At about 7:08 p.m. this evening, a collision on M street seriously injured a woman eating outside. Paramedics and fire fighters are on the scene now. The black sedan was reportedly speeding and hit the blue truck as it was turning onto the side street.

Photos and reporting by Lucia He

Nike officially opened its first store in the DC area today, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and celebration of the Nike Georgetown store at 3040 M Street. The store has been in the works for some time now, and replaces the Barnes and Noble which was a mainstay in the area until last year. The superstore is one of nine in the country for Nike, and covers 31,000 square feet.

The morning included remarks from legendary Hoyas basketball coach John Thompson Jr. and his son, current Georgetown coach John Thompson III. Former Hoya and NBA Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing and US Olympic soccer player Brandi Chastain were also present for some of the day’s festivities.

“We are proud to partner with the Georgetown community,” said Nike’s North America Vice President and General Manager Elliott Hill in a statement. “Washington D.C. has a rich sports culture and we look forward to inspiring and serving athletes of all levels.”

More on the unique Georgetown elements of the store and a slideshow with pictures from the day after the jump.

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The next time you’re on M Street, wading through the swarm of sightseers clutching huge ice cream cones and even bigger Dean and DeLuca doggy bags, and sighing with frustration at slow walkers, you should pause for a second, and take some time to try and notice the hidden fashion gems on M Street.

One such secret treasure, Annie Creamcheese, was a haven for the Cindy Lauper meets Rihanna meets frilly desperate housewife. With hot pink walls, “Who runs the world???” blasting through the speakers, and salespersons who looked like they stepped straight off Betsey Johnson’s runway, it was just the right atmosphere to make you feel like you were edgy enough to pull anything off.

Alas, Annie Creamcheese is no more, at least not in Georgetown, as the store recently closed down with a notice that they would be relocating to Los Angeles. Unless you’re planning on transferring to UCLA or trekking to their other location in Vegas, your occasional fix of  “Wear a 50s sundress and get half-off at Annie Creamcheese!” promos is no longer available on M.

This closure led us to wonder if there was something to be said for the competition posed by larger mainstream brands such as H&M and Urban Outfitter’s, as well as the numerous high end ready-to-wear boutiques scattered around Georgetown. For answers, we turned to another M Street fashion haven, Second Time Around. Now, for all the Georgetown self-proclaimed fashion gurus who know they are worthy of collegefashionista fame; if you haven’t heard about STA, you need to pull your Sperrys on, grab your Longchamp bag and book it to M Street!

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It’s official. The frozen yogurt craze is in full swing in Georgetown now that Pinkberry has arrived. Perhaps the trendiest and most popular frozen yogurt shop of the moment, Pinkberry has captured the hearts of many across the world with over 170 locations in 16 countries. As a loyal fan of the yogurt chain ourselves, Vox couldn’t wait to get our hands on one of those icy, fresh desserts now that they are in walking distance of campus.

The interior of the shop is similar to its other locations: tastefully decorated (pun intended) with contemporary and naturalistic elements such as sleek, modern shapes, a pebble floor, and a sky-blue and grassy-green color palette.

And the yogurt is almost better than Vox remembered it. The sweet yet slightly tangy Original flavor accompanied with ripe, juicy strawberries is perfectly refreshing, even on a frigid winter day. Pinkberry also offers a few other seasonal flavors, including a mouth-watering Mango, Blood Red Orange, Pomegranate, and even Peanut Butter. And with a variety of toppings ranging from fresh fruit to shaved chocolate to crunchy cereal to cheesecake bites, Pinkberry’s got it all. It’s no wonder that this place was bustling with customers when Vox got there.

But is this all too good to be true? Indeed it is. As much as the chilly treats are enjoyable, there is a major setback to this dessert: the steep price. A medium yogurt with toppings, which costs $4.95 at our hometown Pinkberry in California, is a whopping $6.95 here in Georgetown. We’re sorry, but the fact that a frozen yogurt could cost more than a lunch at Chipotle to be taken lightly.

Due to its high prices, Pinkberry may find it difficult to become a favorite hangout spot for college students. However, with the help of wealthy local residents and tourists desperate for a break from the sweltering DC summer climate, Pinkberry should have no trouble finding success here in Georgetown. With that said, who knows how Monday’s arrest of Pinkberry’s co-founder, Young Lee, will affect the thriving yogurt chain. Allegedly beating up a homeless man is not the greatest PR, but that’s a whole other story.

Photo: Alex Rice

Ichthyophiles, rejoice! Exactly five months after a fire destroyed much of the restaurant, Tackle Box’s Georgetown location reopens for dinner tonight. After several weeks of uncertainty, Tackle Box DC tweeted this morning, “The Georgetown and Cleveland Park Locations will Be OPEN for dinner tonight. We are so glad to be back up and running in Georgetown!”

The seafood restaurant at 3245 M Street was originally supposed to reopen earlier this month, but the date was pushed back twice.

Tackle Box’s sister restaurant Hook, where the fire started in June, will not be reopening. Instead, a modern Mexican restaurant called Bandolero will open in the space that once hosted Hook. Jonathan Humbel, the owner of both properties, did not think an upscale seafood restaurant would be successful in a slumping economy, and so turned to Mexican cuisine. He plans to open Bandolero by March of next year.

Humbel hired rising DC restauranteur Mike Isabella, a former contestant on Top Chef and the chef behind the popular Chinatown restaurant Graffiato, to oversee the new establishment. “It will be my vision, my food, my way or the highway,” the New Jersey native told the Washington Post. Isabeplans to emphasize cocktails and “lots of tacos.” Encouragingly, Bandolero will cater to the late-night desires of hungry Hoyas. “My vision for Bandolero is a high-energy, high-volume restaurant to match the bustling vibe of the Georgetown neighborhood and feed the late-night appetite of its college students,” Isabella said in a press release earlier this month.

“After the kitchen closes, tacos and guacamole will be available through last call,” the press release said.

Photo: Tim Markatos

Lovers of athletic sneakers and swoosh-stamped T-shirts, rejoice! a Nike retail store may be coming to a shopping district near you!

In August, Georgetown Metropolitan reported that Barnes & Noble’s lease on its three-story M Street book store would not be renewed after this year. At the time, there was no information about the identity of the new tenant. On October 7 however, Washington Post business reporter Jonathan O’Connell tweeted, “Two folks in the know tell me a new Nike store will replace Barnes & Noble in Georgetown.”

On Friday, GM reported “on good authority” that Nike will indeed be the new tenant at 3040 M Street. With the M Street Athleta store that opened earlier this month and the relatively new City Sports at the west end of the street, Georgetown is quickly become a paradise for the treadmill diehards and sweatpants-wearers among us. If a Niketown does in fact come to Georgetown next year, Vox is excited to see whether it will look anything like the Manhattan Niketown (pictured above). Even though their kicks may be overpriced, at least the new store could encourage other M Street shops to take their ceiling ornamentation in a more creative direction (We’re looking at you, H&M).

Nike did not respond to a request for comment on the Post and GM reports.

Photo: HighSnobiety

The 17-year-old who was shot in Georgetown last Monday night has been pronounced dead after being on life support all weekend, ABC7 news reports this morning.

The shooting occurred on Halloween night during the traditional M Street celebration, when two groups of teenagers got into a fight on the street’s 2800 block around 11:00 p.m., and three shots were reportedly fired.

The boy’s death is the first among the at least six victims shot in the District on Halloween night. So far, Metro Police have made one arrest, that of a 24-year-old being charged with carrying a pistol without a license, in connection with the Georgetown crime.

AllSaints Spitalfields, a British clothing retailer, is opening at 3235 M St. this summer. The company has signed a 10 year lease on the space, owned by EastBanc.

The store currently occupying the property, Club Monaco, has a lease that ends on March 31st.

AllSaints sells expensive casual clothing for men, women, and children. The company currently has ten U.S. locations, in addition to 70 in the UK. Their online store carries $110 jorts and pre-dusted boat shoes for $210. All their models look at their feet unhappily.

So much for sensibility.

h/t: GeorgetownPatch

photo: Angela Fazio

As many students begin leaving the Hilltop for the winter break, a new neighbor moved in on M Street.

City Sports, an East Coast-based sporting goods store, officially opened its 18^th store yesterday.

Customers waited outside of the store for hours Tuesday morning, hoping to be one of the first 50 customers who received a gift bag containing $250 of merchandise. The long wait in the frigid temperatures was worth it though, as those in line got the first glimpse into the impressive 2 level, 8,500 square foot store.

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Good news for all you athletes: City Sports will open a 10,000 square foot, flagship D.C. store at 3338 M Street this December.

City Sports, which sells outdoor sports apparel and some equipment, markets itself as a store for athletically inclined urbanites. The store will also house an energy drink bar and listening stations. In an interview with the Washington Post, the property’s owner, Anthony Lanier, hoped that it would attract an “urban, style-oriented crowd.”

“We’re surrounded by other great stores, the university and residences,” Michael Mosca, executive vice president of City Sports merchandising, told the Post. “Those things combined makes [Georgetown] a sweet spot for us in terms of our demographics,”

Georgetown’s ideal combination of residents and college students—not to mention its proximity to running and biking trails—has already attracted other sport-related stores, such as North Face, the Running Store, and lululemon athletica.

Call it a hunch, but we figure a few students at Georgetown, which was once ranked one of the fittest schools in the country, will be excited to check out City Sports this winter.