Downtowner DC
By • February 9, 2026 0 236
Severe Cold Spell Buries, Freezes the District
Snowy scene along the C&O. Courtesy Georgetown BID.
No, you’re not being dramatic. It truly is relentlessly freezing outside. In late January, the area saw lows in the single digits and below zero. Lasting well into Groundhog Day, the cold spell is one of the most severe since the late 1800s. The temperatures helped usher in one of D.C.’s biggest snowstorms in over a decade, dumping six to eight inches across the area, freezing portions of the Potomac River and closing schools for a week. As of press time, the District’s longest streak of highs 32 degrees or lower remains 12, set on Feb. 3, 1936.
Sewer Line Break Floods Potomac With E. Coli
The Potomac River at Fletcher’s Cove in 2021. Courtesy Quinn Evans/NPS.
On Jan. 19, a section of an enormous underground sewer line, the Potomac Interceptor, collapsed, dumping an estimated 300 million gallons of sewage into the Potomac River. Though DC Water crews managed to divert most of it into the empty C&O Canal — from which it will make its way back into the sewer system — subsequent testing showed dangerously high E. coli levels: a whopping 12,000 times higher than the limit considered safe for human contact at the spill site and 60 times higher at Fletcher’s Cove Boathouse.
Plans Announced to Sell Penn. Ave. Landmark
The Old Post Office. Wikipedia photo.
The Trump administration plans to sell the Old Post Office, an 1899 landmark at 1100 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, formerly the Trump International Hotel, to the current leaseholder, BDT & MSD Partners. After purchasing the leasehold from the Trump Organization for $375 million and rebranding the hotel as a Waldorf Astoria, CGI Merchant Group defaulted on a $285-million loan from BDT & MSD, which bought the leasing rights at a foreclosure auction. The future of public access to the tower is uncertain, per the Park Service.
Washington Spirit’s Rodman Gets the Big Bucks
Trinity Rodman, daughter of NBA great Dennis Rodman, is becoming a sports phenom all her own. Last month, the 23-year-old soccer star signed a three-year contract worth more than $2 million annually, including bonuses, to stay with the Washington Spirit, making her the highest-paid player in National Women’s Soccer League history and the highest-paid women’s soccer player in the world. Raised in Southern California, after committing to Washington State University, Rodman turned pro and was drafted by the Sprit in 2021.
‘Fez’ of ‘That ‘70s Show’ Opens Union Market Bar
Wilmer Valderrama. Wikipedia photo.
Wilmer Valderrama, best known as the character Fez in the late ’90s/early ’00s Fox sitcom “That ’70s Show,” opened Elegancia, a new cocktail bar in Union Market’s La Cosecha (The Harvest) complex, on Feb. 8. Valderrama and co-owner Daniella Senior, co-founder of Colada Shop, were drawn to the Latin marketplace to assist in its post-pandemic redevelopment. Also involved with the cocktail bar Serenata, which preceded Elegancia in the spot, Senior told the Washington Post: “It’s time for 2.0 — especially right now.”
