As the District sees the departure of some notable entities, including the Wizards and Capitals, Mayor Muriel Bowser is looking to ease concerns that the moves indicate a downturn for downtown D.C.
“Downtown is going to be just fine, and let me just make that perfectly clear,” Bowser told reporters at the National Children’s Museum.
Bowser said people are still coming downtown and cited rising metro ridership numbers, along with her own observations when she went to the National Theatre to watch the classic musical “Annie” last weekend.
“When I saw thousands of people pouring out of Annie or the convention center in three filled hotel ballrooms, rooms of people coming into our downtown,” she said.
The announced exits come as the city ends 2023 with violent crime up 39%.
The comments also come after mortgage giant Fannie Mae announced it intends to leave its more than 700,000 square-foot offices in downtown. The mayor’s office said the company expressed its intention to stay in D.C., but it’s unclear if its next location will be in the downtown area.
Monumental Sports and Entertainment announced in December that its NHL and NBA teams will move to Alexandria, Virginia.
Monumental Sports owner Ted Leonsis, in a letter last week, defended the decision to move to Virginia. He said, when it comes to leaving Capital One Arena, “the needs of downtown Washington, D.C. and its businesses and residents are significant and challenging for the city.”
When asked about the letter, Bowser said she would not comment. She did acknowledge that the city wants to see more businesses move in.
“We recognize that we want more people, more workers, more visitors, more restaurant goers in our downtown. But we also recognize that we have a lot of great activity,” Bowser said.
Bowser made the comments during an announcement of close to $20 million in grant money, which will be used to spur business in the city, including in downtown D.C.
Up to $3 million in grant money is available for businesses who move into retail or commercial space that has been vacant for at least six months.
She said similar grants are already being used to help family friendly venues in the downtown area, including the National Children’s Museum.
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