capitalcommunitynews.com • September 2010
Est. 1981 ! LD SO
! LD SO
CAPITOL HILL – 4BR/2.5BA w/ 1BR In-Law Suite, backyard oasis & GARAGE! $849,000 www.chriszimmer.com/2298NE
229 8th Street, NE
Stan Bissey 202-841-1433 THE BISSEY TEAM
NG MI N! O C O SO
CAPITOL HILL – 2BR/2BA new in 2008 w/ secure parking! $409,000
501 Seward Square, SE
www.homevisit.com/DC7384465
1222 Maryland Ave, NE #1 Pete Frias
202-744-8973
Todd Bissey 202-841-SOLD THE BISSEY TEAM
SEPTEMBER SPECIAL 204 5th Street, SE
CAPITOL HILL – Completely renovated 2BR/2.5BA w/ parking, just steps to all the Hill’s hot spots!
CAPITOL HILL – 1BR Condo w/ patio, parking, fireplace & 12 foot ceilings! $309,000 www.chriszimmer.com/614EL
614 Elliott Street, NE #1C Genie Hutinet
202-413-7661
Pete Frias 202-744-8973
202-413-7661
! LD SO
High, Wide & Handsome! 5BR/4.5BA on four finished levels with large room proportions, high ceilings & located on a fabulous block! $1,100,000 www.homevisit.com/ DC7413087
Barrack’s Row Renovation Genie Hutinet
CAPITOL HILL – 8-unit apartment building in need of a new hands-on owner!
CAPITOL HILL – Extremely well appointed 3BR/3.5BA steps to E.Mkt! $1,295,000 www.MouseOnHouse.com/11885
610 Independence Ave, SE
Genie Hutinet
! LD SO
202-413-7661
! LD SO
CAPITOL HILL – Split-level design maximizes space & creates storage! $238,500 www.chriszimmer.com/105SE6
105 6th Street, SE #203
Todd Bissey 202-841-SOLD THE BISSEY TEAM
SHEPHERD PARK – Rarely Available RENOVATED Home in Shepherd Park! $789,500 www.MouseOnHouse.com/11435
1508 Portal Drive, NW Fern Pannill
240-508-4856
CAPITOL HILL – Wow! Is it possible that this 4BR/3.5BA is too nice? $899,000 www.homevisit.com/DC7361472
CAPITOL HILL – 3BR/2.5BA w/ GARAGE, steps to Barrack’s Row & 1.5 blks to E.Mkt. METRO! $698,500 http://www.chriszimmer.com/5377SE
537 7th Street, SE
447 Tenn. Avenue, NE Pete Frias
202-744-8973
Todd Bissey 202-841-SOLD THE BISSEY TEAM
“WHERE WASHINGTON SHOPS FOR A NEW ADDRESS!”® 225 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20003
Tel: 202-544-3900 www.johncformant.com
Sales • Rentals • Commercial Leasing • Property Management • Investments
Simply Fabulous ! 4 br 3ba + GARAGE!
Victorian Treasure! A Stately Affair!
1118 S Carolina Ave, SE
1362 East Capitol Street
Spectacular Victorian W. Income Unit! Expect to be Envied!
826 A Street, SE
Inaugural Parade Views!! Balcony Beauty!
Top to Bottom NEW Renovation
601 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
613 Independence Ave, SE Presented by Wm. C Murphy
Condo at the Court! Location! Location!
Grande Dame at the Market 4 BR 3.5 baths + 2-Bedroom Income Unit!
801 Independence Ave., SE
5217 Westpath Way Ft. Sumner — Bethesda Presented by Wm. C Murphy
11 Second Street, NE
Phyllis Jane Young
COLDWELL BANKER RESIDENTIAL BROKERAGE LICENSED BROKER IN DC, MD, AND VA
202-544-4236
Opportunity for Sale!
705 N. Carolina Avenue, SE Spectacular Eastern Market Location + C2A Zoning + Parking!
Visit my listings at cbmove.com, realtor.com, oodle, trulia, cyberhomes, zillow, google, yahoo, aol, craigslist, washingtonpost, nytimes, AND OF COURSE...
WWW.PHYLLISJANEYOUNG.COM capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 3
4 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Price Reduced! 2216 North Capitol Street, NW • DROP DEAD GORGEOUS PORCH FRONT! High end renovation features an open floor plan with gourmet kitchen - stainless steel appliances, granite counters and recessed lights. French doors lead out to large deck which is perfect for entertaining. Second floor Master bedroom with en suite bath and a separate loft, two other bedrooms and hall bath completes this level. Copious closet/storage space, hardwood floors, ceiling fans, alarm system washer/dryer, high ceilings throughout. Lower level is a legal one bedroom unit with open floor plan, upgraded stainless steel appliances, washer/dryer and outdoor space. Off street parking for at least two cars. Easy access to downtown, Capitol Hill. $574,000
Capitol Hill 1377 Independence Avenue, SE. • Semi-Detached Grande Dame! Wonderfully maintained and updated home convenient to Eastern Market and two Metros! This corner property is flooded with light from three exposures and boasts hardwood floors, original moldings and three working fireplaces. Upstairs features a large eat-in kitchen, separate dining and living rooms, a charming den plus three bedrooms and two and one half baths. Downstairs is a one bedroom/one bath rental unit. The side gardens have been professionally landscaped and provide an oasis from city life. Plus a private rear patio for entertaining and dining al fresco. $939,000
Waterfront – Price Reduced!
The Old Bowen Farm At Sandy Bottom
First Open Sunday September 12th 1-4pm
Steal A Deal
Waterfront/SW
4002 17th St. Chesapeake Beach, Md. 20732 Vacation All Year! You won’t believe the amazing views of the chesapeake bay from almost every room of this beautiful, spacious townhome in the much sought after community of Chesapeake Station! Steps to the beach, boardwalk, resaturants, shopping center, public library, railway musuem, water park and marinas! This home is in “move in” condition and features three bedrooms, three and one half baths, two sided fireplace in master bedroom and master bath. Fireplace in living room, chef’s kitchen, finished lower level with large recreation room, one bedroom and full bath. Mulitple decks, and much more! $449,900
1525 Old Plum Point Rd. Huntingtown, Md. 20639 Fully Restored Historic Home, Circa 1832 Lovingly restored three bedroom, one and one half bath farm house with wood floors throughout, formal living room, separate dining room, country kitchen, guest cottage/office/artist studio with running water, garage/barn with electric, and water. A large parking area surrounded by granite curbs and walkways. This home boasts two center halls with formal staircases, nine and ten foot ceilings surrounded by 92 feet of porch. Historic zoning allows for a bed and breakfast, antique or craft shop. The main house has the original woodwork, doors, wood floors and plaster walls. Property is surrounded by rolling farmland and is an easy commute to DC, Annapolis or Baltimore. $575,000
Capitol Hill 903 G Street, SE European Flair on Barracks Row! Perfectly located steps to the bustling and exciting 8th Street Corridor. Two blocks to the Eastern Market Metro and a stroll to the Market. Fantastic three bedroom/ one bath home with original details galore. Tastefully updated and decorated to magically transport one to Tuscany or Provence! Absolutely adorable rear garden and a lower level in-law suite complete this lovely offering! $849,000
3537 14th Street, NW Prime Commercial Space! Fabulous opportunity to purchase a prime commercial property located close to the Tivoli Theatre, the new Giant and the Target shopping complex. The 14th Street corridor is booming with new restaurants, shops and condominiums. This property has been renovated and consists of four office suites, a kitchenette and an unfinished storage basement. $464,000 or for rent $2,200/mo.
Gangplank Marina, 600 Water Street, SW For the unique, discriminating and adventurous home buyer... Floating House… Own a snug contemporary home on the water. Cathedral ceilings, skylights, large fully equipped kitchen, step-down living room, step-down bedroom, den/ loft, roof-top deck with fantastic views of the sunsets, 4th of July fireworks and surrounding yacht marina. CAC, electric heat pumps, great neighbors and much more... Must see to appreciate. A whole new experience in living! $185,000
Finding Folks Their Perfect Capitol Hill Home Since 1988 Proud Sponsor of Hilloween
202-547-5088 www.jackiev.com Allegiance
Licensed in DC, MD, VA & FL capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 5
202.255.5554
GONE!
Who’s doing biz in August? Congress is back; again parking’s a bummer, but we locals know, Fall’s better than Summer.
GONE!
Yearning to move, but feel that it’s chancy? We’ve sold more this year, than 8th Street’s gotten fancy.
1005 South Carolina Ave., SE Sold twice in as many weeks!
334 11th St., NE
7-Days/Over List Price!
GONE!
GONE! 310 13th St., NE
9-Days/Above List Price!
GONE!
The market’s still sliding, newscasters bemoan, not on our little Hill, we’re solid as stone. So exit the pool! Back to work! Stop your slacking! Just give us a call, soon you’ll be packing!
904 Constitution Ave., NE 6-Days/Above List Price!
“I’ve done 43 transactions with Tom & his team over the past 12 years. His guidance when I am purchasing or selling a property, on everything from to paint colors to pricing is perfect/flawless/ right on every time. I almost always get my price, always have a smooth settlement, and never have any headaches at closing.” • Ryan Loughlin, Rainbow Properties, LLC
615 K St., NE
6-Days/Above List Price!
202.255.5554 6 ★ HillRag | September 2010
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8 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Marvelous Market 303 7th Street SE (202) 544-7127
*Your Neighborhood Realtors* FOR SALE:
BAKERY CAFÉ BISTRO DELI BREAKFAST LUNCH DINNER SNACKS ENTERTAINING CATERING TGI MARVELOUS: Through October, live entertainment EVERY Friday from 5-7 on the patio featuring Redwood Classical Guitar Duo and Dave Mosick & Friends. 1st Friday of each month: Kids music with MR. SKIP Last Friday of each month: Wine Tasting
* Round Challah and Holiday Menu available for the upcoming Jewish Holidays. * WWW.MARVELOUSMARKET.COM
Hours: 7am-9pm Monday-Saturday 8am-7pm Sundays
606 Kentucky Ave, SE | Unit A $549,999 plus $10,000 Seller Credit Providence Square: Gorgeous, like-new (2005) 1200 SF, 2 Level, 2 BR/2BA plus loft condo with parking & fireplace.1 block to Metro.
355 I ST, S618, SW $299,999 | Potomac Place
1238 D St, SE | $699,000 2 BR/1.5BA, large garage and huge yard.
1311 Delaware Ave, SW Unit S445 | $109,900 Studio, 1BA
Condo: 750 SF one BR on 6th/top floor with balcony, new bamboo floors. Smack dab in center of new SW Waterfront Dev’t.
SOLD 559 15th St, SE.........$599,000
748 7th ST, SE | Unit C $799,999 | A RARITY INDEED: 2100+ Square Foot, 3BR condo (bigger than many Hill homes!) with view of capitol, outdoor space, and parking!
UNDER CONTRACT: 736 7th St, SE ................................................................... $599,000
Megan Shapiro (Cell) 202-329-4068 meg@megandgeorge.com
George Olson (Cell) 202-203-0339
george@megandgeorge.com
www.megandgeorge.com Allegiance
The Norris Group capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 9
10 ★ HillRag | September 2010
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09.10
What’s Inside
ineveryissue 18 20 57 73 105 151 159
83
Go ... See ... Do Washington’s Best Calendar The Bulletin Board Spotted on the Hill / by Peter Vankevich Dining Coupons Classified Ads Last Word
electionspecial 38 40 44 48 50 52
Gray Contests Fenty’s Plan for DC / by Paul Shinkman A Tale of Two Cities- The Ward 6 Race / by Paul Shinkman Council Chair: Kwame Brown vs Vincent Orange/ by Paul Shinkman At Large: Mendelson vs Ray vs Brown / by Paul Shinkman Changes in the Election Procedures / by Paul Shinkman The Numbers: The Key Fiscal Challenge? / by Jenny Reed
newsofthecapitolstreets 34 55 66 67 68 70 72
Adams Morgan Day Festival / by Shenray Wright Hill Buzz / by Celeste McCall Summer at 15th & D / by Shannon Holloway New Capitol Hill Village Board / by Mike Canning Yards Park Opens / by Rindy O’Brien Eastern High Reborn / by Shannon Holloway Summer Basketball / by Elizabeth Nelson
communitylife 74 76 78 80
In Memorium: Richard Sundberg / by Bart Barnes Barracks Row Fall Festival / by Sharon Bosworth H Street Life / by Elise Bernard South By West: Public Plazas / by William Rich
homesgardens fall special 84 88 92 96 100 104
Behind the Scenes: Fragers & Gingkos / by Rindy O’Brian Five Great Corner Gardens / by Derek Thomas Recombining Nature / by Ryan Moody Solar Power / by Jeff Johnson The Greenest House on the Hill / by Judith Capen Buffalo Construction / by Heather Schoell
106 108 110
Garden Lady/ by Anonymous A Home Office Meets Many Needs / by Bruce Wentworth Let’s Dance in Your Garden / by Cheryl Corson
realestate 113 115
Capitol Intrigue: A Hill Rowhouse Hides a Tragic Past / by Robert Pohl Changing Hands: Residential Home Sales / compiled by Don Denton
ARTSdiningentertainment Special 119 122 124 126 108 130 132
Dining Review: Sei/ by Celeste McCall Dining Notes / by Celeste McCall Wine & Food: Proper Pairings / by Jon Genderson Art and the City: Profile - Wally Szyndler / by Jim J. Magner At the Movies: A Second Look / by Mike Canning Theater Review: Chess / by Barbara Wells The Literary Hill / by Karen Lyon
kidsandfamily 135 138 139 140
Kids & Family Notebook / by Mary-Frances Daly Educating the District:: Back To School / by Lisa Raymond Full Circle: CHAW Students Return in New Roles / by Megan Cheek School Notes / compiled by Susan Braun Johnson
beautyhealthfitness 145 146 148 150
Bringing Food From Farm To Market/ by Pattie Cinelli Some Facts About Local Food/ by Bernie Prince DCPL’s Adaptive Services / by Steve Lilienthal Is Your Child A Victim of Bullying? / by Ronda Bresnick Hauss
COVER: “Grandpa and Me: Raking Leaves”, Four Seasons Calendar, 1948. oil on canvas, 18 ½ x 18 in. Collection of George Lucas. From the exhibit “Telling Stories”. Featuring, Norman Rockwell, from the Collections of George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, on view through Jan. 2, 2011, is the first major exhibition to explore in-depth the connections between Rockwell’s iconic images of American life and the movies. Smithsonian American Art Museum, 8th and F Streets, N.W., WDC. (202) 633-7970. http://americanart.si.edu
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HILL RAG DC NORTH EAST OF THE RIVER FAGON COMMUNITY GUIDES
Three Thousand Bucks Later . . . By Dr. David Walls-Kaufman
S
o, one of my patients had an “episode” while I was out of town for a week this past July. Her symptoms were: headache, fatigue, feeling extremely foggy, a little queasy, upper body aches and pains. To a chiropractor, this is classic: Misalignment of the Atlas, the neck bone highest in the neck, just under the skull. When it twists, it twists the brain centers for nausea and balance. You feel really loopy. Had I been in town, she would have come over, I would have checked the neck for twisting, what we call “subluxation”, adjusted it, and seen if it fixed her problem. But I wasn’t in town. And she’s a breast cancer survivor and she was worried and upset. She called her doctor, got a visit, got a battery of tests, and saw another doctor specialist. They checked her heart wave patterns, brain wave patterns, blood sugar, liver enzymes, the works. Nothing. She lost about three days for the travel, visits, tests and results. All tolled, the procedures cost her, personally, a co-pay of over $3,000, and that’s with really good insurance. When the office got her call, she sounded really scared. My gut made me speak up: “You need an Atlas adjustment.” She came in, got the adjustment, and felt significantly better getting off the table, all better by nightfall. . . . Ladies and gents, I propose that you include in your healthcare picture an understanding of your nervous system! It is impossible to have a twisted, bent or posturally abnormal spine and NOT HAVE THAT TENSION AFFECT OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM!!! And that means our wellness and life. Try chiropractic. For the better health and life experience of you and your family – Capitol Hill Chiropractic Center 411 East Capitol St., SE 202.544.6035. Serving our neighborhood since 1985. ADVERTISEMENT
Capital Community News, Inc. 224 7th Street, SE, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20003 202.543.8300 • www.capitalcommunitynews.com EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Melissa Ashabranner melissaashabranner@hillrag.com EDITORIAL STAFF
SOCIETY & EVENTS
MANAGING EDITOR: Andrew Lightman andrew@hillrag.com CFO & ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Maria Carolina Lopez carolina@hillrag.com KIDS & FAMILY EDITOR: Susan Braun Johnson schools@hillrag.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR: Mary-Frances Daly maryfrances@hillrag.com
Mickey Thompson • socialsightings@aol.com
HOMES & GARDENS Rindy O’Brien - Hill Gardener • rindyob@mac.com Derek Thomas • derek@thomaslandscapes.com Judith Capen • judith.capen@architravepc.com HomeStyle: Mark Johnson • mark@hillrag.com
NEWS & NEIGHBORHOOD REPORTS ARTS, DINING & ENTERTAINMENT
ANC6A:
ART: Jim Magner • jjmagner@aol.com DINING: Celeste McCall • celeste@hillrag.com HIT THE CITY: Hunter Gorinson • hunter.gorinson@gmail.com LITERATURE: Karen Lyon • klyon@folger.edu MOVIES: Mike Canning • mjcanning@verizon.net MUSIC: Stephen Monroe • samonroe2004@yahoo.com RETAIL THERAPY: Hunter Gorinson • hunter.gorinson@gmail.com THEATER: Brad Hathaway • brad@potomacstages.com TRAVEL: Maggie Hall • whitby@aol.com THE WINE GUYS: Jon Genderson • jon@cellar.com
Tanya Snyder • tanya.c.snyder@gmail.com Hunter Gorinson • hunter.gorinson@gmail.com ANC6C: Hunter Gorinson • hunter.gorinson@gmail.com ANC6D: Roberta Weiner • rweiner_us@yahoo.com BARRACKS ROW: sharon@barracksrow.org H STREET LIFE: Elise Bernard • inked78@hotmail.com THE NOSE: thenose@hillrag.com LOGAN CIRCLE • mark@hillrag.com SHAW • shaw@hillrag.com MOUNT VERNON TRIANGLE • triangle@hillrag.com BLOOMINGDALE • bloomingdale@hillrag.com 14TH & U • 14thandU@hillrag.com ANC6B:
CALENDAR & BULLETIN BOARD HILL RAG, DC NORTH & EAST OF THE RIVER: CALENDAR EDITOR: Kathleen Donner calendar@hillrag.com, bulletinboard@hillrag.com
GENERAL ASSIGNMENT Michelle Evans • invisiblecolours@yahoo.com Celeste McCall • celeste@hillrag.com Heather Schoell • hschoell@verizon.net Tanya Synder • tanya.c.snyder@gmail.com Virginia Avniel Spatz • virginia@hillrag.com Peter Waldron • peter@hillrag.com Hunter Gorinson • hunter.gorinson@gmail.com Stephanie Deutsch • scd@his.com Paul D. Shinkman - pdshinkman@gmail.com Melanie Sunukjian - melsunuk@gmail.com Shannon Holloway - holloway.shannon@gmail.com
BEAUTY, HEALTH & FITNESS Patricia Cinelli • fitmiss44@aol.com Ronda Bresnick Hauss, LCSW • www.quietwaterscenter.com quiet_waters_center@yahoo.com Peter Sherer • Peter@expmatters.com
KIDS & FAMILY Mary-Frances Daily • kidsnotebook@hillrag.com Susan Johnson • schools@hillrag.com
PRODUCTION/GRAPHIC DESIGN ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR: Jason Yen 202.543.8300 X21 • jay@hillrag.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER/ WEB MASTER: Jason Nickens 202.543.8300 X17 • jason@hillrag.com
ADVERTISING & SALES SENIOR ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE: Deborah Bandzerewicz 202.543.8300 X13 • deb@hillrag.com ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE: Kira Means 202.543.8300 X16 • kira@hillrag.com CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING: Maria Carolina Lopez 202.543.8300 X12 • carolina@hillrag.com
DISTRIBUTION DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Andrew Lightman DISTRIBUTORS: Southwest Distribution DISTRIBUTION INFORMATION: distribution@hillrag.com
DEADLINES & CONTACTS ADVERTISING: sales@hillrag.com DISPLAY ADS: 15th of each month CLASSIFIED ADS: 10th of each month EDITORIAL: 15th of each month; submissions@hillrag.com BULLETIN BOARD & CALENDAR: 15th of each month; calendar@hillrag.com, bulletinboard@hillrag.com
We welcome suggestions for stories. Send queries to andrew@hillrag.com. We are also interested in your views on community issues which are published in the Last Word. Please limit your comments to 250 words. Letters may be edited for space. Please include your name, address and phone number. Send Last Word submissions to lastword@hillrag.com. For employment opportunities email jobs@hillrag.com.
PUBLISHER: JEAN-KEITH FAGON • fagon@hillrag.com Copyright © 2010 by Capital Community News. All Rights Reserved.
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GO.SEE.DO. Turkish Festival The Turkish Festival offers a full day of activities such as folk dancing, music, arts and crafts for kids, traditional cuisine, fortune reading, and a bustling bazaar. This year’s festival theme is “Explore the Wonders of Turkey in the Heart of DC,” and will take visitors on a journey through two continents and thousands of years of history. Festival attendees will be able to leave their worries behind and feel as if they have traveled across oceans and through time. Free. Sunday, Oct. 3 (rain or shine), 11:00 AM-7:00 PM. On Pennsylvania Avenue, NW between 12th and 14th sts. NW (adjacent to Freedom Plaza). 1888-282-3236. www.turkishfestival.org
Annapolis First Sunday Arts Festival The Annapolis First Sunday Arts Festival is held on the first Sunday of every month through October, noon-5:00 PM. Be prepared to be entertained with live music, dance, street performers and food. Thousands attend...both locals and tourists shopping handcrafted and originals gifts, art and crafts from local and regional artists and crafters. Over 100 artists, crafters, musicians and other performers will showcase their art at First Sunday Arts. Admission is free. Calvert Street and West Street Annapolis, Maryland. 410-741-3267. www.firstsundayarts.com 18 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Adams Morgan Day The Adams Morgan Day 18th Street Festival is characterized by two large signature music stages and other innovative and dynamic cultural, music, arts and dance activities. The famous Columbia and Florida Stages (located strategically on 18th Street at Columbia Rd. and at Florida Ave.) feature live music acts from all genres from Central and South America, Latin rock, salsa, jazz, to soul, funk and American rock. It is the the longest continuous neighborhood festival in DC. Sunday, Sept. 12, noon-7:00 PM. 202-232-1960. www.adamsmorgandayfestival.com
Word, Shout, Song: Lorenzo Dow Turner Connecting Communities through Language “Word, Shout, Song” documents the historical journey made by people from Africa, their language, and their music, to the Americas. Through words, music, and story, Lorenzo Dow Turner discovered in the 1930s that the Gullah people of Georgia and South Carolina still possessed parts of the culture and language of their enslaved ancestors, which had long been believed lost. Free. On exhibition through March 27, 2011. Anacostia Community Museum, open daily except Christmas, 10:00 AM-5:00 PM. 1901 Fort Pl. SE. 202-633-4820. anacostia.si.edu
H Street Music Festival and Bazaar The H Street Festival is an annual street festival designed to showcase the unique qualities of this vibrant Washington, DC community. The event is a part of the revitalization strategy to bring attention to the developing arts and entertainment district at the eastern end of the H Street NE corridor. This year’s festival includes more than 30 musical and dance performances, a fashion show preview of DC Fashion Week, face painting, rock climbing, basketball games, carnival games, free popcorn, cotton candy, and dog tag making, a fully-loaded Hummer display, luxury car displays, free health screenings, crafts, and international foods. Sept. 18, noon-6:00 PM.
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★ ★ ★
SEPTEMBE
HillRag CALENDAR
K9 Lifesavers Benefit at Molly Malone’s. Come to Molly Malone’s on Monday, September 13, 6:00-8:00 PM for all you can eat and drink. $30. All proceeds benefit K9 Lifesavers. 713 Eighth St. SE. Please RSVP to k9lifesavers@gmail.com
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BER
AROUND THE NEIGHBORHOOD “Sail into Fall” Fair. Sept. 11, 9:00 AM-3:00 PM. Fair will feature a variety of musicians, the ever-popular children’s activities, senior bingo and lunch, fish fry sandwiches, hot dogs, baked goods, Barbecue by Mr. Buchanan, raffle prizes, gently used clothing, books and CDs, plus a moon bounce. St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, 600 M St. SW. 202554-3222 Southeast Library Book Sale. Sept. 11, 10:00 AM-3:00 PM. 403 Seventh St. SE. 202-698-3377. www.dclibrary.org/ southeast The Corner Store Game Night. Sept. 14. 7:30-9:00 PM. Calling all Wordsmiths for Bananagrams. Four players per table. Open to first 24 to sign up. $5 donation. 900 South Carolina Ave. SE 202-5445807. www.cornerstorearts.org St Augustine’s Grounds for Discussion. Sept. 26, 11:00 AM-noon. Joslyn Williams, President, Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO, will discuss “Social Justice: The Alliance Between Labor and the Faith Community.” Free. Includes light refreshments and facilitated Q&A. St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, 600 M St. SW. 202-554-3222 or rector@staugustinesdc.org. Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony. Sundays, 2:00 PM. Sidamo Coffee and Tea. Visit Sidamo on Sundays and take part in a centuries-old ceremony led by storeowner Yalemzwed “Mimi” Desta. 417 H St. NE. 202-548-0081. www.sidamocoffeeandtea.com Community Office Hours with Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells. Second Thursday of the month in Southwest and fourth Thursday of the month on H St. NE; both are 89:30 AM. All Ward 6 residents encouraged to come out and meet with Wells and members of his staff. Call Wells’ office for meeting location, 202-724-8072, or check online, www.tommywells.org Eastern Market Pottery Classes. Monday through Thursday., 7:00-10:00 PM. $268 for 8 weeks including materials,
JOHNSON LAW GROUP A LAW FIRM ON CAPITOL HILL Estate Planning • Business Transactions Government Contracting • Civil Litigation
www.johnsonlawgroupintl.com 202-544-1515 law@johnsonlawgroupintl.com 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20003
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 21
Kitty Kaupp & Tati Kaupp Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage 605 Pennsylvania Ave SE 202-741-1699, kkaupp@cbmove.com 733 Virginia Ave SE Miles Glass $4,000,000 UNDER CONTRACT Located on Capitol Hill at the Navy Yard area at M St & 8th Streets SE at the corner of 8th and Virginia Ave. which part of Historic Barracks Row Main Street Development. Total land area 14,991 SF, Square 906 Lits 814,815,823. Lot 814 4,347 SF. Vacant Land Lot 815 1,824 SF, Lot 823 8,820 SF masonry structure.
408 3rd Street SE $887,000 UNDER CONTRACT Live on the park! At Providence & Folger Parks. Close in location- Walk to US Capitol, House Side. 2BR 2.5BA main house and 1BR 1BA 1 st Fl Legal unit w/ C of O. Rental income debt services mortgage. Open fl plan. LR w/wood burn FP, built-ins, windows & glass door to rear yard +2 Car Pkg. Formal DR. Kitchen w/ French doors opening to park tree top views. PR. Hhwd floors, CAC, MBR w/ dbl closets.Fresh MBA w/ glazed tiles. 2nd BR, 2nd BA W/D & linen closet & storage. Capitol South + Eastern Mkt metro.
! D L O S
230 11th Street SE $699,000 Near Lincoln Park & Eastern Mkt/Metro. 2 Unit with C of O. Semi-detached and light-filled w/windows on 3 sides. 1st floor unit is 1BR 1BA with graceful LR, hardwood floors, CAC, Kitch/DR, Deck, Lower Level with Den/Office, W/D, Storage & Utility Room. 2nd Floor is a separate 2nd unit, 1BR 1BA, CAC, skylight, DR/LR large open floor plan & sun-filled space, Deck. Possible to rejoin to one house. 621 Pennsylvania Ave SE LEASE Prominent Pa Ave retail address at Eastern Market Metro. 1167 SF 1st Floor + 820 SF Bsmt. $4542 /month or $27 /SF. Great for retail / office / restaurant use. Rear yard for patio use. CafĂŠ permit possible for outdoor seating on Pa Ave. Set up for office use currently: CAT5 networking ,electrical system totally upgraded 2003, recessed receptacles every 8' grid layout on floor, tel incl in networking receptacles, 2 sep HVAC units. 530-532 7th Street SE $3,150,000 Commercial zoned C2A. Edwardian Brick Two Story, elegantly appointed semi detached bldg. 6553 SF of office space. Pkg- 17 Available land for future development. Land area 7,923 SF. Prime location at Eastern Mkt & Metro & PA Ave SE , Navy Yard. 8 blocks from the US Capitol, House Side. 1400-1404 K Street SE Land 3 Buildable Lots $695,000 6000 SF Land Area, 3 Buildable lots, 6 Grand units 2000sf each or 3 2Unit Town houses, 13,000 GBA, Blueprints available. Traditional Capitol Hill design. 1.5 blocks to Pennsylvania Ave, Jenkins Row Condos & Harris Teeter grocery. Potomac Avenue metro steps away. Walk to Eastern Market & Barracks Row retail.
Rumsey Pool Water Aerobics. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 9:00 AM and 10:00 AM. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6:30-7:30 PM. Saturday, 8:00-9:00 AM. Rumsey Pool. $25 for 16 sessions. 635 North Carolina Ave. SE. 202-724-4495. Photo: Andrew Lightman. firing and Saturday practice time. 7th and C Sts. (use the outside stairs to the basement under the market) 202544-6669. www.easternmarketpottery.com
View on www.kittykaupp.com 22 ★ HillRag | September 2010
U.S. Capitol Exterior Walking Tour. Every Monday through November (including holidays, rain or shine), 10:00 AM. Meet at the top of the escalators at Union Station by the METRO sign post. The U.S. Capitol Historical Society tour explains why it took 40 years to build the Capitol; why and how it has been continually enlarged since then; famous incidents and crucial events that took place inside it; the
scope and purpose of the massive construction project now underway; and daily activities that occur in and around the building. $10 (cash) per person. No reservations are necessary. 202-543-8919. www.uschs.org Historic Congressional Cemetery Tour. Saturdays, through mid-Nov. (weather permitting), 11:00 AM. General tours of the cemetery are conducted by knowedgable volunteer docents. There are 19 Senators and 71 Representatives interred at Congressional Cemetery and monuments to honor 120 other members of congress who
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Saturday Oct. 16th 10:00am-4:00pm For more information and to purchase tickets ($20 in advance/ $25 day of the tour) visit: www.renovatorshousetour.org Tickets also available at: Frager’s Paint Store Hill’s Kitchen Schneider's of Capitol Hill
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Clark/Smoot, acting as General Contractor, in conjunction with Hines|Archstone, Master Developer is hosting a Pre-Solicitation Workshop for construction subcontractors for CityCenterDC. Date: Wednesday, September 8, 2010 Place: Embassy Suites Hotel 900 10th Street NW Washington DC 20001 Time: Session I - 8:30 am to 10:30 am – Exterior & M/E/P Contractors Lunch Session – 11:30 am to 1:00 pm – CBE Joint Ventures Session II - 1:30 pm to 3:30 pm – Finish & Specialty Trades
The CityCenterDC project will include the construction of two office buildings, two apartment buildings, and two condominium buildings, plus underground parking and extensive site work. This work will be bid in fall 2010. Topics to be covered at the workshop include contracting requirements and bid schedule, with a working lunch session from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm on CBE joint venture requirements (all trades are welcomed – pre-registration is required). Please register online at www.citycenterdc.com by September 3, 2010.
For more information about the Pre-solicitation Workshop, contact Chrystal Stowe at Clark/Smoot, 202/243-6688 or via email at cstowe@srsmoot.com.
24 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Alexis Rockman: A Fable for Tomorrow Nov. 19. Smithsonian American Art Museum. Contemporary artist Alexis Rockman has been depicting the natural world with virtuosity and wit for more than two decades. He was one of the first contemporary artists to build his career around exploring environmental issues, from evolutionary biology and genetic engineering to deforestation and climate change. Rockman communicates his deep concerns about the world’s fragile ecosystems with vivid, even apocalyptic, imagery, using sources as varied as natural history, botanical illustrations, museum dioramas, science fiction films, art history, and firsthand field study. Smithsonian American Art Museum, 8th and F Streets, N.W., WDC. (202) 633-7970. http://americanart.si.edu
died in office. 150 of the sites are marked by these monuments which were designed by Benjamin Latrobe. The remaining sites are marked by private monuments. Free. 18th and E sts. SE. 202-543-0539. www.congressionalcemetery.org Marine Barracks Washington Tour. Every Wednesday (except holidays), 10:00 AM. Marine Barracks. Marine Barracks Washington, also known as “8th & I,” is the oldest active post in the Marine Corps. The Barracks supports both ceremonial and security missions in the nation’s capital. Free. 8th and I Sts.
SE. 202-433-4173. www.mbw.usmc.mil Supreme Court Tour. Weekdays except Federal holidays, 9:00 AM-4:30 PM (every hour on the half-hour). The Supreme Court is the highest tribunal in thenation for all cases and controversies arising under the Constitution of the United States. Free. One First St. NE. 202-4793211. supremecourtus.gov Vivat Rex! Commemorating the 500th Anniversary of the Accession of Henry VIII. Open Sept. 24-Dec. 30. Monday through Saturday, 10:00 AM-5:00 PM. Folger Shakespeare Li-
brary. Rare books, manuscripts, handwritten letters, and prints offer an indepth look at the real Henry and the machinations of his court in a time of extraordinary change for England. Free. 201 East Capitol St. SE. 202-544-4600. www.folger.edu Tour Folger Shakespeare Library. Weekdays, 11:00 AM and 3:00 PM. Saturdays, 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM. It is devoted to the life and times of Shakespeare and is home to the world’s largest collection of the Bard’s printed works. Don’t miss the replica “Globe” theater. Free. 201 East Capitol St. SE. 202-544-4600. www. folger.edu
FALL FESTIVALS AND SPECIAL EVENTS Annual Labor Day Concert. Sept. 5, rehearsal, 3:30 PM; concert, 8:00-9:30 PM. The National Park Service will start letting people onto the lawn at 3:00 PM. Concert featuring the National Symphony Orchestra. Free. US Capitol (west lawn). 202) 224-8891. Black Family Reunion Celebration. Sept. 11 and 12, noon-8:00 PM (both days). This fun-filled weekend celebrates the enduring strengths and traditional values of the African American family and features educational pavilions, live music, ethnic foods and an international arts and crafts marketplace. Free. National Mall between Seventh and 14th sts. (between Constitution and Pennsylvania aves.) 202) 383-9130. www.ncnw.org Arts on Foot 2010 Festival. Sept. 11, 11:00 AM-5:00 PM. Arts on Foot Market, September 8, 9 and 10, 11:00 AM-7:00 PM. Arts on Foot is a multimediafestival that kicks off the fall arts season in Downtown DC’s Penn Quarter. Free. Centered at Seventh and F sts, NW. www. artsonfoot.org DC VegFest. Sept. 11, noon-6:00 PM. The DC VegFest is a free outdoor festival celebrating the very best of everything vegetarian in and around the nation’s capital. Free. University Yard, 2000 block of H St. NW. 301-891-2458. dcvegfest.com Kreeger Museum Annual Open House. Sept. 12, 11:00 AM-4:00 PM. Live music, gallery talks, hands-on art workshops, story time for kids. Free. The Kreeger Museum, 2401 Foxhall Rd. NW. 202-3373050. www.kreegermuseum.org/progr
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Opera in the Outfield at Nationals Park. Sept. 19, 2:00 PM (gates open at noon).Washington National Opera season opening live simulcast from the Kennedy Center of Un Ballo in Maschera. Free. Nationals Park, 1500 South Capitol St. SE. 202) 572-3057. www.dc-opera.org Fiesta Musical at the National Zoo. Sept. 19, 11:00 AM-5:00 PM. FONZ celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month with
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an annual fiesta at the National Zoo. With animal demonstrations, Hispanic and Latino music, costumed dancers, traditional crafts, and Latin American foods. The event offers something for everyone. Free. National Zoo, 3001 Connecticut Ave. NW. 202-673-4717. www.fonz.org National Book Festival on the Mall. Sept. 25 (rain or shine), 10:00 AM-5:00 PM. This full day of fun will feature award winning and nationally known authors, illustrators, poets and storytellers to delight you with their readings and performances. Free. National Mall (between Seventh and 14th sts.) Barracks Row Fall Festival on Capitol Hill. Sept. 25, 11:00 AM-5:00 PM. Military Chefs Cook-Off, Ragin’ Cajun Chef Paul Prudomme, Redskins cheerleaders, Chesty the Marine Corps bulldog, Commandants’ home and Marine Barracks 8th tours, Ten authentic uniforms representing 1775 through 2010 will be worn by Marines, clowns, magicians, face painting and contests for kids, booths selling wares from around the world, parachutist will make a precision landing at Eighth and G sts., bands play all day and dancing is encouraged! 400 to 700 blocks of Eighth St. SE 202-544-3188 Free Guided Walking Tours. Sept. 25 and 26 (rain or shine). Tours vary in length. Enjoy free, guided walking tours in neighborhoods across Washington. 202-661-7581. www.culturaltourismdc.org
CHRIST CHURCH ON CAPITOL HILL We invite you to join us for worship, fellowship, outreach and education. Sunday Services at 8:15 am and 11:00 am Children’s Sunday school and nursery care available at both services Adult Forum at 9:45 am
TWO TIME CHOICES ON SUNDAY: 8:15 AM OR 11:00 AM Call: 202-547-9300 Or Email: SundaySchool@WashingtonParish 620 G St, SE, Washington, DC 20003 Visit us on the web: www.washingtonparish.org
Christ Lutheran Church Annual Yard Sale. Sept. 25, 10:00 AM-4:00 PM; Sept. 26, noon4:00 PM. Christ Lutheran Church, 5101 16th St. NW. 202-829-6727.
SPECIAL BARGAINS Specially Priced Kennedy Center Tickets. Full-time students (grade school through graduate school), persons with permanent disabilities, seniors (65 and older), enlisted military personnel, and persons on fixed low incomes are able to purchase tickets to many Kennedy Center performances at a 50% discount. You must come in person to the Kennedy Center Box Office. Each eligible person may purchase one SPT ticket per performance, subject to availability. 202-467-4600. www. kennedy-center.org/tickets/spts Community Night at International Spy Museum. Last Wednesday of each month, 5:009:00 PM. All area residents are welcome to experience all that the museum’s permanent exhibition has to offer for. Gain access to the world’s largest collection of international espionage artifacts ever placed on public display. Free. (regular admission, $18). 202-393-7798. 800 F St. NW. www.spymuseum.org National Museum of Women in the Arts. First Sunday of each month, noon-5:00 PM. This museum is the only museum in the world dedicated exclusively to recognizing the contributions of women artists. Free. (regular admission, $10). 1250 New York Ave. NW. 202783-5000. www.nmwa.org Shakespeare Theatre Company Ticket Deals.
26 ★ HillRag | September 2010
20% for seniors, 60 and older; $10 tickets for 35 and younger; $10 standing-room-only tickets. Two performance spaces: Lansburgh Theatre at 450 7th St. NW and Sidney Harman Hall at 610 F St. NW. 202-547-1122. www. shakespearetheatre.org Woolly Mammoth Theatre Ticket Deals. Patrons 25 and under, $15 tickets. Stampede Seats--side balcony seats at $15 each, sold 2 hours prior to showtime. 641 D St. NW. 202393-3939. www.woollymammoth.net Washington National Opera’s “Generation O”. This is a program for students and young professionals between 18 and 35. A limited number of discounted “Generation O” tickets will be available for every Washington National Opera production. For the first time this fall, there will be a 50% season ticket discount for “Generation O.” The Washington National Opera performs at the Kennedy Center. Registration is free. 202-295-2400. www.dcopera. org/beyondstage/generationo Living Butterfly House at Natural History Museum. Free on Tuesdays (regularly $6). Opens daily at 10:15 AM. Final entry at 5:00 PM. Smithsonian Natural History Museum, 10th St. and Constitution Ave. NW. 202-6331000. www.mnh.si.edu Learn to Swim in DC. Basic lessons are $10 for DC residents. More advanced classes are $30 for a 4 week session (2 lessons a week). For more information, 202-724-4495. www. dpr.dc.gov Arena Stage $15 tickets for 30-and-under. Designated for patrons ages 30 and under. $15 tickets go on sale beginning on Monday for the following week of performances (Tuesday through Sunday) until all available $15 tickets sell out. 1101 Sixth St. SW. 202-554-9066. www.arenastage.org
FIVE GREAT WAYS TO MEET PEOPLE Phillips after 5. First Thursday of every month, 5:00-8:30 PM. The Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW. Gallery talks. Live jazz. Museum shop. Food. Socializing in the Galleries. Cash Bar. Admission is the price of the current exhibition. 202-387-2151. www.phillipscollection.org Jazz on Jackson Place. First Thursday of every month through September, 6:30-8:30 PM. Decatur House Courtyard, 748 Jackson Pl. NW (at Lafayette Park). “In the spirit of our nearly two centuries-old tradition of great entertaining, Decatur House invites you to gather and relax in our beautiful, historic setting while enjoying the sounds of local musicians.” $25, includes food and drink (beer and wine). 202218-4332. www.decaturhouse.org First Wednesday Jazz @ The Historical Society. First Wednesday of every month, 6:009:00 PM. The Historical Society of Washington, DC, 801 K St. NW. Described as a “motivational mixer” featuring jazz, R&B and neo soul. $10 cover. Food and spirits are extra. 202-3831850. www.historydc.org
THE CAPITOL TH TO HILL SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCH INVITES YOU TO A DV TC CELEBRATE MUSIC HERITAGE CE ELE TE GOSPEL G MONTH AT THE M Volunteering Made Easy by One Brick. One Brick brings volunteers together to support other non- profit organizations by adopting an innovative twist to the volunteer experience: they create a friendly and social atmosphere around volunteering, and after each volunteer event, invite volunteers to gather at a local restaurant or cafe where they can get to know one another in a relaxed social setting. www.onebrick.org “Asia After Dark” at the Sackler and Freer Galleries on the Mall. Sept. 23, 6:30-10:30 PM. Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, 1050 Independence Ave. SW; Freer Gallery of Art, Jefferson Drive at 12th St. SW. $18, advanced purchase and $20 at the door. This includes one free drink. A cash bar will offer specialty cocktails, wine, beer, and non-alcoholic beverages throughout the evening, as well as food from area restaurants. www.asia.si.edu/ asiaafterdark
“B a
cert! on C ck with the in the Day” Reunion Choir
FEATURING FEATU ATU URING MUSIC C BY THE TH HE LATE LAT WALTER HAWKINS AND THE CAPITOL HILL MASS CHOIR OTHERS PERFORMANCES RFORMANC CES BYY TH CELEBRATION CHOIR AND CEL ON CHO OIR FRO FFROM DUPONT PARK SDA CHURCH SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER SAT EPT TEM MB 18, 2010 • 6:00 PM Capitol Hill S Seventh-day Adventist Church Se 914 Massachusetts Avenue, NE M Washington, DC 20002 All are welcome. The concert is free and open to the public. welc For more information, contact 202.543.1344 or visit in www.Facebook.com/CapitolHillSDAChurch www.F
MUSIC Eastern Market Music. Sundays Sept. 5 through Oct. 10, 10:30 AM and 1 PM. Patio outside Port City Java, Seventh Street and North Carolina Avenue SE. Sept. 5, 10:30 AM, Bad Hair Day, 1:00 PM, Finnegan’s Jig; Sept. 12, 10:30 AM, Gibraltar, 1:00 PM, Blue Rhythm Boys; Sept. 19, 10:30 AM, Karen Collins & Backroads, 1:00 PM, Janine Wilson & Max Evans; Sept. 26, 10:30 AM, Archie’s Barbershop Jambassadors; 1:00 PM, Seth Kibel & Bay Jazz Project; Oct. 3, 10:30 AM, Runakuna, 1:00 PM, The Capitol Hillbillies; Oct. 10, 10:30 AM, The Lovejoy Group, 1:00 PM, Frank Solivan & Dirty Kitchen. Free. www.capitolhillcommunityfoundation.org
St. Monica and St. James Episcopal Church Capitol Hill
Jazz in the Sculpture Garden. Fridays through Sept. 10 (rain or shine), 5:008:00 PM. National Gallery of Art Sculpture Garden. Live jazz performed by an eclectic mix of top artists from the Washington area entertains visitors outdoors in front of the fountain or in the Pavilion Cafe (if it’s raining). The Pavilion Cafe features a seasonal tapas-style menu and bar service during the concerts. Everyone can enjoy these concerts. You do not have to order food or drinks. Free. 202- 289-3360. http://www.nga.gov
Blessing of Animals – All Welcome Sat., Oct. 2 – 10:00 a.m. Lincoln Park (11th and East Capitol Sts.) Fr. Milton C. Williams, presiding Bring your pets for benedictions and biscuits (doggie) Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi
Music at Epiphany. Tuesdays, 12:101:00 PM Church of the Epiphany. The music is generally classical in this church known for its great acoustics. On the third Tuesday of each month, the music performed is from another culture or style--you may hear a steel drum band or a sitar. Free. A free-will donation ($5 suggested) will be taken to help support the artists. 1317 G St. NW. 202-3472635. www.epiphanydc.org Live! on Woodrow Wilson Plaza. Weekdays through Sept. 24 (weather permitting), noon-1:30 PM. Ronald Reagan
St. Monica and St. James Episcopal Church, 222 Eighth St. NE, Washington, DC 20002, 202–546–1746, office@smjec.org, www.smjec.org
Services Schedule Sundays 7:45 a.m. – Morning Prayer 8:00 a.m. – Low Mass 10:00 a.m. – High Mass
Mondays and Wednesdays – Low Mass – noon Tuesdays – Low Mass – 6:30 p.m. Thursdays – Morning Prayer – 8:00 a.m. Saturdays – Morning Prayer – 10:00 a.m.
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 27
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28 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Building and International Trade Center. LIVE!’s lunch-time performances feature world-renowned entertainers in a variety of flavors, such as African dance, legendary R&B, Motown sounds, hip hop, Latin swing and pop rock. Free.1300 Penn. Ave. NW. 202-312-1300. www.itcdc.com Carillon and Peel Bell Recitals. Carillon Recitals on Saturdays, 12:30-1:15 PM. Peel Bell Rehearsals on Tuesdays. 7:30-8:30 PM. Peel bells ring every Sunday at approximately 12:30 PM after the 11:00 AM service. Washington National Cathedral. Manufactured by the John Bellfoundry of Loughborough, England, the smallest bell weighs 17 pounds; the largest 12 tons. The carillon is played via a keyboard and pedals, situated high in the cathedral’s central tower (150 feet above the nave floor) and directly amid the bells. The carillon recital and peel bells are best heard from the Bishop’s Garden. Look for signs as you enter the cathedral grounds. 202-537-6200. www. nationalcathedral.org Steinway Series of classical music concerts at American Art Museum. Second Sunday of every month, 3:00 PM The Steinway Series is a classical music concert that features the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s refurbished Steinway Concert Grand piano. Free. McEvoy Auditorium, Lower Level American Art Museum (between Seventh and Nineth and and F and G sts. NW.) 202633-1000. www.americanart.si.edu Jazz Night (and fishfry) in Southwest. Fridays, 6-9 PM. Westminster Presbyterian Church. Local musicians perform, and the Southwest Catering Company provides a fish fry 5:30-8:30 PM. $5/general; free/children under 16. Modestly priced food. 400 I St. SW. 202-484-7700, www.westminsterdc.org/jazz.htm.
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Blue Monday Blues. Mondays, 6-9 PM. Westminster Presbyterian Church. Local musicians perform, and the Southwest Catering Company provides a fish fry from 5:30-8:30 PM. $5/general; free/ children under 16. Modestly priced food. 400 I St. SW. 202-484-7700. www.westminsterdc.org/blues.htm. Kennedy Center Millennium Stage. Daily (including all holidays), 6:00 PM. The Kennedy Center Grand Foyer. “Performing Arts for Everyone” at the Millennium Stage was instituted to introduce the Kennedy Center to wider audiences by offering free performances, 365 days a year. Free. 202-444-1324 or 202-4674600. www.kennedy-center.org Magical, Mystical, Musical Machine: Noon Pipe Organ Recital Series. Sept. 10, 12:15-1:00 PM. ...pipe-organ-only focus, a burst of renewed energy, and a fun and interactive approach which will open your eyes to the amazing world of the pipe organ. Free. National City Christian Church, 5 Thomas Circle. 202-2320323. www.nationalcitycc.org
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“Homegrown: The Music of America” Concert at the Library of Congress. Sept. 15, noon. MARIMBA LINDA XELAJÚ—Guatemalan Marimba Music from Maryland. Free. Coolidge Auditorium in Jefferson Building (First St. between East Capitol St. and Independence Ave. SE). 202707-5510. www.loc.gov
MARKETS Eastern Market. Daily except Mondays and important holidays. Weekdays, 7:00 AM-7:00 PM; Saturdays, 7:00 AM-6:00 PM; Sundays, 9:00 AM-5:00 PM. Flea market and arts and crafts market open Saturdays and Sundays, 9:00 AM-6:00 PM. Eastern Market is Washington’s last continually operated “old world” market. On weekends the market area comes alive with farmers bringing in fresh produce, craft and flower vendors, artists, a flea market and street musicians. 200 block of 7th St. SE. 202-544-0083. www. easternmarketdc.com H Street Farmers’ Market. Saturdays, 9 AM-noon, through Nov. 20. Parking lot in the 600 block of H Street. The market is a producers-only outdoor market offering fruit, vegetables, meats, baked goods, cheese, flowers and more for sale. www.freshfarmmarket.org
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Friends in the Market “Funky Flea Market” with a DJ. Saturdays and Sundays, 8:00 AM-5:00 PM. New and used clothing, tools, furniture, jewelry, plants, soaps, art, CD’s, videos and electronics. 6th St. NE (north of Florida Ave. beside DC Farmers Market). 202-399-6040. Mi Tierra (Latino) Market at Unity Park. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays (weather permitting). 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM. Unity Park at Champlain St. Euclid St. and Columbia Rd. NW. Mi Tierra market has 18 approved vendors that sell foods and crafts from their native countries in the heart of Adams Morgan. Dupont Circle Farmers’ Market. Sundays year round (rain or shine), 9:00 AM-1:00 PM. The Wall Street Journal and The Financial Times of London named the market one of the top farmers’ markets in the country. During the peak season, there are more than 30 farmers offering fruits and vegetables, meat, poultry, fish, cheeses, fruit pies, breads, fresh pasta, cut flowers, potted plants, soaps and herbal products. 20th St. and Mass. Ave. NW, 1500 block of 20th St. NW (between Mass. Ave. and Q St. in the adjacent parking lot of PNC Bank). 202-362-8889. www. freshfarmmarket.org Georgetown Flea Market. Sundays year around (except in the case of very inclement weather), 8:00 AM- 4:00 PM. The crowd is as diverse as the items for sale! Antiques, collectibles, art, furniture, rugs, pottery, china, jewelry, silver, stained glass, books and photographs are an example of the available items. 1819 35th St. NW. 202-7753532. or www.georgetownfleamarket.com
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Capitol Riverfront Farmers’ Market. Thursdays through Nov., 3:00-7:00 PM. New Jersey Avenue and M St. SE, (adjacent to the Navy Yard Metro, New Jersey Avenue exit). Farm-fresh produce, baked goods and more. www.capitolriverfront.org/calendar/do/riverfron-farmers-market
Montgomery Farm Women’s Cooperative Market. Inside market open year round, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, 7:00 AM-4:00 PM. Outside market open year round (weather permitting), Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, 7:00 AM-5:00 PM. 7155 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, MD. 301-652-0100. www.farmwomensmarket.com Maine Avenue Fish Market. Open 365 days a year. 7:00 AM-9:00 PM. 1100 Maine Ave. SW. 202-484-2722.
SPORTS, DANCE ANDPHYSICAL FITNESS Washington Nationals Baseball Home Games. Sept. 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28 and 29. 7:05 PM (Sunday games at 1:35 PM). $5 and up. South Capitol and N sts. SE. www.washington.nationals.mlb.com Post-Game Fireworks at Washington National’s Stadium. Sept. 10 and 24, (about) 10:00 PM. The firworks take place immediately after all Friday night home games. You don’t have to be at the game to enjoy the fireworks. Free. South Capitol and N sts. SE. www.washington.nationals. mlb.com The Nation’s Triathlon. Sept. 12, 8:00 AM, race begins at Washington Harbor. 9:00 AM-3:00 PM, Finish Line Festival, Pennsylvania Ave. NW (between 12th and 13th sts.). 1.5K swim...40K bike...10K run. Spectators welcome at the finish line. www.thenationstriathlon.com Fort Dupont Ice Arena Public Skating. Fridays in Sept., noon-1:50 pm; Saturdays in Sept. 11:15 AM-12:15 PM. $5, adults. $4, children and seniors. Skate rental, $3. 3779 Ely Place, SE. 202-584-5007. www.fdia.org Tai Chi Class. Saturday mornings (except when it’s below zero or very inclement weather), 8:00 AM. Lincoln Park. Dr. David Walls-Kaufman, a Capitol Hill chiropractor, conducts this class every Saturday morning. Please dress comfortably. Free. East Capitol St. between 11th and 13th Sts. 202-544-6035. Kung Fu and Tai Chi at the Historical Society of Washington, DC. Every Saturday (rain or shine). Kung Fu, noon; Tai Chi, 1:00 PM. Suitable for all ages. Kung Fu is a broad term that is used to describe all martial arts of Chinese origin. The ancient art of Tai Chi is a style of Kung Fu that emphasizes internal energy. Free. No RSVP required. Historical Society of Washington, DC, 801 K St. NW (Mount Vernon Square). 202-383-1850. www.historydc.org Play Bocce (aka Lawn Bowling). Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Garfield Park, Second and F St. SE. Check website for times. www.dcbocce.com Rumsey Pool. Weekdays public swimming, 6:30-10:00 AM; noon-5:00 PM; 6:30-7:30 PM (adult lap swimming only); 7:30-9:00 PM; Saturdays, 1:00-5:00 PM; Sundays, 10:00 AM-5:00 PM. Free for DC residents (have ID). 635 North Carolina Ave. SE. 202-724-4495. www. dpr.dc.gov/dpr East Potomac (outdoor heated) Pool. Open daily except Wednesdays through Oct. 17; weekdays, 4:00-8:00 PM; Saturdays and Sundays, noon-6:00 PM. Free for DC residents (have ID). 972 Ohio Dr. SW. 202-727-6523. www. dpr.dc.gov/dpr Corner Store Work-Outs. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 8:309:30 AM. Wednesdays, 11:30 AM-12:30 PM. $10/class. 900 South Carolina Ave. SE 202-544-5807. www.cornerstorearts.org Tidal Basin 3K Monthly Run. Third Wednesday of each month, noon. This run is free and informal. West Potomac Park (meet on Ohio Drive at West Basin Drive, near the Tourmobile. stand). 703-505-3567. www. dcroadrunners.org African Dance Class. Every Monday, 7:15-8:30 PM. For adults. No prior experience necessary. Walk-ins welcome. THEARC. $10. 1901 Mississippi Ave. SE. 202-889-5901. www.thearcdc.org Yoga Class. Every Saturday, 10:00-11:15 AM. For adults. No prior experience necessary. Walk-ins welcome.
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202.558.6486 Fitnesstogether.com/capitolhill Follow us on:
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 31
They helped you, now it’s YOUR TURN to help them! Walk for a Homeless Veteran at the Fannie Mae Help the Homeless Walkathon Saturday, November 20th, 2010 To Register to walk visit: www.helpthehomelessdc.org Register Under Access Housing, Inc(DC) Code DC002 For more information on how you can assist please call
202-561-VETS (8387) 9533
9533 22663
Get Involved!
10TH STREET 1 AUTO REPAIRS Serving Capitol Hill for over 25 years
Family-owned & Operated Certified Mechanics Foreign & Domestic 518 10th St., NE (MD & 10th St., NE) Monday-Friday: 8 am – 6 pm •
544-1110
THEARC. $10. 1901 Mississippi Ave. SE. 202-889-5901. www.thearcdc.org Pick-up Field Hockey on the Mall. Every Monday at 6:00 PM. Meets at the fields in front of the Smithsonian Metro stop for males and females who have a passion for field hockey. No experience necessary. Bring water, shinguards, mouthguard, cleats, a field hockey stick, and either a reversible jersey or a light and dark shirt - no grays please. Free. Roller Skating at Anacostia Park. Skate any time. This is a covered, outdoor skating pavilion. Free. Go east on Penn. Ave. across Anacostia River and make the first right turn onto Fairlawn Ave. and another right onto Nicholson and then into the park. 202-472-3873. East Potomac Mini Golf. Open weekends only through Oct., 11:00AM-7:00 PM. East Potomac Park. Built in the 1920’s with stone bumpers and obstacles. $6 for adults and $5 for kids under 18. 972 Ohio Dr. SW. 202-488-8087. www.golfdc.com East Potomac Driving Range. Open daily except Christmas, 5:30 AM to 9:30 PM. Tuesdays open 10:00 AM to 9:30 PM. The East Potomac Driving Range features 50 covered and 50 uncovered stalls for yearround golf practice. $6 for 51 balls. East Potomac Golf Course, 972 Ohio Dr. SW. 202-554-7660. www.golfdc.com Langston Driving Range. Open every day except Christmas, sun-up to sun-down. In addition to the driving range, Langston has an 18 hole course, snack bar, pro shop and offers golf lessons. 45 balls, $4.75. 180 balls, $14.25. $2, golf club rental. 26th and Benning Rd. NE. 202-397-8638 www.golfdc.com Southeast Tennis and Learning Center. Open daily; Monday through Saturday, 9:00 AM-9:00 PM; Sunday, 9:00 AM6:00 PM. Four indoor courts. Six outdoor courts. Summer hourly fees at $6 to $10 for adults. Kids 17 and under play for free. 701 Mississippi Ave. SE. 202-645-6242. www.dpr.dc.gov/dpr Free public tennis courts in Ward Six. King Greenleaf Recreation Center, 201 N St. SW; Garfield Park, Third and G sts. SE; Randall Park First and I ts. SW; Rosedale Recreation Center, 1701 Gales St. NE; Sherwood Recreation Center, 640 10th St. NE. All courts are open daily, dawn to dusk. Some are lighted for extended evening play. Courts are available on a first-come, first-served basis for one-hour intervals; extended use of tennis courts requires a permit. Proper shoes and attire is required. 202-671-0314. www.dpr. dc.gov/dpr
COMMUNITY MEETINGS Champs Links Lunch. Sept. 16, 11:30 AM-1:00 PM. (3rd Thursday of every month except August) Location TBA. Goals, Strategies and Setting Benchmarks
32 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Watch The Redskins with Your Friends for Accomplishment. $20. RSVP to Champs @capitolhill.org or 202-547-7788. www. champsdc.org ANC Meeting for 6-A. Second Thursday, 7:00 PM. Miner Elementary School, 601 15th St. NE. 202-423-8868. anc6a.org ANC Meeting for 6-B. Second Tuesday, 7:00 PM. 535 8th St. SE (The Peoples Church). 202-543-3344. anc6b.org
Sunday & Monday Night Football Game Time Specials • 1/2 Priced Wings • $2 Bud & Bud Light Drafts
ANC Meeting for 6-C. Second Wednesdays, 7:00 PM. Call 202-547-7168 for meeting location. anc6c.org ANC Meeting for 6-D. Second Monday, 7:00 PM. Call 202-554-1795 for meeting location. anc6d.org Lonestar Toastmasters. Every Tuesday, 7:00-8:00 PM, Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, 545 7th St. SE. 240-604-3575
OUT OF TOWN National Museum of the Marine Corps. Open daily except Christmas, 9:00 AM-5:00 PM. (Free docent-led tours at 10:00 AM, noon and 2:00 PM.) Free. 18900 Jefferson Davis Highway, Triangle, VA. 1-800-3977585. www.usmcmuseum.com Free Beginning Bird Walks at Woodend Nature Sanctuary. Saturdays, Sept. through June, 8:00-9:00 AM. Woodend Nature Sanctuary (meet at the Audubon Sanctuary Shop parking lot), 8940 Jones Mill Rd. Chevy Chase, MD. 301-652-9188. www. audubonnaturalist.org
The Hill’s Best Happy Hour 5 to 8 PM - Call for Specials
TUNNICLIFF’S TAVERN
The Gathering Place On The Hill… Right next to Eastern Market Metro across from Eastern Market Tunnicliff’s Tavern 222 7th Street SE Washington, D.C. 20003 www.tunnicliffstaverndc.com
Phone: 202-544-5680 Fax: 202-544-9630 Email: tunnicliffs@gmail.com
“National Treasure” Tour at Mount Vernon. Daily, 9:30 AM, 11:30 AM, 1:00 PM, and 3:00 PM. Visitors take an hour-long walking tour that includes behind-thescenes information about areas where “National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets” filming took place and how these locations were used during George Washington’s time. Mount Vernon, VA (at the southern end of the George Washington Memorial Parkway). $15. 703-780-2000. www.mountvernon.org Skywatching at Sky Meadows State Park. Sept. 11, 7:30 PM. Join National Air and Space Museum staff astronomers and other local amateur astronomers, for telescopic observing of various astronomical objects under dark, star-filled skies, away from city lights. The evenings begin with a short night sky orientation at dusk. Free. 540592-3556. www.nasm.si.edu Haymarket Day. Saturday, Sept. 18, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM. Lives stages of music, kids’ activities, vendors. Haymarket, VA. (We’re told that if you find Haymarket, you’ll find the festival.) 703-753-2600. www.townofhaymarket.org ★
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Adams Morgan Day Festival All Kinds of Fun on Sept 12 by Sheray Wright
W
ith the theme of “A Global Community of Diverse Cultures,” the Adams Morgan Day Festival will run from noon to 7 p.m. on Sunday, September 12. “Arts on Belmont” opens early at 10 am for early shoppers but late comers can still enjoy live music, dance, food, diverse wares and themed pavilions up and down 18th Street NW, and at Kalorama Park and Marie Reed school. Adams Morgan Main Street Group is a non-profit dedicated to promoting the small neighborhood and commercial district of Adams Morgan. The success of the 32-year-old festival is due largely to its volunteers who help plan and produce the festival known for celebrating international cuisine, cultures, diversity, and music. Festival goers can enjoy a variety of live music, theatre, dance, and spoken word across several stages as well as take in local shopping & restaurants.
planting and care, energy-saving remodeling, renewable energy, personal care and home products, organic food, and recycled furniture.
Music, Dance and Art
New This Year New in 2010 are themed pavilions for Health & Wellness and a Pet Zone. Sponsored by Kaiser Permanente, the Health Pavilion is visible from 18th & California streets NW. Hooping and yoga demonstrations will liven the pavilion as it showcases health, sports, fitness, diet, and social service organizations. Highlights also include health screenings, clinics, personal health, holistic and positive lifestyle sessions and co-sponsor Georgetown University Hospital. The Pet Zone will have services, products, green pets and pet health grouped together on the 18th St Marie Reed tennis court. The Pavilion welcomes both owners and fourlegged visitors to the Festival while offering doggie games and a cooling doggie wading pool. Get advice from the Maryland Dog Whisperer or 34 ★ HillRag | September 2010
learn about what pet is right for you and how adoption and rescue works. The DC Dept of the Environment (DDOE) sponsors The Green Pavilion where purveyors of all things green await under a common tent on the 18th street tennis courts. Vendors specializing in planet-friendly services, products, and info are co-sponsored by Washington Gas. Find solar systems design & installation, tree
The popular Columbia and Florida live music stages, sponsored by the Adams Morgan Partnership and Bolt Bus, anchor the Festival main entrances on 18th Street, NW. Latin and world music will energize the Florida stage. According to long-time Festival attendee, now a coordinator, Pablo Grabiel, “It’s exciting to start with an Irish Band, go to Latin Fusion and World Latin, then to Latin Jazz and Reggae, concluding with Afro funk.” For the more daring, they might try the salsa competition scheduled for 3 p.m. The Columbia Stage, coordinated by Kat Hansen, will feature groups with roots from American music tradition, but will explore different avenues covering, rock, neo-soul, blues funk, and Afro pop. The Dance Plaza is always a crowd pleaser with live dance lessons and workshops. People can watch, learn and dance on the temporary wooden dance floor set up on the basketball court at Marie Reed School. Sponsored by Safeway, watch belly dancing, line dancing, Latin performers and Malcolm X Drummers. A special appearance is planned by Batala DC joined by its international counterparts totaling fifty female performers together at one time. Popular but a little quieter venues of the festival include Arts on Belmont and Jazz in the Park sponsored by Harris Teeter. Coordinated by photographer Avner Ofer, the popular Arts on Belmont opens at 10 a.m. for serious shoppers and browsing on a shady Belmont Street. Some 45 original artisans show, discuss and sell their creations either handmade or one of-a-kind jewelry, photography, pottery, fine art, mix media, textiles
and more. Items cover all price ranges and fit any budget, large or small. Jazz in the Park is an oasis of music hosted at local Kalorama Park. Visitors can relax in the shade and grassy area while listening to a range of jazz by vocalists and groups such as Zeebop, Andrea Wood, Lovesome Thing, John Lee Experience and Jolley Brothers. Always a popular collector’s item, the commemorative Festival T-shirt will be available throughout the Festival. Additional sponsors are DC Lottery, Comcast and Zip Car. Bank of America sponsors the Cultural Stage, located near the Kid’s Fair at Marie Reed school. Coordinated by volunteer Celestino Zapata, it showcases a broad mix of musical genres, theater, dance, and cultural performances, including students from the famed local Sitar Arts Center. The nearby Kid’s Fair offers free activities and games for all ages in a family-friendly area that includes a rock climbing wall, obstacle course and prizes. “Chalk 4 Peace” shows kids and adults how to create colorful sidewalk art with a love theme. Executive Director, Janet LugoTafur notes that “we could not do the Festival without the tremendous support of local volunteers, who donate their time and organize vendors, layouts, work on petition signatures, stages & plazas, and execute the actual ‘day of ’!” Volunteer opportunities include working at stages, pre-festival activities, and ‘day of ’ and breakdown. To volunteer, email VolsAMDay@ AMMainStreet.org or call 202232-1960. More information can be found on www.AdamsMorganDayFestival.com. Visitors are encouraged to use Metrorail, Metro and Circulator buses to get to and from the festival. Limited parking available at The Park at Adams Morgan (1711 Florida Ave NW.) For more info, call 202-232-1960. Shernay Wright is a Festival Volunteer Coordinator. ★
CAPITOL
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CELL: 202-550-7278 OFFICE: 202-548-4811
Public Programs at the Anacostia Community Museum Sept. 4 Film, 10:30 a.m. The Language You Cry In - 52 min. film. A historic meeting between a Mende woman of Sierra Leone and Gullah woman of Georgia linked through a song discovered by Lorenzo Dow Turner. Sept. 4 Mambo on Film - Part 1 of 3, 2 p.m. Metro Mambo is back in a three part series. Jim Byers, host of WPFW 89.3 FM’s “Latin Flavor” presents rare and significant Latin musical and dance moments in Hollywood and world cinema. Program features dance party with Orquesta La Leyenda band. Sept. 5 Stories for All, 1 p.m. Diane Gardner, also known as Um Attiya, shares historical, values-inspired, imaginary, and family-related stories that educate and entertain. Sept. 11 The Gullah Islamic Connection, 1 p.m. Amir Muhammad discusses the Islamic influence among African Americans living in the Gullah region of the United States. Sept. 12 Gullah Tales, 11 a.m. Storyteller and actor Dylan Pritchett presents a delightful afternoon of interactive Gullah tales from the South Carolina Low Country for the whole family. Sept. 14 Discovering Our Communities: Researching “Place” in D.C. (Part 1), 7 p.m. Join Matthew Gilmore for a workshop on the use of archival records to discover the history of your neighborhood. Sept. 15 43rd Anniversary Event, “Word, Shout, Song: Connecting Communities.”, noon at the National Press Club Cat the National Press Club. The Anacostia Community Museum celebrates at a benefit luncheon featuring Congressman Jim Clyburn (SC) as honorary chair; Marquetta “Queen Quet” Goodwine, as keynote and honoring Melvin Deal, Zora Martin Felton and Josephine Wharton. For info and tickets call, 202. 633.4875 or email ACMinfo@si.edu. Sept. 18 Making Bling! 10:30 a.m. Join Kathleen Manning in creating five basic designs for earrings. Fee required. Sept. 19 Chavez Ravine, 2 p.m. A film showing the bittersweet story of how an American community in Los Angeles was displaced and became the new Dodger Stadium. Sept. 22 Create Jewelry Inspired by the Gullah Culture, 10:30 a.m. Deidre Bell will conduct a beginner’s workshop on creating beautiful and vibrant jewelry you can wear. Sept. 25 Cooking Up Your Family’s History—Finding Your Heritage in Food , 10:30 a.m. Historian Maria Goodwin will show how looking at food and customs can offer a lesson about your family’s history. Sept. 26 Crocheting Bright Geechie Colors, 1 p.m. Mary Gaskins offers basic instruction in crocheting. Sept. 28 Discovering Our Communities: Researching “Place” in D.C. (Part 2), 7 p.m. Matthew Gilmore presents on how to use local archival resources to discover the history of your neighborhood. Reservations required, call 202.633.4844 *LAST WEEKEND to take SHUTTLE ANACOSTIA, offering free weekend roundtrip transportation service from the Mall to the Anacostia Community Museum through Labor Day Monday. Stops include several Mall museums, the Anacostia Metro and the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site. Visit anacostia.si.edu/shuttle for schedule. 1901 Fort Pl. SE, Open 10am-5pm daily except Dec. 25. 202.633.4820 anacostia.si.edu. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.
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ELECTION SPECIAL> SPECIAL>
Gray Contests Fenty’s Plan for DC By Paul D. Shinkman
A
drian Fenty is a man who believes in getting things done. Period. One need look no further than the laundry list of development projects he boasts of at campaign events. The first-term mayor brought the city together to win the 2006 election. He swept each of the 142 precincts in the primaries by personally approaching residents in all eight wards, and creating a sense of unity behind a banner of change in economic development, healthcare and public safety. But “Fenty the Unifier” soon gave way to “Fenty the Chief Executive,” reeling in power spread throughout the city–particularly in education and economic development–under the command of the Office of the Mayor. This apparently explains why Gray is now ahead in the polls by doubledigits. Many constituents are concerned about Fenty’s arrogance – causing him to adopt a more conciliatory and self-effacing attitude in these last few weeks of the campaign. With Vince Gray promoting a long-term vision for the District with a significantly more thoughtful and inclusive approach to the main issues of the day, residents of the DC will ask themselves at the ballot box: how do you want to see change in your city?
On Background A native Washingtonian, the professional background of Adrian Fenty, 39, is steeped in politics – after graduating from Oberlin and Howard Law School, he was staff member for Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II (D-Mass.), and former Council member Kevin Chavous (Ward-7) before winning a seat on the Council himself in 2000 representing Ward 4. He was reelected to the position in 2004 before successfully running for mayor in 2006. Vincent Gray, born in the District 28 years before his main opponent, 38 ★ HillRag | September 2010
holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology from George Washington University. He began his career working in local social service non profits, such as the DC Association for Retarded Citizens and Covenant House Washington as the founding executive director. He was first elected to the Council as the Ward 7 representative in 2004. Two years later he successfully ran for chairman.
Raise the Roof Much of the meat of Fenty’s Mayor Adrian Fenty Photos: Andrew Lightman
City Council Chairman Vincent Gray
campaign, both in public forums and through his campaign materials, has focused on expanding the control of central government, specifically development projects he has pushed through during his four-year tenure as mayor. He cites the completion of many of these projects as a direct result of his closing the semi-governmental development organizations like the National Capital Renovation Corporation and the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation that were in control of the projects. Fenty does not believe these, like many other smaller projects throughout the city, were operating efficiently
and so he instead transferred their authority to his administration under the city’s Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. “Mayor Fenty has a proven track record of delivering results as the executive,” said campaign spokesman Sean Magidan. Fenty’s campaign staff was not able to schedule a time for the mayor to speak with The Capital Community News directly. “We have pushed this city much farther than anybody has ever pushed it before in three and a half years.” Within just the southwest waterfront district, Madigan points to completed projects like the Diamond Teague park, where water-taxis ferry in and out from the area around the new Nationals baseball stadium; the completion of the Yards Park; the near completion of the Arena Stage renovations and the groundbreaking for Canal Park. “Columbia Heights is probably the best example of what became of NCRCs projects,” Madigan added, explaining how the complex was completed under the Fenty administration. “There are, something to the tune of in the last 10 years, now a billion dollars invested in Columbia Heights.” Madigan cited the Columbia Heights DC USA shopping center as
“the last piece of the puzzle” for that project, which he said put “a thousand people at work, at Target and Best Buy and some of the other stores there because of that project.” However, Gray supported the existence of the NCRC and AWC and believes that the mayor’s recent development projects may not have benefitted the city as much as they could have. “There have been projects, there have been initiatives, but what is the strategy?” Gray inquired. In the economic development plan Gray posted on his campaign website, he lays out an eight-step plan for economic development, including restructuring the Office of the DMPED into two separate roles, one to manage real estate development and another devoted to area businesses. “There really needs to be a component that focuses on business development, especially small businesses in the city,” he told The Capital Community News, “because they really have not gotten the focused attention that they deserve.” Gray also cites the importance of reforming the Department of Employment Services to make it a “leader in adult training, especially when you look at the level of unemployment in the city at this stage, especially east of the [Anacostia] river.”
Schoolhouse Rock Gray has pushed for a “birth through 24” education plan with a particular focus on a universal pre-kindergarten program available to all DC children, a greater “parity” of funding and resources between charter and public schools and continuing to develop undergraduate institutions. Gray also suggests the potential for co-mingling the public and charter school systems into one building in some instances. “It would save everybody money, it would be an opportunity for them to
share best practices, and to improve the collaboration between the two approaches to governing,” he said. Gray calls for the expansion of the DC community college, which currently has more than 2,000 students in twelve locations by the end of the next school year, and making UDC a “flagship,” “first class university.” While he has not committed to keeping Michelle Rhee as schools chancellor under his administration, Gray will maintain this “new governance approach,” which he voted in the City Council, and help it “continue to evolve.” “It’s not just about a chancellor,” he said, “it’s about a new role for the Board of Education.” Fenty, on the other hand, has based his education platform around his unwaivering support for Chancellor Rhee, who he said “makes tough decisions: she closes schools, she holds people accountable. We’ve been waiting 30 years for someone to do that in DC.” Rhee has fired hundreds of teachers, including 165 earlier this summer, for “having poor appraisals” under a new evaluation system she established. The mayor also cites particular schools programs the chancellor has put into place, such as the arts integration program at Ludlow Taylor Elementary, the world cultures catalyst program at Payne Elementary and significant renovations to schools throughout the District, like the $90 million projected upgrades to Anacostia High School. “The mayor supports the chancellor 100%,” Fenty’s spokesman Madigan said. “She is at the very vanguard of school reform.”
Mo’ Money Fenty has maintained the campaign promise he made four years ago to not raise taxes during his first term. However, facing significant budget shortfalls and a nationwide recession, he has signaled recently that he is open to shifting that approach. “It’s OK to consider raising taxes,” Fenty said at a recent mayoral forum in Ward 6. “His approach is that the District of Columbia forever has had an efficiency issue,” spokesman Madigan
said of Fenty. “We have to continue to keep spending within our means and raising taxes is a last resort for him.” “At the same time, we can’t allow service delivery to fall through the floor,” he said. The mayor also defends the “tough decisions” he has had to make during his tenure by firing more than 2,000 city employees, which he acknowledges makes people angry, “but it’s the right thing to do.” “We can’t go back to the days when we overspent on budget, when politicians wouldn’t make tough decisions and the federal government… thought they needed to take over the city,” he added. Fenty has approached the costoverruns in many of the city agencies under his purview by shifting monies to where he believes they will be better used; last spring he pushed to divert the funds raised from the recently implemented bag tax – slated to go to Anacostia River cleanup efforts -- towards paying for municipal street sweeping, which he argued would help protect the river. “I think the first thing we have to do is convince people we’ve reduced expenditures down to what is absolutely necessary,” said Chairman Gray of the possibility of raising taxes under a larger umbrella plan for the city. “People are going to be more supportive of…increased taxes if they feel like there are no other options toward being able to retain certain important services.” Gray pointed out the gasoline, cigarette and sales tax increases the City Council passed last summer after making the case that they had “squeezed a lot of reductions, first.” The chairman has also publicly criticized the Fenty administration for raising “every fee and fine in sight,” specifically referencing increased parking meter fees that affect local businesses and force drivers to keep “nine rolls of quarters” in their pockets. Fenty believes he has so much more to do. Gray wants to hear everyone’s ideas before implementing the next phase in a long-term plan, and believes DC is on a treacherous fiscal course. Their constituents will decide in this election when it’s the right time to shift hands at the helm. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 39
ELECTION SPECIAL> SPECIAL>
A Tale of Two Cities The Ward Six Candidates Have Distinctly Different Views of Where We Live By Peter J. Waldron
I
n the 2006 Democratic Primary, of rental, utility and burial assistance. incumbent Ward 6 Councilmem- Wells’ office conservatively estimates ber Tommy Wells carried every he has held 20,000 meetings with all single precinct in Ward 6 with 65 % constituents in the same period with of the vote. Four years later, Wells re- constituent offices on H Street NE tains a popularity that cuts across the and in Southwest. ward’s racial and class lines. He also can point to a number of very concrete The Candidates achievements, the most well known Wells has a long history of public of which is the Bag Bill. Wells is the service both in Ward 6 and in the Disleading advocate on the DC Council trict. A social worker by training, Wells of the “new urbanism,” a movement is a Catholic University Law graduthat advocates refashioning the cities ate. He has served as an ANC cominto mass transit and pedestrian-ori- missioner (1995-2000) before being ented environments filled with civic amenities all located within a five minute walk of residences. Yet despite this, Kelvin Robinson, the Chair of ANC6A and former Chief of Staff for Mayor Anthony Williams has entered the race to challenge him. The question is why? Robinson believes that Ward 6 is divided into two parts: the haves and the have-nots. He does not see Wells’ ‘”ivable walkable” vision as relevant to all ward residents. Robinson says “it’s a matter of focus on what matters. There are people in the ward who believe that they have been left behind” citing the 135 homeless families who are living temporarily at DC General. Robinson Kelvin Robinson. Photo: Andrew Lightman expands his criticism of Wells saying that he is troubled that someone with elected to the School Board (2000-06). “ 25 years in social services” has done Wells was elected to the City Council so little for the less privileged, and that in 2006 and chairs the Human Services Ward 6, with 63 % of children below Committee. Wells’ signature legislative the poverty line, only receives $93 mil- achievement has been The Anacostia lion from the District in services for River and Protection Act of 2009, a tax schools, libraries and recreation fund- on plastic bags which has significantly ing. The more affluent Ward 3 receives reduced the number of plastic bags in $140 million with only 11% at the circulation. Wells is married with no poverty level. children. Wells responds to this criticism by Robinson has lived in Ward 6 since citing the $75 million invested in East- former Mayor Williams hired him as ern HS and the $22 million for the res- his Chief of Staff in 2001. Prior to that toration of the Eastern Market. Wells’ he worked in Florida as Director of office has documented over 150,000 Legislative and Public Affairs for the contacts with all ward residents in his Florida League of Cities. first term, including many in need In 2004 Robinson resigned as 40 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Tommy Wells Photos: Andrew Lightman
Williams’ chief of staff as allegations swirled of Hatch Act. violations. Robinson denies these allegations, pointing out that no formal charges were ever levied although he did agree to a resolution of the issue which included a restriction that he not serve in government for two years. Currently Robinson heads a consulting firm, RightForce and has served as Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities. Robinson has BS and MA degrees in Communication from Florida State University. He is married and has two teenage sons who attend Catholic schools.
Public Safety Wells’ approach to public safety begins with his new urbanist philosophy. The most effective anti-crime measures, he argues, are people sitting at sidewalk cafes with strong pedestrian traffic and good overhead lighting. Wells claims that building livable walkable communities is the key to deterring criminal behavior, citing the teeming blocks of Barracks Row as an example to emulate. Wells has long been a proponent of juvenile justice reforms even as he strongly supports stricter curfews.
Wells recently adopted a more nuanced position on a controversial juvenile crime bill that that has made former allies and advocates of juveniles sharply critical of him. Despite his five years as a Child Protective Services case worker, Wells supports components of this bill that would allow some of the confidentiality protections of juveniles to be loosened especially for those convicted of violent crimes. Robinson believes that juvenile crime is a central issue in this campaign and he argues that he and his neighbors do not feel comfortable strolling about the outlying Hill neighborhoods, pointing to a spate of recent car jackings in northeast and a number of highly publicized and vicious muggings in southwest. “Juvenile crime is through the roof,” he says. Robinson advocates a “comprehensive rentry strategy” for juveniles who are about to be released from the controversial $ 45 million, 60-bed New Beginnings youth facility. The city “needs to build a fence” to prevent youth from escaping, according to Robinson, who also believes “judges should have more say in the decision” of when youth are released back into the community. Currently these decisions are made by senior staff at New Beginnings. Wells points out that there has only been one escape from New Beginnings in the past year. Robinson also criticizes Wells for allowing the popular Shuttle Bug bus service that was used to transport SW residents during construction projects, to be halted, contending this is both a transportation and a public safety issue for yet another neglected part of the ward.
Educational Reform Wells is proudest “of the rebound in our public schools” and points to actions he took prior to Chancellor Rhee’s arrival when he successfully
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 41
ADVISORY NEIGHBORHOOD COMMISSION 6A Kelvin Robinson, Chair, 744-0379 Serving the Kingman Park, Linden, Near Northeast, North Lincoln Park, Rosedale, and Stanton Park communities
ANC 6A generally meets the second Thursday of the month, 7 pm, at Miner Elementary School, 601 15th Street, NE.
www.anc6a.org ANC 6A, 2nd Thursday September 9 Alcohol Beverage Licensing Committee 3rd Tuesday, September 21, 7pm • Sherwood Recreation Center Corner of 10th & G Streets, NE • Chair, Mary Beatty, 546-4196 Transportation & Public Space Committee 3rd Monday, September 20, 7pm • Community Room of the Capitol Hill Towers 900 G St. NE • Chair, Omar Mahmud, 546-1520 Economic Development & Zoning Committee 3rd Wednesday, September 15, 7pm • Sherwood Recreation Center Corner of 10th & G Streets, NE • Chair, Drew Ronneberg, 431-4305 Community Outreach Committee 3rd Monday, September 20 • Church of the Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic Faith Annex 1235 C Street, NE • Chair, Elizabeth Nelson, 543-3512
Please check the Community Calendar on the website for cancellations and changes of venue. Attend a meeting! Volunteer for a committee! It’s your ANC!
pushed for public school programs for three-year-olds. Wells points out that there is a now a growing waiting list at five of the 10 schools in Ward 6 due to progress made during his leadership, and because of his “partnership with Ward 6 parents.” Wells supports Rhee. “I am 100% happy with the changes and direction. I want to make public schools the schools of choice again. And the promise of Eastern HS is going to be terrific.” While strongly supporting the public charter movement, Wells does not support vouchers for private schooling because they involve the use of public funds to institutions that possibly discriminate based on sexual orientation. “I can’t” Wells says simply. Robinson wholeheartedly supports educational reform “with quality choices” and describes himself as “a huge supporter of charter schools “ and of vouchers describing them as being at the forefront of schoo reform. As far as the controversial Rhee, he simply says “keep her” while conceding that some of her decisions have been “less than artful in seeking the radical change that is needed in reform.” Robinson also is pressing for movement in special education reform which he points out is eating up onethird of the school budget citing enormous costs associated with transporting children to schools in the District, Maryland and Virginia.
come one of the “greatest neighborhoods in the country.” Wells has also built a huge reservoir of good will, playing a vital role in getting the Eastern Market re-opened. Among the first on the scene the morning of the April 2007 fire, Wells worked closely with the Fenty administration to restore the Market to its historical prominence, and to secure it as Capitol Hill’s economic engine, work that continues today. As far as the Market’s future, Wells thinks “the government will always have a role in the Market and that government assures that there is a governance mechanism to operate the Market on behalf of the community.” Robinson, whose ANC is located in the heart of the rapidly gentrifying H Street, area focuses on a philosophy he says he has adopted from former Mayor Williams that “change should be embraced,” but he believes that there is not enough dialogue in the community.” He contends that some residents feel “put upon and that the change is not for them” and that communications should improve so that the community does “not feel like they are being invaded. All voices need to be heard. We need to understand one another. That is the vision. That is what I am about.” Robinson believes his executive branch service affords him a singular perspective that the Council lacks.
Marriage Equality Economic Development Embracing ward-wide development, Wells points to his shepherding of the explosive growth of Barracks Row and his efforts on H Street, NE: “There are 30 new small businesses who hire locally and whose owners mostly live on the Hill.” Wells secured a $5 million tax abatement for the new H Street Giant Foods and tax deferrals for businesses being negatively impacted by the street car and streetscape construction. Wells has been active in development around Nationals ballpark has worked to introduce a Circulator bus route to the Hill and has defended a community garden threatened by the expansion of the Marine Barracks. Citing the opening of Canal Park as well as the Yards Park, Wells predicts the Capitol Riverfront will soon be42 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Wells unhesitatingly supports marriage equality: “I was all for the Marriage Equality Act but I wasn’t prepared for the things that I had not ever thought of before...funding religious institutions for public purposes. To me the debate crystallized that discrimination is never benign.” Robinson states: “I support equality for everybody. It is the law. I cannot change it. I am not going to do anything with the law.” Pressed at a recent candidate’s forum as to whether he would have voted for marriage equality, he challenged the process as flawed and replied: “I would not have voted for that bill. It was not a win-win.” For more information on election day visit http://www.dcboee.org. To see a video of a recent debate go to http://www. wtop.com/?sid=611201&nid=524 ★
e t o V “As a public servant and private businessman, I have been dedicated to serving our community. I have experienced first-hand the growth and challenges of our city. I have walked and talked with many of our neighbors and one thing that we all agree upon … Ward 6 deserves and can do better! We deserve better schools and recreation centers for our youth, safer streets in our neighborhoods, better jobs for our workers, better community involvement, and better representation for all residents in all corners of the Ward. I have a sound vision for the future of Ward 6 and together we can move our city forward” --- Kelvin Robinson
United For A Stronger D.C. ★ Investing in our children’s future:
As a parent, I know the importance of investing in our children. Last year, Ward 6 received $93.5 million to improve schools and recreation centers – that’s $60 million dollars less than other Wards. This is unacceptable. When elected, I will fight for our children, push for greater choice in our school system and fight for our fair share!
★ Safer streets for our community: I will work to keep criminals out of our community with improved policing strategies. I will develop programs and legislation that will close loop-holes in the juvenile justice system and strengthen the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services; lower the mandatory curfew to 9:30pm and offer after and out-of-school time programs for our youth. ★ Increase Job Opportunities: My goal is to increase job creation for every resident of the Ward. As your Council representative, I will put District residents to work through increased skills training, re-establish vocational and trade schools, and provide summer jobs for our youth. ★ Smarter Development:
I will ensure greater support for our local businesses, as well as, improved amenities for our neighborhoods. I will push for smarter, more comprehensive development of RFK, Hill East Waterfront, Barracks Row, SW Waterfront and the H Street corridor.
Information about Kelvin • Small business owner – 10yrs • Member of the DC Chamber of Commerce | Serve on Board of Directors • Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner ANC 6A08 and ANC6A Chairman • Served as Chief of Staff to former DC Mayor Anthony Williams • Husband and father of two
With your support, I will move our city forward and keep our neighborhood’s safe.
For more information: 1441 Pennsylvania Ave. SE • Washington, DC 20003 www.kelvinfordccouncil.com or call 202.544.4893
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 43
ELECTION SPECIAL> SPECIAL>
Kwame Brown vs Vincent Orange The Fight for Council Chair By Paul D. Shinkman
I
t’s a colorful race between Vincent Orange and Kwame Brown for Council chairman. The first draws upon extensive academic, fiduciary and big-business experience – and a few years on the Council, to boot – as the key to becoming an effective leader for job and economic development within the city. The latter looks for support from the little guy, and is billed as a tireless, eager worker whose current colleagues are ready to see him take the reins.
me, and not at me.” Brown currently serves as chairman of the Council’s Economic Development Committee, and cites his ability to concentrate on what he believes are the most important issues of the day. “While people have been focused on the [Nationals] baseball stadium…I worked with my colleagues to open up the most modernized vocational institution in the country,” Brown told Capital Community News, referring to the “revitalization” of Phelps High School in Ward 5, which focuses on training its students in industries like architecture, construction and engineering.
Clockwork Orange Vincent Orange was born into “an extremely poor” family, he describes, and earned a scholarship to attend boarding school in Colorado. He went on to earn BA’s in business administration and communication from the University of the Pacific, a law degree from Howard University, a Master of Laws in Taxation from Georgetown, a certificate from Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government for successfully completing the program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government, and another certificate from Harvard for Crisis Management. Among his professional positions, Orange has worked at the U.S. Department of the Army and other positions at the Pentagon, the University of the District of Columbia, the DC Department of Finance and Revenue and more recently as a government affairs lobbyist for Pepco. Through his public and private financial positions within DC and at the Federal level, Orange has also participated in numerous trade delegations to Japan, West Africa, southeast Asia and northern Europe. He was elected to the City Council to represent Ward 5 Council for two terms between 1999 and 2007 -- wedged between the terms 44 ★ HillRag | September 2010
LEFT: At-Large Councilmember Kwame Brown. Photo: Andrew Lightman RIGHT: Vincent Orange. Photo: Orange for Chair Campaign
of the Harry Thomas father-son duo -- where he served as chairman of the Committee on Government Operations with oversight over local government offices including the Chief Technology Officer, the City Administrator, the Inspector General and the office of the Mayor. His chief contributions during his tenure include coordinating the establishment of big-name businesses in his ward, establishing a living wage and rebuilding McKinley High School.
You’re a Good Man, Kwame Brown Brown was elected to the Council as an At-Large member in 2004 and has made a name for himself as a focused leader with great support from his fellow Council members. After attending DC’s Woodrow Wilson public high school, Brown earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Morgan State University. Prior to his elected office, Brown was appointed by President Clinton
as a senior advisor to the US Commerce Department, where he eventually became director of the Business Liaison Office. He also served as president and CEO of the Maryland/District of Columbia Minority Supplier Development Council. Past and present colleagues on the City Council have pointed to Brown’s eagerness to listen, ask questions and cooperate. “I’ve watched Kwame work extremely hard on the Council. I think he will bring the qualities that are necessary, and I think he will reach out to people,” said Vincent Gray, who points out that he himself became the Council Chair after serving for only two years. “We all have gaps, so I think he’ll reach out in the way he needs to, to fill those gaps.” “I remember he would come in to question me about certain programs within the department,” said Clark Ray, candidate for the At-Large Council seat and former director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. “I liked the way he talked to
Giving Them the Business Brown has worked to replicate the successful main street program on Barracks Row on Capitol Hill elsewhere in the city. He added that these kinds of environments did not exist in Ward 7, and were sparse in Wards 4, 5 and 8. “Now we have two or three in each one of those wards,” Brown said. “And we can create more Barracks Rows in places like Martin Luther King Avenue.” “It’s about bringing businesses in town as opposed to downtown,” he added. Brown also pointed out the affect on industry during commercial transition, such as the recent streetcar development on H Street; local citizens expect the transit system to greatly increase property values and foot traffic, but in the interim they have to put up with upheaval to area businesses. “This is about how you move the city forward, this is a perfect example of it,” he said. Orange, on the other hand, has used his corporate and high-finance positions, and experience in trade
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 45
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negotiations to aggressively push for corporate expansion in the District. On his campaign site he lists big-box stores and national chains like Bank of America, Citibank, Footlocker, Radio Shack and Shoe City, which he successfully petitioned to open branches in Ward 5 while he was a Council member. He also cites the establishment of the Home Depot on Rhode Island Avenue. “My approach is where there’s an opportunity to be at the table, to have a seat and participate in the discussion,” he told The Capital Community News. “With Home Depot, I found out that [former] Mayor [Anthony] Williams was going to Las Vegas to talk about development. So at my own expense, I flew out to Vegas too, and I was sitting there at the meeting.” During this meeting the Home Depot reps were discussing putting their store on Wisconsin Avenue in Ward 3, he said. “I jumped in and said ‘wait a minute, what about Ward 5? We have a parking impoundment lot. That would be a great place for development,” Orange recounted, adding that the reps were also concerned about the additional funding it would take to plan for parking. “I turned to the Mayor and said ‘you know a million dollars is not going to stop the citizens of Ward 5 from having mayor economic development,’” he added. “And just like that, it turned around and the project in Ward 3 fell apart, and the project in Ward 5 – full speed ahead.”
Providing Good Council The two candidates are divided on their approach to Council committees. Orange would like to drastically reduce what he believes is bloated Council bureaucracy, while Brown thinks the direct involvement from each member fosters a greater sense of accountability in the Council. “Having 13 committees, in my view, is too much,” Orange said. “When you have all that, it’s like mini-mayors running around. Everyone is calling hearings and in46 ★ HillRag | September 2010
vestigations and there is no cohesiveness.” “The motivation is to make sure the Council is an efficient and effective organization, providing aggressive oversight and without hindering the executive branch,” said Orange. “You have to have an agenda set in the beginning with a consensus on the agenda for the legislative period, and then go out and get the job done.” Orange adds that he will reestablish a committee for education - an issue which Council Chairman Vincent Gray placed under the Committee of the Whole early into his tenure in 2007 – to add more transparency to the process by which teachers have been fired under schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee. This would provide a “buyin into the system and the teachers [will] know what they will be held accountable for.” “[Orange] believes there should only be seven committees,” said Brown. “I believe everyone should be responsible for something, whether that be small committees, large committees, and that you shouldn’t make $100,000 or so per year to work part time and not be responsible for helping to move the city forward.” Brown said he has been working with the Council’s nonpartisan Office of Policy Analysis to “really hone in on revenue, on the expense side of the government,” to increase efficiency among committees. “To say you’re just going to take committees from people,” he added, “I don’t know how that gets things done.” Both men have significant issues-based professional experience. But as each mentioned to The Capital Community News, the position of Council Chair is devoted primarily to leading the 13-member body. It will be up to the winner of this fall’s election to harness past experience toward moving the people’s legislature forward. Every currently serving member of the Council has endorsed Brown, with the exception of chairman and mayoral hopeful Vincent Gray. ★
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ELECTION SPECIAL> SPECIAL>
Mendelson vs Ray vs Brown Voter confusion may be the deciding factor By Paul D. Shinkman
P
hil Mendelson is a steady force, evidenced by his long track record of legislative and political accomplishments during his 12-year tenure in his At-Large seat. Clark Ray bills himself as the fresh, eager alternative who is willing to bring some new approaches to the Council. While the two don’t differ tremendously on the issues at the forefront of their campaigns, they have particular common ground in their mutual frustration with Michael D. Brown: the third man running for this seat who doesn’t seem to mind that some voter’s are confusing him with the popular Michael A. Brown, a sitting member of the Council who is not up for election this year.
Fresh vs. Seasoned “What sets me apart is I have a long record and experience,” Mendelson told Capital Community News. “The record I have is one that is good on issues and responses to the community.” Mendelson came to DC to earn his BA in political science from The American University. He became involved in political activism when he joined the McLean Gardens Resident Association in 1975 to prevent the demolition of that housing complex, and served on his advisory neighborhood commission from 1979 until winning the City Council At-Large seat in 1998. Mendelson is currently the chairman of the Council’s Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary. He has had a long legislative history with environmental and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender advocacy, referencing his authoring “probably the best bill in the country with regard to parentage rights,” and his strong public support for 48 ★ HillRag | September 2010
increased hate crimes reporting to more clearly identify trends. Crime reform has also been a large part of Mendelson’s focus, having authored two omnibus crime bills and amended 39 different laws to increase penalties for human trafficking, liquid PCP usage, and tightened prohibitions for drug paraphernalia. Challenger Clark Ray is quick to point out his own professional and academic history, offering practical experience in education, public safety, gay rights and government transparency. Ray holds a master’s degree in administrative management from Temple University, and a bachelor’s in education which required him to student-teach 6th, 7th and 8th grade as a part of the University of Arkansas’ curriculum. He attended the DC police academy to become a reserve officer, riding along with professional officers and walking beats around Adams Morgan at night. He also served on the City’s Gay and Lesbian Liaison Unit.
lieved had stronger education programs. There was a clear “writing on the wall” that the city needed a new approach to education, he said. “She’s [Rhee] got to include parents and teachers, and administrators in the process or it’s not going to be successful,” Ray said, adding, “Sit down and say ‘This is how I see it. What are your thoughts and will you move with me?’” Above: Clark Ray. Photo: Courtesy Ray Campaign In contrast, Mendelson Left: Phil Mendelson, City Council Member At Large. Photo: was particularly vocal in the Andrew Lightman. summer of 2007 in his opposition to the creation of After working on the Fenty cam- a school chancellor position, and was paign, Ray eventually earned a posi- one of only two members of Council tion as director of the Department to vote against the initiative. of Parks and Recreation. He pointed His attitude has changed in the out his surprise at how many meet- two years since Michelle Rhee beings were held during normal busi- came chancellor, as he now looks for ness hours, when parents and other someone to remain in the position affected individuals would not be long enough to be held accountable able to attend. for their decisions. The mayor indirectly asked him “To me, one of the fundamental to resign from that position in April issues with reforming anything is 2009 after Ray voiced concerns about that there be continuity,” he said. the mayor’s decision to privatize Mendelson pointed out that the child-care programs that fell under DC government is “marked with the purview of the parks department, constantly starting over,” referring Ray said. particularly to the numerous, different initiatives since 1990 aimed at Education reducing crime. Ray has been adamant in his “If you stop and start over, then support for the creation of a schools with what goes wrong next year, who chancellor position, and clear in his will you blame it on?” he inquired. backing of Michelle Rhee since she “I’m a DCPS parent. I want to see took that office. But he believes the the reform succeed.” position could use some tweaks. Ray references the decreasing Political approach confidence in the District’s school Mendelson’s logic about retainboard system during his 23 years as ing Chancellor Rhee does not extend a resident which caused many of his as far as the Mayor, for whom four friends with school-age children to years has been long enough to deem move to municipalities that they be-
Michael Brown or Michael Brown? Both candidates, but particularly Mendelson, have expressed their concern that their mutual opponent for the At-Large seat, DC’s current Congressional Shadow Senator Michael Brown, garnered much of his success from voters confusing him with sitting Council member Michael A. Brown. Candidate Brown even won the Ward 5 straw poll in late August. As a result, Mendelson has released a clarifying flyer reminiscent of a DC paper ballot, including pictures of the two Michael Browns and explaining which one is which. “He’s doing very little campaigning,” Mendelson said, adding that Brown also beat Clark Ray in Ward 4.
him unsuccessful, he said. He particularly “alarmed” with the current administration’s fiscal policies, which he believes has put the city “on the brink of the abyss,” potentially relegating DC to Control Board rule. “The way the executive handles the public and the legislature in terms of transparency and accountability, and collaborativeness is appalling,” he added. He specifically mentioned the judiciary committee he chairs which passed eight “substantial” bills to amend the criminal law, but was “rebuffed” by the Mayor who refused “working with the Council on these issues,” said Mendelson. “I believe that this government has slipped backwards significantly over the last four years,” he added, “and I believe Vince Gray would be a far better mayor.” Despite never receiving a specific reason behind Fenty’s request that he resign, Ray believes that he would have a good working relationship with Mayor Fenty if he is reelected. “I’m an adult, Adrian’s an adult,” Ray said. “I think I have demonstrated my ability to let him know when I don’t agree with him – I lost my job over it.” “He and I interacted many times since my removal as director,” he added. “He’s going to have to bring up the reason why.” Ray adds that he has a “great deal of respect” for Council Chair-
man Gray, with whom Ray worked as Parks Department director.
Time Served Much of Ray’s criticism of Mendelson revolves around his belief that the incumbent has spent long enough on the City Council. “Twelve years in one spot, to me, is long enough,” said Ray. “If you’re that good of a legislator, or that good of a Council member, move up or move out.” Ray “applauds” Council member Kwame Brown for seeking the chairmanship of the Council, though he admits it is a slightly different situation, as a loss for Brown would return him to his current At-Large seat since he is not up for reelection. “Would you say that to Eleanor Holmes Norton, or David Catania?” Mendelson retorted to an inquiry by Capital Community News, referencing the 19-year tenure of DC’s delegate to the US Congress, and the 13 years his colleague has spent on the City Council. “I happen to think there’s a value to experience.” Only six of the current twelve members of the Council have been serving for longer than three years. An approach to a position may be as important as the results. The At-Large seat isn’t broken, but it also isn’t new. Voters will decide this September: is it worth fixing? ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 49
ELECTION SPECIAL> SPECIAL>
Changes in This Year’s Election Procedures Early Voting, iVotronic Equipment are New this Year photos and article by Paul D. Shinkman
R
ecent legislation has ushered in a new era for DC voting procedures, providing voters with a myriad of changes aimed at preventing the errors that have plagued previous elections. However, some area residents are concerned that the changes are “too much, too soon,” and will lead to even more confusion at the polls in what is already gearing up to be a hotly contested September primary. The new procedures set forth in the recent Omnibus Election Reform Act of 2009 include: •
•
Allowing 17-year olds to register to vote, provided they will be 18 at the time of the general election. Allowing voters to cast their ballots early at select vot-
ing stations up to two weeks before the Sept. 14 primary, starting Aug. 30. •
The implementation of new, more easily auditable electronic voting equipment.
•
Not requiring a reason to request an absentee ballot.
•
Allowing DC residents to register to vote on the day of the election. The changes will also change the atmosphere of the polling stations, where an increased number of better trained poll workers will be assisting voters (who will be allowed to wear candidate paraphernalia inside) and encouraging them to use the new electronic voting machines.
New Machines ABOVE RIGHT: The first voter in line, Joe Bishop, 75, casts his ballot using the new iVotronic electronic voting machines. “I think it facilitates getting the job done,” said Bishop, a former NASA employee. “And as long as they have a check in the system to make sure the electronics are working properly, then I think it’s ideal.” BELOW: Chris Iglesias, 27, was the first voter to use the new iVotronic electronic voting machines. “It was very simple,” Iglesias said of the new balloting procedures.
50 ★ HillRag | September 2010
The September 2008 primary election was fraught with controversy in what Board of Elections and Ethics administrators have since determined was a “pure equipment malfunction,” causing the miscounting of thousands of votes. “[This year] we have all new machines, new software, a new vendor,” said Council member Mary Cheh (Ward-3), who conducted an investigation of the 2008 primary errors. “We also have a paper trail for all votes and auditing procedures.” Cheh also cited her confidence in the election board’s recent thorough testing to ensure the new equipment will function properly. Rokey W. Suleman II, the DCBOEE executive director, explained how in addition to reaffirming faith in the voting process through greater transparency, the elections board is also trying to increase turnout at the polls. The elections board has met “one on one” with each of the voting precinct captains, Suleman said, and every poll worker must pass a three-hour training session familiarizing them with the new technology and the atmosphere of their specific polling station. “We are weeding out those poll workers who are not comfortable with the technology through training and poll worker assessments,” he added. The elections board has also implemented electronic poll books to document each voter as they check in at the polling station.
A Day At The Polls
Change We Can Believe In?
The rules for registering for the September primary are the same as in the past, except that 17-year olds will be allowed to register, provided they will be 18 by the time of the general election. Sixteen-year olds will also be allowed to “pre-registerâ€? to vote. New registration cards will be sent to all registered voters in August, equipped with a barcode to be scanned at the polling stations allowing for a quicker check in. Voters can still bring their old registration cards to check in. DC residents may also register on the same day they cast their ballot. These voters must present a government photo ID, bank statement, government check, paycheck or utility bill displaying their name and current address. They will then cast “specialâ€? ballots, held separately from the general votes until the elections board can conďŹ rm the veracity of the registrants’ information. “Same day registration is great, but we prefer that you register beforehand,â€? said Executive Director Suleman. “It’s not going to be a quick process.â€? Once polls open on primary day at 7:00 a.m., voters will be able to use “widgetsâ€? from the elections board website (dcboee.org) to determine the length of the lines at their polling stations and whether the station is functioning normally. Upon arriving at their polling place, voters can cast a paper ballot or use the new iVotronic election voting equipment. A trained poll worker will need to activate the machine for each new voter, and will be available to help guide the voter through using the new hardware. Starting Aug. 30 to the day before the Sept. 14 primary, voters will be allowed to cast paper or electronic ballots early at the Board of Elections oďŹƒce in the One Judiciary Square building (441-4 4th St. NW) from 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. Monday to Saturday. Four satellite polling stations will also open beginning Sept. 4:
To help familiarize the general public with the changes, elections board representatives have been advertising the new elections procedures and equipment at community meetings and forums, such as the recent Ward 8 Democrats’ primary endorsement forum at Mathews Memorial Baptist Church. Sandy Allen, the former City Council member representing Ward 8, attended the forum, and tried out the new equipment, selecting dummy candidates on the screen. With the step-by-step assistance of Voter Outreach Coordinator Kathy Fairly, Allen was able to successfully make her choices. Council member Cheh emphasizes this actually is not that much of a change to the voting process, pointing to the paper ballots at the polling places and the available registration process identical to previous elections. She also cites the additional training poll workers receive to help each voting location run even more smoothly. “All of these [changes] are enhancements,� added Cheh. “They aren’t something new that someone has to grapple with if you don’t want to.�
Chevy Chase Community Center (5601 Connecticut Ave. NW) Turkey Thicket Recreation Center (1100 Michigan Ave. NE) Hine Junior High School (335 8th St. SE) SE Tennis and Learning Center (701 Mississippi Ave. SE) These sites will only have electronic voting, said Suleman, as maintaining paper ballots for each city precinct would be too expensive.
War Games These changes to the election process, particularly the wide-open early voting schedule, have prompted new approaches from the candidates and their campaign stas. Earlier this summer Mayor Fenty pocket vetoed City Council legislation calling for the prohibition of paying people to vote. A strategist for the Fenty camp and friend of the Mayor encouraged the veto because he believed the Council, led by mayoral hopeful chairman Vincent Gray, was trying to undercut Fenty campaign-sponsored concerts to register voters in the low-income African American community, according to an August Washington Post report. Later in August the Fenty team made an unsuccessful appeal to the Board of Elections and Ethics to “interpretâ€? election law to allow Republicans and Independents to vote in the September Democratic primary. “Obviously any time you have something new it presents a lot of challenges but also a lot of opportunity,â€? said Adam Rubinson, campaign manager for Vincent Gray, of their approach to the new election policies. Rubinson adds that voting on actual election day will not be “as ‘do or die’’ as it used to be. For more information, visit the DC Board of Elections and Ethics website at dcboee.org. ★
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ELECTION SPECIAL>
theNUMB3RS 3.327.649.10
The Key Fiscal Challenge? Recovering from the Recession
T
he all-important DC primaries are finally upon us. By the time you read this, voters may have selected candidates for the November ballot – or they will very soon. Whoever wins will inherit a city that has been hit by a devastating economic and financial storm. Poverty has risen sharply as unemployment soared to nearly 30 percent in some areas of the city. Faltering DC finances have forced cuts from libraries and recreation centers to affordable housing and adult education, just to name a few. While there actually are more jobs today than before the recession, DC residents aren’t getting those jobs. And gentrification continues to price more and more residents out of the city. DC’s finances have received a lot of attention this election season, but the focus has been mainly on how DC’s savings account – or fund balance – has declined. That focus is puzzling because is it really so surprising, or bad, that DC has spent down savings in a recession? Isn’t that what you do? You save during good times, to get you through the bad times. The fact that our fund balance is healthier than that of 43 states suggests the worry is overblown. Much greater fiscal challenges facing the mayor and council next year. How will the city restore cuts to services that support neighborhoods and residents? How will DC make smart investments in training and economic development to make sure residents benefit from the economic recovery we hope to see? How can policymakers update the tax system to help the city grow out of the recession? Here are three key issues that need to be addressed.
Getting DC Back on Its Feet Post-Recession
DC’s finances will continue to be
52 H HillRag | September 2010
By JeNNy ReeD tight for some time. Yet after three years of high unemployment and budget cuts that affected nearly every city service, the challenge for policymakers will be to set an investment agenda, especially as the economy bounces back and more jobs are created. Some of the major questions to be answered: How can we keep neighborhood services strong? DC has built or renovated a number of libraries and recreation centers in recent years, but money to operate them has been cut. It will be important to make sure new facilities can offer a full range of services and that they are maintained for the long-term. How can we keep DC an affordable place to live? The recession led to huge increases in homelessness and foreclosures, and at the same time to severe cuts in funding for affordable housing. Rents have started to rise again, after a short break in the recession, suggesting a return to the gentrification that is revitalizing the city, but also pricing out many of our neighbors. How will the Mayor and Council ensure that this city remains livable for all residents? How will DC prepare residents for a resurging job market? DC is adding jobs, but they are not going to many of the unemployed DC residents. Just this July, jobs in the city jumped 18,000, but the number of working DC residents actually fell. Where, and how, will policymakers make investments to help residents get the training they need to take advantage of the jobs the District is creating? A smart investment agenda calls for clear priorities and sticking to adopted budgets. With DC’s finances being so tight, overspending in one area of the budget could mean another area of the budget is unfairly cut as a result.
Building a Tax System for the Future
Every major source of revenue has suffered, leading to a huge drop in tax collections. Both the Mayor and Council moved to raise some revenue sources, but it was done in a haphazard way. Increases in parking rates and other fees and fines left residents feeling nickled and dimed. Increases in sales and gas taxes, among others, have fell most heavily on middle class and low-income residents. We are now at a point where taxes paid by DC residents generally are lower than in the suburbs (no, seriously). But we have a tax system where working poor residents shell out a larger share of their income than high-income residents. Two big questions facing the mayor and council on taxes are: Will taxes need to be raised? Given DC’s fragile finances, this is a definite possibility. It would be better to make smart adjustments to our basic tax system than to rely on more fee and fine increases. Take DC’s income tax. The top income tax rate starts at $40,000, meaning middle-class residents and wealthy residents pay the same rate. Creating new brackets for high-income folks would be a good place to start because it makes our tax system fairer and helps us weather the financial storm. It is an approach taken by many states in recent years and endorsed by many economists. Is it time for tax reform? There hasn’t been a hard look at DC’s tax system for over a decade. Yet there have been notable changes throughout. A comprehensive review to make sure our taxes are efficient, well matched to DC’s economy, easy to administer, and fair is in order. It’s also a good time to look at the hundreds of tax exemptions and credits on the books. Not
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only could this strengthen DC’s finances, but some have been on the books for years and years, and may no longer be giving DC much bang for the buck.
Making the Most of Economic Development Investments
As DC’s economic engine starts to rev up again, we’ll be looking to see how the Mayor and Council target development aid to areas that need it the most, how they will use economic development to create more quality jobs, and how they will help small neighborhood businesses. Getting a handle on DC’s latest economic development craze – tax abatements for big developments – is important both to DC finances and a better economic investment strategy. An increasing number of developers and businesses have come to DC officials asking for tax breaks that cost the city tens of millions of dollars each year. Yet, research finds that they don’t really encourage new development (most tax abatements are sought after a business has decided to locate), they tend to favor big businesses over small local businesses (think of DC’s attempt to lure Northrop Grumman), and no one is checking to see if the businesses actually need the abatement to move their projects forward.
A Focus on DC’s Future
The fiscal health of the District is important, but focusing simply on DC’s savings account balance doesn’t tell us all we need to know. Instead, focusing on how policymakers will reinvest in our city and its residents, reform our tax system, and get a handle on economic development will go a long to setting a fiscal policy agenda that will address DC’s biggest fiscal problem – getting out of the recession. Jenny Reed is a policy analyst with the DC Fiscal Policy Institute (www. dcfpi.org), which conducts research on tax and budget issues that affect lowand moderate-income DC residents H 54 H HillRag | September 2010
Capitol Streets HillBuzz by Celeste McCall has also been helpful. Located at 1115 Pennsylvania Ave. Can you believe Frager’s SE, Frager’s is open daily; call Hardware is 90 years old? 543-6157 or visit www.FragThis fall, the store is marking ersDC.com. its nine decades with customer appreciation week, slated for Sept. 27-Oct. 3. Frager’s Light Up Their World promises an “old timey expeOn September 16, Barrience,” said Garden Center racks Row will “Light Up co-manager Chris Strader, the Future with Homebody with special guests and food and the Global Fairness from local restaurants. There Initiative.” From 6 to 8 p.m., will be raffles and discounts Homebody, 715 Eighth St. The staff at Frager’s Hardware. Photo: Andrew Lightman with circa 1930s background SE, will unveil its fall lightPhoto: Andrew Lightman music. Employees are encouring collection while helping aged to don vintage clothing. provide 15,000 solar-powther down 11th Street was a suspected Yes, there will be anniversary ered lanterns to salt farmers tee-shirts. On October 3, Charm City brothel, long gone. in India. In 1980, Frager’s purchased the Cakes (Baltimore) will deliver a cake A joint project of the Global space at 1113 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. Fairness Initiative (GFI) and India’s with a replica of Frager’s storefront. The name Frager came from Frank Later, they acquired the property next Self-Employed Women’s Association “Fritz” Frager, a Russian immigrant door and eventually bought the corner (SEWA), the Lantern Campaign plans who arrived in Washington around lot at 1101 from Food Chemical News. to provide safe, green technology for the turn of the last century. With only That space now houses Frager’s paint poor working families in India’s Gujarat $5,000 of borrowed money, Frager department. A few years ago, Frager’s region where salt farms employ mainly opened a hardware store at 1105 Penn- rental shop, “Just Ask,” opened at 1107. women, who work in extreme condisylvania Ave. SE. Sons George and That addition was an instant hit, as Hill tions. Mothers and daughters work Jules eventually took over the business denizens lined up to borrow plumbing barefoot on saltpans in temperatures snakes, floor sanders and leaf blowers. when their father’s health failed. reaching 110 degrees. These families There are approximately 40,000 rely on toxic kerosene lanterns for fuel. After the 1968 riots, the brothers put Frager’s on the market where it gizmos in Frager’s. It may be cluttered Being at the mercy of fuel middlemen, languished for several years. Finally, in and often chaotic, but that’s part of they pay 8 percent or more of their the 1970s, former University of Virginia its charm. Chaos reaches its zenith in approximately $550 annual income fraternity buddies Ed Copenhaver and spring, when Hillites stampede Frager’s on fuel. By switching to brighter soJohn Weintraub shelled out a whopping to purchase seeds, plants, mulch and lar-powered LED lights, women and $68,000 for the then run-down store. garden tools. At peak seasons, Frager’s children can walk safely at night, chilGradually the neighborhood changed, employs as many as 40 workers, half of dren can study without breathing toxic while retaining colorful aspects. On one them part-time. In winter, staff dwin- fumes, and families can save more for corner was a dry cleaners, which even- dles by half. During last winter’s snow their future. Homebody will contribute tually became Caffe Italiano, which be- storms, Frager’s sold 3,000 snow shovels a portion of the evening’s proceeds to came Pacific Café, and now Mi Vecin- and 5,000 bags of snow “melter.” the campaign, and local restaurants will Why has Frager’s lasted for nine provide refreshments. For just $40, dodad. Next door was Smitty’s Bakery, which sold elaborately decorated cakes. decades? Customer service and show- nors can send a lantern to Gunjarat and Around the corner on 11th street ing up every day, even in the snow,” significantly raise the standard of living was Coolbreeze’s, a wonderful Sicilian responded John Weintraub. “And tak- of a salt-farming family. For more inforrestaurant. Later, it became a chili par- ing care of our customers.” Frager’s mation call Erin, Henriette or Nora at lor, then a grubby bar and finally, Two membership in TruServe, the Chicago- 202-544-8445. Lions, an upscale antique shop. Far- based, non-profit hardware cooperative,
Major Milestone
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Hill resident Eliabeth Stein, who died in May 2009, left $80,000 to the Capitol Hill Community Foundation. Photo: Courtesy of Kris Swanson
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For years Peter and I affectionately called her “Tree Lady.” We were referring to the late Elizabeth Stein, our dear neighbor who used to collect money from home owners on South Carolina Ave. SE to help maintain our beautiful trees. Since we have a gigantic American Elm in front of our house–one of the few elms to escape the dreaded Dutch Elm disease--we were always happy to chip in. Elizabeth belonged to our monthly neighborhood gourmet group (CHOMPS) and our “Ninth Street” book club. An avid reader, she always recommended the most fascinating books and contributed thoughtful insight to our discussions. She was also an accomplished artist. After a long battle with cancer, Elizabeth died in May 2009, and we recently learned that she bequeathed $80,000 to the Capitol Hill Community Foundation. She also remembered the Corner Store (our neighborhood cultural center at 900 South Carolina Ave. SE); Capitol Hill Village, Smith Farm and other community organizations. “Elizabeth was a gracious friend, with a wry humor that saw us all through the worst of her illness,” said Kris Swanson, Corner Store founder/ director. “She was a warm presence at the Corner Store, where she showed her considerable talents as a chef at our monthly dinner club, and as an artist staging a stunning solo exhibition a few years ago. We miss her.” H
bulletin board The Virginia Avenue Community Garden walks in the Capitol Hill 4th of July parade. Photo: Brandon Fibbs
Help Save Virginia Avenue Park
Hill residents are being asked to provide comments to the Marine’s about their location choices for their new Barracks. Among their four prime options is a two-acre park known as Virginia Avenue Park that sits between Eleventh and Nineth, SE just below the freeway. It is historic open space and registered on the National Historic Register as part of the original L’Enfant city plan. Friends of Virginia Avenue Park are collecting signatures as part of the public comment process. If you are interested in signing a petition to save the park from development, or to learn more about the park and the Marine options for other nearby properties, please visit www.facebook.com/SaveVaAvePark.
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop Annual Fundraising Gala
The Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (CHAW ) will hold its annual fundraising gala, newly-named ArtSmash, on Saturday, Oct. 2 from 7:00-10:00 p.m. at its historic building on Capitol Hill, 545 Seventh St. SE. The event will include a silent auction featuring works from local artists and members of the Capitol Hill Art League, unique experiences, and prizes from retail items to gift
certificates and jewelry. ArtSmash will feature entertainment from dancers to cabaret singers including performances by a cappella group Not What You Think and the casts of “CHAWbaret” and “The Mikado.” ArtSmash supports CHAW’s tuition assistance, outreach, and education programs. Tickets are $50 per person in advance and $75 at the door and can be purchased by calling the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop at 202-547-6839 or email to victor@ chaw.org.
regularly scheduled live auctions at Eastern Market’s North Hall. The auctions will be conducted in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere so experienced bidders and first timers alike are encouraged to attend. Featured items will include antiques, arts, collectables and housewares, but you never know what you’ll find! Come for a bargain, leave with a treasure! Do you have items of your own that you would like to sell? On The Block accepts consignments too. For more information call 202-575-1176.
Volunteers Needed for Hilloween
Volunteers Needed for Barracks Row Fall Festival
Hilloween will be held on Friday the 29th of October from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Historic Eastern Market. There will be more rides and games for kids this year so volunteers are needed. The event is sponsored by The Von Schlegel Realty Team, Tunnicliff ’sTavern and the Hill Rag is supported by Hill businesses. If you would like to volunteer contact Mike Holt with the Von Schlegel Realty Team . E-mail Mikieholt@ aol.com or call 202-355-5158.
Live Auctions Coming to Eastern Market
On Saturday, October 23, 2010, On The Block is coming to the Hill and will hold the first of a series of
Volunteers are needed to help Barracks Row Main Street host their autumn street festival. The event is scheduled for Saturday Sept. 25, 11:00 a.m.-5:00. Some highlights planned for this year are military chefs cook-off; Ragin’ Cajun Chef Paul Prudomme; Redskins cheerleaders; Chesty the Marine Corps bulldog; commandant’s home and Marine Barracks open for tours; ten authentic uniforms representing 1775 through 2010 worn by Marines; clowns, magicians, face painting and contests for kids; booths selling wares from around the world; parachutist landing at 8th and G St.; bands play all day. If you’re interested in volun-
teering, please call the Barracks Row Main Street Office 202-544-3188 or email volunteer@barracksrow.org
Fall Musical Fireworks
Chelsea Chen, a Fulbright Scholar and Juilliard graduate, will electrify Capitol Hill when she performs at 8:00 pm on Monday, Sept. 20. Her performance launches the second season of “Musical Mondays,” the free concert series sponsored by Capitol Hill United Methodist Church to showcase its fully restored historic pipe organ. The 1939 Möller ranks as one of the most exquisite pipe organs in the city. Live video
Chelsea Chen. Photo by Yui Kitamura capitalcommunitynews.com H 57
will allow the audience to relish her astounding console work. At 26, Ms. Chen is already broadening the classical organ repertoire with her own works based on Asian folksongs and her own arrangement called Super Mario Fantasy. Last year, she received the international Lily Boulanger Award given annually to a young musician exhibiting unusual talent and promise. Critics have described her thusly: “Stunning playing…lovely lyrical grandeur” (Los Angeles Times). “Phenomenal” (Kansas City Star). “Extraordinary” (The American Organist). The performance will be followed by a sumptuous reception. Both are free, but donations to help defray costs are gratefully received. The church is located at 421 Seward Square, SE (corner of 5th and Pennsylvania Ave., SE). Use either Capitol South or Eastern Market metro stops or use on-street parking. For more information, contact the church office at 202-546-1000 or visit the website at www.chumc.net.
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It’s back! Theater Alliance’s popular Art4Art fundraiser is back on track. In late October (stay tuned for exact date and location) theater lovers and art lovers will once again mingle, party and support the Theater Alliance’s upcoming dramatic productions. This is the sixth year for the event, and promises to be the best. The evening is filled with fun events, including musical entertainment, a caricaturist, and a “taste of H Street” featuring food from H street restaurants such as Dangerously Delicious Pies, Star & Shamrock and the Argonaut. But the real thrill for attendees is the chance to take home an original piece of art. Over 50 visual artists have donated a showroom full of their favorite pieces for Theater Alliance to use in a random drawing, awarding each piece to an Art4Art ticketholder. It works like this: the first name drawn gets to pick from all the exhibited pieces; the second from those remaining, continuing on through the last art supporter
who is guaranteed at least 10 pieces left to choose from. Tickets for the art drawing are priced at $150 each or $250 for two. Those who would just like to enjoy an “Arty Party” (while still supporting the Theater Alliance) can attend for just $85 each—but won’t get to take home an art piece, just memories of a great evening. One bittersweet addition to this year’s event will be a chance to toast outgoing Artistic Director Paul Douglas Michnewicz. PD has announced that the time has come for him to take on new theatrical endeavors/challenges{no announcement yet]. The Theater Alliance Board invites patrons and the theater community to toast not only his past success while at TA (both as founding member and most recently Artistic Director), but his future success as well. During PD’s years with the Theater Alliance as a founder, President of the Board and Artistic Director, Theater Alliance has received 22 Helen Hayes nominations, twice was a finalist for the Mayors Arts Award in the category of “Artistic Excellence,” as well as many other awards and honors. “PD has put his heart and soul in to TA since its earliest days,” said co-founder and Board President Adele Robey, “We couldn’t have done it without him.” Tickets can be ordered over the web at www.theaterallaince.com. An online catalogue of the art can also be viewed starting after Labor Day at http://art4art.squarespace.com.
HPRB Landmarks James C. Dent House
Formerly home to the Southwest Community House Organization, a now defunct non-profit social organization that had served low-income neighborhoods in southwest, a historic black and white, detached brick house at 156 Q Street, SW is once again the James C. Dent House. The Historic Preservation Review Board gave its blessing of historical protection to the property and recommended to the National Park Service that the home be listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The
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Capital City Church’s
KidsFest At Lincoln Park on Saturday, Sept. 11, 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m., there will be fun and games for kids, ages 14 and under, and their parents, including: face painting, a temporary tattoo parlor, bike decorating, honey bee hoedown, square dancing, capture the flag, 3 legged race, doggie treats and more! Be sure to be there at 10:00 a.m. for a special performance from the renowned band “Rocknoceros”--one of the hottest kids’ bands around! Free. It’s B.Y.O.P, so bring your own picnic! 202-234-3716. www.capcitychurch. com/kidsfest
All Ages Playgroup in Southwest
Every Saturday, 10:00 a.m.noon, at the River Park Playground (River Park condominiums). Please RSVP to melissa.rohan@gmail. com if you plan on coming so they know to look out for you. In the event of bad weather, the playgroup will move to St. Augustine’s (600 M St. SW) basement playroom.
CHCF Grant Proposal Deadline
The Capitol Hill Community Foundation Fall Grant Proposal Deadline is Sept. 24. Grants are given to school-based and after-school programs for children, social service programs, arts programs, neighborhood beautification and community gardens. 100% of CHCF funds are invested in the Capitol Hill community. To give to the Foundation or to apply for a grant, visit www. capitolhillcommunityfoundation. org. 202-544-1845.
Evolve Urban Arts Presents “What We Leave Behind”
“What We Leave Behind” features encaustic collage artist Marty Ittner and painter Michele Cormier. Both artists create visually dense works that reference the discarded physical and emotional remnants
of our busy lives. Ittner places us in the shoes of an archeologist discovering the cultural and natural debris that has been left behind. Each collage is created using variegated layers of wax and paper, forcing the viewer to visually dig through the components. Cormier’s paintings, ranging from moody abstracts to calculated still-lifes, encourage us to recall the human interactions we leave behind. Her series featuring simple red chairs and stools is a display of relics from a series of human interaction that took place. Her abstract works in the exhibition evoke distant emotional recollections of her native Acadian culture and it’s colony that was founded on Canada’s east coast. The opening reception is Saturday, Sept. 11, 4:00-8:00 p.m. The exhibition runs through October 30. The Project space is located in the Pierce School Lofts at 1375 Maryland Ave. NE, in the H Street Arts and Entertainment District. Visiting hours are Monday through Thursday, 1:00-5:00 p.m.; Friday,1:00-7:00 p.m.; Saturday, 11:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. 202-4898160. www.evolvedc.com
La Lomita Partners with Maury Elementary School
Starting Sept. 13, the second Monday of each month will be Maury Night at La Lomita Mexican Restaurant, 1330 Pennsylvania Ave., SE. A percentage of the proceeds will go to the Maury PTA. Maury Elementary School is at 1250 Constitution Ave. NE. www. mauryelementary.com
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Help the Old Naval Hospital Find A Lost Fence Finial
As the restoration work moves forward on the Old Naval Hospital, rapidly turning the old stately building into the exciting new Hill Center, the seven-foot tall ornamental fence surrounding the property is also being restored, section by section. Ironsmiths are fixing or replacing the damaged pieces of the fence, using original parts to make molds when necessary. One of the most distinctive capitalcommunitynews.com H 59
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aspects of this classic beauty are the finials--decorative pieces--in the shape of urns that graced each of the 10 fence posts. All of the finials are missing. Unless an original can be found, the ironsmiths will have to try and recreate an original using old photographs, none of which provide the necessary detail. So a call is going out to all friends and neighbors of the Old Naval Hospital: Take a look around the yard, the attic, or the garage and see if you can find one of these lovely old iron pieces. They are thought to be hollow, and roughly 18 inches tall and 10 1/2 inches wide. Any questions or sightings should be directed to the Old Naval Hospital Foundation at 202-977-5722 or by email to info@hillcenteronh.org.
Christ Church’s Rector to be Installed
The Right Reverend John Bryson Chane will be installing Christ Church’s 28th Rector, The Reverend Cara Spaccarelli on Saturday, Sept. 11 at 10:00 a.m. in the Sanctuary. A Celebration Luncheon will follow in the Parish Hall. 620 G St. SE. 202-547-9300. www.washingtonparish.org
St. Monica and St. James Episcopal Church Blessing of the Animals
www.capitalcommunitynews.com
Bring your pets for benedictions and doggie biscuits to Lincoln Park (11th and East Capitol sts.) on Saturday, Oct. 2, 10:00 a.m. for the traditional Episcopal Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi Blessing of the Animals. All are welcome. 202–546–1746. www.smjec.org
Arena Stage Homecoming Grand Opening Celebration
After more than a decade of planning and two and a half years of construction, Arena Stage at the Mead Center for American Theater in Southwest DC returns to the neighborhood with a ribbon cutting ceremony and Homecoming Grand Opening Celebration on Saturday, October 23, 2010. From 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. the festivities will include performances and activities in seven venues including the Fichandler Stage, Kreeger Theater and Arlene and Robert Kogod Cradle, as well as an outdoor stage. Various theatrical performances and children’s activities will occupy one of the rehearsal halls, the lobbies and the classroom. General admission tickets are free, but are required to enter events in theater spaces. Tickets will be available exclusively online beginning October 8 at www.arenastage.org. Limited tickets will 60 H HillRag | September 2010
be available for day-of release outside the Mead Center at the Arena Stage visitor’s center beginning at 10:00 a.m. The 2010-2011 inaugural season headlines with Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma !, directed by Arena Stage Artistic Director Molly Smith. The season also includes every tongue confess, Second Stage’s production of Let Me Down Easy, The Arabian Nights, Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s production of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Edward Albee’s At Home at the Zoo, Ruined and a special pre-Broadway world premiere of John Grisham’s A Time to Kill. In addition, Arena Stage will present staged readings of the remaining 28 works by Edward Albee during The Edward Albee Festival, and will produce the Newplay Festival, a national new play festival featuring the selections for the first round of the NEA New Play Development Program hosted by Arena Stage.
Hill Havurah High Holiday Services
The Hill Havurah will conduct its layled, independent, egalitarian services at 801 North Carolina Ave. SE. Rosh Hashanah Eve, Wednesday, Sept. 8, 6:00 p.m.; Rosh Hashanah, Thursday, Sept. 9, 10:00 a.m.; Children’s Program, Thursday, Sept. 9, 10:30 a.m.; Tashlich on the Anacostia, Thursday, Sept. 9, 3:30 p.m.; Kol Nidre, Friday, Sept. 17, 7:00 p.m.; Yom Kippur, Saturday, Sept. 18, 10:00 a.m.; Children’s Program, Saturday, Sept. 18, 10:30 a.m.; Yizkor Memorial Service, Saturday, Sept. 18, follows Morning Service; Neilah, Saturday, Sept. 18, 6:00 p.m.; Break-the-Fast, Saturday, Sept.18, follows Neilah Service. No tickets or reservations are required. Limited babysitting available. All are welcome. www.hillhavurah.org
CHAW Registering for Fall Classes
The Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (CHAW ) is now registering youth and adult students for a slate of new classes in the visual and performing arts. Adult classes beginning Sept. 13 include Oil Painting, Pastels, Intro to Drawing, Life Drawing, Tap Dance, Ballet, Ballroom Dance, Pilates, Couture Sewing, Photography, Ceramics, and more. New classes this fall include Urban Sketching, Art as Business, Singing 101, and Blues Jam. Students ages zero to five years old can participate in an array of Early Childhood classes including popular Music Together and Pre-Ballet sessions also beginning Sept. 13. New this fall, CHAW
offers a Yoga Play for Children class. The popular Youth Arts Program for ages 5-12 (beginning August 30) is registering students for classes including Ceramics, Guitar, Movie Making, Beading/Fiber Arts, Musical Theater, Sculpture, Drawing, Watercolor, King of Pop, Tap, Art History, the Capitol Hill Youth Chorus, and more. New classes this session include Suzuki Violin, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and Mural Painting. After school van pick-up is available from local schools to CHAW. CHAW also offers private music instruction in a variety of instruments for students of all ages. Tuition assistance and payment plans are available for all classes. For a complete list of workshops, classes or registration information, please visit CHAW’s website at www.chaw.org or call 202-547-6839.
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National Garden Curator to Address Garden Club
Bill McLaughlin, Curator of the U.S. Botanic Garden, will present a primer on native plants for use specifically in urban Gardens at the first meeting of the new Capitol Hill Garden Club season on Sept. 14, 7:00 p.m. Capitol Hill gardens are generally small and fully planted. It is therefore difficult to know which native plants might work in them. Mr. McLaughlin, an expert on the impact of invasive alien species in the eastern United States, will show new, interesting and beautiful native plants to consider in his talk, which he calls “Native Plants for the Urban Jungle”. Church of the Brethren, Fourth St. entrance, corner North Carolina Ave. SE. Free. Non club members welcome. 202-513-2078. capitolhillgardenclub.blogspot.com
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www.capitalcommunitynews.com capitalcommunitynews.com H 61
beds, shower chairs, transfer benches, lifts and computers you are no longer using. This equipment will be given to those who can’t afford to buy them. By giving your unused equipment to DC Shares, you will help a DC resident in need. All donations are tax deductible. Equipment is available free of charge to qualified individuals and families on a first come-first served basis. Call 202-332-2595 or email dcshares@verizon.net to set-up an appointment to visit or drop off equipment at the DC Shares at 1301 Belmont St. NW, Suite 1D. Monday, Wednesday, Friday; 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. www.dcshares.org
Backyard Wildlife Habitat Workshop Series
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DDOE and DPR are hosting free educational, hands-on workshops at various locations around the city to help property owners create unique and important habitat for wildlife on their own land. The workshops will include presentations on conservation landscaping and gardening for wildlife, plant selection, general landscape design principles and how to do a site assessment. Participants will help plant a demonstration garden at the workshop site, and will receive a habitat kit at the conclusion of the workshop. The kit will contain a native plant guide, an invasive plant booklet, a book on wildlife gardening, a birdhouse kit and live plants. Preregistration is required. For more information or to sign up please visit ddoe.dc.gov/fisheries and click on “Backyard Habitat Education.”
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Stretch, strengthen, and let go of stress by joining this weekly mindfulness class that combines yoga, meditation,
The Village Gallery 705 North Carolina Ave SE Washington, DC 20003
and breathing exercises. These free classes are open to anyone who wants respectfully to join in. No special clothing is required, but you will be asked to take your shoes off during class. An YogaActivist.org volunteer teachers lead these mindfulness classes. Every Wednesday, 5:30-6:30pm. Note: on the second Wednesday of the month the class will be 5:306pm. Prevention Works, 2501 Benning Rd NE.
Become a Founding Member of Capital Bikeshare Cyclists in the Washington area can now sign up in advance for Capital Bikeshare, the regional bikesharing network that is scheduled to start service this month in DC and Arlington, Virginia. The program’s website is now live at www.capitalbikeshare.com and by signing up online. For a limited time, Capital Bikeshare is offering annual memberships for $50. That is $25 off the regular annual price. One thousand bikes will be available at 100 locations throughout the District in all 8 wards as well as 14 more stations in the Crystal City and Pentagon City areas of Arlington County. The station locations are still being finalized. Visit www.capitalbikeshare.com for more information.
Traffic Pattern Changes on New York Avenue, NE The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is advising motorists there is a new traffic pattern on New York Avenue, NE near the Nineth Street Bridge. Traffic Signs are posted to alert the public to lane shifts and to guide them safely through the work zone. The new Nineth Street Bridge is expected to open in late January 2011. Upon the completion of the new bridge, DDOT will proceed to demolish the old
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@ Eastern Market MARKET HOURS: TUE-FRI 7am - 7pm; SAT 7am - 6pm; SUN 9am - 5pm; MON Closed Eastern Market is located at 225 7th Street, SE. (1.5 Blocks North of Eastern Market Metro on 7th Street) capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 63
bridge beginning in February. Full completion of this entire project is scheduled for May 2011. The current Nineth Street Bridge was built in 1941 and now carries approximately 26,000 cars and trucks a day. It connects New York and Rhode Island Avenues over railroad tracks and provides access to the Brentwood Shopping Center and other businesses along Brentwood Road. Construction of the new bridge began last year.
Social Media - Don’t Get Left Behind Seminar
Thursday, Sept. 9, 6:008:00 p.m. Do you know how to use social media to help grow your business? This free social media seminar for business will show you how. Use social networking to get your business in front of your clients! You may already be on Facebook and other social media sites, but do you know how to generate business by using the myriad sites and services? Chances are that if you are not using social networking, your kids, friends, and more importantly, your clients are. This seminar is brought to you by Historic Dupont Circle Main Streets and Jim Turner at Hilltop Computers, 2010 P St. NW. Registration is required, as class is limited to the first fifty people that respond. Register at www.eventbrite. com/event/620735637
Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool Reconstruction Contract Awarded
The National Park Service this week awarded a $30.7 million American Recovery and Reinvestment Act contract to a Maryland firm to rebuild the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on the National Mall. Corman Construction of Annapolis Junction will begin work in late 2010. The project is expected to last for 18 months. 64 H HillRag | September 2010
CHGC Annual Bulb Giveaway
The Capitol Hill Garden Club is giving away free spring-flowering bulbs for use in public spaces on Capitol Hill. Daffodils and crocus have been chosen as they come back and proliferate every year. Applicants should include a plan for planting, which must be visible from the street. A photograph is appreciated. The plan must also designate the person responsible for the planting. Coordinator Amy Haddad says no qualified applicant will be turned away. Individuals and groups are invited to apply. Applications are due on Sept.15. The bulbs will be distributed in October. To request an application form (which can be submitted electronically), please contact CHGC at http://capitolhillgardenclub.blogspot.com or phone Amy Haddad at 202-486-7655.
St. Anselm’s Abbey School Correction
In the August “Hill Rag,” we stated in error that St. Anselm’s Abbey School tuition is $26,022. Their tuition is $20,600 for middle school and $21,300 for high school. St. Anselm’s Abbey School is an independently owned and operated Roman Catholic boys. It is affiliated with the Archdiocese of Washington and under the authority of the Archbishop. H
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capitolstreets news CLOCKWISE FROM FAR LEFT: 1. Ms. Mattie Resper long time resident. 2. Pam and Adrian get the fire started. Photo: Shannon Holloway 3. Patrick McClintock and Marilyn Goldberg. 4. Over the shoulder of Shirley Short we see Butch Barnes, Tonya C. Lewis, and Eve Celey having a good time telling stories. 5. Residents enjoy the day and great music. 6. Evelyn Washington, Lelia Robinsons, Patricia Henry, Jeanette Campbell, and Doris welcome guests to 15th and D.
Summer at 15th and D, SE Neighbors Turn Out For the Annual Block Party article & photos by Shannon Holloway
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or the past four summers, Marty Resper and Yvonne Mason have gone door-todoor to gather neighbor’s signatures on a block party consent form. Then they have meandered through the red tape to get permits from the District to block off the street and throw their annual neighborhood gathering. It’s worth all the effort. “It’s good to bring people together and meet the neighbors. It’s something positive, you know?” said Resper. For some, this block is where they grew up and where their friends, family and community still live. Others have been here only a short time, but through gatherings such as this, have quickly come to feel part of the community. These families span the ages, ranging from newborns to long-time residents like Ms. Fannie Lindsey (Yvonne’s mother-in-law) and Marty’s mom, 83 year-old great-grandmother, Ms. Mattie Resper whose household walls are adorned with photographs which trace her family history. There are babies, children, husbands and wives like Pam and Adrian who manned a grill for the day and organizer Yvonne Mason and her husband Frank Mason. There is Steve, 66 ★ HillRag | September 2010
a non-profit consultant; Patrick McClintoch, a Tibetan Meditation leader and massage therapist (www.kagyudc. com) and his wife Marilyn Goldberg, a University of Maryland professor; local business owner and Post contributor Rosemary Reed (www.toastandstrawberries.com); All About Us Day Camp founder Annette Kenner; and former commercial artist for union workers in SCIU (part of AFL-CIO), wood sculptor, and PETA member Susan Coleman. Susan, who throws the springtime version of the block party, actually lives up the block on D (between 16th and 17th). She has been a resident here for 20 years and fondly remembers her
neighbors coming to her aid when she was sick. “They came into my home and took care of me,” she said. Her organizing is a way of connecting with her community and setting up a welcome to the families whom she has yet to meet. Although there are people of all ages and all walks of life here on D Street, there is also a very common theme: community is very real. It is something its members are all wholeheartedly working toward. Shannon Holloway is a local artist living in the District. You may reach her via e-mail at holloway.shannon@ gmail.com. ★
Board Renewal at Capitol Hill Village New Talents, Expertise on Hand to Assist Non-Profit Group By Mike Canning
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ow completing its third year, Capitol Hill Village (CHV) continues its mission to help its members live comfortably as they grow older on Capitol Hill. Each year, summer brings renewal to the Village’s Board of Directors, and this year’s new members are Enrique Gomez, John Von Kannon, and Terrence Thompson, all of whom will bring new expertise and varied experience to the organization. The threesome, all of whom live in Northeast Capitol Hill, will replace Board members Bill Phillips, Edith Lanum, and William Niskanen and Kathryn Washburn (the latter two compromising one seat). Enrique Gomez retired from the US Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service in April 2010 as its Associate Administrator for Management, Technology and Finance. Prior to that he served as the Department’s Chief Information Officer. He began his career in federal service in 1977 as an international technical advisor at the U.S. Census Bureau, providing information technology and statistical assistance to National Statistical Offices in several developing countries around the world. Enrique and his partner Gene have lived on Capitol Hill since 1988. He has been active in his local ANC (6A), serving on its Economic Development and Zoning Committee. He looks forward to sharing his knowledge of information technology with the organization. John Von Kannon is Vice President and Treasurer for Development Administration at The Heritage Foundation, having headed its Development Department for many years. Von Kannon is a graduate of Indiana University, and after graduation, was the publisher and con-
tributing editor for The American rence created “Once Is Enough,” a gain access to a wide range of volSpectator, a conservative opinion non-profit organization advocating unteer and professional services and journal. He joined Heritage in 1980, policies to reduce rate of recidivism a variety of educational and social eventually being promoted to VP among non-violent offenders with programs. for Development. During 1988 to children. He has lived on Capitol To find out more information 1991, Von Kannon left Heritage to Hill since 1995. He feels that his about CHV, call 202-543-1778 or become vice president of Pacific Le- background in various politics and visit its website at www.capitolhillgal Foundation in Sacramento, Cali- policy areas will prove useful for the village.org. fornia, then president of a consulting Village. (Mike Canning, an original Board firm outside Chicago, Russell & Von Capitol Hill Village is a non- member of CHV, remains active in Kannon. profit organization that provides the the organization as a volunteer.) ★ John also serves as a trustee of FREE, the Foundation for Research on the Economics of the Environment in Bozeman, Montana. The Capitol Hill Village board looks for him to assist with the organization’s fundraising, a particular competence of his. John and his wife, Cindy, live on Capitol Hill with their two children. Terrence Wesley Thompson has had a 20-year career in lobbying and congressional relations and is currently the Director of Congressional Affairs for the US From left to right, John Von Kannon, Enrique Gomez, and Terence Thompson, new members of Capitol Hill Village’s Chamber of ComBoard of Directors. Photo by Bill Phillips. merce, representing the influential trade organization on a wide variety of is- support, expertise, and services needsues. A graduate of the University of ed to give Hill residents the practical Wisconsin, he came to Washington means and confidence to continue to to join the office of Congressman live in their own homes. Founded in Floyd H. Flake (NY ). Before joining 2006 by a group of Hill residents, the US Chamber, Thompson formed it was the second such “Village” his own lobby shop then worked on entity in the country. In just under homeland security and defense is- three years, it has grown to include sues for Jefferson Consulting Group. more than 240 local households. For LLC. a modest membership fee, paid on During 2003 to 2005, Ter- a monthly or yearly basis, members capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 67
capitolstreets news
Yards Park Opens Enjoying the Anacostia River in a Very Modern Way Article and Photographs by Rindy O’Brien
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n 2005, then D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams called the Anacostia River, “Washington’s forgotten river.” The name stuck, but that is about to change. On September 7, 2010, a new 5.5-acre public river park, Yards Park, will officially open followed by a grand opening weekend in the park September 10-12th. The hope is that the new revitalized waterfront will redefine the river and put the Anacostia River at Yards Park back on the map. The park begins at 3rd and Water Streets, SE, very walkable from the Navy Yard Metro and just two blocks from M Street. The new river park is amazingly modern, hip, and functional all at the same time. Claire Schaefer, Deputy Executive Director of the Capitol Riverfront Business Improvement District (BID), says she thinks the public is going to be surprised by the fresh design features. But she thinks the park’s greatest gift is going to be the way Hill residents get to see the river. “I think my favorite part of the park is being able to stand at the edge and feel like I am a part of the river,” said Claire. “It has let me rethink my urban neighborhood.”
A Riverfront That Puts People First The park, designed as a series of rooms, has been developed to provide a variety of experiences from a dog friendly run to walking under the waterfall to simply enjoying quiet meditative time in the riverfront gardens as the Anacostia flows toward the Potomac river. The park is the size of four football fields and includes a 1/4-mile long boardwalk along the water. The boardwalk is stunningly made from IPE wood that comes from South America. It is ideal for 68 ★ HillRag | September 2010
decks, as IPE wood products contain no added harmful chemicals so it can be used near water without potential contamination. The park continues to strive for environmental ratings with its use of LED lighting and great use of plants and trees. It is estimated that there will be 174 trees, 3,600 shrubs including ornamental grasses, perennials and ground covers in the park. The river park features other water facilities like the small canal that reaches from the river to the 3rd Street entrance with a water fountain of recycled water. The gentle curve of the river as it flows past the Nationals’ Ball Park opens the vista and connects the park to the greater river system of the region. There is a peacefulness to the park especially
LEFT: The 6 story high light tower will soon become a beacon welcoming cars arriving into the city from Interstate 295.
where well-designed benches, native grasses and giant boulders have been placed. The boulders break up the walkways and let people step off the path to enjoy the river view. There are also plenty of open spaces that will give families a chance to picnic or chase little ones in play. The futuristic bridge that links the dog run and great lawn area serves as a transition to the more sculptured steps that angle down to the boardwalk and river. One side is planned for more activity, while the other side contemplates sitting and listening to a concert or watching for migrating birds across the river. The park will have seasonal programs of concerts and movies. The pavilion soon to be finished will be a great space for organized activities and rainy days. There will be space available to rent for private and corporate events as well. The other feature that is going to make Yards Park truly unique is a 60-foot sculpture by world famous glass and lighting designer, James Carpenter. The designer seeks to put his philosophy of poetic expression of light and place into all of his designs, which include the Millennium Tower in New York, the Brooklyn Bridge Park, and the Chinese Gucci Ginza. The tower will be a beacon for those crossing into
ABOVE: The futuristic bridge is a pedestrian walkway that links the many different activities of the park. LEFT: Benches and boulders give visitors to Yards Park great places to sit among the ornamental grasses and view the Anacostia River.
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Another view of the park
the city and will be an anchor light for those enjoying the boardwalk at night. Throughout the park, there are many different lights that will make the area especially safe and attractive in the evening.
A new way of working. Yards Park shows what can happen when federal and local government and private investors work together. The land was part of the Navy Annex that built ship parts during World War I and II. After World War II, the Navy Yard shifted to a research, administrative, and ceremonial center, and the Navy no longer needed all the property. The surplus property was transferred to the federal General Services Administration (GSA) and sat idle for more than 40 years. In 2003, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton urged the GSA to redevelop the land, and after a nationwide process the Department of Transportation built its new headquarters there, while 42 acres was awarded to Forest City Washington, a private development and management company with over 80 years of real estate and land development expertise. Forest City Washington’s original proposal called for the development of Yards Park and expressed a holistic approach to the development of Washington’s riverfront park. The full Anacostia waterfront revitalization plan called for $8 billion in public-private financing.
Yards Park’s final cost has not been tallied yet, but it is estimated that the park will cost about $30 million when it is finally completed. The Capitol Riverfront BID, rather than the city or the GSA, will manage the park. By contracting with the BID, the park can be assured of 24-hour security, landscapers, and the “Clean and Safe” teams of the Capitol Riverfront BID to keep the park in the same pristine conditions that are now found along M Street and the Navy Yard.
Opening Weekend Three full days and evenings of celebration are scheduled beginning Friday, September 10. There will be plenty of live music from local and regional bands and jazz performances along with fireworks on Friday and Saturday nights. The Trapeze School now located in the riverfront area will be performing on Saturday. Families are encouraged to bring their children for entertainment, crafts and games. And Saturday there will be a doggie social and contests at the Dog Run. The events are free and open to the public. For more detailed information on events that weekend, www. capitolriverfront.org. Rindy O’Brien writes the Hill Gardener column and can be reached at rindyob@mac.com. ★
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Arlington N. Walk to Clarendon! $649,900 This updated Mid Century home offers approximately 1,800 square feet of living space, an inviting slate entry foyer, 3 br’s, 2 full ba’s, a fantastic new granite/SS eat-in kitchen w/Cherry cabinetry, 2 fp’s, hardwood flooring throughout the main level, generous room sizes, elegant chair, crown & wainscoting, newer roof, siding and casement windows, delightful backyard with private patio & a one car garage. Conveniently located on the bike trail just a few blocks from Metro and all the wonderful shops, restaurants and café’s along the Orange Line Metro corridor. 1519 Kirkwood Road.
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capitolstreets news
ABOVE: Formerly dead space, as rooftops open to the elements, the new Atriums are enclosed and equipped with speakers for outdoor events. Photo: Shannon Holloway
ABOVE: Science rooms are fitted with new energy-effcient windows. Photo: Shannon Holloway
Eastern High Reborn
BELOW: Senior Program Manager and my tour guide, Teresa, demonstrates the function of a new steam cooker. Photo: Shannon Holloway
A Beautifully Restored School Begins A New Phase By Shannon Holloway
E ABOVE: A lasting tradition; the graduate staircase. BELOW: The fully restored windows in Eastern’s media room. Photos: Shannon Holloway
70 ★ HillRag | September 2010
astern High School (1700 East Capitol Street NE) is ready to take its place as a 21st century school. Its facelift really is a tale of old meets new. It is a design fusion that daringly exposes old architectural elements in way fully compatible with its modern mission. Nearly a hundred years after it inception, Eastern’s original terra cotta floors and ceilings can once again breath, its marble and wood floors have been buffed back into their former glory, and the window adornments, front entryway woodwork, auditorium seating, and grand staircase can be admired. A gifted restoration team painstakingly crafted molds, hand-painted, and delicately removed debris by toothbrush. “Built in 1923, this architectural gem of the District of Columbia, [has] received restoration work that replicates that period of architecture,” said Mayor Fenty.
The Capitol Hill Veterinary Clinic is Moving! The Capitol Hill Veterinary Clinic has temporarily closed. It is moving to a newly renovated, more convenient location at 1240 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. The new clinic is scheduled to open in early September. In the interim, patients may call 202--546-11972 for updates. Vaccine information and medical records will continue to be provided upon request. We apologize for any inconvenience and hope to see you at the new clinic.
– Dr. Daniel Murphy The final bricks being put into place. Photo: Shannon Holloway
The school will come equipped with 221 computers, speaker systems with microphones for lectures, 29 Promethean Boards (interactive white boards that also serve as DVD/VCR Tuners and Computer/TV monitors with the ability to download educational programs as aids for distance learning), science labs, garden atriums, and WiFi. For the athletically inclined, the building houses a new weight room with an athletic trainer, gym with six hoops, a press box, bleachers, concession stand, public restrooms, locker rooms, volleyball net, baseball diamond, and a state-of-the-art sound system. The band room has new equipment, uniforms, sound and recording booths. The cafeteria boasts an extra 25 feet of kitchen space to provide the staff with fancy and much needed gadgetry and students with three food stations for pizza, sandwiches, and the daily menu. If you’d like to see an excellent rendering of the restoration and improvements made to Eastern you can take a fiveminute 3-D video tour online at: http://dcps.dc.gov/DCPS/ Parents+and+Community/The +Future+of+Eastern+High+Sch ool. For inquiries regarding inperson tours please contact the school, 202-698-4500. ★
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Photos by Elizabeth Nelson who can be reached at Elizabeth_knits@yahoo.com
Hot Time in the City with the Kingsman Basketball League By Elizabeth Nelson
“E
l sol” can’t claim entire credit for this summer’s heat wave. The Kingsman Basketball League did its fair share, at least on the court off the 1300 block of D St. NE. With two games each Saturday, there was plenty of action. In the end, it came down to the same two semi-finalists as last year – and the year before – the defending champions, the Mt. Olivet Titans, against the Exodus Disciples. This year, the Disciples won 72 ★ HillRag | September 2010
by a whisker in a real nail-biter that went into overtime. Next year, the KBL looks forward to playing on improved courts adjacent the current location, which is slated to become a dog park. The League would like to thank the Capitol Hill Community Foundation for its recent grant and would welcome additional support. If you can help, contact Andre Sullivan, 301.642.2247. ★
Community Life Spotted on The Hill
The Caspian Tern text and photo by Peter Vankevich
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n the Anacostia River in a canoe that fall [10/02/2009]. Just my luck, no camera and I saw several interesting seabirds including at least one good tern. Deserves another return trip pronto for photos I thought. From the Vankevich unpublished Nature Diaries One of the reasons I have liked having a career in DC is that it is a popular place with many reasons to for friends to visit. As much as I loved my college days in Montreal, I can recall only a few visits from friends in the states. The Metro area is attractive is not only to people, but also to birds. The Potomac River serves as kind of a highway for migrating water birds as they move from the ocean and bay, inland to locations like the Great Lakes for nesting and then back again. The waters surrounding our city are capable of providing sightings of many interesting birds, especially during the spring and fall. These include Common Loons, Horned Grebes, and Doublecrested Cormorants to name just a few. So let’s take a look at one of them, the worldly and cosmopolitan Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia) which was photographed on the Anacostia River on October 3, 2009. Caspian Terns are the world’s largest tern species with a wingspan of about 4 and half feet. Whereas many smaller terns have long tails, this one’s is short and notched. Add their slow strong wing beat and bulky size, from a distance they are sometimes overlooked as a gull. But a closer look at the large bright red bill usually with a dark tip, black legs, and more pointed wings will quickly remove that misidentification. It is more likely to be confused with the more coastal and slightly smaller Royal Tern. Caspians have a larger head,
broader wings and thicker brighter bill than the more slender Royal Tern whose bill is more orange colored. Caspian Terns have a raspy raucous croaking call. They feed primarily on fish and will often make spectacular plunges from high distances to catch them. They may also snag an occasional large insect on the wing. Both sexes look alike. In breeding plumage they have a solid black cap. When they molt back into basic plumage, the head feathers are often interspersed with white, giving it a saltand-pepper look. In addition to the Anacostia River at the foot of Capitol Hill, Hains Point is another good location to see them. In the introduction, I used the terms “cosmopolitan.” Cosmopolitan in biological terms refers to a species presence throughout the world. With the exception of Antarctica, Caspian Terns may be found on all continents. The name derives from the Caspian Sea where the first specimen was collected in 1770 by the famed German zoologist Peter Simon Pallus. I should hasten to add, however, that their breeding locations are highly fragmented, local and scattered throughout the world. Interestingly, in spite of their highly separated populations, there are no recognized subspecies. Their preferred nesting habitat consists of isolated flat, rocky and sparsely vegetated beaches and islands. A nest is simple, consisting of mere scrapes in the sand or dirt that may be lined with mollusk shells or bits of vegetation and hold one to three eggs. In the east, Caspian Terns winter along the southern portions of the Atlantic beginning around southern North Carolina and the Gulf Coast. In the Pacific Northwest, an interesting relocation project of a large
Caspian Tern colony in the Columbia River estuary has been going on for the past several years as part of a plan to restore thirteen threatened or endangered salmon and steelhead species. Decoys and loudspeakers blaring out their calls to entice them to nest were placed on large barges built with recycled plastics and covered with coarse sand farther away from where juvenile fish are released has met with initial success. The world’s population is estimated to be between 50,000 – 100,000 pairs and compared to many other species, the numbers in North America, are relatively stable. Well, I hope you know a little more about the Caspian Tern than a few moments ago. And I’m rather pleased with myself to have written a serious piece, avoiding one of those corny “one good tern deserves another” jokes. If you have any comments or interesting birds visiting a feeder, (especially White-breasted Nuthatch and Tufted Titmouse) on Capitol Hill that could be a possible feature for this column, or would like to join me for an hour’s stroll on the Hill with your binoculars or camera on a weekend morning, feel free to contact me, petevankevich@gmail.com. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 73
communitylife I N
M E M O R I U M
Richard Sundberg - The Mayor of Duncan Place by Bart Barnes
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he Mayor of Duncan Place, N.E. died in the first week of summer, peacefully and quietly at his home on Duncan Place, where he’d lived for the last 20 years. His friends and neighbors credited him with fighting to turn his street from a mediocre place into a high quality lifestyle environment for the people who live on it. His name was Richard Dale Sundberg, and he died at the age of 60, early in the morning of June 25. Since 2007 he had struggled with melanoma. There was a time when he thought he would beat it, and he did not go easily into that long good night. But the disease spread to his lungs, and as the end of his life drew near, he came to accept death’s inevitability. Two decades ago Mr. Sundberg moved to Duncan Place, then an outof-the-way block barely on the fringe of Capitol Hill, between 12th and 13th streets, D street and E street. The homes were mostly unrestored, Photo: Courtesy of Matt White. some run-down, and in a region that was believed to have been well be- near the eastern end of the block that yond even the ever-advancing urban drew unruly gatherings of loiterers. To neighborhood residents they were frontier of Capitol Hill. Mr. Sundberg was a neighbor- widely perceived as public nuisances. hood activist who helped transform Mr. Sundberg pressured city officials the block into the close-knit, lively to enforce all appropriate ordinances and eclectic community that it is to- and regulations. The stores aren’t day, and somewhere along the way there anymore. Mr. Sundberg was born in Mount he acquired the unofficial title of the Clemens, Mich. He grew up in a milblock’s “mayor.” He made telephone itary family whose postings were far calls. He wrote letters. He called and wide, including Air Force bases again. He wrote again. He hectored. in Louisiana, Michigan and Labrador. He pleaded. He wouldn’t go away. At the age of 13 in Lompoc, California To the entrenched, the recalcitrant, he delivered newspapers and in 1962 the hand-sitting city bureaucrat, he was named “Carrier-Salesman of the was an annoyance. He was a pest. He Month” by the Lompoc News-Press was a pain. He was always calm. He was always courteous. And he got for “sales ability and superior service.” He built model cars. He swam and things done. He monitored trash pick-ups he liked to draw. He had an ear and and street cleanings. For years there a talent for music, and he became an were convenience and liquor stores accomplished saxophone player. He played in bands and orchestras. He 74 ★ HillRag | September 2010
went to schools all over the world. In 1968 he received a high school diploma at the Kaiserslautern American School in Germany. Later he did advanced music study and played his saxophone in Switzerland. He spoke fluent German, and for years after his family was reassigned elsewhere, Mr. Sundberg returned periodically to Germany for extended visits. There he pursued his passion for skiing and hiking in the Bavarian Alps. He graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in information sciences, and from 1978 until 2000 worked in logistics management for the Navy Department. For the last eight years of his federal career and continuing afterwards, he also sold residential real estate on Capitol Hill, initially with Long and Foster, then Burns and Williams. For the last 12 years he was with Coldwell
Banker, where he worked in partnership with Matt White. On that sales team, Mr. Sundberg was always the calm and collected one. For a while in his early years on Duncan Place, Mr. Sundberg drove a Mercedes, but this was during a time when the area was known for a lifestyle and ambience that was more rough and tumble than nowadays, and the Mercedes tended to draw unwanted attention. There were carjackings and robberies. Mr. Sundberg was never car-jacked, but his trophy automobile did acquire some bullet holes, and eventually he exchanged it for something less conspicuous. He was never known as a man who deliberately sought attention for himself. He dressed modestly, but well. Most of the time he wore a tie. His family has a school photograph of him where one child, and only one child, was wearing a tie. That child was was Richard Sundberg. He was conscious of his health, but not a zealot. He rode a bicycle around Capitol Hill. He shunned fast food outlets, and let his neighbors know that he disliked foods laden with refined sugar. Any one of his neighbors might tell you that he was the glue that held Duncan Place together. Richard Sundberg was the one who organized the block parties and the street celebrations and the neighborhood festivals. He tended the tree boxes along the sidewalk. He was an enthusiastic gardener, and the plants in his front yard were, in effect, community property. Folks helped themselves to sprigs of his rosemary plant with his blessing and encouragement. Alas, the rosemary plant died a few years ago, an apparent victim of an aggressive D.C. government salt spreading campaign to keep streets clear and passable in winter weather.
On snow days, Mr. Sundberg could be found out in the street with his shovel He cleared his sidewalk, and then he cleared a neighbor’s sidewalk. He shoveled out those cars stuck in parking spaces and he cleared parking spaces for drivers trying to park their cars. During the blizzards of February 2010, ill and weakened as he was by what had them become an advanced stage of melanoma, he was out there shoveling. “You’ve shoveled my porch. Now I’m going to shovel yours,” he told a neighbor, Wanda Zehr Anderson. For his real estate office and his neighborhood, Mr. Sundberg was the point man in the monitoring of news about developments and happenings around Capitol Hill, especially on H Street, NE. He was a volunteer usher at the Atlas Theatre. As his physical condition deteriorated, Mr. Sundberg needed help, and he got it from his neighbors. They brought food. They volunteered to sit up with him at night. They helped him to the bathroom and the dinner table; he did not like taking his meals in bed. At the end, it was an effort, but he got up for his meals as long as he could. He was uncomfortable depending on others for favors. “Thank you. I’ll think about it,” was his standard response when someone asked if they could do something for him. Eventually his friends learned just to go ahead and do it, when it seemed that he needed or could use something. He turned 60 in March and a large crowd of friends and well-wishers turned out to celebrate the occasion at Trattoria Alberto on 8th Street, SE. His survivors include his parents, Jack and Martha Sundberg; two brothers, John and Tom; a sister, April Hayden; a sister-in-law, Donna Sundberg. ★
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communitylife
Parachutes and Historic Uniforms It’s Barracks Row Fall Festival On Capitol Hill by Sharon Bosworth
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t hardly seems possible for a neighborhood street festival, but it’s true. A sky diver is planning to make a precision landing at the intersection of 8th and G Street during Barracks Row Fall Festival on Capitol Hill. Then again, with two military bases on its short five block expanse, Barracks Row is not your average street. Ranger Jones, Volunteer of the Year for the Veterans Administration, and ardent parachutist, is not your average volunteer either. Ranger Jones announced last week he will drop from the sky during the festivities -- possibly joined by several Wounded Warriors, who refuse to give up jumping out of airplanes just because of a missing limb! Whether Ranger Jones and company actually drop in or not, the corner of 8th and G Street will be a hot spot on Saturday, Sept 25th. The Barracks Row Fall Festival on Capitol Hill runs from 11 am to 5 pm, hosted by Barracks Row Main Street. Sponsors this year include the National Capital Bank, The Capital Hill Business Improvement District, the Capital Riverfront Business Improvement District, Coca-Cola, Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America, The Military Hospitality Alliance and David Sheldon, Esq. At 11:30 a.m. the Marine Corps Brass Quintet will begin the Opening Ceremonies from the stage at 8th and G Street SE, followed by the Marine Corps Color Guard. At noon, Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells will officially welcome the crowd to the festival.
A Petting Zoo and Paul Prudhomme Providing the music, an oompah 76 ★ HillRag | September 2010
from 2:30 to 4:30, vying for the title of Top Chef in the United States Military. General James Conway, the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, will award the Top Chef trophy at 4:45 pm.
Tour Home of the Commandants; Meet the Redskin Cheerleaders
Two children enjoy the petting zoo. Photo: Andrew Lightman
band will play fair music favorites and dancing is encouraged at the 8th and G Street intersection. During the day, medleys will be sung both by the People’s Church of 8th Street, as well as by Capitol Hill’s St. Mark’s Players. Booths of all descriptions will sell wares from around the world. Come early and grab a seat at one of the Barracks Row’s 30+ sidewalk cafes. Have lunch and watch as our festival scene unfolds! Got kids? Then the Petting Zoo is for you. All day long llamas, ducklings, rabbits, hedgehogs, goats, and other creatures great and small, will be available to hold, rub, pat or just observe. Magicians and clowns will be ready with games and stunts; face painting, henna tattoos, and all sorts of fun giveaways will there for the taking. Even Chesty XIII, the Marine Corps’ English bulldog mascot will be making ceremonial walks to Cha-
teau Animaux and beyond to greet her admirers. On the midway, Ragin’ Cajun Chef Paul Prudhomme will be autographing cook books and observing the battle of the chefs. The Military Hospitality Alliance is hosting a Chef ’s Cook Off among chefs from all parts of the armed services. Judges will declare winners after each of four black box competitions. The participants in each contest do not know until the moment the black box opens what ingredients they must include in their dishes. By 2:30 p.m. each of those four flights will have a winner; all winners will then compete in a Championship Cook Off
New this year for military history and fashion buffs, ten Marines who participate in a military organization called Historic Uniforms will attend Barracks Row Fall Fes-
Chefs compete for prizes. Photo: Andrew Lightman
tival on Capitol Hill dressed in authentic period uniforms ranging from 1775 through 2010. These Marines stand ready to answer questions about swords, epaulets, capes and historic headgear as they walk the midway. We are hoping to see fringe and feathers and lots of wonderful boots! This means when you go on one of the five free tours of the Home of the Commandants held during the fair, you will likely view Historic Uniform Marines dressed in attire from the very year the house was built, 1806: perfect historic uniforms worn in a perfectly restored historic mansion. Also open for free tours during the festival: Marine Barracks 8th and I St. SE. Llamas, dancing, chefs, skydivers? Seems like we’re missing something doesn’t it? But, of course! The Redskins Cheerleaders. Following a five year tradition, the Redskins Cheerleaders return again to perform routines straight from FedEx Field. Both before and after their performance, the cheerleaders will be available to sign autographs and answer questions. And representing Washington itself, the reigning Miss DC will be on hand to help General and Mrs. Conway hand out Top Chef Awards, as well as to meet her neighbors from Ward 6. Mark your calendars now! Barracks Row Fall Festival on Capitol Hill, Saturday, September 25 from 11 am to 5 pm. You don’t want to miss this one!
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For further information go to Barracks Row’s website which is under construction but does have a link to our press release. Web site information will be updated up to the day of the event. Follow the plans for the event on Facebook and Twitter, or email or call: sharon@barracksrow. org; 202-544-3188. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 77
communitylife
h street streetlife life
H Street Festival 2010, Freshfarm Market and the Fruit Bat article and photos by Elise Bernard
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hh September, street festival season in the District, and also that time of year when I really wish we had a longer fall here. For those similarly situated, I suggest checking out the terrific apple selection at the H Street Freshfarm Market (625 H Street NE, http://www.freshfarmmarket.org/markets/h_street.html), and taking home a jug of delicious apple cider from Quaker Valley Orchards (http://www.quakervalleyorchards.com), which sells there each week. Between that (perhaps a few decorative gourds thrown in for good measure), and a healthy slice of pumpkin pie from Dangerously Delicious Pies (1339 H Street NE, http://www.dangerouspiesdc.com) you should recover.
H Street Festival 2010: A Celebration of Our Community Mark your calendars, and cancel any other plans. This year’s festival promises to be bigger and better than ever before. Last year, which saw record attendance, the festival stretched from 10th-14th streets. This year it will run from 8th-14th. As in years past the Art Cars will make an appearance. Music will again play a large role, with performances on three stages. Dangerously Delicious Pies is sponsoring a pie-eating contest. If sandwiches are more your taste, Taylor Gourmet (1116 H Street NE, http://www.taylorgourmet. com) will hold a similar competition with hoagies. Britishink (2nd floor of 508 H Street NE, http://www.britishinkdc.com) 78 ★ HillRag | September 2010
dors, or sit back and enjoy a beer, or a bite, on one of the many sidewalk cafes set up outside H Street bars and restaurants. Festival organizers urge attendees to use public transit. The H Street Shuttle will run extended hours (12pm-Metro close in Chinatown), and will also run to and from Eastern Market (12-6pm). The festival runs from 12-6pm September 18th. Expect large crowds at Biergarten Haus (1355 H Street NE, http://biergartenhaus.com), as September 18th is also the first day of Oktoberfest.
Last year’s H Street Festival drew a large crowd. Many restaurants and bars will set up sidewalk cafes for the festival.
sponsors the 2nd Annual H Street Skin and Ink Tattoo contest with prizes in both best and worst categories. The popular Kid Zone re-
turns, complete with face painting. Think you can play chess? Challenge the master who plays several games at once. Check out a variety of ven-
Fruit Bar brings a Latin flavor to H Street NE
Fruit Bat Takes Flight on H Street Though its name has elicited a few quizzical looks, there’s nothing odd about Erik Holzherr’s new bar at 1236 H Street NE. The Wisdom (1432 Pennsylvania Avenue SE) veteran’s newest offering is a quirky and intimate South American inspired lounge serving up freshly-squeezed craft cocktails. Above the bar, baskets are filled with oranges and grapefruits. Order a drink containing either of these and the bartender will reach up, grab one, and proceed to juice it right in front of you. Of course Fruit Bat offers the standard capirinhas and mojitos, but that’s only the beginning. Imbibers can sip fruity concoctions with names like La Revolucion, the Scarface, or the Colombian Necktie. The more creative are encouraged to concoct their own cocktails from the numerous ingredients on hand. Feeling nostalgic? Perhaps you’ll
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Evolve Property Management (1375 Maryland Avenue NE, http://www.evolvedc.com), which has been based on Capitol Hill since 1997, has acquired three buildings in the 1300 block of H Street NE (1344-1348). Evolve plans to renovate and restore 1344, giving it a historically correct façade. They hope to begin at the end of September, and once the work is completed Evolve will move its corporate headquarters to that location. Evolve hopes to operate out of its new home by spring of 2011. They had been searching for an appropriate space on H Street for about three years, and are excited to make this move. The other two buildings (which have already been joined together on the inside, will also undergo renovation, and Evolve will pursue a restaurant tenant for the space. The double-wide space provides a distinct advantage, and makes the building more attractive to potential tenants. For more on what’s abuzz on and around H Street you can visit my blog http://f rozentropics.blogspot.com. Send tips or questions to inked78@ hotmail.com. ★
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A new restaurant, Smith Commons (1245 H Street NE, http:// www.smithcommonsdc.com), is set to open on the Corridor towards the end of the month. Featuring the culinary stylings of Belgian Chef Frederik De Pue, the menu will showcase accessible seasonally driven international dishes. The restaurant is a collaborative effort of three friends. Two of those men are hospitality industry veterans Jerome Bailey (The Library, 3514 12th Steet NE), and Sheldon Robinson (who has been involved in such ventures as The Park at 14th, 920 14th Street NW, and Layla Lounge, 501 Morse Street NE), while the third, Miles Gray, is a
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Smith Commons Hopes to Woo H Street Diners
more of a newcomer. The space itself is quite large, stretching for 5,000 square feet spread over three levels, and featuring two outdoor decks, one of which can be used even in the winter. Each floor will have its own bar, offering over 70 international and domestic wines and bottled beers. Smith Commons will also have twelve rotating craft beers on tap. The restaurant will also offer craft cocktails. The building will be divided into two sections with Smith (the main dining room) occupying the first floor, and the Commons claiming the second and third floors. In total, there is seating for 75 patrons. Prices for dinner are expected to range from $30-40 per person.
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want to try the adult rootbeer float (made with rootbeer vodka). It is quite tasty, and as the sign says “just like mom used to make…before she went to prison.” Beyond that are the batidas, which rotate each week. When I visited, the combo was honeydew melon and banana. Batidas, like the fruit juices, are available with or without, alcohol. Fruit Bat also offers house infusions. Think combinations like tequila with watermelon and thyme, or cherry vodka with cucumber and sake. Infusions are available as shots, highballs, or martinis. Beer and wine drinkers too are welcome at Fruit Bat, which offers a few wines by the glass, and beers on tap, and in bottles. A lambic or two can be found in the mix, and it can even be added to a custom cocktail. Naturally Fruit Bat also offers visitors a little something to nibble upon as they tipple. The menu was not quite set as of press time, but it’s likely to include small plates like the pork and chorizo taco, queso blanco pupusa, and coconut rice with black beans and plantains, that I sampled. Fruit Bat occupies only the first floor, and Holzherr is slightly secretive about his plans for upstairs, which he hopes to have open before winter. He does, however, refer to it as “his baby,” so I think we’re in for a treat.
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BYwest
SOUTH Public Plazas to Enhance Southwest Federal Center Area by William Rich
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he streetscape along two blocks of C Street, SW will soon be enhanced with public plazas and an increase of green space, if the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) approves the landscaping plans by the General Services Administration (GSA) for the Mary E. Switzer Building at its September meeting. Interior renovations are ongoing at the Switzer Building, which is owned by the federal government, and which is occupied by the U.S. Department of Education, Department of Health & Human Services, and the GSA. The renovations are scheduled to be complete by July 2011 and include the modernization of 311,000 square feet of space and the construction of an 18,000 square foot addition that will add office space to the 6th & 7th floors. Currently, the C Street, SW frontage of the Switzer Building contains a 114-space surface parking lot and narrow sidewalks. The Cohen Building, which is similar in design to the Switzer Building and is located on the north side of C Street, SW also has a large surface parking lot. There are three design alternatives under consideration for the Switzer Building, but all three alternatives will bring the following improvements: C Street, SW from 3rd Street, SW to 4th Street, SW, will be reduced to one lane in each direction, which will allow the sidewalks on both sides of the street to be widened; bulb-outs at the corners of 4th & C Street, SW and 3rd & C Street, SW; the installation of curb cuts and wheelchair ramps to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act 80 ★ HillRag | September 2010
If approved by the National Capital Planning Commission, the C Street, SW frontage of the Mary E. Switzer building will no longer have a large parking lot, but will be replaced with a landscaped plaza and wide sidewalks. Photo: Andrew Lightman.
regulations; a landscaped plaza on the north side of the building; street trees; a concession/coffee stand; public art to hide vent shafts; permanent perimeter security measures; install a back-up generator below-grade; provide Level IV security for the building; and use sustainable practices. The GSA prefers Alternative B, which is described below from the Environmental Assessment submitted for the project: Alternative B proposes to convert the existing surface parking lot to a landscaped plaza. The landscaped plaza design would include open lawn panels opposite the two entrances with fully planted landscaped panels flanking the lawns on the east and west ends. Surface park-
ing for approximately 11 vehicles would be located at the center of the plaza and would be bordered on four sides by planting beds. The lot would be designed such that it could serve as an additional outdoor venue when not used for parking. A coffee/concession stand and small seating area would be installed at the east end of the plaza adjacent to the 3rd Street, SW sidewalk. These proposed improvements come on the heels of plans for Federal Building #8, also known as 200 C Street, SW, which is currently under renovation and will also incorporate elements of the Switzer Building landscaping plan. The NCPC approved plans for 200 C Street, SW in March 2010 and will seek LEEDOne of the places that new District resident John Nigro recently discovered in Southwest is the popular Capitol Skyline Hotel pool, which hosts pool parties every weekend during the summer months. Photo: William Rich
Gold certification. Other new developments in the Southwest Federal Center area include the planned Eisenhower Square memorial designed by famed architect Frank Gehry at 4th Street, SW and Independence Avenue, SW, the planned American Veterans Disabled for Life Memorial at 2nd Street, SW and Washington Avenue, SW, as well as the new Consolidated Forensic Laboratory under construction at 4th Street, SW and E Street, SW and the planned Engine 13 firehouse across the street.
Interview with a New Southwester Over the past few years, thousands of new and renovated homes have been built in the Near Southwest/Southeast neighborhood, bringing with them a large influx of new residents to the area. Below is an interview with John Nigro, a new resident of Southwest who moved to the District from Northern Virginia in June 2010. South by West: What made you decide to move to Southwest? John: I was recommended to Southwest by a coworker who lives in Potomac Place Tower. I took the Metro to the Federal Center SW station over lunch one day and took my own mini-tour. I immediately realized how convenient it is to virtually anywhere I would want to go in the city. Plus, it has a true “up and coming” if not “almost-there” feel. South by West: What do you like most about living in Southwest? John: I have such a short commute to downtown that I barely even
factor it into my day. The proximity to three Metro stations (L’Enfant, Federal Center, and Waterfront) is ideal. I also love that I can walk four blocks to the National Mall and six or so blocks to the Capitol. South by West: What bothers you most about living in Southwest? John: I wish 4th Street, SW and M Street, SW had more retail. I love the new Safeway and Starbucks, but a few more restaurants would be nice. I hope Southwest turns into more of a night-time destination. South by West: Does living in Southwest remind you of any other place you’ve lived before? John: It has a little bit in common with this one area of Pittsburgh known as “East Side,” but East Side has no subway access. Southwest is certainly unique. South by West: If there was one thing you would want done do to make Southwest a better place to live, what would that be? John: The Potomac River waterfront has great potential, but it is sadly underutilized. I hope to see some public-private partnerships invest in the area over the next few years. It is DC’s only “coastal” area. I think Baltimore’s Inner Harbor is a good model for the making the waterfront area into a real attraction. South by West: Any other comments you would like to share? John: Southwest is the best bargain in the city. If you are a long-time resident of the near Southwest/Southeast neighborhood and would like to be interviewed for an upcoming South by West article, please contact me, William rich, by email: southwest.tlqtc@gmail.com. And check out my blog at Southwest… The Little Quadrant that Could ( w w w. s o u t h w e s tq u a d ra n t . blogspot.com) ★
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82 ★ HillRag | September 2010
HOMES & GARDENS SPECIAL
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 83
HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
Behind the Scenes A Century of Gardening Know-How At Frager’s and Gingko Gardens Article and Photography by Rindy O’Brien for its owner, Mark Holler’s landscape and garden design business. Mark’s deep knowledge of plants and his excellent eye for design make him one of the most sought after landscape designers on Capitol Hill. One of the fun things about a trip to Ginkgo Gardens is to walk down the outside aisles and see the many different fountains, colorful garden ornaments, pots, and small sculpture piecGinkgo Gardens’ storefront at 911 11th Street SE conveys es. All of these artful the colorful and fun garden center it has become. pieces are tastefully placed among annun 2010, two of Capitol Hill’s als, perennials, herbs, and the garden centers will be celelarger trees and shrubs for sale. brating significant anniversaRegulars at Ginkgo Gardens ries. Fragers Hardware can boast are also used to seeing two cats, of 90 years serving home and Tuesday and Ginkgo, sleeping garden do-it-yourselfers. Ginkat the cash register or roaming go Gardens put down roots ten the store. It seems as if they have years ago. Both garden centers always been a part of the home have brought first-class gardenand garden center, and actually ing services and merchandize to they have been. Matt Fox, vetHill residents. Before both stores eran Ginkgo Gardens’ employee, got serious about gardening, resirecalls that it was a Tuesday dents had to fight the traffic on when an under-nourished gray Wisconsin Avenue to go to cat found her way into the buildJohnson’s Nursery or head ing. The cat not only found herto Beltsville’s Behnkes. Now, the self a new home and name, but most sophisticated garden conjust days later she had also given noisseur or the first-time gardenbirth to five kittens. Along with ing novice can find what they readying the store for its grand need on 11th Street, SE. Ginkgo opening, the staff had to figure Gardens is located at 911 11th out how to contain the kittens. Street, SE and Frager’s HardThey improvised bags of soil and ware is 1115 Pennsylvania Ave, old screen doors, and the kittens SE, just blocks apart. enjoyed their makeshift crate in the showroom. An Eye for the Unusual Before long neighborhood Ginkgo Gardens is both a re- children were stopping by the tail center and the headquarters
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garden center, and Tuesday and her gang became instant celebrities. Eventually, four kittens found homes on the11th Street block with neighbors. One kitten, Ginkgo, stayed on with its mother. The history of the cats and the store are intertwined and Tuesday and Ginkgo give the garden center a feeling of home the minute you walk in. Inside Ginkgo Gardens is a treasure trove of home and garden gifts, as well as an interesting collection of indoor plants. Sometimes it is hard to find really good quality indoor plants in this area, and Ginkgo Gardens carries a great variety of plants as well as different sizes for home and office. Many of these plants thrive on the natural light from the large storefront window. The inside center also has a room of organic and pest control products as well as fertilizers and other garden essentials. Gardenstyle furniture and home accessories can be found both on the first and second floors. Like many garden center owners, Mark is just finishing one season as he prepares for the next one. It might just be late August, but he is getting ready for buying trips for the winter and early spring. The holiday season is a busy one for Ginkgo Gardens, as many Hill shoppers have discovered over the past ten years. There is really something special about giving a gift that keeps on growing long after the holidays have ended. Mark has made his fall buying trips to Atlanta and New York really pay off by offering Hill residents a unique and unusual array of home and garden items.
Julio Stoesz, a young gardener helping Linda Naiditch with her garden, takes a break with Ginkgo, the store’s iconic cat.
Frager’s has 15 employees working in the Garden Center that are ready to answer questions about plants and gardens.
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HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL Always Something New Frager’s Hardware has always been the trusted store on the Hill to find the missing bolt, screw, or lock. And while there, shoppers could also pick up zinnia seeds or some Miracle Grow before checking out. Frager’s legend has it that Joe, a store employee, decided sometime in the early 1990s to expand the garden department and he opened up the patio area selling basic azaleas and shrubs and tomatoes. As the gardening trend hit Capitol Hill, each spring and summer the patio garden center expanded again and again. “Now, the garden center is one of the biggest departments of the hardware store along with the paint center,” says co-manager Elizabeth Philbrick, “and it is a year round adventure selling snow shovels, Christmas trees and ornaments and lights Julio Stoesz, a young gardener helping Linda Naiditch with her garden, in the winter.” takes a break with Ginkgo, the store’s iconic cat.. In fact, the garden center is one of the largest garden retail educating Hill gardeners about planting more stores in the area. With the large outdoor native species, which has also become popular space behind the store, along with the side around the country. These plants can adapt to patio space, the center can stockpile large the drought, hot, and unpredictable weather quantities of soil, compost materials, peat and conditions we have here.” With that in mind, lime, fertilizers and even sod. The volume of Frager’s has begun to carry more ornamental merchandise allows Fragers to be competi- grasses, shrubs, and perennial plants. “They tive with prices of the suburban box stores, may cost a little more than some of our past like Home Depot. Hard items like stone and plants, but they are definitely going to be bricks are available in the back. around a lot longer,” Elizabeth predicted. Grills, patio fireplaces, pergolas, fencing and rain barrels are nestled behind the back Two of the Best of the store in a tented area. Most grill masThe success and growth of these two garters on the Hill know that Frager’s is the place den centers demonstrates the keen interest to go to trade in the empty propane tank and that Hill residents have in gardening. “I find get ready for your next barbeque with a new it interesting that when I go to shows like the Blue Rhino tank. one in Chicago,” noted Elizabeth, “that retailThe garden center has plenty of knowl- ers are concerned about how to get younger edgeable employees to assist the gardener. people interested in gardening. Some of our The store has two co-managers, Elizabeth best customers are young professionals eager and Chris Strader. During the summer over to learn all they can. They don’t want to just 15 Frager’s staff keep the plants watered, the read about gardening on the Internet. They large quantity of containers and pots cleaned, want to ask questions and get to planting.” and answer Hill gardeners questions. The Hill is extremely lucky to have two Elizabeth keeps up with new trends of the best garden centers in the Washington, and products by attending gardening shows both managed with such care, creativity, and around the country similar to what Mark foresight. Congratulations to both centers on does. She is just back from the largest in- their anniversaries. dependent gardening show held this year in Chicago. “Food is the biggest new trend in Rindy O’Brien can often be found at both shops gardening,” Elizabeth says, “but for Hill resi- looking for the indestructible plant for her gardents it isn’t the most practical trend. I do dens. She can be reached at rindyob@mac.com. think we are making a lot of progress with ★ 86 ★ HillRag | September 2010
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HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
gardenspot
Five Great Corner Gardens Our Annual Paean to the Hill’s Urban Gardeners Article and pictures by Derek Thomas
T
his year as we start to think about fall bulbs at Eastern Market, fertilizer for our lawns, and our customary day trip to see the fall leaves peak, Washingtonians will breathe a collective sigh of relief that one of the hottest summers on record is quickly fading stage left. This summer the trees roasted, shrubs sizzled and garden perennials became toasty around the edges. The daily topic at the coffee house and garden center alike was the oppressive heat, outrageous cooling bills, and a mantra-like wishing for relief from the summer’s onslaught. Our daylily’s bright colors were muted and shriveled. Hollyhocks and foxgloves burned out. Hostas really never had a chance even when planted in the shade. And our fill annuals had a rough time keeping color and cheer in the parched earth. Crape Myrtles bloomed in early June and summer lilies were done before spring’s end. Everywhere and on every block there were vivid signs of just how badly the heat had affected the usually lush gardens of Capitol Hill.
and a sitting bench provides the perfect vantage for evenings spent watching the Hill swirl by. A mixed brick and stone path is wonderfully filled with creeping moss and vines cover the iron fence. The tree box is filled with texture and color and everything in this Victorian garden is as it should be purposefully unplanned and painlessly executed. Very nice.
200 4th St. SE
102 13th Street NE – A glorious step back in time.
102 13th St. NE What a glorious step back in time to a place where carriages made the haul across North Carolina Avenue and down 13th St. This home and garden are a true tribute to the Hill’s
historic past and the garden is perched prettily in its Victorian roots. Drifts of annual color spill over their bounds, hydrangeas and peonies compete with evergreens and cement planters for prominence; urns are filled with herbs
This garden is one of the best cottage gardens the hill has to offer. Plants are allowed to interlope on each other’s spaces. The bed lines are blurred and there is no plant, intended or volunteered, that does not have equal rights in this glorious example of a true country-cutting garden. The crape and pear trees are sentinels to the Mardi Gras of color, texture and shapes. The show continues to the tree box with cosmos and spider flower spilling wildly out of a semi formal hedge of euonymus. Sunflower and hibiscus add drama and pop to this color splash garden that
The Survivors The gardens that survived this summer’s onslaught were well maintained and watered regularly. Perhaps this is why as I set out on my quest for this season’s five-star gardens, the ones on the corners that set the standard for the block leaped forth like green beacons in a very brown parched night. The corner gardens on Capitol Hill can be very special because of the larger than normal space that the homeowner has for a garden. What follows are five gardens that are lush, well cared for, and a true testament to the glorious gardens of Capitol Hill. They vary in taste and textures, yet are instantly recognized as true gardeners. 200 4th Street SE -- A tribute to Lady Bird Johnson’s wildflower gardens. 88 ★ HillRag | September 2010
401 Seward Square SE - Victorian meets the beach
would make Lady Bird Johnson proud. Wonderfully natural.
401 Seward Square SE This is a great example of beach garden meets Victorian herb garden. The garden is well proportioned since it sits on a raised wall and the homeowners have made sure that there are not any oversized plantings. The garden skirts the home and is a melding of the best of two garden styles. The grasses and bear’s breeches are reminiscent of a beach side garden. The roses and annuals would be found in the best of both garden styles and the lavender and mint are perfect specimens of the formal herb garden. Large oversized field stone steppers are both functional and add the right amount of drama. The garden is full and lush, but not messy and unkempt. Urban tranquility.
822 East Capitol St. NE Wow. What a great illustration of the fact that the only thing that limits great urban garden design is a lack of creativity. This garden is a sculpture garden, a private woodland garden, a wonderful contemplation space and a true departure from anything contrived or predictable. The home meets the garden and the garden graces the home. The stonework is impeccable yet not rigid. The sculptures are natural and accentuate the garden. The side path brings you into or out of the space with ease and comfort. The plantings are lush and vivid although the color pallet is green. When you are taking in this lush oasis, it is very easy, to forget that you are still just a stone’s throw from the bustle of East Capitol Street. Soothing and well executed.
822 East Capitol St. NE -- Whisks you away from the bustle of the city. capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 89
CHGC’s Annual Bulb Giveaway The Capitol Hill Garden Club is giving away free spring-flowering bulbs for use in public spaces on Capitol Hill. Daffodils and crocus have been chosen as they come back and proliferate every year. Applicants should include a plan for planting, which must be visible from the street. A photograph is appreciated. The plan must also designate the person responsible for the planting. Coordinator Amy Haddad says no qualified applicant will be turned away! Individuals and groups are invited to apply. Applications are due on September 15. The bulbs will be distributed in October. To request an application form (which can be submitted electronically), please contact CHGC at http://capitolhillgardenclub.blogspot.com or phone 202.486.7655.
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Final thought
This garden is one that pops because of the easy drifts of plants. The gardens strength comes from the healthy natural display of plants juxtaposed with just the right touch of whimsy. Boxwoods and spiraea collide, sedum and lambs ears squeeze out each other, iris, basil, and mixed ground cover play well together and there is color and contrast in the homes traditional window boxes. Garden art comes in the form of Jacobs hooks filled with bird feeders and a playful puppy statue, who seems to be having a great time burrowing for some garden critter. The side porch is filled with potted plants and is the perfect vantage point for viewing this gardens bacchanal. Fun.
Each year it is extremely difficult to narrow down the best five gardens. This year I was pleasantly surprised how many folks had been taking great care of their gardens in spite of the heat wave of the last two months. Keep up the great work and maybe next year we will be sharing your great garden with the residents of Capitol Hill. Till then “Happy Gardening.” Enjoy. Derek Thomas is a certified Professional Horticulturist whose designs have been featured on HGTV’s Curb Appeal and DIY network’s Dominator. He is principal designer of Thomas Landscapes and can be reached at 301.642.5182 or www.thomaslandscapes.com. ★
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the LITERARY HILL A Compendium of Readers, Writers, Books & Events
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HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
Recombining Nature By Ryan Moody Skyscraper Gardens
T
here is something intrinsically satisfying about the orange of a monarch butterfly floating across a blue and white summer sky. When one hundred butterflies are diving between the branches of a groundsel tree, the effect is like welding sparks…fleeting streaks of orange signaling a work of connection in progress. The monarch is a recognizable symbol of the thousands of species of insects, birds, and other animals that we have the opportunity to attract to our gardens. As suitable habitat for these creatures disappears, it is increasingly critical to replace lost wilderness with new nest, food, and rest sites for the survival of bio-diversity. Although our gardens may individually be small, they collectively represent a significant ecological patchwork of potential habitat. Within this article are three ideas about maximizing the relationships between people, gardens, and local fauna.
Strong Architecture The key to engaging birds and bugs in our garden is creating strong, lasting, and beautiful architecture that allows us to interact with the living things around us. To experience the performance of nature, we need terraces, pathways, furniture, containers, walls, and screens that invite us into a garden and allow us to comfortably stay there. These features should combine with evergreen hedges, large shrubs, and ornamental trees to provide spatial definition without limiting comfort and accessibility. When considering the architecture of your garden think big and bold; garden architecture should be as strong the space allows. Garden architecture should overflow from existing spaces. Connections to an existing house, shed, or street are made by correlating material selections, mirroring layout dimensions, 92 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Shortly after architecture school I went to Chicago and worked on skyscrapers. Although there are many differences between small gardens
LEFT: Public domain photo of a ruby-throated hummingbird from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service National Digital Library BELOW: Bird’s eye view of a Capitol Hill Garden designed by Moody Landscape Architecture. Photo: Ryan Moody
The great plantsman Wolfgang Oehme (founding partner of the local landscape architecture firm Oehme van Sweden & Associates) parts a sea of recently planted switchgrass on a fall day. Winterberry holly shrubs can be seen reaching above the grasses in the background. Photo: Ryan Moody
replicating architectural lines, and extending view corridors. The garden should be as beautiful to look through as it is to be in. Whenever possible, I bring natural materials like stone, wood, and brick into the garden. These textures and colors complement each other as a recombination of rocks, trees, and clay that once existed naturally.
and tall buildings, there are some concepts that translate well and offer insight into increased bio-diversity in the landscape. Structurally, the base of a skyscraper is the most critical piece of its stability. The below grade systems of a tall building are complex, expensive, rarely seen, and imperative to the success of the tower. The same applies to a garden. Below the surface, the garden soil must be able to structurally support plant growth, sustain the fungi, worms, and other creatures that provide nutrients, and texturally allow for drainage during rainstorms. Before planting, the best way to ensure a healthy garden is by testing existing soil conditions, such as pH and organic content, and investing in
amendments like compost or peat moss to calibrate the soil to the proposed plant palette. Once above ground, successful skyscrapers are masterful in their ability to support business. Their efficiency is a result of building as tall as possible on as small of a footprint as possible. Different tenants can occupy different floors in the building allowing multiple financial and spatial needs to be met. Where ground space is at a premium (as in most cities), vertical mixed-use construction helps meet the demand of more people with less real estate. In small garden spaces, vertically layered gardens create more habitat than a single layer landscape. By selecting plants with different mature heights, you can create floors in the garden suitable for different species. Layers in the garden may include a canopy of tall trees, an understory layer with ornamental trees and shrubs, a herbaceous layer of perennials and tall grasses, a ground layer filled with groundcovers, and a vine layer to stitch them all together. Finally, a successful skyscraper is able to attract tenants to the space by providing an environment that meets their needs. A developer has to envision and construct a building that has the right combination of amenities and nearby infrastructure to support a business. In gardens, the necessary features required to attract native wildlife include food, water, cover, and a place to raise their young. Most often, native plants that have co-evolved with local species provide the greatest value by offering carefully tuned resources. Although it is impossible to recreate the wilderness that once existed in our place, we can recombine the most beneficial native plants in new gardens that seek to re-establish lost habitat. Listed below are a few of my favorite regionally native plants from different garden layers that provide ecological benefits while still looking great through the fall and into winter Black Gum Nyssa sylvatica- This tree is worth visiting in the
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Enid A. Haupt Garden at the Smithsonian to see its brilliant red fall color Winterberry Holly Ilex verticillata- This shrubs bright red berries look great against a white backdrop or in combination with switchgrass. There is a smaller cultivar perfect for Capitol Hill gardens named ‘Red Sprite’ that can be seen at the entrance to the National Arboretum. Mountain Mint Pycnanthemum muticum- This aggressive native perennial is a great low maintenance plant to use in mass. It attracts so many bees and beetles that the plant appears to be moving during summer months. Switchgrass Panicum virgatumThis classic prairie grass is available in cultivars ranging from three to eight feet tall and provides wonderful cover and gold color during winter months. Bearberry Arctostaphylos uvaursi- Although we are at the southern end of this plants range, I have used it with great success in sandy soils and appreciate its fine evergreen texture and red berries. Virginia Creeper Parthenocissus quinquefolia- Plant this vine next to a brick wall and watch it take off. Its red color is unmistakable in the fall.
Once vertical variety, food sources, and winter cover have been considered, you can supplement those attractions with additional features such as bird feeders, bat boxes, bird baths, and bee houses. These ornamental elements establish points of visual focus that can often be sculptural in design. I call these operative ornaments because they have functional value that can be tailored for individual species. For example, a single celled bat box that is twenty four inches tall, fourteen inches wide, and 3 inches deep and properly designed, built, and installed can attract up to 100 brown bats that each eat as many as 400 mosquitoes per hour!
Birds such as northern cardinals, song sparrows, and ruby-throated hummingbirds also eat unwanted insects, consume weed seeds, and provide us with dynamic sensory experiences. To attract a ruby throated hummingbird you can plant a native perennial like cardinal flower. However, to increase the likelihood and duration of visitors I suggest combining a handful of cardinal flowers with a small red hummingbird feeder. The feeder shown, made by Aspects Inc., is appropriately sized for a small garden.
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Ryan Moody holds masters degrees in landscape architecture and architecture from the University of Virginia. He is the founding principal of Moody Landscape Architecture and lives and works on Capitol Hill as a landscape architect. For more information on Moody Landscape Architecture, visit www.moodyarchitecture.com. ★
To see which birds you can be most helpful to in urban areas visit the Audubon at Home website at http://audubonathome. org/birdstohelp/speciesList. php?habitat=urban To support wildlife conservation by learning about gardens for wildlife and registering your yard as a Certified Wildlife Habitat visit http://www.nwf.org/Get-Outside/ Outdoor-Activities/Garden-forWildlife/Create-a-Habitat.aspx To learn more about bats and download free plans for how to build your own bat house please visit the organization for bat conservation http://www.batconservation.org/index.html To see a list of free upcoming Backyard Habitat workshops provided by The District Department of the Environment in partnership with Audubon Maryland-DC please visit http://ddoe.dc.gov/ddoe/cwp/ view,a,1209,q,501441.asp To read about how native plants work in concert with native fauna pick up a copy of Bringing Nature Home by the ecologist Douglas Tallamy (you may recognize this name from his wonderful talk at the Capitol Hill Garden Club this year)
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HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
Solar Home Tour And Fair Saturday, Oct. 16 Lutheran Church Of The Reformation 212 East Capitol St. NE Fair--10 to 2 p.m. Home Tours--noon to 4 p.m. www.capitolhillenergycoop.org Max and Jeff Johnson are shown on their solar roof. Photo: Jeff Johnson
Solar Power Easy, Saves Money, Helps the Environment By Jeff Johnson
S
tanding on the flat, hot, and shiny roof of my Capitol Hill row house, I can see a vision of a solar energy future. Spread before me are row after row of empty roofs, unobstructed by trees or buildings. As the sun blasts down, this block-long line of roofs looks ripe for solar panels. That is what a small group of Hill residents thought a year-and-a-half ago when we began looking into how we could install photovoltaic solar panels on our roofs. We were among some 350 members of the Capitol Hill Energy Co-op, founded in 2008 to address energy and environmental issues, particularly climate change and green-
96 ★ HillRag | September 2010
house gas emissions. Our utility, Pepco, gets nearly half of its electricity by burning coal, and nationally, coal-fired utilities produce about one-third of the U.S.’s greenhouse gases. They are the largest single source of carbon dioxide emissions, the most abundant greenhouse gas. When you toss in environmental and health damage from coal mining, coal ash pits, and air pollution, it is clear now is time to move away from coal. A little more than one month ago, the solar group’s investigation into solar energy came to fruition for me when I had 12 photovoltaic panels installed on the roof of my house, about
a block from Stanton Park. The panels can generate 2.8 kilowatts of electricity, enough to cover about half of my Pepco electricity bill. The system cost $20,000 and was installed in just two days. And most important, with a little luck, I can get all my money back in three years.
Solar Pioneering When we began looking into solar, our group realized we didn’t know exactly where to start. We were sort of solar pioneers. We began searching for solar installers and found a dozen or so in the DC area. We pared the vendors down
to about eight, interviewed them, and chose four that seemed most willing and able to do the job. We offered to give them preference if they would give us a deal. We did and they did. I got bids from the installers and eventually selected the small company Solar Solutions to do the job. The installer stood in line and got the District building permits, cleared the project with the Historic Preservation Office, and helped me figure out how many panels I needed and how they should be attached to my roof. I wanted to go simple and wound up selecting a design in which the
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platform that supports the solar panels rests on the “party” walls between my house and my neighbors. The supports are similar to a deck, and significant for our aged house, there is no weight on the roof. Such “solar options” will be presented Oct. 16 at the Hill Coop Solar Fair and Homes Tour, Lutheran Church of the Reformation, 212 E. Capitol St. NE, starting at 10 a.m.
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Most important in all this discussion is the money. We have a modest house and wanted a modest bill. Under a three-year-old U.S. law, residents can get a 30% federal tax rebate for the cost of a solar installation. So next year, I can get $6,000 deducted from my federal tax bill. And through a recently passed District law, pushed by Council Member Mary Cheh and strongly supported by Capitol Hill’s Tommy Wells, DC residents and businesses can obtain an upfront payment to ease the cost burden and to encourage solar installations. Through the District law, I received $8,400 to help pay for my panels. The District has set aside $2 million a year through 2012 for this program. It pays $3 a watt for the first 3,000 of installed solar watts and $2 for the next 7,000 watts and $1 a watt for the next 10,000 watts. Through these programs, I will cover nearly three-quarters of the installation cost. To help with the rest, another District incentive program requires Pepco to purchase electricity generated by renewable sources, a small amount of which is solar. These so-called Renewable Energy Credits will amount to more than $1,000 a year for my 2.8 KW system. Consequently, I should be able to pay off the system within three to five years. Some in the coop are even getting a quicker payoff. The panels are designed to last 25 years so this is an investment for the future. Pepco won’t buy our electric-
THE HILL’S ELECTRICIAN ity, but we do get a credit when our system generates more electricity than our household uses. On sunny days, I have the pleasant sight of watching my meter move backwards. This should cut my electricity bills in half. So far, about 13 Capitol Hill residents have installed solar units through the co-op and another 16 are planning on moving ahead later this year, says solar co-op founder and Hill resident Michael Barrette. The Hill group was modeled on a similar co-op in Mount Pleasant, which began about three years ago. Its creator, Anya Schoolman, estimates about 45 solar units were installed through the co-op last year and another 25 residents have put solar on their roofs so far this year. The path has not always been smooth, however. District officials who administer the program fell behind in releasing the money and appeared to have misplaced $1.4 million of the $2 million allocation for the first year. But now things are back on track and Schoolman notes right now may be an important time to apply for DC grants before the fiscal year comes to an end Sept. 30. There have also been a few issues with Pepco over meters but that too seems to be working toward resolution. Nevertheless this remains a work in progress. We are trying to create a new world for clean, non-fossil-fuel electricity generation as well as jobs and a new U.S. market for renewable energy. While my panels were design in German, they were assembled in New Mexico. Through my lifetime, I have watched energy tax breaks pour out for oil, coal and nuclear power companies. It seems about time for energy tax breaks to come to regular people trying to make a difference in the world.
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Jeff Johnson is a Capitol Hill resident who often writes on energy. Reach him at jjohnsondc@earthlink.net. To learn more about solar and the Hill Fair and Tour, go to www.capitolhillenergycoop.org. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 99
HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
?
Ask Judith
The Greenest House on Capitol Hill? By Judith Capen
T
he subject line in the email read “the Greenest House on Capitol Hill.” Who could resist? Not I. The owner, Bernie Moffett, is a lovely man, who tolerated my nosy questions and showed me the whole place. Besides the gut job of his house, making it both occupiable and green, Bernie lives an integrated green lifestyle. Apart from all the energy conserving, reducing, and generating features of his house, Bernie got rid of his car when he moved to the Hill and joined Zipcar. He rides the bus to his job in the Union Station neighborhood. He enthusiastically listed the walkable aspects of his new neighborhood: three blocks to Safeway, five blocks to Harris Teeter, two blocks to church, and all of Eighth Street for dinner. Returning to the area a few years ago, Bernie initially lived in a Northern Virginia apartment off Braddock Road. When he noticed his investments tanking, he decided that putting his money into a house was a better investment. He looked around Northern Virginia and discovered Capitol Hill was more affordable! (We have to give a shout out to his friend, Anne Holbrook, who lives close by and acted as his compass. Anne not only lives in and recommended the neighborhood, but also is a pretty serious
A seriously multi-tasking roof: keeps the rain out, generates power, and will be planted. Photo by Judith Capen.
greenie. She had already applied to the District for the photovoltaic subsidy and was conversant with the many shades of green. She said Bernie may not have started out green, but the idea of minimal electric bills for as long as he owns the house sold him. Of course, just about everything he then did to save energy and resources cost him more money in construction, but that’s what we call the long view: looking at life-cycle cost instead of just first cost. He found a needy house, a long neglected rental that even his house inspector advised gutting. As it happens his nephew, Nick Cioffi (nick@greenspur. net), is in construction and lives two blocks away and became his contractor. Further, Nick also specializes in sustainability. He is experienced with “geothermal” (aka “ground source heat pumps”), solar panels, the value of insulation and a tight envelope, high efficiency equipment and appliances, and more. Nick and his business partner, Mark Turner, built the little green house on Fourth Street NE, that I wrote about in January of 2010. “Proof of concept,” Nick said. “I’m interested in systems that work.” Now, let’s look at a list of sustainable moves and see which are included in this house:
Conservation Efforts that Can Minimize Energy
This is a picture of Bernie’s two, hundred-foot deep wells for his ground source heat pump. Don’t see them? That’s because they’re underground: what I call really low profile. Photo by Judith Capen. 100 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Insulate to a minimum R30 walls, R40 roof – ✓ (They used an Owens Corning system consisting of a sprayed-on, insulating vapor/air barrier, then blown-in formaldehyde-free loose fiberglass insulation. Nick considers this system more fool proof than conventional fiberglass batt systems, largely because of the vapor/air barrier. A truly astonishing part of the winter heating load can be due to air
leakage. Because of the very bad condition of the house, they stripped the walls back to structure allowing lots of insulation: an opportunity most of us with finished spaces don’t have. Insulation installed by Tricon Construction, Temple Hills, MD) Insulate under the new basement slab – ✓ Install double pane, argon-filled, low E windows –✓ Install casement, awning, hopper-type – ✓ (all double-hung windows, by their nature, have about nine times the air infiltration of the equivalent awning, casement, or hopper-type window. Except where important for historic reasons, we should never use double hung windows.) Separate electric meters for Bernie and the rental unit – ✓ (one of the most effective energy conservation measures is to provide separate metering of electric use so people pay their own bills. It brings energy use home. My daughter, the engineer, calls it “closing the feedback loop.”)
HVAC Programmable thermostat (upstairs) – ✓ Two-Zone Carrier Programmable Thermostat: one zone is upstairs; the other zone is the main floor. (Don’t forget to program them…some new Energy Star thermostats come programmed to eliminate that particular user factor…) Ground source heat pump (for Bernie) – ✓ (installed by Gary P. Frank, HVAC, who specializes in ground source heat pumps, aka “geothermal.” Nick estimated the cost of the ground source heat pump system may have been from 1 ½ to 2 times the cost of a conventional system, much of that in the two 100’ deep wells.) Conventional split system for rental – ✗
Appliances All Energy Star – ✓ Demand hot water heaters – ✗
Light Fixtures / Lamping Looked like about 50% compact fluorescents – ✗
Indoor Air Quality and Use of Recycled Materials: Interior Finishes Low VOC paint – ✓ Kitchen counters: Eco by Cosentino (the same folks who make Silestone, which is basically terrazzo
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Bernie Moffett has raised the bar for us all on the Hill in sustainability. Photo by Judith Capen.
for your kitchen counter. The Eco stuff was quite lovely, green by virtue of using a lot of recycled materials. Cabinets: Bernie got his cabinets from a place in Indiana that resells cabinets that were ordered, then cancelled after fabrication. So, instead of building new cabinets, he kept these out of a landfill, although he had to rent a truck and sbring them back. He didn’t know if the wood was FSC certified. (FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council, “an independent, non-governmental, not for profit organization established to promote the responsible management of the world’s forests.” They certify wood that is from sustainably managed forests, helping protect old growth forests as well as rainforests, the lungs of the planet.)
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Water Conservation and Keeping Water Out of Blue Plains: 1.6 gal/flush toilets (Kohler) – ✓ Dual flush toilets for even lower water use – ✗ Aerators on faucets – ✓ Drought tolerant native landscape plants, no grass – ✗ Green roof, main house and porch roof – ✓ The porch roof is planted and “the DC Greenworks people will be coming back in another week to finish planting the green roof.” (not unexpectedly, they had to beef up the existing roof and porch struccapitalcommunitynews.com ★ 101
tures. Installation by DC Greenworks. Rain garden or bioretention to recharge aquifer – ✗
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102 ★ HillRag | September 2010
PV Solar panels (Photo voltaic installed by Solar Solution) – ✓ Bernie reported, in the midst of our heat wave, “The PV panels are all installed and producing over 5 kilowatts per hour on sunny days.” (for solar panels to make financial sense, you really must go for the ALL the incentives: the DC Energy Incentive, Federal tax credit etc. etc.) Solar hot water – ✗
Transporation No car! – ✓ Public transportation – ✓
25 years of service on Capitol Hill Larry Hodgson | 202.236.5800 H0kilian@aol.com
Infrastructure Reuse of an existing building – ✓ Minimum infrastructure because of relative high density – ✓
Recycling Construction Waste (by EAI, Environmental Alternatives, Inc., Clarksburg, MD) – ✓
Energy Modeling
Distinctive Kitchens | Historic Restoration Additions | Master Suites
EMO Energy Solutions, Falls Church, VA – ✓ (Energy modeling is building a numerical “model” of the energy and water consumption behavior of a building over the course of a full year to test possibilities and check pay back.) The greenest house on Capitol Hill? A definite maybe. They came pretty close to all-of-the-above when it comes to sustainability. Bernie is proud of what he has incorporated into his house and will probably continue to fine-tune his energy consumption since he’ll know what he’s using and what his panels are generating. Now we’ll all have to wait for him to live in his newly greened house through a full year of seasons and tell us if indeed his energy bills are as miniscule as he hoped. If you think your house is greener; send me an email! Judith Capen, dedicated to sustainability since 1973, is reachable at Judith.capen@architravepc.com ★
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capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 103
Open a Window of Possibilities
HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
Business Brief
Buffalo Construction by Heather Schoell
M
Create a home that nurtures you With the assistance of
Kathleen Soloway Interior Designer/Psychotherapist
Design for Change 202 543-7040 ksoloway@designforchange.net www.designforchange.net
eet Cem Sevin, former pro soccer player, current construction company owner. He’s laid back, but hard-working. Humble, but proud of his work. And there’s a story behind the name.
Istanbul to Buffalo Cem (pronounced Jem) Sevin grew up in Istanbul, Turkey playing soccer. He played for 14 years, six years professionally as midcenter on Vefa, a Turkish National League. Cem’s pro soccer career ended in one play when he and another player went for the ball, and the other guy elbowed Cem in the ribs, followed by his opponent’s cleats after they fell. His punctured and broken mid-section was the end of that chapter. In 2000, Cem came to the States, stopping in DC to visit friends, but ending up in Oregon. There he started a small import business of construction tools from Korea and Japan. Cem accompanied his cousin to China because there was a certain type of sewing machine that was – stay with me here – designed in Buffalo, NY, but manufactured in China. So they went to China, and while there, Cem saw that tools were so inexpensive there. So a successful import business ensued, named after the reason for it all getting started -- Buffalo. “I built a website, sold to 50 states. If not for that one textile machinery designed in Buffalo,” said Cem, “I would not have gone, I would not have the business.”
Buffalo to Capitol Hill In 2002, Cem relocated to DC. He lives near Lincoln Park, where he walks his dog. “I started doing remodeling, mostly Capitol Hill homes,” said Cem. When asked why people should hire Buffalo Construction, why he’s better than TOP: Ariana Leo’s renovated space. Photos: Courtesy of Leo. the rest, Cem answered, “I don’t think I’m Ariana Leo’s built-in bookcases enlarge the living space. better. I’m good, but other people also do good work. Quality – when I do something I don’t like, I knock it down. I just go out on the field and play my best.” Cem’s ideal project is an addition. “I enjoy construction, especially additions, because it’s building from zero. Remodeling is replacing, but additions – that is real building.” His self-described style is easygoing, laid back. Anything else? “I’m a Leo,” he joked. 104 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Cem Sevin
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Heather Schoell is a regular contributor to Capital Community News and can be reached at hschoell@verizon.net. ★
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A few years back, when Tim Britt purchased a home that had been renovated by Buffalo Construction on the 400 block of 12th St., SE, the owner passed on Cem’s information. Since then Tim has called on Buffalo Construction for several projects. “It all started with some bookcases. Then he put in a beautiful red brick patio in the back. You think something up and he draws it, and his prices have beat out the competition,” said Tim. “Someone in the ‘80s had nailed aluminum siding right into the brick. The brick was in horrible condition underneath. Cem did it all by hand, and now it looks like the best house on the block. He’s a great guy to work with.” Ariana Leo had a laundry list for Cem. Buffalo bumped out the kitchen and back of the house, installed granite counters, hardwood floors, French doors, custom-made bookshelves and a pocket door, and created a master bath by borrowing space from an adjoining room. “They were very fast, efficient,” Adriana said of Cem and his crew. “They do great work, are trustworthy, and showed up on time. He was accommodating and rolled with the punches.” Buffalo also charged half of what a Hill competitor bid. For more information, and to view pictures of renovation and building projects, go to buffalocompanyusa.com or call Cem at 703-786-3863.
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capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 105
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I want to start worm composting. Where can I buy worms, and find help in the DC area, preferably on Capitol Hill. Is thermal regulation needed, and if so – how is that implemented? Your best bet would be to ask at local community vegetable gardens whether someone does vermicomposting. The type of worm you need is Eisenia fetida, aka “red wigglers” -best purchased online, although they must not be mailed during hot weather. Yes, thermal regulation is needed: worms cannot survive freezing or temperatures above 90 degrees F. They are most productive, and able to reproduce, in the 50 to 70 degrees F. range. The rich compost worms create from vegetable kitchen scraps is free and relatively easy to arrange, but you must commit some time and work, ongoing. You need a worm container (can either be a single one or in layers, made of wood or plastic) that is no deeper than two feet, has small air holes in the top and other holes in the bottom for drainage. The container is best if slightly raised, with supports set in trays of water so ants can’t get in. In winter, the worms must not freeze. In summer, they must not get too hot. If you must move them indoors, fruit flies may be a problem. When your worms first ar-
rive, you must make a bed for them inside the box – out of crumpled newspaper that has been soaked in water. The kitchen scraps go inside the worm bed, with more wet, crumpled paper over top. Worm bedding and food must always be damp, and also be aerated. If you Google “worm composting” you will find long lists of bedding materials, and preferred foods – which include banana peels and crushed raw eggshells. No-no’s are acidic foods such as citrus peels, and any meat or greasy foods. If you grind your kitchen scraps first in a food processor the worm work will proceed even faster. Worms eat half their body weight daily, so their castings can be harvested after about six weeks. Wearing rubber gloves, spread out a large sheet of plastic on a flat place outdoors. Empty the entire contents of your bin. Set any obviously unprocessed material aside. As the worms burrow to avoid light, lift the top layer of the compost – and continue to do this until most of the compost has been removed. Return remaining compost with its worms back to the bin. Your harvest is now ready for the garden. Feeling beset by gardening problems? Send them to the Problem Lady c/o The Capitol Hill Garden Club at andrew@hillrag.com. Your problems might prove instructive to others, and help them feel superior to you. Complete anonymity is assured. Capitol Hill Garden Club programs are free. On Tuesday, September 14, Bill McLaughlin, Curator of the U.S. Botanic Garden, will give a primer on “Native Plants for Capitol Hill Gardens” at 7 p.m. at the Church of the Brethren, 4th Street door, corner North Carolina Ave. and 4th Street, SE. Membership details at 202-543-7539. ★
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capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 107
HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
A Home Off ice Meets Many Needs By Bruce Wentworth, AIA
E
very adult needs a home office; a place to work on a computer, pay bills, do a craft project, and perhaps find a little solitude. Our client, Karin Lohman, a scientist with N.I.H., wanted to remodel her circa 1923 row house to add a home office that included an area for a variety of projects. Like many row houses, the master bedroom was created by enclosing a sleeping porch, and was linked to another bedroom for more space. The bedroom was sunny with a wall of windows overlooking the garden, but the adjoining internal room was dark and windowless, not an uncommon problem for a row house. After living in her home for seven years, she felt the windowless area of her master bedroom, 108 ★ HillRag | September 2010
with its limited storage, had deteriorated into a junk room, “a dark, messy cave” that she passed through to reach her bedroom. She had hoped to make improvements herself by adding bookcases and painting, but a busy work schedule, and a serious illness, prevented her from getting to it. While recuperating she decided it was time to invest in a home office with a project space that she could love and enjoy. This is when she sought the Wentworth team of remodeling professionals to help her design and build it. The first problem we needed to solve was getting more natural light into the interior space. This was accomplished with a new skylight and a new ceiling that sloped gently up to the skylight.
The existing ceiling was cut out and reframed with a slope that increased the ceiling height by about 12” and admits more sun light because of its minimal skylight well. The office is now a bright transition from the second floor hall to the rear master bedroom. The room had a large boxed-out chimney flue from a fireplace on the first floor. The flue divided the wall in half where we planned to build the new bookcase. The design called for concealing the flue within paneling, embellished with a wall sconce, and flanked by bookcases. Closed storage in the bottom of the built-in, and adjustable shelving above provides ample storage. At the desk area a corkboard was integrated and plenty
of electrical outlets were provided. Crown molding, applied panel molding, and painted woodwork finish the custom details. The former bulky old radiator was removed and a thin German designed, Runtal radiator unit was installed opposite the bookcase. An unnecessary second closet door was closed with drywall to free up wall space. Teal walls and white trim provide ample paint color contrast to the formerly dark space. We even took care of an heirloom table built by the Ms. Lohman’s grandfather that she wanted to use for craft projects. A walnut table with turned walnut legs on casters had a worn out top and one of our exceptional carpenters fabricated a new walnut table top. Now it can be rolled out when needed for a project. The client herself says it best when describing the project: “My room has been transformed from an office/ junk room to a gorgeous office with lots of light and plenty of storage space plus a project area (as in Martha Stewart crafty projects).” Bruce Wentworth, AIA is an architect and contractor. Visit www.wentworthstudio.com or call 240-395-0705 to learn more about their home remodeling services. Interior Design: Christopher Patrick, Assoc. ASID Lead Carpenter: Yonal De LaRosa Photography: Stacy Photography ★
Zarin
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 109
HOMES&GARDENS SPECIAL
Let’s Dance (in Your Garden)! by Cheryl Corson revealed that piques the curiosity. This is why unfurnished rooms look smaller than furnished ones, as your real estate agent will eagerly tell you.
A Modernist Take on an Old Problem
Various diagonals in deck and stone paving extend spatial perception. Photo: Cheryl Corson
S
ince designing my first Capitol Hill garden in 1998, I’ve revisited this design problem over 200 times and still find it interesting. In spatial contrast to the even rhythm of historic orthogonal buildings and prominent lot lines, an empty rectangle is full of possibilities. In social contrast to increasingly vibrant public spaces – parks, school and community gardens, and commercial corridors – Capitol Hill backyards have become predominantly private, with typically opaque enclosure above eye level. These garden spaces are more or less exaggerated rectangles, with or without garages, public alleys, or mature trees in or near one’s property. The ground level is close to or significantly below the rear door to the house. Lots vary in their soils, moisture, air flow, light and topography. Pre-design, they may look and feel like boxes, but they are re110 ★ HillRag | September 2010
ally empty stages upon which complex dance moves may be choreographed. In fact, some choreography tips apply: use the entire stage; consider entrances and exits; and break up lines of direction, including the vertical. But this is not what most people do. The most natural and usually least successful design move is to create garden beds and seating areas that outline and reinforce the property line, which is also the fence line in these cases. We learned to color inside the lines in kindergarten and it’s a hard habit to break. We usually arrange furniture this way too. But what if we put the couch perpendicular to a wall, or on a diagonal? We may find that by “using up” more space we also create the perception of more space in the room. It’s counter-intuitive, but now there is visual and spatial complexity, something to see around, something else partially
It’s useful to know that other landscape architects have worked through these problems in the past, often early in their careers. Two examples are Dan Kiley (1912-2004) and Garrett Eckbo (1910-2000). Kiley was based on the East Coast, and Eckbo in California. Both were classmates at the Harvard Graduate School of Design in the late 1930s. They, and others in their generation, taught my teachers at Harvard, who then taught me decades later. And they were the first generation to embrace a Modernist aesthetic and philosophy, greatly influenced by Walter Gropius, Dean of the legendary Bauhaus School in Germany, who came to Harvard in 1937 and stayed on. In Washington, Kiley is known for the landscape designs of Dulles Airport and the East Wing of the National Gallery. But some also know him for residential design work he did for the post-WWII development called Hollin Hills across the river outside Alexandria, Va. Now a wooded refuge of modernist houses, original owners were obliged to purchase landscape plans from the developer. Most were never installed, but between 1953 and
1955, Dan Kiley designed nearly 100 of them. Many of these design drawings are in the Harvard Design School library today. Eckbo took on the task of studying multiple solutions to urban row houses on narrow lots. While at Harvard he designed a project with eighteen gardens on a single urban block. In 1937, this project was published in the journal Pencil Points (later renamed, Progressive Architecture). These designs considered space and volume, but also functional connections between home and garden, and the social interactions in the neighborhood beyond individual lot lines. By repeatedly taking on the same problem, designers develop a vocabulary of form which may then be applied to projects of different scales and levels of complexity. This is what happened for Kiley and Eckbo, and what I am starting to observe in my own practice now.
The Stage and the Frame If we attended a dance performance and the dancers only moved around the stage’s perimeter, it would look strange to us. So would a painting that merely traced bands of color in increasingly smaller parallel lines relative to the picture frame. Kiley, Eckbo and others took inspiration from the modern painters of their day – Kandinsky, Miro, Mondrian and others. These art-
Even the stones in the pond form a landscape composition of their own. Photo: Cheryl Corson
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ists’ forms can be found in landscape designs of that time. Piet Mondrian arranged orthogonal shapes in bold primary colors with black bands on the picture plane in such a way as to challenge the actual boundary of the painting. One could imagine Mondrian’s various geometric forms extending outward beyond the canvas. This can be done orthogonally, i.e., using right angles, or in a curvilinear fashion. It doesn’t matter. The strategy is the same. In painting, these forms are not arbitrary, nor are they in garden design. Lines on paper translate into spaces on the ground that facilitate the flow of water, enhance desirable views or screen unwanted ones. The dance between plan drawing and spatial reality is one of the most exciting things to witness as a project is built. Designing within a small rectangle can be as free and exuberant as designing anything. Cheryl Corson (www.cherylcorson. com) enjoys landscape design challenges of all kinds, yet remains partial to those on Capitol Hill. ★
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RealEstate & Finance Capitol Intrigue
A Hill Rowhouse Hides a Tragic Past by Robert Pohl
William Preston Taulbee. (John J. McAfee, Kentucky Politicians, Press of the Courier-Journal Job Printing Company, Louisville, KY, 1886.)
T
he last thing the principals of Mana Design Studio were expecting when they took on the job of redoing 651 A St. NE was an email explaining how their new project was connected to one of DC’s most notorious murders. After all, the house looked like so many other Capitol Hill Victorian bayfronts. But hidden behind its cheery blue paint job is a story that once electrified the country. This is the story of Laura L. Dodge, who brought down a Representative – and thus contributed to his murder.
her assignations to 651 A St NE, to her father, a shoemaker and her mother, a homemaker, must have felt like a severe come-down. In order to ease their meetings, Representative Taulbee found Miss Dodge a job in the Patent Office. Taulbee would then visit Miss Dodge at her place of employment, and they would disappear into one of the many niches in the large room where patent models were displayed. News of these trysts spread rapidly among Dodge’s coworkers, and soon reached the ears of Charles Kincaid, who was – unfortunately for Taulbee and his career – a reporter for the Louisville Times. The headline “Kentucky’s Silver-Tongued Taulbee Caught in Flagrante, or Thereabouts, with BrownHaired Miss Dodge” ran in the Times soon thereafter, putting an end to Taulbee’s promising career; he did not bother standing for reelection. The publicity also did Miss Dodge’s career no good: she was summarily fired. Luckily, she was able to get a job at the Pension Office. It appeared that the story had run its course.
Murder in the Capitol
Taulbee did what so many disgraced representatives do, and became a lobbyist, while Kincaid continued as a reporter covering Congress. This put them in constant contact, and Kincaid invariably came away with the worst of these interactions. In contrast to the tall and hearty Taulbee, Kincaid was short – about five feet tall – and maybe 100 pounds soaking wet. A particularly unpleasant run-in ended with Taulbee taunting Kincaid that he should probably be armed for their next encounter. Kincaid acted on this and returned to the Capitol a few hours later packing a revolver, and as Taulbee emerged from the House chamber, Kincaid approached him, pulled his gun and shot the ex-Representative in the eye. Taulbee staggered down a few steps, amazingly managing not to fall, before being caught in the arms of bystanders. Taulbee was taken to Providence Hospital on Capitol Hill, where he died 11 days later. Though some newspapers, including the Washington Post, had managed to entirely ignore Taulbee’s peccadilloes,
The model room in the Patent Office (Library of Congress)
“Plump as a Partridge”
It comes as no surprise that Miss Dodge was swept off her feet by Kentucky Representative William Taulbee. He was a young, tall, handsome – and married – second-term congressman and former Methodist minister, while she was a 17 year-old still living with her parents. She was (according to a newspaper report) “plump as a partridge and as bright as a sunbeam, with nut brown hair, [...] and rose bud lips tipped with dew.” Coming home from capitalcommunitynews.com H 113
real estate changing hands
Changing hands is a list of most residential sales in the District of Columbia from the previous month. A feature of every issue, this list, based on the MRIS, is provided courtesy of Don Denton, manager of the Coldwell Banker office on Capitol Hill. The list includes address, sales price and number of bedrooms.
3300 13TH ST NE 1311 JACKSON ST NE 2905 10TH ST NE 4916 8TH ST NE 819 TAYLOR ST NE 4326 13TH PL NE 1424 HAMLIN ST NE 4212 12TH ST NE 1117 MICHIGAN AVE NE 631 FARRAGUT PL NE
$430,000 $410,000 $399,000 $289,000 $285,000 $280,000 $270,000 $259,000 $223,000 $200,000
BURLEITH/GEORGETOWN
651 A St NE today. (RSP)
there was no way that a murder would go unnoticed, especially one in the Capitol. For days, as Taulbee hung on, the newspapers were filled with stories about his condition, and after his death, and during the Kincaid’s subsequent trial, the flood of stories continued.
A New Beginning
Laura Dodge managed to avoid the spotlight during this period, despite her previous connection with the Congressman, continuing to work at the Pension Office. In 1895, however, the Hopkinsville Kentuckian clearly had not forgotten and gleefully wrote that Miss Dodge was “among the unfortunate list of clerks who have lost their jobs in the pension bureau.” Five years later she married William Paul, a former colleague from the Pension Office. They moved to 153 A St NE, where they led a quiet life. William Paul died in 1927 at age 72, leaving Laura Dodge Paul a widow. She found solace in the arms of her attorney, a prominent DC lawyer and former assistant US attorney and soon thereafter became Mrs. Tracy Jeffords. Mr. and Mrs. Jeffords were soon showing up in the guest lists of some of the more important parties in DC, vaulting her back into the high life that her liaison with Representative Taulbee had once promised. The Jeffords remained married for 20 years, before Mr. Jeffords passed away in 1949. Laura Jeffords died on Christmas Day, 1959 at age 89. Robert Pohl is a DC tour guide and historian. He is always interested in hearing about the history of Capitol Hill houses, and writes about them both here and at TheHillisHome.com. H 114 H HillRag | September 2010
Neighborhood
Close Price
FEE SIMPLE
16TH STREET HEIGHTS
1627 KENNEDY PL NW 1362 TAYLOR ST NW 1333 MADISON ST NW 4507 15TH ST NW 1521 BUCHANAN ST NW
$1,185,000 $703,531 $648,000 $625,000 $540,000
ADAMS MORGAN/LANIER HTS 2733 ONTARIO RD NW
$713,000
AMERICAN UNIVERSITY PARK 4231 42ND ST NW 4622 ELLICOTT ST NW 4911 46TH ST NW 4501 YUMA ST NW 4726 ALBEMARLE ST NW 4515 YUMA ST NW 4533 FESSENDEN ST NW 4625 43RD PL NW 4911 44TH ST NW
$1,750,000 $979,875 $975,000 $860,000 $859,000 $835,000 $793,000 $745,000 $738,110
ANACOSTIA
2203 RETTA GILLIAM CT SE 1984 RETTA GILLIAM CT SE 1532 V ST SE 1626 W ST SE 1339 T ST SE 1617 W ST SE 1400 S ST SE 1603 U ST SE
$385,000 $335,000 $200,000 $149,000 $120,000 $120,000 $85,000 $65,000
BARRY FARMS
BRENTWOOD
BRIGHTWOOD
1502 HOWARD RD SE 2641 WADE RD SE 1016 BRYANT ST NE 811 WHITTIER PL NW 7416 7TH ST NW 5718 3RD ST NW 711 ROXBORO PL NW 6506 7TH ST NW 5815 5TH ST NW 519 SOMERSET PL NW
BROOKLAND
1322 JACKSON ST NE
$149,000 $106,000 $300,000 $400,000 $394,500 $361,000 $295,000 $250,000 $190,000 $160,000
$622,500
BR
4 3 3 3 2
2
5 3 3 2 4 3 2 2 1
2 2 3 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 3 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 2
3515 S ST NW
$899,000
CAP HILL
1360 C ST NE 318 5TH ST NE 610 INDEPENDENCE AVE SE 150 TENNESSEE AVE NE 412 11TH ST SE 123 4TH ST SE 1005 E ST NE 408 3RD ST SE 229 8TH ST NE 435 10TH ST NE 127 6TH ST NE 907 E ST SE 255 10TH ST NE 1208 C ST SE 405 11TH ST SE 216 11TH ST SE 1216 C ST SE 513 9TH ST SE 431 3RD ST NE 640 LEXINGTON PL NE 935 5TH ST NE 310 5TH ST NE 532 1ST ST SE 1376 F ST NE 431 15TH ST SE 317 15TH ST NE 707 A ST NE 1102 C ST SE 730 9TH ST SE 415 14TH ST NE 1406 SOUTH CAROLINA AVE SE 1369 C ST NE 252 14TH ST NE 1029 6TH ST NE 2403 E ST NE
CHEVY CHASE
3357 RUNNYMEDE PL NW 3279 VAN HAZEN ST NW 3342 STEPHENSON PL NW 3925 GARRISON ST NW 2763 UNICORN LN NW 6217 31ST ST NW 6003 34TH PL NW 3705 JENIFER ST NW 2755 UNICORN LN NW 2967 MCKINLEY ST NW 6015 UTAH AVE NW 6159 31ST PL NW 3807 LEGATION ST NW 5451 42ND ST NW 3801 MILITARY RD NW 5428 30TH PL NW 3814 LEGATION ST NW 4042 FESSENDEN ST NW 3600 MCKINLEY ST NW 6240 UTAH AVE NW 6100 32ND ST NW 5705 27TH ST NW
CHILLUM
129 LONGFELLOW ST NW 5411 NORTH CAPITOL ST NE 6626 BLAIR RD NW
CLEVELAND PARK 3606 CHESAPEAKE ST NW 3425 PORTER ST NW
$430,000 $705,000 $1,226,000 $980,000 $902,000 $885,000 $865,000 $837,500 $822,500 $750,000 $745,000 $725,000 $720,000 $700,000 $700,000 $696,000 $680,000 $660,000 $659,000 $640,000 $625,000 $617,500 $600,000 $590,000 $580,000 $563,000 $500,707 $485,000 $482,000 $479,900 $455,000 $422,000 $410,000 $399,999 $399,900
$1,125,000 $1,090,000 $1,050,000 $880,000 $869,000 $865,000 $840,000 $840,000 $840,000 $840,000 $817,000 $799,900 $790,000 $765,000 $755,337 $755,000 $735,000 $730,000 $700,000 $659,200 $619,000 $560,000
$260,000 $235,000 $170,000
$1,203,000 $1,010,000
2 2 3 1 1 1 2 1 3 1 3 1 2 3 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 1 2 2 1 1 3 1 2 1 2 2 1 2 2 1 3 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 2 2 2 4 3 3 2 3 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 4 3 3 2 2 1 1 2 2
3025 RODMAN ST NW 3512 RODMAN ST NW 3545 QUEBEC ST NW
$955,000 $950,000 $765,000
COLONIAL VILLAGE
COLUMBIA HEIGHTS
CONGRESS HEIGHTS
CRESTWOOD
DAKOTA CROSSING
DEANWOOD
DUPONT
ECKINGTON
FOREST HILLS
FORT DUPONT PARK
1730 JUNIPER ST NW 8339 BEACH DR NW
1127 FAIRMONT ST NW 1114 FAIRMONT ST NW 1325 SHEPHERD ST NW 3647 13TH ST NW 3633 10TH ST NW 747 PRINCETON PL NW 747 HARVARD ST NW 625 GRESHAM PL NW 1438 OAK ST NW 713 HARVARD ST NW 3647 11TH ST NW 2605 SHERMAN AVE NW 538 IRVING ST NW 446 LAMONT ST NW 722 FAIRMONT ST NW 2909 GEORGIA AVE NW 767 KENYON ST NW 642 MORTON ST NW 755 KENYON ST NW
3221 10TH PL SE 115 MISSISSIPPI AVE SE 806 HR DR SE 109 DANBURY ST SW 3318 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR AVE SE 1123 VARNEY ST SE 1337 BARNABY TER SE 729 CONGRESS ST SE 3910 1ST ST SE 509 BRANDYWINE ST SE 4322 ARGYLE TER NW 3286 THEODORE R HAGANS DR NE 4261 BROOKS ST NE 4642 HAYES ST NE 818 51ST ST NE 4501 EADS ST NE 1013 47TH ST NE 5639 CLAY PL NE 839 52ND ST NE 4410 EADS ST NE 218 63RD ST NE 804 51ST ST NE 5003 JUST ST NE 4251 CLAY ST NE 305 47TH ST NE 1504 CAROLINE ST NW 1608 CORCORAN ST NW 1634 FLORIDA AVE NW 24 SEATON PL NW 151 RHODE ISLAND AVE NE 1840 3RD ST NE 123 RHODE ISLAND AVE NE 5025 LINNEAN AVE NW
1 2 2 3 4
1550 41ST ST SE 4242 NASH ST SE 1736 40TH ST SE 801 ADRIAN ST SE 4365 F ST SE 1610 FORT DUPONT ST SE
$800,000 $605,000 $795,000 $680,000 $670,000 $599,000 $535,000 $480,000 $369,000 $359,999 $355,000 $350,000 $350,000 $348,000 $330,000 $325,000 $312,000 $310,000 $245,000 $220,000 $180,000
$270,000 $265,000 $205,000 $195,000 $180,000 $175,000 $149,900 $129,000 $85,000 $75,000 $771,600
$463,000 $224,000 $199,999 $199,000 $178,000 $73,000 $70,636 $62,000 $60,000 $58,500 $58,000 $55,500 $41,500 $32,900 $999,000 $749,000 $425,000
$350,000 $325,000 $299,000 $250,000 $2,745,000
$239,900 $224,000 $222,000 $220,000 $200,000 $151,900
3 3 3 3 2 4 2 3 3 3 2 2 2 1 1 2 3 2 2 1 2 2 2 1 3 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 2 2 1 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 1 2 2 1 2 2 1 1 6 2 2 2 2 2 2
BACK TO SCHOOL SALES! GREAT VALUES FOR SAVVY STUDENTS!
CONTRACT!
PRICE REDUCED!
1547 NC AVE, NE
1370 SC Ave, SE
Renovated Federal porchfront with a modern, open floor plan. Custom kitchen, two master suites upstairs and a finished lower level. (2BR/3.5BA) $499,900
Wide Wardman-style home on a delightful Hill avenue! Countless historic details and artistic touches with a large storage basement! (3BR/1.5BA) $649,900
COMING SOON!
213 F ST, NE
Total renovation by Quest Homebuilders! Ideal location and great size near Union Station. Custom details and parking! (4BR/3.5BA) $825,000
COMING SOON!
1632 Mass Ave, SE
COMING SOON!
Renovated Federal porchfront with dual master suites and a third bedroom in the finished lower level. Parking for two cars! (3BR/3.5BA) $585,000
438 Kentucky Ave, SE
Classic Victorian with a repointed façade on one of the Hill’s nicest avenues! Restored with attention to historic details. Gated covered parking! (3BR/2.5BA) $625,000
joel@joelnelsongroup.com
202.243.7707
CALL US TO SELL YOUR CAPITOL HILL HOME! D! SOL
D! SOL
CT! TRA CON R E UND
D! SOL
CT! TRA CON R E UND
202-641-0299 515 G St NE
513 12th St NE #7
303 11th St NE
1826 Burke St SE
3BR/1.5BA, Sold for 104% of list in 3 days! $635,000
Bright and Spacious 2BR/1BA Condo Assigned Off Street Parking! $279,000
Short Sale contract in 5 Days! $599,000
3BR/2BA Renovated and ready to move in! Steps to Metro. Deck! $549,000
725 L St NE
www.jasonmartingroup.com
2BR/1.5BA Great backyard and garden, Skylights, fireplace, floors redone! Reduced to $399,999
capitalcommunitynews.com H 115
COMING SOON! First Open Sunday September 19
727 4st NE This charming flat front Federal is not your cookie cutter version! Deeper than most with chef’s kitchen addition, open floor plan, living room, dining area large enough for full size table, wood burning fireplace, plantation shutters, and beautiful hard wood floors. The second floor has 2 very nice sized bedrooms with East/West exposures, plus a bonus room for den or office. Private sun filled patio for your herb garden and entertaining. Full sized garage with automatic door opener. Picture perfect!
Offered at $565,000 DEBORAH CHARLTON
202.415.2117 dc.dc@LNF.com
SARAH HOWARD
703-862-7181 Sarah.howard@LNF.com
www.yourneighboronthehill.com Long & Foster Real Estate 202.944.8400
FORT LINCOLN
FOXHALL
GARFIELD
GEORGETOWN
GLOVER PARK
H ST CORRIDOR
HILL CREST
KALORAMA
LEDROIT PARK
LOGAN
MARSHALL HEIGHTS
MICHIGAN PARK
MOUNT PLEASANT
MOUNT VERNON
NORTH CLEVELAND PARK
3108 35TH ST NE
1445 44TH ST NW 4471 GREENWICH PKWY NW 4460 GREENWICH PKWY NW 4443 GREENWICH PKWY NW 2703 WOODLEY PL NW 1681 31ST ST NW 2805 Q ST NW 2800 O ST NW 1300 30TH ST NW 1687 34TH ST NW 1644 32ND ST NW 1415 29TH ST NW 3656 WINFIELD LN NW 1306 36TH ST NW 1230 29TH ST NW 3033 CAMBRIDGE PL NW 1532 32ND ST NW 2439 P ST NW 2714 P ST NW 3419 N ST NW 1518 32ND ST NW 3731 W ST NW 3804 BENTON ST NW 1225 I ST NE 1239 MORSE ST NE 912 9TH ST NE
3642 CAMDEN ST SE 3469 MASSACHUSETTS AVE SE 3504 TEXAS AVE SE
“Remember, in Real Estate it doesn’t cost more to work with the best.”
2325 TRACY PL NW 1853 MINTWOOD PL NW 2119 LEROY PL NW 2326 20TH ST NW 1849 VERNON ST NW 74 W ST NW 333 U ST NW
CHIC AND BRIGHT IN COLUMBIA HEIGHTS COMING SOON!
Joan Carmichael Realtor 202.271.5198
Kristof Carmichael Realty Group Licensed in DC, MD & VA
202-338-8900
www.kristofgroup.com 116 H HillRag | September 2010
2 Bedroom 2 Full Bath flat in Irving Station Condominium! Fantastic corner unit with a multitude of huge windows, gleaming hardwood floors, granite/stainless table space kitchen, and lovely large open layout. Convenient location literally steps to Columbia Heights Metro, restaurants, and the new shopping district. Listed for $399,900. FIRST OPEN 1-3 PM ON SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 12TH
TERRIFIC TOWNHOUSE ON CAPITOL HILL COMING SOON!
Lushly landscaped and beautifully updated 2 bedroom townhouse located less than 1 block from Harris Teeter and the blue/orange line metro. Features include hardwood floors, new ”top of the line” windows, stylish kitchen & bathroom, skylights, enormous front yard, separate rear patio, all within walking distance to Eastern Market, Barracks Row, and other great “Hill” destinations. Listed $469,900. FIRST OPEN 2-4 PM ON SEPTEMBER 12TH
1312 R ST NW 1242 10TH ST NW 932 P ST NW 4922 D ST SE 5533 B ST SE
1612 MICHIGAN AVE NE 2106 TAYLOR ST NE 1644 IRVING ST NW 1602 HOBART ST NW 2916 18TH ST NW 2053 PARK RD NW 1735 HARVARD ST NW 1647 PARK RD NW 1819 MONROE ST NW 402 M ST NW
3524 ALBEMARLE ST NW 4411 39TH ST NW 3614 VEAZEY ST NW 4320 RENO RD NW 3731 WARREN ST NW 3825 VEAZEY ST NW 3724 VEAZEY ST NW 3710 ALTON PL NW
$274,955
$1,330,000 $1,180,000 $790,000 $707,000 $996,000
$2,128,000 $2,035,000 $1,965,000 $1,900,000 $1,735,000 $1,500,000 $1,495,000 $1,200,000 $1,175,000 $1,050,000 $939,500 $870,000 $747,000 $700,000 $695,000 $675,000 $880,000 $749,900 $250,000 $195,000 $499,900
$294,900 $182,000 $175,000 $2,060,000 $1,635,000 $1,600,000 $1,167,000 $1,075,000 $446,000 $267,000 $1,195,000 $1,105,000 $758,500 $270,000 $49,000 $350,000 $250,000 $1,225,000 $835,000 $788,750 $759,000 $648,000 $610,000 $550,000 $735,000 $1,059,000 $915,000 $855,000 $795,000 $712,000 $705,000 $701,000 $621,000
2 3 4 3 2 3 5 3 3 3 3 2 4 4 1 2 3 2 1 3 1 1 3 3 1 1 2 2 2 1 5 4 5 3 3 2 0 3 3 2 2 1 2 1 5 3 3 3 2 3 2 3 4 2 3 2 1 3 1 2
CHUCK
OLD CITY
1806 H PL NE 1800 H PL NE 1818 H PL NE 515 G ST NE 201 12TH ST SE 1509 MASSACHUSETTS AVE SE 109 17TH ST SE 1205 6TH ST NE 709 KENTUCKY AVE SE 226 PARKER ST NE 900 13TH ST NE 905 2ND ST NE 830 7TH ST NE 1637 KRAMER ST NE 259 14TH PL NE 1744 INDEPENDENCE AVE SE 425 23RD PL NE 207 14TH PL NE 540 24TH ST NE 2003 GALES ST NE 1446 T ST NW 1210 W ST NW 1739 11TH ST NW 303 O ST NW
$210,000 $210,000 $199,900 $660,000 $625,000 $525,000 $455,000 $435,000 $388,500 $375,000 $325,000 $325,000 $310,000 $310,000 $308,000 $270,000 $262,000 $240,000 $210,000 $159,000 $742,500 $705,000 $700,000 $265,000
PALISADES
PETWORTH
5023 SHERIER PL NW 5304 SHERIER PL NW 5847 POTOMAC AVE NW 5400 GALENA PL NW 4426 LINGAN RD NW 1519 ELLIOT PL NW 311 ROCK CREEK CHURCH RD NW 4419 5TH ST NW 119 WEBSTER ST NW 807 DECATUR ST NW 46 FARRAGUT PL NW 5116 5TH ST NW 423 DELAFIELD PL NW 818 GALLATIN ST NW 3804 4TH ST NW 505 ALLISON ST NW 621 GALLATIN ST NW 4816 5TH ST NW 4318 9TH ST NW
$1,785,000 $1,450,000 $1,395,000 $1,325,000 $720,000 $495,000 $495,000 $460,000 $429,900 $380,000 $375,000 $358,000 $295,000 $278,000 $270,000 $270,000 $255,000 $245,000 $241,500
RANDLE HEIGHTS
RIGGS PARK
SHAW
SHEPHERD PARK
3113 20TH ST SE 3210 BUENA VISTA TER SE 646 NICHOLSON ST NE 5358 CHILLUM PL NE 5816 EASTERN AVE NE 5307 DAKOTA AVE NE 505 S ST NW 1456 PRIMROSE RD NW 1305 JUNIPER ST NW 1412 NORTHGATE RD NW 7311 12TH ST NW
$195,000 $126,000 $320,000 $315,000 $249,900 $177,000 $410,000
$662,500 $640,000 $549,000 $529,000
SW WATERFRONT
TRINIDAD
WOODLEY
611 G ST SW
1431 WEST VIRGINIA AVE NE 1417 HOLBROOK ST NE 1127 TRINIDAD AVE NE 1811 M ST NE 1820 H PL NE 1816 H PL NE 1924 BENNETT PL NE 1140 16TH ST NE 3108 HAWTHORNE ST NW 3073 CLEVELAND AVE NW
WOODRIDGE
2240 EVARTS ST NE 3610 SOUTH DAKOTA AVE NE 3100 DOUGLAS ST NE 3201 WALNUT ST NE
$608,000 $311,000 $249,900 $222,800 $220,000 $199,955 $195,000 $150,000 $55,000 $1,295,000 $1,270,000
$460,000 $432,500 $429,900 $182,000
1 2 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 2 2 2 1 5 4 3 3 2 1 3 2 3 3 3 2 3 1 1 2 2 1 3
1 3 2 3 1 2
BURGER Realtor
House, Investment, Condominium?
202.258.5316 Cell 202.741.1676 Direct Line cburger@cbmove.com
From Capitol Hill to Cleveland Park, Let My Experience Work for You!
COLDWELL BANKER 605 Pennsylvania Ave., SE Washington, DC 20003
CALL ME @ 202.258.5316
Visit www.chuckburger.com
Serving the District Real Estate Market for 20 Years!
Specializing in all aspects of Real Estate Settlements We Guarnatee Attention to Detail & Personalized Service 650 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE Suite 170 Washington, DC 20003-4318 202-544-0800
“We are part of Capitol Hill, We don’t just work here... We live here, too. Let our neighborhood experience work for you...”
202.546.3100 210 7th Street, SE. #100. WDC 20003 www.monarchtitle.net
Looking For Your New Home? Search at www.LeeMurphy.net
1 3 1 3 2 3 2 2 1 2 1 1 2 1 3 3 3 3 3 2
1668 Beekman Pl. NW #A - Beekman Place Condos!
305 C Street, NE Unit 402 Capitol House!
FAIRLINGTON TOWNE COMING SOON!
COMING SOON! 2 Bedroom, 2.5 Baths & 2 Parking spaces in gated community in the heart of NW - Beautifully renovated & amazing views of the Washington Monument!
FIRST OPEN HOUSE SUNDAY SEPT. 12th, 1-4! Top floor, great view, open floor plan, large unit, and one particularly fine capitol hill location!
Rare 3BR 1.5 BA in lovely picturesque & affordable Fairlington! Updated, parking, quite culde-sac with sunny patio! Great affordability!
202.277.7477 lmurphy@cbmove.com REALTOR, licensed in DC, MD & VA Coldwell Banker Residential Brogerage 2.547.3525
LEE MURPHY Distinctive Homes. Distinctive Style.
capitalcommunitynews.com H 117
CONDOs
16TH STREET HEIGHTS
1301 LONGFELLOW ST NW #303
ADAMS MORGAN
2328 CHAMPLAIN ST NW #409 2328 CHAMPLAIN ST NW #302 2380 CHAMPLAIN ST NW #105 1701 KALORAMA RD NW #212 1701 KALORAMA RD NW #313 1801 CALVERT ST NW #G-9 2630 ADAMS MILL RD NW #P-08
BLOOMINGDALE
BRIGHTWOOD
BROOKLAND
CAPITOL HILL
549 BRUMMEL CT NW 4402 1ST PL NE #13 116 6TH ST NE #301 215 I ST NE #110 1024 MASSACHUSETTS AVE NE #2 1391 PENNSYLVANIA AVE SE #231 1418 EAST CAPITOL ST NE #1418 1520 INDEPENDENCE AVE SE #201 330 14TH PL NE #3 649 C ST SE #309 730 11TH ST NE #404 1815 A ST SE #103 117 E ST SE #A
CENTRAL
616 E ST NW #1146 1111 25TH ST NW #407 801 PENNSYLVANIA AVE NW #1122 1133 14TH ST NW #811 915 E ST NW #713 616 E ST NW #421 616 E ST NW #510 1140 23RD ST NW #701 616 E ST NW #419 601 PENNSYLVANIA AVE NW #812
CLEVELAND PARK
3883 CONNECTICUT AVE NW #905 3551 39TH ST NW #A511 3720 39TH ST NW #E167 3720 39TH ST NW #D166
COLUMBIA HEIGHTS 1354 EUCLID ST NW #402A 1323 CLIFTON ST NW #11 1461 GIRARD ST NW #401 1435 CHAPIN ST NW #307 732 COLUMBIA RD NW #2 1451 HARVARD ST NW #6 1350 RANDOLPH ST NW #3 1451 HARVARD ST NW #4 2750 14TH ST NW #305
DUPONT
Deborah Charlton - Realtor Long & Foster
(202) 415-2117 (202) 944-8400 DC.DC@LongandFoster.com www.yourneighboronthehill.com
1527 16TH ST NW #6 1624 CORCORAN ST NW #2EU “J” 1815 19TH ST NW #5 1442 CORCORAN ST NW #3 1815 19TH ST NW #4 1506 17TH ST NW #9 1900 S ST NW #401 2000 16TH ST NW #605 1815 19TH ST NW #3
ECKINGTON
2002 4TH ST NE #4 2002 4TH ST NE #2 37 T STREET NW #2
FORT DUPONT PARK 1207 42ND ST SE #39 4000 E ST SE #203
118 H HillRag | September 2010
$615,000 $530,000 $500,000 $499,000 $489,000 $305,000 $48,500
1722 1ST ST NW #1 70 RHODE ISLAND AVE NW #204
“The road to success is not always straight; let me help you through the real estate maze to a happy and successful destination”
ANACOSTIA
1611 T ST SE #1 2320 CHESTER ST SE #103
:PVS /FJHICPS 0O 5IF )JMM
$135,000
$72,000 $32,900
$425,000 $270,000 $370,000 $80,000
$670,000 $620,000 $469,200 $389,000 $357,500 $349,500 $315,000 $290,000 $238,500 $217,900 $208,500
$735,000 $570,000 $520,000 $415,000 $395,000 $390,000 $362,000 $355,000 $285,000 $450,000
$1,175,000 $517,000 $450,000 $336,900
$660,000 $448,000 $436,600 $430,000 $419,900 $380,000 $353,000 $275,000 $263,057
$935,000 $699,000 $477,000 $435,000 $429,250 $409,900 $380,000 $360,000 $312,000
$336,500 $274,900 $144,376
$41,000 $35,000
HILL CREST
1
KALORAMA
2 2 2 1 2 1 0
LOGAN
MANORVIEW II
MARSHALL HEIGHTS
MOUNT PLEASANT
MOUNT VERNON
OLD CITY
PENN QUARTER
POTOMAC PLACE TOWER
RLA (SW)
3907 PENNSYLVANIA AVE SE #301
3 2 3 2 3 2 3 1 2 1 1 2 1 0 1 2 0 3 1 1 1 2 1 1 1 0 1 3 4 2 1 3 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2 2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 1 2 1
2022 COLUMBIA RD NW #305 1841 KALORAMA RD NW #2 2153 CALIFORNIA ST NW #404 2205 CALIFORNIA ST NW #101 1210 R ST NW #314 1326 VERMONT AVE NW #9 1735 JOHNSON AVE NW #B 1312 MASSACHUSETTS AVE NW #309 1201 Q ST NW #105 1210 R ST NW #9 1529 14TH ST NW #504 3876 9TH ST SE #B-1
11 46TH ST SE #11-103 11 46TH ST SE #11-B-1
1651 LAMONT ST NW #2D 2312 17TH ST NW #3 1651 LAMONT ST NW #2A 3426 16TH ST NW #T1 451 RIDGE ST NW #B 451 RIDGE ST NW #A
725 5TH ST SE #1002 1336 HALF ST SW #1336 513 12TH ST NE #7 811 4TH ST NW #311 1520 O ST NW #208 1300 N ST NW #221 1441 RHODE ISLAND AVE NW #508 1731 WILLARD ST NW #104 555 MASSACHUSETTS AVE NW #105 1822 15TH ST NW #304 910 M ST NW #801 715 6TH ST NW #1202 801 PENNSYLVANIA AVE NW #1026 800 4TH ST SW #S621
238 G ST SW 1425 4TH ST SW #A405 240 M ST SW #E604 410 O ST SW #406
$65,000 $849,500 $742,500 $650,000 $630,000
$755,000 $599,000 $487,250 $479,000 $415,000 $395,000 $585,000 $25,000 $46,500 $34,900
$424,900 $371,000 $369,000 $239,000 $450,000 $419,000
$520,000 $339,900 $275,000 $651,900 $575,000 $495,000 $407,500 $324,900 $323,000 $230,000 $377,000 $811,000 $562,500 $367,000 $490,000 $270,000 $161,000 $160,000
SOUTHWEST/WATER FRONT 700 7TH ST SW #212
$234,000
U STREET
WATERFRONT
COOP
CAPITOL HILL TOWER
WATERFRONT
2100 11TH ST NW #206 1414 BELMONT ST NW #411 2001 12TH ST NW #407 2004 11TH ST NW #136 2020 12TH ST NW #216 700 7TH ST SW #318
1000 NEW JERSEY AVE SE #1101 1000 NEW JERSEY ST SE #415 550 N ST SW #S402 1239 4TH ST SW 430 M ST SW #N506 510 N ST SW #N129 H
$717,000 $389,000 $375,000 $334,900 $547,500 $132,500
$299,900 $287,000 $600,000 $399,900 $293,000 $242,000
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Arts & Dining White Lightening In Penn Quarter
S
Sei 444 Seventh St. NW 202-783-7007 www.seirestaurant.com Open for lunch MondayThursday 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 pm, dinner 5:30 p.m. to midnight; Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., dinner 5:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Saturday from noon to 3 p.m.; dinner from 5:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.; Sunday lunch from noon to 3 p.m., dinner from 5 to 10 p.m. Happy hour Monday through Friday from 5 to 8 p.m.
ei, the name of downtown’s popular hot spot, is a Japanese term meaning “energy through the flow of water.” But there’s more to Sei (pronounced “say”), than a catchy name. At Sei, talented chefs create contemporary Asian cuisine. I hesitate to call their innovative little dishes “fusion,” as that term is vastly overused and has become a culinary cliche. But how else would you describe wasabi guacamole or sashimi pizza? Plunked in the heart of Penn Quarter next to the Lansburgh Theatre, Sei joined the area’s ever expanding restaurant family in January 2009. Seating about 65 plus another dozen at the sushi bar--the Sei doesn’t have a waterfeature as suggested by its name, but it does have a dazzling white and ivory interior -white lightening perhaps? Tables are white. White bar stools and booths are decorated with cris-cross lacing; the latter matches the faux alligator menu covers. Geometric plates are stark white. The cutting edge design is the work of co-owners Nancy Koide and Errol Lawrence, who also orchestrated their equally stunning, sister restaurant Oya, which does have a shimmering wall of H2O. Created by a graphic designer going for a “baroque look,” the bar at Sei is flecked with antique gold, resembling a Florentine door. A curtain of thin red bamboo tips separates the lounge from the dining area. Management pays attention to details;
By Celeste McCall
The beautifully constructed and delicious Kobe beef roll. Photo: Andrew Lightman
wooden chopsticks are painted gold, a nice touch of class. After I finished my sushi, our attentive server promptly whisked away the chopsticks and replaced them with silverware for our entrees. Our one compliant -- Sei is too noisy. The incessant buzz gave a whole new meaning to the term “white noise.” My dining companion and I were practically shouting at each other while trying to conduct a normal conversation. Later, general manager Arris Noble explained that much of the clatter drifts in from the bar area, and management is exploring ways to muffle the decibel level. Noisy or not, this place is hot, hot, hot. In November 2009, Michelle Obama dined there with then-social secretary Desiree Rogers and White
House decorator Michael Smith. The First Lady was so taken by Sei’s innovative sushi selection that she served it at the White House Christmas party last year. Obama also favors the orange miso bread pudding, which Peter and I loved, and I’m not usually a fan of bread pudding. Presiding over the gleaming kitchen are a pair of culinary wizards: Avinesh Rana and Noriaki Yasutake. Both honed their skills at Perry’s in Adams Morgan. Rana is in charge of the Asian-accented small plates. Originally from Japan, Yasutake honed his sushi skills at Matuba–the rotary sushi bar in Bethesda before arriving at Sei. Although we held 8 p.m. reservations, we had a brief wait at the lively bar, which we did not mind one bit. capitalcommunitynews.com H 119
ARTS& Dining After gawking at the young, hip patrons (I readily admit we felt like chaperones), we perused Seiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seemingly endless listing of sakes, and inventive cocktails. Where to start? Peter passed over the liquid wasabi (rather than incorporating the tongue-scorching horseradish, the drink is fired up with habanero peppers and pungent ginger). He finally settled on a Japanese mojito, concocted with unfiltered sake, lime juice, simple syrup and shiso ( Japanese mint), while I sipped a pleasant Pinot Noir from Franceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s
Languedoc region. Soon we were seated. We found prices fairly high but not exorbitant, considering the topnotch quality of the ingredients and creativity of the chefs. Moreover, Sei has a wildly popular, weeknight happy hour with discounted drinks and sushi. A bento box is just $20. An even better bargain is the threecourse, prix fixe menu tagged at $19 for lunch, $29 evenings. I took advantage of the latter deal, starting with an appetizer of eight spicy tuna rolls. Enlivened by Asian pick-
Clockwise from top left: Sake-based cocktails are a Happy Hour favorite. Photo: Andrew Lightman Sushi and sashimi assortments are outstanding. Photo: Andrew Lightman A plate of Kobe sliders arrives with garnishes. Photo: Andrew Lightman
120 H HillRag | September 2010
les and scallions, the crunchy rolls were delicious and ultra fresh. Unfortunately, we did not get to the chef ’s highly touted “fish and chips” roll (fish paired with tiny potato shreds, malt vinegar and tartar sauce), wasabi guacamole or the Kobe beef sliders. Next time. My entree was Dengaku salmon, cooked medium rare as requested, sheathed within a marvelous crusty exterior. The generous piece of fish was poised on a bed of mini veggies (carrots and zucchini), and a mini-mound of pureed potatoes. In lieu of an entree, Peter decided on appetizers and “small plates,” starting with edamame hash. The emerald green soy beans were flecked with a colorful confetti of cherry tomatoes, roasted fingerling potatoes, oyster mushrooms and peas. Tangy papaya salad, combined with what tasted like Napa cabbage along with paper-thin radish circles, was laced with crunchy sweet-andsour calamari tidbits. Among the “small plates” listing, Peter selected boneless, melt-inyour-mouth, short ribs with wasabi mashed potatoes. For dessert, we shared the before-mentioned orange miso bread pudding paired with soy caramel ice cream. (No, we did not realize the ice cream was made of soy instead of dairy products.) Green tea creme brulee with fresh berries also looked tempting. In true fusion fashion–with a nod to potty parity--restrooms are labeled “his and hers” and simply “hers.” I appreciate that. Dinner for two with a drink apiece came to a reasonable $78 before tip. Sei offers valet parking, but a better idea is to hop Metro. Nearby is the National Archives/Navy Memorial Metro (Green/Yellow lines), the Gallery Place/Chinatown (Red, Yellow, Green). Metro Center (Red, Blue/Orange) is a little farther away H
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Park Cafe • 106 13th ST SE Reservations: 202.543-0184
www.parkcafedc.com capitalcommunitynews.com H 121
ARTS& Dining
D I N I N G
N O T E S
By Celeste McCall
New Menu at Fusion
Over the summer, we’ve seen business comings and goings, and at least one major menu change. On Barracks Row, Fusion Grill has totally revamped its menu, thanks to new chef Lance Hanan. “It’s a work in progress,” said the 40-year-old Maryland native. Here’s what he’s done: Diners first choose a preparation style (black bean sauce, hot garlic, curry, sweet-and-sour, etc.), then decide on meat or seafood. (Peter had shrimp with hot garlic sauce; I chose salmon with a honey-miso glaze while our guest went for moo shi pork.) Other friends raved about Chef Hanan’s jumbo lump crabcakes, which we plan to try next time. Among vegetarian offerings: broccoli or eggplant in hot garlic sauce, veggie combo and the obligatory edamame, which our table of three gobbled with gusto. Fusion also serves “fusion brunch,” with coconut brioche French toast, scrambled tofu, pancakes, roasted pork fritatta. Open daily for lunch and dinner, Fusion Grill is at 515 Eighth St. SE; call 202-546-5303 or www.fusiongrilldc. com. Free delivery.
Viva Cubana!
The other night we joined friends at Mi Vecindad (My Neighborhood), the Cuban restaurant which opened July 22 next to Frager’s. Having survived our month-long heat wave, Hill dwellers were out in droves savoring the gorgeous weather. Mi Vecindad was hopping. Most of our table ordered pork dishes (chuleta Cubana, lechon asado), but I asked our Cuban-American friend, Roy Mustelier, to recommend a typical Cuban dish. He suggested ropa vieja, literally “old clothes.” The generous portion of spicy shredded beef was accompanied by fried plantains rice and black beans. Delicious! Our group shared several 122 H HillRag | September 2010
pitchers of margaritas, and afterwards, proprietor Henry Mendoza–who also runs La Plaza up the street--treated us to Grand Marnier and Courvoisier. Mendoza also showed us the outdoor patio which stands empty, pending licensing which he hopes to obtain soon. Located at 1123 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, Mi Vecindad is open daily; call 202-546-4760.
Red Hook Lobster Pound DC truck at the opening ceremony. Follow the truck on twitter. Photos: Courtesy of Red Hook Lobster
Rolling Lobsters
DC lobster lovers can now get the real thing–direct from Maine. Last month, the long-awaited, Red Hook Lobster Pound DC truck rolled into town–arriving at Second and M streets SE. About 80 hardy guests at the August 12 unveiling braved heavy
The Maine Lobster Roll on a crisp, buttery bun.
rains, huddling under tents for complimentary lobster rolls. The mobile company is the creation of co-owners Leland Morris and Douglas Povich. Povich, from Brooklyn’s Red Hook neighborhood, makes weekly trips to Maine for their crustaceans. Red Hook offers three kinds of rolls: The Maine lobster roll, with cold lobster combined with lemon mayo, diced celery and sea salt, all tucked into a griddled roll. Connecticut style involves lobster warmed in butter, then snuggled in the roll. (Griddling is done right on the truck.) Price for either roll is $15, including a pickle. A meal, with Cape Cod chips and Maine Root soda (with free refills) is slightly more. Maine sweet shrimp roll–sauteed in garlic/tarragon butter–is $8. Parked at various locations around town, Red Hook operates Monday through Saturday, but will eventually expand its hours. Various locations. Mon-Fri, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Saturdays, 7 to 10 p.m. Go to www.facebook.com/redhooklobsterpounddc or follow the truck on Twitter @lobstertruckdc.
Carmine’s Opens in Penn Quarter
Amid trendy newcomers in downtown’s Penn Quarter, we now have an old fashioned Italian eatery. Carmine’s (with several locations), arrived August 3. We’ve dined at the original, which opened 20 years ago on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The food is delicious, but be warned: Portions – served family style – are humongous. Arrive hungry, and you still need three people to polish off one dish. We’ve had the Caesar salad, fried calamari and pasta with white clam sauce. Other mainstays are shrimp marinara, veal parmigiana, chicken marsala, plus daily specials. Washington’s Carmine’s is even bigger than the NYC original; Penn Quarter’s 20,000 square-foot space seats 670. Evoking circa 1940s and 50s New York, walls are festooned with black and white photos. Open Sunday- Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.; Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. to midnight, 425 Seventh St. NW. Call 202-737-7770.
Sticky Situation
That was a refreshing lunch the
other day at Sticky Rice. Not many H street restaurants are open midday, and we were grateful for the funky ambience of this two-yearold charmer. Seated upstairs, we ordered a Miller Lite, and New Castle ale. From the eclectic menu–which offers several vegan items-- Peter chose a “snap, crackle and pop” monster roll. The 10 large pieces were filled with salmon, matchstick-size cukes and scallions. Tasty, but hard to eat. I decided on an Osaka tuna burger– ahi tuna seared perfectly and glazed with teriyaki sauce and accompanied by tangy pineapple salsa. Totally irresistible was the side of tater tots, a house specialty. I begged our server to snatch my plate away before I gobbled them all. Located at 1224 H St. NE; Sticky Rice is open daily for lunch and dinner. Call 202-397-7655 or visit www.stickyricedc.com.
Down home vittles plus history
More restaurants are opening near the H street corridor. A recent arrival is Langston Bar and Grill, near RFK Stadium. Langston is a casual tavern serving Southernstyle comfort food: salmon cakes (or shrimp) with cheese grits; meatloaf, fried chicken, spareribs, turkey burgers, and deep dish sweet potato pie. There’s also outdoor seating. Some fascinating history accompanies your beer and ribs: I assumed Langston Bar & Grille was named after renowned African American poet Langston Hughes. Noooo. That more famous Hughes is the grand nephew of John Langston Hughes, for whom the new restaurant is named. John Mercer Langston (18291897) was born in Virginia, son of freed slave Lucy Langston and her former white master Ralph Quarles. As an heir to his father’s estate, Langston received the finest schooling available. In 1849, he graduated with honors from Oberlin College, the nation’s oldest coed institution and first to admit African-Americans. Open daily, Langston Bar and Grille is at 1831 Benning Road NE; call 202-397-3637. H
ATrue A True Taste of Tuscany.
We are now open for lunch! Seating begins at 11:30 Monday – Friday
Open for Dinner 7 Days a Week
212 7th St SE, Wash DC 20003 202 525 4375 www.acquaal2dc.com capitalcommunitynews.com H 123
ARTS& Dining
Wine and Food: Proper Pairing
T
By JoN GeNDersoN
he title is misleading. There really is no such thing as ‘proper’ when choosing a wine and food to enjoy together. In matters of taste, individual judgment will always reign supreme, but the old rule of reds with beef, whites with fish and poultry still has merit. For either situation, choose the best wine you can afford as a starting point; more expensive wines often are higher quality, with more complexity of flavors and aromas. Consider the relative strengths of flavors and aromas in your dish. To complement, serve powerful wines with powerful dishes; to contrast, pick a lighter wine that allows the foods flavors to shine thru. The ever-popular Cabernet Sauvignon pairs wonderfully with beef; and little else. Higher end Cabernet with its full throttle oak component will overpower a lot of dishes, but meld beautifully with the rich fat in a New York strip or filet. A sauce can change the flavor profile of beef. Steak au poivre (pepper) will be complemented by a wine rich in black pepper aromas, such as a Grenache from the southern Rhone Valley in France. Chateauneuf du Pape and Gigondas are excellent examples. For a more delicate beef dish, such as steak tartar, a subtle Merlot or lightly oaked Cabernet Sauvignon is a good accompaniment. For a spicy beef stew, try a Syrah from down under (Shiraz). There’s truth in the tradition that whites go well with fish and poultry. Color and aroma influence taste and these lighter wines complement the lighter meal. But sauces used in creating such dishes influence the decision too. A spicy Pinot Blanc from the Alsace region in France accompanies well a turkey enlivened by paprika. A richly sauced dish such as Chicken Cordon Bleu is well served with a rich white like a New World Chardonnay or a lighter red such as Pinot Noir. Simply prepared fish is best served with a “simple” white; one that has no oak. Sauvignon Blanc is ideal with flounder and rockfish. Muscadet has long been considered the perfect oyster wine, but Sauvignon Blanc can be even better. Fattier fishes require fatter wines. Salmon, tuna and swordfish require more richness in the wine that accompanies them. White Burgundy (made from 100% Chardonnay) works well, but you could also try a lighter red like Pinot Noir, Sangiovese or Tempranillo. You will be surprised how well they match. The high cholesterol fat in shellfish is best tempered with White Burgundy. I have yet to taste a better combination than lobster and Chassagne-Montrachet. For heavier flavored poultry like duck, consider a lighter red wine with higher acidity such as a Sangiovese from Tuscany. Grilled chicken dishes, by contrast benefit from a German Riesling, an oakey Chardonnay or a light to medium bodied red like a Cotes du Rhone. Meats are not the only dishes enhanced by a good wine. Cheeses and Wine and Food Pairings – Quick Guide My favorite aspect of running a wine store is waiting on customers. The most asked question is “I’m having *@#$%&* for dinner, what wine do you suggest?” So the first suggestion in this quick guide is: Ask an expert at the wine shop. At Schneider’s, we will ask what do you want to spend? How are you preparing the dish? Any sauce? What are serving with it? We are very good at this. 124 H HillRag | September 2010
fruits offer opportunities for creating flavor symphonies. Portugal has a very old tradition of serving dried fruit, nuts and blue veined cheeses with a fine Port. Many robust cheeses are made even more delectable when paired with a splash of a good Gewürztraminer. For the adventurous, a cheese platter with a young Camembert, or a Pecorino, those made from sheep’s milk — combine in an interesting way with a fine Pinot Noir. One should always remember that as important as it is to pair the right wine with your dish, you should also consider some other factors. One is pairing the wine with your guests. Some individuals simply don’t care for the heaviness of a port, or the robustness of a red, preferring dry, more delicate whites. Others do not like dry wine at all and will only drink sweet. In these cases it is necessary and prudent to give the people what they want (does that sound political?). That leaves more of the good stuff for you. When serving more than one wine at a multiple course meal, which I highly recommend, think about the order. Traditionally lighter wines are served before the more full-bodied types and whites before reds. Food is usually served in this order; fish before meat. There have been many dinner tastings where I have suggested to the chef to move around the course order in order to better show the wines. The exceptions to this however are many. Most chefs prefer to serve cold dishes before hot ones so there is not a problem serving a full red with a cool pate followed by a white wine with a warm fish course. Jon Genderson is a proprietor of Schneider’s of Capitol Hill located at 300 Mass. Ave. NE. www.cellar.com H
Food Light Fish (flounder, sea bass, perch ect.) Fatty Fish (Salmon, Tuna, Sword) Shellfish Chicken Pork Lamb Beef
Wine Light Whites (Sauvignon Blanc, Muscadet) Light Red (Pinot Noir), Unoaked Sauvignon Blanc Full White (White Burgundy) Full White (Burgundy or New World Chardonnay) Lighter red, (Sangiovese, Tempranillo or Pinot Noir) Light to Medium bodied Red, Big spicy red if BBQ Full Bodied Red (Red Burgundy, Tempranillo from Ribero del Duero) Full Bodied Red (Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordeaux, Red Burgundy)
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X Winery Cabernet Tri-Counties – Reg: $24.99/ Sale: $12.49 – The 2007 vintage of X3 Cabernet has flavors of dark fruit, white pepper, lavender and dark cherry. This well balanced wine has both depth and texture with elegant tannins and a lingering oak finish. Serve this wine with seared tri-tip and roasted potatoes, garlic-rubbed leg of lamb with creamy polenta, or grilled Korean beef.
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a taste of
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Artist Portrait: wally SZYNDLER
A Capitol Hill artist and writer, Jim can be reached at ArtandtheCity05@aol.com
F
or Wally Szyndler, all of life’s circuitous paths led to art. Trained as a horticulturalist, he spent much of his life among the cultures of Africa, India and Native Americans. His life experiences converged in one “Ah Ha” moment when he saw a book about gourds in a local bookstore in 2003. Suddenly everything made sense. “I was a gourd artist waiting to happen.” What happened over the next seven years was as much love as it was compulsion. His experimentation and imagination soon took him beyond “craft,” into the realm of true art. He allowed a work to evolve during the development of the idea…letting it have a voice of its own. His creativity grew as he found his own identity -- with increasingly exact craftsmanship. His bowl-like containers have an individuality that is in equal part the nature of the gourd and artistic expression of Wally. It was in the creation of masks however, a form that goes back centuries, that fully intrigued and fascinated him. Here he captured not only the personality of the gourd, but created a new living entity—a new personality that originated from and then became part of his own. With sanding and painting, feathers, hair and other adornments, a delightful new persona was born, often the interpretation of a dream. His body of work is truly stunning. Wally spent his professional life helping those with de-
velopmental disabilities, in the Peace Corps, as a co-founder of Melwood and as a volunteer with Art Enables, an artsbased training and placement program. Wally passed away in July, but so much of him lives on—his imagination, his love for his art and his love for all mankind. The September show at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop will be dedicated to his memory. There will be a retrospective of his work at the City Gallery, of which he was a member, in December. You can see his work at www. capitalgourds.com.
Jim Magner’s Thoughts on Art I taught on a Southwest Indian reservation in the early 70’s. Gourds were everywhere. Used as rattles in traditional dances, they had been replaced long ago by bands playing modern instruments. Although children played with gourds in the sand, there was not a tradition, apparently, of making masks or other art forms. I worked with an elderly woman who was rediscovering the very old techniques of making clay pottery, virtually forgotten in the age of Tupperware. There was no mention, however, of “nature’s pottery.” In later visits to other Arizona reservations, I discovered gourds being used for more decorative purposes, but the ones in the trading posts looked suspiciously like tourist curios. And over the years I have thought of gourd art as craft, or maybe folk-art at best. Looking at Wally Szyndler’s work, I rethought the whole thing. There is so much imagination, and understanding of the principles of art, like design and color, that his work became an expression of the world around him - an interpretation that marks the best in painting and sculpture. 126 ★ HillRag | September 2010
artandthecity
BY JIM MAGNER
Sidamo Coffee and Tea
I was also surprised at the breadth of the craft. There is an American Gourd Society, and a large number of shows and contests around the country. Who knew? There are a few artists, like Wally, whose work reaches another level and are included in fine art gallery shows. I have asked people on the Hill for their memories. To a person, they described him as “a big warm loving man with a huge laugh and so much joy in living that it lit up the space around him.” He is also remembered as a man who spent his life helping others, especially those with physical and developmental disabilities. I didn’t know Wally. I wish I had.
At the Museums “Nature and Fantasy” National Gallery of Art – East Building 4th and Constitution Ave. Sept. 19 – Jan. 9 This is one of those “you gotta see this” exhibits. Giuseppe Arcimboldo, 1526–1593, painted fascinating and yes, eerie human heads composed entirely of plants, animals, and other objects. And they are “scientifically accurate.” This exhibit, for the first time in the US, features 16 of his paintings, along with drawings by Leonardo and Dürer, small bronzes, ceramics, and illustrated books and manuscripts, which provide a context for his work. www.nga.gov. “Side by Side” The Phillips Collection 1600 21 St. NW Sept. 11- Jan 16 “Side by Side: Oberlin Masterworks at the Phillips” features master paintings from two collections literally side by side. Twenty-five works from the collection of the Allen Memorial Art Museum at Oberlin are presented with selections from the Phillips’s permanent collection. A result is the creation of new observations of wellknown and loved masterworks. The show includes “modernists” Paul Cézanne, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Claude Monet, and Mark Rothko, as well as significant works by Hendrick ter Brugghen, Peter Paul Rubens, JMW Turner and others.
Galleries
opens Sat., Sept. 11, 5 - 7. The program is inspired by, and is in honor of, the late Capitol Hill resident and artist Wally Szyndler (see Artist Profile). The juror for the exhibit is Kris Swanson, a bronze sculptor, and the founder/director of the Hill’s Corner Store—a great cultural mixing bowl and local treasure. Kris’ bronze sculptures are included in collections around the country. www.chaw.org or www.capitolhillartleague.org. Ellen Cornett City Gallery 804 H St. NE #1 to Sept 25 “Night Goat and Other Flights of Fancy” is a great title for this and almost any Ellen Cornett exhibit. The Night Goat is only one of the wonderful characters and curious objects that circle reality in fanciful flights, getting very close…and then veering off to a more distant orbit. I’ve said this before, and was right: Get there early because they sell out quickly. Opening Recep: Sept 11, 6-9. www.citygallerydc.com. “Insoluble” Studio H 408 H Street NE 2nd fl Sept. 18 – Oct. 17 “Insoluble,” a solo exhibition of Camille Schefter’s oil paintings, speaks to complex imagery and uses color to pull seemingly contradictory fragments into a whole composition. It reaches behind the public person to the private, hidden thoughts and imaginings. Opening recep: Sept. 18, 6 to 9. www.studiohdc.com.
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the last word WHAT’S ON YOUR MIND? Speak Out about DC in the last word Questions. Comments. Concerns. E-mail: andrew@hillrag.com
Marty Ittner and Michele Cormier Evolve Urban Arts Project Pierce School Lofts 1375 Maryland Ave. NE Sept 11 - Oct 30 The theme, “What We Leave Behind” reaches not only into the past but the present and the “cultural and natural debris” we inherit. Ittner’s collages are sculpted from layers of wax and paper, opening windows as you visually dig through the components. Cormier’s paintings range from moody abstracts to well constructed still-lifes invoking past human interactions. Opening Recep: Sat., Sept.11, 4 – 8. ★
“Walk on the Wild Side” Capitol Hill Art League 545 7th St. SE Sept. 11 - Sept 29 The first All-Media juried exhibit of the CHAL season, “Walk on the Wild Side” capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 127
ARTS& Dining
ATTHE MOVIES
A Second Look A Column for the Fridge by Mike Canning
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his annual September column highlights those “Movies That Got Away,” worthy films that were relatively little seen when first released in area theaters. It is also subtitled “For the Fridge” since you can tape it on your refrigerator to remind you what to look for the next time you are contemplating a video rental. This compilation of mini-reviews focuses, as regular readers know, on modestly-budgeted productions with sound scripts, capable direction, and stellar acting (no blockbusters need apply). Though I have tried to indicate pictures now available at local Hill video stores, some of them may have to be searched for via Netflix or another video supplier. To begin, I will cite a trio of films from last year made most memorable by stellar performances by their female leads. They are: An Education - A coming-ofage story (set in 1960’s pre-swinging London), with a lovely mix of low-key humor, sociological acumen, and youthful drama, is wonderfully crafted by screenwriter Nick Hornby and director Lone Scherfig. The lead, young Carey Mulligan, must maneuver between cuteness and smarminess, presenting her character as clever, but not smart ass; vulnerable but not supine; pensive but not dull. Fact is, she is charming throughout and carries the picture on her prim shoulders. Broken Embraces - Spaniard Pedro Almodar is at it again, with an intricate and satisfying melodrama about memory, movies, and mystery involving a film director and his actress muse. An elaborate flashback story is handled adroitly, and a varied cast is handled superbly. Like much of his work, Almodovar’s film is full of ripeness, in story detail, in color, in 128 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Penelope Cruz in “Broken Embraces.” Photo by Emilio Pereda & Paola Ardizzoni; Copyright El Deseo: Courtesy Sony Pictures Classics
composition, and, principally, in the stunning presence of Penélope Cruz as a doomed actress. In Spanish. Ameerka - A low budget gem with a singularly rich lead performance. Nisreen Faour is Muna, a single Palestinian mother who migrates to the US to join her sister and family in Illinois. She and her teenaged son have problems downsizing their expectations, especially after the American invasion of Iraq, and Faour makes Muna fully believable and sympathetic as she struggles to cope with the vagaries of American culture. In Arabic and English. As impressive as were the above ladies, there were also films that were praiseworthy for a pair of outstanding performances, such as the following: Goodbye Solo - A lovely twocharacter study of what happens when an ebullient African emigrant taxi driver and a rawboned drifter come together, slowly and tentatively bond, and then must part. Low-key and shot on a low budget in North Carolina locations, this very honest story feels palpably like real life with two people testing both the bounds of cross-cultural communication and friendship.
Sin Nombre - An exhilarating film of escape as the fates bring together a Honduran teenage girl, with a dream of life in the US, and a young Mexican gang member, finally ready to flee his life of barren crime and violence. Told—in Spanish--with a group of non-actors in a gripping documentary style, the film is the stunning debut of a young (not yet 35) American director, Cary Fukunaga, and makes wholly human a facet of our immigration dilemma. Bright Star - The literary life is notoriously difficult to capture in the movies, but director Jane Campion, whose film looks at the last part of the life of poet John Keats, does a splendid job of both recreating the period milieu in which Keats worked and the source of his inspiration, young Fanny Brawne. The film avoids “Tragic Poet” clichés for a richer story of blossoming love and shared sympathies, with shining performances from Ben Whisaw and Abbie Cornish as the leads. Then again, there was quality cinema from a whole ensemble of players. Two good examples: In the Loop - A smart and pro-
fane mock of politics--on boths sides of the Atlantic. A dim-bulb British minister of international development and his fire-breathing press secretary come to Washington to sort out a pro- and anti-war debate and run into a clot of noxious US officials living on hype and spin. Many pretensions are pricked and inanities revealed in hilarious and breathtaking dialogue, delivered in the best understated British style by an agile cast of British and American actors. Summer Hours - A sweet, knowing, and delicate narrative about family, brothers and sisters, and family legacy, as a set of three very different French siblings must decide what to do with their late mother’s house and its contents, both nostalgic and artistic. The three are all portrayed as full-rounded yet very distinct personages, and the film offers a subtle, even poignant, commentary on how globalization has touched the modern family. In French. For my taste, too few creditable foreign-language films ever get to screens in the DC area, and those that do usually have limited runs. Such as two gems from Japan whose presence went by too quickly... Departures - Out of the potentially grim material of the Japanese practice of preparing corpses for burial comes a film of almost aching sensitivity and refinement. A young cellist gives up his music and the big city to apprentice in this work in his hometown with a master, and he finds ineffable meaning in the work. The film’s tempo matches precisely the pace of the man’s gaining knowledge, moving from shock and distaste to acceptance and new-found grace, all leavened with off-hand humor. In Japanese. Ponyo - Another masterpiece from the great Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki which tells the story
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Long-time Hill resident Mike Canning has written on movies for the Hill Rag since 1993 and is a member of the Washington Area Film Critics Association. His reviews and writings on f ilm can be found online at www.mikesflix.com. ★
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of a small boy who finds a goldfish who is actually the daughter of a masterful wizard and a sea goddess. Transformed into a young girl, Ponyo, the two children embark on an adventure to thwart a dangerous imbalance in the world. This is classic, fully drawn, exquisite animation full of imagination and charm and a palette that delights the eyes. With English voicings. We continue to be in an era of great documentary filmmaking, and I cite just two outstamding ones from last year, whose subjects and styles could hardly be more different. Food, Inc. - Best documentary of last year for my money and a rude wake-up call as to what we have been and are doing to our national food supply. Scrupulous and careful in building up its case and avoiding stridency and the facile, the film gives a sound critique of what our industrial food business is doing to us. Especially telling are segments on how the skewed food delivery system produces obesity among the poor and how sick, trapped animals become a principal food source. Every Little Step - A fascinating look at auditions for that prototype musical of auditions “A Chorus Line,” the real-life auditions being just as compelling as the show itself. The film is very well paced, but what heightens its impact is the inherent drama of the auditions themselves. The filmgoer gains a rooting interest in many of these talented, committed performers and wants to see who will come out on top. A competition with both pizzazz and class in a story that takes a neat 96 minutes to tell.
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ARTS& Dining
TH E ATE R Once More, With Feeling Signature Sets Up Another Game of Chess By Barbara Wells
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his month Signature Theatre Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer launches his take on Chess, dubbed “The Legendary Rock Musical.” Legendary, yes, but not necessarily in a good way. For theatre producers worldwide, Chess is a tantalizing conundrum that has spurred a dozen iterations in the 26 years since the original concept album’s release. Shackled to a dated and somewhat clumsy narrative developed by lyricist Tim Rice (Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar) and composers Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus of Abba fame, the often marvelous music has long searched for a compelling story that can tie together 25 songs—give or take depending on the production—in less then three hours. Schaeffer, noted for inventive Sondheim revivals and revamps of failed musicals, embraced the Chess challenge with the blessing of the show’s three co-creators, amid widespread hopes that he could engineer, at last, the definitive version. For good measure, his production underwent more than two weeks of previews to get it right. The result leaves no doubt why Schaeffer and so many before him
have answered the show’s siren song: It’s all about the music. Chess features a few genuine show stoppers, including “One Night In Bangkok”—a disco-fueled romp made famous in the 1980s by Murray Head—as well as haunting ballads like “Someone Else’s Story” about a dying romance and the anthemic “You and I,” which really do make audiences leave the theatre humming. Most of the music is traditional show-tune fare that few would call “rock,” sung by a cast of talented vocalists to the glorious orchestrations of David Holcenberg. Jill Paice, backed by a vibrant ensemble cast, turns in a convincing angry-girl rendition of “Nobody’s on Nobody’s Side,” only to sing a sweetly melancholy “Heaven Help My Heart” in the next act. A high point is Paice’s duet with Eleasha Gamble—a veteran of 11 Signature musicals—on “I Know Him So Well,” culminating in a riveting union of their voices in a single, stirring note as they pine for the same man. Every solo by Euan Morton, who earned a host of award nominations when he originated the role of Boy George in Taboo on Broadway, gives the audience something to
Jeremy Kushnier lights up One Night in Bangkok. Photo by Scott Suchman.
130 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Jill Paice and Eleasha Gamble sing their duet, “I Know Him So Well.” Photo by Scott Suchman.
look forward to. And magic happens when Morton and Paice join Chris Sizemore and D.C. musical favorite Christopher Bloch for a quartet called “A Model of Decorum and Tranquility.” Yet some seriously shrill numbers remain, demanding the near-shrieking that inspired New York Times critic Frank Rich to call the doomed 1988 Broadway show “A suite of temper tantrums … [in which the actors] yell at one another to rock music.” So even though Jeremy Kushnier—a Broadway veteran who debuted as the original Ren in Footloose—delivers a beautifully nuanced “Pity the Child” to illuminate his character’s desolate upbringing, too often he has to serve up high-pitched rock numbers that border on the worst of Rush or Guns n’ Roses. So what’s this show all about? In brief, Chess is a story of the Cold-War era superpower manipulations of two chess champions and the woman they love—themselves pawns (get it?) on the global chessboard. Kushnier plays
Freddie Trumper, an egomaniacal American chess genius corrupted by fame and fortune, the counterpoint to Morton’s Anatoly Sergievsky, a forlorn chess champion dutifully serving his country while wondering what’s it all about. Paice’s Florence completes the triangle, serving as Freddie’s chess second, girlfriend and moral compass until she falls for Anatoly and helps him defect from his country. Florence also (and conveniently) personifies the Soviet Union’s oppression of the Eastern Bloc, having been separated as a child from her father when the Soviets crushed Hungary in 1956. And there’s the rub. Thirty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, it takes more plot and character development than it did in 1984 to evoke the intense and dangerous Cold War rivalry of the United States and the Soviet Union, the sinister machinations of the CIA and KGB, and the suffocating existence of ordinary citizens in the U.S.S.R. Schaeffer has taken some inventive shortcuts to set the stage: posters of New York Times front pages with headlines on Soviet aggression line the theatre entrance, and Ronald Reagan himself appears on the set’s four video screens decrying Soviet “godlessness” and vowing steadfast resistance to the evil empire’s quest for world domination. These devices, coupled with a few references to Anatoly’s relatives losing their homes after he defects, just don’t go far enough to create palpable dramatic tension. Chess might compensate by engaging audiences in its love triangle,
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which expands to a square with the abrupt arrival of Anatoly’s estranged wife in the second act. But with such a truncated script and the absence of chemistry between all four romantic leads (with the notable exception of the bond forged by Paice and Gamble in their duet), it’s hard to care about their plight. Ultimately the dialogue feels like a series of awkward set-ups for songs, relying on cringe-inducing clichés such as “This is insane!” after a forbidden kiss and “Is she beautiful?” to confront an unfaithful spouse. No wonder Chess is so frequently performed as a concert, most recently at London’s Royal Albert Hall with Josh Groban in 2008. Yet a mere concert would sacrifice projection designer Aaron Fisher’s video projections, flashing grainy images of war-torn 1956 Budapest and ancient stained-glass windows in the opening scene, and then listing flight arrivals and departures to conjure an airport terminal in another (although we could skip the unfortunate head shots of Morton and Kushnier that pop up when Paice sings about them). Even with a cast that seems better suited to singing than dancing, Karma Camp’s choreography lends a welcome dose of pulsating 80’sera energy in all the right places. And costume designer Kathleen Geldard’s stark palette of black, white, and crimson underscores Cold War divisions, dressing Morton in suitably subdued grays, Kushnier in volatile reds, and Paice in spike-heeled ankle boots and a parade of ruffled blouses and fitted skirts that accentuate her internal conflicts. In the end, Schaeffer may not have solved the Chess conundrum, but it’s fun watching him try. Until next time, enjoy the music.
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Barbara Wells is a writer and editor for Reingold, a social marketing communications firm. She and her husband live on Capitol Hill. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 131
★ ★ ★ the SEPTEMBER CALENDARLITERARY HILL
A Compendium of Readers, Writers, Books, & Events by Karen Lyon
A Decade of Words and Wonder On September 25, the National Book Festival celebrates its tenth year of bringing readers and writers together on the National Mall. President and Mrs. Obama will serve as honorary chairs for “A Decade of Words and Wonder,” organized and sponsored by the Library of Congress, which will feature more than 70 authors and illustrators. The event regularly attracts upwards of 100,000 visitors who congregate under the tents to hear their favorite writers and line up to get autographed copies of the latest books. Among the 2010 headliners will be master of suspense Ken Follett, Pulitzer Prize-winning The 10th Annual National Book Festival celebrates “A Decade poet Rae Armantrout, of Words and Wonder” on September 25. satirical cartoonist Jules Feiffer, famed children’s author Pat Mora, Evan George Washington University and Thomas of “Newsweek” and “Inside author of “Parallel Worlds: The ReWashington,” and celebrated novel- markable Gibbs-Hunts and the Enists Isabel Allende, Julia Glass, Jane during (In)significance of Melanin”; Smiley, Scott Turow, Gail Godwin, Thomas Mallon, critic, novelist, and and Jonathan Franzen. author of the recent nonfiction book, Capitol Hill will be represented “Yours Ever: People and Their Letby Martha Grimes, bestselling au- ters”; Michele Norris, host of NPR’s thor of twenty-two Richard Jury “All Things Considered” and author mysteries, including the recent The of a new memoir, “The Grace of SiBlack Cat, and more than a half lence”; and Judith Viorst, author of dozen other acclaimed novels; and by the beloved children’s classic, “AlexSpike Mendelsohn, chef and co-au- ander and the Terrible, Horrible, No thor of “The Good Stuff Cookbook: Good, Very Bad Day.” Burgers, Fries, Shakes, Wedges, and The Festival, which is free and More.” open to the public, will be held on Other local writers scheduled Saturday, September 25, from 10 to appear include Adele Logan Al- a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on the National exander, professor of history at The Mall between 3rd and 7th Streets. 132 ★ HillRag | May 2009 2010 September
For more information, visit www.loc.gov/bookfest or call 202-707-2905.
Dotty for Dotty Erica S. Perl’s latest picture book, “Dotty,” is an absolute delight, from the hot pink sparkles on the cover to the whimsical illustrations by Julie Denos. Best of all, though, is the lovely story it tells of friendship, loyalty, and imagination. You see, Dotty is an extraordinary creature who goes everywhere with a little girl named Ida. Dotty has a wild-looking mane, bright spots, and horns that she occasionally uses to poke people when she gets restless. Sometimes she just curls up and nibbles on the rug in Ida’s classroom, where an assortment of other imaginary friends keep her company. But when class resumes after the winter break,
Dotty is the only one of the fantastic companions who returns to school – and the other kids soon start laughing at Ida. What’s a girl to do? Perl is also the author of “Chicken Butt!,” “Chicken Bedtime is Really Early,” “When Life Gives you O.J.,” and “Ninety-three in My Family,” which has been called a “comic masterpiece.” According to fellow children’s writer Katy Kelly, Perl’s lively readings of her work feature a hat to go with every title -- including the infamous “Chicken Butt!” (this we’ve got to see!). The prolific author recently added the young-adult audience to her fan base with “Vintage Veronica,” about a girl whose dream summer job in a consignment store helps her begin to see herself as something other than “fat and friendless.” Perl lives in DC with her husband and daughters and claims to have “many friends, some of whom other people can see.” Visit her website at www. ericaperl.com.
A Cookbook with Wiggle Room
Local children’s writer Erica Perl’s charming and colorful new book explores the topic of imaginary friends.
Goody Solomon Braun has a relaxed attitude toward food. “Some individuals have to alter their diets rapidly and dramatically – after a diabetes diagnosis, for example,” she writes. “But most of us who want to sustain good health have wiggle room so we can occasionally enjoy favorite foods made with the fat, sugar, salt and calories we daily want to restrict.” As editor of “Family Favorites; Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow,” the new cookbook celebrating the League
(said to have “sustained the V.P.”) and several variations on chili, to the more exotic Moose Satay with Peanut Sauce and East Indies Lamb Curry. Sections on salads, vegetables, and desserts present a similar range among familiar favorites, interesting takes on old standards, and fresh new ideas. Contributors often include helpful notes and the appendices provide an equivalency chart and other reference materials. The League of Women Voters of Washington, D.C. was founded in 1920, when the ratification of the XIXth Amendment gave women the right to vote. A newly-published cookbook from the League of The League continues to Women Voters of the District of Columbia revisits work in a nonpartisan way some old family favorites. for full voting rights for DC, as evidenced by the of Women Voters of Washington, sentiments pictured on the cover D.C.’s 90th anniversary, Solomon of the anniversary cookbook. “We Braun practices what she preachhope as you share these recipes,” es. Many of the recipes in “Famwrites LWVDC President Billie ily Favorites” offer substitutions A. Day, “you will remember that we for higher fat ingredients, such as in the District of Columbia hunstroganoff made with ground turkey and yogurt instead of beef and ger for the full democratic rights sour cream. Some dishes -- such enjoyed by all other citizens of the as tabbouleh salad or lentil soup United States.” Book sales will support League – offer healthy choices in and of programs. To get a copy of “Famthemselves. And for those classic ily Favorites, Yesterday, Today dishes that are presented in their and Tomorrow,” send a check for old-fashioned fat and calorie-laden $15 (which includes postage) to glory, Solomon Braun encourages LWVDC, 1100 15th St. NW, Suite cooks to “be brave” and experiment 1100, Washington DC 20005. For with making substitutions themmore information, call 202-783selves. “Though you will not get the original dish,” she writes, “you 0444. ★ could get something delicious.” With nearly 150 recipes, there is something for every taste, from Muriel Humphrey’s Beef Soup
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 133
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Programa de Early Head Start (inicio base) para personas que viven en Washington (Districto de Columbia)
Kennedy Institute – 801 Buchanan St. NE, DC 20017 Please contact Ms. JoAnne Ransome 202-281-2784 What is Early Head Start?
The EHS program enhances children’s physical, social, emotional, and intellectual development and assists pregnant women with prenatal and postpartum care through home visits
Who is Eligible? •
Pregnant women and children ages 0-3 who meet income guidelines or who have special needs.(Example: TANF, WIC, other Supplemental income)
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Parent/Child Activities/ Parental Education Support for children with disabilities Access to Occupational/Physical and Speech Therapy Child Health and Developmental Screenings Referrals for health care and other social services resources Social activities “twice per month” with other children and parents in large and small groups
Kennedy Institute – 801 Buchanan St. NE, DC 20017 Contacte por favor con Sra. JoAnne Ransome 202-281-2784 ¿Qué es Early Head Start (EHS) ?
El Programa Early Head Start enriquece el desarrollo fisico, social, emocional e intellectual del niño a traves de visitas peronalizadas con un Educador de Familia capacitado; ayunda a mujeres embarazadas acceder a cuidado amplio tal como cuidado durante el embarazo como posparto; apoya a los padres en el papel de ser padre Y los ayuda a empezar a lograr la autosuficiencia a traves de visitas en sus casas.
¿Quién es elegible?
Mujeres embarazadas y niños con edades de 0-3 anos quienes cumplan con los limites de ingresos o tengan necesidades especiales; Familias que reciban: WIC, TANF, u otro programa suplemntario
¿Cuiles servicios prove el programa? • • • • • •
134 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Actividas para padres y sus hijos/Educacion para padres Apoyo para niños con discapacidades acceso Acceso a Terapias Fisicas/Ocupacionales y Terapia del Habla Evaluaciones de salud y desarrollo para el niño Referencias para cuidados medicos, servicios sociales y otros recursos comunitarios Actividades sociales “dos veces al mes” en grupos grandes y pequenos con otros niños y padres.
Kids & Family by Mary-Frances Daly
29th Annual Hispanic Festival Bring your family and friends to this year’s Festival Hispano and celebrate the rich heritage of local Hispanic communities, Sept. 19, noon-6 p.m., at Lane Manor Park in Adelphi, Md. Take part in cultural dances and sample the cuisine from a variety of countries. Enjoy live entertainment, dance performances, ethnic foods, an interactive children’s area, carnival rides and games, craft booths, a teen area, exhibitors/displays, face painting, music, pony rides and much more as the National Children’s Museum presents family friendly programs. All ages welcome. Admission is free. Lane Manor Park is located at 7601 West Park Drive and University Boulevard, Adelphi, Md. 20783. For more information, visit www. pgparks.com/page9833.aspx.
12th Annual Boo at the Zoo Tickets Now on Sale Order tickets now for this year’s Boo at the Zoo – the wildest trickor-treat in town – scheduled for three nights, Oct. 22, 23 and 24, 5:30-8:30 p.m., at the National Zoo. There’s no safer or more exciting way for families with children ages 2 to 12 to enjoy Halloween. So get ready for tasty candy, delicious snack foods and other special treats from more than 40 treat stations. Plus, animal encounters, keeper talks and festive decorations are yours to enjoy. $20/FONZ members; $30/nonmembers. Held rain or shine. Kids under 2 are free. 202633-4240, www.fonz.org.
notebook
Children’s Day at Lincoln Park Come by Lincoln Park Sept. 11 from 10 to 1 for Children’s Day! Activities include music by the popular kids’ band, Rocknoceros, from 10-10:45 a.m.; field games, like beach ball volleyball, 3-legged race, sack race, water balloon toss, capture the flag, horseshoes, kick ball, mother may I, and more; a bike parade; and arts and crafts, like spin art, face painting, temporary tattoos, hair-spray station, photo booth and more. There will also be a designated toddler area with parachute games, bubbles, bean bag games, a duck pond and other water toys. Free. For more information, e-mail mops@capitalcitychurch.com.
Young festivalgoer enjoys a pony ride at last year’s Festival Hispano. Photo: Cassi Hayden
40th Annual International Children’s Festival The Arts Council of Fairfax County presents the 40th Annual International Children’s Festival, Sept. 18 & 19, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., at Wolf Trap. This year’s festival features youth performers from Chechnya, Mexico and Poland, and over 400 local youth artists. There will also be a number of stages and tents offering interactive educational activities and international foods. General tickets: $12/adults; $8/seniors & children; free/ages 2 and under. Weekend passes: $18/adult; $12/seniors and children ages 3 and up. Wolf Trap is located at 1551 Trap Road, Vienna, Va. 22182. Visit www.internationalchildrensfestival. org for more information and to purchase tickets.
Halloween may be two months away, but tickets for Boo at the Zoo are selling out now! Order yours now for a ghoulishly good time. Photo: Courtesy of National Zoo. capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 135
kidsfamily notebook DC Council Now Accepting Applications for Youth Internships The District Office of Youth Programs is now accepting applications for the DC Council’s Youth Internship Program (CYIP), a yearlong program that provides high school juniors and seniors (ages 16-19) with opportunities to gain professional and educational experiences through work in the council offices. Interns participate in council meetings and hearings, as well as other aspects of legislative business. Past council interns have been hired to participate in the council’s Summer Youth Internship Program, have received various scholarships and awards, and have attended some of America’s most renowned colleges and universities. The application deadline for the 2010-2011 session is Sept. 13 at 5:30 p.m. Visit www.dccouncil.us/internprograms for the application and more information.
Fall Soccer Registration for fall and spring soccer through Sports on the Hill is now open to children ages 3 to 18 years (players are assigned to teams based on their age as of July 31). The fall season runs from Sept. 11 to Nov. 13 (except Columbus Day weekend); the spring season runs from late-March to mid-June. Games are played at parks throughout Ward 6 and at the Anacostia and Kenilworth parks; refer to the website for locations. The cost for U7U19 is $100/player for both seasons or $175/two or more players per family; $60/player for spring only. The cost for U4/5/6 is $30/player for both seasons; $30/player for spring only. Register online at http://sportsonthehill.com/ soccer.aspx. For general questions, contact Larry Kaufer at 202-543-4582 or lakaufer@yahoo.com.
Touch Football Registration Open The Capitol Hill football division of Sports on the Hill will meet Sundays, Sept. 12 to Nov. 21, at Anacostia Park (visit the Sports on the Hill website for directions), and teams will be organized by age groups – 6 to 8 and 9 to 11. The age cut-off is Sept. 1, 2010. The 6-8’s group will meet from 3-4:30 p.m., and the 9-11’s group will meet 136 ★ HillRag | September 2010
4:30-6 p.m. Game times will move back one hour starting Nov. 7 to adjust to the time change. Team size on the field is five players, and the squad size is a maximum of 10. Games are two, 25-minute halves. Players receive a Capitol Hill Football t-shirt. Register online at www.sportsonthehill.com. $40/player. Scholarship aid is available. Players, volunteer coaches and administrative volunteers are needed. Contact Larry Kaufer, 202-543-4582, lakaufer@yahoo.com, for more information.
breakoutlacrosse.com. Please contact Coach Lester at 202-537-5703 or mlester@cathedral.org.
Homerun Baseball Camp Fall Ball on Capitol Hill
Make Some Music with Music Together at CHAW
Baseball players, ages 4 to 10, are invited to join Homerun Baseball Camp’s Coach Mac for an eight-week, high-energy baseball program centered on hitting, throwing, fielding, sportsmanship, nutrition, fitness and overall baseball strategy. The fall ball program meets Saturday mornings, Sept. 11-Oct. 30, from 9-11 a.m., at Payne Elementary School (305 15th St. SE). $165 for first child; $125 for each additional sibling. Register at homerunbaseballcamp.com. Call 202726-8311 for more information.
Lacrosse on the Hill Sports on the Hill offers a fall and spring lacrosse program for boys and girls, ages 5-10, under the direction of Malcolm Lester. Players will meet on Sundays at Kingsman Field on the 1300 block of D Street NE: Sept. 12, 19, 26; Oct. 3, 17, 24 and 31. There are no make-ups for sessions canceled due to weather. Girls will play from 2-3 p.m., and the boys will follow from 3-4 p.m. Each session includes 30 minutes of instruction and then scrimmaging. There are no practices or games during the week. All registrants will receive a Capitol Hill Lacrosse reversible jersey from Lax World. Sticks will be provided to those in need. The fee is $75, and siblings are $60 (covers both fall and spring seasons). Visit www.sportsonthehill.com to register. Children over the age of 10 who are interested in lacrosse are encouraged to consider Breakout Lacrosse, a DC-based lacrosse training organization – www.
Tae Kwon Do on Capitol Hill Master Gutman is accepting new Tae Kwon Do students, ages 4 and up, from Sept. 13 to Sept. 17, at 222 Eighth St. NE. Classes are offered Mon., Wed., Thu. and Fri. at 5:45 p.m. Students are expected to attend a minimum of two classes a week. $100/ month. Call 202-546-6275 for more information and to register.
Registration for the fall semester of Little Steps Music’s Music Together program is now open. Music Together classes on the Hill take place at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, at 9:45, 10:45 and 11:45 a.m., and Wednesday evenings at 6:05 p.m., beginning the week of Sept. 13. In each 45-minute class, children ages 0 to 5 sing, dance, play instruments, and make music with their parents or caregivers. Classes continue through the week of Dec. 16 and are $242 for the session. CHAW is located at 545 Seventh St. SE. To register or to receive more information, call CHAW at 202-547-6839 or visit www.littlestepsmusic.com.
Yoga Classes Kids and Teens at Capitol Hill Yoga •
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Itsy Bitsy Yoga – Baby: Thursdays, Sept. 16-Oct. 21, noon-12:45 p.m. For babies ages 4 weeks to nearly crawling. This class contains dozens of unique yoga postures designed specifically to soothe and support the development of a baby’s body. Most of the yoga in Itsy Bitsy Yoga is for the child, but parents also will learn breathing and relaxation techniques and practice some yoga. $72/six-class session; $15/drop-in rate. Itsy Bitsy Yoga – Tots: Thursdays, Sept. 16-Oct. 21, 11-11:45 a.m. For tots who are almost crawling to 24 months. Continue bonding with your child as you help them
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feel comfortable in their moving body, develop self-confidence and encourage their creative spirit. $72/six-class session; $15/dropin rate. Itsy Bitsy Yoga – Tykes: Thursdays, Sept. 16-Oct. 21, 10-10:45 a.m. For children nearly 2 to 4 years old. $72/six-class session; $15/drop-in rate. Yoga for Teens: Thursdays, Sept. 16-Nov. 4, 4-5 p.m. For pre-teens and teens ages 11-16. Visit www. itsybitsyyoga.com for infor Call 202-448-9680 or visit www.capitolhillyoga.com to register.
Wolf Trap Fall Classes Start Soon Wolf Trap is now registering infants/toddlers (ages 6 months to 5 years) and their parent/caregiver in its fall semester of performing arts classes and creative movement classes. The classes run for eight-weeks, mid-September through November, and are offered on either Mondays or Saturdays. The integrated performing arts classes are aimed at supporting social, intellectual, emotional and physical development; the creative movement classes allow children to explore movement through music. Online registration is now available at www.wolftrap. org. Contact Wolf Trap Education at classes@wolftrap.org or 703-9376307. Classes are held in the Center for Education at Wolf Trap, 1645 Trap Road, Vienna, Va.
Preschooler Programs at USBG Bring your preschooler (ages 3 to 5) to the US Botanic Garden for plant-related fun this fall. Sign up for a one-month session and attend four different programs. (October will be a repeat of the September programs.) Each Wednesday session will have varied activities that may include a story, art activity, or walk in the garden. September classes run Sept. 8, 15, 22 & 29; and October classes run Oct. 6, 13, 20 & 27. All classes are 10:30-11:30 a.m., in the USBG Conservatory Classroom. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Classes are free, but all sprouts must pre-register. The USBG is located at 100 Maryland Ave. SW. Call 202-225-1116 or visit www.usbg. gov to register.
School Tours at the NGA The National Gallery of Art is currently accepting school tour requests for tour dates between Oct. 4 and Dec. 10 (requests accepted through Nov. 12). Tours, for students in grades kindergarten through 12, are designed to foster conversation about works of art. For a complete description of tour topics and registration information, call 202-8426247 or visit www.nga.gov/education/school.htm.
‘Celebrate Mexico 2010’ Opens with Two Family Festivals The Kennedy Center kicks off its three-week-long “Celebrate Mexico 2010” event with the center’s 26th annual Open House Arts Festival and 15th annual Children’s Book Festival, Sept. 11, noon-6 p.m. The day-long open house features 20 performances, demonstrations and interactive events for the whole family (including Rocknoceros, the National Symphony Orchestra Instrument petting zoo, and the Dance Theatre of Harlem Residency to name a few). Renowned authors will be at the book festival, and hundreds of titles will be available for purchase. “Celebrate Mexico 2010” continues for three weeks with performances and exhibits commemorating Mexico’s 200 years of independence and 100 years since the 1910 revolution. The open house and book festival are both free. 2700 F St. NW. 202-467-4600, www.kennedy-center.org.
Children’s Programs at NCM The National Children’s Museum will host the following activities for children in September at the National Harbor’s Launch Zone. Insect Mania!: Sept. 1, 3, 4, 6 & 11, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Children can hold and learn about living insects and find out how each is important to our environment. The Sept. 11 program will feature Cirque du Soleil performers. Under the Big Top: Sept. 18 & 25, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Children can see if they have what it takes to be a circus performer by walking the NCM tightrope, trying their hand at plate spinning, and having their face paint-
ed. Visitors will make a juggling ball and learn how to use it along with other juggling props. Events are free unless otherwise noted. 112 Waterfront St., National Harbor, Md. 301-686-0225, www. ncm.museum.
Washington Youth Choir Auditions for 2010/2011 Program The Washington Youth Choir, a free after-school program whose mission is to enhance the educational experience of DC-area youth through the rigorous study and performance of music, is looking for new singers, ages 13 to 19. Auditions run 10 to 15 minutes and will assess each student’s vocal capabilities through the evaluation of sight reading, rhythmic and tonal readings. Students interested in auditioning should prepare a familiar song and memorize it. Call 202-2937508 to schedule an audition time at Calvary Baptist Church, located at 733 Eighth St. NW. Visit www. washingtonyouthchoir.org for more information.
Neighborhood Library Schedule Northeast Library. Children’s book club (ages 8-12) discussion of “Crazy Lady!” by Jane Leslie Conly, Sept. 9, 4 p.m. Story time for children ages 3 and under, Tue. and Thu., 11:15 a.m. 330 Seventh St. NE. 202698-3320, www.dclibrary.org. Northwest One Library. Game night for all ages, Sept. 7 and 21, 5 p.m. Baby/toddler lap time for ages 2 and under, Wednesdays, 10 a.m. Tales for 2’s and 3’s, Wednesdays, 10:30 a.m. 155 L St. NW. 202-9395946, www.dclibrary.org. Southeast Library. Story time for ages 2-3, Mon. and Fri., 10 a.m.; ages 3-5, Wednesdays, 10 a.m.; infants ages 3 and under, Wednesdays, 11 a.m.; 403 Seventh St. SE. 202-6983377, www.dclibrary.org. Southwest Library. Story time for ages 2-5, Tue. and Thu., 10:30 a.m. 900 Wesley Place SW. 202-7244752, www.dclibrary.org. Have a listing for the Kids & Family Notebook? E-mail kidsnotebook@hillrag.com by the 20th of the month prior to publication. Submissions may be edited. Publication not guaranteed. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 137
kidsfamily
Back to School Giving and Receiving by Lisa Raymond
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his year, my twins are in first grade and the night before school started was a restless one for me. Although they’ve been in school for three years, thanks to DC’s commitment to early education, this was a big deal -- a new campus, unfamiliar teachers and most exciting of all (to them), lockers. I was comforted that many of their friends and the parents that we have gotten to know would be joining them on this journey, but I was worried. I wondered about the overall health of their school. I know that test scores aren’t everything, but the 138 ★ HillRag | September 2010
fact that their school hadn’t made AYP this year was somewhat troubling. Were the teachers and administrators up to the task of moving this school forward? I worried about my children’s experience: Would they like their new teachers? Would they be ok eating lunch in a large cafeteria and being around big kids? I’m happy to report that so far the answers seem to be “yes.” But now that the immediate worry has passed, my thoughts have moved to how I can help support the school as a whole, my children’s classrooms and their education as individuals.
Education is an experience of giving and receiving. On the receiving side, your child(ren) deserve a high quality education. This includes effective teachers, school leaders and other staff who ensure that your child, and all children, are learning and that they have the unique help that they need; a well-maintained building that supports learning; and opportunities beyond the basic curriculum – like fine arts and physical education courses – that meet students’ needs and interests. The giving part is in the hands of parents and others who help schools. This may sound simple – “I can just go and paint the cafeteria or sell some holiday wrapping paper.” But anyone who’s volunteered to help a school knows that it’s much more complicated. As a parent, I look at the needs of my children and their school and then figure out how much time I can carve out of my schedule. All volunteers wrestle with the questions of where they are most needed and where they can have the greatest impact. Do we focus on one individual child or one specific classroom, or do we work to improve the entire school? Can we offer help that will make the entire system better? All of these types of volunteering are crucial for schools – you just need to figure out what is most needed and where your skills and schedule can fit. For parents like me whose schools didn’t meet AYP, we can ask our principal to publicly explain the results in detail and share his or her plan for helping more kids reach proficiency (the receiving). Then we can figure out how to support this plan (the giving). If the principal thinks that more kids need one-on-one reading support, I could help organize a reading buddy program or just sign up to read with one child each week. If he or she
wants to supplement the curriculum with extra materials or field trips to reinforce the learning standards, I could raise money, volunteer to organize a trip or serve as a chaperone. Using your time to share information with leaders beyond the school walls is a type of volunteer work and can ultimately help improve the entire system. Whether you send an email to the Chancellor or meet with a charter school’s board of directors, know that good leaders use individual feedback to make policy changes that can improve things for lots of kids. Improvements to school nutrition or safety don’t happen in a vacuum; policies change when parents and others work within schools and then share their concerns and their successes with “higher-ups.” The first thing I’ve volunteered to do is bring healthy afternoon snacks for my son’s class. His teacher feels that this will help the class focus more on their lessons; makes perfect sense to me, and healthy eating is one of my personal passions. A small step, but still forward motion. So give some serious thought to how you as a parent – or one of the many wonderful volunteers who give of their time because they care and they believe that our city is only as strong as our schools – can best support learning for your child and for all children in DC. For more ideas, contact the National Coalition for Parent Involvement www.ncpie.org. Also, AARP has a Grandparent Information Center for grandparents who are raising their grandchildren and need ideas about getting involved: 800-424-3410 or www.aarp.org/grandparents/. Lisa Raymond is the Ward 6 Member of the DC State Board of Education, a parent of two DCPS students and an education consultant. ★
Full Circle Past Students Return to CHAW in New Roles By Megan Cheek
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aura Thrift was three when she started taking classes at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop (CHAW). She would put on her tutu and her kelly green ballet slippers and run over to CHAW from her house on E Street, SE (with an adult of course!). Thrift remembers especially enjoying the recitals and taking tumbling class with Steve Johnson, where she was the ”airplane” in the end of session finale. “That was a really cool moment,” says Thrift. Thrift took classes at CHAW from 1986 until 1991 when her family moved to North Carolina. When she moved back to Capitol Hill in 2006, Thrift thought of CHAW again for adult classes. “I had a lot of fond memories at CHAW and it’s such a neighborhood place,” says Thrift. “I also know part of my tuition is going towards scholarships for children to have the same type of experiences that I had growing up.” She took an Oil Painting class this summer and enjoyed the instruction as well as the class environment. Thrift Laura Thrift and Colin Dunphy at the Summer is taking the class Student Art Show. Photo: Ellen Cornett again this fall. Since its inthat you have open minded guidance ception in 1972, and unwavering support.” CHAW has providCHAW has also had an impact ed thousands of peoon youth who have taken classes and ple from the Capitol returned to be a part of the sumHill community and mer camp Counselor in Training beyond the oppor(CIT) program. Kate Werwie came tunity to experience to CHAW when she was nine to the arts through participate in summer camp. Now classes, perfor18, Werwie continues to be involved mances, exhibitions, in camp, first as a CIT and now as and more. CHAW’s a counselor. She’s also taken several long-standing histoadult classes and took part in the ry has resulted in an Gilbert and Sullivan summer proincrease in returning ductions for three years. “CHAW is Kate Werwie (left) and Mariah Fraker (right) worked as Counselors for CHAW’s 2010 Summer adult students who Camp. Photo: Megan Cheek like a second home,” says Werwie. once took youth Mariah Fraker, age 13, just finclasses. “We’ve also seen many people who participated in classes when they were ished her first summer as a CHAW CIT. She’s a CHAW veteran, having younger now registering their children or even coming back taken over a 100 arts classes through the Youth Arts Program and summer to work at CHAW,” says Amy Moore, Director of Education camps from the time she was three until 13. “Ever since I got to be too old and Programs. to do the after school program I have wanted to work at CHAW because Colin Dunphy’s introduction to CHAW was also the tum- CHAW’s much too wonderful not to be a part of,” says Fraker. bling class with Mr. Steve. Dunphy, now 27, says he returned to CHAW continues to offer opportunities for budding artists of all ages CHAW post-college to fill the void previously filled by school through expanded classes and programs. CHAW is now registering adult and organized sports. “There is something very therapeutic and early childhood students for fall classes beginning September 13, 2010. about using my imagination to create something,” he says. After school Youth Arts Program classes, for students ages 5-13, begin AuDunphy describes his adult experience at CHAW as amaz- gust 30, 2010 with over 40 offerings in the visual and performing arts. Van ing. “The instructor (Ellen Cornett) and everyone in the class service is available from local schools. Tuition assistance and payment plans is so supportive and encouraging that it almost feels like group are available for all classes. Visit www.chaw.org or call 202-547-6839 for therapy,” he says. “It’s really comforting to experiment knowing more information. ★ capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 139
kidsfamily school notes
school notes Compiled by Susan Braun Johnson
offer students a catered lunch option twice a week. The school chose to work with Revolution Foods based on the company’s focus on providing healthy, balanced meals with no artificial ingredients or preservatives. What a way to start another great academic year at St. Peter School! – Sally Aman. St. Peter School, 422 Third St., SE, 202-544-1618, www. stpetersinterparish.org
Capitol Hill Cluster School Watkins Students Hone their Cooking...and Eating Skills Over the past year, there have been a lot of cooks in the kitchen over at Watkins Elementary. In 2009, first and third graders began participating in FoodPrints, a local foods and gardening program sponsored by FRESHFARM Markets (www.freshfarmmarkets.org). The program expanded the school’s vegetable garden with the guidance of Master Gardener Barbara Percival. Jennifer Mampara, known to many on the Hill for her extraordinary culinary creations, was hired as FoodPrints Coordinator to develop a local foods curriculum working with the first and third grade teachers and integrating the edible garden into class work. The classes usually start off with a session in the garden for planting or harvesting and hands-on instruction in the basics of botany, and then move indoors to an unused science laboratory where Mampara dishes up lessons on nutrition, cooking, and the importance of eating fresh and healthy food. But the highlight of each class is the tasting portion. Rather than turn their noses up at the sight of fresh veggies, kids in the FoodPrints classes actually devour the delicious dishes they work so hard to grow and prepare. One example is Mampara’s delectable pasta with greens and ricotta, a veggie-rich creation that even the pickiest eaters love. The success of the FoodPrints program has led teachers and parents to work toward expanding the program to include all grades at Watkins as well as the Montessori program located within the campus. The program will continue during the 2010-2011 school year, and efforts 140 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Capitol Hill Day School New Faces to begin the Year Students Show Off their radishes from Watkins expanded school garden.
are underway to raise money for the construction of a new kitchen with many green and sustainable features. For more information about the FoodPrints program or the expansion initiative, contact Lee Glazer at leeglazer@gmail.com or visit www. watkinslivingschoolyard.com/. – Coleen Cancio. Watkins, 420 12th St SE.
St. Peter’s News Upgrades at the School When students returned to St. Peter School last August, they were greeted with a major facility face lift, technology upgrades and an expanded educational team. This year was no different! Students returned to a brand new and eagerly anticipated science lab, as well as a completely refurbished art studio. Plans also have been finalized to utilize the school’s eco-friendly landscaping and gardens as part of the science curriculum. New computers have been installed in the computer lab and grades one through eight have updated computers with DVD players connected to the class Smartboard. Thanks to a grant from the
Capitol Hill Community Foundation, St. Peter School eighth grade math students now have access to new graphing calculators which can be used with Smartboard technology. Building on last year’s expanded educational team; the school administration has added a full time school counselor and expanded Latin instruction to include grades six through eight. Finally, the school is working with Revolution Foods to
Why are CHDS teachers so passionate about their school, its programs, and its students? In their own words: small class sizes and ample time for planning . . . differences are celebrated . . . independence from standardized testing, allowing for the investigation of issues in depth, which helps to strengthen and develop critical thinking and analytical skills . . . student-led conferences [grades 6-8] provide students with the opportunity to reflect on their progress and identify areas of growth.
Teacher Pearl Bailes works with 4th graders on leaf identification. [Photo credit: Laura Nakatani.]
This year, CHDS welcomes three new teachers and a new school counselor. Jill Rosenthal joins Toria Simpson in the PreK/Kindergarten classroom. Jill has a Master’s in Education and has taught in Portland, Oregon. George Watson is Ginny Montminy’s new teaching partner in first grade. A professional musician with a Master’s in Education, George has traveled extensively in Central America, China, and Kenya. Upper School Drama Teacher Adrienne Nelson brings with her 5 years of experience as a Teaching Artist working with students at the Smithsonian, Arena Stage, Shake-
home for anywhere from one to 30 years!” – Jane Angarola. CHDS, 210 South Carolina Ave., SE; 202-3869919. janea@chds.org.
Brent Elementary News New Chinese Language Teacher Joins Brent When school started on August 23rd students at Robert Brent Elementary School – DCPS a museum magnet school – welcomed a new Chinese language teacher for the 2010-2011 school year. This is school’s second year in a row where
Brent students welcome the school’s new Chinese teacher
speare Theatre Company, Young Playwrights’ Theater, Washington National Opera, the Shakespeare in the Schools Program, and more. School Counselor Kristin Pillay has two Master’s degrees (Education and Social Work). She taught and served as Counselor at a local charter school, and recently learned outdoor survival skills at a camp in Wyoming! New Head of School Jason Gray noted that “the CHDS community has never shied away from the energy and excitement that change can bring. I know you will help new faculty and staff feel at home in our community, and welcome back those teachers and staff who have made CHDS their
Brent Elementary was chosen to receive a time full time Chinese language teacher from the State Department’s Teachers of Critical Languages Program. Brent was chosen among hundreds of school across the nation who applied to participate in the program. The school’s new Chinese teacher Cui Jiangwei is from Harbin and holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Teaching from Heilongjiang University. She has been teaching English for nine years and is currently teaching at Anjing Primary School, Harbin. Brent students from preschool to 5th grade will have Chinese instruction integrated with the classroom curriculum. Further, Ms. Cui will teach several Chinese classes capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 141
kidsfamily school notes
Two Rivers Public Charter School Board of Trustees President, Becky Skinner, welcomes family and friends to the Middle School Graduation.
after school including language, art, music, and other culture programs. Dr. Cheryl Wilhoyte, Brent’s Principal said “Through the Chinese language program students are experiencing unique learning and participating in a cultural exchange that will benefit them as lifelong learners. Also, Brent students will be prepared to meet the foreign language requirements for the new rigorous International Baccalaureate program at our current feeder schools – Jefferson and Eliot-Hine.” Since arriving in the United States this summer, Brent families and teachers have already been working hard to make sure she feels right at home – through numerous potlucks, outings and other fun excursions. “It’s a great honor for us to open up our home and welcome Ms. Cui. We are also grateful for the unique opportunity that our children will have this year by learning so much from her,” said Seema Gajwani, a Brent parent. –Angie Lundberg. Robert Brent Elementary School, 301 North Carolina Avenue, SE, serves students in grades PK-3 through 5th grade. www. brentelementary.org; 202-698-3363. 142 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Tyler Elementary News Big Changes at Tyler After a marathon summer of construction, a newly renovated Tyler Elementary opened its doors to students to start the 2010/11 school year. The interior was completely reworked with reconfigured classrooms, improved lighting, and a bright, welcoming lobby. This year also brings changes to the front office where incoming principal Jennifer Frentress will take the helm with newly-named assistant principal Shawn Bender. Principal Frentress comes to Tyler from Forest Grove, Oregon where she served as the Director of Curriculum Instruction. She has more than 11 years of teaching experience and was a vice-principal for curriculum at Franklin High School in Portland. Ms. Fentress hit the ground running when she started at Tyler in early August, navigating the final stages of the renovation and preparing for the opening day of school. “I tend to be a bit of a workaholic,” she said. “So I’m glad that in my profession, things are never boring – there’s always a challenge.”
Assistant Principal Bender’s background includes teaching experience at elementary schools in Brooklyn, New York and Atlanta, GA. He was a participant in the New Leaders for New Schools - a national leadership training program for future urban school principals. With new facilities and new leadership, the Tyler community is looking forward to a great school year! - Suzanne Wells and Ryan Cree. Tyler Elementary, 1001 G St. SE. tylerpta@hotmail.com.
Two Rivers News Congratulations to the First Graduating Class! On June 17, 2010, Two Rivers Public Charter School had the distinct pleasure of celebrating its very first eighth grade graduation! What an amazing accomplishment! When the school first opened its doors in 2004, this seemed merely a dream. Everyone is very proud of the graduates: Congratulations to the Class of 2010: Journey Banks-Stewart – Phelps High School
Anthony Brown – William E. Doar, Jr. Public Charter School for the Performing Arts Shadae Capers – The Hospitality High School of Washington Zameer Joaquin – Capital City Public Charter High School Kevon Johnson – DeMatha Catholic High School Aliyah Kamara – Washington Mathematics Science Technology Public Charter High School Kadil Ladson – Bishop Ireton High School Mason Loots – School Without Walls High School Toni McMillian - Washington Mathematics Science Technology Public Charter High School Deja Mosley – Washington Latin Public Charter High School James Oliver - School Without Walls High School Nathaniel Oliver – Duke Ellington School of the Arts Marcus Penny - Washington Mathematics Science Technology Public Charter High School Naudica Souder – Collegiate Academy – Friendship Public Charter High School DeVonte Thomas – Maya Angelou Public Charter High School Dominic Wallace - Collegiate Academy – Friendship Public Charter High School Jordan Washington - Washington Mathematics Science Technology Public Charter High School Kourtney Washington - The Hospitality Public Charter School of Washington
Transition to Middle School Two Rivers Middle School students will be heading off for some team building and adventure their first week of school. All 6-8th graders will spend the week at North Bay, a camp that provides life-changing adventures for middle school students at that pivotal moment in their lives. The purpose is to strengthen ties among the students and encourage continued citizenship and community within the middle school. - Barbra Silva. TRPCS, 1227 4th St., NE; tworiverspcs.org; 202-5464477
Maury Elementary Creative Curriculum – GOLD! Maury was honored to have been chosen as a pilot school for the Creative Curriculum Gold Assessment and a partnership with Teaching Strategies last year. The cutting edge pilot program was such a huge success that DCPS has adopted it for preschool and pre-k across the city! Maury parents and teachers worked together on a grant last year that earned $25,000 in classroom materials and extra professional development for this program, an approach to teaching and learning that develops the whole child and provides teachers and parents with strategies on supporting and enabling student progress and discovery.
Spanish & P.E. – Finding Funds Throughout the 20092010 year, parents taught Spanish and French within the classrooms; P.E. was a full-time position. This year, Maury will make the most of funding by sharing two teachers with other schools, and will now offer Spanish as part of its weekly specials routine for all students, like music, P.E., library, and art. Native Spanish speaker Manny Serrano will teach all students Spanish, and Carolyn Hunt will be the new part-time P.E. teacher.
New Resident Principal Maury is happy to welcome Tui Roper, a resident principal who will train under the tutelage of Ms. AlbertGarvey, who will serve as her mentor for New Leaders for New Schools.
Calendar of Maury Events •
Sept. 12 – Maury Day at Nationals Park. See www. m a u r ye l e m e n t a r y. c o m capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 143
kidsfamily school notes knowledge of the whole curricular and human developmental continuum. Additionally, Mr. Mehigan was the founder and administrator of two small, classical liberal arts schools: Washington Latin Grammar School in McLean, VA and Pope John Paul II Academy (H.S.) in La Plata, MD. Mr. Mehigan holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Drama from Illinois Wesleyan University, a Master of Science in Special Education from Hunter CollegeCity University of New York, and a postgraduate professional certificate in School Administration from George Mason University. Currently, he is a candidate for a Master of Liberal Studies degree in Classical Civilizations at Georgetown University where his research involves the influence of the Roman poet Ovid on the work of the Elizabethan English dramatists. Mr. Mehigan and his wife, Mary, have four children, one of whom is a student at St. Anselm’s (Form V). The Mehigans reSt. Anselm’s New Head of Middle School, Thomas J. Mehigan side in McLean, VA where they are members of St. John the Beloved Parish. St. Anselm’s Abbey School is an indeor your favorite Maury family for tickets. $10 pendent, Roman Catholic school for academically each. Game start 1:35 p.m. gifted boys in grades 6 – 12, located on a quiet, 43• Oct. 2 – Maury Yard & Bake Sale. The triangle acre campus in NE Washington, DC. For more park at A St. & N. Carolina Ave., NE between information about the school, please contact E.V. 13th and 14th Sts. NE. Cull your closets to Downey, Director of Admissions, at admissions@ make room for new stuff (tax deductible donasaintanselms.org. tions)! From 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. • Oct. 2 – TB Testing. Same time and location as Yard & Bake Sale. $15 cash, receipt provided. • Oct. 4 - TB follow up and DCPS fingerprinting. Get your negative TB test results onsite, Welcome Back River Park Nursery School’s birthday bear is and fingerprinting is free of charge. At Maury awake and ready to welcome students back from from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. summer vacation. After the annual potluck picnic, • Oct. 23 – Fall Festival and Recipe Cook-off. So children and parents will take a peek into the classmuch fun – save the date! room to get excited about the new school year. Field -Heather Schoell. For more information on Maury trips, fun programs and several community events Elementary, go to www.mauryelementary.com, call including the Harvest Yard & Bake sale at Eastern 202-698-3838, or visit the campus and Principal CarMarket and the annual Sock Hop are planned for olyne Albert-Garvey at 1250 Constitution Ave., NE. the school year. - Suzanne Nelson. RPNS, 212 East Capitol St., NE. The school operates with 3, 4, or 5 day programs from 9 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. from Sept. through May. www.riverparknurseryschool.org or New Head of Middle School Annoounced St. Anselm’s Abbey School is pleased to an- call 202 546-7767.-
River Park Nursery School
St. Anselm’s
nounce their new Head of the Middle School, Thomas J. Mehigan. Mr. Mehigan brings more than twenty-five years of teaching experience—in the Arlington County school system, the Lab School of Washington, and the League School in Brooklyn, NY — to St. Anselm’s. In this age of specialization, he has methodically carved out a career that has given him the opportunity to teach students at every grade level, K-12, allowing him to have firsthand 144 ★ HillRag | September 2010
Bertha B. Williams Academy Opening Of The Bertha B. Williams Academy The Bertha B. Williams Academy, a non-profit educational organization in the District of Columbia, recently opened at 1720 Minnesota Avenue SE. This is the first tuition-free private school serving pre-kindergarten through 3rd grade in the commu-
nity. The fiscal operation of the school comes from private investors, donations, endowments, grants, and fundraisers. While the District schools have shown some academic success, many historical problems persist, including troubling education gaps between the wealthy and the poor. According to Dr. Lois Williams, Founder and Chairman of the Board for The Bertha B. Williams Academy, “The founders of The Bertha B. Williams Academy are concerned with these issues and their implications for the future. We plan to address these problems by providing excellence in education to inner-city youth. We believe in providing every student success in learning with a strong commitment to educating children from all walks of life.” The Academy is designed to provide students with a rigorous, college-preparatory curriculum, comprised of core subjects required to gain admission into even the most selective private or public high schools. At The Bertha B. Williams Academy, we see education as more than the mere accumulation of facts and scores on standardized tests. Our curriculum framework is designed to encourage students to think independently and creatively, to hone their analytical and rhetorical skills, and to consider the interconnectedness of all academic disciplines. Parents have commented, the Bertha B. Williams Academy “will be a welcome change to have access to a tuition-free high performing education in Ward 8. Quality early childhood through middle school education in this neighborhood will surely make a positive difference in the lives of children and families living in Ward 8. The Williams Academy provides an opportunity for individualized attention that is specifically designed to meet a child’s personal academic and non-academic needs.” Children can be registered at 1720 Minnesota Avenue SE, Washington, DC, 20020, between 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Mon-Fri.. If you would like more information about The Bertha B. Williams Academy, to schedule an interview for a teaching or staffing position, or to enroll a child, please contact: Dr. Lois S. Williams, Board Chairperson, 202-320-0423 drwilliams@bbwacademy.org, www.bbwacademy.org. The School Notes column consist of interesting school news about student initiatives, awards, special programs, faculty change, class projects, field trips etc. Submissions can be emailed to schools@hillrag.com and should be approximately 350 words and include labeled pictures with captions as well as the name of the author, school’s address and a contact email or website. They are due the second Thursday of the [prior] month, COB. Items may be edited for space or omitted if submitted past deadline. -SBJ ★
Health & Fitness Bringing Food From Farm to Market A Visit to Cedarbrook Farm By Pattie Cinelli
O
n Saturday and Sunday mornings David Ober is awake at 5. Before he heads out from his farm in Kearneysville, WV near Harpers Ferry to farmers markets in DC, he has to check and fill the mud pits, hand feed some of his pigs, pack his coolers and load his truck with his meat – all kinds of sausages, pork chops, hams, ham steak, loin and shoulder roasts and bacon. He then drives the hour and a half to H Street, NE on Saturdays and Dupont Circle on Sundays to sell his pork at FreshFarm Markets. David and his wife Sheilah Goodman are owners of Cedarbrook Farm, a place where their pigs roam free to forage in the fenced woods along the hills on the 38.5-acre farm. When I visited Cedarbrook this summer, David was on his tractor cutting hay. A neighbor had just dumped chips from cut up trees that fell during a recent storm that will be used for his pigs’ beds. When we walked to the pens about 20 pigs, a boar (intact male) and several 10-day old babies were hanging out in the mud pits. A sow (female who has been bred at least once) was in the breeding pen. The rest of the pigs (he has an average of 75) were in the woods keeping cool. “I decide when to wean the piglets, which is very different from a commercial farm” explained David. “Mine is a more natural process.” David’s pigs experience no confinement. They receive no vaccinations and, in the five years he’s been raising pigs, he’s administered no antibiotics. “My pigs don’t generally get sick.” He doesn’t clip their tails or teeth, which is often done on commercial farms. “I think that approach is wrong. It’s all about the money. It’s the same price per pound no matter what the quality of the meat is. It’s all about numbers.” David takes about 100 pigs to slaughter a year. They weigh between
A young Tamworth pig enjoys a romp in the pasture. Photo: Bernie Prince
320 and 380 lbs. and are between a year and 2-years-old. “I don’t take pigs because they are a certain weight. I only slaughter them when I need them. I average six every three to four weeks.” He takes the hogs (pigs when they get to market weight) for slaughter to a Mennonite family, usually the night before so they experience the least amount of stress and release a minimal amount of stress hormones (hormones and antibiotics can be transmitted from the pigs to those who eat the meat). David and Sheila strongly believe in the value of eating locally grown food. David grew up in Fairfax County. He did not grow up on a farm and no one in his family farmed, but his mom, who grew and canned vegetables and fruit, set the standard and provided his inspiration. “The food I ate was real. It tasted good and was fresh.” When David went to college he was shocked at the quality of food served in the dorms and what he found in supermarkets. “The thought lingered in back of my mind that I needed to take responsibility for
providing some part of my diet.” David bought Cedarbrook in 1984 as an escape from his government job in the city. It wasn’t a working farm and had a more than 240-year-old dilapidated farmhouse. But it had an incredible view of the Shenandoah Mountains. David installed a central heating system in the house, moved in, bought some chickens, planted some vegetables and commuted to the city by train. As a self-taught farmer, David laughed when he told the story of the first time he butchered a chicken. “I had a chicken in one hand, a knife in the other and three books propped open all turned to the page of how to kill a chicken.” Three years later, David temporarily gave up his farm life to attend law school at night where he met Sheilah. Cedarbrook became a weekend getaway. He worked during the day, attended school at night and visited the farm on weekends. Then, when he became a civil litigator for a K Street law capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 145
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Some Facts About Local Food Why does local food at a farmer’s market cost more than supermarket food? Cedarbrook Farm is the fourth local farm I’ve visited in the past three years and that I have written about in my column. As a fitness professional and group exercise instructor I see hundreds of people a year who are trying very hard to stay in shape and stay well. A big part of staying well is being mindful of what we put into our bodies. Yet, often when we talk about what we eat, I hear, “The food is so expensive at a farmer’s market,” or “Organic is just hogwash.” It does make a difference whether you buy pork chops from Safeway or from Cedarbrook Farms. I taste the difference. When I asked Bernie Prince, co-director of FreshFarm Markets (www.freshfarmmarkets.org), here’s what she said: Depending on the season, local food that is grown sustainably and/or organically and purchased at producer-only farmers markets (where the farmer/grower grows what he or she sells from a defined geographic area) will cost more than mass-produced food from a supermarket. Sustainable and organic growing methods are more labor intensive than conventional agriculture and more expensive. There are hidden costs in supermarket foods that have traveled long distances (USA average is 1,500 miles) that include taxes for subsidizing commodity crops (for processed food, not fresh food), highways for long-distance transport of food, and irrigation systems for large-scale farms like those in the Central Valley of California. Other costs of mass produced food that are not reflected in our food bills include damage to the environment (Gulf Coast cleanup is one recent example), loss of farmland and wildlife habitat, food contamination (remember the spinach crisis of 2006, tainted garlic from China), poor nutrition (obesity/diabetes from eating too much processed food) and loss of quality of life (tasteless food). When you buy food from a farmers market, you are paying the true cost of food—you are getting a fresher product that is grown for flavor, picked at the peak of ripeness and is nutritionally superior to 146 ★ HillRag | September 2010
food that has traveled long-distance and sold at a supermarket. The True Cost of Meat Americans eat more meat than any other society on the planet and part of that is because meat is cheap. For most meat in the USA, unless you are purchasing it directly from a farmer at a farmers market, or it is labeled “animal welfare approved,” the animals were most likely raised in confinement and under conditions like CAFO’s (concentrated feeding operations). Under “Animal Welfare Approved,” the animals must be raised on pasture or range (not in cages or large feedlots) by a family farmer. Industrial livestock production relies on feeding corn or soybeans to animals. The low cost of corn and soybeans is made possible by federal subsidies that save industrial meat producers a lot of money. Non-industrial meat producers do not have any of these subsidies because they grow the crops (mostly the grassy pasture) that they feed their livestock. About 60 million hogs are produced and butchered annually in the USA and more than 70% of them are raised in industrial operations, which are subsidized by American taxpayers. These industrial hog operations produce more manure than the carrying capacity of the land, which often means there is groundwater contamination requiring additional taxpayer dollars for waste treatment cleanup. Industrial livestock production relies on very limited breeding stock, unlike the farmer raising animals on pasture. Smallproduction farmers also select breeds that are often of heritage varieties like David Ober’s Tamworth pigs. The quality is reflected in the taste. You may pay more for David’s pork, but you are getting a better product and supporting a family farmer. Shouldn’t the food you put in your body be of the highest quality? References: Putting Meat on the Table: Industrial Farm Animal Production in America, a project of the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Sierra Club’s “True Cost of Food” (www.truecostoffood.org). ★
Pigs enjoy a lazy afternoon. Photo: Bernie Prince
firm he said, “I needed to be in ing to her job as a lawyer at the city. It became out of the Fannie Mae. question for Cedarbrook to be anything other than an occa- The Advent of the Porkers sional weekend place.” But he David purchased his first also said, “It became painfully four weaners (pigs that have obvious while I was practicing been weaned from their mothlaw that I had to find a way to ers), got chickens and continfarm.” He developed a 10-year ued growing vegetables. In the plan to quit his job in the city fall of 2004 he began selling at and make a living as a farmer. FreshFarm Markets. As he became more senior in David keeps his farm the law firm, he spent more small. He says he wants to weekends at the farm. He and be able to do it all himself. his wife had a vegetable garden As the demand for pork rose, that produced so well they be- he eliminated the vegetables. gan selling at a farmer’s marHis ducks were eaten by foxket in Shepherdstown, WVA es and coyotes, and foxes ate in 1995. his chickens. However, DaPart of his plan included vid said, he’s not given up on running a “complete” farm. poultry. “As soon as I solve the “I eat more than vegetables. poacher problem” – he plans to A complete farm includes livestock and poultry. I always envisioned my farm to have it all.” In 2000 when son Max was born, David and Sheilah gave up selling at the market. But he didn’t give up his dream. Four years later (just one year shy of the end of his 10 year-plan) he made the leap – gave up his day job and moved to the farm. Six months later they sold their house in the Health and fitness writer Pattie Cinelli, with a 700 city, Sheilah commut- lb. boar named Pork Belly. Photo: Bernie Prince
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We offer complete Dental Care for adults and children. get guard dogs – “I’ll bring back the chickens,” he says. He’d also like to add ruminants (sheep or goats) to his clan. David’s life as a farmer is very different from what it was as a city lawyer; he says his days are surprisingly balanced and stress free. On the days he doesn’t go to the morning markets, he wakes up about 7. His early morning chores include hand feeding some pigs, checking their water and the mud pits, taking his son to school. During the day, David typically includes cutting and/or baling hay, restocking the market truck, refilling the range feeder (every five days), taking hogs to slaughter, picking up processed meat, repairing fences or machinery, or making something for the farm. In the afternoon he picks up his son and checks the freezers one last time. By late afternoon, all daily chores should be done. “We all love to cook, even 10-year-old Max, who has a marinated shrimp dish we all love.” He even manages to get away each spring with his family for a vacation overseas. Cedarbrook was certified organic until a few years ago. David decided when the federal government took over certification not to participate in the process, which he said, “compromised” the standards. He likes customers at the markets to ask “What does it mean to be organic?” so they can talk through the topic. David sells at the H Street Market on Saturday mornings from 9 to noon; at Dupont Circle on Sunday mornings, and at the White House market on Thursday afternoons. For times and exact locations go to: www.freshfarmmarkets.org. Visit David’s website: www.cedarbrookorganicfarm.com.
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Pattie Cinell has been a personal trainer, yoga and Pilates teacher and fitness lecturer for two decades. She has been writing her health/fitness column for more than 10 years. Email her with questions or column ideas to: fitness@pattiecinelli.com. ★
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athy Gosselin, who is completely blind, sits at one of the computers at downtown DC’s Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library. Suddenly, the JAWS’ screenreader’s metallic-sounding voice reads the text of a page about singer Tracy Chapman. A volunteer in the Adaptive Services Division (ASD) of the D.C. Public Library (DCPL)) system, Gosselin often helps the newly blind learn how to use software programs such as the JAWS screen reader. When Ginnie Cooper, DCPL’s Chief Librarian, arrived in 2006, she increased resources for the Adaptive Services Division: revamping their offices, adding more computers, and providing more sophisticated software. Venetia V. Demson, Chief of the Adaptive Services Division (ASD), arrived at about the same time. DCPL had been serving as the de facto state agency providing federally funded materials to the blind, such as Talking Books, and it served the deaf and physically handicapped. But Demson and her lead librarian for adaptive technologies, Patrick Timony, have been expanding the division’s reach. The ASD offers a Talking Book Club for adults, and chess and Braille book clubs for children who with impaired vision. ASD has brought in sophisticated technologies such as the JAWS screen reader and OPENBOOK scanner reader. ASD’s mission 148 ★ HillRag | September 2010
is expanding to include people with learning disabilities other than reading. (DCPL’s Adult Basic Education division helps adults who need literacy instruction.) But the technologies offered by ASD such as the JAWS and OPENBOOK can help people with cognitive impairments, including veterans with traumatic brain injuries, understand the texts of documents and books. “You’ll see people’s lights go on” as people who are blind or cognitively impaired have webpages or documents read to them by JAWS or OPENBOOK, says Timony. Timony’s background as someone who might have undiagnosed learning difficulties and who led a tumbleweed existence for years makes him sensitive to the needs of ASD users. Eventually, Timony steadied his life, obtained a master’s degree in library science, and found work with DCPL. “I’m here because of self-interest,” says Timony, a recipient of the 2010 Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Awards for Distinguished DC Government Employees. Timony explains that while the technologies offered by ASD can open up new worlds for the disabled, too many technologies are not disabled user-friendly. Many disabled users, lacking home computers, basic computer skills, and with few neighbors having similar disabilities, have led relatively isolated lives. That’s starting to change. “We’re a community place for people in DC who have dis-
on THE
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abilities,” says Demson. ASD hosts Technology Training Sessions twice a month on Saturday afternoons. At one session in July, the ASD office is filled with disabled residents, representatives from technology companies, nonprofit employment agencies, the Internal Revenue Service, a large employer of the disabled, even American University. One ASD user on speakerphone tells about his success in finding a job, and credits ASD for hosting a workshop in March that was very helpful. He urges the audience to develop better skills and to network. ASD has brought web developers together with disabled users to promote greater knowledge of the disabled community’s needs for disabled-friendly technologies as more and more important functions, such as job applications, move online. Timony contends too many disabled people have friends who are disproportionately helpers. Thus, many disabled DCers equate greater empowerment through computer literacy with losing close acquaintances. Actually, he says, “The more they learn, the more friends they’ll have.” Demson’s goal is to increase the accessibility of adaptive technologies throughout DCPL’s neighborhood libraries. She says many DC residents with disabilities, such as older DC residents who are newly blind, can benefit from the technologies and community building ASD offers. “We want the library to be a place where people with disabilities can come, use adaptive technologies, network, learn and enjoy themselves.” For more information go to http://www.dclibrary.org/services/adaptiveservices; or call 202-727-2142; videophone: 202-559-5368; Video Relay Service: 1-866-570-7364, ask for Janice Rosen; TTY: 202-7272255202-727. ★
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Is Your Child a Victim of Bullying? Long Term Effects and How You Can Help by Ronda Bresnick Hauss and Parker Rea
B
ullying is a form of abuse. It can cause lasting damage to its victim. When a child is bullied, they are subject to repeated, aggressive physical or verbal contact that has a hostile intent. There is a power difference between victim and bully -- and the child that is being victimized suffers great distress -often in silence. While conflict is a normal part of growing up -- and difficult moments with classmates can have valuable lessons to teach -- when a child experiences a chronic state of conflict with others, there are serious emotional, social and academic consequences. Unfortunately, the repeated, aggressive treatment of one child by another, has been a part of school reality for years. As more attention is paid to this deep-rooted problem, we have discovered that it is much more detrimental to children than previously thought. The negative consequences affect everyone -- bullies, victims and bystanders.
How Bullying Effects Children Children who have been bullied often struggle with anxiety and depression, underachievement, low selfesteem, and loneliness. They may also suffer from more physical health problems than other children - headaches, abdominal pain, nausea, and recurrent upper respiratory infections. They may be more apt to run away from home, and may be more vulnerable to suicidal thoughts and feelings. Studies show that victims of bullying have difficulty establishing social relationships. Bullying teaches the victim that they are not part of the group, but are an outcast or outsider. It can also teach the victim that they are not safe in the world and that they are powerless to defend themselves. A victim of bullying is seen by the bully as weak, 150 ★ HillRag | September 2010
and this child is vulnerable to believing that what the bully says about them is true. It has been said that bullying is an attempt to instill fear and selfloathing - and such an experience can damage a child’s self-identity. While bullies may gain a temporary sense of power through their behavior, statistics show that bullies ultimately are at greater risk for being involved in crime, delinquency and alcohol abuse. Those who bully have been described as angry, depressed, aggressive, hostile and domineering individuals who show high levels of acting out and high conflict within friendships. Statistics show that aggressive behavior at the age of 8 was a powerful predictor of criminality and violent behavior by the age of 30.
mental health problems are also more prevalent. Victims of chronic childhood bullying are more likely to think about suicide as adults compared with those who weren’t bullied, while former bullies are more likely to be convicted of criminal charges. Other long term difficulties for victims of bullying include: reduced occupational opportunities (especially if school performance was effected); lingering feelings of anger, bitterness and desire for revenge; difficulty trusting people, increased tendencies to be a loner, fear and avoidance of new social situations and an increased chance of further victimization.
Long Term Effects of Bullying
Early intervention is the most effective tool to reducing bullying, before a pattern of behavior becomes established. Victims often respond to their situation with silence, afraid that their victimizers will retaliate if they speak out. This means that it is important to teach children how to deal with bullies early on. Some protective skills to teach our children include: instilling self-confidence; helping them to establish good
Researchers have studied the longterm effects of bullying, in part, by asking adults to recount their school-age bullying experiences and examining whether these experiences can be connected to social and emotional adjustment. They have found that memories of childhood bullying are associated with high rates of depression, social anxiety, and perfectionism in adulthood. Poor self-esteem and other
What Can Be Done to Help Victims of Bullying?
social skills; teaching them to speak out for themselves; and teaching them to seek help, if harassed, from you and other caring adults. If you suspect your child is being bullied: • Make sure your child knows being bullied is not his or her fault. • Let your child know that he or she does not have to face being bullied alone. • Discuss ways of responding to bullies. • Teach your child to be assertive. • Tell your child not to react, but to walk away and get help if pursued. • Tell your child to report bullying immediately to a trusted adult. • Contact the school/teacher. If you suspect that your child is being bullied, your own communication will be critical. Meet with your child’s teacher and/or school counselor to share your concerns and make an action plan that will help your child feel safe at school. Bullying is not an inevitable part of life at school. Rather, it is every student’s right to feel safe and they must feel safe to learn.
M
Ronda Bresnick Hauss is a licensed clinical social worker and the founder of the Quiet Waters Center for Trauma, Stress and Resilience, on Capitol Hill. She can be reached at: 202-544-5050 and is on the web at: HYPERLINK “http:// www.quietwaterscenter.com” www.quietwaterscenter.com. Parker Kennedy Rea, PsyD, is a licensed psychologist with a practice on Capitol Hill. She works with children, adolescents and adults in individual psychotherapy, integrating cognitive-behavioral and insight-oriented approaches to address a wide variety of issues. She can be reached at 202-730-6955, email at dr.pkrea@ gmail.com, or on the web at: www.hillpsychotherapy.com. ★
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AIR & HEATING
Quality Wall-Units • Built Ins • Home Office Areas • Custom Built Kitchen Cabinets
AIR CONDITIONING
Maid for a Day Cleaning Services • • • • •
One-time, weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly Move in – Move out Residential and Offices Work Guaranteed Supplies & Equipment Provided
PHOTOS WITH REFERENCES FREE ESTIMATES
Bonded & Insured For Free Estimates
Please visit my Website before you call.
202-543-0087
Carl • (301) 449-5964
Polar Bear
AIR CONDITIONING PLUMBING & HEATING, INC.
202-333-1310 www.polar-bear-hvac.com
PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER
www.carlscustomwoodworking.com
Additions • Kitchens • Bathrooms • Basements Renovations • Decks • Patios • Porticoes Painting • Fine Carpentry Custom Bookcases & Built Ins • Murphy Beds Mantels • Furniture Restoration & More
•
Over
AIR CONDITIONING & HEATING
• •
LICENSED BONDED INSURED FALL & WINTER SPECIALS FREE ESTIMATES
Service, repairs, installations, replacement on furnaces, a/c, water, heaters. Residential Boiler Specialist. 40years experience. Free estimates. Call John Fulcher at 202258-6158.
We use the latest line of green products and applications Scheduled or last minute move-in/move-out We do it all, big or small, from the routine to specialized cleaning Available weekends! Residential and Commercial
25 years experience
Grace Custom Build Professional Remodeling & Design
240-550-3177 gracecustombuild@yahoo.com Licensed & Insured • References
703.486.1234 www.domesticall.com Bonded, licensed and insured Celebrating our 25th year!
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 151
a clean house........ a clean mind........
12% off any job over $500
A Cleaning Service, Inc.
F&C
• • • • • • • •
Home Improvement, LLC 2 PROFESSIONAL CLEANERS 1 hour ......................$65 1.5 hours ..................$85 2 hours.....................$105* *Please call for estimates over 2 hours
* customized services to fit your cleaning needs * complete residential services, including laundry & ironing * commercial & janitorial special rates * major credit cards accepted * licensed, bonded & insured
703.892.8648 www.acleaningserviceinc.com satisfaction guaranteed serving DC, MD & VA since 1985
301.651.7515
www.MaidInDc.com
Kitchens & Bath Experts Renovations and Remodeling including Plumbing & Electrical
202. 492.9513 No Job too Small! 12 years experience licensed • bonded insured • References
Home Improvement Kitchens & Baths Flooring & Tile Plumbing • Electrical Carpentry • Renovations Landscaping • Painting Windows & Doors And Much More
HERNANDEZ Construction Painting, Carpentry, Kitchens, Bathrooms, Basements, Decks, Drywall, Remodeling
Free Estimates & Competitive Prices
HIRE LOCALLY!
Maurilio Hernandez
SMALL JOBS SPECIALISTS
FIND BUSINESSES FOR ALL YOUR NEEDS IN THE HILL RAG CLASSIFIEDS EACH MONTH CONTRACTORS
Cell:
202-207-4799
• Kitchens, Baths & Basement • All Home Repairs • Interior/Exterior Painting • Fixer Uppers
Ask for Kelvit SERVING CAPITOL HILL SINCE 1985
202-388-9141 licensed, bonded, insured
HODGSON DESIGN/BUILD, L.L.C
Award-winning Quality
25 years of service on Capitol Hill
Larry Hodgson | 202.236.5800
H0kilian@aol.com
~ All Carpentry & Remodeling ~ All Masonry & Brick Pointing ~ Interior & Exterior Custom Painting ~ All Roofing & Rubber Roofs ~ Concrete Driveway ~ Kitchens ~ Bathrooms ~ Chimney Services
Call
202-674-0300 • 301-929-0664 TDR Group, LLC Kitchen & Bath Specialists Design and Remodeling Services Call Us Today!
Distinctive Kitchens | Historic Restoration
202-725-4050
Additions | Master Suites
www.tdrgdesign.com Licensed - Bonded - Insured
Painting, Carpentry & Renovations
RENDEROS CLEANING SERVICE, INC.
Agmar Raymundo R e s i d e n t ia l & Co m m e r ci a l Customized cleaning according to your needs and budget References Available • Free Estimates Licensed, Bonded & Insured
703-864-7634 info@palomascleaningservice.com www.palomascleaningservice.com
152 ★ HillRag | September 2010
REMODELING Kitchens & Basements Panting & Drywall Ceramic & General repair
PATRICK'S
HOME IMPROVEMENT Complete Home Improvement Services Kitchens & Bathrooms Basements & Additions
Free estimates Licensed, Bonded & Insured
240-281-0900 301-942-1548
301.943.8186 • 301.515.5987 www.patrickshomeimprovement.com NEW WEBSITE COMING SOON! Licensed, Bonded & Insured
THE HILL’S ELECTRICIAN
F&C
Home Improvement, LLC
Since 1990
www.wilcox-electric.com Kitchens & Bath Experts
202-546-1010
202.492.9513 Renovations and Remodeling including Plumbing & Electrical
Residential & Commercial New Work • Rewiring • Repairs • Interior/Exterior Lighting
Awarded the Super Service Award from Angie's List in 2007, 2008, and 2009. Stephen D. Wilcox Master Electrician References Available Licensed - Insured - Bonded
No Job too Small! 12 years experience
Jim's Handyman Service, LLC Too busy to do it yourself?
licensed • bonded •
Installation of Electrical Fixtures and Appliances • Window Treatments & Furniture Assembling • Fix Plumbing & Change Locks • Hang Pictures & Repair Cabinets • Painting
202-370-7902 www.jimzinn.com
FLOORS
•
Suburban Welding Company
references
®
Welding & Ornamental Iron Work
Handyman Masters 20 years experience working in fine homes like yours
Bathrooms • Kitchens Masonry • Handyman • Roofing
• Free estimates • No job is too small Affordable rates • Licensed, insured and bonded
PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER
insured
IRON WORK
10% off any job over $1,000
s
HANDYMAN
ELECTRICIAN
• • • • •
Repairs of Original Cast Iron Staircases Window bars and door security gates Handrailings & Stair Railings Fences, Sidewalk Gates, Tree Box Fences DC code approved bedroom window security bars • Excavating, back hoe services and tree stump grinding • Certified welding
A+ Rating
NWM COMPANY GENERAL CONTRACTORS & HANDYMEN
Property Management’s General Contractor Since 1971 Kitchen Cabinetry and CounterTops Flooring: ceramic, vinyl tile, linoleum, marble and quarry tile Door and Window Repair and Replacement Locks and Emergency Repairs Plaster, Drywall and Painting
Please call to discuss your needs
“I have worked with Masters over the years and have been extremely happy with the workmanship. They are very professional”. - Georgetown Resident
24-hours, 7-day service Free estimates
703-765-9344 www.suburbanweldingcompany.com
202.528.0621 HandymanMastersllc.com Licensed • Bonded • Insured
INTERIOR DESIGN
Our website just got a whole lot better!! capitalcommunitynews.com
301-277-9292 Fax 301-209-8248
Heritage Wood Floors, Inc. Installation • Sanding • Refinishing • Hardwood Mouldings Free Estimates • MHIC #120190
301-855-3006 888-227-2882
RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL Moving, Hauling, Landscaping, Painting, Cleaning, Plumbing, Electrical, Cooling, Heating, Masonry, Carpentry, Roof, Floor, Wall. Call 202.368.2628, 240.281.5513 or 703.789.4445. Email GCMANAGERS@aol.com
E D D I E Home Improvement
Residential Floors Dedicated to Perfection • Sanding and Refinishing • Installation • Repairs • Cleaning & Waxing
· Painting Interior & Exterior · Carpentry · Drywall · Moulding · Floors · Hardwood · Kitchen & Bath Remodel · Plumbing · Doors & Windows · Brick Pointing · Patios
7 days a week - Free Estimates Reasonable Rates Residential & Commercial
(301) 990-7775 Family owned and operated 3 Generations of Experience
Free Estimates Cell
202-247-0104
15% off all jobs over $1000
Open a Window of Possibilities
JACKS
Create a home that nurtures you With the assistance of
Kathleen Soloway Interior Designer/Psychotherapist
Design for Change 202 543-7040 ksoloway@designforchange.net www.designforchange.net capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 153
KITCHEN
START HAVING THE YARD OF YOUR DREAMS · Comprehensive Design and Maintenance Services · Installation, arbors, retaining walls, walkways, lighting, water features · Patios, roof top gardens, townhomes, single family homes • Trees & shrubs, formal & informal gardens • Custom Masonry, Fencing and Iron work · Restoration and Enhancement
MOVING & HAULING COMPANY • Bulk Trash • Appliances • Basement Furniture • Yard Cleanup • Weekly Trash Pickups • Evictions • Demolition • Local or Long Distance • Residential or Commercial MD DC VA • 24 Hour Same Day Service “No job too small or big”
202.396.0105 license # 1948
JUNK / BULK TRASH REMOVAL
Redefining Beauty One Client at a Time
301.642.5182 www.thomaslandscapes.com
THOMAS LANDSCAPES
Specializing in urban landscapes since 1989
LANDSCAPING REGINALD’S LANDSCAPING Specializing in perennial gardens, landscape design, yard maintenance, seasonal contracts-free estimates for major cleanups, spring/fall cleanups, mulching, pruning, trimming, weeding, debris removal, leaf removal, light hauling, planting and much, Call today! 301-420-7027, 301-908-8331.
Why Pay a Lot for a Beautiful Yard?
Derek Thomas / Principal - Certified Professional Horticulturist, Master Gardener. Member of the MD Nursery and Landscape Association & the Association of Professional Landscape Designers
W.F. Bowman Landscaping 202-234-6282 Yard Clean Up • Sodding Mulching • Trimming Shrubs Aeration • Dethatching Planting Leaf Removal Mowing Seeding & Fertilizing Hauling
Edge & Mulch Existing Beds, Pruning & Leaf Removal
All Masonry Work
Lawn Maintenance Contracts Available Powerwashing • WE DO IT ALL
• Tuckpointing - Historical Restoration • Pavers & Patios • Driveways • Basement Excavation • Garages & Waterproofing • Retaining Walls • Paint Removal Licensed • Bonded • Insured Free estimates with picture portfolio Speak Directly to Owner, John
MASONRY T.R. Sellheim Construction, Inc.
202.543.2004 • 202.345.7523
CONTRACTING Masonry & Concrete Contractor LOWEST RATES ON THE HILL GUARANTEED!
20% TO 40% OFF SCHEDULED SATURDAY PICK UPS 5% TO 10% OFF EVERYDAY PICKUP • • • •
Same Day Service Available We demo, load and haul concrete, brick, dirt, and trash. Handyman Services Bobcat Loader for Hire
WE ARE THE GOOD GUYS
BOYD F. GRAY 202-561-0498 202-210-7439 (cell)
202-528-2877 • 202-544-1813
$50 OFF Fall Clean Up Package
LRS, INC. (since 1988)
JHI
MOVING & HAULING
• Local & Long Distance
When Trust Matters Most
Over 30 years of Experience Free Estimates • Work Guaranteed Licensed • Bonded • Insured
SHORT NOTICE MOVES
Residential, Office, Commercial Local & Up to 300-mile Radius Expert Packing & Unpacking Temporary Storage by the Day Packing Materials Available
202.368.7492 Your first step to preservation
Excellent References Every Single Job is Supervised
New & Restoration Historic Pointing
202-362-1700
FOR A STRESS FREE MOVE
Licensed & Insured Hourly Rates
• Packing Service • Pianos and Big Objects • Affordable
15 years of experience
CONTINENTAL MOVERS
www.continentalmovers.net • Cmora53607@msn.com
202-438-1489
301-340-0602
20 years of experience in the District
• Re-pointing with historical method mortar • Strip painting (remove paint) • Rebuilding arches and historical architecture • Restoration cleaning on historical brick and stone • Stone Masonry
202-544-9301
bricklands@msn.com www.bricklandsandsons.com 154 ★ HillRag | September 2010
HIRE LOCALLY! FIND BUSINESSES FOR ALL YOUR NEEDS IN THE HILL RAG CLASSIFIEDS EACH MONTH
Tenly Bulk Trash Removal & Moving DC
MD
VA
Junk Removal – House *Office *Apt Yard Contract Service – Demolition & Construction Estate Clean Out
(202)437-4413 24 hours • license #2106
Y
E
HIRE LOCALLY! FIND BUSINESSES FOR ALL YOUR NEEDS IN THE HILL RAG CLASSIFIEDS EACH MONTH
Ricardo Ramos PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER Our Prices Won’t be Beat!
DANIEL PARKS Roofing & Gutters
Free Estimates Insured • Licensed
PAINTING
DISCOUNT PAINTINGS & POWER WASH
NO JOB TOO SMALL!!!
Remodeling • Painting General Repairs
“Stopping Leaks is Our Specialty”
EMERGENCY REPAIRS
Inquire about our cleaning company
WE DO IT ALL
RamosPainting1956@live.com
301-661-3515 301-680-2065
WHS PLUMBING & HEATING Superior Service and Quick Response
Residential Only – Free Estimates 30 Years Experience!
PEST CONTROL
Tony: 202-427-6204 References Available
F L K Termite, Pest &
We are Repiping & Drain Cleaning Specialists
Rodent Control • Residential • Commercial • Insured • DC LIC 4748 • Established 1974 Interior & Exterior Custom Painting Restoration & Repair Services
202-965-1600 www.jfmeyer.com
More than just killing bugs, we take care of your home • Babies, children, pets, no worries, customized treatments • Latest environmentally sound methods and products • One time, monthly, bimonthly, quarterly, yearly LICENSED & INSURED
· Competitive On The Spot Pricing · Same Day, Nights, Weekends & Emergency Service · Licensed Plumbers and Gasfitters · Underground Domestic Water and Sewer Line Leak Detection · Underground Pipe Locator
Hill Family Owned & Operated Call William at
(202) 255-9231 20 years of experience Licensed, Bonded and Insured LSDBE Certified
www.whsplumbingandheating.com
Serving Capitol Hill for 50 Years
Free Estimates
301.273.5740 301.576.3286
OSEPH C. BAUER, INC.
PLUMBING
Plumbing and Heating Licensed and Insured
WAIT NO MORE PLUMBING 24 hour plumbing service. Master plumber. No job too small. DC license # 1164. Darrell White. 202-575-1885 or 202-812-7115 (tf)
DC 202.547.3477 MD 301.420.3200
ROOFING/WATER PROOFING Just Say I Need A Plumber®
Dial A Plumber, LLC®
• Licensed Gas Fitter • Water Heater • Boiler Work • Serving DC • References John • Drain Service • Furness Repair & Replacement
PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER
Specializing in Residential & Commercial Flat Roof Systems Kenny
202-251-1479 L U M M E R
Star Roofing Company RELIABLE
Licensed Bonded Insured
DC P
ALL TYPES OF ROOFING REPAIRS
’
S
L
I C E N S E
#707
RUBBER & FLAT ROOFS WATER PROOFING SLATE ROOFS LEAK REPAIRS METAL ROOFS GUTTER REPAIRS SHINGLE ROOFING CHIMNEY REPAIRS FACIAL/SOFFITS ALUMINUM ROOF COATING
202-489-1728 Licensed, Bonded & Insured Free Estimates Senior and Government Discount 10% SPECIALIZING IN SEAMLESS GUTTERS
Keith Roofing EXPERT WORKMANSHIP AT REASONABLE PRICES! Residential/Commercial Over 40 years in Business Chimney Repairs Storm & Wind Damage Repair
• New or Re-Roofing • Tear-Off & Replacement • Flat Roof Specialist • Copper, Tin, Sheet Metal & Rolled • Seamless & Flat Roofs • Re-Sealing • Tar, Asphalt, Gravel, Hot Coats • Modified Bitumen • Ask about our gutter specials Insurance Claims • Free Estimates • 24Hr. Service
Fully Insured • Licensed • Bonded “No Job Too Large or Small” Senior & Military Discounts Available!
202-543-6383
202-486-7359
All work done by owner • Free Estimates Insured • Licensed • Bonded
All Work Inspected by Owner...Deals Directly with Customers! All Work Fully Guaranteed
capitalcommunitynews.com ★ 155
FLAT ROOF SPECIALIST
get results!
WE STOP LEAKS! • Roof Repairs • Roof Coatings • Rubber • Metal • Slate
• Tiles • Chimneys • Gutters • Waterproofing • Roof Certifications
We Do Everything! 75
BOYD CONSTRUCTION INC.
years in service
LIC. BONDED. INS
BBB
ISAAC HOLDEN Roofing, Gutters & Painting OVER 30
Place a classifed today! R.W. ROOFING
YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
DC Lic. 7610
Member
202-223-ROOF (7663)
A.A.
Lic. #9360
Est. 1974
ROOFING CO. ROOFING Shingles • Metal • Slate Slag • Rubber
Prices too high? Give AA a try!
• New Roofs & Maintenance • Seamless Gutters • Waterproofing • Chimney • Brick Pointing • Interior & Exterior Painting
We offer the most competitive price in town. All roofing & rubber roofs. We do everything: replacements, repairs, maintenance and coatings. see our ad under general contracting. 202-674-0300 or 301-929-0664.
Alex Williams
• Water Proofing Free Estimates
(202) 256 6981 (301) 858 6990
“Great Roofing is our # 1 Priority” • • • • •
For All your Roofing Needs
· · · ·
All Types of Roofing Gutters Water Proofing Family Owned and Operated
Senior & Government Discount
10% off
202-528-2877
WeldING Suburban Welding Company
Experts in roof repair Roof coating Roof replacements Gutters Spouts
Recommended roofer of Capitol Hill Village Licensed-Insured-Bonded
202
271
4377
Family owned and operated for nearly 90 years. Call for now a FREE ROOF INSPECTION
443.968.0311
Member Capitol Hill Association of Merchants and Professional Services (CHAMPS)
Johnston & Johnston Roofing
24 hr emergency service Free estimates licensed, bonded & insured
“Try a new coating vs. a roof replacement.”
202-746-8051 WOOD & WHITACRE HISTORIC RENOVATIONS 20 years on the Hill Slate - Tile - Copper Specializing in all Flat Roof Systems and Leaks Free Estimates • Work Guaranteed Licensed Bonded Insured
JEFFREY WOOD
cell
301-674-1991 202-828-0713
www.wood-whitacre.com
• FLAT ROOF SPECIALIST • WATERPROOFING • BASEMENT LEAKS • ALUMINUM ASPHALT COATING • SLATE REPAIRS • SHINGLE REPAIRS
• CHIMNEY REPAIR • BRICK POINTING • GUTTER REPAIR/GUTTER REPLACEMENT • INQUIRE ABOUT OUR SPECIALS • FREE ESTIMATES
FREE MAINTENANCE!
Licensed • Bonded • Insured Family owned & operated 40 Years Experience
202-607-4038
www.JohnstonandJohnstonRoofing.com
®
Welding & Ornamental Iron Work • • • • •
Repairs of Original Cast Iron Staircases Window bars and door security gates Handrailings & Stair Railings Fences, Sidewalk Gates, Tree Box Fences DC code approved bedroom window security bars • Excavating, back hoe services and tree stump grinding • Certified welding
24-hours, 7-day service Free estimates
703-765-9344
www.suburbanweldingcompany.com
WINdOWs 19 D Street, SE
1880 ON THE OUTSIDE
with this ad
156 H HillRag | September 2010
LICENSED, BONDED & INSURED
• Flat Roof Repairs
FREE ESTIMATES • ESTABLISHED 1971
40 years of experience
JHI CONTRACTING
• Gutter Cleaning
R. THOMAS DANIEL ROOFING
JL August & Sons
ALL WORK GUARANTEED
• Gutter Repairs
Licensed • Bonded • Insured
736-8987
• Repairs • Roof Coatings • Gutters • Chimney Repair • Water Proofing
• Gutter Guards
LICENSED & INSURED
aaroofingco@aol.com
• Rubber • Metal • Slate • Slag • Shingles • Tile
• Box Gutters
24 Hour Emergency
(301)
LOWEST RATES ON THE HILL!
Seamless Gutters
15% off with Ad
$100 OFF ANY NEW ROOF
SPECIALISTS
Speak Directly to Owner, John
202.486.7184
GUTTER REPAIR & REPLACEMENT Aluminum • Copper Galvanized
FLAT ROOF
2010 ON THE INSIDE Replacement Window & Door Installation Group Historically Accurate Replacement of Exterior Window Casings The Best Installation Crew Wood, Fiberglass Framed & Vinyl Windows, Replacement & Full Tear Out Installation, Wide Range of Custom Moldings
Windows Craft, Inc. Specializing in historic buildings
202-288-6660
alex@windowscraft.com www.windowscraft.com
Licensed, Insured and Bonded DC Home Improvement License # 69006200
get results! Place a classifed today!
E
d t 0
other services
PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER
beauty/health/fitness
PERSONAL FITNESS TRAINING
instruction
SHOE REPAIR
Professional Tennis Instruction
Eastern Market Shoe Repair
computers/software
• Shoes • Boots • Purses • Luggage
Bailo Ba Davis Cup Veteran 202-415-2807
202-638-1708
bailoba@verizon.net
WhelanStrengthTraining.com
Dr. David Walls-Kaufman Chiropractor
Lessons on Capitol Hill
411 East Capitol St., SE
Professional Tennis Registry
All are welcome to Dr. Walls-Kaufman's free Saturday morning Tai Chi class at 8 am in Lincoln Park
organizing
202-544-6035 Because Optimal Health is Impossible Without Optimal Posture!
H IS FOR HOT YOGA ON H STREET! Introduction Offer $29
for 7 days of unlimited yoga! ALL LEVELS WELCOME! No reservations required! • Melt Off Pounds • Reduce stress • Increase Strength + Flexibility
LOGOS Computer Service
On-site Service • Reasonable Rates
logos.comtech@gmail.com • 202-250-1215
; MAC ONLY ; Take the puzzle out of operating your computer ; Software Installation
; Upgrades
www.BikramYogaCapitolHill.com Look better, feel better and change your body!
; Reasonable Rates
fagon@hillrag.com 202-250-1217
Computer Weenies On-site Service for Homes and Businesses
get results! advertise your pet services in the hill rag classifieds
PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER pet services
Computer Set-up • Computer Tune-up Email • Back Up Software Installation • Hardware Installation Technology Consultation Virus and Spyware Removal Security and Performance
; Troubleshooting
Bikram Yoga Capitol Hill 410 H ST. NE 202-547-1208
202-543-5632
All Skill Levels $62 private $35 semi-private $26 group lesson
Living on & serving the Hill since 1986
Burn Over 700 Calories in one class
645 Penn Ave., SE upstairs M-F 8:30-7 • Sat 9-6
Larry Elpiner
• Troubleshooting, Repairs & Upgrades • Virus and Spyware Removal • New and Existing Computer Setup • Network and Wireless Installation • Data Recovery, Transfer and Back-up • Webpage Development
301.767.3355
JILL-OF-ALL-TRADES Some Questions: What is something you have been wishing for in your life? What is in the way of it? If it is clutter and the chaos of too much stuff blocking your path to success, it is fixable. You can get that new hot water heater and furnace installed before it floods or you freeze; you can paint and decorate; you can sell your house and move to be nearer to folks you love; you can cook for company and host the book club; you can get a roommate to save money -- the world of possibilities can become actual REALITIES! Step One: Check out www. jillofalltradesdc.com Step Two: Call Jill Lawrence, CPOCD at 202-544-JILL (5455). Get started now so you can live your tomorrow the way you desire it to be.
PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER
202.543.7055
www.computerweenies.com
capitalcommunitynews.com H 157
NEW ON THE HILL!
We Pamper your Pooch While you Wait!
Full Grooming Services
* Big or Small We Do Them All
K-9 Training
* Obedience On & Off leash * Family Protection * 8 weeks–8 years * Life Time Guarantee
423 13th Street, NE 202-717-2651
Personally Serving our Neighbors since 1999
pets on the hill Support your local Hill business "We live, work and play on the Hill"
Mid-day Dog Walking AM & PM, Weekend Walks, Petsitting • Women Owned and Operated • Expert Cat Care - All Areas of the Hill • Medications, Plant Watering, Mail and Paper • Trustworthy and Reliable Kerith Grandelli bonded & insured
202.546.6785 H I L L P E T S @ YA H O O . C O M
zoolatry (zoo-ahl’-uh-tree) the worship of animals – especially a pet
Mid-Day Dog Walking Service
Pet Sitting & Dog Walking • Mid-day dog walks • AM/PM/Weekend Walks • House visits for kitties Insured and Bonded Pet first aid certified
dogdotcatdc@yahoo.com www.dogdotcat.com
202-388-8111 dot
Pet sitting – Medications Administered Crate Training Insured – Bonded Member of National Association of Professional Petsitters
(202) 547-WALK (9255) Meet Our Walkers Online at
www.zoolatry.com
peT AdOpTION
CAPITAL CATS
Adoption Event at Chateau-Animaux
Sundays Noon to 3 PM 524 8th Street, S.E.
a five-minute walk from Eastern Market Metro.
Visit our Web site to view pictures and their engaging personalities at www.capitalcats.petfinder.com or www.homealone.petfinder.com Capital Cats is a non-profit cat rescue organization on the Hill that has many wonderful, personable cats and kittens available for adoption to good homes.
mIscellANeOus STOP PAYING PARKING TICKETS GARAGES FOR RENT $175-$225 a month 1 Block from Lincoln Park & 1/2 Block from East Capitol Street. Vehicles only.
1-800-310-9980 FOR sAle – ORIeNTAl RuG!
Big dogs, puppies, hard to handle and older dogs. I love them all ….and I also love kitties.
Phillip DuBasky Dog Walking, Kitty Care & Pet Sitting
Serving Capitol Hill Since 1995
100% wool, 8x10 Oriental rug for sale! Owner has moved and downsized! Delicious earth tones of cinnamon, nutmeg, mocha and vanilla! $2800 or best offer! Info (301) 922-9588 or Brandyandbutter@aol.com.
help WANTed – AFTeRschOOl bAbysITTeR Babysitter needed. P/t M-f afterschool for 2 boys 6 & 9. 1215 hr/wk. ref. required. Car a plus. Call 202/731-6500.
Never missed a walk in 10 years Experienced and Reliable Outstanding Hill References • Insured by PSA
202.889.0996
TOTAL WELL BEING FOR YOUR PET
Dog Walking - Midday, A.M & P.M, Weekdays & Weekends Vacation Dog Sitting In-home and Overnights Cat Sitting
202-546-7387
www.pawticulars.com Licensed, Bonded & Insured
158 H HillRag | September 2010
hIll RAG clAssIFIed RATes
Our website just got a whole lot better!!
capitalcommunitynews.com
lINe clAssIFIeds: $25 for the first 15 words; 25 cents for each additional word bOX clAssIFIeds: $25 per column inch, two inch minimum; $25 each additional inch; 3 month minimum Multiple paper discounts available. Paid in advance and billed quarterly FRee cATeGORIes: lost and found, Items to give Away, Club Meeting notices e-mail your ad with credit card information to carolina@hillrag.com or call 202.543.8300 x12
thelastword Support Gray for Mayor
Chairman Vince C. Gray and former Ward 6 Councilwoman Sharon Ambrose. Photo: Andrew Lightman
This mayoral race is getting curiouser and curiouser. We have a Mayor who was elected four years ago by winning margins in every precinct in the city, who has a campaign war-chest three times larger than that of his major challenger, who boasts a long list of first term “results”, and who has managed to win the endorsement of the Washington Post and the Metropolitan Washington Board of Trade. Meanwhile, the DC Chamber of Commerce, the Latino Caucus, all the major labor unions, the Gertrude Stein Democratic Club, assorted additional business and interest groups, along with neighborhood civic and political organizations have overwhelmingly endorsed Vince Gray for Mayor. And the incumbent mayor is now earnestly engaged in public breast-beating and televised apologies for his “mistakes.” If the incumbent is as good as he has convinced the Post he is, why are so many of us supporting Vince Gray for Mayor? For me it boils down to a fundamental conviction that the democratic process requires solid consensus to achieve sustainable goals. The terms “hard-charging” and “thoughtful” are neither mutually exclusive nor equally complimentary (or pejorative) as they have become in the context of this year’s primary races. Vince Gray’s support is strongest among those folks most intimately involved with and affected by city government -- that is, people who are engaged in their communities or who work closely with city government, rather than those who are observers as are the Post editorial board and the majority of the Board of Trade. DC is a city of neighborhoods. It was designed that way: neighborhoods clustering around squares and
parks as is so obvious on Capitol Hill. And the governance of our city has grown to be a political manifestation of that urban design: Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, Police Service Areas, designated “Main Street” programs such as Barraks Row and H Street, local School Restructuring Teams -- the list is long. DC is a city where politics is very local. That means that everyone has an opinion and expects the respect of being heard, of being included in the decision process -- whether the decision involves a liquor license or a school closing, or more frequent grass mowing of the corner triangle park, a whole lot of people are confident they know how to do it right. Listening to all those folks involves a lot of patience, a little more time, and demonstrates respect for the intelligence and sensitivities of the electorate. A politician forgets that -- or fails to learn it -- at his peril. Vince Gray is a consensus builder. He listens with respect, does his homework thoroughly, works collegially, and is open to new ideas and points of view. When Vince Gray was elected Chair of the City Council, he assumed the leadership of a body with a majority of brand-new members, most of whom without any previous elected service, and one urban legend -- Marion Barry. He also had to forge a relationship with a new, untested mayor. With a strong commitment to education, Vince Gray immediately moved education under the purview of the Committee of the Whole where he forged the consensus necessary to give school control to the mayor. Without Vince Gray’s leadership, that would not have happened. A lot of good city projects have come to fruition in the past few years -- most of them planned and forward-funded by the Anthony capitalcommunitynews.com H 159
Williams/Linda Cropp city government that over eight years brought DC out of virtual receivership under the federally imposed Control Board and set in motion a whole new era of public safety and infrastructure improvements, economic development initiatives and neighborhood stabilization programs that made DC one of the most attractive cities in the nation, with neighborhoods like Capitol Hill being hailed by national planners as among the best in the country. That success was the result of a very close working relationship between Mayor Williams and the Council, a relationship of trust and respect for each other and the citizens they served. Collegiality and respect among decision makers has been sadly lacking over the past three years, and is a large part of what is fueling unhappiness with the current mayor. Whether on big issues such as consulting with the Council about the selection of a school chancellor, or providing the information the Council needs to structure a responsible budget, to little things like baseball tickets, the current mayor has repeatedly thumbed his nose at the Council, as has his school chancellor, whose talent for self-promotion is far more impressive than her resume. It’s really all about respect. Vince Gray respects folks. By taking up the cause of challenged people as Director of the Association for Retarded Citizens and forcing the closure of an infamous institution, Vince demanded respect for them. By forging a strong training program for disadvantaged youngsters at Covenant House, Vince Gray offered kids a path to respect. By leading his colleagues to censure a member, and by attempting to cut through the perceived cronyism in the awarding of city contracts, Vince is demanding that city government be respectful of the people it must serve. I am confident that as Mayor Vince Gray will continue to move DC forward as he has done for his entire career -- by listening and learning from all of us who care about our city, and by bringing folks together in a way that builds buyin for new ideas and programs, and demonstrates that there is room 160 ★ HillRag | September 2010
and respect for the broad spectrum of experience and expectations in our city. Sharon Ambrose Former Councilmember for Ward 6 sharonambrose@verizon.net
Vote for Fenty I write to share with you why I have decided to vote for Mayor Adrian M. Fenty on September 14th. I’m writing this message because I believe strongly that we, as District voters, have an incredibly important decision to make when we go to the polls: whether or not we want to continue the progress this city has made during the last four years, especially in the area of public education. For me, the answer is an obvious and emphatic “Yes!” I have made this decision as a 35year resident of the District who has worked for all three branches of government and witnessed this city’s highs and lows from both personal and professional vantage points. While you make your decision, I urge you to consider what I did while making mine. Look at what this city has become. The District has achieved a level of progress that I did not think possible when I worked for the Council when the control board was in place in the late 1990s.
The DC Public Schools have made more progress during the last four years than during my entire lifetime in the District. I recently got married and bought a home with my husband on Capitol Hill. Because of the progress that has taken place under Mayor Fenty’s and Chancellor Rhee’s leadership, I want to send my children to public schools. I am voting for the Mayor because I never want to face the painful decisions that my parents and friends’ parents faced while I was growing up in DC: do we move out of the city we love because of education? Or do we spend every penny we make on private schools? Imagine a DC where families don’t have to contemplate these decisions. I believe firmly we are on the path to being that city. This progress can continue only with the right leadership in place; leadership that puts the pursuit of academic excellence above every other interest. Look no further for evidence of the results of that kind of leadership than at the gains made at Sousa Middle School, as reported here:http://www.washingtonpost.com/ wp-dyn/content/article/2010/07/05/ AR2010070502915.html. The District is on track to having fewer than 100 homicides this year. When I was in high school, the District had almost 500 homicides in one year. When I started working for the
Council, the police struggled to close homicides. There are many factors that contribute to crime, but you cannot reduce it without strong leadership and good policing. Today, the clearance rate is 75%, putting the District among the nation’s best performing cities. I have heard some people say that Mayor Fenty cannot claim credit for all of this progress. It is true that it is the result of years of hard work by many people. But what is unique about Mayor Fenty is his insistence that we raise the bar in the District to demand these kinds of results, the kind of results that others do not think possible, or do not have the courage to pursue. We have a long way to go, particularly in the area of education. Mayor Fenty has raised our expectations. Whether it’s putting a bike lane down the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue, quickly re-building Eastern Market, or realizing the belief that every child can excel in school, no matter what her background or circumstances, he has improved the city in ways that matter to all of us. Demanding and actually achieving these results requires courageous and risk-taking leadership. And yes, at times, this has ruffled feathers. But, for me, the results are worth it. The District’s time is now, and I have never been more proud to live here. I urge you not to take our hard-
Mike Debonis and Ward 6 Councilman Tommy Wells at the launching of his re-election campaign. Photo Andrew Lightman
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fought progress for granted. Keep our expectations high and vote for another four years of progress, by voting for Mayor Fenty on September 14. Amy Mauro amy_mauro@yahoo.com
Photo: Elizabeth Dranitzke
The Post Was Wrong About Wells
John Harrod (April 3, 1942- August 23, 2010)
J
ohn Harrod, owner of the Market Five Gallery, a community arts organization which operated for 35 years on the site of the recently restored North Hall of the Eastern Market, died of complications due to an infection in Prince George’s County Hospital. Harrod, a DC native and longtime Hill resident, was tapped by the DC Arts Commission at the beginning of Home Rule in 1974 to operate an arts group in Ward 6. Harrod’s Market Five Gallery repeatedly overcame numerous barriers to offer thae community-based program. Harrod is responsible for the birth of the arts and crafts weekend vending in the ‘80s whose success is critical to today’s Market experience. He opened the Market Five Gallery in the mid ‘70s in a dilapidated North Hall which had been previously been a storage facility for broken parking meters and Dept. of Transportation vehicles. For a compelling account of Harrod’s early days, creative energy and openness to ideas to promote the arts on the Hill, see the Ruth Ann Overbeck Capitol Hill History Project. www.capitolhillhistory.org/interviews/2009/harrod_john.pdf A memorial service will be held in the North Hall on October 9 at 7 p.m.
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This e-mail is being sent to protest, through the Hill Rag, the August 18 Washington Post article on Tommy Wells. The article was biased, unfair, sarcastic and not balanced. The article did not mention many of Tommy Well’s accomplishments. The accomplishments that were mentioned were worded in such a way to make them sound negative -- when he has many positive accomplishments. As for Kelvin Robinson, I actually know very little about him. Although the author does discuss Mr. Robinson -- I still know nothing about what he stands for, what his platform is and what he hopes to accomplish. It is very disturbing for me (a long time Post subscriber) that such an unfair and biased article was written on Tommy Wells, a hard working, honest person who gets things done and should have his positive accomplishments recognized. Gloria gloriajunge@yahoo.com
Disappointed in the Post I am beyond disappointed in the Post’s coverage of the Ward 6 council race. Michael Debonis’ article in the Aug. 18 Metro section was very poorly researched, giving short shrift to Well’s tireless efforts to support school improvements, promote public safety and rescue the Eastern Market and disparaging what the author termed Wells’ “progressive record.” Debonis further suggests that Wells is insensitive to the needs of the less affluent and those living farther from the center of the ward. This is ludicrous. There is nothing frivolous - or elitist - about a healthier, safer environment and better educational opportunities. Those with the least means have the most to gain from Wells’ initiatives. Improved shopping, schools, and public trans-
portation are of the most benefit to those who cannot afford cars or private education. Those living nearest the Anacostia will have the most enjoyment of a cleaner river. And all of us will benefit from improved air quality, especially those with asthma, which is prevalent in the Ward. I have to wonder why DeBonis failed to mention Robinson’s welldocumented anti-gay bias. His early campaign literature (when he was still running for an At-Large seat) featured over-turning the Marriage Equality Act and he is Vice-Chair of the local chapter of Catholic Charities - the good folks who preferred to deny benefits to dependents of all employees rather than provide them to the dependents of gay people. This is pertinent information to most Ward 6 voters. Elizabeth Nelson elizabeth_knits@yahoo.com
A Dove Grew on My Windowsill It’s really true. I watched the morning doves grow from shortly after they hatched. With it so hot this summer, I left the window closed. And when I noticed the mother sitting in the nest, I chose to leave her alone. I soon saw two baby doves and watched as they grew at a rapid rate. Then, one Saturday morning, they were gone; however, that Saturday afternoon, they were back. I guess that’s the day they learned to fly as my window is about fifteen feet up. When the weather finally broke, and when they weren’t on the window sill, I opened the window to let the fresh air in. I haven’t seen them since; but I’ll never forget watching this up close lesson from Mother Nature. Thom Link 11thStreet SE 7hom7hom@comcast.net
Thank You Hill Rag I just saw the article and photos {August 2010 Hill Rag] and want to say thank so much. The Hill Rag did such a good job in capturing what is St. Mark’s Dance. I like the way you placed the photos of both the kids and the adults in the article. Again, thank you... Rosie Brooks, St. Mark’s Dance rosetta.brooks@gmail.com ★
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Give the Gift of Community! Subscribe to the Hill Rag Today! Get Your Hill Rag @ Home! Residents of Ward 6 Can Now Subscribe for $12 per year. Get The Hill Rag Delivered Directly to Your Door. Call Southwest Distribution, Inc. 202-678-8350 Ext. 352 or Email subscription@hillrag.com
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PUBLIC MEETING Washington Navy Yard Restoration Advisory Board The Washington Navy Yard (WNY) Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) is a Navy/Community group that meets to discuss environmental restoration activities at WNY. The next meeting of the RAB will be Tuesday, September 7, 2010, at 6 p.m. in Building 212 at the WNY. The WNY is located at 900 M Street, SE, Washington, D.C. Access to the WNY for this meeting will be through the 6th Street gate at the corner of M and 6th Streets SE. The entrance to Building 212 is on Harwood Street. Members of the public are always welcome to attend RAB meetings. However, because the WNY is a secure installation, anyone wishing to attend this meeting must pre-register no later than Thursday, September 2, 2010. To pre-register and get directions for the meeting, or if you would like more information about the RAB, please contact Armalia Berry-Washington at (202) 685-3273 or by email at armalia.berry-washin@navy.mil.
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Maury Walks To School article and photos by Shannon Holloway
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1. Max walking to school alongside his mother. 2. Nina Waters and her son and daughter Antranett wait patiently for the procession to commence. 3. Even the tinniest of tots were in attendance for the walk. 4. Camille Benedict leads her parents Ashan and Kate onto the Maury Elementary campus. 5. Maury Elementary students enjoying the event. 6. DC School Chancellor Michelle Rhee, Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells and Mayor Addrian Fenty listen as US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan addesses the crowd.
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n the cool morning hours of August 24th a waking crowd gathered in Lincoln Park (12th & East Capitol streets N.E.). This crowd of more than 100 parents, students, teachers, and administrators, were joined by U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, Chancellor of Schools Michelle Rhee, State Superintendent of Education Kerri Briggs, and U.S. Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez were there to make a statement. The “Walking School Bus” event promoted the importance of safe, healthy lifestyles and pedestrian safety for school-age children who share the road with cars, bicyclists and buses. “Walking School Bus” is the annual kick off to the school year. This Maury Elementary School (mauryelementary.com) event takes participants on a two-block route from Lincoln Park to the grounds of Maury Elementary School. Mayor Fenty said that Maury is addressing the “real needs and desires of an urban family [by providing] a good school to send their kids to.” Chancellor Reed credits parents whom she says have made an important decision of valuing the safety and security of their children and community by pushing for the reinstating of the AAA Safety Patrol Program. This walk (or bike) initiative will be a reoccurring weekly alternate route to school for Maury Elementary students, meeting every Wednesday at 8:15 a.m. in the park. Shannon Holloway is a local artist living in the district. holloway.shannon@ gmail.com. ★
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