Friendship Heights Alliance Partners with Grosvenor to Support Bookstore Pop-up with Carpe Librum

WASHINGTON, DC, MAY 3, 2023 — Friendship Heights Alliance is supporting a new Carpe Librum pop-up used bookstore at 5221 Wisconsin Avenue NW opening this Friday, May 5 by education nonprofit Turning the Page. The space will be filled with thousands of high-quality used books of all genres, for all ages. Turning the Page is a nonprofit that engages public school families for student success; collecting and selling donated used books is one way they raise capital for their programs.

“We heard from the community in our surveys and outreach efforts that they want “third places” — to meet a friend, mingle, support local businesses, and just hang out,” said Rachel L. Davis, Marketing & Placemaking Director for the Friendship Heights Alliance. “This bookstore will meet many of those needs, particularly through partnerships with local businesses, schools, and community groups to support a great cause and bring people together.”

The pop-up space is being donated by Grosvenor, a privately held property owner and developer with a 70-year track record in North America. As part of its placemaking initiatives, the Alliance partnered with Grosvenor earlier this year to install a colorful seating arrangement of Adirondack chairs, bistro tables, and flower pots outside the firm’s 5225 Wisconsin Avenue NW property. The Alliance is planning similar activations to highlight the pop-up bookstore.

“We are grateful to both the Friendship Heights Alliance and Grosvenor for their generosity and investment of time and energy in making this Carpe Librum pop-up a reality. We are very excited to be returning to the Friendship Heights community. The proceeds from the store will make a meaningful difference for our programs engaging families for student success”, said Jason King, president and CEO of Turning the Page.

“Grosvenor is committed to supporting education and we’re excited to promote such an incredible organization while also bringing the local community together around books,” said Khash Bayani, Senior Investment Manager of Grosvenor’s D.C. office.

Purchase a book, donate a book, support a great cause, and come meet your neighbors!

The bookstore will be open during the following hours:

Wednesday — Friday, 11:30 am to 6:30 pm
Saturday — Sunday, 12 pm to 5 pm

Turning the Page and the Friendship Heights Alliance are partnering on many separate events to bring neighbors and friends together. Please see below for details and opportunities to partner!

Events:

Guest Shopkeeper Nights

May 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25, 31, June 1

4-6:30 pm

Guest Shopkeeper Night is a fun chance for you to invite your friends and colleagues to browse for books, network, mingle, and support a good cause. The Friendship Heights Alliance and Turning the Page will provide music, a wine bar, and light nibbles. Interested? Contact jking@turningthepage.org to sign up to “host” a shopkeeper night. No experience in selling books is required: just the ability to spread the word and bring a group of people.

Friday Afternoon Ice Cream

Stop by the shop on select Friday afternoons for ice cream and to purchase a children’s book (or any book). Bring your children, tell the nanny, spread the word! Ice cream for purchase. On May 12 and June 2, the students at Jackson-Reed HS will be “taking over” the store and would love for you to join and learn more about what student leaders are working on in our community. Check the website for additional details.

Dates: May 12, 19, 26, and June 2 3:30-6:30 pm

Makers Market

Date: May 20, 3 pm to 7 pm

Stop by the Maker’s Market on the west side of Wisconsin Avenue, then pop over to Turning the Page to browse for books on the east side of Wisconsin.

Children’s Book Party

Date: May 27, 11 am to 1 pm

Join children’s book authors for a special reading, fun activities, games, snacks, music, and more. This festival will be geared for elementary school-age children, but anyone can buy any book, so bring the whole family.

About Turning the Page

Turning the Page engages parents to become empowered participants in their children’s education and helps ensure families of partner schools can access educational resources, such as books and community learning opportunities. Since 1998, Turning the Page has engaged and supported more than 7,000 D.C. public school families and has distributed more than 125,000 new children’s books to these families’ homes. To raise critical funds for their programs, they collect donated used books, CDs, DVDs and vinyl – of all genres and for all ages – and sell the donated items through pop-up bookstores and markets such as this latest one at 5221 Wisconsin Avenue NW.

About the Friendship Heights Alliance

The Friendship Heights Alliance is a 501(c)6 place management organization created to increase collaboration amongst property owners as development continues throughout the Friendship Heights corridor in both Washington, D.C., and Montgomery County, Maryland. The organization is dedicated to cultivating a dynamic and vibrant neighborhood through placemaking, community building, and creating venues for arts and community gatherings. Additional public space initiatives, arts, and cultural offerings are announced on the website regularly, and the organization is involved in continuous community engagement, a robust placemaking program, and economic development initiatives. For more information or to get involved, visit www.friendshipheights.com and follow us on Instagram @friendshipheightsalliance.

About Grosvenor
Grosvenor has operated a diversified real estate business in North America since 1952. As of December 31, 2022, the Company had assets under management of USD$4.1bn, including 74 high-quality properties, and is executing on a USD$4.7bn development pipeline across its active markets. Consistent with the firm’s farsighted approach to ownership and development, Grosvenor values long-term partnerships; across their nine active capital partners, the average relationship is 20 years. Grosvenor signed the World Green Building Council’s Net Zero Carbon Buildings Commitment in 2019 and has publicly reported its annual consumption and reduction values for 15 years. Follow Grosvenor on Twitter at @GrosvenorGRP; LinkedIn at Grosvenor; or Instagram @ThisisGrosvenor.

LISTSERV CONTENT

Subject line: New Pop-Up Bookstore Opens Friday in Friendship Heights

Headline: Friendship Heights Alliance Supports Bookstore Pop-up with Carpe Librum, Grosvenor

A new bookstore is opening in the neighborhood, starting this Friday! Friendship Heights Alliance is supporting a new Carpe Librum pop-up used bookstore at 5221 Wisconsin Avenue NW organized by education nonprofit Turning the Page. The space, which is donated by Grosvenor, will be filled with thousands of high-quality used books of all genres, for all ages. Turning the Page is a nonprofit that engages public school families for student success; collecting and selling donated used books is one way they raise capital for their programs.