MLK Gateway Welcomes Capital One Café To Historic Anacostia

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The Menkiti Group, a local DC-based minority-owned integrated real estate services company focused on enhancing urban neighborhoods, announced today that Capital One Café will be the newest tenant at the historic Anacostia MLK Gateway project opening in 2021. 

Located at the corner of Good Hope Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE, MLK Gateway is a collaboration of DC Government and the private sector, including the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED), the DC Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), The Menkiti Group, and Enlightened, Inc., and is poised to become a catalytic center of commerce and street-fronting retail, driving economic opportunity in the heart of historic Anacostia.

“Our vision for MLK Gateway has always been to create a community-oriented project that drives neighborhood impact,” said Bo Menkiti, founder and chief executive officer, The Menkiti Group. “The opportunity to have Capital One Café join us as a tenant at MLK Gateway further delivers on the mission to enhance historic Anacostia with neighborhood offerings that support community engagement and economic vitality.”

Phase One of MLK Gateway includes a mix of commercial uses and features the restoration of 14,000 square feet of ground floor retail as well as 20,000 square feet of newly built office space. The project is anchored by Enlightened Inc., an award-winning information technology and cybersecurity firm that will relocate its new headquarters to MLK Gateway. The project’s design embraces and incorporates the site’s existing historic facades and is a rich backdrop for a new epicenter of commerce, culture and technology with a vibrant mix of neighborhood-serving retail.

“Mayor Bowser was thrilled to work with The Menkiti Group to revitalize the MLK Gateway and to relocate Enlightened’s headquarters to the intersection of Good Hope Road and Martin Luther King Avenue in historic Anacostia,” said John J. Falcicchio, Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. “The addition of Capital One as a retail tenant will provide further vibrancy and also give residents better access to a major financial institution.”

Capital One Café will occupy approximately 3,700 square feet at MLK Gateway, bringing reimagined design and banking services to the space. The Café will offer a full-service coffee and tea bar featuring locally sourced food and beverages, complimentary Wi-Fi, as well as nooks and meeting rooms for the public to use as collaborative workspaces. Intentionally designed to provide a relaxed and inviting atmosphere to both customers as well as neighborhood guests, all visitors will also be able to engage in a variety of financial education opportunities while in the Café.  

From interactive screens showcasing financial management content to free confidential one-on-one Money Coaching sessions to regularly scheduled free Money Workshops, the Café provides an experience that highlights opportunity paths to achieve financial goals. Café Ambassadors will also be on site to assist with exploring banking solutions and options while ATMs will be readily available for banking services. 

“Capital One Cafés are not only a place to get help with accounts or focus on financial wellness, they serve as a convening space for the local community. Our investment in the Anacostia MLK Gateway location gives us the chance to bring that experience to another important DC neighborhood, complementing our existing network of Cafés and Branches,” said Jennifer Windbeck, Senior Vice President of Capital One Cafés, Branches, & Private Banking.

Consistently focused on building with and for the communities and customers it serves, Capital One Café will offer free meeting space for neighborhood associations, non-profits and students. Supporting various organizations across the D.C. Metropolitan area, Capital One has strong relationships with Anacostia-based community partners including the Anacostia Economic Development Corporation, Far Southeast Family Strengthening Collaborative, and ARCH Development Corporation.

The Menkiti Group has been actively engaged with the historic Anacostia community for the past four years, working together with the Bowser Administration and DMPED to execute on a collaborative vision for equitable and sustainable economic development in Ward 8.  MLK Gateway will include the launch of a technology incubator activating the site for the greater part of the day and providing jobs and pathways to opportunity for residents and businesses. Phase Two of the project includes construction of a new building at 1909-1913 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. SE with street-level retail and multi-story office space above which will serve as the new home for the DC Department of Housing and Community Development.

“Our commitment has and always will be to enhance the fabric of life in America’s urban communities. We are honored to partner with Mayor Bowser, DMPED, Enlightened and Capital One who share a similar commitment as we develop this project that brings to life the community’s vision for the future of the Anacostia neighborhood,” said Menkiti.

ABOUT THE MENKITI GROUP
The Menkiti Group is a Washington, D.C.-based real estate services company dedicated to enhancing the fabric of life in America’s urban neighborhoods through the strategic development, management, and sale of residential and commercial property. Over the past 15 years, The Menkiti Group has delivered and maintains in its pipeline more than 2 million square feet of property, has invested over $200 million in D.C.’s emerging neighborhoods and has assisted over 2,000 families in purchasing their first homes. For more information, please visit MenkitiGroup.com.

ABOUT CAPITAL ONE
Capital One Financial Corporation (​www.capitalone.com​) is a financial holding company whose subsidiaries, which include Capital One, N.A., and Capital One Bank (USA), N.A., had $243.7 billion in deposits and $365.7 billion in total assets as of December 31, 2017. Headquartered in McLean, Virginia, Capital One offers a broad spectrum of financial products and services to consumers, small businesses, and commercial clients through a variety of channels. Capital One, N.A. has branches located primarily in New York, Louisiana, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, New Jersey, and the District of Columbia. A Fortune 500 company, Capital One trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "COF" and is included in the S&P 100 index. Visit the Capital One newsroom for more ​Capital One news​.