August 2006 - The InTowner
Transcription
August 2006 - The InTowner
Click the Link to “Visit Our Advertisers” at www.intowner.com E FRE TheInTowner Readership Now 100,000 Vol. 38, No. 2 AUGUST 2006 Next Issue September 8 ® Since 1968 • Serving Washington D.C.’s Intown Neighborhoods Adams Morgan Day Festival Set for Sunday, Sept. 10 Explosion of New Retail Set for 14th From Thomas Circle to Columbia Hghts. By Janet Lugo-Tafur* By Michael K. Wilkinson T he lazy hazy days of August hide the bustle of activity as residents and businesses prepare for the 28th annual Adams Morgan Day Festival, to be held on Sunday, September 10th, between 12 Noon and 7 p.m. Successfully reorganized by Adams Morgan Main Street in 2004, the popular cultural street festival now attracts both local residents and patrons from around the metro region. “One of our best accomplishments is the wonderful crowd flow around the single row of vendors, which safely accommodates throngs of thousands while retaining the neighborhood feel,” explained festival Co-Chair Maria Gomez of Mary’s Center for Maternal and Child Care. T he Mid-City Business Association hosted the 7th annual “Dog Days of Summer” event during the weekend of August 5-6, 2006, to promote the many businesses around the 14th and U Streets corridors. In conjunction with the “Dog Days” event, the Cardozo-Shaw Neighborhood Association (CSNA) held a “MidCity Development Showcase,” during which developers with current and future projects in the 14th Street corridor met with community residents to discuss their projects. Washington Heights Historic District Now Official in Adams Morgan Despite 82% of Business Owners in Opposition By Anthony L. Harvey A fter a brief presentation of a wealth of fascinating architectural and historical data regarding early to mid-20th century buildings located in the Adams Morgan area, and identified on an 1888 subdivision plat as Washington Heights, the city’s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) unanimously adopted a motion by Board Member James Kane to establish Washington Heights as the District’s newest, statutorily protected historic district. Within the boundaries of a roughly triangularly shaped section bordered by 18th Street on the east, Florida Avenue on the south, and 19th Street to Columbia Road on the west and north, the new district comprises 386 individual structures which were mostly built between the late 1890s and 1930s photo—Michael K. Wilkinson—The InTowner. Emblematic of the ongoing construction along the 14th Street corridor is this shadow image of a member of the crew building the Tivoli Square parking structure on Park Road. photo—courtesy, DCPages.com The behind-the-scenes diligent work by the Adams Morgan Main Street Group and its volunteers underpins a festival now profiled in national travel guides, and known for celebrating international cuisine, cultures, diversity, and music. Festival-goers will enjoy a variety of live music and dance acts across several stages, interesting and diverse vendors, and the unique Dance Plaza and Kids Fair on the Marie Reed School grounds. Adams Morgan Main Street is proud of the support shown by the local businesses and non-profit community organizations that are participating in various ways. “We Cont., ADAMS MORGAN, p. 7 ☛ WHAT’S INSIDE ☛ Letters Community Forum Community News Crimes Reported Neighborhood Theater Scenes from the Past Museums Food, Dining Classifieds Service Directory Real Estate ■ ■ ■ 3 3 4 8-9 11 12-13 14-15 16-17 18 19 20-24 Where to find the InTowner: See updated list at our website www.intowner.com While 14th Street is over a decade into a remarkable resurgence, there is still a steady stream of new residential and commercial developments, from Thomas Circle to upper Columbia Heights, to report on; hence this survey of the retail and other commercial spaces that are under construction or planned. They range from “signed and sealed” deals in which all parties are willing to be named, through the “letter of intent” stage where negotiations between specific parties are underway but the deals are not complete or public, to tentative discussions and parties openly marketing their spaces to general categories of retailers. Lower 14th Street Thomas Circle to Q St. • The Alta at Thomas Circle. The Alta is a 126-unit luxury condominium building on 14th Street just south of Thomas Circle, and with residents set to begin moving in around press time, the building is essentially complete. It features two retail spaces on the ground floor. The larger, at 4,000 square feet, has not been leased yet, but developer PN Hoffman is in discussions with a number of restaurant groups in the fine dining (non-chain) category. An agreement is expected in the fall. Generally, once a deal is inked, restaurants take about six months to build out, so it is likely that the space will be open some time during 2007. The other space, at 1,100 square feet, will be occupied by Daily 14, a locally owned coffee shop and newsstand which will be geared to residents in the building and the immediate vicinity. The business is re-opening (under a different name) after it was forced to close due to renovations at its previous location at 1101 Vermont Avenue. Build-out is expected to commence within Cont., RETAIL, p. 9 map—EHT Traceries, courtesy DC Historic Preservation Office. The overall final boundaries are denoted by the thick border line; specific properties highlighted in red are designated as “non-contributing” structures. Armed with a voluminous and professionally constructed formal application, and a crisply informative 20-minute Power Point presentation, both prepared by Laura Trieschmann of EHT Traceries — under a contract with the Office of Planning’s Historic Preservation Office (HPO) — and supported by the indefatigable efforts of Ann Hughes Hargrove and members of the Kalorama Citizens Association (KCA), HPRB Board members and a packed hearing room audience were visually and articulately informed of a stunningly intact section of handsome turn-of-the century and early 20th century houses and apartment buildings which, together with colorfully and eclectically altered commercial structures, are located in the heart of one of the city’s most vibrant mixed-use commercial and residential neighborhoods — Adams Morgan. The individual dwellings and row house structures, together with the small apartment buildings in the purely residential portion of this neighborhood range in style from Queen Anne to Romanesque and Classical Revival; this five-block wedge of residences from Vernon Street to Belmont Road presents an instructive sampler of a dozen distinguished architectural expressions, many with façades and fenestration of extraordinary beauty. Although tear-downs and defacements within this area have been few, such recent controversial out-of-scale additions to existing row houses on Belmont and Ontario Roads, popularly referred to by neighbors as “towers,” the first of which involved destruction as well, alarmed historic preservations throughout Adams Morgan. And, tall penthouse apartment structures constructed on top of the old Alwyn — now Kalorama — apartments on Columbia Road, and Cont., WASH. HEIGHTS, p. 20 Page 2 • The InTowner • August 2006 The Top Reasons This Card Improved My Life… From the Publisher’s Desk... By P.L. Wolff CITY COUNCIL PRIMARY RACES DESERVE ATTENTION A Life M ana g e me Phone E-mail Web nt Serv ices D E R BY SERVIC E SM for Busy P rofessio (202) 98 nals 6-6 info@de 530 rbyservic e www.d erbyserv .com ice.com Reason 1: My to-do list is done, without the road rage. How It Works: Derby Service offers you personal assistant services in a unique and innovative timeshare model. Our clients have access to their personal assistant for the desired amount of time per week, and only pay for the hours they need to support their lifestyle. What We Can Do For You: Let Derby Service take care of the things that need to be done, so you can do the things you want to do. See more of the reasons our card will change your life at www.DerbyService.com/reasons or call (202) 986-6530 for more information. Gift certificates are available. DERBY SERVICE SM Serving the DC Metro Area All new clients who purchase a service package will receive a complimentary hour added to their package during their first month of service. Please contact our office by July 31 to take advantage of this great offer. SPECIAL OFFER Mail and Delivery Address: 1730-B Corcoran Street, N.W., Lower Level Washington, DC 20009 Website: www.intowner.com Editorial and Business Office: (202) 234-1717 / email: [email protected] Press Releases may be emailed (not faxed) to: [email protected] Display Advertising inquiries may be emailed to: [email protected] Publisher & Managing Editor—P.L. Wolff Associate Editor—Anthony L. Harvey Contributing Writers— Paul K. Williams, Michael K. Wilkinson, Rafael E. Valero Layout & Design — Mina Rempe Webmaster—Eddie Sutton Historic Preservation—Paul K. Williams Restaurants—Alexandra Greeley Food in the ’Hood—Joel Denker Real Estate—Jo Ricks Photographer—Keith Kreger Circulation & Delivery—George Morgan Founded in 1968 by John J. Schulter Member—National Newspaper Association The InTowner (ISSN 0887-9400) is published 12 times per year by The InTowner Publishing Corporation, 1730-B Corcoran Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20009. Owned by The InTowner Publishing Corporation, P.L. Wolff, president and chief executive officer. Copyright © 2004, The InTowner Publishing Corporation. All rights reserved. Unsolicited articles, photographs, or other submissions will be given consideration; however, neither the publisher nor managing editor assumes responsibility for same, nor for specifically solicited materials, and will return only if accompanied by a stamped, self-addressed envelope. Signed contributions do not necessarily represent the views of this newspaper or of InTowner Publishing Corporation. Letters to the editor and other commentary are welcome. We reserve the right to edit such submissions for space & clarity. Distributed monthly without charge in the District of Columbia at Dupont Circle, Scott, Thomas, & Logan Circles, U Street & Shaw, Pennsylvania Quarter, Adams Morgan, Columbia Heights, Mt. Pleasant, Sheridan/Kalorama, Woodley/Zoo & Cleveland Park. Mail subscriptions available @ $35 ($45 foreign). PDF file format version also available by email @ $15/yr. For info, [email protected] s readers of this newspaper know, we do not cover the news of all of DC; our primary focus is on those neighborhoods in Wards 1 and 2 that lie between Rock Creek and North Capitol Street and north of downtown. And, since the Ward 2 City Council seat is not up for grabs this year, only Ward 1 requires our main focus, although we will have something to say about the important at-large seat being contested as well as the Ward 3 race that calls for our comment also. First off we should note that we are great believers in the view, shared we have discovered by many experienced political campaign consultants, that one way to judge the potential effectiveness of a candidate should he or she get elected is to watch how the campaigns are run, especially to observe if the candidates themselves and the people they bring on board to manage those campaigns have any smarts; after all, a successful candidate’s inner circle of policy and operations staff will most likely be drawn from the loyalists who helped get him or her elected. With this in mind we always find it most telling if candidates’ campaigns don’t even bother to reach out to the newspapers that serve the very constituencies they hope will jump on their bandwagons. There can be only two possible explanations for the seeming lack of awareness of our existence: either those campaigns are being managed by total incompetents on behalf of a candidate who lacks awareness of the institutions in the community where they are campaigning or both campaign staff and the candidate are simply arrogant and are taking the voters for granted. Either way, it is a sad reflection on the lack of commitment to fully reach out and make certain that their positions on issues are fully revealed to as many voters as possible. In Ward 1, for example, the incumbent, Jim Graham, has proven that even though he appears to be the favorite he does not take his constituents for granted. His continual outreach not only to the local press but to his constituents has been legendary; he understands the importance of communicating (and not just to make himself look good; he is truly committed to keeping his flock informed). It has been the responsiveness by him and his dynamic staff to inquiries from us and his constituents and his pro-active nature to take hold to solve problems, not only with respect to the delivery of services, but also wrestling with difficult policy questions and working to craft sensible solutions and programs that have a chance for success, that has impressed us so greatly. And it is not just with his “down in the trenches” constituent services about which we hear many glowing reports that we admire. We have been enormously impressed with his performance on the Council itself, both through his trenchant questioning of witnesses and his overall contributions to the debates among the members. Probably where he has contributed the most has been with his stewardship of the Committee on Consumer and Regulatory Affairs. The oversight by that committee over an executive department that impacts so directly on our daily lives has been stellar. In addition to seriously insisting on his committee vigorously carrying out its legislative oversight role over that department’s actual operations -- a critical role by the legislative branch -- the council member has earned our plaudits for a number of significant legislative achievements thanks to his leadership and persistence, particularly with matters affecting the rights of tenants and with crafting initiatives that give us optimism that the important goal of retaining as much as possible true economic and social diversity though affordable housing will ensure that Washington not evolve into an enclave only for the rich and famous to the exclusion of the rest of us. If, by our comments above it isn’t already clear that we support Councilmember Graham for re-election, we so state now loud and clear. The importance of the role of the four at-large members of the Council cannot be underestimated since they are supposed to represent all voters city-wide no matter where they reside in the city, like Phil Mendelson who comes out of Ward 3 and is in a tough battle with well-known political operative Scott Bolden, who hails from East of the Park. Bolden has been unrelenting in his attacks on Mendelson’s handling of his Judiciary Committee chairmanship, denouncing him for stretching out consideration of legislative proposals dealing with crime and police resources. Yet, that bothers us less simply for the reason that when considering enactment of new laws that can impact so directly on Constitutional rights a legislature must be especially careful in crafting solutions that will not be later likely to be overturned causing the possibility of opening up all sorts of old cases that could lead to overturning convictions. Furthermore, simply rushing in to enact new laws to “do something” about crime does seem to lead to the kind of mish-mash we recently have achieved. (The only good thing about that new crime bill is the prospect that there will be increased actual street officers truly assigned to the streets.) We concede that the council member is a very deliberative sort, yet from our direct experience with him from his council staff days and our observing him while serving at-large, we appreciate his very deliberative approach to complex issues. And, while we have not necessarily agreed with his positions or approaches on all issues, we believe he Cont., EDITORIAL, p. 7 NEXT ISSUE—SEPTEMBER 8 DISPLAY ADVERTISING SPACE RESERVATION GUARANTEE DATE: ➧ FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1 Classifieds Deadline: Friday, September 1 (See classifieds section for information about procedures) News, Events & Letters Deadline: Friday, September 1 NOTE: Publication date always second Friday of month. ➧ August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 3 COMMUNITY FORUM LETTERS Letters must be mailed, faxed, or delivered to our office or sent via e-mail to: [email protected]. All correspondents MUST supply a home address AND both day and evening telephone numbers for verification purposes. Persons employed by or volunteering with entities that are the subject of their letters MUST reveal their positions with same so as to avoid misleading the readers as to their special interest. In appropriate instances, if so requested, letters may be printed on a “name withheld by request” basis. We reserve the right to edit for propriety, clarity, and to fit the available space. Identifiers below writers’ names are inserted at the editor’s discretion. Special Note: Only envelopes from government agencies, recognized civic groups and other organizations, or mail from individuals in envelopes bearing verifiable return addresses that include sender’s full name will be opened; any other postal or hand-delivered mail will be either returned to sender or destroyed. Ward 1 CouncilMember Deserves Our Support The DC September Primary is just around the corner. First, be sure to vote. Second, for those of you in Ward One, be sure to vote for Councilmember Jim Graham. It is often said the leadership starts from the top. This is truly the case with Graham’s office. He and all of his staff are very responsive and go out of their way to assist with constituent issues. Our neighborhood association constantly calls on his office about every issue ranging from safety to trash and rats. We get assistance and guidance. Ward One is compact, diverse and dynamic. Ward One continues to need Graham’s voice of reason balancing all of our interests. Larry Ray North Columbia Heights Editor’s Note: The writer is president of the North Columbia Heights Civic Association and a former Dupont Circle ANC commissioner when he resided in that neighborhood several years ago. The Newseum’s Relation with the Freedom Forum Clarified We appreciated your Page One feature on the plan for a new central library [“Mayor’s Plan for New Central Library to Replace Existing MLK Building Continues in Limbo; No Immediate Action Expected, ” July 2006], and was glad that you thought enough of the Newseum project to include us as a sidebar. [Ed note: see, [“Polshek’s Prominence as an Architect Evident by Local Commission on Major Site,” also page 1.] At the same time, I’d like to correct one item. The Freedom Forum is a nonpartisan foundation dedicated to free press, free speech and free spirit for all people. The foundation focuses on three priorities: the Newseum, the First Amendment, and newsroom diversity. The Freedom Forum funds the operations of the Newseum, which you correctly note is a mixed-use museum building currently under construction on Pennsylvania Avenue at 6th Street. But your identification of the foundation Cont., LETTERS, p. 5 WHY ADRIAN FENTY SHOULD BE ELECTED MAYOR By Peter D. Rosenstein The writer, a long-time Dupont Circle resident, is a “Team Fenty” volunteer who has been serving as the Issues Committee chairman since the campaign’s earliest days — a position he also held in both of Mayor Anthony Williams’ political campaigns. I don’t know if The InTowner will endorse a candidate in the mayoral election but I am taking the liberty of sharing my thoughts on how I decided to support and work for Adrian and why with each new entrant into the race I could justify my views even further. Adrian is young, dedicated, ambitious, intelligent and creative and has two terms on the city council. Not a bad résumé for the next mayor of Washington, DC. Ken Gibson was 37 when he became mayor of Newark, Gavin Newsom in his 30s in San Francisco, and JFK was only 41 when he became President. Leaders aren’t all older and they often become leaders at a young age because of the kind of qualities that Adrian has in abundance: the ability to move people and affect their lives. Adrian and his family will present an image that can only help DC in the eyes of the world. He is a home-grown young family man with a wife who is an attorney, twin boys just starting public school, and parents respected in the community for their work and for running a successful business. When elected, Adrian will have the benefit of a solid constituency that will back him as he makes the hard decisions he will need to as mayor. He has proven he can generate the buzz, as he did over school modernization, to take an initiative with zero chance of getting anywhere and making it a reality. He introduced the first smoking ban bill and he introduced the Affordable Housing Task Force bill. He really is a born leader. He can walk the streets from Ward 8 to Ward 1 and connect with people whether they are young, old, rich, poor, black or white, Asian, Latino, lesbian and gay. There is a charisma which one is either born with or not, and Adrian was born with it. He will be able to challenge a new generation of leaders in DC. He will attract successful young African-American attorneys, businessmen and women, and entrepreneurs to join him in serving and he will have a government as diverse as this city. We will finally get the opportunity to move away from what many of us call the permanent government that has run this city and fed at the trough since Walter Washington first became mayor. If we are to truly move into the 21st century we must enable the next generation take its place in the leadership of our city. And I say that as a member of the older generation. Adrian takes government seriously. He has taken the time to meet with San Cont., FORUM, p. 6 Page 4 • The InTowner • August 2006 AROUND OUR COMMUNITY The editor welcomes the receipt of information about community happenings, such as church-sponsored events, neighborhood and block association activities, public meetings dealing with neighborhood issues, and other events of a non-commercial nature. These may be emailed to us at newsroom@intowner. com, or sent by regular mail but not by fax. www.augustanadc.info Because we are a neighborhood newspaper and not a city-wide or regional publication, we restrict our reporting to that about news and activities occurring within the specific neighborhoods we serve — Adams Morgan, Mt. Pleasant, Columbia Heights; Dupont, Scott, Thomas & Logan Circles; Mt. Vernon Square/ Pennsylvania Quarter; Cardozo/Shaw, U Street. • Fri., Aug. 11: Now up and running are the EXTENDED SUMMER HOURS through Labor Day for the Wards 1 and 2 Recreation Centers. The extended hours for several that are located within the neighborhoods served by this newspaper are shown below. Youth subject to the mandated curfew will be issued MPD-authorized special passes as they leave for home in the evenings. Columbia Heights Youth Club (16th & Harvard) Mon.-Fri. 6–9pm; Kalorama (1875 Columbia) Mon.–Fri. 8am-11pm & Sat. 10am-11pm; Keely’s Boxing and Youth Center (1459 Columbia) Mon.-Sat. 2–11pm; Kennedy (7th & M) Mon.–Fri. 8am–12mid, Sat., 10am–12mid & Sun. 12noon-8pm; Latin American Youth Center (1419 Columbia) Mon.-Fri. 6–9:15pm; Marie Reed (18th & Kalorama) Mon.-Fri., 10am-12mid; Midtown Youth Academy (2206 14th) Mon.-Sat. 6-11pm; Parkview (693 Otis) Mon.–Fri. 8–12mid, Sat. 10am-12mid & Sun. 12noon–8pm. and much more of 80+ years of collected treasures that now fill space that needs to new homes. All proceeds will benefit the church’s missions. For more info, call 3479620 or visit www.mvpumc.org. • Wed, Aug. 16 (8pm; doors open, 7:30pm): Comedians Zach Toczynski, Leo Goodman, Jake Burton, Steve Varol, and Tim Miller will be featured in a special COMEDY NIGHT being produced by Omaemoda Productions at Staccato Lounge in Adams Morgan (2006 18th St.; tel., 232-2228). This will be a benefit performance to raise funds and awareness for Omaemoda’s work in developing and maintain partnerships to enhance the DC Metro Community, to cultivate and nurture local performing arts talent, and to influence our audiences toward positive social action. Admission, $5. Omaemoda’s performing arts productions are presented in partnership with community service agencies. Currently, these Brainfood, which uses food as a tool to build life skills with young people in Washington in a fun and creative setting; Project Northstar, which has as its primary mission to help children who are homeless or disadvantaged overcome barriers to a quality education; and the Washington Animal Rescue League (WARL) is a welcoming place for animals and the people who love them. Last year’s community partners included Books for America, DC Central Kitchen, So Others Might Eat, and Calvary Women’s Services. • Thu., Aug. 24 (7:30pm): The Vegetarian Society of DC (VSDC) will be kicking off its new LECTURE SERIES program in the Josephine Butler Parks Center (2437 15th St.) with a presentation by Karen Davis, PhD on Bird Flu: how it spreads and how you can help to stop it. She will discuss how intensive confinement of chickens, turkeys, ducks, and other birds around the world creates the ideal breeding ground for this deadly pathogen, and what we can do to help stop it. Dr. Davis is the founder and president of United Poultry Concerns, and editor of its quarterly magazine, Poultry Press. For more info., visit www.vsdc.org or call (202) 362-8349, box 2, and leave a message. • Sat., Aug. 19 (9am-2pm): Mt. Vernon Place United Methodist Church (900 Mass. Ave.) will be holding a CHURCH RENOVATION SALE featuring all sorts of interesting stuff being cleaned out in preparation of its upcoming renovation project, including antiques, small pews, desks, pictures, decorative items, chairs, tables, dishes, collectibles, lawn equipment • Thu., Aug. 24 (7-9pm): The DC Fair Budget Coalition, comprised of more than 60 social and legal service providers, will hold a MAYORAL CANDIDATES FORUM at Busboys and Poets (2021 14th St.). This will be an opportunity to hear what the candidates for mayor are saying about issues that truly concern readers of this newspaper. There will be a panel of experts to ask questions about “quality of life,” affordable housing, homelessness, children and youth issues, and government accountability. Attendees will also have an opportunity to ask questions; the organizers intend this forum “to be a candid and substantive dialog with the Mayoral Candidates.” For more info, call Martina Gillis at (202) 328-5513. • Wed., Sep. 6 (7-8:30pm): The Columbia Heights Citizens Association, joined by both the South Columbia Heights Association and the North Columbia Heights Civic Association, will be featuring Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans, who will be introduced by Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham, presenting checks for SCHOOL UNIFORMS to the principals of the Bruce-Monroe, Raymond, and Tubman Elementary schools. To be held in the garden of Tom and Patty at 3616-10th Street, this will be an excellent opportunity to join in on a worthwhile community event as well as to socialize with neighbors, meet and talk with the council members and the three neighborhood school principals. In the event of rain, the event will happen at the nearby Mental Health Center (1129 Spring Rd.). For more info, send email to North Columbia Heights Civic Association’s president, Larry Ray, at [email protected]. ■ Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 5 LETTERS From p. 3 as “Gannett [News] Corporation’s Freedom Forum” is incorrect. The Freedom Forum was established in 1991 under the direction of founder Allen H. Neuharth as a successor to a foundation started in 1935 by newspaper publisher Frank E. Gannett. The Freedom Forum is not affiliated with Gannett Co. Its work is supported by income from an endowment of diversified assets. Mike Fetters Director Mktg. & Communications, Newseum Shaw Businesses Profiled Just Tip of the Iceberg Thank you for your article on three new businesses along 9th Street, NW in the July 2006 issue of The InTowner (“Independent Businesses with Quality in Mind Coming to 9th Street,” page 1). Shaw Main Streets has been working for the past five years to identify and attract the types of businesses Shaw residents have been asking for, and we’re glad that we’ve been making such progress. But your article really only scratched the surface in terms of the new businesses coming to 9th Street this year. In addition to Breakwell’s Coffee + Tea, A Taste of Carolina Southern Cuisine, and Lettie Gooch Boutique, six other businesses have already opened there, and 10 others are expected to open before year’s end. TG Cigars opened in June at 1118 9th Street, offering a wide variety of cigars, cigarettes, and smoking accessories from around the world. Abu Goldsmith opened in July at 1249 9th Street, offering jewelry repairs and sales; that business relocated from 18th Street in Adams Morgan to be part of the 9th Street renaissance. Queen of Sheba Restaurant opened at 1503 9th Street in February, with Ethiopian and ItalianAmerican dishes, as well as incomparable fresh fruit smoothies. Three art galleries have located in our area this year. Longview Gallery at 1302 9th Street opened in June, presenting the works of nearly 100 local and regionally known painters, sculptors, and photographers; the gallery is a branch of a Sperryville, Virginia gallery of the same name. A few doors north at 1306 9th Street, the 9th Street Gallery presents the works of guest and studio artists, including Turkish-born Zeki Findikoglu. And just a few steps off 9th Street at 903 U Street, Project 4 Gallery opened in February, presenting works in a variety of media in a stark white, two-story tall space. Among the forthcoming openings are a new Reiter’s Bookstore at 1240 9th Street, from the owners of the store of the same name on K Street; Chez Hareg, a French pastry shop at 1915 9th Street, headed up by former Ritz-Carlton employees; La Carbonara Italian Restaurant at 1926 9th Street, bringing a popular cuisine that residents have long been awaiting; Nellie’s Sports Bar at 900 U Street, a gay (and straight-friendly) sports bar featuring cuisine from the chef/owner of Cubano’s Restaurant in Silver Spring; RasDashen Restaurant, a new Ethiopian venue at 1914 9th Street; Yenga 1920, featuring Spanish, Ethiopian, and seafood dishes and the owner’s vocal stylings at 1920 9th Street; Mongolian Grill and Tokyo Sushi Bar will bring more Asian cuisine options at 1207 9th Street; Old Dominion Brewhouse will bring that brewery’s celebrated beers and pub fare to 1219 9th Street; Cakes and pies will be the star attractions at D’vine Cravings, 1239 9th Street; and Be Bar, a neighborhood lounge with a gay following, is scheduled to open this month at 1318 9th Street, featuring a variety of unique martinis and pub fare. So if you think things are hopping on 9th Street, you haven’t seen anything yet. By the end of 2006, more businesses will be open on 9th Street than have been there since the 1968 riots. And there’s more to come in 2007. Anyone interested in keeping up with this activity can visit the Shaw Main Streets website (www.shawmainstreets.com) and ask to be added to our email list for news of openings and events. Alexander M. Padro Executive Director Shaw Main Streets Epitaph for a Video Store Another independent retailer in AdamsMorgan has closed. How many of us have noted the departure of Video Americain, a shop on 18th Street, and grieved its passing? The store, its casual, freewheeling staff, and vast collection of films, domestic and international, unparalleled in the District, was a light in my life. I can’t count the number of films my wife and I enjoyed that I would otherwise have missed. There was the Indian musical about a colonial cricket match, a film about an Italian family selling fish and chips on the Irish coast, and a variety of Aussie spellbinders. The store was a tribute to the joys of serendipity. I was exhilarated every time I chanced on a new cinematic discovery. The business closed for a number of reasons. One of the factors, the decline in interest from a cohort of patrons, is especially troubling. Many patrons reduced their purchases, clerks told me, because of the wide availability of titles on Netflix. They apparently found it easier to dial up a film than to walk over to the store and discover something new. Has it come to this? Would we rather sit in our cocoons and commune with a film directory on the computer than browse and socialize? However convenient and efficient, Netflix is no substitute for roaming a shop and finding an unexpected delight. If computerized services can provide all our cultural needs, why do we need bookstores, video shops, record stores, or libraries? Joel Denker Dupont Circle Editor’s Note: The writer is well-known for this newspaper’s monthly “Food in the ‘Hood” feature; regular readers will be pleased to know that this former Peace Corps member and now university teacher has interests of even broader cultural scope than they might have otherwise realized when reading his informative essays on the history of foods from around the world and the cultures that have influenced the amazing culinary riches that are available right in our own backyard thanks to our neighborhoods having evolved into centers of considerable ethnic variety. Baseball Stadium Deal Continues to Rankle The $611 million ballpark spending cap is about to be blown after a mere five months in the ballgame; it didn’t take long for the ballpark spending cap to be violated. In its most recent report submitted for the month of May, the Sports & Entertainment Commission admits the cap has blown. It apparently intends to seek budgetary refuge by raiding the ancillary development money from the sweetheart deal the mayor hastily has arranged in a no-bid manner. (See the very pregnant passages on the first page of commisssion’s May report, dated June 15, 2006, especially the last sentence on that page which reads as follows: “The DCSEC will seek other sources to fund the expected overrun in environmental remediation costs as allowed by the Cost Cap, including any revenue derived from development rights at the Ballpark Site.”) It is high time for Mr. Tuohey and Company to leave their complimentary box seats and to ask the new owners to share equally in covering the now-certain overruns. MLB [Major League Baseball] and the Lerners closed the deal knowing the District of Columbia would spend no more than $611 million. The time has come to broach the subject with them formally. Nice as it may seem to have “Herb’s proposal,” as Mr. Evans [Ward 2 council member and chairman of the council’s Committee on Finance and Revenue] calls it in his overly chummy manner, cover the cost overruns as a near perfect 10 percent contingency of $61 million, that money must not be used unilaterally by DC to fund more stadium construction overruns without at least equal participation from the Lerners. Messrs. Barry and Orange especially insisted the ancillary development rights be used for the direct benefit of the DC community. If 100 percent of that new public money now also goes yet again into funding a single-use facility built for the exclusive use by a private enterprise, what public property or “public good” really is there that’s left for DC’s citizenry? We might as well get ready to transfer to another buddy of the mayor and Mr. Evans (via another pre-wired deal) the development rights for the Wilson Building too, in the hope of supposed incremental tax revenues someday. What a racket. After a mere five months, it is patently apparent that the cumulative cost overruns by 2008 will far exceed even the added $61 million in ancillary development giveaways on top of the supposed $611 million cap. We may well be on our way to the cool $1 billion stadium that Mr. Graham [Ward 1 council member] so intuitively predicted -- a process which began in 2004 with the mayor’s and [Chief Financial Officer] Mr. Gandhi’s disingenuous and highly calculated low-ball original $340 million cost estimate. Remember that initial bill of goods supposed professional financial pros like the mayor and Mr. Gandhi concocted with light quantification to sell the taxpayers and the council? Time is up for the seemingly semi-autonomous Sports and Entertainment Commission to come clean. If they do not approach the Lerner family right now, the precedent will already be set when the accelerating overruns quickly drain the added $61 million, and DC will be forced to cover those costs unilaterally forevermore too. Dave Mallof Dupont Circle Editor’s Note: The writer initially addressed this matter of the stadium financing in his letter that appeared in our May, 2006 issue in which he commented on our previous month’s editorial, “Batter Up For Better or Worse--We Fear it Will be For Worse” (From the Publisher’s Desk, April 2006, page 2. (GO AFALKL@3=9J #FL=JF9LAGF9DMDLMJ9D-LJ==L =KLAN9D s s -MF<9Q -=HL=E:=J (GGFHE TH3TBTWN#OL2D&LA!VE s s s s &OUR3TAGESOF,IVE-USICAND%NTERTAINMENT -USIC$ANCEFOR!LL4ASTES $ONT-ISS!FRO#UBAN,ATIN*AZZ"LUES2OCKAND-/2% $YNAMIC$ANCE0LAZA 5NIQUE&OODS#RAFTSAND!RTS &UN&ILLED&AMILY!CTIVITIES+IDS&AIR /NEOFA+IND/RIGINALh!RTSON"ELMONTv !/NE$AY6ISIT'IVES9OUA3AMPLEOF !DAMS-ORGAN$AYSOFTHE9EAR GJ'GJ=#F>GJE9LAGFOOO''9AF-LJ==LGJ?cc'9Q ''9AF-LJ==LGJ? Page 6 • The InTowner • August 2006 FORUM From p. 3 Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, The deputy mayor of Baltimore, and School Superintendents Klein of New York and Crew of Miami and looked at best practices around the nation. He is looking at new management tools and new ways of doing business. This is what we need from a mayor. We need some thinking that is out of the box and we won’t get that with only the recycling of the people and ideas of the past. I won’t talk about Vincent Orange or Michael Brown because I really believe that they won’t be factors in this race. I will give Marie Johns credit for being a highly intelligent woman, but I think we went that route in the District before. We found out how hard it is for a person who has not been involved in DC government to take the reins. There is no built-in constituency to support the changes they want to make. There is no history with council members, unions or community groups to do the horse trading often needed on bills and projects. There is no real understanding of the difference between moving a public bureaucracy versus a private one. The compassion and heart that have been on display during her campaign and talking about being a volunteer and a mentor doesn’t necessarily play well or provide the experience needed as a government leader having to make the hard choices. The largess one can share as a corporate executive using other people’s money to support a few favored projects just doesn’t always equip one to lead a government. There are of course the exceptions like Michael Bloomberg in New York, but being a billionaire and building the company, not just being a hired hand, are what has made the difference there. As to Linda Cropp, well that is a different story. She has been here for 30 years and is an extremely nice and intelligent person. But I believe her 30-year history is part of her problem. She is a part of the permanent government and was as much a part of the problem for the first 25 years of her service as she would now like to claim credit for being part of the solution for the last seven. Though she constantly reminds people that Adrian has never managed anything, she doesn’t like to be reminded that neither has she. Linda Cropp had her opportunities as school board president during the years when we should have been building and modernizing schools and building a local in-house special education program to do those things. Because these things weren’t done in those times as they were by other big city school systems, we are seeing the problems enhanced now. Linda Cropp never met a Marion Barry budget she didn’t like and has to assume some of responsibility for Congress imposing the Control Board. I have tried to research her statements from the past and haven’t found where she even warned of the impending disaster if the government didn’t change its ways, no less stood up and spoke out forcefully to do something about it. Ms. Cropp also has shown she believes government works best when it makes decisions behind closed doors and presents completed deals to the public for approval. The nearly total fiasco of baseball financing being a case in point of her closed-door way of running government. She also clearly misunderstood the difference between private financing and publicly backed private financing and needed a letter from the CFO to explain to her that the bonds issued for the baseball stadium do have an impact on the rest of the budget and what the city can do in other areas. The way Ms. Cropp believes government should be run is something that won’t change at this time in her career. I also fear that we will have a co-mayor if Ms. Cropp is elected; and though I respect Dwight Cropp, I am concerned about all the people from the Barry administration that he has gathered together as her senior advisors. The value of open government and transparent operations is something foreign to her. Ms. Cropp is also not a leader. There is no legislation in her 30 year career that she can claim as landmark legislation -- no single outstanding area where the public can see that she made a real difference. She is better at tinkering around the edges and passing small bills to solve small problems. While this is important it is not the thing that Leadership is made of. Again I hope it is OK that I shared these thoughts with you. I am of course biased in favor of Adrian Fenty and that may color my view. But my views also come from a career of nearly 40 years which includes being a public school teacher in Harlem in the New York City public schools, working for Congresswoman Bella Abzug, being Coordinator of Local Government for the City of New York in Mayor Abe Beame’s administration, then coming to Washington in 1978 to work in the Carter administration as Executive Director of the White House Conference on Handicapped Individuals/Implementation Unit. I have since spent 25 years as a CEO of non-profits and, as I think you are aware, I am also a community activist, gay activist, columnist for the Washington Blade and was Vice Chair of the UDC Board of Trustees for nearly four years. I thank you for taking the time to read my thoughts on this campaign which I truly believe will determine the direction of the District of Columbia for many years ■ to come. See Our Website For Links To Our Advertisers www.intowner.com August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 7 EDITORIAL From p. 2 brings an important sense of balance to the Council’s debates and thus is truly a stabilizing influence. While some members want to just plunge right in and “do something” for the sake of doing, this council member understands the importance of stepping back and imposing some analysis and discipline before proceeding. So, we urge Councilmember Mendelson’s re-election not only for these reasons but also because he has proven himself to be fair and equally caring of the concerns of all citizens across the city no matter where they live or their economic or social status. What a perfect quality for a legislator who must represent everyone! One thing we do urge, however, is that if he is re-elected he be assigned to chair the Committee on Government Operations; the mandate of that committee is such that he would make an absolutely ideal chairman to conduct the kind of oversight necessary when confronted with the highly ADAMS MORGAN From p. 1 forgo revenue by allowing only a single row of vendors, and giving discounts and preferences for Adams Morgan businesses,” said Main Street’s president and festival Co-Chair Lisa Duperier. “Not only do our businesses all stay open now, but a group also takes advantage of the discounted vendor space. “The new festival layout originated by Main Street highlights the neighborhood scale architecture and leaves all the business storefront façades visible to Festival strollers. Brand new last year, and back by popular demand, is the Dance Plaza located on the basketball court of Marie Reed School. Packed with hundreds of people, the Dance Plaza features such groups as photo—courtesy, Adams Morgan Day Festival. Afro-Cuban rumba, Bolivian dance troupe, West African dance, and a youth step group. People watched, learned, and then jumped up themselves to dance on the temporary wooden dance floor set up for the event. The always popular commemorative Tshirt this year will feature local artist Jennifer Golden’s original artwork, titled Dancers. New this year according to Festival Director, Kassandra Kearse, “is a partnership with the U.S. Postal Service which will be offering a “one day only” Adams Morgan Day Festival postmark cancellation envelope for purchase which combines the T-shirt artwork and Festival logo.” Some of the local businesses with logos on the commemorative T-shirts include Adams Mill Bar & Grill, Chloe, El Tamarindo, Millie-‘n-Al’s, and Tom Tom. The signature Florida Avenue and Columbia Road live music stages return to technical aspects of overseeing the government’s management affairs. Finally, a few comments about the Ward 3 race. Bill Rice is presumed to be the odds-on favorite; certainly he has received lots of good press, no doubt from having developed some close relationships with certain members of the press who have extolled his apparent (to them) responsiveness when he served as the DDOT spokesperson. Our experience, however, does run counter to what we have heard said by others. We have found that his attention span is short, frequently not even evident, that he has -- again, in our experience -- demonstrated a lack of follow-through or even a true get-up-and-go approach. He’s a nice guy, but we don’t think there’s a lot there. One thing we will say about Bill Rice is that if he is elected his personality is not such that he would be a destabilizing force. We cannot say the same about the most vocal and in-your-face angry candidate, Jonathan Rees. He has so absolutely polarized everyone he has come into contact with, has become infamous for his overthe-top rants, his personal character attacks bookend 18th Street. Washington Post Radio’s Jerry Phillips celebrates his 20th year producing the Florida Avenue stage with such acts as The Ed Hahn Quintet (Contemporary Jazz), Cubano Groove (Latin/Salsa), and Third Eye Reggae Band (Caribbean), making their Festival debut. New to that stage is a performance by the Dance Institute of Washington. Bank of America is sponsoring the Cultural Stage on the church steps at Euclid Street and Columbia Road. Coordinated by Celestino Zapata, it will showcase a broad mix of musical genres, theater, dance, and cultural performances, including the Sitar Center students. Other major sponsors are PNC Bank, Radio Shack, the Adams Morgan Business Improvement District, and BB&T Bank. “Arts on Belmont” with over 30 artisans displaying original artwork in a variety of media will line the shady residential side street. Coordinated by Avner Ofer, who also produces Western Market each Saturday, attendees can expect high-quality artisans from contemporary to traditional. Kid’s Fair Coordinator Samantha Cribari plans a mini-stage this year with face-painters, jugglers, clowns and other performers to wow the crowd, in addition to the moon bounce and rock wall. Educational exhibits about the human body, mechanics, nature and biology, will be offered by Celebra La Ciencia/Celebrate Science in English and Spanish to encourage kids to think about science in different ways. Harris Teeter, Adams Investments, DC Lottery, Hilton Washington, DC Chartered Health, Safeway, and Comcast are also participating as sponsors. But the success of the festival can be attributed to the efforts of local volunteers, who gather petition signatures, work on vendor layout, plan for stages, and work the “day of”! . Volunteer opportunities abound including pre-festival through “day of” and breakdown. To volunteer, email Irving Washington at VolsAMDay@AMMainStreet. org or call festival director Kassandra Kearse at (202) 232-1978 or send email to [email protected]. Check for Festival updates on: www.AMMainStreet. org. ■ * The writer, a proud mixture of the Guatemalan and Peruvian cultures, is a DC native and Executive Director of AdamsMorgan MainStreet Group. Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. and AdamsMorgan MainStreet Group. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. on individuals who disagree with him, and worse that we fear his presence on the Council could completely destroy any hope for continued collegiality which is essential if it is to function effectively. But there is one candidate that we believe would be able to make a significant contribution not only to the work of the Council but also on behalf of his constituents. We refer to Eric Goulet, possibly not a household name, but a candidate who the voters should take a serious look at. First off, he has the kind of personality and genuine intellect that will contribute greatly to the work of the Council; he is not only collegial, but he is patient and communicates well and is a true breath of fresh creativity. But beyond that, he knows his stuff. One of his major strengths is his impressive knowledge and understanding of the complexities of DC finance, and has served admirably as clerk of the Committee on Finance and Revenue. He would bring another crucial voice of fiscal rationality that continues to be so desperately needed. In addition, thanks to his years of service as legislative counsel for health and aging issues when serving as a member of former Councilmember Sandy Allen’s Committee on Health, he was immersed in a range of critical issues that require the attention of council members who truly understand the heath crisis affecting such a large portion of our citizens; he would bring to the table much needed insight and ideas. All we ask is that voters make an effort to learn more about him; they will be very impressed indeed. Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Page 8 • The InTowner • August 2006 SELECTED STREET CRIMES: Reported, June 30 - July 31, 2006 Following is a sampling of reported crimes in the expanded 3rd Police District and the Bloomingdale neighborhood portion of the 5th District. Times shown are when reports recorded by police; actual incidents will have occurred earlier. Occasionally we include reports not recorded by the MPD. Emphasis here is placed, for the most part, on listing crimes against persons occurring in or adjacent to public space. Not generally reported are the extraordinary numbers of burglaries, auto heists, and “smash and grab” from parked cars. These crimes appear to be consistently a problem from Rock Creek eastward and from downtown north, spread fairly evenly throughout affluent, transitioning, and low-income neighborhoods. Also not reported, for reasons of space, are most assaults stemming from verbal altercations nor most of the numerous, random purse & other snatchings that can occur anywhere and at any hour. • Belmont, 1800 blk.: 2 persons robbed at gunpoint by man who approached from behind [1:30am, Thu., 7/27] • Caroline, 1500 blk.: 3 persons walking home from work accosted from behind by 2 others, one of whom grabbed the woman in the group & held gun to her head while all 3 were robbed [3am, Thu., 7/13] • Champlain, 2300 blk.: while walking to his car man shot in foot by unknown person [2am, Sat., 7/8] • Church, 1700 blk.: man robbed at gunpoint by another [2:15am, Sun., 7/23] • Columbia & Euclid: woman accosted by man who pushed her to ground & robbed her of pocketbook after wrestling it away from her & then left scene in waiting car [3:30pm, Tue., 7/25] • Mintwood, 1800 blk.: person accosted by 2 others who jumped out from behind some bushes, one of who brandished a gun & demanded, “Give me your money,” whereupon person ran from the scene but in the process dropped some property which was picked up & made off with [2:45am, Fri., 6/30] (Note similarity to incident several blocks south in the 1700 blk. of 19th St. about one hour earlier) • Monroe, 1300 blk.: 2 persons, hearing running behind them turned & were confronted by man with gun who ordered them to ground & robbed them after further ordering them to “throw everything on the ground” [10:30pm, Mon., 7/3] • Monroe, 1400 blk.: man riding bike accosted by 3 others who blocked his way with one of them holding it while the other 2 went through his pockets & robbed him & then punched him in his face [2:30am, Sat., 7/15] • Morton, 600 blk.: woman accosted by man who came from behind as she was entering her building, grabbed her by the neck, threw her to the floor, causing her to bang her head, & robbed her of pocketbook [12noon, Mon., 7/24] • Mt. Pleasant, 3000 blk.: man robbed by another of iPod at gunpoint [6:15pm, Thu., 7/27] • N, unit blk.: man accosted by 2 others who came from behind demanding the four $20 bills he had in his hand while pointing a gun at him [7:30pm, Sat., 7/8] • New Hamp. & T: man getting ready to purchase lottery ticket robbed of property that was grabbed from his shirt pocket by another who jumped in front of him & tyhen fled premises [1:45pm, Thu., 7/13] • Columbia, 1400 blk.: man robbed at knifepoint of cell phone & money by 3 others who approached from behind [6:30pm, Sun., 7/9] • Ontario, 2300 blk.: 2 persons robbed at gunpoint one man while the other acted as lookout (case closed when robbers located, positively identified & arrested) [2am, Sat., 7/22] • Crescent, 1600 blk.: man on bike assaulted by another who was on foot who punched him, knocking him to the ground & robbed him & then made his getaway in a waiting car with several others [10pm, Tue., 7/4] • Otis, 1300 blk.: man robbed & stabbed in abdomen by another & found by passerby on ground holding his hands down on the wound [2am, Sun., 7/9] • Euclid, 1400 blk.: woman’s property snatched from her by man who came from behind [4:30pm, Mon., 7/31] • Fairmont & University: man accosted by 2 others who came from behind, thrown to ground & robbed [6:45am, Mon., 7/17] • Fairmont, 1300 blk.: man’s gold chain snatched from around his neck by another who rode past him as he was walking [11:30am, Fri., 7/7] • Emmanuel Ct., 600 blk. (rear): Community activist & mayoral candidate Chris Crowder, a resident of the 1300 blk. of 7th St., found lying beside his toppled wheelchair suffering from multiple gunshot wounds (later pronounced dead upon arrival at Wash. Hosp. Center); also found at same location another man seriously injured with gunshot wound to body & transported to hospital where admitted in critical condition & whose name withheld because considered a material witness. (Persons with any information urged to call MPD’s Violent Crimes Branch at 727-9099.) [3:45am, Sat., 7/8] • Florida, unit blk.: man walking home from store accosted by 3 others who came from behind, one of whom grabbed him by neck, forced him to ground & robbed him [12:45am, Sat., 7/8] • Harvard, 1400 blk.: woman pedestrian talking on cell phone approached by 2 men coming from opposite direction whereupon one of them struck her on her cheek while the other grabbed the phone [4:30pm, Wed., 7/5] • Harvard, 1600 blk.: man accosted by 2 others from behind & as one stuck a gun to his side & pulled his wallet out from his pocket, took out the cash & handed it to the other man who was holding him, the gunman said to the other, “Here you go” [7am, Sun., 7/9] • Hobart, 1600 blk.: man accosted from behind by another who pushed him to ground, struck him with his hands & robbed him [3:45am, Sat, 7/1] • Kalorama, 1800 blk.: 3 persons robbed at gunpoint by 2 men [3:30am, Sat., 7/15] • P, 1700 blk.: man forcibly robbed by 2 others who had crossed over from the opposite side of the street to accost him [11:15pm, Sun., 7/16] • P, 2000 blk.: man involved in a minor auto collision when he drove his car in a manner that caused the side mirror of the affected car to be knocked off confronted by that driver who demanded, “you’re gonna give me some money right now for my mirror” & when he said he had no money on him the other driver threatened him with a gun [1:30pm, Mon., 7/24] • Q, 1700 blk.: bike stolen from storage area that had been left unlocked so that landscaping contractor could have access [12noon, Thu., 7/13] • Q, 1700 blk.: man robbed at gunpoint by another who came from behind [5am, Thu., 7/27] • R, unit blk.: 2 persons robbed at knifepoint by 2 others [12:30am, Thu., 7/13] • R, 1400 blk.: man’s property snatched by another passing him on sidewalk & because he was intimidated by the robber, he kept on walking [6pm, Thu., 7/6] • R, 1500 blk.: man accosted by another who punched him in face causing him to fall to ground & was then robbed [11:15pm, Fri., 7/28] • Rhode Is., 600 blk.: woman’s property snatched from her hand as she was walking by man who came from behind [10:15pm, Mon., 7/3] • S, 1700 blk.: 2 persons walking home robbed at gunpoint by 2 others who announced, “This is a robbery; you know what’s up” [1:15am, Sun., 7/2] (Note similarity to incident a couple of blocks away in the 1700 blk. of 19th St. about 30 minutes earlier) • Spring, 1300 blk.: person punched in face by another who attempted to steal cell phone, causing facial laceration & bruised shoulder [6:15am, Mon., 7/17] • Swann, 1500 blk.: 2 persons walking home robbed at gunpoint by man who had been standing next to a tree [3am, Sun., 7/23] • Kalorama, 1900 blk.: man robbed at gunpoint by 2 others [2:15am, Tue., 7/25] • Swann, 1800 blk.: person accosted by 2 others who emerged from nearby alley & robbed at gunpoint [2:45am, Sat., 7/1] • Kalorama, 2100 blk.: man grabbed from behind by another who had an unknown cutting instrument in one hand while he robbed the man of his property [11:45pm, Tue., 7/4] • U, 1200 blk.: woman’s property snatched from her hand by person who came past her [7:45pm, Sat., 7/22] • Kilbourne, 1700 blk.: woman approached from behind by man who first asked if she would like to have the flower he had in his hand & when she declined he pulled a gun, placed to her head, demanded that she drop her bags & robbed her of cash [10:45pm, Fri., 7/28] • Lamont, 600 blk.: man accosted by 6 others who began to punch him about his body & demanded money but fled scene when a witness approached [10:15pm, Fri., 6/30] • Lanier, 1700 blk.: Adams Morgan ANC Commissioner and candidate for DC Congressional Delegate Andy Miscuk robbed at gunpoint as he was walking home from working late in his campaign office [1am, Mon., 7/31] • Logan Cir.: woman walking on outside of Circle accosted by 2 men who came from behind, pushed her to ground & robbed her [6:30pm, Mon., 7/3] • Logan Cir.: man sitting on bench in the park approached from behind by 3 others who grabbed him by his arm & around his body & robbed him of cash from inside his sock [12noon, Sun., 7/30] • V, 200 blk.: man standing in his front yard with his cell phone in his hand robbed by man who came into the yard, pulled a gun & swung it at him but missed hitting him [10:15pm, Sun., 7/23] • V, 1100 blk.: man accosted by 4 others who first beat him about his head & face then robbed him of wallet & cell phone (wallet recovered 2 blocks away) [1pm, Fri., 7/21] • Willard, 1700 blk.: man walking home accosted by another brandishing a gun & demanding money but who fled when man started to scream for help [2:30qm, Sun., 7/31] • 3rd & Q: man accosted by another who got out of a car that drove onto the sidewalk to block his way, then demanded his money & when man started to flee, the assailant got back into the car & pursued the man but he got away [2:45am, Sat., 7/29] • 4th, 1700 blk.: man about to ride off on his scooter accosted by another from the side who pushed him off onto the ground & declared, “Shut the f**k up, you white boy; I hope you die, you f***” [10:15pm, Wed., 7/19] Cont., CRIME, p. 9 August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 9 RETAIL space, leaving the perimeter walls open to hang local artists’ work; the real estate broker plans to participate in the neighborhood’s monthly “gallery crawl.” the month, with doors opening to the public in around 90 days. • The Metropole, 1515 15th Street. Just a block away, Metropolis Development is doing groundwork on the Metropole, which will feature two retail spaces. The flagship space, at 22,000 square feet, will house Vida Fitness, a modern fitness center opening its first branch in the Penn Quarter later this month. The Metropole will be Vida’s second location, and is expected to be completed sometime in 2007. The developer will begin to look for tenants for the building’s second retail space (at 8.000 square feet) closer to when the building nears completion, targeting primarily local, neighborhood-oriented retailers whose planning timelines are much shorter. From p. 1 • Abdo Development at 14th Street and Rhode Island Avenue. As reported previously by The InTowner, developer Jim Abdo plans to redevelop the northwest corner of 14th Street and Rhode Island Avenue, where a Caribou Coffee store is currently located. (See, “From Logan to Petworth: New Projects Promise Residential & Retail Energy,” February 2004, page 1.) The developer plans to build out the air rights over the coffee retailer (which is housed in a single-story structure at the prominent corner) without disrupting its operation, and to integrate the retailers at 1400 and 1402 14th Street into a larger, mixed-use (office/retail) development. Construction is at least three years away, Abdo told The InTowner, so neighbors can expect some stability in the current retail mix for a few more years. • Cooper Lewis Condominium and Lofts14-2. Metropolis Development delivered its Lofts14 condominium project, which houses furniture retailer Storehouse, in 2005. The next two buildings in its pipeline are Lofts14-2 at 14th and Church Streets and Cooper Lewis Condominium at 14th and P Streets. While the retail space on the ground floor of Cooper Lewis has all been leased, the developer was set to ink a deal for the space at Lofts14-2 but it fell apart at settlement, leaving the developer with a prime, 5,000-square-foot space to market. They have been in discussions with clothing and home furnishing retailers, and are offering the space photo—Michael K. Wilkinson—The InTowner. Union Row construction at 14th and V well underway. in its entirety or divided into two different stores. PNC Bank will occupy the prominent corner retail space (4,110 square feet) in the Cooper Lewis project, and real estate brokerage Hounshell Real Estate (formerly the Hounshell Group/ReMax) will move into the space in the northern half of the building, facing 14th Street. Owner Bill Hounshell told The InTowner that they plan to use the 13-foot ceiling height in their space to create a gallery-like atmosphere, with offices clustered in the center of the CRIME From p. 8 • 7th & Q: man accosted by 3 others demanding money & when he said “no” he was struck on head with gun & then shot in his leg & then robbed [2:15am, Fri., 7/7] • 8th & T: man walking home robbed by another who came from behind, stuck an unknown object in his back & demanded his wallet, which he handed over [8am, Sun., 7/2] • 8th & T: man robbed at gunpoint of car keys as he walked away from having parked it by man who then drove off in it [10:15pm, Fri., 7/14] • 10th, 1300 blk.: man accosted by 3 others, one of whom pulled a gun & demanded money but man was able to flee & call for help while the would-be robbers took off [9:30pm, Sun., 7/16] • 10th, 3600 blk.: 2 persons accosted by 6 others who came from behind, striking one of them in the face & robbing them of cell phone & other property [10:15pm, Mon., 7/3] • 11th & M: man accosted by 2 others who robbed him at knifepoint [2am, Wed., 7/19] • 11th, 2000 blk.: man walking along & listening to music on his portable CD player through his headphones accosted by 3 others who surrounded him, demanding, “Give me your wallet, there is [sic] three of us,” whereupon they robbed him [7:45pm, Mon., 7/31] • 11th, 2700 blk.: woman’s purse forcibly snatched from her wrist by man who came from behind [7am, Sun., 7/23] • 12th, 1400 blk.: man robbed at gunpoint by 2 others who approached from behind [11:30am, Sat., 7/15] • 13th, 2200 blk. (rear): man who had walked into alley to enter his house from the back accosted by 2 others who came from behind who struck him in the face & robbed him [10:45pm, Sun., 7/16] (This robbery was followed 5 minutes later in the same block by a second robbery by the same 2 men.) • 13th, 2200 blk.: man accosted by 2 others who came from behind who punched him on the neck knocking him to the ground & robbed him [10:50pm, Sun., 7/16] (This robbery committed by the same 2 men as the one in the same block 5 minutes earlier. Later that same evening, at about 11:50pm, MPD officers from the Mobile Force detail, along with Third District officers, stopped 17-year-old juveniles at 13th and Corcoran Streets. Both, were subsequently charged with three counts of robbery, force & violence and placed under arrest in connection with these two robberies.) • 14th, 1300 blk.: man accosted by another who motioned as if he had a gun demanding money (robbery not successful & case closed with arrest) [8pm, Mon., 7/3] • 14th & Irving: man exiting Metro station accosted from behind by 2 others who struck him around his head & face, knocking him to the ground & then robbing him of wallet [12:45am, Wed., 7/19] • 14th & Monroe: man approached by 2 others on bikes who blocked his way, whereupon another appeared with gun, hit him on his head with it, causing him to fall to the ground & was robbed [12:30am, Fri., 6/30] • 15th, 2400 blk.: man accosted by 3 others who punched him in the face causing him to fall to the ground & then robbed him [8:45pm, Tue., 7/25] • 1515 Arts Space, 1515 14th Street. Developer and long-time local arts booster Giorgio Furioso redeveloped the former Hudson Automobile showroom building into a bustling center for the arts, with an organic restaurant on the ground floor featuring frequently changing art shows, and two levels of art galleries on the second and third floors, including some of the city’s best known -- G Fine Art, David Adamson, and George Hemphill among them. Furioso is planning to add an ultra-modern addition to the top and side of the existing building, but has been held up in zoning and permitting. The new building will include additional arts-oriented retail, but a construction schedule has not been determined. Cont., RETAIL, p. 10 • 15th, 2600 blk.: person robbed at gunpoint by another [11:45pm, Sun., 7/2] • 16th & Monroe: 2 persons approached by another asking for a dollar “to get something to drink” and when told they had no money, 2 others approached, knocked one of them to the ground & brandished a knife [1:15am, Tue., 7/4] • 16th & Park: woman’s purse snatched “without permission” by man who came from behind [2am, Sun., 7/16] • 16th, 3700 blk.: as 2 persons got out of car, 2 others approached, one of whom pointed a knife at one of them while the other, wielding a baseball bat, chased & struck the 2nd person [8:30am, Tue., 7/4] • 17th, 1600 blk.: Dupont Circle ANC Commissioner Mark Bjorge, while riding his bike & calling police to report a possible criminal act, accosted from behind by the man about whom he was calling to report & who snatched the cell phone from his hand & fled from the scene but was apprehended shortly thereafter following complainant having encountering an officer at the 7-Eleven a block north & enlisting his assistance in going after the man [10:15am, Wed., 7/19] • 17th, 1700 blk.: man approached by another asking for a dollar & after giving it to him continued walking, whereupon was confronted by same man again who this time punched him in the stomach, causing him to fall to ground, and was robbed [2:30am, Fri., 7/7] • 17th, 3300 blk.: man robbed at gunpoint (semi-automatic) by 3 others [7pm, Wed., 7/26] • 18th & Ingleside: woman sitting in her car has it car-jacked by man who approached, demanded the keys while stating, “You want me to shoot you?,” whereupon she handed them over & he drove off throughthe alley [9:15pm, Mon., 7/10] • 18th, 1700 blk.: 2 person accosted by 2 others who approached from behind, one of who brandished a gun & demanded, “Give up all the cash or I’ll use this,” whereupon they complied [3am, Fri., 6/30] • 19th & Kalorama: 2 persons robbed by 2 others with guns who had approached from behind, threatened to shoot them & then robbed them [2:30am, Sat., 7/1] • 19th & N: 2 persons robbed by man at gunpoint [2:45am, Thu., 7/27] • 19th, 1700 blk.: 2 persons robbed at gunpoint by 2 others who came from behind & demanded the purse of one & the wallet of the other [12:45am, Sun., 7/2] (Note similarity to incident a couple of blocks away in the 1700 blk. of S St. about 30 minutes later) • 19th, 1700 blk.: man accosted by 2 others who jumped out from behind some bushes, one of who brandished a gun & demanded, “Give me your money,” whereupon man ran from the scene but in the process dropped his cell phone which was picked up & made off with [1:45am, Fri., 6/30] (Note similarity to incident several blocks north in the 1800 blk. of Mintwood Pl. about one hour later) • 19th, 2300 blk.: 2 persons accosted from behind by 2 others, one of whom was hit on the back of the head with gun which was then pointed at head while the other person was grabbed & held until they gave up their property [3:30am, Sat., 7/8] • 19th, 2300 blk.: 2 persons robbed at gunpoint by man who ordered them to the ground, demanding their money [3:45am, Sat., 7/15] • 20th & Kalorama: woman who responded to request by man in car who called her over to ask for directions had her purse snatched by man who then sped off [10:30pm, Mon., 7/17] Page 10 • The InTowner • August 2006 RETAIL From p. 9 • The Matrix, 1529 14th Street. Two newly built wings flank the early 20th century structure of a former automobile dealership in this loft condominium building under construction on the east side of 14th between P and Q streets. There is one retail space in each of the three sections of the building: in the new construction, the smaller space covers 1,650 square feet and the larger space is 2,330 square-feet. The original building contains a much larger, T Street Flats (initially to be known as “Rapture Lofts”; see “Historic Preservation Design Decisions Seen as Being Unfair and Inconsistent,” InTowner, July 2005, page 1) will have a total of 5,800 square feet of retail. Because construction has not begun yet, very little marketing has been done. Oddly, the space is divided into two sections by an interior wall which the Historic Preservation Review Board has deemed historic and which thus must be preserved. Consequently, there are 1,500 and 3,300square-foot spaces available. • 2001 14th Street NW. The biggest news in Mid-City comes surrounding perhaps one of its smallest developments. Long vacant and boarded up, the 10,500-square-foot building at the prominent northeast corner of 14th and U streets is set to undergo renovations and be reintroduced to the commercial fabric of U Street. A building permit has recently been issued and construction is set to begin on this elegant two-story structure. The owner, while initially just building out a “vanilla box” to be able to accept a range of tenant categories, is seeking a “landmark tenant” which will contribute significantly to the neighborhood, and is actively marketing the building to a bank or a fine dining restaurant/ lounge. “Discussions are underway photo—Jon-Michael Higgins, courtesy Level 2 Development. with a very reputable local restauShown here during the well-attended “groundbreaking” rateur,” owner’s broker Ken Naroozi event on July 25th is a clear sign that the old Petrovitch told The InTowner, “who is looking building demolition is moving along, to be replaced by to build a flagship restaurant.” If a the ambitious View 14 development. restaurant is built, it will contain two floors of dining, lounge and service two-level retail space, with 3,835 square feet area plus a mezzanine, in addition to a roof on the ground floor and an additional 1,250 terrace. square feet below grade. The InTowner was • Union Row, 2125 14th Street. One unable to contact the retail brokerage company handling the commercial leasing at of the largest and most significant developments in the Mid-City section of 14th the building by press time. Street, Union Row is a large loft condomin• The Q14, 1600 14th Street. This build- ium building by PN Hoffman, under coning, developed by Georgetown developer struction with delivery expected in Summer Fred Bahrami of Commercial Real Estate 2007. It contains the largest commercial Services, contains two commercial spaces, space available in the submarket, at 27,000 one at 1,410 square-feet which will be square feet, and the developer has been in leased, and another at 1,600 square feet various levels of discussions with several difwhich will be sold as a commercial con- ferent grocery store retailers, most generally dominium. The developer is in discussions considered “upscale,” “gourmet” or “bouwith a settlement company, a coffee retailer, tique,” to take a majority of the space. David DeSantis, Vice President of Sales a furniture retailer and a high-end electronics manufacturer (which sells its merchan- and Marketing for PN Hoffman, told The InTowner that they are “very committed dise through its own retail stores). to having a grocery in that building; the neighborhood has told us very clearly that Mid-City they want and need it, and the DC govern14th & U (R to Belmont Sts.) ment has indicated that it believes a grocery • Source Theater, 1835 14th Street NW. is an important use for at least some of After a long period of uncertainty, the Source that space.” Neighborhood activists have Theater building has been purchased by the been pushing for a Trader Joe’s, petitioning Cultural Development Corporation, a priboth the developer and the budget-oriented vate, non-profit group, and will be reopened gourmet grocer’s corporate offices to sign a as The Source, a center for the promotion lease. DeSantis indicated that the developer of the arts with new office space and classhas been in discussions with seven different rooms, and a refurbished 149-seat theater. companies, and stated, “It’s definitely going For a period, the building was under conto happen.” With the first residents expected tract to Bedrock Management, which had to move into the building in the summer of planned a restaurant and billiards hall for 2007, the commercial space could be built the building. The well-known local resout on the same timeline if an agreement taurateur withdrew its bid for the building is reached soon enough, with doors to the in light of strong public support, particugrocery opening at the same time as the larly among theatergoers and supporters, for condo building. keeping the building within the arts comThe developer is looking at other neighmunity. The Source Theater was one of the borhood-oriented retailers to occupy the original arts institutions to put roots down remaining commercial space. Categories on 14th Street, laying the foundation for include coffee shops, small restaurants, the neighborhood’s current revival, but had drug stores/pharmacies, even small furnibecome saddled with overwhelming rent, ture retailers, hair salons and dry cleaners. utility, tax and building maintenance costs. • T Street Flats, 14th and T streets. A luxury condominium combining the original structure facing 14th Street, for many years used by the Church of the Rapture, with a glassy, modern addition at the rear, • The Solea, 14th Street and Florida Avenue. This prominent corner has been called “the gateway to Columbia Heights,” and has been the subject of both design and Cont., RETAIL, p. 21 August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 11 NEIGHBORHOOD THEATER By Anthony L. Harvey DreamCity Theatre’s DC-Focused Play, The 70, Only to August 12 at MLK Library (9th & G Sts., NW) W hen asked by The InTowner what he thought of the extraordinarily responsive, packed house audience at the opening night premiere production of DreamCity Theatre Group’s Metro bus drama The 70, Charles Clyburn, who plays the lead role of “Mr. Wonderful,” the retiring (from his career as a Metro bus driver) but always articulate captain of his motoring ship, responded -- with gusto, “Man, that audience was not just there sitting out front, they were with me, on the bus!” And indeed, the 250 to 300 people in the Martin Luther King Memorial Library building’s lower level conference room (which had been expertly converted to an effective theatrical space by an artful layout of chairs for spectators and an appropriately minimalist but well-lighted stage set, raised and opened to an outline of a Metrobus interior) were treated to a riveting succession of one round after the other of passengers riding the number 70, the Georgia Avenue/7th Street bus that runs from Maine Avenue on the Southwest waterfront to the bus plaza at the Silver Spring Metrorail station. In a series of a dozen sequences in two acts, The 70 presents a range of passengers who reflect the colorful, even outrageous, demographics of metropolitan Washington, DC. The bus driver, aptly named “Mr. Wonderful,” and based on a “real life” person, is charmingly and poignantly realized both as conceptualized by playwrights John Muller and Justin McNeil, in their first dramatic work, and in a strong and sensitive performance by Charles Clyburn, whose obvious experience in both art and life shines with a deep, compassionate glow. As Mr. Wonderful, Clyburn provides the daily dose of wise and patient counsel to a cast that includes both “wannabe” miscreants and aspiring, idealistic young professionals. Life’s tragic victims also people Mr. Wonderful’s congregation of continually changing passengers, including, in a tour de force of ensemble performance, Clyburn contending with a character known as the Hack, a filthy, foul-mouthed White racist drunk who is almost frighteningly realized by a young actor named David Olmsted. photo—John Mai, courtesy DreamCity Theatre Group Mr. Wonderful’s verbal encounter, which becomes almost horrifically over the top, results in a Metrobus “death sentence;” the Hack is permanently banned. Olmstead also partners with Elwin Cotman, JD in an earlier role, to play a pair of interracial boyfriends serving as religious missionary brothers; this sequence serves as an hilarious counterpoint to the heartfelt portrayals elsewhere of classic African-American church ladies. And Shaunte McKissick is terrific as a “’70s”-style valley girl with an elegant Starbuck’s coffee drink in hand but nothing photo—John Mai, courtesy DreamCity Theatre Group. smaller than a $5 bill with which to pay her bus fare. The 70 is book-ended with exchanges between Mr. Wonderful and one of his most faithful and admiring passengers, the down and out bag lady named Gladys, who is affectingly and vigorously played by Barbara K. Asare-Bediako. Her feet are killing her Cont., THEATER, p. 13 Page 12 • The InTowner • August 2006 August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 13 Scenes from the Past... photo—Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. The Zalmon Richards House at 1301 Corcoran Street, NW as it appeared in 1974. M any passersby notice eleas a Superintendent of Police gant brass plaques mounted from 1864 to 1878. on Washington’s numerous hisZalmon Richards had been toric buildings, but the one on the born on a farm in Cummington, house at 1301 Corcoran Street, Massachusetts on August 11, NW that simply reads “Zalmon 1811, the son of Nehemiah and Richards House” certainly tends Elizabeth (Packard) Richards. to arouse curiosity. Just who was He attended the Cummington this man with the odd first name, Academy and the Southampton and why was he important? Academy to prepare for his entry Some quick research reveals into Williams College in 1832. that Richards (1811-1899) was a His tuition was paid for by prileader in both local and national vate teaching and small loans that public and private education, he repaid after his graduation in and one of the founders of the 1836. He also pledged himself National Education Association to abstain from alcoholic beverand the Young Men’s Christian ages when he joined the Baptist Association (YMCA). He and church just prior to his underarchival image—Crimelibrary.com. his second wife lived at 1301 graduate work. Corcoran Street from 1882 until Mary F. Mather, Zalmon Richards’ secRichards returned to his alma ond wife, was a direct descendant of Rev. his death in 1899. Her family Cotton Mather, shown here, who was chief- mater to become the principal of members, on the other hand, were ly responsible for the Salem witch trials. the Cummington Academy after chiefly responsible for the infareceiving an M.A. degree in 1838. mous Salem witch trials! The following year, he married his Research does not reveal the origin of his rather assistant teacher, Minerva A. Todd, and they moved to unusual first name, however. It is curious to note that teach at the Stillwater Academy in New York. he signed his name only with a ‘Z,’ and was known to Richards became principal of the preparatory school have “vials of wrath if one called him ‘Zed.’” (Allen for Columbian College in Washington beginning C. Clark, Records of the Columbia Historical Society, December 1, 1848. The school was established for stuvol. 42/43, p. 145.) His brother was seemingly equally dents wishing to enter Columbian College (now The cursed, having been named Almarin. He served as George Washington University) and was then located a principal of the old Prescott High School on 8th at 14th and N Streets, NW. Built of brick in 1822, it Street, between K and L Streets, NW., and also served measured 25 by 30 feet and housed about 17 students. The school had a checkered past due to the fact that during its first 26 years in existence, from 1822-1848, it had no less than 17 principals. Zalmon served as its principal until 1851. In the 1850s, the termination of the school year in Washington was marked by examinations, followed by public presentation of prizes. In 1851, a parade of 2,000 students marched through the streets of Washington, joined by the Marine Corps Band, Mayor Walter Lenox, and trustees of the public schools, who were all greeted by thousands of spectators; Richards then addressed the crowds. On September 12, 1851, Richards and his wife purchased a 43-by-103-foot vacant lot the northwest corner of New York Avenue and 14th Street, NW and opened the Union Academy the following year. On June 9, 1852, Richards attended the preliminary organizational meeting at the Masonic Hall of the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA), which he served as its first president, beginning later that month; The YMCA first occupied the buildings at 437-441 7th Street, NW. The Academy flourished until 1862, when Richards was employed as a clerk at the Treasury Department during the Civil War. His wife ran the Academy alone until the end of his Treasury job 1867. That year, Richards had become active in securing the establishment of the National Department of Education, and served as its clerk until it was transferred to the Interior Department in 1869, when he went back to teach at his Union Academy. From 1869 to 1871, he served as the first appointed superintendent of public schools in the District of Columbia. He was later appointed the city’s auditor from 1872 to 1874. Apparently, Richards enjoyed becoming intimately involved in new organizations for which he had a passion; he attended the organizational meeting of the National Teachers Association on August 26, 1857, and was elected as its first president as well. It later became the National Education Association. Among its founding members at least one-fourth were faculty members or administrators from institutions of higher learning, including John Seeley Hart of Princeton, Calvin Pease of the University of Vermont, and James R. Challen of Northwestern University. Earlier, on June 3, 1861, Richards had been sworn in as a Union supporter to the city’s Common Council, representing the Second Ward. His brother Almarin was elected from the Third Ward. The election meeting had not gone smoothly, however, as the Star reported in its May 29, 1861 edition: “The meeting finally adjourned with an indefinite amount of blowing, and in going out somebody’s fist accidentally got into another body’s face whereupon photo—John Mai, courtesy DreamCity Theatre Group. THEATER From p. 11 photo—Historic American Buildings Survey, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division. The north side of the eastern end of the 1300 block of Corcoran Street was built sometime between 1874 and 1878 in what was then the popular French Mansard style. The Richards house, shown here in this 1974 photograph, occupies the corner lot. half a dozen pitched into everybody in general and no one in particular, the only object appearing to be a desire to let some one fight out. Heads went down and heels flew up; benches rolled up among themselves in a hurry, and several serious collisions occurred at the door between those getting out and others getting in.” A true renaissance man, on July 4, 1864, Richards even witnessed the signing of a dedicatory hymn he had composed for the opening of the Wallach School. In 1871 he attempted a partnership with Henry R. Miles to manufacture paper files and carpet stretchers on the Academy grounds; that venture failed the following year. The Academy itself was foreclosed upon in August of 1877, and Richards and his wife moved into the Rugby Hotel. Richards’ first wife, Minerva, had died in the afternoon of July 15, 1873; just 13 months later, on August 19, 1874, he married Mary Frances. Mary had been born in Darien, Connecticut on November 5, 1835. She was 24 years his junior (he was 63; she then 39). Mary was a direct, lineal descendant of the famous Rev. Cotton Mather (1663-1728), a Puritan minister at Boston’s Old North Church and chief cause and promoter of the Salem witch trials. Following the wedding in Darien, they resided on the Academy grounds at 1401 New York Avenue, NW. In 1882, they moved into 1301 Corcoran Street, and resided there until her death in 1896, and his death there at 4:15 a.m. on November 1, 1899. He is interred in a family plot in Oak Hill Cemetery next to his two wives. The Zalmon Richards house was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966 as an individual landmark, long before the surrounding neighborhood was considered for historic district status. —Paul Kelsey Williams Historic Preservation Specialist Kelsey & Associates, Washington, DC Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. & Paul Kelsey Williams. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. photo—University of Maryland Archives. Civil War photographer Matthew Brady took these images of Zalmon Richards about 1865. A noted educator, he resided at 1301 Corcoran Street, NW from 1882 until his death there in 1899. and Mr. Wonderful’s parting gift to Gladys as he closes his career by completing his last run as the No. 70 bus driver is nothing less than “wonderful.” The opening night audience included family and friends of the entire DreamCity Theatre Group, and such admiring supporters as Dan Tangherlini, Metro’s Interim General Manager, who, in speaking with The InTowner following the performance, praised DreamCity’s successful capturing of the diversity and egalitarianism of Washington’s Metrobus ridership, the integral part played by “The 70” in the daily lives of its passengers, and the theatrical skills displayed by the entire cast and creators of the play. And indeed, the impor- tance of “the public, neighborhood bus” to the lives of passengers throughout the city is among the many thoughtful, underlying themes of this impressively realized urban drama. The play’s two acts, presented without intermission in approximately 90 minutes, is tightly and terrifically directed by Michelle Orr, effectively using its basic stage props and set to move its action briskly through its replication of Mr. Wonderful’s final tour of duty driving the No. 70 Metrobus; it makes for an unforgettable ride. The 70 will end its run with the Sunday afternoon (3:30 p.m.), August 12th performance -- free with no reservations required -- at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library. ■ Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. SUMMER SALE • August 5-13, 2006 • All Items 10-30% off Page 14 • The InTowner • August 2006 THE PHILLIPS COLLECTION 21st & Q Sts., NW; tel., 387-2151 Tue.-Sat., 10am-5pm; Thu to 8:30pm; Sun., Noon-7pm Klee + all exhibits: $12 ($10 seniors/students) Permanent Coll. only: weekdays by donation) At the Museums By Anthony L. Harvey P aul Klee’s delightfully enigmatic and endlessly creative artistic output was wonderfully recognized in critic Henry McBride’s early 1924 observation in the New York Herald where he characterized Klee as “that strange meteor from Switzerland.” In a stunningly attractive exhibition of 80 works from American museums, galleries, and private collections, including 13 of its own, The Phillips Collection has mounted a fitting celebration of the profound impact on American art and culture of Klee’s paintings, drawings, and watercolors. Paul Klee’s work is almost the apotheosis of an artist’s dream sensibility -- one in the case of Klee that was acutely attuned to the very creativity of life itself. Klee’s emotional and cognitive sensibility embraced and reflected everything he encountered, from man’s parallels and intersections with nature and natural forms and shapes, with the immanent designs and communications of the human psyche -- and with colors and the uncanny. Klee’s fascination with the dancing line of life, in both its expressive flowering and its poignant enclosures is captivating on every occasion. In spite of the confused celebration of Klee by the surrealists and the brutal demonization of Klee by the Nazis (his work was prominently featured in their infamous “degenerate art” show), avant-garde artists and connoisseur collectors in America purchased his work beginning in the early 1920s for inclusion in the first museums of modern art -- The Phillips and New York’s Museum of Modern Art and by what is now known as the Guggenheim. And the continuing championing of Klee’s work by Alexander Calder, Duncan Phillips, Katherine Drier, Mark Tobey, and Walter and Louise Arensberg ensured an American audience for Klee during the dark days of the 19390s and 1940s. The 80 wonderful works presently on display in this “Klee and America” exhibit range in date from 1913 to 1939; Klee died in 1940 at age 60. Their styles include densely composed, imagistic fantasies -- brilliantly colored -- whimsical line drawings of an almost child-like joyous celebration, along with watercolor paintings that mix geometric abstractions with scenes of seaside regattas. It is especially fascinating to observe the intersections of Klee’s work with that of his many talented contemporaries. Where many of these artists used the insights of cubism, surrealism, symbolism, and the imaginary to constrict, destruct, and reduce their work to anti-humanist rejections of the body and its natural world -- to insist in their work on the break-up and elimination of figurative and pictorial forms Picture Album (1937) Yellow House (1915). Woman with Parasol (ca. 1883–‘85). Cold City (1921). A Special Treat A ccompanying “Klee and America” is an interesting, small display of early childhood drawings by Klee and Pablo Picasso together with other drawings by children. Entitled “When We Were Young: New Perspectives on the Art of the Child,” this focused study exhibition is accompanied by a scholarly monograph that inaugurates museum’s ambitious program for its new Center for the Study of Modern Art. Like the large “Klee and America” show, this small and intriguing display continues through September 10. Small Picture of a Regatta (1922). -- Klee’s compositions marched forward with never-ending creativity and life-affirming glee, complete with a mature, ironic reflection. Among my many favorites in this exhibition are the following standouts: Hoffmannesque Tale (1921); The Twittering Machine, Small Pictures of a Regatta, and The Red Balloon from 1922; Sketch in the Manner of a Carpet (1923); Youth Actor’s Mask (1924); Palace, Partly Destroyed (1925); Conjuring Trick (1927); Monument Under Construction (1929); Arabian Song (1932); and Gaze of Silence (1935). The generosity of 40 museums and galleries and three private collections which allowed for the provision of the 80 works in this show is noteworthy. And Klee’s work further lends itself to large format art book reproduction. The exhibition catalog accompanying this show is excellent and the scholarly articles surrounding the beautiful four-color reproductions of all 80 works in the exhibition are engagingly written and very informative. Through September 10. *Anthony L. Harvey is a collector of contemporary art, with an emphasis on Washington artists. He is a founding member of the Washington Review of the Arts. For many years he was the staff person in the United States Senate responsible for arts and Library of Congress oversight by the Senate’s Rules and Administration Committee and the House and Senate’s Joint Committee on the Library. August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 15 HIRSHHORN MUSEUM & SCULTURE GARDEN Independence Ave. at 7th St., SW; Tel., 357-1300 / Daily, 10am-5:30pm I n a deeply troubling yet powerfully compelling exhibition of a half-dozen mixedmedia masterwork paintings, together with three-dozen robustly precious sculptures, smaller paintings, and watercolor drawings on paper, the contemporary German artist Anselm Kiefer is currently being gifted by the Hirshhorn with a grandly installed exhibition of his artistic output through 2005. This represents the second large museum show at the Hirshhorn for Kiefer -- the first having been almost 20 years ago -- and is complemented for Washingtonians with the National Gallery of Art’s installation in its permanent collection of two of Kiefer’s most grandiose works, his Angel of History sculpture from 1989 of a childishly constructed large model of a ruined World War II bomber with gashingly truncated wings atop of which sit crudely made folio books with molten lead leaves, and his huge, open field landscape collage/painting titled Zum Zum from 1990 where a central body of water is flanked by farmland of charred stubble. Kiefer is a child of the dying days of the Third Reich , apparently born in Berlin in early 1945; he appears to be in deep Leviathan (2005). Speer for Third Reich and Nazi party commemorative buildings. Here is Kiefer’s curator and interpreter Michael Auping on Albert Speer: “Like Schmitt, Speer was a controversial German figure whose ambitions toward exalted schemes combining the political and the spiritual found unholy results.” Like when Speer knowingly used slave labor from concentration camps for his late, wartime industrial enterprises, perhaps? And yet Auping somehow perceives deep spiritual meaning in Kiefer’s evocations of Albert Speer’s design and architectural accomplishments as Hitler’s master builder. According to Auping, Kiefer only became interested in an artistic career upon meeting Joseph Beuys one weekend and subsequent- The Order of Angels (1985-’87). mourning for the devastation that occurred in Germany during World War II. One learns from the idolatrous essay by Michael Auping in the exhibition catalog for the Hirshhorn’s current exhibition, which is modestly titled “Heaven and Earth,” that Kiefer began his adult life as an admiring student of the Nazi Party’s court jurist Carl Schmitt, theoretician for the justification as progress of the use of physical violence in the idealistic creation of the ideal and authoritarian state presided over by the great ruler -- in this case, Adolph Hitler, himself. By all accounts, Schmitt waged endless war on what he considered to be a delusion, namely the individualistic ideals of the enlightenment and its humanistic respect for the rights of every individual. This is how Auping describes Carl Schmitt: “A devout Catholic, Schmitt’s philosophy fell on the side of authoritarianism for the sake of progress and what he envisioned as a greater idealism.” This whitewashing of Schmitt flies in the face of the fierce arguments currently raging over the use by neo-conservative officials in the present Bush administration of Schmitt’s philosophy—at least of that part of the philosophy transmitted by his protégé Leo Strauss at the University of Chicago. And such terrifying concepts as the authoritarian leader being the “decisionist” who harnesses man’s violent nature for progressive “idealistic aggressions” is what Schmitt philosophy is all about. What Keifer is all about is coyly covered up in powerfully executed canvas landscapes and enigmatically weak small paintings and water color drawings—all of which imply that Kiefer is some kind of prophetic avatar for man in these post“holocaust” times. Schmitt is even celebrated by name in one of Kiefer’s paintings. Albert Speer is celebrated by Kiefer’s depictions of Speer’s signature Nazi light shows—for party celebrations—and drawings framed by large, shed like classical structures designed by Star Fall (1995). Paul Celan. About Celan, Auping provides the further disservice of simply repeating the same errors and misinformation from earlier art writings regarding Celan and his tragic and suicidal life. And why, we might ask, do we not hear directly from Kiefer. Again, according to Auping and the Hirshhorn’s collaborating curator, Kiefer is too busing creating his art; he refuses, it was said at the Museum’s press conference for this show, “to break his artistic concentration by appearing in public,” even, apparently for an exhibition of his own work—one which is powerful and intriguing and cries out for an explication from the artist himself. Kiefer’s almost overwhelming work in no way--other than the obviously irrelevant--explains itself. Whatever, the last work in this Heaven and Earth, homage to Anselm Kiefer is a huge and terrific expressionistic landscape painting with a glacier piling into the sea and a toy submarine dangling by a string onto and in front of the lower mid foreground of the work. The painting is called Leviathan, no doubt in keeping with a continuing if posthumous collaboration with Carl Schmitt’s analytical riffs on the Biblical monster of that name and the famous treatise by Man in the Forest (1971). Thomas Hobbs, brilly spending three weeks as the guest of “the liantly misinterpreted by Schmitt. hounds of heaven” at the Dominican monAnselm Kiefer’s content filled paintings astery of La Tourette, one of Le Corbussier’s are bigger than life—even bigger than those late architectural accomplishments. In a of his fellow expressionist Julian Schnabel. single cell at La Tourette, as the artist Dangerous though they may be, they are remembers it, recalls Auping, Kiefer “spent unforgettable to experience. The show conhis three weeks just thinking quietly about tinues through September 10, 2006, free to the large questions,” heaven and earth, for the public in an expansively laid out exhibiexample. Aupig opaquely and referentially tion that is a credit to the Hirshhorn’s staff. ■ associates Kiefer with an extraordinarily large and diverse grab bag of historical and legendary figures—from Gilgamesh Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. and medieval Jewish mystics in Spain to All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in Immanuel Kant and the problematic poet part without permission is prohibited. Page 16 • The InTowner • August 2006 Part I of this story focused on the beloved olive tree of ancient Greece, especially its mythic qualities. Part II concludes with the olive’s arrival in Italy. Food in the ‘Hood By Joel Denker T he Romans were enthusiastic olive eaters. To give the fruit a sprightly flavor, they steeped it in oil, garlic, and salt, a marinade we have inherited. Street vendors hawked olives in cones made of papyrus and sold olive cakes accented with cumin, anise, and fennel. “There are two liquids especially appealing to the human body, wine inside and oil outside,” Pliny, the Roman naturalist, wrote. His society gloried in both the olive and grape on festive occasions. A shop in Pompeii, unearthed by archaeologists, provided partygoers with olive wreathes to wear and with oils to beautify their bodies. A practical people, the Romans improved techniques for processing olive oil and exploited it as a commercial product. Donkeys pulled wheels made of millstones that pulped the fruit. A screw press, a Roman invention, extracted oil from the paste. The mills produced a spectrum of oil -- from the most luxurious to the ordinary. Even its wastes had value. The black residue was used as a weed killer and as an insecticide. Since the olive crop in Rome and its colonies was uneven, plentiful one year and meager the next, the empire faced an ongoing dilemma. The answer was trade. To fill in the gaps, Rome, especially, depended on “A Taste as Old as Cold Water”*: The Story of the Olive — Part II Editor’s Note: The writer, a former Peace Corp volunteer in Africa many years ago, is the author of Capital Flavors: Exploring Washington’s Ethnic Restaurants (1988, Seven Locks Press), which evolved from his series in this newspaper over a decade ago, known then as “The Ethnic Bazaar.” In addition, in June 2003, his The World on a Plate: A Tour Through the History of America’s Ethnic Cuisines was published by Westview Press (www. westviewpress.com), in which part of one chapter was drawn from articles that originally had appeared in this space. Queries, comments, suggestions can be sent to [email protected]. imports of the commodity. The colony of Tunisia was by the 4th century A.D. Rome’s largest provisioner of olive oil. The Romans wrung a bountiful crop from the barren soil in the country’s interior. They invested large sums in olive mills and large presses that could turn out oil in bulk. The oil business enriched African traders, who showed off their wealth in expensive villas. Magnates parlayed their financial gains into political influence. African businessmen held seats in the Roman Senate. Spain, the largest exporter of olive oil today, grew into an oil bastion during Roman rule. The Phoenicians, mariners who sailed Celebrating Our 19th Year! We could not have done it without you! Enjoy our acclaimed Regional Italian cuisine at moderate prices, overlooking the bustling neighborhood scene out from what is now Lebanon, planted the land’s first olive groves. By the 2nd century A.D., the Roman occupiers had built an extensive system of orchards and oil mills in the Southern region of Andalusia. Along the banks of rivers, kilns manufactured amphorae, the vessels in which oil was transported to market. Hundreds of thousands of these vases, classical scholar D.J. Mattingly points out, were crafted a year to meet the insatiable demand in the capital. Vessels plied the rivers loaded with stores. Visit Rome today and gaze at Mount Testaccio, a hill, near the wharves of the old city, formed from discarded or smashed amphorae. Fortunes were also made from Spanish oil. Although Italian-born, illustrious families, like those of Trajan and Hadrian, reaped huge profits in the Iberian colony. The Moors, who invaded Spain in the 7th century A.D. and who controlled large parts of the country for several centuries, revitalized olive culture. Keen agriculturalists, the Muslims laid out new fields and tended them religiously. The center of cultivation continued to be Andalusia, which today produces 80 percent of Spain’s olives. The familiar pimento stuffed green olives, the Manzanillas (or “little apples”), are grown in this region. Olive oil was only slowly accepted by the Spanish Christians, who stuck to lard in their cooking. Because olive oil was associated with Muslims and Jews, Catholics shunned it. After the Reconquista, the vanquishing of the Islamists by the Christians, pork was extolled. In time, though, olive oil became the country’s flavoring of choice. The Spanish names for olive and olive oil, aceite and aceituna respectively, are Arabic in origin. The olive was incorporated in Church rituals. Priests were ordained by anointments of oil, a symbol of constancy. On holy days, worshippers were blessed with olive fronds often cut from trees grown on Church land. During the Lenten fast, many Catholics abstained from butter in favor of olive oil. Spain was eager to adorn its colonies with the olive tree. Since the fruit only flourished in a Mediterranean climate, the crown’s ambitions went largely unfulfilled. The tropical climate of the Spanish possessions in the Caribbean, Cuba and Hispaniola, was hostile to the olive. In Latin America, only along the desert coast of Peru was there fertile ground for the Spanish import. In North America, Thomas Jefferson, who called the olive “the worthiest plant to be introduced into America,” found the South inhospitable to large-scale cultivation. The continent’s West Coast was friendlier. The Franciscan friars, who pioneered Spanish settlement of California, carried olive cuttings there from Mexico in the 1700s. In addition to pears, pomegranates, figs, dates, and almonds, the padres filled their mission gardens with olive trees, which they planted primarily for their oil. The variety was naturally called a “mission” olive. The West Coast olive industry didn’t take off until the late 19th century, when the number of orchards had expanded and when the product shipped in railcars arrived in the Middle West and East. The California olive was a characteristically American invention, a creation of technology and mass production. Freda Ehman, whose son owned an olive ranch in the state, devised a way to chemically ripen green fruit. On the back porch of her daughter’s home in Oakland, historian Raymond Sokolov recounts, she tinkered with curing methods. She discovered that a lye bath would produce a “black ripe” olive. This olive was perfect for canning. Techniques for pitting, sizing, and stuffing the fruit were also developed. The massproduced, bland olive appealed to a public fearful of any exotic item with a sharp, pungent taste. Since then we have grown more accustomed to the olive. But it is still not part of our daily routine. How many of us place a plate of olives on our dining tables before a meal? We are a long way from being aficio■ nados. * The quote in the title is from author Lawrence Durrell. Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. & Joel Denker. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Mediterranean Olive Outlets • L’Enfant Café-Bar: 2000 18th St. This Adams-Morgan bistro serves tapenade, a Mediterranean olive spread. Patio Dining • Piano Player Convenient to major hotels and Dupont Circle Metro 1701 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. Washington D.C. 20009 (202) 667-5505 VALET PARKING FOR OUR DINNER CUSTOMERS • Pyramids: 600 Florida Ave. Try the chicken tagine, a Moroccan stew flavored with olives. • Todito Grocery, 1813 Columbia Rd; tel., 986-5680. This Latin grocery carries an assortment of olive products, including Manzanilla Spanish olives; Alcaparrado, a mixture of capers, green olives, and capers; and large purple Peruvian olives. August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 17 RESERVATIONS RECOMMENDED By Alexandra Greeley* W. DOMKU Neighborhood Eclectic F or non-city slickers, finding the way to W Domku (the ‘W’ means “in the little house,” said the waitress) in the Petworth neighborhood is a bit of a challenge. And if you arrive with no preconceived notions about the restaurant, you may be left puzzling over what it all means. At least, this one-size-fits-all place echoed for me sounds of Berkeley and Birkenstock past with its post-Salvation Army era eclectic and mis-matched furniture, artwork (some of it oversized) on the walls, and casual air that welcomes readers, chatters, eaters. In some ways, it resembles your crazy aunt’s parlor, assuming she drinks lots of vodka in one corner of the room and loves to play pool behind a partition. Come one, come all. Finding the right mindset for Domku is one thing, but figuring out the menu is quite another. I was under the mistaken impression that breakfast is served daily, and figured on splurging with some interesting waffles or pancakes. As it turns out, management has trimmed back its breakfast days to Friday and Saturday only, deleting Thursdays, and leaving lunchers with the regular menu to pour over on other days. As luck would have it, the day I dropped by, several of the menu items hadn’t made it to the kitchen yet, but there were still plenty of choices, if one could only figure them all out. Which, a bison burger Svenska or a Polska kielbasa and kapusta? Nope -- too much food for a hot day. Well, how about a gravlax sandwich or possibly a plate of Swedish meatballs? Or maybe the braised beef wrapped with lefse, a potato flatbread? Nope, nope, and nope. What I really wanted was an order of Norwegian pancakes with a shot of one of their chilled and oddball vodkas, but instead, I settled for the cheese nalesniki, or Polish crêpes filled with buckwheat, mushrooms, leeks, and, of course, cheese. What the waitress -- she was another reminder of hippier days gone by — forgot to mention was that the crêpes take forever to cook. Other patrons came in, were served, and were happily working on their desserts while the crêpes baked away in the kitchen. All this wait time allows patrons to ponder the joys of such cocktails as the Swedie See the last issue on our website: www.intowner.com Pie, Budapest Daily, Velvet Revolution, and Rzeczypospolitu Petsworthka; you’ll have to stop by to find out. And that’s not even dreaming of their slew of Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian beers. All I know is that the coffee was good and bracing — and very nonalcoholic. As it turns out, the crêpes are, well, thin pancakes wrapped around a filling, and these were no different than crêpes elsewhere, except that they took so long to bake; I guess the cheese needed to melt. While not a three-cheers entrée, they did pass muster and satisfied the inner pancake person, especially the rich sauce, which was, I suspect, three parts heavy cream to three parts cheese. Intriguing, too, is finding a scattering of buckwheat as part of the filling. Just don’t consider the crêpes if you are in a hurry; if you do, bring along a book or the morning paper to while away the time. And don’t skip the single-layer almond cake for dessert — the only cake on offer that day — because its frosting is a smooth almond paste studded with sliced almonds. The waitress noted that there wasn’t much else offered for dessert anyway. If you think W Domku is a bit of a puzzle, just take it all in stride. Yes. it’s a bit wacky, a bit out there, a bit edgy, and the food does not resemble much else served in town. So ■ have a good time! Drink vodka. W Domku • 821 Upshur St., NW; tel., 722-7475. Hours: Tue.-Thu., 11am-11pm; Fri. & Sat., 8am-10pm; Sun. brunch, 10am-3pm. Entrée price range: $10-$18. Visa & MasterCard accepted. Alexandra Greeley is a food writer, editor, and restaurant reviewer. She has authored books on Asian and Mexican cuisines published by Simon & Schuster, Doubleday, and Macmillan. Other credits include restaurant reviews and food articles for national and regional publications, as well as former editor of the Vegetarian Times and former food editor/writer for the South China Morning Post in Hong Kong. Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. & Alexandra Greeley. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Alexandra Greeley’s reviews archived at www.intowner.com Page 18 • The InTowner • August 2006 TheInTowner Classifieds DEADLINES Ads received after the Monday deadline may be accepted on a space available basis, but subject to an additional service fee of $5 to cover extra production costs. For September 8 issue Friday, September 1 Mail with Check or Money Order to: InTowner Classifieds 1730-B Corcoran St.,NW Wash. 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PUBLICATION PRODUCTION AND DESIGN 5 Royal Street SE Leesburg, VA 20175 703-925-9322 • [email protected] • Unlimited Fabric Selection • Free In-Home Estimate • Pick-Up and Delivery • Major Credit Cards Accepted WINDOW FASHIONS WINDOW FASHIONS AND INTERIORS 75% OFF MINIBLINDS & MICROBLINDS 70% OFF VERTICALS & WOOD BLINDS 70% OFF DUETTES & PLEATED SHADES 40% OFF SILHOUETTES & WOVEN WOODS WILL BEAT ALL COMPETITORS BY 5% ROLLER SHADES, SHUTTERS, BALLOONS, ROMANS AND DRAPERIES FREE HOME SHOPPING with LICENSED INTERIOR DESIGNER ENVIRONMENTAL CONCEPTS DESIGN ENVIRONMENTAL CONCEPTS DESIGN • (202) 397-7909 (202) 397-7909 www.envirocondesign.com www.envirocondesign.com All Major Credit Cards These spaces available for $14.29 per column inch. ($50 per month) These spaces available for $14.29 per column inch. ($50 per month) These spaces available for $14.29 per column inch. ($50 per month) That’s about $1.65 per day! Even less with discounts! That’s about $1.65 per day! Even less with discounts! That’s about $1.65 per day! Even less with discounts! These spaces available for $14.29 per column inch. ($50 per month) These spaces available for $14.29 per column inch. ($50 per month) These spaces available for $14.29 per column inch. ($50 per month) That’s about $1.65 per day! Even less with discounts! That’s about $1.65 per day! Even less with discounts! That’s about $1.65 per day! Even less with discounts! www.intowner.com Page 20 • The InTowner • August 2006 WASH. HEIGHTS From p. 1 those atop the large, high-ceilinged, threelevel former automobile garage on 18th Street which used to house Dance Place and Cities served to further convert several key observers, including ANC commissioners, to the ranks of historic preservationists. Thus, by the time the three year-effort of the KCA and the HPO culminated in the presentation of an historic district application to the HPRB, there was little if any opposition to the proposed designation for the purely residential streets of “Washington Heights.” However, was both vehement and well-organized opposition over the inclusion of the commercial corridors on 18th Street and Columbia Road into the same historic preservation regime as that of the residential sections. Reasons for this strenuous opposition were forcefully expressed by a panel of property owners as being primarily the fact that the façades and front walls of these commercial structures, both those designated as “purpose built” and those which were previously residential, have been in continual renovation and reconfiguration over the past 40 to 50 years. The original front walls and applied embellishments are no longer present, they argued, and the very nature of the competitive Adams Morgan business culture occupying these buildings — especially the JO This Realtor® Is Not Your Average Jo. JO RICKS Associate Broker, CBR, GRI Specializing in Washington’s Downtown Neighborhoods Since 1980. Logan Circle Resident. 202.234.1784 x112 restaurants and bars, many of which have sidewalk patio seating — dictates constant commercial re-design, build-outs, and redecoration. Indeed, many of these buildings have already had their fronts built out to create additional space or to provide eye-catching display windows. Striking effects — out of character with the traditional classical architectural designs of Washington Heights residential properties — have already been achieved. Dr. Charles Brazie, on behalf of the Adams Morgan Business and Professional Association (ANBPA), observed that “most of these out-of-period alterations in buildings and building façades have occurred in the last 30 years, resulting in an attractive blend of unique and diverse neighborhood architecture reflecting the multi-cultural styles and diverse uses of the continuously evolving Adams Morgan community.” AMBPA’s Executive Vice President Pat Patrick joined Brazie (and Stephen Greenleigh in written testimony to the Board) noting that “almost all commercial lots in the 18th Street commercial corridor have been built out to, or just below, their FAR [allowable floor area ratio] so that additional development is economically prohibitive.” Patrick more precisely asserted that only one small portion of four contiguous lots and four other buildings on 18th Street have not been built out to their maximum developmental size. Patrick’s fears are those of Dr. Brazie’s, who concluded his testimony to the Board with the observation: “Thus, many property owners in our commercial strips view the actual aim of the applicant and its supporters is to obtain additional controls over the composition and operations of our commercial strips, rather than preserving the unique period character and scale of the neighborhood.” Brazie and Patrick both noted that over 80 percent of the commercial property owners being directly affected by this preservation designation had signed and sent petitions to HPRB in opposition to their inclusion. Two HPRB members countered with their opinion that it was ignorance on the part of the business community that was responsible for the vehemence of the opposition. Board member and architect Ronnie McGhee, however, pledged his intention that while serving on the HPRB he would keep in mind this phenomenon of a continual and constant evolution of the commercial store fronts in the affected area. “Historic” requests fared no better. In spellbinding testimony from resident property owner Joyce Douglass who lives in the 18th Street red brick row house purchased by her African-American businessman father before she was born, Ms. Douglass recounted playing across 18th Street in one of the city’s first neighborhood parks, the Happy Hollow Children’s playground. Proposed for inclusion in the new historic district along with the adjacent Marie H. Reed Community Learning Center, both were struck from inclusion for one novel and ��������������������������� ������������ �������������� �� � � � ����������������� ������������������ �������������� �������������� ���������������� ������������������� ��������� �������� �������������� ����������������������������������������������� ������������������������������������������� �������� ������������ ������������� ����� ���������������� �������� ���������������� ������������������� ������������������� ��������������������� ��������� ���������������������� ������������������� ���������������������� ������������������� ��������� distinguished 1930s Adams school. And the hole being created by the absence in the new district, or any other district, of the two Universal buildings on Connecticut Avenue between Florida Avenue and T Street was deemed necessary because they are “noncontributing structures.” The Wyoming apartment buildings, already established as protected historic landmarks, and located on the extreme western edge of the new district, however, were deemed part of Washington Heights because, said the proponents, the already landmarked buildings are “contiguous.” Comparing these rationales for the Washington Heights historic district with those of the recent district boundary expansion for Dupont Circle — where the Board’s expansive philosophy was that all sharp points and jagged edges be inclusively smoothed and that vacant lots and non-contributing structures be included for design review purposes (See, “Dupont Historic District Hearing Raising Policy Issues Seen as map—EHT Traceries, courtesy Kalorama Citizens Association. The original proposed eastern boundary bordering the Reed-Cooke Troubling,” InTowner, section of Adams Morgan did include the Marie Reed complex with its March 2005) —and school building and recreation areas, as can be seen in this first version of with no “donut holes” the map accompanying the initially-filed application. (This was first pub— leaves one in doubt lished by The InTowner as part of our April, 2006 page 1 report, “Adams Morgan ANC Gets Behind Historic District Designation for Large Swath as to the consistency of the HPRB’s legally bindof Area; Would Include 18th Street.”) ing rulings, as does the proposed drawing of a Center required exclusion because it was George Washington University historic dis“out-of-period” — both too new and infer- trict with lines simply including contributing entially too close to the district’s eastern and landmark- style structures. edge; ironically, the house a block away on HPRB Chairman Tersh Boasberg California Street where Bishop Marie H. noted the support, contained in written Reed lived is being included. Peter Lyden, correspondence to the Board, of Ward 1 who serves as president of the Reed-Cooke Councilmember Jim Graham for the new Neighborhood Association, which had historic district designation and called on joined in support of the KCA/HPO applica- Adams Morgan ANC Chairman Alan Roth tion primarily because of the inclusion of to wrap up the Board’s morning session by the Marie Reed site, eloquently bemoaned serving as the concluding witness, rather than being part of earlier HPRB considerits exclusion, but to no avail. Yet, this novel 1888 plat line argument did ation, as is customary for ANC testimony on not hold for the exclusion of the southeast- regulatory and administrative review matern section of the triangular shaped lot at the ters before DC boards and commissions. intersection of Florida Avenue, U Street, and Boasberg asserted to the Board and the 18th Street, where the building line for the audience that he and ANC Chairman Roth newly constructed “Mint” was decreed for had done this before, and very effectively, exclusion—being deemed a non-contribut- he stressed. ing structure on the edge of the historic disIn a forceful, well-organized prepared trict and required by the rules and guidelines statement, Roth strongly supported the KCA/ of the National Register of Historic Places HPO application and provided the Board to be excluded. The use of this 19th century with copies, in reverse chronological order, plat line results in the creation of what the of his outreach and informing efforts to his HPRB/HPO call “jagged lines and sharp own single member district, which is in the points” — to be avoided in historic districts. new historic district, and to the ANC generAnd the exclusion of out-of-period boundary ally — in both English and Spanish, but not, edge structures seemed violated by the Board admitted Roth in a lighter tone, in Amharic. in its inclusion in the new district of several The ANC itself, as Roth reiterated, suprecently constructed modernist buildings at ported the Washington Heights application the extreme northeast tip of the new district by a record vote six-to-one. Following the — east of 18th Street at Columbia Road and HPRB’s unanimous approval, it was asserted Euclid Street. by several persons that in light of the wellThe western boundary of the new district known multi-cultural nature of the Adams has its own particularities, proceeding as Morgan commercial strips which are now it does up the eastern side of 19th Street part of this new historic district, it was ironic from Florida Avenue to Vernon Street, then that the crowded audience in attendance at crossing westwardly to wrap around the this determinative session was a sea of white John Quincy Adams School and extending faces, with only three African-Americans to Columbia Road, California Street, and present, and seemingly no Latinos or Asians ■ Connecticut Avenue, thus carefully exclud- in attendance. ing the entire Hilton Hotel site because, it was said, this site is to become its own Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. historic landmark. However, no historic All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in landmark designation was proposed for the part without permission is prohibited. one unusual reason. The novel reason was that the eastern boundary line drawn on the 1888 Washington Heights plat excluded all but a small portion of Happy Hollow—and this line was controlling for the new district. Further, it was asserted that Marie H. Reed August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 21 RETAIL From p. 10 retail debate in the community. (See “New Projects Bridging Gap on 14th Street; U Street & Columbia Heights Linking Up, InTowner, May 2005, page 1.). Community activists had originally been calling for Trader Joe’s to locate in the building’s 4,800 square-foot commercial space, but the developer, Jair Lynch, won the rights to develop the parcel partially on the basis that they promised to sell a portion of the commercial space (50 percent, or two, 1,200 square-foot spaces) to two local retailers who had been feeling the pressure of rising rents in the neighborhood. With commercial and retail development blossoming throughout the neighborhood, the pressure to locate the grocer in the “gateway” space has abated, and the two retailers, Trade Secrets and Zawadi, are firmly under contract. The remaining 2,400 square feet, also a retail condominium, are being marketed to neighborhood-oriented retailers such as a coffee shop. With groundbreaking scheduled for fall 2006, grand openings could come in 2007. • View14, 2303 14th Street and Nehemiah Center, 2400 14th Street. Level 2 Development is planning two large condominium buildings across 14th Street from each other. The first, View14, which was the subject of an extensive report on the sale of the landmark Petrovitch building a year ago in this newspaper (“Longtime 14th St. Auto Repair Business Sells Property to Developer,” July 2005, page 1), includes 36,000 square feet of commercial space. At grade, the developer is marketing 16,000 square feet of retail space to small grocers, restaurants, banks and other neighborhoodoriented, pedestrian friendly businesses. There are plans for an outdoor seating area on the Belmont Street side of the building. In the 20,000 square-feet of commercial space on the building’s lower level, the developer is in negotiations to install a stateof-the-art fitness center. Across the street, the developer plans to replace the Nehemiah Center, a one-story complex with surface parking, with a 225unit condominium building designed by noted architect Shalom Baranes. The building will feature a rooftop pool and green spaces that extend from the lobby outside to the courtyard of the building, with units ranging from studios to two-bedrooms. It will include 18,000 square feet of retail at grade, which the developer will market in the same way as the street-level retail at View14. Upper 14th Street Columbia Heights • The Heights of Columbia, 2750 14th Street. This 56-unit condominium building, almost complete at press time, will include 5,000 square feet of retail space and half of its residential units set aside as affordable housing. The developer is looking at a number of combinations for the retail space, but has established a 2,500 square-foot sitdown restaurant as its top priority and is in discussions with a number of national foodservice companies. Once the lead tenant is identified, the remainder of the space, including some below grade if appropriate, will be marketed, as noted by leasing broker Len Harris, to “banks to fitness studios and everything in between.” Harris noted that the developer is “trying to do right by the neighborhood, which they recognize is moving in an upward direction.” • Kenyon Square and Highland Park, 14th Street at Irving and Kenyon Streets. Donatelli Development was awarded the rights to develop two prominent parcels photo—Michael K. Wilkinson—The InTowner. View looking east from the 14th and Kenyon Streets intersection. Construction of Donetelli Development’s Kenyon Square project is well-advanced, as can be seen to the right; on the left is shown the just completed Park Triangle rental apartment building. across the street from each other, both directly over entrances to the Columbia Heights Metro station. Construction on Kenyon Square, on the east side of 14th Street, is further along and includes 19,000 square feet of retail space. At the building’s northwest corner, along Kenyon Street, the developer has signed a lease with renowned local restaurant group EatWell DC, whose other establishments include Logan Tavern, Grillfish and Merkado Kitchen. The new restaurant will feature a high-end but relaxing atmosphere similar to the other restaurants in the group. It will also feature a 1,600 square-foot outdoor seating area along Kenyon Street, and will include brunch in its programming. The restaurant is tentatively dubbed “The Heights.” Build-out is expected to begin in January 2007, with an anticipated grand opening in the spring or summer. For space elsewhere in the building, the developer is close to finalizing leases with BB&T Bank, which will be located in the corner next to the entrance to Metro, and Starbucks, which will be located in one of the spaces along the 14th Street side of the building. Across the street at Highland Park, Donatelli is holding the prominent corner space (facing Metro) for a well-known food service establishment, as the terms of the lease are worked out. Additional negotiations are under way with other retailers including a day spa, a national pizza retailer, a branch of a local burger chain, and a national copy shop/small business support services store. They have also received strong interest from two veterans of their Ellington project at 13th and U Streets, restaurants Alero and Sala Thai. For the remaining space not currently under negotiation, the developer is looking to place home furnishings and clothing retailers, and a small restaurant. While the developer has no mandate to offer discounted terms to local small, minority or disadvantaged business enterprises (LSMDBEs), president Chris Donatelli told The InTowner they would be willing to “work with the smaller guys on terms that are flexible and meet their specific needs, with negotiable items including lease start dates, build-out allowances and security deposits,” among other things. • Park Triangle, 1375 Kenyon Street. One of the first of the big new residential buildings to deliver in Columbia Heights, with residents already filling the hallways, Park Triangle has signed leases for nearly all of the 18,000 square feet of retail space in its prominent location facing the public plaza at the intersection of Kenyon Street, Park Road and 14th Street. Tenants will include Sticky Fingers, a vegan bakery which will serve sandwiches and soups and feature outdoor seating; Pollo Campero, a Salvadoran chicken restaurant with a combination of sit-down, take-out and outdoor seating; a T-Mobile cellular phone retailer; a dry cleaner; a Citibank branch, which developer Ernie Markus notes is “architecturally more interesting than most other banks;” a Lafayette Federal Credit Union; and an Allstate Insurance branch office. Two slots remain available, one at 1,200 square feet and the other at 2,400 square feet. Presently the developer is in negotiations with a locally-owned “Tryst-style place, more lounge than coffee house,” as Markus describes it; and a frozen dessert retailer. • DC-USA, 14th Street between Irving Street and Park Road. Over six years in the making and the centerpiece of the Columbia Heights redevelopment, DCUSA is a 585,000 square-foot, retail-only development with over 1,000 underground parking spaces. Of all the developments along 14th Street, DC-USA has been the most publicized and debated, particularly as all parties involved (the developer, the city and the neighborhood) worked to find a solution for how to finance a three-level underground parking structure. With construction under way, retail broker Peter Mallios of Newmark Knight Frank reports to The InTowner that 13 leases have been signed and many more are under negotiation. The project will have three levels of retail, with anchor retailer Target occupying half of the second and third floors of the project. The second half of the top floor will be occupied by Washington Sports Center (WSC) in what Mallios referred to as the company’s “largest prototype urban location,” with a full-size pool and basketball courts. There is one more small space available on the top floor. Sharing the second floor with Target will be Bed, Bath & Beyond and Best Buy, with one more large space available, over which the developer is negotiation with a large sporting goods chain. Several smaller spaces remain available on the second level. On the street level, Caribou Coffee will occupy the marquis corner space facing the Metro station. Elsewhere along Irving, 14th and Park: Lane Bryant, a women’s clothing retailer; Marshall’s, a discount clothing and home goods retailer; Mattress Discounters; Panda Express, a Chinese food restaurant; Quizno’s, a locally-owned sandwich shop; Radio Shack; Staples; and the Vitamin Shoppe. Approximately 80,000 square feet remain available, half of which has been covered by Letters of Intent, and half of which is open to new opportunities. The developer has been in discussions with a shoe store, food Cont., RETAIL, p. 23 Page 22 • The InTowner • August 2006 " Ê"ÊÊ t Selected Recent Real Estate Sales Prepared for the InTowner by Jo Ricks* 0RIMELOCATIONINUNITBOUTIQUEBUILDING3PACIOUSURBANLIVING INTHISLEVELAPPROXSFUNIQUELOFTSTYLEDUPLEX"RIGHT SOUTHERNEXPOSUREBDRMSINCLLGEMASTER"2SUITEWFIRE PLACEEXCEPTIONALCLOSETSLUXURIOUSBATH*ACUZZI/PENGRANITE STAINLESSSTEELKITCHENWBREAKFASTBARSOARINGCEILINGSOVERSIZED WINDOWSHARDWOODFLOORSGUESTBATHEXPOSEDBRICKALLLEADING TOPRIVATEDECK/FFSTREETGATEDPARKINGLOWFEE43T .7 Reporting Period: June 2006 -1*,Ê" /" t "RIGHTNEWCORNERBEDRMBATHWITH OPENGRANITEANDSTAINLESSSTEELKITCHEN DRAMATICFLOORTOCEILINGWINDOWSWITHMONU MENTVIEWSWARMHARDWOODFLOORSLUXURIOUS MASTERBATHWALKINCLOSETSEXTRASTORAGE ANDTANDEMGARAGEPARKING!LLINCHICNEW BUILDINGCLOSETO-ETROAND53TREETNIGHTLIFE 6ERMONT!VE.7 /VERYEARSOFCOMBINED2EAL%STATEEXPERIENCE -ARTIN4OEWS *EFF"RIER WWW-ARTIN*EFFCOM 4AKE6IRTUAL4OURSOFOUR0ROPERTIES #OMMITMENTs3ERVICEs2ESULTS %DWARD3TEWARTCOM #OMMITTEDTO%XCELLENCE %DWARD*0OUTIER '2) / & ,AURA&ERRAZZANO EDWARDSTEWARTCOM 3TEWART#OLEMAN !"2#23 ,ICENSEDIN$#-$6! /VER9EARS%XPERIENCE3ELLING%XCEPTIONAL0ROPERTIES EQUAL HOUSING 2%!,4/2 OPPORTUNITY !*0(&)!,$,$.!(*,##! $%(*! ((-*!! + %**!4+0-$+)!2%/$+*!+"/$!*/%+*.(! %*#-!/%()+-/##!(!* !-. $!/$!-4+0-! ,0-$.%*#+--!"%**%*# 4+0(( !*!"%/"-+) 6 6 6 6 % !!(!/%+*+"+*1!*/%+*(+*-+ 0/. * +*. +-/##!/!.$/-!/%((+2 (!3%(!!-) * &0./(!/!+-/##!. 0./+)%5! /++0-!! . 6 0%( !-* !*+1/%+*+-/##!. 6 ./+*!%.%+*. 6 $!//!*/%1!!-1%!+"*+2(! #!(! +-/##!-+"!..%+*(. (&$'$-*'( !2+-'1!*0! 0%/!6.$%*#/+* ""$!2 !%%2/ +)%*%/0-*+2!((."-#++) ! "!#!! $ ! "! ! # SINGLE FAMILY HOUSES 1636 Argonne Pl. 1319 Belmont St. 1119 Clifton St. 1029 Euclid St. 1112 Euclid St. 1108 Fairmont St. 1440 Fairmont St. 2213 Flagler Pl. 1216 Girard St. 619 Gresham Pl. 1735 Harvard St. 1744 Hobart St. 1656 Irving St. 424 Kenyon St. 445 Kenyon St. 1032 Kenyon St. 1711 Mass. Ave. (pkg. space #68) 1351 Meridian Pl. 1430 Monroe St. 1628 Monroe St. 1903 New Hampshire Ave. 775,000 1803 Newton St. 2719 Ontario Rd. 1751 Park Rd. 1403 Perry Pl. 725 Princeton Pl. 1031 Quebec Pl. 915 Quincy St. 1107 S St. 1737 Seaton 1336 Shepherd St. 3035 Sherman Ave. 3338 Sherman Ave. 6 Snows Ct. 9 Snows Ct. 1742 Swann St. 1422 T St. 74 V St. 1714 V St. 1523 Vermont Ave. 3231 Walbridge Pl. 3022 Warder St. 2110 1st. St. 1822 4th St. 2127 10th St. 3524 11th St. 2236 12th St. 912 25th St. CONDOMINIUMS 2611 Adams Mill Rd. #206 Lynshire 2611 Adams Mill Rd. #206 Lynshire 2611 Adams Mill Rd. #308 2627 Adams Mill Rd. #104 Avalon 2627 Adams Mill Rd. #409 Avalon 1610 Beekman Pl. #A 1658 Beekman Pl. #C 1415 Chapin St. #302 Hillside 1400 Church St. #506 Lofts 14 Two 1401 Church St. #325 Lofts 14 1401 Church St. #402 Lofts 14 1444 Church St. #502 Metro 1444 Church St. #703 Metro 1445 Church St. #42 Rainbow Lofts 1205 Clifton St. #A 1401 Columbia Rd. #217 Adams Court 1401 Columbia Rd. #412 1421 Columbia Rd. #306 1423 Columbia Rd. #4 Columbia Villa 1620 Corcoran St. #E 1624 Corcoran St. #F 1324 Euclid St. #1 Majestic 1441 Euclid St. #201 Euclid Manor 1321 Fairmont St. #101 El Dorado 1321 Fairmont St. #106 El Dorado 1325 Fairmont St. #1 1441 Florida Ave. #3a Hillsborough 1336 Harvard St. #3 Harvard Lofts 1464 Harvard St. #4 Ivy at Harvard 1750 Harvard St. #2B Richelieu 1901 Ingleside Terr. #203 1701 Kalorama Rd. #212 Delancy Lofts 1701 Kalorama Rd. #314 Delancy Lofts 1350 Kenyon St. #4 1038 Lamont St. #1A 1725 Lanier Pl. #22B 1 Logan Cir. #5 Logan 1 & 2 7 Logan Cir. #13 20 Logan Cir. #Ll1 436 M St. #8 Mohawk 1711 Mass. Ave. #118 Boston House 1711 Mass. Ave. #421 Boston House 1711 Mass. Ave. #709 Boston House 1438 Meridian Pl. #302 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #1B Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #2 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #3 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #7 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #22 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #27 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #37 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #43 Park Terrace 3314 Mt. Pleasant St. #47 Park Terrace 1420 N St. #211 Towne Terrace E. 1420 N St. #812 Towne Terrace E. 1440 N St. #609 Towne Terrace W. 1451 N St. #3 2130 N St. #106 Hastings Court 825,000 460,000 520,000 405,000 649,000 705,000 599,000 552,000 650,000 310,000 607,000 766,000 689,000 425,000 405,000 555,000 45,000 531,000 479,000 610,000 839,000 650,000 870,000 439,900 350,000 410,000 392,500 1,269,000 565,000 540,000 300,000 570,000 580,000 368,503 1,602,000 699,000 620,000 610,000 1,312,500 670,000 339,000 705,000 1,500,000 547,000 550,000 645,000 880,000 295,000 295,000 274,000 469,500 479,000 798,000 710,000 410,000 829,000 432,000 695,000 825,000 659,000 777,000 329,900 379,000 195,000 359,000 665,000 505,000 535,000 485,000 279,500 210,000 245,000 389,000 495,000 540,000 410,000 399,000 394,000 563,900 549,900 280,000 300,000 369,900 720,000 420,000 384,000 675,000 227,000 360,000 209,000 304,000 249,500 299,500 275,000 179,500 309,500 189,500 199,500 319,500 189,500 199,000 338,000 164,550 584,000 232,000 2130 N St. #107 Hastings Court 200,000 2301 N St. #507 Emerson House 415,000 1725 New Hampshire Ave. #707 Hampshire Plaza 357,500 1737 New Hampshire Ave. #1 Normantone 900,000 1816 New Hampshire Ave. #202 Concord 195,000 1816 New Hampshire Ave. #307 Concord 302,000 1816 New Hampshire Ave. #702 Concord 220,000 1417 Newton St. #408 Newton Hall 295,000 1417 Newton St. #503 305,000 1708 Newton St. #202 Overlook 349,000 1303 P St. #5 452,000 626 Q St. #South 317,000 1615 Q St. #407 Cairo 421,000 1615 Q St. #913 Cairo 325,000 1615 Q St. #1114 Cairo 324,750 1723 Q St. #G3 262,000 1433 R St. #2 Clift 649,000 949 Randolph St. #B 280,000 1441 Rhode Island Ave. #511 456,000 1441 Rhode Island Ave. #906 369,000 1809 Riggs Pl. #1 320,000 1900 S St. #202 Nineteen Hundred 492,000 1900 S St. #302 Nineteen Hundred 529,900 1731 S St. #7 380,000 1413 T St. #407 273,000 77 U St. #1 Ashburg 592,000 1744 U St. #D 449,000 1331 Vermont Ave. #1B 245,000 1239 Vermont Ave. #202 Crescent Tower 380,000 1239 Vermont Ave. #403 Crescent Tower 335,000 1239 Vermont Ave. #1009 Crescent Tower 332,500 2120 Vermont Ave. #121 Rhapsody 370,075 1418 W St. #104 Hamilton on W 280,000 1731 Willard St. #504 Willard Mansions 329,900 1736 Willard St. #103 Willard Mansion 412,000 1117 10th St. #304 Quincy Court 589,900 1117 10th St. #312 Quincy Court 435,000 1117 10th St. #404 Quincy Court 585,000 1111 11th St. #509 363,900 2004 11th St. #132 Lincoln 475,000 2004 11th St. #340 Lincoln 345,000 2020 12th St. #117 2020 Lofts 442,100 1621 12th St. #1 Symera 879,000 1621 12th St. #2 Symera 1,095,000 1325 13 St. ##5 Iowa 657,500 1211 13th St. #307 Rutherford 517,000 1211 13th St. #501 Rutherford 595,000 1211 13th St. #505 Rutherford 389,000 1245 13th St. #208 Park Princess 240,000 1300 13th St. (parking) #P14 Solo Piazza 48,000 1300 13th St. #604 Solo Piazza 579,000 1320 13th St. #44 Icon 515,000 1701 13th St. #2 Logan Minium 725,000 3500 13th St. #107 Columbia Station 267,500 3500 13th St. #204 Columbia Station 289,500 3500 13th St. #207 Columbia Station 269,500 3500 13th St. #209 Columbia Station 409,500 3500 13th St. #309 Columbia Station 419,500 3500 13th St. #401 Columbia Station 319,500 3500 13th St. #503 Columbia Station 310,000 1715 15th St. #6 Bishops Gate 490,000 1715 15th St. #38 Bishops Gate 365,000 1900 15th St. #3 279,770 1925 16th St. #201 Tiffany 368,000 2000 16th St. #508 Balfour 310,000 2008 16th St. #104 305,000 2440 16th St. #217 270,000 3420 16th St. #107s Northbrook 1 292,520 1401 17th St. #203 575,000 1916 17th St. #103 299,000 1325 18th St. #606 Palladium 371,100 1736 18th St. #T1 Waterford 215,100r 1740 18th St. #301 Hampton 700,000 1725 20th St. #B2 Decatur Mews 375,000 1260 21st St. #304 Newport 278,000 1312 21st St. #3 655,000 1514 21st St. #7 Madison 694,800 1414 22nd St. #3 Dumbarton 535,000 1230 23rd St. #514 Metropolitan 902,500 922 24th St. #105B Jefferson 345,000 922 24th St. #719 257,000 1010 25th St. #810 179,000 1112 25th St. #4 864,000 1001 26th St. #401 COOPERATIVES 2801 Adams Mill Rd. #409 Clydesdale 178,000 1832 Biltmore St. #41 520,000 1860 California St. #201 327,000 1801 Clydesdale Pl. #609 Saxony 185,000 1820 Clydesdale Pl. #406 371,500 1736 Columbia Rd. #102 Beverly Court 799,673 1736 Columbia Rd. #302 Beverly Court 429,000 2853 Ontario Rd. #220 299,000 3 Washington Cir. #702 399,000 2311 15th St. #5 Lofts at Meridian Hill 1,162,500 1701 16th St. #324 Chastleton 405,000 1701 16th St. #514 Chastleton 175,000 1915 16th St. #601 307,000 1514 17th St. #B7 Copley Plaza 200,000 1725 17th St. #112 Rutland Court 349,900 1725 17th St. #316 Rutland Court 380,000 1731 20th St. #16 275,000 730 24th St. #212 Potomac Plaza Terr. 235,000 *Jo Ricks is Associate Broker at City Houses in Washington, DC. The sales shown here were handled by various agents from the many real estate brokerage firms actively working in the neighborhoods reported on by this newspaper. August 2006 • The InTowner • Page 23 photo—Michael K. Wilkinson—The InTowner. This view looking south on 14th Street shows the DC-USA project construction site as the structure is very soon to emerge from below grade following foundation work and completion of the basement levels; groundbreaking, as reported by The InTowner three months ago, was celebrated on May 5th. (See, “Long-Awaited Major Columbia Heights Project Underway,” page1.) Shown to the east of 14th Street are the Kenyon Square and Park Triangle buildings, with Kenyon Street separating them. RETAIL From p. 21 stores (casual to full-service), a children’s store, a hair salon, and a locally owned ice cream retailer. The developer had been close to an agreement with Whole Foods Market, but the high-end grocer eventually walked away from the project because of differences of opinion over dedicated parking, much to the disappointment of both the developer and the neighborhood. Discussions continue, however, as neighborhood activists steadily pelt the corporate offices of Whole Foods with letters and petitions imploring the grocer to reconsider. The developer has kept intact the space it originally designed for Whole Foods, but as the project fills up, it becomes increasingly difficult to keep the space blocked off. “At some point in the near future,” broker Mallios told The InTowner, “we’re going to have to start giving up parts of that chunk of space as tenants sign up. Then it’s over for Whole Foods at DC-USA. With so much support coming from the neighborhood, though, we remain hopeful.” • Tivoli Square, 14th Street between Park Road and Monroe Street. The first of the new Columbia Heights retail developments to open its doors has been filling space steadily. Long home to just a Wachovia Bank, an empty storefront with Blockbuster posters in the windows and several other empty storefronts, the original Tivoli Theater building was slower to lease up than anticipated. Conditions in the home-video rental industry doomed the Blockbuster for Columbia Heights, but opened up opportunities for local, nonchain retailers, including Destiny DeVe, a salon and spa with hair styling and coloring, nail and massage services; Nash’s Sports and Casuals; Rumbero’s Latin-American Cuisine, Art and Bar; and Kudos Beans, a coffee shop and lounge which is seeking a liquor license presumably to be able to operate a neighborhood place for folks to hang out, much like Tryst in Adams Morgan. A couple national names have made it into the building as well, including the Wachovia branch, a Carvel ice cream and Cinnabon cinnamon roll shop and Ruby Tuesday’s in the newly built structure on the prominent corner of 14th and Monroe Streets. • Washington Dance Institute, 3400 14th Street. Nearing completion, the new showcase headquarters of the institute will not initially contain any retail, but will focus on the organization’s offices and dance studios. However, in a second phase, the institute’s director, Fabian Barnes, told The InTowner, they plan to open a small dance boutique, filling a void in the market left when the region’s only two such stores, in Bethesda and Clarendon, closed up shop, leaving wholesalers and out-of-state retailers as the only source of supplies for the many university and private dance studios in the Washington area. • Allegro Condominiums, 14th Street between Newton Street and Meridian Place. The site of the former Giant Foods, which was a suburban-style one-story grocery store with a large surface parking lot, will host a new condominium building developed by Metro Properties, with retail at street level. The project is still in the planning stages, but the developer states that they plan to eschew the stability of national chains in marketing the retail space in favor of small, ■ local and highly upscale retailers. Copyright (c) 2006 InTowner Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. DO YOU THINK MORTGAGES ARE FRUSTRATING AND CONFUSING? ASSUME THE OPPOSITE AND TRY TO PROVE IT. THAT’S EUCLID MORTGAGE! SMOOTH SERVICE, STRAIGHT TALKING, DONE DEALS. BRIEN DESILETS Mortgage Specialist Home Ofc: 202-332-1934 Ofc: 202-222-0641 Fax: 202-222-0777 EUCLID MORTGAGE SERVICES 1737 H Street, NW, Suite 100 Washington, DC 20006 [email protected] www.euclidmortgage.com Page 24 • The InTowner • August 2006
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