Apple's first D.C. store: Design by committee

It took five tries — and four redesigns –  but Apple (AAPL) last week finally won approval to build a retail outlet in Washington D.C., its first in the nation's capital.

The final rendering, shown at right, was designed to echo the architectural features of the city's historic Georgetown neighborhood. It was enthusiastically embraced by the same architectural preservation board that had soundly rejected Apple's previous designs.

"This is beautifully executed," Stephen J. Vanze, chairman of the Old Georgetown Board, told Karl Backus, Apple's architect, according to the Washington Post. "We're very pleased."

The Post did not say if Steve Jobs is equally pleased. Apple purchased the building that now stands on the site, 1229 Wisconsin Ave. NW, in 2007 for $13.3 million, according to IFOAppleStore. It has been navigating the maze of D.C.'s multi-layered approval process ever since.

For a company that puts so much stock in cutting-edge design, it must have been painful to be second-guessed at every turn by a couple of neighborhood boards.

How far is the final version from Apple's original conception? We tell the story through pictures below the fold. More