Playseum on Capitol Hill to Close Indefinitely This Weekend

The Be With Me Playseum on Barracks Row will shut down this weekend as its owner continues to search for a new building to house the children’s used bookstore and play space.

Gina Seebachan, who owns the Playseum at 545 8th St. SE, said yesterday she no longer has plans to lease a space on Pennsylvania Avenue SE, as she told Hill Now last week. Seebachan said in an email that she has yet to find a building that is “conducive to the Playseum or our budget.”

The Barracks Row shop, which opened in 2011, is scheduled to close Saturday, after Seebachan had trouble making her rent payments on time.

“We need to find ourselves a bit smaller place especially when Barracks Row is prime real estate,” she said.

The Playseum may reopen in the District outside of Capitol Hill, Seebachan said. But the owner said she would try to ensure the shop is near a Metro station, if it permanently leaves the neighborhood.

For now, Seebachan is putting the play art shop, grocery store and the other fixtures of the Playseum in storage. She also is offering one free visit to her other Playseum location in Bethesda for any families that visit the Barracks Row shop before it closes.

“We are ever so grateful that the landlord in Bethesda continues to support and stand by us even in times of difficulty,” Seebachan said. “I would love to thank the community for allowing the Playseum to be here for the almost five years we were here.”

Photo via Playseum