As I've written, Justin is also asking for a stipulated license, which will allow him to open the restaurant and sell alcohol before the March 22 hearing date. But I haven't heard of an opening date yet, though a reader reports that the amount of construction "stuff" in the space seems to have lessened.

* (h/t "reader X") The second foreclosure sale held yesterday for the boarded-up apartment building and surrounding lots at Potomac, Ninth and L brought no bids above the $2 million starting point, so the properties will now return to the lender. An earlier auction back in October had brought a $2.461 million winning bid, but that deal fell through. The properties were originally bought by ICP Partners in 2006, along with the gray building at Eighth and Potomac, for $9 million.

* Via ANC 6B03 commissioner Norm Metzger, the Marines have created a web site for their "Community Integrated Master Plan." The site describes this planning process as evaluating "community-military development partnering options" because "[t]here are unmet facility needs and security requirements at Marine Barracks Washington and a potential to meet common community and military needs through the process" and that their goal is "to use a coordinated planning process to create a win-win in meeting the development needs of the local community and Marine Corps." Now that that's cleared up, you can go to the open house they're having on Jan. 27 from 5 to 8 pm in the North Hall of Eastern Market, to "assist the planning team in identifying issues, concerns, and potential opportunities for military-community development partnering."

* One of many service reductions proposed by WMATA to help close their FY2010 budget gap is to shut down one of the two entrances to the Navy Yard metro station on weekends. (They don't say which one.) The public hearing on their various proposals is Jan. 27 at 5:30 pm. UPDATE: From Michael Perkins, in the comments, it would be the west entrance, at Half and M. I wonder if this would only be when there are no stadium events?

* Via the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce's Twitter feed, there will apparently be one more Lower 8th Street visioning session, on February 22. After this final session, the group will forward its recommendations to the Office of Planning on what sort of development should be emphasized for these blocks south of the freeway.

* In Sunday's Post, Dr. Gridlock took a look at the 11th Street Bridges project, telling drivers what to expect as the construction unfolds, and that the "new bridges will forge a link between Maryland, the District and Virginia that has been missing since the original highway plan for the District was abandoned decades ago. And it will create a new link between neighborhoods on both sides of the Anacostia while relieving them of some of the commuter traffic that spills onto local streets."

* As part of the start of work on the bridges, a raze permit application has been filed to demolish the old red brick buildings between the current bridges that housed the Anacostia Community Boathouse, whose operations are now moving up-river to a temporary (maybe permanent) home at the Anacostia Marina.

* A little time spent trolling through public records shows that within the past month a bunch of the liens brought against Opus East when they liquidated and stopped work on 1015 Half Street have been settled. No indications from the new owner (Douglas Wilson Companies) as to when construction might restart, despite their statements back in October that it would be happening soon.

It's become a tradition for me to do a yearly overview of what's happened in Near Southeast over the preceding 12 months, and what the next 12 months are looking like, and in my typically understated way, I've dubbed it "the State of the Hood." This year's missive is now posted, and while the expectation would be that 2009 was a whole lot of nothing, there were more milestones of note than perhaps it seemed--two residential buildings and one office building were finished, the first residents moved into Capitol Quarter, water taxis and Circulators arrived, Cornercopia opened, and work began on the new 11th Street Bridges. There were less auspicious events, too, with construction being halted on two projects, foreclosures hitting various commercial properties and private homes, and the drying up of the "development pipeline." But there's still a few new things coming in 2010, like the Park at the Yards and Justin's Cafe.(Note that Capitol Quarter's numbers are a little behind the others, so these are higher now as the move-ins continue)

Definitely take a moment to browse through the photos from that chilly Sunday seven years ago, to see the buildings that are gone as well as some that are still here (hello, trash transfer station!). Enough time has passed that some of the vistas--like this one of the boarded up rowhouses that stood until 2006 where the lobby of 909 New Jersey now sits--are now completely alien to the many new residents who have arrived in Near Southeast in the last two years. These photos also bring home what I feel is as important a part of JDLand.com as the never-ending stream of tiny tidbits of news, and that's the keeping alive of the history of this neighborhood, letting newcomers see what their surroundings looked like not all that long ago, before the city decided it was time for the area to get a makeover and before it was even considered a remote possibility that the Montreal Expos would be brought to DC and be given a shiny new stadium on South Capitol Street.

This anniversary is also always a good time to thank all of you who wander by and read my ramblings and look at my photos, and who send along tips and rumors, because there's no way I'd still be keeping the site going if I didn't feel the energy coming back from the folks who live and work in Near Southeast or who just find its redevelopment oddly fascinating. I will admit that much of 2009 was tough for me as I dealt with a persistent bout of flagging enthusiasm, but I feel like the doldrums have finally passed, and hope to keep chugging along for the foreseeable future.

Check back later today for my other January 19 ritual: the State of the Hood!

(Note to Mom and Dad: See, I told you that ditching journalism school and getting my degree in history would work out okay.)

(And, as an aside, "Near Southeast" and the "Capitol Riverfront" are actually slightly different areas, with Near Southeast being a subset of "the Front." The BID's boundaries include Buzzard Point in Southwest, an area just past my western borderline, the South Capitol Street median. My firm desire to *not* expand my zone keeps me tied to "Near Southeast" as my coverage area.)

* I wrote back in December about the DDOT public meeting that gave a lot of updated information about how the Performance Parking Pilot around the ballpark is going; DDOT has now posted a 21-page report with all the details, which is worth reading for anyone interested not only in how parking is being handled in the neighborhood, but about the non-automotive improvements that the meter income will be funding.

* The Third "Opera in the Outfield" at Nationals Park will be on September 11, a simulcast of the Washington National Opera's season premiere, Verdi's "Un Ballo in Maschera" ("A Masked Ball").

* The Lower 8th Street Visioning project has posted both the materials from its December sessions, and the agenda for the upcoming meetings on Jan. 19, which "will progress to looking at best mix of uses, breakout workshops on land use, density and parking, and closing with a Q&A."

* Peeking at the building permits feed, I noted the approved permit for the ballpark, described as "INTERIOR DEMOLITION AS PER PLANS TO SUIT TENANT 'PNC DIAMOND CLUB'." A Twitter follower indicated that they had seen the work on the Diamond Club already underway. No word from the Nationals on what exactly is coming.

* The Nats put out this "Nats in Your Neighborhood" newsletter, detailing good works around the city, including the work last month by the Dream Foundation on the United Southwest Health Center a few blocks from the ballpark, in Southwest.

"The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is scheduled to temporarily close lanes on the eastbound side of the Southeast Freeway this weekend to complete the demolition of two RFK access ramps. The ramps cross over the freeway.

"Last Saturday, crews demolished the concrete on the ramps; this weekend they will remove the steel structure. The work is scheduled to take place from 5 am to 10 pm on Saturday, January 16. There could be additional closures on Sunday, January 17, but only if the work is not completed on Saturday.

"The left lane and shoulder will be closed just prior to the I-295 South and Pennsylvania Avenue split. That means all traffic approaching the split will have to take the I-295 exit. There will be no access to RFK Stadium or Pennsylvania Avenue from the SE Freeway."

They haven't posted the new advisory yet, but here's the link to last weekend's, with the graphics for detours and whatnot. Expect delays on the freeway.

There's still no date set for the license hearing (Justin filed his application on Dec. 30), but he indicated that things should be moving pretty quickly in terms of getting the restaurant opened, and the stipulated license will allow him to serve alcohol until the full license is voted on.

Other Near Southeast-related tidbits:

* The Marines are going to be hosting an open house on January 27 from 5 to 8 pm at Eastern Market's north hall--they are formulating a new master plan for all of their space needs, and are looking to "partner" with residents, developments, government agencies, or any organization that can provide the space they're looking for. The open house seems to be the first step in "reaching out," though it all seemed a bit murky, and perhaps will be better explained when announcements for the open house are released. (Though "lower Eighth Street" was mentioned.)

* The commission also elected its offers for 2010, with Ron McBee being named chair. Vice chair Robert Siegel, secretary David Sobelsohn, and treasurer Jane Jorgensen retained their posts.

* This was the first time in all the ANC 6D meetings I've attended (starting in probably 2004) that I actually stayed until the very end (it lasted a mere three hours). Whether this is something to celebrate is another issue, especially on a night like this one where the heat at St. Augustine's seemed particularly, um, nonexistent. They did announce that soon the ANC and the Southwest Neighborhood Association will be moving to new digs at Waterfront (the new development about to open at the old Waterside Mall site at Fourth and M, SW). They will also have a public meeting space that presumably will have both sufficient HVAC offerings and decent acoustics, so that I will actually be able to *hear* what's going on.