1. Entertainment and Sports Arena in Congress Heights

A new, multiuse practice and performance space has opened east of the river. Entertainment and Sports Arena, located in the former St. Elizabeths Hospital campus, will be the new practice facility for the Washington Wizards. It will also serve as the home court for the Washington Mystics and Capital City Go-Go NBA G-League team.

It will also function as a concert and performance venue, seating 4,200 people and bringing esteemed artists like Mary J. Blige and Cage the Elephant to the stage. A number of other events, including the Professional Fighters League semifinals and the eSports Red Bull Conquest finals, will also be hosted at the ESA facility.

ESA is expected to help drive economic growth in and around the Congress Heights neighborhood by hiring locally and adding 300 jobs, Washingtonian reported.

2. Starbucks 

International coffee chain Starbucks will open a new location in Anacostia. Starbucks will become the anchor tenant at Maple View Flats, a new affordable housing development at 2228 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE.

The district is hopeful that the store will bring much-needed job opportunities to Anacostia. Ward 8, which comprises 12 neighborhoods, including Anacostia and Congress Heights, has the highest unemployment rate in the entire city.

“We know that every corner of Washington, D.C., is a great place to do business, and through this partnership with Starbucks, we are bringing in a company that is committed to hiring D.C. residents,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said in a statement. “This is how we expand prosperity — by being intentional about how we develop our neighborhoods and ensuring that as we grow, we create jobs for residents and set our communities up for long-term success.”

3. Chipotle

In May, fast-casual food chain Chipotle signed on to lease 2,430 SF at The Shops at Park Village in Congress Heights. It is the first Chipotle to land east of the river. Chipotle will be joining several other restaurants at The Shops, including Pizza Boli’s, Subway and IHOP. The property is managed by WC Smith, the firm that developed the project in 2007.