WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- More than a year after it was destroyed by a fire, Frager's hardware store will reopen in its original location in Capitol Hill.
The announcement was made Friday afternoon. The popular hardware store opened in the 1100 block of Pennsylvania Avenue SE in 1920 but was gutted by fire in June 2013. Since then the store has had to operate out of three temporary locations in the area.
READ THE JUNE 2013 STORY: Frager's Hardware store burns down (http://on.wusa9.com/1wNygO9)
PHOTOS FROM FRAGER'S HARDWARE FIRE: http://archive.wusa9.com/news/photo-gallery.aspx?storyid=262235
Real estate firm Roadside Development, LLC will purchase the site and Frager's will return under a long-term lease, according to representatives. The lease "will enable Frager's to bring back the store's hardware, paint, garden center, and equipment rental operations to its original location as part of a sensitive neighborhood retail and residential development in the Capitol Hill Historic District," according to a press release on Friday.
Frager's owner John Weintraub was quoted in the press release as saying, "We are grateful for the overwhelming support and patience from our loyal customers and the Capitol Hill community as we evaluated our options to restore the original site. Over the past year, we studied the site extensively, removed environmentally sensitive materials, conducted several structural analyses, and evaluated the costs to rebuild the site. We learned that the fire damaged the site so severely that, even with insurance proceeds, we could not afford to rebuild the site alone."
Frager's will continue to operate at its temporary locations until repairs are completed at the original site. Frager's and Roadside will attend or host meetings and conversations throughout the community in the next few weeks about the design process. They are encouraging feedback via email at fragers@roadsidellc.com or by phone at 202-375-7942.
