Below, we take a brief look at development stories along the Red Line, but first, a brief Ask DCist:

Any idea what this 10th Street project is?

The question, posed by blogger dl004d, refers to the structure visible in the image at right. The metal work is going up along what would be 10th Street between New York Avenue and H Street, through the old Convention Center property. Actual plans for that site have been slow to come together (the D.C. Council voted earlier this week to preliminarily approve funds for a hotel near there), and at present, the huge open space serves primarily as a parking lot. However, we reported in December on the opening of a Holiday Market at that location, and the graphic we used seems to indicate a pedestrian walkway lying along the line of the curious formation currently taking shape. That’s our best answer: a pedestrian walkway. Please let us know if you’ve heard otherwise.

Orange you glad he’s not designing your neighborhood? Around the New York Avenue Metro station, the skeletons of tall, new office buildings testify to that area’s future as an extension of the dense development stretching eastward from downtown. One stop north, at the Rhode Island Avenue station, a massive Home Depot stares across an expansive parking lot at a Giant grocery store, looking highly out of place in the heart of the urban environment. The shopping area, a pet project of Ward 5 Councilman Vincent Orange that opened three years ago, is about to get a little larger, according to today’s Examiner. Ground has been broken on an extension to the center which will include a Foot Locker and a Radio Shack, along with other retail outlets. The Examiner quotes Ward 5 ANC commissioner William Shelton as saying, “It really signals an opportunity for all of us to shop in our own neighborhood.” True, but only if you have a car; it’s difficult to find a less pedestrian-friendly outlet anywhere in the District.