If I recall correctly, most of the townhomes facing the street are designated live/work. It's a great designation since the direction is open to market demands. Retail investment group that buy block after block only to fill them with the same chain stores are turned off by them as well. You can build all the retail you want however, leasing it is a totally other issue.
The Metro may move across the street into the Kings development as I've seen it on some of First Capital's material. If true, I see the store being replaced by something a lot denser and urban.
Not sure how you would have created a Distillery out of the buildings on site. They were typical mid-century modern warehouses with brick as the base becoming glass halfway up however, single storey, single use with an abundance of surface parking is not fitting for this westend of downtown location.
