rom the commanding presence of its powerful down- town to its 12 charming neighborhoods, the nation’s capital is undergoing a transformation that will touch
everything from its famous museums and monuments to its hotel and public transportation options. “What’s under way in Washington, D.C., is nothing short
of amazing,” said Mayor Vincent C. Gray. “D.C.’s downtown core, its waterfront, and its many distinctive neighborhoods are seeing the addition of new retail and restaurants, the- aters, and hotels. New venues, like the reborn Howard Te- atre and the Hamilton, are changing the face of entertain- ment in the District.” Developments totaling $8 billion are creating an exciting
new chapter in D.C.’s storyline. From the center of down- town to U Street and Georgetown, visitors coming to the nation’s capital for business and leisure will be surrounded by more than a dozen new remarkable projects. “As a leisure and convention destination, there are more
reasons than ever to visit D.C.,” said Elliott Ferguson, presi- dent and CEO of Destination DC (formerly known as the Washington, DC Convention & Tourism Corporation). “D.C. is an attraction-rich community. Te monuments, the zoo, 15 Smithsonian museums in D.C. alone — all of these attrac- tions are free. From a value-added perspective, it costs sig- nificantly less to visit D.C. compared with many other first- tier cities. Couple that with the massive projects currently under way, and meeting planners and attendees have a whole new Washington, D.C., to discover.”
NEW TO THE SCENE CityCenterDC is just one of the projects reshaping down- town D.C. Te 10-acre project will include 290,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, a hotel with 350 to 400 hotel rooms, 1.5 acres of parks and plazas, plus office and living space. Spanning five high-profile city blocks, the mixed-use project will open in phases beginning in 2013, within easy walking distance of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center and numerous hotel properties. “Visitors coming to D.C. for conventions and meetings
will find that the grand monuments and memorials are now joined by top-shelf dining and revived cultural experiences to inspire a return trip,” Mayor Gray said. Another mixed-used development in the works, CityMar-
ket at O, will open in 2014 at 7th and O Streets NW, just one block north of the convention center. Te one-million- square-foot development will consist of a 182-room Cambria Suites hotel, 87,000 square feet of retail space, and more. Capitol Riverfront, a new mixed-use neighborhood and riv- erfront destination bordering the Anacostia River just five blocks south of the U.S. Capitol, is home to the 41,000-seat Nationals Park baseball stadium, a 204-room Courtyard by Marriott, dozens of restaurants, and office space for major