Popular restaurants near Howard’s campus such as Negril Jamaican Eatery, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Subway and Potbelly Sandwich Shop prepare for indefinite closure after the university will reclaim the strip to remodel Wonder Plaza.
The Negril location on 2301 Georgia Ave, NW, faces closure this month, after more than 30 years of business. The eatery has served traditional Jamaican food to generations of Howard students and the D.C. community.
Jordan Studwick, Howard’s deputy director for communications and archives for real estate development and capital asset management, said Howard’s continued renovation plans may take a toll on other businesses on Georgia Avenue.
Namely, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Subway, which are connected to the same building as Negril, are slated for closure and relocation, though the timeline is unclear, according to Studwick. The building is referred to as Wonder Plaza.
Zakhayla Newkirk, the manager at Potbelly Sandwich Shop, said that roughly one month ago the district manager notified the Georgia Avenue location about their impending closure. Originally the restaurant was told that they were slated for closure on May 31 but about a week ago the timeline was moved up to May 11 or May 12.
Dealing with the future of their location, Newkirk said, “This place is getting closed down for good, I think a lot of these places are getting closed down. It’s not coming back.”
Studwick said there is no clear timeline for when the businesses will be relocated, but Howard does plan to move these establishments back into the newly renovated building once it is fully constructed. He also could not confirm when the renovated Wonder Plaza will be fully constructed.
“The reality hasn’t kicked in it,” Dameon Johnson, a Negril cashier, said. “I know it’s going to kick in when it gets to May,”
Johnson said Howard gave Negril three months’ notice to move out which has given Negril time to prepare for the move. As seen on a sign outside of the restaurant, the store is officially closing on May 23.
Howard said in a statement to The Hilltop, that Negril is expected to soon announce formally that they will be moving into 2928 Georgia Ave NW, which is the former location of the restaurant NuVegan Cafe which is situated off Georgia Avenue and Hobart Street.
Holland & Knight, a global law firm that specializes in real estate and a partner of the university, released a press release last December giving a summary of what steps are to be taken with regard to the proposed reconstruction of Wonder Plaza.
According to the press release, they advised the university to rezone approximately 27 acres along the eastside of Georgia Avenue for the purpose of mixed-use, high density development. This proposed rezoning is aligned with Howard’s 2020 Central Campus Master Plan to facilitate the space needed to construct a new development at the existing Wonder Plaza.
“This transformational initiative is designed to deliver new housing, wellness, retail, and technology resources that reflect the needs of 21st-century students while honoring Howard’s enduring legacy of excellence and community partnership,” the university said in their statement.
Some of the new amenities will include a wellness and recreation center with basketball courts, yoga studios and weight training as well as technology and collaboration spaces.
Section 4.6.7 of the plan says that the current Wonder Plaza building “Will need to be razed or selectively demolished to make way for this important campus, and community serving facility.”
Holland & Knight said that this rezoning is critical for other rezoning plans in the future on Howard’s campus. The law firm has had a long relationship with Howard and continues to manage their real-estate. However, Holland & Knight did not represent Howard directly for this project.
Studwick talked about the university services that could be impacted by the construction of this new building. However, according to the statement, during the construction period, student access to technology services will remain uninterrupted.
He explained that the electrical infrastructure of ETS, such as the internet storage unit, will be moved to the Wonder Bread factory near the Shaw-Howard metro station.
In addition, he said the Help Desk will be moved into the Ralph J. Bunche Center located next to the Wonder Bread factory.
According to Studwick, in Washington D.C., a campus master plan is required for colleges and universities that are under the district’s zoning regulations. Although the campus master plan serves as a visual demonstration of the campus’ longer renovation plans, after approval by the zoning commission, it also becomes a legally binding document. The master plan that all colleges and universities in D.C. have provides institutions with a sense of predictability and the university has to follow the set requirements under the plan.
Negril was founded in 1979 by Jamaican native Earl Chinn and has locations in D.C. and Maryland. Due to Negril’s gradual expansion, it has gained traction and popularity among DMV residents.
“It’s sickening, it’s happening on Howard Campus,” Ciara Cooper, a sophomore biology major at Howard, said. “How dare they take away a staple in our community.”
Students have hopes that the university will implement a fresh alternative in the absence of Negril.
“I hope they put the space to good use,” Kennedy Jones, a speech language and pathology major at Howard said.
Copy edited by Camiryn Stepteau
