Like ravenous dogs preying on fresh meat, local bloggers have pounced on the news that local organic grocer Yes! Organic Market will be coming to the Union Row building project, located at 14th and V streets NW. In a press release from Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham, the 5,000 square foot market is scheduled to open in Spring of 2008, offering residents, “natural foods as part of a unique shopping experience.” Despite the ominous approach of another “large national chain store,” local residents seem pleased that at least one of several retail spots will be going to someone local — not to mention to a grocer, something the U Street Corridor has been begging for for years.

News of the store’s arrival has made its way to surrounding neighborhoods, including Columbia Heights, where residents have been patiently waiting for their fix of organic squash since the loss of Whole Foods from the DCUSA project. Meanwhile, the Prince of Petworth adds that another Yes! Organic market is coming to 4100 Georgia Ave., just north of the Petworth metro. With three Yes! Markets surrounding Columbia Heights – the other is in Adams Morgan – what will happen to Ellwood Thompson’s interest in opening a store near 14th street and Columbia road? How many organic grocers might it take to saturate an area?