'Save IOTA': Popular Clarendon Cafe Faces Big Meeting on Wednesday

ARLINGTON, VA — The campaign to save IOTA, a Clarendon cafe that has hosted the likes of John Mayer and Norah Jones, will face a big test at an community meeting on Wednesday.

The public meeting will be with Regency Centers on March 29 at 2801 Clarendon Boulevard in the Clarendon Education Center from 6 p.m. until 9 p.m. Regency Centers is seeking to rezone and redevelop the property, but a growing group of locals have organized a campaign to stop this from happening, and 75 people attended the Feb. 22 meeting to oppose Regency Centers' plans for the area.

"We, the undersigned, oppose the plan to rezone and redevelop the buildings that contain 2832 Wilson Blvd (IOTA Club & Cafe)," organizers of the resistance to redevelopment say in their Change.org petition. "IOTA has been a landmark business in Clarendon for more than 20 years and has hosted performers such as John Mayer, Jason Mraz, Jack Johnson, Great Big Sea and Norah Jones. IOTA is a beloved neighborhood institution that brings immense cultural value to our community and it is one of the only venues for local musicians, poets, and other artists to collaborate and perform. The proposal to rezone and redevlop 2832 Wilson Blvd will forever change the cultural landscape of Arlington for the worse."

The petition has swelled from 129 supporters in late February to 430 as of Monday morning.

“When we started this campaign, we didn’t know whether anyone else would join us. We love IOTA and wanted to do whatever we could to help save it.” said Save IOTA co-founder Melissa Mannon in a statement. “The response has been amazing and we are inspired by the outpouring of community support we have seen in just one week.”

Image via Save IOTA