Forest City announced that it had signed deals to open a Harris Teeter grocery store and seven eateries, including a Thai-sushi restaurant, a brewery, a Be Right Burger, a Potbelly Sandwich Shop and a 24-hour diner. Construction on some of the new establishments is to begin in the next 30 days.
Gray also relied on his campaign slogan and theme of his administration: “One City.”
He said in an interview that he wants people to understand that “One City” doesn’t mean “everybody gets along.”
“It means everybody is getting an equal chance,” he said, adding that his focus is to help communities east of the Anacostia River catch up with the rest of the city.
On July 9, he will hold a day-long summit at Savoy Elementary School to inform residents of planned projects, such as the construction of the headquarters building for the Federal Emergency Management Agency at the St. Elizabeths campus and new units at Barry Farm.
The mayor received a standing ovation from several audience members when he announced that Ward 8’s Ballou High School would not be renovated; it will get a new building.
Gray, a former council chairman and Ward 7 council member, also said there has been progress on the long-awaited development at Skyland Town Center in Ward 7. “We have seen more movement at this site in the last six months than we have seen in the last six years,” he said.
Marina Streznewski, coordinator of the D.C. Jobs Council, a coalition of nonprofit groups that helps low-income residents find training and work, said the mayor had work to do to get employment for D.C. residents. But she saw signs of progress.
“It’s been a bit slow getting started,” she said. “I understand that there have been challenges surrounding the leaders of DOES [the Department of Employment Services], and I think that’s slowed things down.”
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