It was commenter Charlie in the last thread who really broke this news on Tuesday, but now here's official word, via the BID's newsletter. Since I'm still technically on hiatus, I'm just going to copy and paste: "The grand opening of the Diamond [Teague] Park piers behind Nationals Ballpark was marked by the Sequoia docking at the 250 ft. commercial pier on Tuesday, August 4th. Water taxis will dock at the commercial pier, providing a gateway to the Front and a unique entrance to Nationals Ballpark. Gangplank Marina is managing the 250 ft. commercial pier that will be serviced by a number of operators. Gangplank Marina is launching a website in the next few days listing the suggested ferry/charter boat operators with contact information for booking river cruises. There are plans for hourly service for games and special events next year. A second environmental pier for kayaks and canoes will open in the next few weeks." That's all I know at this point....

I'm going to take it *very* easy for the next couple of weeks, so updates will probably be minimal unless some big news breaks. But, so as to not leave everyone completely without something fresh, here are some renderings of the new Canal Park, on the web site of STUDIOs Architecture (with thanks to commenter "NotAlwaysReliable," who is King of Every Conceivable Canal Park Detail); you'll need to either do a search for Canal Park, or click on "Projects/On the Boards," since Flash web sites (grrrrrr) don't allow for direct links. I don't know anything about these renderings, so questions should probably go to the folks at the Canal Park Development Association.

On Wednesday, August 19, there's going to be an 11th Street Bridges Open House, billed as an update for Ward 8 residents about the status of the bridge replacement project. (But I'm guessing people from other wards can come, too.) It's from 7 pm to 8:30 pm, at the Union Temple Baptist Church at 1225 W St., SE.

The BID's Best of the 80s outdoor movie series is winding down, and while I haven't been posting about them every week (I don't like to be a nag), I didn't want to seem as though I've been completely ignoring them, so I'll remind everyone that tomorrow (July 30) they're showing the epic tale of love, lust, and summer camp longing, Dirty Dancing, which stars one of my all-time favorite actors, Jerry Orbach. (Plus some other people, too.) They're encouraging you to wear your snazziest legwarmers (though that's more of a Flashdance reference), and there will be "free 80s candy giveaways," though I can't think right now of what candy was specific to that era. The movie will start 8:45ish at Tingey Plaza (on New Jersey Avenue behind USDOT), and On the Fly will be there with its vending carts.

Monument Realty just passed along word that 55 M Street, the 275,000-sq-ft office building at Half and M that was home to Artomatic 2009, has been awarded LEED Gold certification by the US Green Building Council. A quote from Monument's head, Michael Darby: "This is a great accomplishment for us. We expected to earn LEED Silver certification at 55 M, so to be awarded Gold is a true testament to the hard work that all the team members put into this project."

A number of readers have written in over the past few days asking about some new stakes in the ground and spray paint that appeared on the Canal Park site recently, asking if this meant that construction was coming soon. I checked in with the park's overlord, Chris Vanarsdale, and this is his explanation: "The stakes and paint on the lots reflect major design features as reflected in the current schematic design documents. Staking out the site was a design exercise in order to get a better sense of proportion and relationship of the features on the site before we make any final decisions -- the design may be modified somewhat as a result. We may stake it out again after the next iteration." If you want to see the early look and feel of the (new) preliminary design, check the official web site at CanalParkDC.org.

Reader J passed me the word late this afternoon that the Domino's at 900 M Street appeared to be open, and I confirmed the tip with a quick drive-by a little while ago. The lights were on, a customer was at the counter, and the signs in the window were flashing. It's not yet available as a location on the Domino's web site, but I'm sure they'll take your call--the phone number (from a sign above the door) is 202-484-3030, the same as the old Domino's at South Capitol and M (not that I had it memorized or anything).

I personally don't have anything new to report on Cornercopia (I'm starting to feel a bit of deja vu to all the "no, really, the school buses are leaving soon" statements I heard from 2003 to 2009), so I'll just pass off to two readers who couldn't bear the suspense and visited the store themselves this weekend, then wrote/Tweeted what they heard (and I'll note that there's been varying reports between "they have all their permits" versus still needing their liquor license):

As the mayor and the city council try to figure out how to close a huge FY09 budget gap and work to revise the FY10 budget to deal with expected shortfalls, a few items: