The NorThwesT CurreNT
Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Vol. L, No. 7
Serving Chevy Chase, Colonial Village, Shepherd Park, Brightwood, Crestwood, Petworth & 16th Street Heights
Walter Reed grocery faces hurdle
READING AND SHOPPING
■ Development: Ward 4 law
restricts new alcohol licenses By BRADY HOLT Current Staff Writer
In Ward 4, community leaders years ago mounted a successful campaign to block new licenses for off-premises alcohol sales in their neighborhoods. But the restriction is now complicating
efforts to attract a full-service supermarket to the city’s muchtouted redevelopment of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center campus. The District paid the federal government $22 million for 66 acres of the 110-acre property last fall, with plans to transform it into The Parks at Walter Reed: a mixed-use community intended to enliven this section of the Georgia Avenue NW corridor. Among
other elements, the proposal by the city’s development team — a collaboration by the Hines, Urban Atlantic and Triden firms — calls for a large grocery store. Whole Foods and Wegmans both publicly expressed interest in the site for several years, though Wegmans dropped out of contention last summer, saying it couldn’t reach an agreement with the development team. Community See Grocery/Page 5
Agency adopts concept for boathouses By MARK LIEBERMAN Current Staff Writer
Brian Kapur/The Current
The D.C. Public Library and Safeway partnered to spread word about the District’s “Sing, Talk & Read DC” program at the grocery chain’s Petworth location on Thursday. The initiative is based on research showing that conversations, singing and interactions with children from birth builds a foundation for learning.
A long-gestating plan to build new non-motorized boathouses along the Potomac riverfront in Georgetown was finalized Monday by the National Park Service, though detailed design and implementation remain a long way off. The Park Service has essentially formalized an iteration of the plan presented to the community last summer, which establishes a maximum development envelope for possible facilities. With this overview in place, the next step is to create detailed designs for each piece and seek community feedback, agency spokesperson Jeremy Barnum told The Current. He couldn’t provide a detailed timeline or estimated cost for the project, but finalizing the initial plans represents “significant progress,” he wrote in an email. “What we have to do now is reach out to the variSee Waterfront/Page 5
Brian Kapur/Current file photo
Plans call for expanded Potomac River access.
Foxhall farmhouse gets landmark designation
Georgetown dropped from ‘green infrastructure’ plans
By MARK LIEBERMAN
■ Environment: Residents
Current Staff Writer
An 1865 Foxhall farmhouse was designated a historic landmark on Thursday, providing another obstacle to property owners who are hoping to build a new home on the property. The Historic Preservation Review Board was unanimous in its decision that the two-story, 1,600-square-foot Scheele-Brown house at 2207 Foxhall Road NW is historically significant. Chantal Attias and Andreas Kotzur purchased the property in 2013 for $1 million in hopes of replacing the farmhouse with a new home for themselves, their two children and Attias’ elderly mother. The board has reviewed the farmhouse several times since December 2014, but preservation concerns have repeatedly upended the couple’s plans.
had feared project’s impacts
By BRADY HOLT Brian Kapur/The Current
The owners of 2207 Foxhall Road want to relocate the 1865 farmhouse to construct a new home.
In September 2015, the preservation board approved a plan to demolish a non-historic part of the structure and relocate the rest 12 feet west and 40 feet north, making room for the family to build their home. But at Thursday’s board hearing, Attias and her architects indicated they’ve abandoned that plan and are now anxious for another option. They repeatedly implored the board to grant them the ability to See Farmhouse/Page 12
Current Staff Writer
Controversial plans to add permeable pavement to some Georgetown streets have been postponed indefinitely as the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority focuses its efforts on Burleith and Glover Park, agency officials told community leaders last week. DC Water’s “green infrastructure” work, aimed at reducing stormwater runoff, involves con-
verting some alleys and parking lanes into permeable surfaces, and constructing vegetated curb extensions. But Georgetown community leaders have pushed back against the plans, with concerns about construction disruptions and impacts to the area’s historic aesthetic, along with doubts the project would yield significant environmental benefits. “This is one of the situations where there was some dispute, but it appears … that we have a winwin situation for both DC Water and the neighborhood,” said Rick Murphy, a member of Advisory See Green/Page 12
PASSAGES
SPORTS
SHOPPING & DINING
INDEX
‘Painted City’
Mr. 500
Restaurant relocates
Calendar/20 Classifieds/29 District Digest/4 In Your Neighborhood/18 Opinion/6 Passages/11
New documentary premiering at local film festival showcases the murals of D.C. / Page 11
Longtime Visitation basketball coach builds dynasty with a golfer’s mentality / Page 9
Heritage India moves up the road from Glover Park to storied spot near Cathedral Commons / Page 19
Police Report/8 Real Estate/15 School Dispatches/13 Shopping & Dining/19 Service Directory/27 Sports/9
Tips? Contact us at newsdesk@currentnewspapers.com