George’s County Public Schools. “I encourage our students and their families to take advantage of this opportunity.”

The Port visit to the National Harbor from Sept. 16 through the 22 commemorates the 1808 signing of the United States Law abolishing the African slave trade. The American laws enacted March 1807, came into force on Jan. 1, 1808.

“I wanted to see this ship up close and personal. History was born here and I wanted to see where the event took place. It’s emotional to me, but I am trying to hold it together,” said District resident Dora Netta-Porter.

National Harbor welcomes the Freedom Schooner Amistad on the second half of its Atlantic Freedom Tour.

“Just to have the opportunity to host this extraordinary vessel, which has such enormous historical and educational value, gives us great pride,” said Bridget Graves of Peterson Management Company National Harbor.

While docked at the National Harbor, the Amistad will be available to the general public for tours. In addition, an exhibit associated with the vessel will be on display in the Prince George’s County Administration Building first floor lobby area located at Governor Oden Bowie Drive in Upper Marlboro, Md. The exhibit and vessel tours are both free to the public, with hours of 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. After leaving National Harbor, Amistad will dock at the Capital Yacht Club and remain there from Sept. 23 through 29.

“We are pleased to celebrate the American spirit. It shows how people work together and do right. Also, our young people can get a feel for how captives had to live and how people stood up for what they believed in,” Johnson said.

Invitations to tour Amistad have been extended to Prince George’s County Schools encouraging all students to share the experience with their families.

“One must understand the suffering, to understand where they are today and what the responsibity is to keep that memory alive,” said Captain William Bill Pinkney Master Emeritus.

For more information call CCS Consulting Services at 410-422-1973. For reservations call Carleen Lewis 203-495-1839.

Business Leaders Converge in Washington, DC Region to Discuss Critical Energy Policy, Energy Trends, Climate Change & Sustainability Issues

Last update: 1:16 p.m. EDT Sept. 22, 2008

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., Sep 22, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Set against the political backdrop of the upcoming Presidential election and the future of energy policy, energy security and climate change initiatives, the 31st World Energy Engineering Congress (WEEC) is poised to be the largest gathering of energy efficiency and sustainable decision-makers in the region.

Starting on Wednesday, October 1, 2008 the opening ceremonies will include keynote presenters featuring the Honorable Mark Pryor, U.S. Senator, Arkansas, who will provide an update on Energy Independence & the Security Act.Senator Pryor will be joined by Michael MacCracken, Ph.D., Chief Scientist for Climate Change Programs, Climate Institute who will present the latest findings on The Increasing Pace of Climate Change. New Directions in Energy Policy will be explored by Washington insider Kateri Callahan, President, Alliance to Save Energy. Joseph W. Craver III, Group President, Science Applications International Corporation will give welcoming remarks. For the big picture on the megatrends impacting the energy industry, the event will have noted author, Mark Gabriel, Executive Consultant and Principal, R.W. Beck, Inc. who will outline his findings in his latest best-selling book Visions for a Sustainable Energy Future.

The event is presented by the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE), hosted by Science Applications International Corporation - SAIC and has support from the U.S. EPA Energy Star program as well as energy leaders General Accounting Office, Raytheon, GM, Ford, U.S. DOE, Corning, Heinz, Northrop Grumman, Trane, Toyota, National Technical Information Service, Florida Power & Light, and many more supporters. Held October 1-3, 2008 at the new Gaylord Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor, MD, this three (3) day event is the nation's largest annual forum on energy efficiency, renewable energy, power and green facility trends.

On Friday, October 3rd, Andrew Singer, Senior Vice President, Constellation Energy - NewEnergy Power will give a keynote closing address on the Impacts and Opportunities in the New Energy World.

This year, the WEEC will be held duringEnergy Awareness Month which has a theme of Working to Secure a Clean Energy Future.

For more information, go to, www.energycongress.com, register for event, VIP Media Registration. More information on the Association of Energy Engineers visit, www.aeecenter.org.

SOURCE: Association of Energy Engineers

AEE
Communications
Patty Ardavin, 678-778-8516, 770-447-5083
Fax: 770-446-3969
Patty@aeecenter.org

Westin celebrates its National Harbor grand opening

By Stephanie Samuel

Sentinel Staff Writer

County officials celebrated continued development at the National Harbor with the official opening of the Westin National Harbor.

"At the Westin, we say it's a brand new day and that brand is Westin," Westin President Susan Brush said.

The hotel opened for business in April and it celebrated its arrival last Wednesday with posh opening in its lower level restaurant Sauciety. The opening featured dessert and cocktail bars along with a massage booth and a perfumer station. Perfumer Sarah Horowitz gave away vials of three scents specially concocted for the event. All three scents held hint of the Westin's signature scent white tea, which fills the air when you first walk in.

Walking in, you also notice the natural hues, browns, greens and pale yellow, and the wall of windows showing a beautiful view of the Potomac River. Brush said the décor and the festivities are meant to express the hotel's theme is personal renewal.

"We want to pledge every customer to feel better when they walk out than [when] they walked in," she said.

Prince George's County Executive Jack Johnson and Prince George's County Council Chairman Samuel Dean (D-Dist. 6) and Vice Chairwoman Marilynn Bland (D-Dist. 9) praised the hotel's décor. Johnson also praised its economic placement in the community.

"We celebrate the opportunity. This hotel is really the creation of the American Dream for the employees here," he said. "We're excited for the opportunity in Prince George's County and we're excited for opportunity here in the Westin."

Despite the excitement, Johnson said less than half of the hotel's 100 employees are county residents, roughly 40 to 45 percent.

Johnson said the hotel is a regional opportunity.

"When we create opportunities like this, it creates opportunities for every one in the region," he said.

The Westin's official opening shows the advancement of National Harbor. Visitors are steadily trickling in as more attractions open up for customers. Boats from Seadog, the Odyssey and Spirit of Washington dinner cruises and water taxis are constantly pulling and out of port. The list of stores, art galleries and restaurants for eager patrons includes Jos A. Bank, Art Whino and McCormick & Schmick's. The Westin is among four other hotels open to customers aside from the National Gaylord, Marriott's Residence Inns and Hampton Inns and Suites.

More restaurants including Rosa Mexicana and Grace's Mandarin Restaurant are on their way to National Harbor later this year.

Contact Stephanie Samuel at

ssamuel@thesentinel.com

The Montgomery County Sentinel, published weekly by Montgomery Sentinel Publishing, Inc., is a community newspaper covering Montgomery County, Maryland. Founded in 1855.

The Prince George's Sentinel, published weekly by Berlyn Inc., is a community newspaper covering Prince George's County, Maryland

Friday, September 5, 2008
Retail
Opening dates slated for National Harbor retailers
Washington Business Journal - by Missy Frederick Staff Reporter

Nine new restaurants and retail outfits are scheduled to open at National Harbor by the end of this year, with the first phase of the project expected to be totally filled by spring or early summer.

The bakery CakeLove and a Fossil retail store opened in late August, and the Residence Inn is scheduled to open in early September, said Marc Menick of Fairfax-based The Peterson Cos. Menick is handling the leasing for the property.

Occasions To Remember, a gift store, is scheduled to open its doors Sept. 5, pending final approval from the county. Olympic News, a newsstand, is scheduled to open Sept. 15, with restaurant Rosa Mexicana arriving Sept. 25.

In October, local coffee chain Mayorga Coffee of Rockville will open both a kiosk station and a shop in the complex. It will replace Starbucks, originally planned for the development before the company began slowing growth. Mayorga will be joined by Aromi d’Italia, a gelato outfit out of Baltimore, and Godiva Chocolate.

All this stuff is good, go NATIONAL HARBOR.

If NH turned into a town when the development is finished, it would have the highest density any the area right.

If NH turned into a town when the development is finished, it would have the highest density any the area right.

Not likely.

Very nice development for DC and it's burbs. :)

Not likely.

The highest in the area currently is Friendshipt Height's, MD with over 45,000 ppl a sq mile, im preety sure if NH was a town it would top over that.

The highest in the area currently is Friendshipt Height's, MD with over 45,000 ppl a sq mile, im preety sure if NH was a town it would top over that.

Friendship Heights isn't a town, it's an unincorporated neighborhood, and I know it doesn't have 45,000 people per square mile. You could pick a 1/2 square mile portion of many places in the area and the density would be very high.

I went to National Harbor for the first time on Sunday. All I can say is wow! Very nice.

Friendship Heights isn't a town, it's an unincorporated neighborhood, and I know it doesn't have 45,000 people per square mile. You could pick a 1/2 square mile portion of many places in the area and the density would be very high.

yeah, the 2 square feet where I'm standing is way higher than 45,000 people per square mile

Pictures, anyone ?

Summer is gone and I didn't get a chance to visit this place ... :ohno:

Pictures, anyone ?

Summer is gone and I didn't get a chance to visit this place ... :ohno:

I put some up back in May (page 6 post #120) which are probably quite outdated by now. :)

Great shots, Ex-Ithacan! I especially love the ones of the Gaylord Hotel. Believe it or not, it's not as expensive as one might think.

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2373/2484432514_c38bfe9819_b.jpg

I may have to stay there one day!

^^it's nice! i don't quite know your taste, but i loved it!

This thread completely died it was on the second page so I decided to bring it back to life. :lol: Does anybody have any new pic's and there is a new residential building planned at NH that will include a H&M!!!

http://www.nationalharbor.com/consumer/residential.htm
Go to St. George Condominium's to see the rendering!!!

national harbor looks nice. like i said before, i believe the national harbor and the inner harbor are both gonna' flourish well. it's gonna' be a great balance!:okay:

I still haven't been to NH, yet. :ohno:

I'm going soon, VERY SOON, is national harbor 24 hour's or what!!! It's a development not a city that's why I'm asking?

I still haven't been to NH, yet. :ohno:

I don't think there's any particular reason to go unless you live in that immediate area or unless you're staying at one of the hotels.

I'm going soon, VERY SOON, is national harbor 24 hour's or what!!! It's a development not a city that's why I'm asking?for those of you who've never been, you guys should visit NH. when i visited there, it didn't really strike me as a "24-7" kind of place, but more of a family-oriented getaway. a resort. a timeshare (to some degree). but this is not to take anything away from the place itself.....it's very nice. it'll be a great asset for the state once it's fully built.

Very cool! :yes: Maybe I'll get there one day! :)

http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/photo/2007/03/21/PH2007032101142.jpg

National Harbor looked like a miniature Dubai... :lol:

http://www.co.pg.md.us/Government/AgencyIndex/DPW&T/NatlHarbor/natlharbor_facts.asp

http://www.co.pg.md.us/Government/AgencyIndex/DPW&T/NatlHarbor/NHP%20Flash/index.html I liked this slideshow....

Very cool! :yes: Maybe I'll get there one day! :)but like other forumers said before, the only way the national harbor will truyl prosper is having DCmetro extended there. the view of NH coming from virginia into maryland on the woodrow wilson bridge is awesome!

That would be pretty cool, I would be driving to B-more and I see the metro riding right beside me, In my case I'm going to drive 120 and race it :lol:

but like other forumers said before, the only way the national harbor will truyl prosper is having DCmetro extended there. the view of NH coming from virginia into maryland on the woodrow wilson bridge is awesome!

You said it! It's very dramatic! I always try to get a good shot when I pass over the woodrow wilson bridge.

You said it! It's very dramatic! I always try to get a good shot when I pass over the woodrow wilson bridge.Yes, it is! Very breathtaking.

Anybody have the numbers on how many inaugural guests stayed at the NH? Also, was there any ball there?

^^not sure, but i'm sure they got their fair share of business......

Inauguration a shot in the arm
State's hotels, taxis, printers and restaurants raked in business
by Lindsey Robbins | Staff Writer

From plywood to parties, Maryland businesses carved out a piece of the $170 million presidential inauguration action this week.

Almost 2 million people reportedly trekked to the National Mall on Tuesday to watch the swearing-in of President Obama, while many attended a multitude of balls and other celebrations.

A fair number of these visitors rode in Barwood taxis.

The Kensington cab company did double its normal business over the long weekend, according to Samuel Bland, sales accounts manager for Blue Star Group, the company's owner.

"It was a very good time for us," said Bland, who said Barwood had more than 400 cabs.

"It was like Grand Central around here during those five days," he said. "Where we normally do 1,500 calls on a shift, we did 3,000 calls on that shift. For the midnight shift, where we normally do 300 calls, we did 700 calls. And that doesn't include the drivers we had waiting at hotels, and other places, where people flagged them down."

Bland said he had an executive service arranged for inaugural visitors, with trained drivers who took passengers to events, including balls, and waited for them.

"You heard so much about street closures, and we didn't want to take people down there and then not be able to get back to pick them up," he said.

J. Michael Neitzey, executive director of the Prince George's County Conference and Visitors Bureau, emphasized that the county and state governments poured $11 million into inaugural activities, including public transit and security for crowds, so it was only fair that they reap some economic benefits.

Busy days for Gaylord spa

The Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at National Harbor in Oxon Hill said it sold out all its rooms for Sunday and Tuesday, hosting people for the Black Tie & Boots Inaugural Ball and the Africa and International Friends celebration. About 12,000 attended the Texas State Society gala — including actor Denzel Washington — and 2,300 showed up at the Africa event, including singer Patti LaBelle.

"Our spa did two of its busiest days since opening," said Amie Gorrell, spokeswoman for Gaylord, who described the overall celebration as very successful for the resort.

"It's an honor for our employees to be involved in such high-profile events after we've been open for only a year," Gorrell said.

The only hiccup was when more than the expected 2,300 guests showed up for the Africa ball, with some turned away. Gaylord had prepared only enough food and beverages for 2,300 people after getting that number from the gala's sponsor, the Prince George's County Presidential Inaugural Committee, Gorrell said.

"Now that we have National Harbor as a location for these types of balls and galas, it should increase Prince George's visibility in the long term," Neitzey said. "People coming to D.C. will see National Harbor as a destination to stay."

Mary Jo McCulloch, president of the Maryland Hotel and Lodging Association, said the hospitality industry had a strong couple of days, with hotels sold out all the way up to Philadelphia. Many hotels required down payments and multi-night stays.

McCulloch remains cautious as to how much the inaugural weekend will help in the long run.

"We're very grateful for it, but when you look at the numbers for January, I don't think you're going to see a tremendous increase," she said.

"It was terrific," said Chris Colvin, director of sales and marketing for three hotels: Hilton Washington, D.C./Silver Spring and the HomeSuites Silver Spring/Hampton Inn Silver Spring, the first combined hotel of those two brands in the country.

"In perspective, it was certainly a wonderful demand generator," Colvin said. "It's a non-peak season, so to have a demand generator like the inauguration, you can't complain."

The Silver Spring Hilton's 263 rooms were all occupied, while 95 percent of the 239 rooms at the dual-brand hotel across the street were filled.

"It was a nice push for January for the old hotel," said Colvin, who wouldn't comment on how much rates were increased for the inaugural period, "and for the brand-new hotel [the dual-brand hotel opened Jan. 13], it was certainly nice to have a wonderful push right off the bat."

Other businesses were not so much interested in the revenue boost as in the increased exposure. Hank's Tavern & Eats in Hyattsville, which hosted an inauguration-watching party, along with four other restaurants in University Town Center, drew more than 300 patrons. Del. Justin Ross (D-Dist. 22) of Greenbelt and Prince George's Councilman Will Campos organized the Hyattsville event. The politicians paid Hank's $1,500 to host the party, along with additional money for the open bar.

"It's not about good revenue or bad revenue. All I wanted is for 300 people to know we're here," said general manager Steve Greehan. Hank's is also preparing for a Super Bowl party.

Another company that got an inaugural boost was Gray Graphics of Capitol Heights, which won the Government Printing Office contract for 110,000 packages containing black-and-gold engraved invitation cards, inauguration ceremony program booklets and photographs of Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.

To meet the deadline, owners Amal and Saber Helal and their 55 employees worked 20 hours a day in two shifts every day until the job was delivered in early January, the company said in a statement. "This is what President Obama means by asking each of us to work together, pull ourselves up, and dust ourselves off, in order to meet tough challenges," said Saber Helal, who, like his wife, is an Egyptian immigrant.

‘Security was the greatest challenge'

Awaiting those who braved the elements and transportation conditions to get to downtown Washington on Tuesday were the inaugural trimmings: 45,000 board feet of lumber, 3,000 sheets of plywood, 500 gallons of paint, 400 rolls of carpet, 100,000 yards of fabric and 100,000 square feet of signs, seals, banners and other graphics that went into the parade floats and various décor, assembled by Hargrove Inc., a Lanham special events planner that has been in charge of planning and overseeing all official inaugural balls and other events since 1993.

Hargrove set the stage for this year's theme of "Renewing America's Promise." The company, which started dressing retail-store windows in 1946, has worked on U.S. presidential inaugurations since Harry Truman's in 1949.

"Security was the greatest challenge," said Marvin Bond, spokesman for Hargrove, saying that Hargrove always had to wait for security dogs to sniff through everything and everything had to be at the National Building Museum, which hosted several events, by noon Monday for a security check. Float drivers also had to be in place by 3 a.m. Tuesday, although the parade did not start until 3 p.m.

Hargrove's second major challenge was making sure all its events would show well on television, especially the We Are One concert at the Lincoln Memorial on Sunday. One of Hargrove's most complex pieces for the concert was the 22-foot-tall faux stone walls that moved across the stage between acts.

To cut costs, Hargrove also used the same presidential stage for the inaugural dinner and the first inaugural ball, the Neighborhood Ball, switching the mood for each through lighting and various cloth effects, Bond said. Some of the highlights of the Neighborhood Ball included a 16-foot wooden inaugural seal and a faux wood basketball arena theme.

"Things went very well," Bond said. "There were no major snafus."

AFRO NEWS
Last Updated Jan 2009

Inaugural Balls Fuel Obama Frenzy


By Dorothy Rowley
AFRO Staff Writer

(January 15, 2009) - As the District of Columbia gears up for inaugural madness, people from all across America and the world will be on hand as President-elect Barack Obama ascends to the White House on Jan. 20.

Even if they don’t get tickets to the historic swearing-in ceremony at the Capitol or space along the parade route, hundreds of thousands of Obama fans will still be able to grab a piece of history.

Obama, in keeping with his commitment to ensure that the inaugural celebration is open and accessible to all Americans, will host the first-ever Neighborhood Inaugural Ball. The event will be held Jan. 20 at the Washington Convention Center. Tickets will be free or at an affordable cost, with a portion of them earmarked for District residents.

Also, Northern Virginia businessman Earl Stafford is throwing an all-expenses paid Jan. 20 People’s Inauguration at the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington, D.C.

Stafford was not immediately available for comment. But he’s using $1 million of his own money to finance the “once-in-a- lifetime” inaugural package which will include reservations for 300 rooms at the high-end hotel on Pennsylvania Ave., $200,000 worth of food and a tented heated balcony overlooking the parade route.

Stafford, founder and chief executive officer of Universal Systems, a telecommunications firm based in Centreville, Va., said earlier that he also planned to raise additional funds for a ball which is expected to attract about 1,000 guests.

"We wanted to . . . bless those who otherwise wouldn't have an opportunity to be a part of the great celebration, the inauguration and the festivities," Stafford said in an early December Associated Press interview. "Our objective is to bring in a cross-section of society -- those who are distressed, those who are terminally-ill, those who are socially and economically disadvantaged, those veterans who are wounded and served our country."

Meanwhile, a host of other People’s Balls -- at AFRO press time there were at least 50 and counting -- will take place in the nation’s capital during the inaugural period of Jan. 13 -27. Most of the balls will be black tie and, depending on the venue, ticket prices range from $68 to $5000 and more.

Hometown guests will include D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Mayor Adrian Fenty, City Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray, former mayors Sharon Pratt and Anthony Williams, and Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson.

Among the slew of celebrities and performers are: Aretha Franklin, Chuck Brown, Anita Baker, Usher, Raheem DeVaughn, the Temptations, the Drifters, the Platters, the Coasters, and Patti LaBelle.

“The pulse of the city is at an all-time high and it will be difficult to move around in D.C.,” said Gloria Murry, a coordinator for the D.C. Inaugural Committee. “But things will be jumping with some of the best entertainment descending upon the city.”

Murry said Mayor Fenty’s D.C. Presidential Inaugural Gala, which takes place Jan. 19 at the U. S. Department of Transportation, will feature the O’Jays and jazz saxophonist Brian Lenair. Tickets will cost $144 each.

In addition, two balls will be held simultaneously on Jan. 20 at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel in northwest D.C. and hosted by legendary songstress Dionne Warwick and rapper-turned-actor Chris “Ludacris” Bridges. Both balls are expected to attract between 4,000 and 6,000 guests and tickets will range between $450 and $75 per person.

Prince George’s County’s African and International Friends Inaugural Ball on Jan. 20 at Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at the National Harbor –which remains under construction -- expects to draw about 15,000 people – including an international roster of dignitaries.

South African President Nelson Mandela will be among them. According to organizers, the idea for the ball emanated from Mandela who expressed a desire for his country to have a role in the inauguration as it shares the celebratory victory of the African continent’s most famous son.

The ball for which Mandela will serve as honorary chair and the Rev. Walter Fauntroy as chair, has been hailed as a milestone for Prince George’s County. Tickets will cost $1,000.

In addition, various denominations of African-American churches will come together on Jan. 18 to celebrate with an African-American Church Inaugural Ball.

The theme of the event is “We Have Come This Far By Faith,” and will be held at the downtown Grand Hyatt. Ball coordinator Rhue Still said that because Obama’s election is a significant milestone in Black history, the celebration will take the opportunity to honor 25 national leaders with the Keepers of the Flame Award.

Among the celebrants are Ben Hooks, Dorothy Height, Robert Brown, Al Sharpton and Johnetta Cole. Still said the ball was spawned by the role the Black church has played in both civil rights and the achievement of Black Americans.

“The African-American church has been a cornerstone of civil rights and championing African Americans’ ability to achieve,” said Still. “Therefore, the denominations are joining together in a unified celebration in this moment of our history.”

She said the tickets, which will cost $250 per person, will be among the least expensive for inaugural events in the District.

A spokeswoman for Fenty’s office said that the District is bursting with enthusiasm as it hosts the most historic inauguration in the nation’s history.

“For Washington residents this day ushers in a new administration with renewed possibilities, including the delivery of voting rights for the city’s nearly 600,000 residents, who have no voting representation in Congress,” said Leslie Kershaw. “We are prepared to welcome an unprecedented amount of visitors to the District and will work as hard as humanly possible to ensure a safe and smooth inauguration week celebration.

^^damn! pretty impressive!:okay:

National Harbor a-buzz over inauguration galas
Influx of guests drives up hopes for big blowout

How much food does it take to feed 19,000 guests showing up for two major inaugural balls at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at National Harbor in Oxon Hill?

There is the 3,000 pounds of beef tenderloin, the 400,000 hors d'oeuvres, plus the 25,000 lollipop cheesecakes — just to name a few.

The thousands of people expected to pass through the development may as well come with appetites as grand as the fanfare, as inaugural events at the hotel have staff and crew working around the clock to prep for the inaugural galas Monday and Tuesday.

"All 2,300 of our employees will be dedicated to these events," said Amie Gorrell, a spokeswoman for Gaylord. "The hotel is sold out."

Rigoberto Lemus, executive chef for the hotel, was staging a production of his own in the massive banquet kitchens with 73 chefs working 12-hour shifts to make sure the food for the balls is ready.

"The biggest challenge is to cook all the food," he said.

Storing tons of everything from balsamic dressing to thousands of hors d'oeuvres presents its own challenges.

"There's actually a truck en route from Nashville with food equipment and refrigerators," Gorrell said.

Rumors are swirling around which high-profile guests will stop by, a who's-who of local and even international politics. President George W. Bush is expected to be a guest at the Black Tie & Boots Inaugural Ball on Monday.

Barack Obama and his Kenyan grandmother are rumored to be popping into the Africa and International Friends Inaugural Ball: The Ancestors Dream Realized on Tuesday evening. Confirmed political guests include Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D) and County Councilman Tony Knotts (D-Dist. 8), civil rights movement icons "the Little Rock Nine," and live entertainment from singer Patti LaBelle and soul group the O'Jays.

"It's a very prestigious mix of people," Gorrell said. She declined to give the names of high-profile guests staying at the hotel for the inauguration but did say some of the guests for the week come from all walks of fame.

The balls are expected to bring a dose of glitz and glam to the county during the inauguration.

"It gives the world the chance to see Prince George's County at its finest," said Terry Speigner, who is president of the Prince George's County Presidential Inaugural Committee and a planner for Tuesday's ball along with Fallen Soldiers, Inc., of Washington, D.C.

The 24,000 people expected to pass through the area will bring a much-needed boost to the local economy in January, a typically slow month for retailers and restaurants.

"It's certainly a spectacular event," said Kent Digby, vice president of operations at National Harbor. "Regionally the economic impact will be terrific, especially in a month like January."

Gorrell said tens of millions of dollars will be spent by guests at the hotel in addition to what will be spent at shops and restaurants within National Harbor, many of which are already expecting high volumes next week.

"We have a lot of large party reservations," said Michael Zito, manager of the newly opened Grace's Mandarin restaurant at National Harbor. He said Monday and Tuesday will likely be the restaurant's most profitable nights since opening in late December.

Renee Lamison, manager of the America! gift shop at the development, said she has opened a second store closer to the hotel just to catch traffic coming from the galas. She said she has already sold 3,000 Barack Obama plates to the hotel and expects to sell more next week.

"Everyone is excited," she said. "I've had to hire three more people."

Outside the development, hopes are high that some of the thousands expected to come through National Harbor will flow through the business corridor of Oxon Hill Road leading to the development and into area restaurants.

"All we can do is hope," said Frank Privitera, owner of Pizza Italia in Oxon Hill. He is opening the restaurant Monday, a day it is usually closed, in anticipation of crowds.

"I'm hoping it will be a knock-down drag-out."

E-mail Joshua Garner at jgarner@gazette.net

Baltimore Business Journal - by Missy Frederick

Four new retail outlets have opened in Prince George’s County this November, the developer announced Tuesday.

Mayorga Coffee, an outpost of the locally based coffee chain, has opened a store across the street from Aloft Hotel in the development. This is the sixth location of the store in Maryland, with a total of 10 in the nation.

Aromi D’italia gelato store is now located at 156 National Plaza. The gelato purveyor is a Baltimore-based company.

Cleveland-based steakhouse Cadillac Ranch has opened its first Maryland location in the development, occupying approximately 10,000 square feet at 186 Fleet St.

Clothing boutique South Moon Under opened its 12th store nationwide at 100 American Way.

National Harbor, which is being developed by the Peterson Companies, occupies 300 acres along the Potomac River. The mixed-use development inclues five hotels, residential and office units, shops, restaurants and a marina.The project is just off Interstate 495.

We have a Cadillac Ranch here in Nashville...very cool place!

Associations Moving to National Harbor?

http://www.bisnow.com/washington_dc_trade_association_news_story.php?p=2811

It's still pending, but School Nutrition Association executive director Barbara Belmont tells us that when its lease in Alexandria expires this September, they hope to be the first association to set up shop at National Harbor (near the Gaylord Convention Center). We love her logic: "Somebody had to be first. Why not us?"

There's other reasons, too: A brand new building, a floor to itself, and two dozen nearby restaurants. Barbara is also proud to report SNA should turn a profit this fiscal year, even while maintaining one of the nation's lowest dues structures (85% of revenue is non-dues). Though anticipated shortfalls next year (assuming the economy doesn't recover) may require tapping their reserve for the first time in her 16-year tenure, Barbara says they're well positioned. Fruitful (and frugal) years past allowed them to stockpile about $5M, half their annual budget. Again, her logic makes sense: "If you don't use the reserve now, why do you have it?"

Here's a photo we snapped of National Harbor, on a foggier day. That hand in the water is "The Awakening," transplanted from Hains Point. We called National Harbor's office leasing head, Jon Peterson, of The Peterson Companies, and he says activity has picked up in the past two months. They're negotiating with six to eight associations, including some from Crystal City and Downtown DC, attracted by the Harbor's accessibility for out-of-town visitors, and the flexibility of leasing from 2000 SF to 30,000 SF. He says to look for multiple leases to land between June and December.

That lactose-tolerant superhero behind Barbara is from a good nutrition marketing campaign that led up to last week's National School Breakfast Week. (We hope you bought your lunch lady a card.) The campaign won multiple honors, including ASAE's Associations Advance America Award. To capitalize on the Presidential election, they asked students to vote on their favorite school lunch. (We wonder if they used negative ads. Imagine: "Those aren't tater tots you can believe in.") Barbara's an association lifer, moving here from St. Louis in the 1970's to work for the National Association of Home Builders

I thought that it would probably happen at some point.

Does National Harbor have any public trans running to it? If not, are there plans to run any public trans to it.

It worries me how many parking garages are being built in a development that deems or markets it self as urban.

I don't know if there's any mass transit planned for it, but there currently aren't any mass transit lines there (I'd love to see metro go there...)

Wasn't there a proposed line that has it going there? :? Maybe Siver Springer can help. :)

oh... I didn't think there was. Maybe they can take the purple line all the way around to it?

Does National Harbor have any public trans running to it? If not, are there plans to run any public trans to it.

It worries me how many parking garages are being built in a development that deems or markets it self as urban.

To answer the general question, YES, National Harbor does have public transit running through it, including, METRO Bus, I think The Bus (Prince George's County Transit), Old Towne Trolley (still technically public mass transit and the first time it's actually come into Maryland (correct me if I'm wrong) ) and even water taxi's.

There is a right of way for mass transit rail (preferably the yellow line) going over the Wilson Bridge from what I've heard and read.

I'm curious as to why you think having parking garages negates this particular development as being urban in intention.

The dirty little secret about urban spaces is that they have plenty of car parking spaces available. 95%+ of modern buildings in Downtown D.C. have above or/and underground parking garages. Arlington has many above ground garages as does Bethesda. Once National Harbor is complete constructing garages, it wont be half the amount in downtown Silver Spring.

To answer the general question, YES, National Harbor does have public transit running through it, including, METRO Bus, I think The Bus (Prince George's County Transit), Old Towne Trolley (still technically public mass transit and the first time it's actually come into Maryland (correct me if I'm wrong) ) and even water taxi's.

There is a right of way for mass transit rail (preferably the yellow line) going over the Wilson Bridge from what I've heard and read.

I'm curious as to why you think having parking garages negates this particular development as being urban in intention.

The dirty little secret about urban spaces is that they have plenty of car parking spaces available. 95%+ of modern buildings in Downtown D.C. have above or/and underground parking garages. Arlington has many above ground garages as does Bethesda. Once National Harbor is complete constructing garages, it wont be half the amount in downtown Silver Spring.

I wouldn't say it's a dirty little secret. All urban places have parking garages. Even if a portion of people will come via public transit, most people still drive in this country's urban places, and even if they don't drive, they have a car and need to store it someplace if they live in these urban places. Most people won't be taking buses to National Harbor, they will be driving. Until rail arrives (maybe never, or if not, it will be a long time), the percentage of people driving versus taking any of the available buses or the water taxi will be far greater than than that for the number of popular real urban spaces throughout the rest of the area with rail connections.

Thanks for all the info. Im glad to hear that public trans is already running there and even better to hear there is a right of way for the metro.

My problem with the national harbor dev is simply the amount of parking they are creating and requiring. I dont think parking is bad or harmful to the urban experience but it can drastically change how it further develops. My secret is that I have a little inside info on how the parking is being distributed at national harbor. I work for one of the companies moving there.

We were informed that we would have a parking ratio of 5. Im not as versed with parking ratios and such, but I generally thought that suburban developments have ratios above 3.5 or so and more dense developments are lower, 1 to 2. Given that we will have a 5 leads me to believe this will be completely harmful to what they are seeking at national harbor. To me that seems excessive, but please correct me if I am way off or misunderstanding how these numbers work.

glad to see national harbor flourishing...

Getting Neighborly With National Harbor
Fort Washington Community Adjusts To All of the Bustle

By Jim Brocker
Special to The Washington Post
Saturday, March 28, 2009; G01

Some residents of the Riverbend area of Fort Washington have been neighbors for decades, raising their children, attending picnics and potluck suppers, holding holiday decorating contests, and running food and toy drives.

"Folks really watch out for one another. You see some of the old-fashioned neighborliness folks used to have before the hustle and bustle of the day," said Zeno W. St. Cyr II, who is president of the citizens group for the Riverbend subdivision. One stealthy neighbor in Riverbend Estates has been known to leave vases of daffodils on doorsteps to mark the start of spring.

Some of the bustle has moved in next door in the form of the National Harbor development, providing shopping and entertainment as well as discussion over noise, traffic and construction.

The "Harbor," as residents call the mega-development in Prince George's on the Potomac River, opened in 2008. A fence prevents access on foot but also discourages non-residents from parking in the neighborhood. The rear of the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center lies in plain view of homes on Rosier Road, and the dust and dirt during construction was "a source of consternation," St. Cyr said.

Some issues remain, but Irma Bogan, whose Rosier Road home backs directly to the Gaylord, said developer Peterson Cos. and Gaylord have met frequently with neighbors.

"Certainly they have done a number of things with some of the landscaping. I think they are trying to be good neighbors," said Bogan, who has lived in her home for 36 years.

Elizabeth McIlveen, 77, has lived in her home since 1968 and still has a view of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge from her dining room despite the hotel. "You can see the fireworks on the Fourth of July," she added.

Longtime Riverbend area residents say the first homeowners were an ethnically and racially diverse group of government workers, professionals and military families who have remained friendly with one another.

McIlveen said she and her husband, David, were the first African Americans to move into Riverbend and were welcomed by most neighbors. "One lady invited our daughter to bake cookies," she recalled, and another neighbor gave them oak trees to plant.

Now, many residents of the Riverbend and Riverbend Estates subdivisions are older -- "aged in place" as Jane Hudnall, 64, put it -- but they have remained because they cherish their friendships.

"It's been the satisfaction with the people around us, our neighbors," said Jacqueline Pyatt, 70, president of the Riverbend Estates Homeowners Association. "We definitely have similar values and interests . . . just concern for the quality of life in the community."

Newcomers like Carl Beaudry and his wife, Melissa Houghton, were happy to find a new home in an established neighborhood with trees when they moved in in 2001. "We decided we wanted to start a family here," Beaudry said, and their son, Max, was born in September.

Some say crime is a growing concern as National Harbor brings more people to the area. Cpl. George Ross of the Prince George's County police department's District 4 Community Resource Team said he has spoken to neighborhood groups about crime prevention. They monitor the streets through a neighborhood watch program.

"For the most part, it's pretty quiet back here," he said. He said the number of calls in Fort Washington was lower than elsewhere in the district, like Oxon Hill and Temple Hills.

Guinevere Jones-Wood, an agent for Long & Foster, said housing prices in Riverbend, which generally features larger, custom-built homes, average around $400,000. Prices are lower in Riverbend Estates, a subdivision with a range of styles.

Jones-Wood purchased a home in Riverbend so her children could be near her parents, who lived in the neighborhood. Any impact of National Harbor on property values "would have been years before the project was built," she said.

One issue for some neighbors with the development is the sound from the Gaylord hotel's laundry facility.

"I wish you would have heard the noise," said Rosier Road resident Joyce Thorpe, who has been unhappy with the effects of National Harbor on the neighborhood.

The hotel is building a $350,000 multilayered "skin" around the outside of the laundry's exhaust fans, said Gaylord National spokeswoman Amie Gorrell. The work could be complete in April. "We wanted to make sure it wasn't a quick fix and the sound was mitigated properly," Gorrell said.

Bogan said the situation is better: "The noise has reduced exponentially with each layer that goes up."

For entertainment purposes, "there's nothing like being around the corner from the Harbor," said resident Brenda Cosby, who has long enjoyed the area's proximity to the District, where she can see plays or events at the Kennedy Center. "We're in the suburbs, but not far away from anything."

Jim Hudnall used to ride his bicycle to work from his Riverbend Estates home to the Naval Research Laboratory in the District. Now in retirement, he and his wife Jane still enjoy cycling and frequently use the nearby Henson Creek Trail. Both would like to see bike paths along Oxon Hill Road, a busy two-lane thoroughfare that provides access to Fort Foote Road and Riverbend.

Residents have attended meetings to offer suggestions for improving the road, and the spirit of activism is likely to continue, especially "if there's an issue that unites the neighborhood," Jane Hudnall said.

That sense of civic pride impressed Edwin Walker, who attended a homeowners meeting prior to purchasing his house in 1998. "I saw a group of people who genuinely appeared to care about each other," said Walker, who works in the District for the federal government. Now, he is active with his citizens association and a satisfied property owner. "When I step out on my deck, I'm in the forest. . . . This becomes a retreat from the city without being far from the city."

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Children's Museum Unveils Not Only Design, but Vision

By Jacqueline Trescott
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, April 22, 2009

The National Children's Museum, a local institution without a home for five years, today will unveil the design by acclaimed architect Cesar Pelli for its permanent location near the Potomac River.

The museum, scheduled to open in 2013 at National Harbor in Prince George's County, is also opening a sneak-preview center, called the Launch Zone, at the harbor complex this week and introducing a redesigned Web site, http://www.ncm.museum, that officials say will allow future visitors to have a say about the museum -- from building materials to exhibits to games.

The planned structure is a four-story building with a glass atrium on one corner, a towering wind turbine, a wall of living plants along one exterior side and an interior open courtyard. Other features will include a slip on one of the Potomac piers with science and boating activities, and a gathering place in a nearby woodland.

But before this vision can be realized, there's the price -- $182.6 million -- that must be raised during a difficult time for many arts organizations due to declining endowments, streamlined public money, and decreased individual and corporate giving.

The starting point for the capital campaign was the $26 million from the sale of the museum's old property on Capitol Hill. Developer Milton Peterson donated the land, and the museum has received $7 million from the state. And museum organizers are confident they will reach their goal.

"This is a tough economic time. But we believe in the project and we have great leadership," says Kathy Southern, the president of the museum. "We are being very careful about how we use the money." All expenses are coming out of the fundraising, which currently is in the unannounced, quiet phase; Southern declined to say how much has been raised.

The museum, formerly known as the Capital Children's Museum, operated for 30 years and closed in 2004. Its previous location -- a rambling former convent at Third and H streets NE -- would have been too expensive to upgrade and modernize: "There was one winter where I wore mittens when I used the computer," recalls Southern.

As a museum "without walls," it has organized traveling exhibitions and demonstrations in classrooms, as well as participating in the White House Easter Egg Roll and the Cherry Blossom Festival.

Officials at the museum, which Congress declared a national museum in 2003, say that breathing room gave the founders and designers time to develop a framework for what the 21st-century patron wants.

"We are putting together the traditional role of a museum, along with a place where [children] can be helped to make a difference," says Southern. "We heard from kids that they wanted to be involved in their communities but had to find out how to do it. We surveyed 7- to 13-year-olds, the top part of our target, and 90 percent said they wanted to volunteer. But yet only one-third of those surveyed do it," says Southern, who was the start-up executive for Port Discovery in Baltimore and former executive director of James Madison's Montpelier.

Rather than organize projects, Southern says, the museum will show students the way through stories of volunteerism -- for example, efforts to recycle old bikes and send them to foreign countries, or a street-cleaning project that children can duplicate in their own communities -- will be outlined.

The 2,700-square-foot preview space will focus on the environment. The eventual museum will revolve around topics including the environment, civic engagement, play, health, the arts and the global neighborhood. Admission was $6 at the old museum. Southern says they plan to charge admission again: "We are waiting until we are closer to opening and then see what the market demands," she says.

Pelli, a winner of the American Institute of Architects' Gold Medal and the senior principal of Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects, has been associated with the project for years. He designed the space twice, once for a building-locked area at L'Enfant Plaza that didn't materialize because of a change in that renovation's timeline and plans.

The National Harbor site, Pelli says by phone, "gave us more room to do a better building. It is much more suited to accomplish more for children."

The courtyard is "the heart of the building," he says. Arranged around the courtyard are the other spaces for exhibitions, classrooms, stores and snacks. The design for the glass atrium includes a tower of children's photographs, some of which will be taken in real time of the day's visitors.

This is the first children's museum for Pelli's firm, and the architect says he wanted to emphasize all approaches to education and make the building itself a teaching tool. "We wanted to develop the building to teach in a non-structured way. Children should be immersed, not always sitting at a desk with homework," he says. "The wind turbine should be a delightful, education element. It is light and energy and should teach children about the problems we are facing in the world."

Up to this point, Pelli's most visible contribution to the Washington skyline has been the extension of Reagan National Airport. He also designed an office building at 1900 K St. NW and renovated another one at 15th and K streets NW.

Very impressive! The kids are really going to love this.

National Harbor leases office space
School Nutrition Association sets sail for development
by Joshua Garner | Staff Writer


The School Nutrition Association said it is slated to pack its bags in Alexandria, Va., this August and set sail for National Harbor, making it the first association to sign a lease at the $4 billion development in Oxon Hill.

The School Nutrition Association is a 55,000-member national association that provides training, resources and certification to school districts and corporations. Representatives for the association said they scouted several locations throughout northern Virginia before ultimately deciding to head across the Potomac River to the development.

"We started looking at locations in the Alexandria area a year ago. We decided, why not take a look at what's available at National Harbor?" said Barbara Belmont, the association's executive director. "There's a very upbeat and fresh feel to National Harbor."

The association will occupy more than 15,200 square feet along Waterfront Street with a view of the Potomac River. Belmont said that while the site was less expensive than its current space in Old Town Alexandria and offered more office and parking space, developers at National Harbor sealed the deal by offering to run a shuttle from the Huntington Metro station in Alexandria to pick up some of the association's 47 employees.

"In the end," she said. "[National Harbor] came out on top."

Representatives for National Harbor said they were excited about signing their first association to the development.

"It's a pretty unique environment that we've created at National Harbor," said Jon Peterson, vice president of commercial development for The Petersons Companies, National Harbor's developer.

Though traffic at National Harbor has been steadily increasing, most of the space at the development — designed to be mixed-use — has been occupied by hotels, restaurants and small retail stores. Project developers plan on eventually filling 500,000 square feet of office space.

Peterson said that the School Nutrition Association is the first tenant of its kind to lease space at the development, but said more large organizations are on their way.

"We're really excited about the School Nutrition Association filling the slot at National Harbor," he said. "I think people are finally realizing the opportunities that National Harbor provides."

Likewise, Belmont said her staff has been pleased with the decision. She suspects workers crossing the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and driving into the development would encounter less traffic than in Alexandria. She also said National Harbor's plethora of hotels would make it easy for visiting members to stay close to the association.

And then there are the restaurants. After 20 years in Alexandria, Belmont said her staff has been to every restaurant in the area.

"[National Harbor has] some pretty new and interesting restaurants," she said. "It will be fun being able to walk down to the dock [for lunch]."

E-mail Joshua Garner at jgarner

@gazette.net.

National Harbor quietly passes one-year anniversary
Despite hurdles, community largely pleased with project
by Joshua Garner | Staff Writer


A year since the opening of National Harbor — the sprawling mixed-used development rising from the shores of the Potomac River in Oxon Hill — nearby residents said they are cautiously optimistic that the ritzy development will help revitalize the area, amid fears they have been out-priced.

Milton V. Peterson, chairman of the site's developer, Fairfax, Va.-based Peterson Companies, said there were no lavish celebrations planned for the $4 billion project's one-year mark, as he is focused on continuing to build upon the project that was 10 years in the making and is slowly evolving into a major metropolitan center with granite sidewalks, high-end retail and extravagant high-rise hotels.

"It's an amazing attraction," he said. "I'm very pleased with the acceptance by our peers and the public."

County Councilman Tony Knotts (D-Dist. 8) of Temple Hills, whose district includes National Harbor, said the project — dubbed by county officials as the "jewel of Prince George's County" — has established the county as a viable community in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan region. The development has attracted popular shows like Cirque du Soleil and large-scale events like the Food and Wine Festival.

"[The county] needs an anchor project that National Harbor provides," Knotts said. "[The opening of National Harbor] was our Independence Day."

Zeno St. Cyr, president of the Riverbend Citizens Association in Fort Washington that abuts the development, said that his community has largely come to accept the project.

"We are now seeing the fruits of [Peterson's] vision. We love having all those amenities close by," he said.

But some local residents say those amenities have come at a price, arguing that the development — which charges upwards of $20 for a main course meals at most restaurants — has priced them out by favoring expensive tourist-themed shops rather than attractions for the local community.

"National Harbor is not for masses. You have to have money to go into that camp," said Jerry Mathis of Fort Washington, a realtor and community activist.

Some had hoped the development would spark a renewal in the area along the Oxon Hill Road and Route 210 corridor, but Mathis said developers have largely cut themselves off from the community by limiting access to the project from local roads and erecting gates separating it from nearby neighborhoods and differing most guests in the development to attractions in Northern Virginia or Washington, D.C. and away from the county.

Peterson said the project's steep prices were meant to set a high standard, adding that National Harbor plans to have as many as 18 restaurants, some with less expensive food.

"You have to set the tone early on," he said. "It's really tough. We're trying to be good neighbors. We're trying to be inclusive — the place isn't finished, don't judge us yet."

The development has faced a number of setbacks. During opening week, the Gaylord National Hotel and Convention Center suffered a norovirus outbreak, followed by a mice infestation. Later that month, a small fire broke out in one of the condominium projects. In March, hotel employees were implicated by the Secret Service in a credit fraud scheme.

Peterson Companies has also been criticized for not awarding more building contracts to local minority-owned businesses or allowing realtor brokers access to listings in the project's condominiums.

Despite the problems, the 1.2-mile-long project has largely been hailed as a success, even by some of its most vocal opponents, including Bonnie Bick of the Campaign to Reinvest in the Heart of Oxon Hill.

She once sued Peterson Companies, hoping to halt the project out of fear it would overrun the community, destroy the local environment and turn the Prince George's County side of the Potomac River into a Las Vegas-like casino.

"I wish success for National Harbor," she said. "I think part of the issue is [Peterson Companies] is still working on their success," she said.

Bick said she too has high hopes that the project will ultimately rejuvenate communities in Oxon Hill and Fort Washington, with a Metro rail along the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and stops at National Harbor and downtown Oxon Hill.

"Everything is in place for revitalization," she said.

Meanwhile, Peterson said the development has managed to lease most of its 120,000 square feet of office space in recent months to mid-sized associations and businesses and is preparing for new attractions including the National Children's Museum in 2013 and more retail and residential units.

"If National Harbor isn't the best in the country, then we've missed our mark," Peterson said. "This is the first chapter of a real good book — so buckle up and see what happens."

But some local residents say those amenities have come at a price, arguing that the development — which charges upwards of $20 for a main course meals at most restaurants — has priced them out by favoring expensive tourist-themed shops rather than attractions for the local community.

"National Harbor is not for masses. You have to have money to go into that camp," said Jerry Mathis of Fort Washington, a realtor and community activist.



Don't worry. Send those restaurants up to north county. We'll gladly spend $20 for a nice meal. I'm not sure if this person realizes that inexpensive food is all the county has. I mean the classiest place in the county has to be the French restaurant over by the airport museum in College Park. And the food wasn't even all that good. If I'm missing anything, please let me know. That's another thing. I should be able to rattle off nice restaurants off the top of my head. There's no Ruths Chris, Mortons, Fogo De Chao, Zenga, Legal Seafood, Cheesecake Factory, PF Changs, Captial Grille, Clydes, etc. And those are just the basics. I'd like to eat at places like that in my own county instead of having to travel into D.C. My gosh people.

Now, I do admit that southern Prince Georges does lack even the basic chains like Outback, Olive Garden, etc. So, they did jump from nothing, straight to expensive. But I recall they used to be the envy of the rest of the county. When I was growing up, if you said you were from Ft. Washington, people knew you had money. That's another mystery of the county. Even where there was money, there was no development.

National Harbor quietly passes one-year anniversary
Despite hurdles, community largely pleased with project
by Joshua Garner | Staff Writer

Meanwhile, Peterson said the development has managed to lease most of its 120,000 square feet of office space in recent months to mid-sized associations and businesses and is preparing for new attractions including the National Children's Museum in 2013 and more retail and residential units.national harbor's gonna be a complete success when fully built-out in 5-10 years or so. can't wait to see the final product.

I know right...

Another cool restaurant just recently opened up called Public House. I tried it over the weekend, and it was pretty good. Great beer selection, too! :cheers1:
http://www.publichousenationalharbor.com/index.php

Walt Disney Co. has bought a 15-acre parcel at Prince George's County's sprawling National Harbor development, a shot in the arm for a project that opened with big ambitions a year ago, only to run headfirst into one of the sharpest economic declines in decades.

Disney plans to build a 500-room hotel resort on the parcel, providing another anchor for a 300-acre venture that seeks to rival the District as a conference and convention destination. National Harbor already includes six hotels; more than a dozen restaurants; and a giant conference center run by Gaylord Entertainment, owner of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

Business, though, has been slowed by the recession, and many of the 400 residences at National Harbor have not been sold. A Disney spokesman said the company will almost certainly go ahead with the project despite the economic climate, but the company did not provide a timetable.

"The addition of Disney as a partner to the National Harbor mix validates and fulfills the shared vision that we will be a world-class waterfront destination resort," said Milton V. Peterson, chairman of Peterson Cos., who has staked hundreds of millions of dollars on the harbor venture. "It's an extraordinary compliment in this economy."


Disney's move to Prince George's comes more than a decade after the company pulled out of a project to build a history-themed park, called Disney's America, on 3,000 acres of rolling farmland near the Manassas battlefield. Disney scrapped the project after months of opposition from politicians and citizens' groups

Peterson has been wooing Disney in the years since then. He even hosted Walt Disney president and chief executive Robert A. Iger on a visit to the site.

"I have been working on this Disney project with Milt for four years," said Prince George's County Executive Jack B. Johnson (D). "Milt has been working on it for 10. There were times when it looked like it wouldn't happen, but the perseverance paid off."

Tourism brings nearly $10 billion annually to the Washington region, though summer convention bookings and hotel reservations in the District are off about 5 percent from last year. District tourism officials projected a 2 percent decline in tourism this year.

With its thousands of hotel rooms and huge public spaces, National Harbor has been a subject of speculation on whether it complements or cannibalizes the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and other conference centers in downtown Washington. Plans for a large new hotel at the convention center, considered a requisite for boosting business there, remain on the drawing board.

But, eight miles south of the District on the Potomac River, National Harbor has been a relatively bright spot, one of the few projects to go forward. It is anchored by the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, which spots an 18-story glass hall, 2,000 hotel rooms and 470,000 square feet of meeting space, making it the largest center of its kind on the East Coast.

One hospitality source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the source is not an official spokesman, said about 60 percent of the convention business at the Gaylord center has been new to the region. The rest is groups that had previously booked events in Washington.

"Yeah, sure, we're in a downturn right now," said Colin Reed, chairman and chief executive of Gaylord Entertainment. "But three years from now, life will be a lot different."

Although Disney is best known for its animated films and theme parks, the entertainment conglomerate also includes ABC, ESPN, live-action films and cruise ships.

Disney's resorts unit is buying the National Harbor parcel for $11 million. The company also has an 800-plus room resort under construction on the island of Oahu in Hawaii. That resort is due to open in 2011; will cost about $800 million; and will include a spa, saltwater snorkeling, a replica volcano and wedding facilities, according to reports.

Disney would not disclose the exact size and construction date for its National Harbor plan, "but it will be a project of significant scale and put a recognizable Disney footprint in the Washington area," said Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Rasulo added that the project is not an attempt to build another Disney's America.

"The National Harbor resort is a completely different kind of project," Rasulo said. "It's specifically zoned for hotel, residential and other commercial development. This project is a hotel resort. It is not by any stretch of the imagination a theme-park project and never will be. We have no intention of building a large-scale theme park in the Washington area."


The new project might dovetail with Adventures by Disney, which offers guided tours that include a mid-Atlantic tour through Philadelphia, Williamsburg and Washington. The D.C. leg of the tour includes a guided bike ride around the National Mall and private tours of the Lincoln Memorial, the White House and Arlington National Cemetery, and a lunch trip to Mount Vernon.

"This is what we think about as a fun-filled new destination for local visitors, which can also serve as a base camp from which others can explore the increasingly inspirational stories from our nation's capital," Rasulo said.

The property Disney has bought sits on a rise at the top of a tree-lined promenade named American Way, which is fashioned after the main street in Barcelona, called Las Ramblas. The Disney site overlooks the National Harbor complex and the Potomac and faces north toward the District. Visitors can see the Washington Monument in the distance.

Rasulo said Disney has to weigh "lots of factors in the coming months and the coming years" before deciding when to break ground.

"We wouldn't be buying this property if we didn't think this was a great location for a Disney resort hotel," Rasulo said.

A Disney resort. "Hot Damn".

Huge news!!!

...unless it turns out to be nothing.

"This place changes everything!"

Go Prince George's County!

"We have no intention of building a large-scale theme park in the Washington area"



Thats what I'd really liked to have seen.

Too many NIMBYs with no vision.

"We have no intention of building a large-scale theme park in the Washington area"



Thats what I'd really liked to have seen.

Too many NIMBYs with no vision.

Actually, we already have a theme park in the D.C. area: "Six Flags." And from the huge wooded areas around it, there's plenty room to grow. No need for another one close by.

Actually, we already have a theme park in the D.C. area: "Six Flags." And from the huge wooded areas around it, there's plenty room to grow. No need for another one close by.


I remember that place since it was first known as "Wild World."

Most people around here would still rather drive to Busch Gardens or Kings Dominion, so I don't know if Six Flags America will ever amount to a real destination after all this time.


Besides, I'm kind of of the belief the more the merrier.

I remember that place since it was first known as "Wild World."

Most people around here would still rather drive to Busch Gardens or Kings Dominion, so I don't know if Six Flags America will ever amount to a real destination after all this time.


Besides, I'm kind of of the belief the more the merrier.

There you have it. D.C. is the destination. Six Flags is just extra. There's no way a huge theme park in any close proximity to D.C. could compete with D.C. as a destination. I think that's why you don't see one. Near Williamsburg, it works. There's not much to see in Williamsburg. Kings Dominion certainly works. There's NOTHING around that place. :) Six Flags is something to do for those who live in the area who see D.C. everyday. It's something more than just a carnival, yet, doesn't try to compete with the most powerful city in the free world. Personally, I'd rather "get away" to a Bush Gardens or a Kings Dominion rather than being stuck in the same "atmosphere" going to a huge theme park.

That Manassas Disney theme park would've been okay because it's far enough away from D.C. not to compete with D.C.

There you have it. D.C. is the destination. Six Flags is just extra. There's no way a huge theme park in any close proximity to D.C. could compete with D.C. as a destination. I think that's why you don't see one. Near Williamsburg, it works. There's not much to see in Williamsburg. Kings Dominion certainly works. There's NOTHING around that place. :) Six Flags is something to do for those who live in the area who see D.C. everyday. It's something more than just a carnival, yet, doesn't try to compete with the most powerful city in the free world. Personally, I'd rather "get away" to a Bush Gardens or a Kings Dominion rather than being stuck in the same "atmosphere" going to a huge theme park.

That Manassas Disney theme park would've been okay because it's far enough away from D.C. not to compete with D.C.


I understand what you're saying.

I just think having a couple of "real" amusement parks around here would actually enhance DC's tourism, not compete with it. Tourists could spend a couple of days touring DC and spend another at Six Flags or a Disney theme park.

Ideally, I think the region would benefit if Six Flags America could upgrade itself to where it would be a destination like Six Flags Great Adventure and couple that with a Disney theme park, in a place like Manassas, could really enhance the desirability of this area as a tourist destination, as well as provide easy access for locals who may not want to drive far on a given weekend.


Plus Kings Dominion, Busch Gardens, and Hershey Park would still be there for locals who might want to "get away." Remember though, the real reason people go to those parks over Six Flags America is that those parks are simply put, much nicer. Certainly aesthetically.


I just think that for NIMBYs to chase away Disney because it might have some perceived impact on Civil War battlefields was dumb and lacked vision, something I find all too common around here.


I'd like to see renderings for what they actually plan for National Harbor.

I understand what you're saying.

I just think having a couple of "real" amusement parks around here would actually enhance DC's tourism, not compete with it. Tourists could spend a couple of days touring DC and spend another at Six Flags or a Disney theme park.

Ideally, I think the region would benefit if Six Flags America could upgrade itself to where it would be a destination like Six Flags Great Adventure and couple that with a Disney theme park, in a place like Manassas, could really enhance the desirability of this area as a tourist destination, as well as provide easy access for locals who may not want to drive far on a given weekend.


Plus Kings Dominion, Busch Gardens, and Hershey Park would still be there for locals who might want to "get away." Remember though, the real reason people go to those parks over Six Flags America is that those parks are simply put, much nicer. Certainly aesthetically.


I just think that for NIMBYs to chase away Disney because it might have some perceived impact on Civil War battlefields was dumb and lacked vision, something I find all too common around here.


I'd like to see renderings for what they actually plan for National Harbor.

Yeah. Having a Disney Theme Park in Manassas would've been pretty cool. I'm sure Disney would've been cautious enough not to build on top of national treasures. Suburban sprawl is encroaching on the area anyway.

There you have it. D.C. is the destination. Six Flags is just extra. There's no way a huge theme park in any close proximity to D.C. could compete with D.C. as a destination. I think that's why you don't see one. Near Williamsburg, it works. There's not much to see in Williamsburg. Kings Dominion certainly works. There's NOTHING around that place. :) Six Flags is something to do for those who live in the area who see D.C. everyday. It's something more than just a carnival, yet, doesn't try to compete with the most powerful city in the free world. Personally, I'd rather "get away" to a Bush Gardens or a Kings Dominion rather than being stuck in the same "atmosphere" going to a huge theme park.

That Manassas Disney theme park would've been okay because it's far enough away from D.C. not to compete with D.C.

Agreed. Keep in mind the land at National Harbor is becoming quite scarce. Peterson has been giving it away up to this point but now if you look at the map below, Disney has taken a piece of what was to become a large residential district with a "central park". I don't know how that's going to work with the remaining residential parcels on both sides. If demand for office space picks up there goes another plot. Of course all of this is very good news and the project is shaping up to be far more successful than the naysayers/haters had predicted.

http://www.nationalharbor.com/consumer/images/disney_press_header.gif

http://media.bonnint.net/wtop/15/1539/153996.jpg

I'm glad Disney's plan isn't some tacky theme park resort with rollercoasters and Jungle parks taking up valueable space. It looks like they're aiming to become a COMPONENT of National Harbor instead of a self sustained closed enclave, there is plenty to explore outside Disney Gates and even more in the region. And I'm pretty sure the National Children Museum sealed the deal. It fits in well with the Family Theme they're aiming for. So all the different uses at National Harbor will feed off each other. An attraction at Disney will help seal the deal for Gaylord convention attendees, in affect they will patronize the Disney Resort. Even more kids and families will be at the National Children Museum and they will all enjoy the retail and resturaunts that National Harbor offers right on Maryland's potomac river.

I just hope National Harbor doesn't become too family friendly and alienate a more mature crowd.

This could also be a great boon for Baltimore, I can see Disney bringng their cruise ships to Baltimore as part of their Spirit Tours as it's the only one in the mid-Atlantic and then some.

People have to remember that National Harbor is first and foremost a MIXED-USE project not a tourism resort destination. I never saw it that way as all types of uses were planned and ARE moving there.

official press release

http://www.nationalharbor.com/consumer/images/disney_press_header.gif

National Harbor Sells Land to Disney
Site Being Considered for New Resort Hotel

NATIONAL HARBOR, MD (May 19, 2009) - The Peterson Companies announced today the sale of land at its National Harbor development near Washington, DC to Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Disney is considering using the 15-acre site overlooking the Potomac River in National Harbor, MD as the location for a resort hotel for families and others visiting the National Capital Region.

“We’re thrilled Disney has decided to invest in National Harbor,” said Milton V. Peterson, chairman of the Peterson Companies. “Disney is the top family entertainment company in the world, and its purchase is a great vote of confidence in the future of National Harbor and the Washington area as a top family tourism destination.”

The new resort hotel would be one of Disney’s stand-alone resort hotels separate from the Disney theme parks. This new resort hotel, like the project under construction in Hawaii, will be in a prime geographic location and will provide guests with the same comfort, fun and amenities for which Disney is famous.

“As we began identifying possible locations to grow our business, the Washington, DC area immediately jumped to the top of the list,” said Jay Rasulo, Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. “National Harbor offers an array of entertaining activities for regional visitors, but it is also a family-friendly base camp, from which visitors from around the world can explore the stirring sights and inspirational stories of our nation’s capital. We believe National Harbor has the unique opportunity to offer a new level of family-friendly hospitality.”

Disney purchased the Maryland property from the Peterson Companies for $11 million.

For additional information about this announcement please go to: http://a.media.global.go.com/parksnews/natlharbor/natlharbor.zip.


About National Harbor:
Rising from the banks of the Potomac River in Prince George’s County, MD., National Harbor is a new 300-acre destination waterfront resort. With six hotels and 3,000 rooms, National Harbor features the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. Many attributes include the tree-lined avenue American Way, public art including “The Awakening” sculpture by Seward Johnson, shops and offices, numerous high rise residences and the largest marina on the Potomac River. It is also the future home for the new Cesar Pelli-designed National Children’s Museum. The master developer for National Harbor is The Peterson Companies, one of the largest privately owned development companies in the greater Washington area specializing in large mixed use developments.

About Walt Disney Parks and Resorts:
Walt Disney Parks and Resorts are where dreams come true. More than 50 years ago, Walt Disney created a new kind of entertainment families could experience together, with detailed atmospheres and vibrant storytelling. His vision now includes a collection of five of the world's leading family vacation destinations: Disneyland Resort, Anaheim, Calif.; Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Fla.; Tokyo Disney Resort, Urayasu, Chiba, Japan; Disneyland Resort Paris, Marne-la-Vallée, France; and Hong Kong Disneyland Resort, Lantau Island, Hong Kong, China. In addition, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts includes the world-class Disney Cruise Line, the Disney Vacation Club, with eight resorts and more than 350,000 members; Adventures by Disney, a guided group vacation experience to some of the world's most popular destinations; the World of Disney stores; and Walt Disney Imagineering, which creates and designs all Disney parks, resorts and attractions. Walt Disney Parks and Resorts’ first stand-alone resort hotel, Ko' Olina on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, is currently under construction and is scheduled to open in October 2011. For more information and images, please visit www.disneyparksnews.com.

News Coverage

Agreed. Keep in mind the land at National Harbor is becoming quite scarce. Peterson has been giving it away up to this point but now if you look at the map below, Disney has taken a piece of what was to become a large residential district with a "central park". I don't know how that's going to work with the remaining residential parcels on both sides. If demand for office space picks up there goes another plot. Of course all of this is very good news and the project is shaping up to be far more successful than the naysayers/haters had predicted.

http://www.nationalharbor.com/consumer/images/disney_press_header.gif

http://media.bonnint.net/wtop/15/1539/153996.jpg

I'm glad Disney's plan isn't some tacky theme park resort with rollercoasters and Jungle parks taking up valueable space. It looks like they're aiming to become a COMPONENT of National Harbor instead of a self sustained closed enclave, there is plenty to explore outside Disney Gates and even more in the region. And I'm pretty sure the National Children Museum sealed the deal. It fits in well with the Family Theme they're aiming for. So all the different uses at National Harbor will feed off each other. An attraction at Disney will help seal the deal for Gaylord convention attendees, in affect they will patronize the Disney Resort. Even more kids and families will be at the National Children Museum and they will all enjoy the retail and resturaunts that National Harbor offers right on Maryland's potomac river.

I just hope National Harbor doesn't become too family friendly and alienate a more mature crowd.

This could also be a great boon for Baltimore, I can see Disney bringng their cruise ships to Baltimore as part of their Spirit Tours as it's the only one in the mid-Atlantic and then some.

People have to remember that National Harbor is first and foremost a MIXED-USE project not a tourism resort destination. I never saw it that way as all types of uses were planned and ARE moving there.

I know there are supposed to be condos on top of the stores. Perhaps they will fill in those residential plots with a mixture of condos and offices. It would be pretty cool to work there. What about the land on either side and behind National Harbor? Is that up for grabs or no?

My wife and I went to the Food & Wine festival at the National Harbor this weekend. Talk about blown away. My wife loves the place. We went last year when things were just starting to come together. But after this weekend, I'm encouraged to know that National Harbor will be a destination for people in the region much like Crystal City, Tyson's Corner, and Georgetown. More boutiques have opened up that are not national chains, but decided to come to the harbor. There was one boutique that reminded us of Williams and Sonoma that has 4 or 5 stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut. I thought tat was pretty cool. The new restaurant Ketchup looked pretty cool as well. Very L.A.ish. I'd like to see more unheard of boutiques to come. Also, my wife and I stopped by the National Children's Museum Launch Zone. The new museum is going to have a 120ft spire that is a wind turbine. Pretty cool. The only thing is it won't be finished until 2013. It will go well with the Disney Resort. Places that are children friendly usually bring in lots of tourists. National Harbor will have a good mixture for adults and children.

My wife and I went to the Food & Wine festival at the National Harbor this weekend. Talk about blown away. My wife loves the place. We went last year when things were just starting to come together. But after this weekend, I'm encouraged to know that National Harbor will be a destination for people in the region much like Crystal City, Tyson's Corner, and Georgetown. More boutiques have opened up that are not national chains, but decided to come to the harbor. There was one boutique that reminded us of Williams and Sonoma that has 4 or 5 stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut. I thought tat was pretty cool. The new restaurant Ketchup looked pretty cool as well. Very L.A.ish. I'd like to see more unheard of boutiques to come. Also, my wife and I stopped by the National Children's Museum Launch Zone. The new museum is going to have a 120ft spire that is a wind turbine. Pretty cool. The only thing is it won't be finished until 2013. It will go well with the Disney Resort. Places that are children friendly usually bring in lots of tourists. National Harbor will have a good mixture for adults and children.

:dance::dance:

I still wish it had a standard food court. It wouldn't necessarily hurt all the sit down restaurants.

A Barne's & Noble and movie theatres would be a nice fit too.

My wife and I went to the Food & Wine festival at the National Harbor this weekend. Talk about blown away. My wife loves the place. We went last year when things were just starting to come together. But after this weekend, I'm encouraged to know that National Harbor will be a destination for people in the region much like Crystal City, Tyson's Corner, and Georgetown. More boutiques have opened up that are not national chains, but decided to come to the harbor. There was one boutique that reminded us of Williams and Sonoma that has 4 or 5 stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut. I thought tat was pretty cool. The new restaurant Ketchup looked pretty cool as well. Very L.A.ish. I'd like to see more unheard of boutiques to come. Also, my wife and I stopped by the National Children's Museum Launch Zone. The new museum is going to have a 120ft spire that is a wind turbine. Pretty cool. The only thing is it won't be finished until 2013. It will go well with the Disney Resort. Places that are children friendly usually bring in lots of tourists. National Harbor will have a good mixture for adults and children.
the finishing product's gonna' be a real knockout!:okay:

National Harbor to cyclists, pedestrians: Drop dead (http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post.cgi?id=2578)

Saturday was the official opening of the Wilson Bridge active transportation crossing. It's hard to find a better facility in the region. Beginning at the Mount Vernon Trail on South Washington Street in Alexandria, the path is wide and spacious to accommodate all users, the kiosks along the route are informative and the view north is spectacular. On the Maryland side, the bridge over the Beltway is beautiful and the curving ramps down to ground level, while steep, are not too sharp. Everyone who worked on this project, including engineers, advocates, politicians and planners, should be congratulated for a job well done.

However, the honeymoon comes to a screeching halt upon reaching the pathway that leads to National Harbor. The trail connection is crushed asphalt; after a short distance the trail enters National Harbor property and changes to a crushed clamshell surface trail known as the Harborwalk. Upon reaching the "downtown" of National Harbor, cyclists on Saturday encountered a security guard ordering them to dismount. While the guard was friendly, the presence of a uniformed officer whose sole duty is to tell a cyclist not to ride her bike hardly makes a place bike-friendly.

We already knew that National Harbor was designed and built with minimal consideration for transit access. Now we also know that the same amount of thought was given to those who arrive by bike and on foot. Despite claims by Rocell Viniard of National Harbor that "we are thrilled to welcome the cyclists to National Harbor and are making every effort to make it as convenient as possible," it seems the only types of customers National Harbor has bothered to accommodate with any level of seriousness are those who arrive by car or boat.

National Harbor to cyclists, pedestrians: Drop dead (http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post.cgi?id=2578)


That is unfortunate and in my opinion will be overturned as the National Harbor becomes more populated. Cycling is how some people get to work. It seems unfathomable that cyclists aren't welcomed where across the river they are. That's just like Downtown Silver Spring not allowing photography.

^^this really should be considered for national harbor. it would be a great amenity.

That's so stupid over National Harbor not allowing people to bike through it.

http://www.nationalharbor.com/consumer/consumer.htm
The image at the bottom makes it seem like National Harbor has a large skyline.

http://map.mapnetwork.com/destination/dc/nationalharbor/
If you look at this interactive map of National Harbor you can see this place called "Central Park", what is that and everything surrounding it? Isn't Disney supposed to be in that spot or is it going to be that big? Thank you

That's so stupid over National Harbor not allowing people to bike through it.

http://www.nationalharbor.com/consumer/consumer.htm
The image at the bottom makes it seem like National Harbor has a large skyline.

http://map.mapnetwork.com/destination/dc/nationalharbor/
If you look at this interactive map of National Harbor you can see this place called "Central Park", what is that and everything surrounding it? Isn't Disney supposed to be in that spot or is it going to be that big? Thank you

From what I've seen, Disney will straddle American Way above National Harbor BLVD. (Part of the Parking Lot (P) and part of Central Park). I guess this is to make an huge impression when one travels up American Way. They'll see the Disney Resort facade rising in the distance. Not a bad spot.

Cool.

http://www.hawaiimagazine.com/images/content/Disney_first_Hawaii_resort_opening/DisneyResort%20Model.jpg This is the new Disney in Hawaii. I believe they said "Disney at National Harbor" is going to look similar. Hawaii's resort will have 350 rooms, and 480 vacation villas! "Disney at National Harbor" will have 500 rooms
http://media.bonnint.net/wtop/15/1539/153996.jpg
Do you see the green spot below "Disney at National Harbor", it looks as if it has tree's on it. Well I believe that is Central Park!

Fast Facts

1. Walt Disney Co. bought 15 acres in Prince George's CountyWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
2. Property cost $11 millionWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
3. Location for building in National Harbor
4. Disney is planning on building a 500-room hotel
5. No timetable given for the project
6. No theme park will be built
7. National Harbor had six hotels and dozens of restaurants in 2009WashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
8. Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts said "it will be a project of significant scale and put a recognizable Disney footprint in the Washington area"WashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
9. The property is only zoned for residential and commercial developmentWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
10. May include Adventures by Disney guided tours
11. Site overlooks the National Harbor complex and the Potomac
12. The Washington Monument can be seen from the property
13. Tourism brings $10 billion annually to the Washington D.C. areaWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
14. Disney also has plans for an 800-room resort in Oahu, HawaiiWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
15. The Hawaii resort will open in 2011 and cost $800 millionWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1

Cool.

This is the new Disney in Hawaii. I believe they said "Disney at National Harbor" is going to look similar. Hawaii's resort will have 350 rooms, and 480 vacation villas! "Disney at National Harbor" will have 500 rooms

Do you see the green spot below "Disney at National Harbor", it looks as if it has tree's on it. Well I believe that is Central Park!

Fast Facts

1. Walt Disney Co. bought 15 acres in Prince George's CountyWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
2. Property cost $11 millionWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
3. Location for building in National Harbor
4. Disney is planning on building a 500-room hotel
5. No timetable given for the project
6. No theme park will be built
7. National Harbor had six hotels and dozens of restaurants in 2009WashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
8. Chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts said "it will be a project of significant scale and put a recognizable Disney footprint in the Washington area"WashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
9. The property is only zoned for residential and commercial developmentWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
10. May include Adventures by Disney guided tours
11. Site overlooks the National Harbor complex and the Potomac
12. The Washington Monument can be seen from the property
13. Tourism brings $10 billion annually to the Washington D.C. areaWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
14. Disney also has plans for an 800-room resort in Oahu, HawaiiWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1
15. The Hawaii resort will open in 2011 and cost $800 millionWashingtonPost.com: Disney Buys Land for Future Resort Hotel at National Harbor (May 20, 2009)1

I can't wait to see the model of the National Harbor Disney Resort. I'm sure it will be spectacular. Disney always does things big.

^^absolutely! should do alot for the entire region!:okay:

http://www.yesterland.com/images-sidetrips/harbor_rasulo.jpg
Milton V. Peterson, Owner & CEO, Peterson Companies; and Jay Rasulo, Chairman, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts

http://www.yesterland.com/images-sidetrips/harbor_museum.jpg

http://www.yesterland.com/images-sidetrips/harbor_streetscene.jpg

what bus goes out there cause I'm interning at the USDA. I'd like to see it in the flesh before I leave DC/MC.

I just cant see a Disney going in at the inner Harbor, there just isnt room and the enviroment isnt right.

I just cant see a Disney going in at the inner Harbor, there just isnt room and the enviroment isnt right.

Do you mean Bmore's Inner Harbor or PG's National Harbor; because National Harbor has plenty of room

I am reffering to Baltimore's inner harbor, but I just realized that they were gonna build in PG, wow i feel dumb .

for those who didn't know, NH offers free jazz concerts every friday evening during the spring and summer. great atmosphere! check it out!:okay:

for those who didn't know, NH offers free jazz concerts every friday evening during the spring and summer. great atmosphere! check it out!:okay:

My wife and I went there two weeks ago on a Friday. I agree that it is a great atmosphere. But a HUGE word of caution. I don't believe they have the traffic patterns and parking ironed out just yet. It took my wife and I an hour, yes, an hour just to get out of one of the parking garages. Also, you may have to stand in line just to pay your parking ticket. Lastly, the average wait for a restaurant during those jazz nights are 2 - 3 hours.

Have said all that, here's what should make your trip a bit better. My wife and I got there as the jazz was beginning. That means we had to park on the very top of the parking garage and had no reservations to eat before the big crowds. So, the jazz sets usually start an 8pm. Get there anywhere between 5 and 6. Eat dinner no later than 6:30pm. Make reservations a week in advance. Make sure you can park on the lower levels in the garages, or I do believe they have satellite parking in a gravel lot behind the first garage by the entrance. Bring your own chair if you're going to sit for the duration.

One last thing. The young singles come out at around 10pm. So, if you're married or you have little ones, it's best to leave by 10pm. I'm not saying it's dangerous, but the single scene can get a little bothersome. We noticed the cruisers who just drive their fancy cars around the block with the loud music, the bikers who rev their motors as they drive by, and the women who wear skimpy outfits. It's a very interesting display of mating calls. lol Not something for kids or even married couples to enjoy. But if you're young and single, I guess that scene is for you. :):)


PS. We were eating outside. So, I guess if you eat inside, you're sheltered from the activity on the street.

^^excellent points. i agree with them all........especially the road coming into NH. perhaps they need to widen it by atleast another 3 lanes. i dunno' how they would possibly do it, but it has to be done.

Here are the townhomes scheduled to go at the National Harbor.

http://www.potomacoverlook.com/images/po_homepage_pic.jpg
http://www.potomacoverlook.com/index.html

Tanger Outlets, an upscale outlet company, will build an outlet mall on 40 acres with 80 stores. Sweet! If someone could grab the renderings, that would be awesome.

Fairfax developer The Peterson Cos. has reeled in a big retail attraction for its National Harbor complex, announcing Monday that it had signed a deal with Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Inc. to open a $100 million outlet shops emporium at the Prince George’s County convention center and resort.

Tanger Outlets at National Harbor is expected to be home to about 80 outlet designer and name brand stores in a 350,000-square-foot center on about 40 acres at National Harbor. No leases with retailers have been signed yet.

Article (http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/news/2011/05/23/national-harbor-lands-tanger-outlet.html)

Here are the townhomes scheduled to go at the National Harbor.

http://www.potomacoverlook.com/images/po_homepage_pic.jpg
http://www.potomacoverlook.com/index.html

Those look very nice and very upscale. The price they are offering I think is a steal. $400k. They are selling townhomes up here in the Arts District Hyattsville for the same price. I'd rather live at National Harbor though!

They kinda look like the Pier homes at Harborview.