Photo by Kevin H.

It appears as if we were not the only ones who were intrigued by the little piece of retail rumor mongering in Steven Pearlstein’s weekend column about the currently-under-construction CityCenterDC, in which “Apple, reportedly, is considering a flagship store for the project.”

Pearlstein’s colleague, Mike DeBonis, adds fuel to the fire this afternoon, contending that the move would make a whole lot of sense:

You might not be able to take that tidbit to the bank just yet, but CityCenter would be a logical place for Apple to place its second D.C. store. As Steve lays out, developers Hines Interests and Archstone are looking to “get beyond the all-too-familiar national chains that can afford high rents, but bring little pizzaz or personality” and sign “upper-end clothing, home furnishing and other retailers that would not only serve downtown residents but would have offerings unique enough to lure older and richer shoppers from suburban enclaves.”

Of course, Apple is probably among the few possible tenants which meets all of those criteria — not to mention that the company would probably be interested in opening another store inside the District that’s a bit more Fifth Avenue than Georgetown. (And hey, it even fits the whole idea that, due to Qatari investment, all tenants would need to be Shariah-compliant, even though that rumor’s been thoroughly debunked.)

Of course, any such retail speculation demands skepticism. The project won’t be completed until late 2013. And, after all, we’re still waiting on that Wagamama.