new business

New Pedal-Powered Pub Hits the Potomac Next Week

By Vernon Miles
1/3

The Potomac Paddle Pub is a pedal-powered vessel, but come next week, its occupants will be three sheets to the wind.

The pub is the latest in a trend of mobile drinking platforms, like The Pedal Saloon in Clarendon, but this adventure in drinking takes the journey to the water.

A 15-customer crew will power the vessel from Georgetown’s waterfront to Columbia Island Marina in Arlington, taking turns working at 10 pedaling stations. In total, the ride is expected to be about 90 minutes long.

The pub owners told ARLnow the boat is currently only ferrying family and friends to work out the kinks, but cruises will be open for customers starting on Monday (Oct. 4).

Unlike the land-based drinking platforms in Arlington bound by state intoxication laws, occupants of the Potomac Paddle Pub will be able to drink while operating the vehicle. The passengers are required to bring and consume their own beers or wine — no liquor is allowed onboard, and no alcohol will be sold at the bar on the deck.

Individual seats are only available during weekday trips, and a minimum of two must be purchased per transaction. Tickets are $45 for adults during a weekday, or $25 for a child under twelve. Renting the whole board during a weekday is $500, or $625 to rent a boat on the weekend.

Tickets can be purchased at the Potomac Paddle Pub website.

Bethesda Bagels in Rosslyn Moves Closer to Opening

By Vernon Miles
1/3

(Updated 3 p.m.) Bethesda Bagels seems to be moving closer to opening its new Rosslyn location.

A sign on the exterior of the storefront at Central Place (1800 N. Lynn Street) indicates that the location is now hiring. The company is looking for a variety of new staff members, including bagel rollers and dough makers, who will mix dough from scratch and hand roll bagels during the day, according to the sign.

The posting also lists a bagel baker position for a night shift.

Owners of Bethesda Bagels previously told ARLnow they were aiming for an August opening. Danny Fleishman, president of Bethesda Bagels, said he currently looking at sometime between Oct. 10-18 for an opening, though that may be subject to change.

The regional chain currently operates stores in both Bethesda and D.C., in Dupont Circle.

New Gym Hoping to Move into American Tap Room Space in Clarendon

By Alex Koma
1/2

A boutique fitness studio could soon move into the space once occupied by the American Tap Room in Clarendon.

A gym branded as “FootFire” is applying for a use permit to open in a 49,200-square-foot space adjacent to an office building at 3101 Wilson Blvd, according to documents filed with the county on July 17.

Located just across from the Clarendon Metro station, the space has sat empty since the American Tap Room closed its doors in 2016. The restaurant had struggled for years with noise complaints from neighbors and the area’s high rent prices.

Lawyers for Christopher Hoffman, the gym’s owner, wrote in a permit application that the new fitness studio “will be a member-based running, training, recovery and education center focusing on the complete training experience for runners and other endurance athletes of all fitness levels.”

The attorneys added that the gym will offer both indoor and outdoor running classes, including “treadmill-based courses, group outdoor running exercises, indoor weight training, yoga and stretching courses.” Plans sketched out for the facility also call for a juice bar and daycare area.

The County Board is set to consider the permit request at its first meeting of the fall on Sept. 22.

The Little Gym Tumbles Into Lyon Park

By Vernon Miles
1/2

The Little Gym, an international franchise focused on stimulating physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development in children through gymnastics, is coming to Arlington.

The new location is projected to open on Sept. 4 in Lyon Park at 2209 N Pershing Dr.

“The mission is serious but the method is fun,” said Jessalyn Crossman, gym director at the Arlington location.

The gym is non-competitive and focuses around utilizing gymnastics as a learning tool. There’s six other locations throughout Northern Virginia, including gyms in Falls Church and Alexandria, but Crossman said they found that many of the families going to those locations were coming from Arlington.

“When we looked at Northern Virginia, we noticed a really big gap,” said Crossman. “There’s a lot of young parents in Arlington starting out. There’s a lot of people who are implants from other parts of the country, who have come and started here. I like that we can build a gym community of people who are new to the area.”

Crossman has worked with the Little Gym since 2009 and said the biggest impact she’s seen on children is helping them build confidence.

“A lot of kids coming to the gym aren’t looking to be olympic gymnasts, they’re looking to grow as an individual,” said Crossman. “I love seeing kids make the transition to being able to come in by themselves. This translates into pre-school, where they have to confidence to do more things on their own.”

The Little Gym is aimed at children ranging from four months to twelve years old. While most of the classes focus on gymnastics, the Arlington gym will also offer an introduction to sports class that will help children understand the rules, strategies and fun of team sports.

Tutti Spa & Nails Coming to Pentagon City Mall This September

By Melanie Pincus
1/3

Tutti Spa & Nails will open up shop in the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City Sept. 4, according to the mall’s website.

The company’s services include manicures, pedicures, facials and a variety of spa packages.

The 1,400-square-foot site, located on the third level, looks to be the company’s first in Virginia, and joins locations as far south as Georgia and as far north as Massachusetts.

Other new additions to the shopping center include Comfort One Shoes, which recently opened a 1,200 square foot location on the mall’s second floor, according to a press release from the Fashion Centre at Pentagon City.

Roots Canada will also join the shopping center’s roster at the end of this week (Aug. 10).

Core Allegro Prepares to Open on Fairfax Drive

By Melanie Pincus
1/3

Core Allegro, a studio that will offer group pilates and ballet classes along with private and semi-private sessions, is about a week away from finishing construction.

Waiting to receive final permits, they hope to open by the end of the month at 4001 Fairfax Drive, business manager Steve Roberts said.

Located between the Ballston and Virginia Square Metro stations, the studio will be led by Olga Roberts and Elena Ovchinnikova.

Ovchinnikova’s experience includes studies at Moscow’s Bolshoi Ballet Academy and the Russian State Medical University, according to her bio on Core Allegro’s website. Roberts graduated from London’s Rambert School of Ballet, and began training in pilates at age 11.

“They’re two amazing kind of world class teachers that have come together to really lead this studio,” said Steve Roberts, who is married to Olga Roberts. “It’s not related to any franchise… this is purely from their own professional history and training.”

The roughly 3,000-square-foot facility is being converted from office space to feature reclaimed wood, vinyl flooring and LED lighting. It has been in development for the past year, Steve Roberts said.

Coworking Space to Become First Office Tenant at Former NSF Headquarters in Ballston

By Alex Koma
1/6

A Brooklyn-based coworking space will become the first office tenant in the former home of the National Science Foundation’s headquarters, now known as the Ballston Exchange.

Industrious will open its third location in the D.C. area on the third floor of 4201 Wilson Blvd, according to a news release from the building’s owner, Jamestown LLP. The coworking space signed a 10-year lease at the location in a 24,795-square-foot suite.

Jamestown bought the building, as well as the adjacent 4121 Wilson Blvd, for a combined $300 million in 2015. But the NSF decided to relocate its headquarters to Alexandria last fall, spurring the property owner to kick off $140 million in renovation work at the buildings and go on the hunt for new tenants.

“The addition of Industrious shows our commitment to providing Ballston residents, workers and commuters alike with premier business and lifestyle opportunities,” Jamestown President Michael Phillips wrote in a statement.

Jamestown has already lured several restaurants to the development, with Shake Shack, We The Pizza, Philz Coffee and Cava setting up shop in recent months.

Those stores and others will line a shared courtyard between the two buildings, set to open in full by the end of the year. A pedestrian bridge will eventually connect 4201 Wilson to the newly revamped Ballston Quarter mall, but that project has encountered some delays recently.

As for Industrious, the company hopes to open its Ballston location by early 2019. It operates more than 40 coworking spaces across the country, including locations in downtown Bethesda and in D.C. near Logan Circle.

Jon David Salon Plans Second Arlington Location Along Lee Highway

By Alex Koma

Jon David Salon is planning to open another location in Arlington, with a second salon slated for the Lee Heights Shops along Lee Highway.

The company said last month that it’s hoping to open the new location sometime this fall.

The salon will take the place of furniture store Random Harvest at 4522 Lee Highway, between a Starbucks and a Chipotle. Random Harvest closed up shop just before the start of 2018.

Jon David is planning on hosting a cosmetology school known as “Hair Tech Institute” at the new salon. Classes for aspiring stylists are set to start on Sept. 4.

The company currently operates another salon in Courthouse along Wilson Boulevard, as well as locations in Clifton and Springfield.

Morning Notes

By ARLnow.com

Region Sets Heat Record — The National Weather Service reports that Arlington and surrounding areas set a heat record yesterday. The temperature at Reagan National Airport reached 91 degrees, which tops the previous record of 89, set in 1930. [Twitter]

Co-Working Space Opening Soon — TechSpace, a new co-working space, will hold a grand opening event and happy hour in Ballston on May 15. The 20,000 square foot office will open in the Two Liberty Center building (4075 Wilson Blvd) across the street from the under-construction Ballston Quarter Mall. [PR Newswire]

Playground Design Meeting — County staff will present the two concepts for the new playground at Rosslyn Highlands Park and take feedback from the public at a meeting tonight. It takes place in the library at Key Elementary School at 7 p.m. [Arlington County]

Theodore Roosevelt Island Survey — The National Park Service is seeking feedback via a survey for improvements to Theodore Roosevelt Island, including possible bridge and comfort station upgrades and the addition of a boat dock. Today is the last day to submit comments. [National Park Service]

Reduced Parking in Fairlington — As the Fairlington Park Project enters its final stages, 19 parking spaces will be occupied for construction equipment staging. Visitors should plan ahead for the parking challenges.

New Marymount President — Dr. Irma Becerra has been chosen as the new Marymount University president and will take over the position on July 1. She comes to the school from St. Thomas University. [Marymount University, InsideNova]

UPDATED: Escape Room Opening on Columbia Pike

By ARLnow.com

(Updated at 6:15 p.m.) Richmond-based Ravenchase Adventures is opening a new escape room along Columbia Pike.

Signs are up for the business, which is located in the same building as William Jeffrey’s Tavern, near the corner of Columbia Pike and N. Adams Street.

Ravenchase — which describes itself as offering “elegant adventures for the spirited intellectual” — has existing escape rooms in Richmond and Herndon.

As defined by Wikipedia, an escape room is “a physical adventure game in which players solve a series of puzzles and riddles using clues, hints and strategy to complete the objectives at hand.”

The Arlington location is listed on the company’s website as “coming soon,” while the last Facebook post for the business said it would be opening in December 2017. A company rep emailed ARLnow.com after publication of this article to say that they were now hoping for a “late spring” opening.

“We are very heavy into the building process but it’s taken some more time that we had hoped,” said Omer Aru. “Once open, it will be a very stylish 4,000 square foot facility with four unique escape room games. We will be launching with at least two rooms: Glitch in the Matrix and MindTrap. We have two other that will follow very shortly after: Grandma’s Attic (What’s in the Attic), and Portal.”

Photo courtesy Sarah Campbell

National Capital Bank Branch Opens on Wilson Blvd

By Bridget Reed Morawski

(Updated at 4:50 p.m.) A new branch of National Capital Bank opened this morning (March 29) roughly between Clarendon and Courthouse, marking the bank’s first branch in Virginia.

National Capital Bank bills itself as “Washington’s Oldest Bank,” and has been open since 1889, according to its website.

The bank is at 2505 Wilson Boulevard, which is at the intersection with Franklin Road and N. Barton Street.

The bank takes over the once-vacant former location of another bank, Cardinal Bank, which was bought out by United Bank about a year ago.

Hat tip to Sandra Alboum

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