(Washington, DC) Mayor Anthony A. Williams announced today that West Elm, a member of the Williams-Sonoma family, has signed a lease to take 37,000 square feet in the historic Woodies Building on G Street, NW.
With 14 stores across the country, the newest retailer to enter the Downtown DC market will be the largest store in the chain and will carry the complete line of West Elm home furnishing products. Customers will be able to walk in, shop and walk out with their purchases — whether it be furniture, accessories, or gifts for the home.
“We’ve turned a downtown desert into an economic oasis — an oasis that has yielded more than $40 billion in economic growth,” said Mayor Williams. “That growth includes 240 retail projects, 240 office projects, nearly 140 hospitality and entertainment projects and a real estate investment market that is consistently ranked number one in the country. All of this new construction benefits District residents by generating millions of dollars a year in new revenues and turning our city into a vibrant exciting place to be. We’re now a magnet for developers, investors and unique retailers like West Elm. The historic nature of the Woodies building and the hip design of this store reflect the new Washington retail environment.”
West Elm will receive $4.9 million through the Downtown Retail Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Program. The program values retailers that bring unique attributes to the downtown retail mix by offering partial subsidy for retailers to locate in space along F and G, 11th and 7th Streets, NW. The program uses future taxes generated by the retailer to pay for a portion of the build-out costs. As part of its commitment to revitalize the space, West Elm has committed that 51 percent of its employees be District residents.
The Downtown Retail Program is administered by Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development Stan Jackson. Determinations of eligibility and recommendations to the Deputy Mayor on the size of the award are made by the Downtown Retail Committee. Members of the Downtown Retail Committee are appointed by Mayor Williams and include Charles “Sandy” Wilkes, the Wilkes Company; Deborah Yogodzinski, partner Nixon Peabody LLP and co-chair of the DCBIA Retail Committee; Ron Kaplan, CityStreet Properties; and Michael Stevens, former President and CEO of the DC Economic Partnership and staff from the Office of the Deputy Mayor.
Douglas Jemal, president of Douglas Development Corporation, purchased the Historic Woodies Building in 1998. Since that time, Douglas Development has been working to retrofit the building and has been instrumental in helping to reinvigorate downtown retail by leasing to tenants such as H&M and now West Elm. This landmark building, which has been a piece of Washington, DC history since 1880, underwent the highest level of historic preservation, restoring it to its original beauty.
