Full operating hours for Philz haven't yet been posted on either the corporate web site or the Yards location Facebook page, but I imagine they will open at the crack of dawn as they do at their other locations. While waiting for that information, you can check out the menu of coffee and tea offerings.

(h/t to commenter RMP)

UPDATE: The departure time is now set for 7:15 am. If weather intervenes, they will reportedly try again on Sunday. (I'll update this post if newer information comes along.)

Bring your white handkerchiefs to wave as she passes!

Other items on the near-term agenda:

* GRAND SLAM FOR SAFETY: On Thursday, May 5 (today for most of you reading this), from noon to 1:30 pm at the Fairgrounds, it's expected that more than 800 construction workers from the various projects currently being built here in {insert neighborhood name here} will attend the "Grand Slam for Safety" as part of the construction world's Safety Week for 2016. After starting off with a "round of stretching exercises" used at the start of the workday to help avoid injuries, there will be speakers, safety fall restraint and rescue demonstrations, and awards. The event is sponsored by Skanska and a slew of names familiar to anyone who looks at the signage at neighborhood construction sites.

* WHITE FORD BRONCO: The Miller Lite Summer Concert Series, formerly at Nats Park, shifts one block north to the Fairgrounds this year, and launches on Friday, May 6, with "DC's favorite '90s cover band," White Ford Bronco. Cover charge is $10, doors open at 5 pm.

* CHIHUAHUAHUAHUAS: Across the way, the 5th Annual Running of the Chichuahuas, rained out last weekend, is now scheduled for Saturday, May 7, from 1 to 4 pm, at 600 Water St., SW.

* DERBY DAY: Also on May 7, from 3 to 7 pm, is the previously mentioned Due South Derby Day, for all your julep and southern cookin' needs.

* VINOFEST: Or, if you juleps aren't your speed, there's Vinofest DC on May 7 from 3 to 10 pm, in the parking lots at 1st and N SE. Tickets start at $55.

* ANC 6D: If you have enough juleps or vino on Saturday, you may decide to go to Monday's ANC 6D monthly business meeting, at 7 pm at 1100 4th St., SW (2nd floor).

* JOY EVANS PARK MEETING: Also previously mentioned is the May 10 public meeting on plans for the Joy Evans Park, at 6:30 pm at Van Ness Elementary.

And, the Nats arrive home on Monday, May 9 for three against the Tigers and then three against the Marlins.

What else is happening?

* HAMBURGLARY: Fresh on the news of its pending demise, the McDonald's at South Capitol and I was robbed early Saturday morning, with the three suspects jumping through the drive-through window to get to the cash. And here's MPD's Persons of Interest video. (WaPo, MPD)

* CSX DERAILMENT: The derailment in Northeast of a CSX train carrying hazardous materials has reignited {sorry} the concerns over both the city's need to boost its oversight of freight rail and the movement of hazmat through the Virginia Avenue Tunnel. (WaPo, plus a City Paper piece as well)

* TENANT NEWS: "Global public strategy firm" Mercury Public Affairs, LLC has signed a lease for the 8,020 square feet of office space in the upper levels of the Boilermaker Shops at the Yards, and will move in this summer. As for other Yards tenants, I hear that Whaley's could be opening Any Minute Now, with Philz not far behind. (Elsewhere, the Brig is probably still a couple of weeks away.)

* THE VERY MODEL OF A MINOR MODIFICATION: Forest City is back to the Zoning Commission with some changes to the design of the planned Showplace Icon movie theater. But you might need a microscope to spot the difference between old vs new on the exterior renderings. (And it's technically not a "minor modification," but I was feeling all Gilbert and Sullivan this morning.)

* WHY, A DUCK: Duck stops 11th Street Bridge traffic. (WaPo)

* BEHIND THE CURTAIN: DCist profiles a crazy blogger who has spent years taking photos of construction sites. I mean, honestly! Get a life!

The park's stewardship is a typical DC mishmash, with the land owned by the National Park Service and management handled by DC's Department of Parks and Recreation, but with a memorandum of understanding now in place to allow DC Public Schools to use a portion of the land for "recreation and educational space" for Van Ness.

An initial notion of how the park space could be laid out is above, but there are many questions and notions still to be determined, as laid out in Meredith's Facebook post. Apparently DCPS has money this year to build a playground, an outdoor classroom and garden, and an "open turf area" for free play. But DPR does not have any funding for Joy Evans, and so the future remains unclear in terms of the renovation of the historic Lincoln Playground Building, the possible demolition of the Lincoln Capper pool and the adjacent "therapeutic recreation building" (what, you didn't know there is a therapeutic recreation building there?), and perhaps future playing fields and splash pads.

The May 10 meeting is at Van Ness at 6:30 pm. You can also contact Meredith with comments, concerns, questions, remarks, observations, opinions, notes, or feedback.

The photo at right was taken in 2007 from the roof of the old Capper Seniors building in its final days. You can see the general footprint of the Joy Evans Park along the lower part of the photo, with the Lincoln Capper pool and therapeutic recreation building cut off and the Lincoln Playground Building visible at lower right, with the grassy areas at left where the DCPS Phase 1 plans are to be built.

(Maybe I can get up on the roof of the Bixby at some point to take a current version, especially given the changes at Van Ness, including the new playground on the footprint of the parking lot that I can't believe I don't have even the most cursory photo of. I think I'm a-skeered of pointing my camera through a fence at an active playground and being promptly hauled off.)

Also, note that at the top of the site plan is "6th Street SE" -- this is the planned new block of 6th between L and M, running between this park area and the Bixby.

And, speaking of changes at Van Ness, I have been remiss in not mentioning the very visible construction along M Street of the new second floor above the gymnasium. But I took a picture!

So, with the spring/summer events season getting into full swing, I'm just going to declare my failings right here at the outset, admit that my events posts are going to be awful, and invite my dedicated commenters to fill in the gaps in the comment threads.

* DC DUCK RACE: On Saturday, April 30, from 10 am to 4:30 pm, DC's inaugural Duck Race will be unleashed on the Yards Park. Put on by the DC Rotary Club, it involves rubber ducks sponsored by the community racing along a "contained course" in the Anacostia River. There are prizes for the winners, and the funds raised go to the Rotary Club and local projects in the DC area. There will also be music, food, activities, and more.

* KINGMAN BLUEGRASS: This is technically outside the JDLand boundaries, but since it's just up the river it's worth mentioning that the 2016 Kingman Island Bluegrass & Folk Festival is also scheduled for Saturday, April 30, with music from noon until dark on six stages and then one after-dark set by the Woodshedders. Tickets are $25 in advance, $35 at the gate. More about it here.

I think that's it for this weekend (and, given the weather forecast, that might be A Good Thing.) Anything else going on nearby?

This is where RCP Development is planning a two-phase project that will start with a 380-unit apartment building.

I know nothing about any expected closing date for Mickey D's, which was just renovated in 2012. But I have heard rumors that the developers are looking to start construction on the apartment project late this year, and this raze application would certainly seem to be in line with that.

As a devotee of McDonald's fountain Diet Coke, I am willing to go on record in saying that this pains me.

BROWN PLAGUE: I have said on a couple of occasions that it sometimes seems like every new resident of Near Southeast/Capitol Riverfront/Navy Yard/#NeCaBaRY is issued a dog upon arrival, and there's now a colorful missive from the BID and Anacostia Riverkeeper about the impact of un-picked-up-poop on the neighborhood and the river. THIS MEANS YOU. (Signed, the owner of two indoor-only cats with zero patience for dog owners who don't clean up.)

BARRY PREP: The prep work for the May 7 departure of the USS Barry is now underway, and users of the Riverwalk should expect closures at various times between now and the departure date.

DERBY DAY: If you find yourself in need of a libation or two after waving goodbye to the Barry on May 7, Due South is inaugurating its first annual Derby Day, from 3 to 7 pm. There will of course be juleps (including mint, sweet tea, bourbon punch, and a bottomless frozen mint version for $40), along with Derby-themed food specials like Beer Cheese Crostini, Kentucky Hot Browns, ham and biscuits, "Kentucky Fried Chicken," and more. There's also going to be prizes and giveaways, and a hat contest for the ladies.

While I was away late last week, CSX finished the temporary decking on 3rd Street SE and reopened to two-way traffic the stretch between the north side of the freeway and I Street.

This means that if you're coming south from Capitol Hill, you can once again proceed under the freeway at 3rd Street, rather than having to either detour over to 4th Street or be forced onto the freeway ramp.

Speaking of temporary decks, it's now been announced that, as early as May 2, 7th Street SE will be closed at its intersection with Virginia Avenue for 2-3 weeks to build that deck.

Note: Virginia Avenue won't be closed at 7th. There will still be a single lane of eastbound traffic on Virginia through the 7th Street intersection, and traffic will still be able to turn to and from Virginia from the section of 7th north of Virginia--it's just the block of 7th between Virginia and L that will be losing any access to Virginia or points north. Detour signs for the closed section of 7th will send vehicles over to 8th Street.

There will be a path available for pedestrians to use 7th throughout the period that the street is closed.

Here's the CSX graphics about 7th Street, from this document:

Also, CSX has posted the presentation boards from its most recent quarterly open house. The next "Coffee with Chuck" will be on May 18, and the next quarterly open house on July 21.

Eleven months down, 31 to go....

There's also now plenty of windows on the Homewood Suites at 50 M, where there is clearly No Time To Lose if they are going to make that October 2016 opening date on the signage. And I bet there will be some windows on Insignia on M before too much longer.

I've also posted updated photos of Agora, ORE 82, the Bixby, and Dock 79, in addition to new shots at the links above.

And there's lots of Slider updates, too, a few of which are previewed below.

* PSA 106 PUBLIC SAFETY MEETING: The monthly meeting for Police Service Area 106 (which covers Near Southeast/Navy Yard/#NeCaBaRY) is scheduled for Wednesday, April 20, at 7 pm, at 200 I St. SE (government ID required to enter the building). MPD hosts these monthly meetings to address questions and concerns from the public about issues of safety in the community.

* DC WATER TOWN HALL: Sorry for the last-minute notice, but there is a DC Water Ward 6 Town Hall Meeting tonight (Tuesday, April 19) at 6:30 pm at Tyler Elementary School, 1001 G St., SE. DC Water Grand Poobah George Hawkins and Ward 6 councilmember Charles Allen are co-hosting the meeting to talk about current projects, billing rates, and more.

* WARD 6 BUDGET TOWN HALL: Speaking of town halls, Charles Allen is also hosting one on Thursday, April 21 on DC's proposed budget for FY17. It's at 6:30 pm at 645 H St., NE. "Before the Council votes on the budget, hear from Councilmember Allen on what's in it for Ward 6, where he's focused in the budget debate, and what comes next in budget decisions."

* TWO-WAY THIRD: CSX says that two-way traffic could return to 3rd Street north of I perhaps as early as Friday, April 22. Watch also in the next day or so for a shift in the current one-way flow onto the new bridge deck.

The current rate sheet shows studio units starting at $1,875, 1 BR/1 BA starting at just under $2,000, 1 BR/den starting at $2,740, 2 BR/1 BA at $2,885, and 2 BR/2 BA at $2,740. There are also additional parking fees, pet fees, amenity fees, and application fees.

They are currently expecting the first move-ins to happen somewhere mid-summer-ish.

The official web site has floor plans and additional info. The residential portion of the building is being managed by Kettler.

As for the building itself, the exterior is getting close to being finished, and when I was there I also saw the planks being laid for the extension of the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail west of Diamond Teague Park, as you can see in the first photo below. The second photo gives a decent view of the rest of the walk that is under construction:

* JBG HALF STREET ZONING OK: On Monday night the Zoning Commission gave unanimous final approval to JBG's plans for its 420-unit apartment/condo/retail building on Half Street immediately north of Nats Park. Construction could get underway late this year (after baseball season).

* CRANE RESCUE: A construction worker at F1rst on 1st St. SE had to be rescued by firefighters via "high-angle rescue" on Tuesday. (Fox 5)

* DCBFIT OUT, CHURCH IN: I alas never got it posted here that the little DCBFit gym in the ground floor of the Courtyard Marriott/Capitol Hill Tower closed back in February. But now the space has a new tenant--the Waterfront Church, which has been operating out of the Courtyard since its founding in 2014.

* THE NEW FLAVORS ARE HERE!: Ice Cream Jubilee, fresh off its second-in-a-row Best Ice Cream in DC title in City Paper's Best of DC voting, announced new seasonal flavors on Tuesday: Chocolate Matzo Crack, Cherries Jubilee, Double Stout Caramel, and a Fig, Port, & Goat Cheese combo.

* TUNNEL OPEN HOUSE: Time for another Virginia Avenue Tunnel Quarterly Open House, on Thursday, April 14, from 5:30 to 7:30 pm at the Courtyard Marriott at New Jersey and L. There's no formal presentations, but representatives of the project are on hand to provide updates and answer questions. Lots of lane-shifting going on these days as temporary bridge decks get built on 3rd, 8th, and 11th. And the intersection of 7th and Virginia is expected to close for about two weeks starting in early May to get its deck installed. CSX also expects to return 3rd Street to two-way traffic "near the end of April."

Those who read the JDLand comments got a sense a few weeks ago that something along these lines was coming when I posted this 99 M floor plan showing "new bar concept by Circa," but good to now have Open Road officially named.

According to WBJ, it's expected that the building will be finished in late 2017 (though it better start coming out of the ground pretty soon to meet that) and that the restaurants would open in mid-2018.

Open Road's Merrifield location has a pretty standard American Bar Food menu, plus lots of beer options.

And the 99 M location already has a placeholder web site!

This is the third restaurant announcement in recent days, joining news of Chix coming to Half Street this summer and The Salt Line coming to Dock 79 in 2017, and it occurred to me that people might be starting to lose track of what's in the pipeline. So, of course, I built a map.

And while it's neat to see 11 food options in the pipeline (and I didn't even include Nicoletta, because, well, they will need to re-earn my trust), it's also time to start thinking about the incredible amount of retail space in the pipeline.

Arris has about 17,000 square feet of space left to lease, Insignia on M has 11,000 sf, ORE 82 has 5,800 sf, 909 Half has "significant" ground-floor retail space, Homewood Suites has 4,800 sf, F1rst has about 21,000 sf left in not only its ground floor but the cute little two-story building it's planning at 1st and N, Dock 79 has about 12,000 sf remaining, and 1244 South Capitol will have about 26,000 sf. And even 99 M still has another 2,300 sf of space remaining.

That's well over 100,000 square feet of as-yet-unspoken-for space that will be available just within the next two years, in addition to the smattering of space still available in existing buildings.

And adding in just the JBG and Lynch Half Street projects north of Nats Park would double that number by, say, 2019, as each are billing about 60,000 sf of retail and could be getting underway late this year or early next year. Which is why I left a lot of room on my Future Food map--and I bet it'll become a Future Food and Retail map before long.

One would think there is a whole lot of competition behind the scenes for all of this space. It will be interesting to watch.

If you are wanting to wave farewell, be prepared to set your alarm--it's expected to start around 6 am. It will also require that the Douglass Bridge's span be raised rotated for it to pass through.

It was over a year ago that it was announced that the Barry would be leaving, with the Navy citing the ship's deteriorating condition along with the expectation of construction of a new fixed span Douglass Bridge leaving the Barry locked up river if it weren't moved beforehand.

(Would have been nice to get a credit for my photo of the Barry that the CNIC story used! Though now it's been replaced with a non-JDLand photo.)

At this point everyone probably knows everything they want or need to know about the plans and festivities, but I'll still do a quick link-filled rundown, because, well, even though I'm coming down with the same cold that clobbered me on Opening Day 2008 (symmetry!), the guilt would be too incapacitating to not post something.

Here's:

* Opening Day Promotions, Festivities, and Events At Nats Park

* What's New Inside the Ballpark | Outside the Ballpark

* How to Get to the Ballpark: WaPo Version | DDOT Version

As for what will be going on outside the ballpark before and after the game, here's the current lineup:

* Bluejacket Opening Day Fest 2016, 12 to 4 pm, 4th and Tingey Streets, SE.

* Due South Opening Day Pop-Up Beer Garden at Arris, 11 am to 5 pm., 1331 4th St., SE.

* Opening Day at the Fairgrounds/Bullpen, gates open at 11 am, 1201 Half St., SE.

* The Budweiser Clydesdales Procession, starting on 1st Street at 2:15 pm.

(Note that 106.7 The Fan's planned Opening Day party at Canal Park is now apparently re-scheduled for April 22, thanks to the weather forecast.)

Speaking of the Fairgrounds/Bullpen, I see that they are billing this as their final season, which has been my assumption but it's interesting to see it in black and white.

If you haven't been following along, you may not know that this is because it's likely that by the 2017 season construction will be underway on JBG's 420-unit condo/residential building with 65,000 square feet of retail on the south end of that block, which will change the look of Half Street pretty substantially, as seen here. Hard to set up row upon row of cornhole when a massive hole is being dug!

I may continue to update this post if any additional links come in, and/or be doing a lot of retweeting on Twitter. Or I may be in bed. Or both. (Have laptop, will blog.)

Feel free to use the comments as a game thread, should you wish to discuss actual on-field goings-on.

The big news at this point is that no lots have dropped out of the inventory (yet!), and one has returned--the lot on the northeast corner of 1st and N, SE, on the Spooky Park block, now a nicely paved and compact 220-space offering.

There will also apparently be "limited" parking in the new underground garage in Arris, on 4th Street south of Tingey.

Prices have nudged upward from last year, though--and if you are driving to Opening Day, throw a few extra $5 bills in your wallet, because home opener prices will likely be higher than what the map is showing.

Some cash lot parking attendants were quick to tell me Opening Day prices, and others had more of a "Well, we'll see what the market will bear" response, so instead of my listing them here and having them turn out to be wrong, better for you to just expect to pay $5 or $10 or $15 or even $20 more than "standard pricing" on Thursday and then be thrilled if you don't have to.

It's also possible that some lots (especially east of the stadium, in the Yards) may have slightly lower prices at points in April, when attendance isn't at its height.

In other words, consider this a guide to the general range of prices, while always expecting the possibility that prices may be different on any given day.

If you are driving to the ballpark, be aware that there are still lots of construction sites, and that in particular the Virginia Avenue Tunnel project immediately south of the Southeast Freeway between 2nd and 12th Streets, SE, has ripped the streets up pretty good, with various closures and shifts to watch out for.

Check out my Stadium Parking and Visiting Nats Park pages for additional info.

It's the restaurant's third location, and will be serving the same chicken and vegetarian dishes as at the other spots. Chix describes itself as "a green eatery that is committed to providing natural, healthy, delicious, affordable, quick, Latin-flavored meals in a casual environment." The press release says that all of Chix's chicken is "naturally raised, certified antibiotic free, hormone free, halal and locally sourced from Shenandoah Valley Organic Farms in Harrisonburg, Virginia." And their motto is "Eat Responsibly."

It will be open seven days a week, with dine-in, takeout, and delivery service for lunch and dinner.

The neighborhood is becoming quite the poultry destination, with Chix joining B-Dubs next door, Bonchon up the street, and Nando's Peri-Peri a few blocks away.

With its location immediately north of Nats Park, and with a view of (most of) the field, it will probably be a destination of interest--and a few occupants were caught on camera during MASN's broadcasts this weekend, and I captured MASN capturing them on camera, as you see above.

The menu (scroll down on the official site) features burgers and hot dog-type offerings along with "snacks and shareables." According to the Post's Going Out Guide, the beer lineup is Budweiser-ish, with Bud, Shock Top, and Goose Island. The space will also be available to rent for private events.

I took some photos up on the roof back in December, right when the hotel opened, so the area wasn't quite finished yet, and the low winter sun made for less-than-optimal peeking into the ballpark, but here are some of those images, until I get up there to replace them. (Note that there are also lovely views of the rest of the neighborhood--see more photos here.)

I also hear tell that the Hampton is looking to open a sidewalk cafe where alcohol would be served.

I've now added this to my What's New Outside the Ballpark page (if you need to catch up) and also my Food Map.

As you can see on the invitation graphic, Mr. Z himself is expected to be there, along with Dusty Baker, Mayor Bowser, and Ward 6 councilmember Charles Allen, among others.

"Fun and games" start at 8:30 am, with the ribbon cutting and first pitch at 10 am, and then the inaugural baseball game at 10:30 am. (Leaving plenty of time for Zimm and Dusty to get to the ballpark for the 4:05 pm game against the Marlins.)

If you're coming to the ballpark, here's what you'll see inside that's new, and what you'll see outside that's new, and my food map is available if you aren't quite remembering what's nearby.

My parking lot map is going to need some wandering on my part this weekend before it's considered fully active for 2016, but the big headline is that the Spooky Park lot at 1st and N will once again be available.

All of these links and more are available on my Visiting Nats Park page.

Note that, if you haven't been down to the neighborhood lately, you may want to familiarize yourself with the various traffic issues along Virginia Ave., SE, just south of the freeway, thanks to the tunnel reconstruction.

Tonight's exhibition is at 6:05 pm (with gates opening at 4:30 pm), and is a special event, with free tickets handed out to season ticket holders and "select members of the community," with seating limited to the lower bowl of the ballpark. Tickets are available while supplies last at the ballpark box office for a $10 donation to the Nationals Dream Foundation.

Saturday will be a "standard" exhibition game, with tickets on sale and gates opening at 10:30 am for a 12:05 pm first pitch.

The Bullpen at the Fairgrounds will be open for these two games, starting at 4 pm today and 10 am on Saturday, with live music, food, drinks, and of course cornhole.

There will be all manner of big happenings around the neighborhood tied to the April 7 home opener, but that's for another post.

If you see anything on the parking lots that would help me update the map (new lots open, old lots closed, prices, etc.), leave a comment here or tweet to @JDLand.

I can't believe this is the ninth season at this ballpark. Time flies.