Photo used under a Creative Commons license with ceejayoz.

This week, some of the world’s biggest retailers are meeting in Las Vegas for the International Council of Shopping Centers’ annual meeting. Mayor Vince Gray and Councilmembers Harry Thomas Jr., Vincent Orange and Michael Brown, though, are putting several chips on one specific dot: Wegmans. That’s right: the Examiner reported over the weekend that Gray, Thomas, Orange and Brown will meet with representatives from the grocer regarding making a Wegmans the anchor at the redeveloped Walter Reed site.

The city will take control of the huge parcel of land — 61 acres in all — next year, and announced in March that they’d control double the amount of retail space than previously thought. This opened the door for the wooing of Wegmans, which is immensely popular, but requires a lot of square footage. The chain has been expanding in the region of late, opening a store in Lanham, Md. last fall; another Wegmans is scheduled to open in Frederick, Md. on June 5 and there are several Wegmans in Maryland and Northern Virginia. (Obviously, the store’s rep as a hyper-Whole Foods would be a big draw for many people in the District.)

Economic leaders from the District believe that the grocer’s willingness to hold so many meetings with D.C. pols this week is a promising sign:

Keith Sellars, senior vice president of development and retail for the Washington DC Economic Partnership, said city officials have been courting Wegmans “for years” but never had a site large enough.

“Now we have a site we believe will accommodate them at Walter Reed,” he said. “This is the most real opportunity for them to enter the market.” […] Thomas, chairman of the council’s Economic Development Committee, said, “Wegmans is absolutely a real prospect.”

Now before you get too excited, the redevelopment of Walter Reed won’t begin until the Army leaves next year; and even then, the immense scope of the project being proposed might mean it could be several years before any kind of development is ready for resident use.

Of course, Wegmans isn’t the only chain the city will be chatting with this week — the Examiner also notes that the city will be meeting with reps from AMC Theatres, Under Armour, Target, Home Depot, Bloomingdales, Walmart, Lowe’s and Michaels. The Post’s Jonathan O’Connell is in Vegas live-tweeting from the conference, for those of you would like to keep a eye on proceedings.