Tar and feathering in CH! (In 1908)

Pretty wild thing in the City Paper's sex blog, The Sexist. May not be safe for work (there aren't any dirty pictures, but some bad words).

Anyway, they posted a 1908 news article in which a man called on a married woman and was pounced on by three men, who stripped him naked and then tarred and feathered him. The article claims the man "hypnotized" the woman and made her "unable to control herself when she got his messages of mental telepathy." The shenanigans took place at 1137 Kenyon Street NW.

Check it out.

14th and Girard Park open today?

So I emailed Jim Graham to see what the deal was with the 14th and Girard Street Park, as it's been closed since it opens, and here's what he had to say: "I am told the work is finished today and thus it opens."

Huh. I'll have to take a look!

UPDATE: My buddy walked by and said this: "The gates are open at the park, but that's because there are workers there. Definitely still closed"

Clip art not a drawing of the park

Water main break at 13th and Florida

Just got this in my email. Watch out!

FEMS are on site of a water main break at 13th and Florida Ave. NW, 13th Street is closed between Belmont Street and Florida Ave. NW. DC WASA is responding to the site.

Good thing it wasn't at 13th and Belmont or something, it'd turn the street into a water fall. Or maybe an awesome surfing venue.

14th and Girard Street Park still not open

If you've been looking forward to visiting the 14th and Girard Street Park (aka, maybe, Barack Hussein Obama Park), you'll have to keep waiting. The park was closed soon after opening and more work was being done on the concrete, with a sign saying it'd be open July 27. It's not past that, and there's still work being done. A new sign says they're doing concrete and utility work with no date for completion.

I've emailed Jim Graham about it, we'll see what he knows about it.

And speaking of park names, Mike DeBonis has an interesting piece on who Girard was.

Work in the Ellwood Thompson's space?

I got an email from a reader saying there's some work happening in the space at DCUSA where Ellwood Thompson's grocery store was supposed to go. I wonder if they really are planning on coming, or if that's something else? I'm getting in touch with the ET folks now, we'll see if they respond.

UPDATE: Just got a response from Cyndi Watkins of Ellwood Thompson's: "As of right now I have not heard anything new about us moving to D.C. Any construction being done must be work the landlord is doing. Thanks for your interest in Ellwood’s we hope to be in D.C. One day[.]" Doh!

Social opening August 17

Just got a press release from the folks at Social, the new restaurant coming to 14th and Meridian, and they're opening August 17. Take a gander:

Complimenting the innovative design concept, Social will provide a fresh dining experience. The plates are as interesting and diverse as the beverage selection. The Shareable menu items such as the Poke Stack, an Ahi tuna sashimi dish, or the Baby Lamb Lollipops topped with cilantro pecan pesto are available in Intimate, Social, or Gala micro-dining sizes, allowing any size party to mix and match menu items to their taste. If sharing is not your forte, European-style Pan Roasted Crispy Chicken and other items on the Self Indulgence menu provide a tasty individual experience. To create an unrushed and comfortable environment, Social does not take reservations and does not require you commit to your whole meal in one order.

“We take the beverage approach to dining,” according to owner AJ Guy, “When you go out for drinks you never order them all at once. In the same way, our menu is designed to be leisurely perused by our guests.”

They'll be open every day and "soon" for brunch on Saturday and Sunday according to the press release. The press release also talks about modern furniture and art on the walls.

Passive-aggressive tree note

I saw this the other day on Kenyon (I think) between 13th and 14th. There was a big old tree laying on the sidewalk, and I noticed this note attached to it:



Here's the tree in question. Kind of blurry and hard to see, but you can see the note on the right side. It kind of looks like a Christmas tree, which is funny since it's July.



I'm going to send this to passiveaggressivenotes.com. But if the person who wrote the note knows who put the tree out, why not just ask them nicely about it? For example: "Hey neighbor, did you all call the city to schedule a bulk pick up? No? Well, did you know you can do it online?" You know, rather than being passive aggressive and probably pissing off the folks in 1356.

Got graffiti? Want a mural?

Saw this posted the other day on the Columbia Heights Yahoo listserve. Looks like you don't have to have graffiti to get one:

The DC Department of Public Works and Councilmember Jim Graham have launched the second year of the MuralsDC program, created to replace illegal graffiti with artistic works, to help revitalize communities and teach young people the art of aerosol painting. This initiative positively engages DC youth and has been successful in deterring future acts of graffiti vandalism on the property.

District citizens may have their residential (or commercial property) considered as a potential mural site if they are privately owned and highly visible from the street. Residents also must be willing to sign an agreement form authorizing use of this space for the mural (which will be approximately 10 x 20 feet).

For more information, please contact Nancee Lyons at (202) 671-2637 or send an email to Nancee.Lyons@dc.gov to receive an application and release form.

Tubman School: Gonna be a socca player

Thanks to some readers for finding out what's going on with the Tubman School construction -- it looks like they're replacing the field with artificial turf plus doing other various upgrades like adding bleachers for 250 people, benches for each team, replacing the chain link fence with wrought iron, and so on. This memo from DC government implies the field will still be open to the public. Glad to see, as the grass was always getting torn up there.

Columbia Heights Day organizers say the field will be done in time for the fest, so that's good.

Metered parking hours changing around DCUSA

Looks like folks parking at meters in the area around DCUSA (what I like to call "Downtown Columbia Heights") are in for some changes -- the city is starting a pilot program for Columbia Heights and the Nationals stadium area to increase parking meter costs after an hour, to encourage people to use mass transit or use off-street parking (like the under-utilized DCUSA garage, for example).

In Columbia Heights, they're limiting the amount of time folks can park at metered spots to two hours. I think this sounds like a good idea, as there's tons of easy and pretty cheap parking at DCUSA, and hopefully it would let short term folks use the street spaces. Of course, it will require some education too, so folks don't get mad when they discover their metered street parking is pricey.

It wouldn't apply to residential areas.

WTOP writes about it most clearly, and there are articles from Fox, and the Examiner. Greater Greater Washington has a recap of a public meeting about it.

What do you think? Good idea, or sucks!?

Sign not from Columbia Heights

Recap on the Friday night festival

I wrote about the Friday night block party in the 1300 block of Columbia Road the other day, and the blogger at Words of Witte went over to check it out -- turns out the posting about it wasn't accurate, as there was no b-ball tournament (maybe because the 14th and Girard Street Park is under construction still), but there was a band and it looks like some good times.

Some folks noted that it wasn't publicized very much -- Prince of Petworth called it a "secret dance party" and nobody else seemed to write about it ahead of time. Maybe the event was designed mainly for the folks from the housing complexes on the block?

Abandoned House Watch: 3004 13th St NW

Abandoned House
Originally uploaded by squidpants

So I've decided to start a new series of posts, on abandoned houses. This one is 3004 13th St NW, which I've written about numerous times -- it was owned by the city, was supposed to be auctioned but wasn't, and then finally was.

It's been sitting with nothing happening to it for awhile, but finally there's some work being done: as you can see they've stripped out the inside (it's just a shell now) and there's a sign out front that says a bank is financing construction.

Glad to see this, as the place was an eyesore on an otherwise nice block, and it was crazy that the city would own an abandoned house rather than sell it to someone who would fix it up. Thankfully, it seems like that's now happening.

Do you know of any abandoned houses? Let me know, newcolumbiaheights(at)gmail(dot)com

Social coming in a few weeks

Thanks to the Post's Going Out Gurus, it looks like new restaurant Social will be opening in a few weeks. The restaurant will be at 14th and Meridian, and was originally scheduled for a Spring opening. Doh. The Post says "the restaurant will mix and match Asian, Cajun and other flavors." Sounds good to me.

I've written about it a couple times before.

Basketball tourney, band on 1300 block of Columbia Rd today

Just saw this on MPD's 3D substation list:

Greetings,

This Friday PSA 302 along with Patrol Service and School Security Bureau will host a basketball tournament.

Along with the tournament light refreshment will be available as well as services from other city agencies and non profits that serve the community.

It will be Friday, July 24, 2009 from 4pm to 7pm in the 1300 block of Columbia Rd NW. There will be a live band.

Not sure how they're playing basketball in the street, but it sounds neat.

Beware: checking IDs at the Banneker pool

I've heard from a few folks that they've started checking IDs at the Banneker Rec Center pool at Georgia and Euclid to make sure folks are DC residents. I've never been checked there, even after they supposedly started checking (I usually just immediately turn right and go to the pool) but beware!

Not sure if bringing a voter registration card or something with your address on it would help, but I'm going to try that -- I don't have a DC license. However, the DPR pool fee page just says "DC resident" and doesn't say anything about DC driver's licenses.

If you aren't a DC resident, it's $4 for adults.

UPDATE: A commenter says his library card works, so I would assume voter registration would work too. He says a piece of mail should work.

David Hockney painting not of the Banneker pool

CoHiDay?

I noticed on the website, and a few folks mentioned to me, that a lot of things for Columbia Heights Day say "CoHi Day" instead of the full version. I'm not a fan of CoHi, as I mentioned before, so I asked Allison Basker, one of the organizers about it. She said "We needed to depart from the map logo (even though that will be our branding logo from now on) [because] there's only so many things you can do with it each year for the shirt."

That seems logical to me. The event isn't changing, it's just this year's t-shirt. Your thoughts?

Sicko screening, health care discussion at Bloombars today

There's a healthcare event tonight at Bloombars, the cool art space on 11th Street just north of Wonderland -- they're showing the Michael Moore documentary Sicko (which is pretty good) followed by a discussion about health care reform. The event is from 6 to 9 pm and is free.

The event is a prelude to The People's Rally: Medicare for all NOW!, which is this Sunday from 1-4pm at Meridian Hill Park.

Bloombars is at 3222 11th Street NW.

Don't forget! Eat out Thursday to help Columbia Heights Day!

Tonight's the night where you can eat out at local establishments (Tonic, CommonWealth, The Heights, Rita's Water Ice, Wonderland, Looking Glass Lounge, Red Rocks, and Panda Express) and a portion of the proceeds will go to help fund Columbia Heights Day. Go have some good eats and be helpful at the same time!

There's more info on their website.

Tubman School reconstruction?

My friend mentioned that Harriet Tubman School had some work going on behind it. I thought it was maybe just new grass, but when I walked by, there was a lot more going on. The field has been covered in crushed rock, and there were signs for an architecture firm, EEK Architects (yeah, eek!).

I didn't see very much on their website about Tubman in particular, but the sign on the fence outside Tubman included pictures of their reconstruction of Brightwood Elementary, where they refurbished the old part of the school and added a new wing. The crushed stone seems to be laid out the same way, as if the new school entrance will be at 11th and Kenyon rather than on 13th like it is now -- they did something similar for Brightwood.

The only thing I found on their site is that this guy was working on "Tubman Elementary School Classroom Modernization, Washington." I'll look into it and see just what's going on. I wonder what's going to happen to the field?

Complaints about Eastern Empire Chinese food?

I wasn't going to post about this, but the guy has posted it literally everywhere (Yelp, CH listserve, Ward 1 list, South CH list) and he emailed me about it too. It's a complaint about Eastern Empire, the Chinese place next to 7-Eleven on 14th Street:

Unless you like to feel as if you are eating your Kung Pao in the gorilla cage at National Zoo, avoid this place. The food is great and the portions are big, but come on -- the owners and management are terrorized by neighborhood ne'er do wells and unless they get a security guard to monitor the place, go there at your own risk. Everytime I go to this conveniently located Chinese food "restaurant" (I use that word lightly), the place is full of loitering teen thugs (male and female) who terrorize other patrons and engage in loud, obnoxious, and socially unacceptable behaviour. Despite a No Loitering sign, these juveniles get around this by having one person order some food, usually fries and chicken wings (almost never Chinese food!) and a drink, while their posse engages in rowdy, boisterous profanity and foolish talk. Yesterday, I went to get some takeout (if the owners wish to ensure the safety of their patrons, they should remove the tables and make it a takeout only place) and there was a scuffle among two teens, with the egging on and laughing of the rest of the dozen hoodlums. These punks would never do this at Julia's Empanadas or Five Guys or Potbelly or any of the other establishments within a block radius. They bully people and intimidate business. My piece of advice for Eastern Empire? As lucrative as the chicken wings are for you, if you eliminate this from the menu, these folks will no longer go there and your business will thrive even more. On the other hand, I guess loud-ass ghetto folk who act like jackasses on the Metro do need a place to go, so this is it.

What do you think? Valid complaint, or racist? I've never been to the place, and it seems to me that he might have valid complaint in that nobody wants to be harassed while getting food, but he sure makes it in an angry and borderline offensive way. How about talking to the ownership or police?

When the poster emailed me, he wrote this as explanation:

I am sure I will catch flak for being "racist" by having posted this in several listserves, Yelp, Urban Spoon --- but I fail to see what is racist about being fed up with socially dysfunctional youth who do not know how to behave in public and act boorishly and offensively with impunity. No doubt you can gather who I am talking about and you have most likely experienced it at least once as a metro patron or customer of a place like this, but race has nothing to do with it: it is a class issue, and one of upbringing. I would be just as appalled if they were Asian or Latino or Irish Catholic thugs....

I kind of wonder if he's just posting it to inflame people -- but since it's so many places, I figured I'd write about it.

Eat out today Thursday to help Columbia Heights Day

Pretty cool event! Columbia Heights Day is having a fundraiser today Thursday, where if you eat out at some local restaurants, a portion of the proceeds goes to help fun the festival, which is a 501(c)3 nonprofit.

The restaurants participating are Tonic, CommonWealth, The Heights, Rita's Water Ice, Red Rocks, and Panda Express. Their website has more info.

The festival is Satuday, August 29.

Interesting video on development in Columbia Heights

Found a fascinating video on Youtube about the history of development in Columbia Heights since before the Martin Luther King Jr riots in 1968. It's pretty even handed and has interviews with local activists, politicians, and citizens. I also like the old photos of the neighborhood. Check it out:

Room 11 wine bar opening soon?

Via DCist, the Room 11 folks have posted their Certificate of Occupancy on their blog, and they'll be announcing an opening date soon.

Last I heard, it was supposed to open in late June.

14th and Girard Street Park not actually open

Well, looks like something was wrong with the construction of the 14th and Girard Street Park: I walked by today and it was closed with workers tearing up the concrete park near 14th Street.

A sign said it'd be closed until July 27, and DC Watch had this to say: "On Monday morning, the future Obama Park failed city inspections. It was closed to redo a substantial amount of the work that has been done; it's expected to be closed for several weeks."

The park may also soon be renamed Barack Hussein Obama Park, which Jim Graham proposed, but that's pretty controversial -- tons of people on the CH Listserve are arguing about the name, and whether or not the council can actually rename it. There's a law that the Council passed saying living people can't have things named after them, but Graham says it's ok -- see Ben Ali Way for example.

Illegal bar on Georgia Ave

Saw this on the CH listserve: apparently there was an illegal bar called G2 Lounge at 2632 Georgia Ave. Weird! It's like the 1930s or something, a speakeasy. Apparently MPD (and Eliott Ness?) busted it the other day. Here's what councilman Jim Graham had to say:

I want to congratulate and thank MPD and DCRA for their great team work at
2632 Georgia Ave. My office received reports from many of you that the G2 Lounge may be operating illegally out of this building. Upon police action on Saturday, July 11, DCRA confirmed there was no Basic Business License to operate the lounge. And no alcohol license. Further actions may be taken once DCRA receives the police reports.

Again, thank you to community residents for bringing the problem to our attention. I will keep you informed on the progress of the investigation and further actions.

Cool fireworks videos

I'd been looking for some good videos of 4th of July fireworks in the neighborhood for awhile, and I just found some on Youtube, shot around Newton Street according to one of the titles. Check them out, and let me know if you have any!

Graham proposes name for Girard Street Park: "Barack Hussein Obama"

I like it! Thanks to a commenter for pointing this out, councilmember Jim Graham has proposed renaming the 14th and Girard Street Park to Barack Hussein Obama Park. As I mentioned twice, 14th and Girard Street Park is a lame name, and I hope this gets changed.

14th and Girard Park ribbon cutting

A commenter posted this video of Mayor Fenty cutting the 14th and Girard Street Park with the help of some kids. Awww.



And my new pet issue is the name of the park - 14th and Girard Street Park is pretty boring and uncreative. Anyone think of a good name?

Soccer jerseys in the neighborhood

Looking for soccer jerseys? Luckily for soccer fans (and I'm always seeing folks around the neighborhood with soccer jerseys on, which is why I thought of it) the Columbia Heights area has a number of stores that have a lot of soccer stuff. There's a bunch of jerseys for sale at Peggy's South of the Border, a funky little story at 3541 14th St NW. I got a Bayern-Munich jersey for $20, and they have lots of other cool-looking ones, mostly Central American club teams and national teams.

Down the street at Nash's Sporting Goods has a good selection too, as does Marshall's in DCUSA, which I mentioned before. Got any other fave places for soccer gear in the neighborhood?

Neighborhood watch coming to CH

This is pretty cool to see - the Northwest Columbia Heights Community Association is starting a neighborhood watch for the area, and they're having a training session for new block captains on July 20th. The job of the block captain is basically to organize the block and help get information to and from the police and local residents. Despite the NWCHCA organizing it, it looks like they want people from all over the neighborhood.

The training is from 7 to 8:30 PM at Location: St Stephen's Church, 1525 Newton St NW - use the red doors on the 16th Street side.

Here's MPD's page about neighborhood watches, and here's what the organizer, NWCHCA president Cecilia Jones, has to say:

Neighborhood Watch is a recognized way for concerned community members to get involved and make a difference. This community-based organization of citizens working together with law enforcement has helped prevent burglaries, thefts, and violent crimes nationwide for many years. Ordinary people agree to look out for their neighbors and their neighbors property.

On the full post on the CH listserve, Jones also talks about helping property values and things like that.

Ribbon cutting at 14th and Girard Park today

Just saw this:

On behalf of Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, please join us along with Councilmember Jim Graham, Department of Parks and Recreation Acting Director Ximena Hartsock and DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities Director Gloria Nauden in the celebration of the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for 14th & Girard Street Park. This will take place on Friday, July 10th at 12:00pm.

Personally, I think 14th and Girard Street Park is a pretty lame name for a park -- anybody have some ideas? Anthony Williams Park? Gheorghe Muresan Park? Or a serious name idea?

Pete's Apizza now delivering!

This is pretty cool - tasty local pizza joint Pete's Apizza now delivers. The delivery area is pretty big, from 16th to Georgia and Upshur to U.

Delivery hours are 5PM to close (10PM Sunday through Thursday, 11PM
Friday and Saturday).

In a message on the CH Listserve, they note that since it's a new service, there may be a few hiccups, and ask people to please be patient. They also ask folks to check out their Twitter page for updates on delivery service: http://twitter.com/petes_newhaven

The minimum delivery order is $20, and there's a $3 delivery fee.

Pete's is at 1400 Irving Street NW in the Highland Park building. Their number is 202-332-PETE (7383).

Wanna do some headstands?

Who doesn't! Just saw this on the CH Listserve, at the Quiet Mind yoga studio: "enjoy headstands with daniel tonight at 8pm: in a mini-workshop style class."

The studio is at 3423 14th Street NW.

CH Streetscape plan almost done, more work to start

Got forwarded a press release from DDOT -- looks like things are going well.

The work on Park Road, between Mount Pleasant and 14th Streets, is scheduled to be completed by the end of July, weather permitting. DDOT will then move forward with improvements on 14th Street, NW, including new storm drain inlets, sidewalks, granite curbs and streetlights. This work will be done concurrently with the construction that is ongoing in the Civic Plaza, located at the intersection of Kenyon Street, 14th Street and Park Road, NW.

They also note that the right lane and curb parking lane on northbound 14th Street from Columbia to Park will be closed starting on or about July 27.

In addition:

More extensive road reconstruction work on 14th Street, from Newton Street to Columbia Road, is scheduled to begin in November. DDOT will also be reconstructing Irving Street, between 14th and 16th Streets, and the entire project is expected to be completed in late spring, 2010.

Overall, the improvements to the Columbia Heights area include total roadway reconstruction, waterline and drainage upgrades, new sidewalks, landscaping, street lighting, intersection and signal improvements, enhancements to traffic operations, pedestrian amenities and safety improvements.

The Columbia Heigts Streetscape plan website has more on bus changes and such.

Casey Trees out planting and watering trees in the neighborhood

Today walking down Girard Street between 13th and 14th, I noticed some folks watering trees. Turns out they were from Casey Trees, a nonprofit that plants and cares for trees around the city. Nice to see them working in the neighborhood!

They have a pretty cool web map that shows where they've planted trees, and also resources where you can ask for trees to be planted -- for free!

Apologies for fewer posts recently

Just wanted to say sorry for the lack of posts lately -- Blogger's scheduled post function is not working recently. Usually when I get busy at work, I'll write up a few to post the next day, but since it isn't working, I have to do it when I can, manually.

Hopefully Blogger will get it sorted out soon, and I'll keep writing posts now anyway!

Statehood graffiti at Georgia and Kenyon

A pal sent this over, it's some pro-DC Statehood graffiti next to the Shepherd Fairey Obama poster on a building at the corner of Georgia and Kenyon. I've seen this 51 logo around elsewhere too, like on U Street.

I'm not sold on statehood, but it's interesting to see that it's getting more play lately. As for the location, I'm not sure exactly where it is, so I can't say if it's an abandoned building or not. It looks like this picture is at same place but earlier, and with a different poster, this time of anarchist Emma Goldman.

What's going on with this car?

Awesome car
Originally uploaded by squidpants

A couple months ago, I posted about this car, a Chevy Caprice or Impala, and how it was cool. However, I think it might be abandoned -- it's been in the same place on 14th Street between Belmont and Clifton for literally months, the window's broken, and it's in general disrepair. (This photo is from October).

Does anybody know what the deal is? The driver's side window is broken and used to have a plastic bag over it, but that's since been torn off. I would assume nobody drives it. It would be too bad if it's abandoned, since it's a pretty cool car and obviously somebody has put some work into it.

I'm asking at the CH Listserve too.

16th Street walking tours

Want to learn some history about the Avenue of the Presidents (aka 16th Street)? Check out these walking tours posted on the South CH Listserve:

16th Street Walking Tours: Avenue of the Presidents

Stroll through 200 years of history along the stately street that gives the White House its address. Prestigious 16th Street is home to the Scottish Rite Temple, Gilded Age mansions, embassies, peculiar statuary, churches , and the cascading fountains of Meridian Hill Park/Malcolm X Park. Hear stories of the colorful characters that have resided here, told by professional tour guide and DC native Nathan Harrington.

Upcoming Tour Dates:

Sunday, July 5
Saturday, July 11
Sunday, July 19

Tours begin at 12:30 PM and last two hours

Adults $10
Children under 10 $5

Reservations are encouraged but not required.

Please call 202-526-3384 or email ucpaige@aol.com

Meet in front of the Australian Embassy at Scott Circle, where Rhode Island and Massachusetts Avenues cross 16th Street NW. The nearest Metro stations are Dupont Circle or McPherson Square.

The tour ends at the Columbia Heights Metro near great restaurants. Please bring water and comfortable shoes.

Apparent robbery, lack of action by security at DCUSA Washington Sports Club

Pretty crazy story posted today on the Columbia Heights Listserve -- a patron in the locker room of the Washington Sports Club says he noticed a guy with bolt cutters trying to open a locker. Apparently that's not too unusual, as the staff have a pair in case people forget their combos, but when the patron came back, he noticed his lock had been changed. He confronted the man, struggled for the man's bag a bit, something fell out and the man ran off.

The patron started chasing the guy, and during this time, there was a towel person in the locker room who didn't do anything. He chased the guy through the club, yelling "thief!" but again nobody on staff did anything. Then near the door of DCUSA, where the security guard is posted, the patron yelled the man had stolen his stuff. The security guard didn't do anything either, and the man ran outside.

Luckily, an off duty Metro police officer heard the commotion and caught the guy. They found the patron's wallet, as well as another person's, and when they went back to the locker room they found the patron's computer and such, which had fallen out of the thief's bag.

Pretty crazy, in that neither the WSC staff and the DCUSA security guard did anything. The patron said the WSC staff seemed "blase" about it and wondered if they were in on it or something, since the man had a pair of bolt cutters.

Weird story. Anybody else have any negative experiences with the WSC or DCUSA staff about thefts? This is the kind of stuff that could make people stop going to the shopping center. And of course, I assume the story is true, as it doesn't raise any red flags for me -- unlike the last DCUSA crime story I remember, which turned out to be a hoax.

Beer Run: 727 Market

Beer run: 727 Market
Originally uploaded by squidpants

This edition of the Beer Run series is the 727 Market at the corner of Georgia and Gresham (between Harvard and Girard). It's a pretty small place, with not much beer selection, just one cooler that was about half beer, but they did have lots of 40s, Mad Dog 20-20, and other such stuff.

Prices were ok - Bud was $5.50 or so for a a 6-pack, and MD 20-20 was $2.25, if you're into that kind of thing. Twelve packs of Milwaukee's Best and another similar beer (I forget exactly what) were $9 -- pretty cheap.

Here's the ratings:

Selection: 3 of 5 - not much beer, but lots of 40s
Price: 3 of 5 - some good deals (12 packs), some less good deals (Bud)
Ambiance: 3 of 5 - the folks were nice enough

727 Market is at 2820 Georgia Ave NW

Girard Park opening party

Looks like the park at 14th and Girard is almost done, and I just got a flier for an opening party, to be held Saturday, July 11th from 2-6 pm. The flier says "food, fun and music."

It looks like the new park has a couple bathrooms and some landscaping and such.

The park closed in December, so that means it was about 6 months of work. Not too bad.

How was your 4th?

Happy 4th of July! I see some fireworks are still going off, and yesterday's were pretty impressive around the neighborhood. Got any good stories from the neighborhood from yesterday? Share them in the comments!

NextBus users report problems

Looks like NextBus is having some issues - mislabeled signs, arrival times out of whack, voice commands not working, and more.

Gee, WMATA, maybe you should have had a beta-test website. OH WAIT!
See, this is why beta tests are useful. This is why you shouldn't shut them down when people, shockingly, use them.

But enough of that. Has anybody here used Nextbus? How did it work for you?

Fireworks in the neighborhood

The 4th of July is upon us, especially if you've been listening around the neighborhood lately - there've been increasing numbers of fireworks going off around the area in the last few days. The 4th itself is the biggest, with tons of people shooting off fireworks in every direction, not to mention the big display down on the Mall. Here's our recommendations for watching in the hood:

The best place is a roof -- if you can find a roof party, you'll literally have a 360degree fireworks show. It's pretty cool. Another good spot is the stands of the Cardozo High School - it's a great view south over the city and sometimes folks shoot them off from there too.

If you want to shoot off fireworks, be mindful that it's illegal in DC and can be dangerous. They are for sale in the city however - I know of a stand at Kenyon and Georgia, and one on North Capitol at about Florida Ave, though I'm sure there are some others.

And if you have any suggestions for good spots to watch, let me know in the comments.

UPDATE: DCist has a map of legal fireworks vendors in the city

Yes, I chose the lamest clip-art possible

Got a band in the neighborhood?

So for awhile I had the Bands in the Neighborhood series, where I talk to local musicians and groups, but lately I haven't heard from many. Do you know of any? Are you in one? Want some free press?

If so, comment here or shoot me an email - newcolumbiaheights(at)gmail(dot)com

GWAR, pictured, is not from the neighborhood

NextBus is up!

After lots of delay and hair-pulling, Metro's NextBus system is up and running -- the website works from your mobile device or your computer, and shows you when the next bus is coming, plus a map, all in real time. You can also call the service for the same information.

I didn't use it this morning, but it seems to be working -- anyone use it this morning?

The Circulator bus has a similar app as well.