"Where do we go? Are we going to turn to Amazon? Are we going to turn to the suburbs? I don't know. We'll see," an unnamed True Value customer told WTOP.
That question applies to more than one store. On Tuesday, October 27, the 39th annual 17th Street High Heel Race runs down 17th Street NW between S and P Streets. This year it passes a hardware store in its final weeks, a gutted pair of rooms with no confirmed tenant and a tavern sign that still says "coming soon." On this stretch, the long-tenured businesses are leaving because of a retirement and a canceled license. The businesses replacing them are arriving more slowly than the old ones are closing.
How the exits happened
True Value on 17th has been in business since 1983 at 1623-1627 17th Street NW. It stocks hardware, household goods and Benjamin Moore paint. In September the store told PoPville by email that it "will be closing on December 31, 2026," and gave no other details. WTOP's reporting adds the context. ANC commissioner Vincent Slatt said the current owner has worked at the store for 51 years and plans to retire later this year.
Two blocks south, Trio's and Fox & Hounds at 1537 17th Street NW left a paper trail of a different kind. PoPville marked the end of the two businesses after 75 years in October 2025. On May 6, 2026, the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration canceled their shared Class CR license because the renewal fees had not been paid.
Neither departure was caused by a fight with the neighborhood. One owner is retiring after half a century behind the same counter. The other pair's liquor license was later canceled for unpaid fees. Both left a large ground-floor space that the next tenant has to work hard to fill.
What stands between S and P on race night
Here is each storefront in transition along the race route and the blocks just south of it, with its latest reported status as of early October 2026.
| Address | What it was | Latest reported status |
|---|---|---|
| 1623-1627 17th St NW | True Value Hardware, since 1983 | Open through Dec. 31, 2026, then closing |
| 1633 17th St NW | New space | Morena by Kayu, a daytime counterpart to Kayu, opened April 25 |
| 1537 17th St NW | Trio's and Fox & Hounds | Gutted for renovation; tenants unconfirmed |
| 1515 17th St NW | New space | Julia's Empanadas, reported open in April |
| 1509-1511 17th St NW | Includes the former Little Serow space | Astro Zombie tavern, "coming soon" |
The table shows a pattern. Both new businesses that have opened on this stretch in 2026 are counter-scale and daytime-friendly. The large evening rooms are the ones still under construction.
The long wait at 1537 and 1509
PoPville's July report showed the combined Trio's and Fox & Hounds space stripped down to the studs. The report passed along what it called scuttlebutt from a very good source: the Causa team would take the Trio's side, and the Fox & Hounds side would reopen as a classic pub. As of early October, no confirmed tenant, license placard or opening date for either space has appeared in the public record.
Astro Zombie's project at 1509 has made more progress on paper. ABCA approved a settlement agreement for the tavern application in an October 29, 2025 order. PoPville's May check-in described a posted application for 75 seats and 99 occupancy, with carryout and delivery. The same report said the build-out had a "LONG ways to go." The business's own site still reads "COMING SOON… 1509B 17th ST NW."
Put the two together and roughly a year after its settlement agreement, the most advanced replacement project on the block is still not open. That timeline is useful when reading the hopes for True Value's space.
What happens to the hardware counter
Slatt's preferred outcome is specific. He told WTOP he hopes the neighborhood or the store's employees might buy the business and run it as a collective. "I'd like to make sure the two things happen: we keep our hardware store, and that our owner has a wonderful retirement," he said. As of October 4, no organized buyer, cooperative or replacement tenant has been reported. PoPville's original post ended with "Stay tuned for more when we learn what becomes of the space."
Until there is news, the nearest full hardware option is a 14th Street walk away:
- Logan Hardware, 1734 14th Street NW, open daily. Its operator says its Ace-affiliated stores run independently and are employee-owned. That is the kind of ownership Slatt described for True Value.
- Salt & Sundry, 1625 14th Street NW, for tabletop and home goods, with posted daily hours.
True Value's own description lists major appliances, paint and patio furniture among its stock, so anyone who relied on it for those should check what the 14th Street stores carry before the end of the year.
The same pattern one avenue over
The turnover around 17th Street follows the same sequence, and in a few places the replacement has already arrived.
"The first round starts here."
That line opened the invitation for First Round Bar & Social, billed as "Dupont's newest neighborhood bar." It went up at 1610 20th Street NW after the Step Childe Harold sign was covered. It promised live music, a DJ and food from the "upstairs kitchen partners," with an opening-night event on Saturday, September 12. Eater's September roundup confirmed that First Round opened in mid-September. The basement bar went from old sign to new sign within a single month.
The former Pupatella space at 18th and S Streets is closer to the 17th Street timeline. Little Engine, a chicken concept, has signed the lease. Its owner told PoPville, "There is no official timeline yet for opening, but we are planning (on opening) for before the end of the year."
Dupont Market at 1807 18th Street NW is changing in place. The owner plans to add lattes and coffee in about three weeks from an October 2 report. The store will also stop selling alcohol for roughly six months, so its wine is on sale now. The coffee should arrive in late October, around race week.
Race night, block by block
The event details differ slightly by source. HSEMA lists 5 to 10 p.m. The Mayor's Office Eventbrite page lists 6 to 10 p.m., and neither listing gives the race's start time. DC.gov says Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Mayor's Office of LGBTQ Affairs present the event, and it describes the spectator route as 17th Street from R Street to Church Street. The most recent MPD street-closure advisory for the race that we found dates from 2022, so its closure list should not be used to plan parking this year.
For a resident walking the route from north to south, the evening goes like this:
- Near R Street, True Value is still open. Because of the December 31 closing, this is the store's last High Heel Race at 1623-1627.
- Morena by Kayu at 1633 sits just north of it, a newer daytime café in a block that is losing its oldest retailer.
- Below Q Street, the gutted rooms at 1537 sit inside the spectator stretch, with no reported tenant.
- Julia's Empanadas at 1515 and the Astro Zombie build-out next door at 1509-1511 sit near Church Street, at the south end of the spectator route.
- Back Door Tacos at 1624 Q Street NW is reached through the 17th Street alley behind Hank's Oyster Bar. It is just off the main route.
Over on Connecticut Avenue, the deckover is still under construction. DDOT's September 26 update reported a successful first concrete pour, with the final span planned for later in the week of September 28. DDOT's current completion target is early summer 2027, subject to weather. That gives the Trio's space, Astro Zombie and True Value's storefront roughly the same window to show what comes next.
Storefronts like 1537 and 1623 shape how a block feels well before a sale or lease is ever discussed. If you own near 17th Street and want an informed read on how these changes could affect your plans, Mike Aubrey and the team follow these corridors address by address. Get in Touch.
