Washington, D.C. now has 51 full-service grocery stores.

The nation’s capital now has 51 full-service grocery stores, compared to 34 in 2000, according to a May 10 report in The Washington Post. Grocery stores are growing faster than the city’s population, which rose by 3.5 percent, from 572,057 to 591,833, between 2000 and 2008.

And more food stores are on the way. Gary Cha, owner of several Yes Organic Market stores, has formed a partnership with developer Tim Chapman to buy property in DC neighborhoods that lack full-service grocery stores and build mixed-use developments featuring Yes markets. “They plan to open five stores in coming years, with an eye on neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River,” a lower-income part of the city, the Post said.

The city provided a $900,000 grant to get a Yes store rather than a chain convenience store in the Grays, a 118-unit apartment building with commercial space that Chapman developed in the Fairlawn neighborhood in Southeast Washington. Valerie Santos, deputy mayor for planning and economic development, said the city is willing to plug financing gaps for projects that have a chance of attracting quality retailers.