Serving Burleith, Foxhall, Georgetown, Georgetown Reservoir & Glover Park
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Vol. XXIV, No. 24
The Georgetown Current
City scrambling to cut Ellington project costs
p ower s hift
■ Education: Plan for school
was ‘substantially’ over budget By BRADY HOLT Current Staff Writer
Brian Kapur/The Current
Muriel Bowser took over the mayoralty from Vincent Gray at Friday’s inauguration. The event also featured the swearing-in of D.C. Council members and the District’s first elected attorney general.
Mayor Bowser takes office By GRAHAM VYSE Current Staff Writer
Muriel Bowser took the oath of office to become D.C.’s seventh elected mayor last Friday, pledging to “reinvent our government, making it better, more efficient and dedicated to supporting all of our families.” In an inaugural address at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, the former Ward 4 D.C. Council member said she faces challenges that include a quarterbillion-dollar budget deficit and stalled construction projects with
ballooning costs. But Bowser also declared that “we’ve come a long way in this city” and thanked outgoing Mayor Vincent Gray for the successes he achieved during his tenure. “I understand the great responsibility of leading this city at this time — a time both rich with prosperity and rife with inequality,” she said. The new mayor made reference to “both bold and pragmatic plans” she has for D.C., which range from ensuring effective snow removal and trash pickup to See Inauguration/Page 17
P Street office targeted for conversion to boutique inn ■ Georgetown: Owners aim
to ease neighbors’ concerns By BRADY HOLT Current Staff Writer
Brian Kapur/The Current
Inaugural events included a 5K run/walk in Woodley Park on Thursday morning.
Council kicks off session with flurry of bills By ELIZABETH WIENER Current Staff Writer
The D.C. Council launched its latest session Tuesday with a full plate of legislative initiatives, including many leftovers from last year’s battles over clean government, health and education reform. First up, at-large member David Grosso reintroduced a bill to ban suspensions and expulsions of pre-kindergarten students in public and charter schools, saying he will make the measure a priority as he takes the helm of the council’s Committee on Education.
NEWS
The measure was spurred by a report showing that of the more than 10,000 students suspended or expelled from District schools in 2012-2013, “181 had yet to begin kindergarten,” Grosso said. “Children can be difficult, but it’s hard to understand what behavior merits expulsion” of a 3- or 4-year-old. He said such punishment leads to higher dropout and delinquency rates. “We begin the school-to-prison pipeline” even before kindergarten, he said. Grosso, during the first meeting of the reconstituted council, also fired the opening salvo of what is sure to be a prolonged debate on election and ethics See Bills/Page 27
A LOOK BACK AT 2014
Zoning Commission divided on issue of penthouse rules — Page 3
From polls to pot, a rhyming recap of the last year in D.C. — Page 12
A few weeks ago, D.C. officials formally broke ground on a $139 million modernization and expansion of Duke Ellington School of the Arts, celebrating the new space and amenities the project would bring to the 3500 R St. campus in Burleith. Now, with students housed in temporary locations and internal demolition already underway, the Department of General Services is scrambling to scale back a design that proved too ambitious for the
allocated funds. The last-minute changes raised concerns at Monday’s Georgetown advisory neighborhood commission meeting, where some residents worried that a budget crunch could compromise the project. Project officials at the meeting described changes to plans for the 1898 building’s exterior, which will require approval by the Historic Preservation Review Board. They include a rear addition that will stand just three stories instead of the originally planned four, with some of that space shifting underground to take up half of the proposed parking garage. And planned geothermal heating has been abandoned in favor See Ellington/Page 17
A Palisades couple is planning to debut a 15-room boutique hotel on P Street in Georgetown. The row houses at 2616 and 2620 P are in a rare commercial strip along the mostly residential street near the eastern edge of Georgetown. Justin and Samantha Schneck recently purchased the former law offices, which sit across the street from a 7-Eleven and next to the newly reopened After Peacock Room restaurant. The Schnecks discussed their plans for the hotel, which they’ll call The Avery, at Monday’s meeting of the Georgetown advisory neighborhood commission. “We think this will benefit the community. If you have in-laws you don’t want to stay with you, they’re more than welcome to stay at The Avery,” said Samantha Schneck. “I’ve always had a lot of out-
Brian Kapur/The Current
The former law offices at 2616 and 2620 P St. are slated for 15 boutique hotel rooms.
of-town guests, out-of-town family, and we felt it would be a good use of the space.” She also told the Washington Business Journal last week that other potential customers would include Georgetown University parents and embassy guests. Unlike most projects in Georgetown, the P Street hotel likely won’t require much public review. The See Hotel/Page 12
INDEX
SPOR TS
Visitation seeing growth in nascent ice hockey squad — Page 9
Calendar/18 Classifieds/26 District Digest/2 Exhibits/19 In Your Neighborhood/16 Opinion/6
Police Report/4 Real Estate/15 Service Directory/24 Sports/9 Theater/21 Week Ahead/3
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