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Update, June 15: Leslie Korn, director of investment real estate, confirmed that Wasabi has signed the lease to the space formerly occupied by La Prima.

Original Post, June 12: Wasabi, a Japanese sushi shop, will soon start business in the 2000 Penn space, said a University official on Thursday.

The property, located next to Au Bon Pain, is owned by the University. Alicia O’Neil, managing director of GW’s office of real estate, said the University was still in lease negotiations with Wasabi, but expected the deal to be closed soon.

Hatchet File Photo of Wasabi’s Dupont restaurant

Students will likely be able to use their GWorld cards at the new Wasabi, she said.

“No business relationships are in place for this location,” O’Neil wrote in an e-mail. “However, Wasabi is currently a partner of the GWorld program at its Dupont location, so in my opinion it is likely they would participate if they were to be at this location as well.”

Anyone who has walked through 2000 Penn this week may have noticed that La Prima, the carryout and catering restaurant next to Au Bon Pain, is now closed. The desolate, former restuarant now has a sign up informing patrons of their closure and other locations in the D.C. area. GW’s Executive Vice President and Treasurer, Lou Katz, said he has known about the restaurant’s impending closure for some time and that the University- who owns the property- is working with prospective tenants to take over the location. “There are a number of food venues that are interested in the site,” Katz said.

-Kyle Cannon contributed to this report

We reported several months ago that CVS was one of several retailers looking to move into the former Tower Records space at 2000 Pennsylvania Avenue. No timeline was announced for the project because the University was still in negotiations.

Executive Vice President and Treasurer Lou Katz said in an interview yesterday that the negotiation process is moving erratically with two or three vendors. “Retail is slow as molasses,” he said. Katz added that they are talking to one retailer more actively than the rest.

“We are closer but closer doesn’t count,” he said. “Retailers do things at their own speed and when they want something they want it yesterday.”

CVS, which Katz said was looking at “multiple locations in this area,” may soon face competition from Walgreens, who just opened their first D.C. store at 22nd and M streets.

We reported this morning that the University is in talks with CVS pharmacy to possibly move into the space formerly occupied by Tower Records at 2000 Penn. It’s been several months since the record store moved out, and the two-floor venue remains empty. This is some of the most valuable real estate the University owns (The total value of the whole 2000 Penn is about $140 million according to city records.), and putting a new partner in there is certainly not a small decision.

The Student Association pushed for a Barnes and Noble, but the administration said the floor space available in 2000 Penn would not accommodate their needs.

Last night while we were working on the story, I generated this map of CVS locations near campus (courtesy of Google Maps). This map is not complete, but it nonetheless provides a good idea of the concentration of CVS near campus.

I want to pose this question to you, the readers: Are there too many, or would a new CVS in the heart of campus be convenient?