In a rare bright spot of 2020, the highly-anticipated Mount Purrnon Cat Cafe and Wine Bar (109 S. Alfred Street) announced on social media that progress is continuing slowly but surely.
“Construction at Mount Purrnon is currently ongoing and it’s starting to look great,” owners Kristin and Adam said in a Facebook post. “The work crew is small (but very talented) and all available health precautions are being taken.”
The business received approval of a special use permit from the City Council in February, almost immediately before the pandemic hit. The pair said the business is still looking to open sometime mid-summer.
“We still don’t have a firm opening date yet…that will depend on when construction ends, when all the final inspections can be done, as well as what phase of re-opening Northern Virginia is in at that point,” the Cat Cafe said. “We are also working with our vendors and our partner shelter on the best way to move forward, as they were affected as well. We are still aiming for mid-summer.”
The pair also opened up about some of the challenges of trying to open a business in the middle of a pandemic.
“Opening a business usually takes longer than one expects and then some,” Kristin and Adam said. “Then 2020 dropped and really turned the dial up to 11. There are bound to be a few more hurdles along the way both for us and the world, (we haven’t even hit the locust phase yet), but we’re actually, finally approaching the finish line. We greatly thank you for your ongoing patience and support as well.”
They said that the business is still paying rent on the building even though they haven’t been able to open and therefore don’t qualify for any disaster relief programs. Even local programs, like the Alexandria Economic Development Partnership’s grant program, requires businesses to have been open for at least a year to qualify. Mount Purrnon is accepting donations to help cover those costs on the company website.
“As terrible and bizarre as this year has been so far, we hope Mount Purrnon will bring some joy to Alexandria and the greater DMV for the second half of the year and beyond,” Kristin and Adam said. “Stay safe, stay healthy, and we look forward to seeing you soon over a few meow-mosas.”
Photo via Mount Purrnon/Facebook
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If you had a chance to enhance a child’s future with a time commitment of less than 2 hours a week, how would you respond? You have that opportunity right now to join over 200 Alexandrians as a reading tutor volunteer with the Alexandria Tutoring Consortium (ATC).
ATC tutors work with one child in kindergarten, first, or second grade in Alexandria public schools who need extra help with reading. Tutors meet with their Book Buddy 1-2 times each week for 30 minutes October-May at school, during school hours. Many struggling readers only receive one-on-one instruction through this program, and it makes all the difference. Last year, ATC served 195 children, of whom 82% ended the year reading on grade level and 96% made substantial reading gains. But the need is great, and we are still seeing learning lags from the pandemic.
This year, ATC plans to significantly increase the size of the program to reach over 250 students and to serve every elementary school in Alexandria. This is very exciting news, but we will only succeed if we can recruit more tutors. ATC trains you, matches you with a child, and provides ongoing lesson materials and support.
If you have been thinking about buying your first home or haven’t owned one in the last three years, THIS IS FOR YOU!
In the DMV area, it can be difficult to save the downpayment necessary for you to get into your own home. We have a solution. The Funder’s Summit!
We have assembled a summit with different municipalities to tell you how to access their funds for your home purchase.
2023 Alexandria Fall Festival
Food trucks, bounce houses, pony rides, magic shows and more at the 2023 Alexandria Fall Festival, an Alexandria Living event presented by The Patterson Group. Join us at River Farm on Sunday, Nov. 5 from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
