Sliding from Before to After
 A few weeks ago I posted about an e-mail I had received from Yung Park, owner of the (no longer standing) Little Red Building at 2nd and L streets, SE, about his plans to switch from running a liquor store on that site to a coffeehouse, which he said would be named Aroma Espresso Bar. One of the entry's commenters noted that a chain with that name already existed, and I replied in the comments that Mr. Park had told me it was not going to be a chain: "(so I wonder if the name is going to be problematic)". This afternoon I received a very nice e-mail from the law firm of Baker Botts LLP, informing me that their client, Shefa, owns the federal trademark for "AROMA ESPRESSO BAR" and operates a franchise system under that trademark. Further, "Mr. Park’s establishment is not one of Shefa’s franchises, and we have communicated with Mr. Park, asking that he refrain from using our client’s trademark." They also asked that I refrain from using that name in any future blog entries about the LRB. Hopefully soon we'll hear from Mr. Park about a new name. UPDATE: Or, judging by the vast reach of the current AROMA ESPRESSO BAR (as noted by Paul in the comments), maybe not. I would also note that the wording in the e-mail from the law firm was "asking", which doesn't exactly sound like a legal demand.
JDLand.com Home
Paul says: (11/29/10 7:03 PM)
When I googled Aroma Espresso Bar all I found was a NYC business with 3 locations and an under construction website. That seems like a pretty low bar for having your business name trademarked/protected/whatever on a national level. Maybe on a local level but national? Afterall this isn't even a unique name just 3 common words about coffee products pushed together.
Of course I am but a simple caveman and the world of law frightens and confuses me.
Ed says: (11/29/10 7:37 PM)
Yeah, what Paul said. I mean, really. What exactly are the lawyers protecting other than their retainer??
Paul says: (11/29/10 11:01 PM)
Hmmmm. the Aroma website gave me an under construction-esque page earlier this afternoon. But now it does look like a fully functioning professional webpage. Still, this franchise has fewer locations than I have fingers on my right hand. I admittedly don't know the law - but to me it doesn't make sense how that qualifies for exclusivity on the name nationally.
Then again I never understood how Pat Riley was able to trademark the term 3-peat as if it were intellectual capital.
Michae says: (11/29/10 11:34 PM)
Refrain from reporting the "controversy" about the name? Preposterous!
khan says: (11/30/10 10:53 AM)
May be Aroma Espresso Bar have plans to expand their business nationally. It is a very smart idea to trademark their business and protect their business repetition.
I don't think Mr. Yung Park have any idea in what exactly he wants to do with the place.
I think he needs to change his mind again and go with other business ideas. Perhaps, a dive bar or ethnic restaurant.
F says: (11/30/10 11:10 AM)
The coffee bar idea is still an excellent one. Mr. Parks should maybe consider another name. Perhaps JD Land'ers can provide some suggestions.
Ed says: (11/30/10 11:49 AM)
Why not use LRB or some variety therein? Little Red Coffee Bar? Preposterous Coffee? (PC, get it?) LRB Coffee?
JT says: (11/30/10 11:50 AM)
Call it "The Poop Deck."
It alludes to both our neighborhood's illustrious Naval history and the fact that the caffeine in coffee can stimulate a motor response of the distal colon.
Adam says: (11/30/10 12:13 PM)
My question is how does this affect construction/opening? I haven't been by the site in the past few weeks so I don't know how the progress is going.
I have, however, noticed significant progress where Harry's is going in. They have shelving and countertops installed, hopefully they can be open by the end of the year!
F says: (11/30/10 2:27 PM)
I like "Little Red Coffee Shop" and "LRB Coffee." I thought the "Poop Deck" was referring to the dog park across the street:-)
JD says: (11/30/10 3:04 PM)
I'll just want a teeny kickback for having come up with "LRB" way back when. :-)
JoeNdc says: (11/30/10 3:52 PM)
I nominate: The Park
Espresso Bar & Cafe
It incorporates that fact that the establishment is across the street from the soon to be built Canal Park and it also uses the owners last name.
BillP says: (12/1/10 11:07 AM)
CPC - Canal Park Coffee
covers the location AND the owner's name. he'd better act fast as i'll be filing for trademark and copyright protection today. (just kidding)
of course, this won't work if mayor gray diverts the already-promised funding for canal park toward his cadre of new social programs (not directly, of course, the programs will greatly increase the total budget so he can justify diverting money for "deficit reduction" purposes). i miss fenty already.
F says: (12/1/10 12:54 PM)
Some quick ideas:
Park Side Cafe
Canal Park Espresso Bar
chuck says: (12/2/10 3:27 PM)
LRB Coffee Shop, or more simply LRB Coffee, or alternatively Little Red Building Coffee Shop all are excellent choices: they help to retain the memory of the previous building and would be a good jumping off point for a "then and now"-themed decor. (pictures on walls, factoids on placemats, etc) I imagine there's _somebody_ out there who has a few pictures and bits of info of what the neighborhood looked like, when the little red building still existed.
Adam says: (12/6/10 10:54 AM)
Surprise, surprise...drove past the LRB construction site this weekend and it looks like zero progress has been made in the past few months. It's still a giant hole with a foundation, as it was about a week after the building came down.
I understand delays, but I'm starting to wonder what is going on with this location and site. I'm guessing that I'm not the only one frustrated with the lack of progress going on here.
Add a Comment:
Comments are closed for this post.
 JDLand Comments RSS Feed
See All Current News Items |
Full Blog Archive
|
|
|
Full Neighborhood Development Map
There's a lot more than just the projects listed here. See the complete map of completed, underway, and proposed projects all across the neighborhood.What's New This Year A quick look at what's arrived or been announced since the end of the 2018 baseball season.Food Options, Now and Coming Soon
There's now plenty of food options in the neighborhood. Click to see what's here, and what's coming.Anacostia Riverwalk
A bridge between Teague and Yards Parks is part of the planned 20-mile Anacostia Riverwalk multi-use trail along the east and west banks of the Anacostia River.Virginia Ave. Tunnel Expansion
Construction underway in 2015 to expand the 106-year-old tunnel to allow for a second track and double-height cars. Expected completion 2018. Rail and Bus Times
Get real time data for the Navy Yard subway, Circulator, Bikeshare, and bus lines, plus additional transit information.Rail and Bus Times
Get real time data for the Navy Yard subway, Circulator, Bikeshare, and bus lines, plus additional transit information.Canal Park
Three-block park on the site of the old Washington Canal. Construction begun in spring 2011, opened Nov. 16, 2012.Nationals Park
21-acre site, 41,000-seat ballpark, construction begun May 2006, Opening Day March 30, 2008.Washington Navy Yard
Headquarters of the Naval District Washington, established in 1799.Yards Park
5.5-acre park on the banks of the Anacostia. First phase completed September 2010.Van Ness Elementary School
DC Public School, closed in 2006, but reopening in stages beginning in 2015.Agora/Whole Foods
336-unit apartment building at 800 New Jersey Ave., SE. Construction begun June 2014, move-ins underway early 2018. Whole Foods expected to open in late 2018.New Douglass Bridge
Construction underway in early 2018 on the replacement for the current South Capitol Street Bridge. Completion expected in 2021.1221 Van
290-unit residential building with 26,000 sf retail. Underway late 2015, completed early 2018.NAB HQ/Avidian
New headquarters for National Association of Broadcasters, along with a 163-unit condo building. Construction underway early 2017.Yards/Parcel O Residential Projects
The Bower, a 138-unit condo building by PN Hoffman, and The Guild, a 190-unit rental building by Forest City on the southeast corner of 4th and Tingey. Underway fall 2016, delivery 2018.New DC Water HQ
A wrap-around six-story addition to the existing O Street Pumping Station. Construction underway in 2016, with completion in 2018.The Harlow/Square 769N Apts
Mixed-income rental building with 176 units, including 36 public housing units. Underway early 2017, delivery 2019.West Half Residential
420-unit project with 65,000 sf retail. Construction underway spring 2017.Novel South Capitol/2 I St.
530ish-unit apartment building in two phases, on old McDonald's site. Construction underway early 2017, completed summer 2019.1250 Half/Envy
310 rental units at 1250, 123 condos at Envy, 60,000 square feet of retail. Underway spring 2017.Parc Riverside Phase II
314ish-unit residential building at 1010 Half St., SE, by Toll Bros. Construction underway summer 2017.99 M Street
A 224,000-square-foot office building by Skanska for the corner of 1st and M. Underway fall 2015, substantially complete summer 2018. Circa and an unnamed sibling restaurant announced tenants.The Garrett
375-unit rental building at 2nd and I with 13,000 sq ft retail. Construction underway late fall 2017.Yards/The Estate Apts. and Thompson Hotel
270-unit rental building and 227-room Thompson Hotel, with 20,000 sq ft retail total. Construction underway fall 2017.Meridian on First
275-unit residential building, by Paradigm. Construction underway early 2018.The Maren/71 Potomac
264-unit residential building with 12,500 sq ft retail, underway spring 2018. Phase 2 of RiverFront on the Anacostia development.DC Crossing/Square 696
Block bought in 2016 by Tishman Speyer, with plans for 800 apartment units and 44,000 square feet of retail in two phases. Digging underway April 2018.One Hill South Phase 2
300ish-unit unnamed sibling building at South Capitol and I. Work underway summer 2018.New DDOT HQ/250 M
New headquarters for the District Department of Transportation. Underway early 2019.37 L Street Condos
11-story, 74-unit condo building west of Half St. Underway early 2019.CSX East Residential/Hotel
225ish-unit AC Marriott and two residential buildings planned. Digging underway late summer 2019.1000 South Capitol Residential
224-unit apartment building by Lerner. Underway fall 2019.Capper Seniors 2.0
Reconstruction of the 160-unit building for low-income seniors that was destroyed by fire in 2018.Chemonics HQ
New 285,000-sq-ft office building with 14,000 sq ft of retail. Expected delivery 2021.
Records added or updated recently displayed here; click the "archive" links to see additional detail and older records. All data from DC Government databases and RSS feeds. JDLand takes no responsibility for errors, omissions, etc. (read CapStat disclaimer). Data is retrieved daily.
|
|
|
| No records added or modified in the past two weeks. |
|
|
Recent Issued Building Permits
| Archive
|
|
|
1300 4TH ST SE 1001
|
|
02/22/21 
AP BOWER RETAIL LLC / null
E2104231 /
SUPPLEMENTAL
|
|
1346 4TH ST SE APT 1M
|
|
02/06/21
null / NA NA NA
EHOP21945129 /
HOME OCCUPATION
|
|
1331 4TH ST SE R-2
|
|
02/08/21
FC 1331 LLC / FC 1331 LLC
BP2101814 /
POST CARD
|
|
10 I ST SE
|
|
02/16/21
CAPITOL HILL RACQUET CLUB / NA; VICTORIA STEINHOFF
SB2100112 /
CONSTRUCTION
Installation of up to six (6) 3-inch diameter direct-push Geoprobe borings to depths of up to 30 feet below grade as part of an environmental assessment.
|
|
555 L ST SE
|
|
01/29/21
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA / RENNE WELL; RICK HARLAN SCHNEIDER
B2102004 /
CONSTRUCTION
DGS PROJECT REHABILITATION+RESTORATION OF THE HISTORIC LINCOIN FIELDHOUSE
|
|
861 NEW JERSEY AVE SE 20003
|
|
02/23/21
809-853 NEW JERSEY AVE ACQUISITION LLC / SUSANA VAZQUEZ
AH2100728 /
CONSTRUCTION
Dismantling of tower crane.
|
|
809 NEW JERSEY AVE SE
|
|
02/11/21
GREYSTAR GP LLC 809-853 NEW JERSEY AVENUE ACQUISITION LLC / null
E2103926 /
SUPPLEMENTAL
|
|
853 NEW JERSEY AVE SE
|
|
02/11/21
GREYSTAR GP LLC / null
E2103924 /
SUPPLEMENTAL
|
|
861 NEW JERSEY AVE SE
|
|
02/05/21
GS CSX HOTEL OWNER LLC / null
E2103762 /
SUPPLEMENTAL
|
|
1275 NEW JERSEY AVE SE
|
|
02/02/21
FC 1275 NJ LLC / null
E2103662 /
SUPPLEMENTAL
|
|
|
|
02/11/21
FC 1275 NJ LLC / null
P2103445 /
SUPPLEMENTAL
|
|
848 SOUTH CAPITOL ST SE
|
|
02/16/21
CXS TRANSPORTATION INC / VICTORIA STEINHOFF; TBD
SB2100111 /
CONSTRUCTION
Installation of up to six (6) 3-inch diameter direct-push Geoprobe borings to depths of up to 30 feet below grade as part of an environmental assessment.
|
|
AH = After Hours; B = Alteration & Repair; D = Demolition; E = Electrical; FB = Boiler; M = Mechanical; P = Plumbing and Gas; PC = Post Card; R = Raze; SG = Sign; TL = Tenant Layout; TN = Tent; RW = Retaining Wall;
|
|
|
|
| No commercial transaction records added or modified in the past two weeks. |
|
|
