The DC Office of Motion Picture and Television Development is pleased to recognize Gateway DC in Southeast Washington as the July 2014 One City Location of the Month. Gateway DC is a 42,000 square foot open-air market and multi-use facility located in the heart of St. Elizabeths East Campus in Ward 8. The space offers opportunities for casual dining, a farmers market, and enclosed flex conference and café area for year round use that make this location an ideal filming location with diverse capabilities.
Gateway DC’s pavilion area provides a 16,300 square foot open air market area for more than 40 vendors and as many as 10 food trucks at curbside. Additionally, Gateway DC has 3,100 square feet for flex space to accommodate specialty events, pop-up retail and café areas, and a 21,000 square foot vegetated green rooftop amphitheater and raised park that holds more than 1,000 people. Much of the exterior of the enclosed portion was fashioned from glass, steel and concrete, while the interior — from the handrails to the vendor spaces — is mostly wood.
Other distinctive features of Gateway DC include a preserved “Reading Tree” at south end of site, Educational Ecosystem/Bioretention Terraces at north end of site, and the walls in the conference room utilize reclaimed wood from adjacent historic buildings. In addition to the aesthetic design elements, the space boasts leading-edge sustainability features that include rainwater harvesting with an underground cistern that supplies irrigation needs for the site and drought resistant plantings.
Gateway DC opened in October 2013 and has welcomed more than 20,000 visitors thus far for events such as its Fall Festival, Broccoli City Festival, a Fireside Chat with Daymond John of Shark Tank, and the Whole Foods monthly market. On July 2, Gateway DC will be hosting the launch of the GatewayDC Summer Film Series, the first ever summer outdoor film series east of the Anacostia River. The eight week film series, sponsored by MPTD and community partners The Ward 8 Arts & Culture Council and The Analog Underground, will feature commercial and independent films across a variety of genres paired with special programming and community events that support each week’s theme.
In 2011, the DC Film Office launched One City Location of the Month to bring attention to the wide range of varied, cinematically compelling locations that are available to film and television productions. Former One City Location of the Month recipients include the U.S. Institute for Peace in Northwest, Hillcrest neighborhood in Southeast, Top of the Hill in Northeast, and the Hirshhorn Museum in Southwest.
To learn more about Gateway DC and to view photos, please visit the One City Location of the Month feature on our web site. If you are interested in using Gateway DC for a future filming location, please contact us at [email protected].