McCourt’s $100-Million Gift to Georgetown Creates New School
• October 2, 2013

Georgetown alumnus and former Los Angeles Dodger owner Frank McCourt, Jr., will donate $100 million to Georgetown University to establish a school of public policy. It is the single largest gift ever to the university. In October, the McCourt School of Public Policy will become Georgetown’s ninth school and its first new one since 1957.

McCourt, a real estate developer, earned a bachelor’s degree of economics in 1975. His father and two of his brothers and a son also attended Georgetown University. McCourt was last in the news 2012, when the Dodgers were sold for a little more than $2 billion, and was criticized by Major League Baseball for his management of the team.

“The McCourt School for Public Policy will leverage Georgetown’s location in Washington, D.C., its relationships with global leaders and its legacy of public service to launch a new approach to public policy,” according to a university spokesperson. “The McCourt School will contribute policy-based, data-driven research and solutions to the urgent policy issues of our time. This world-class research institution will incorporate the Georgetown Public Policy Institute, a nationally ranked graduate program.”

“Georgetown is uniquely positioned, at this moment in our university’s history, to build on our existing strengths as we grow to meet the needs of the complex and evolving public policy field,” said Georgetown University President John DeGioia. “The McCourt School of Public Policy will build on the foundation we have created while leveraging our most valuable resources – our location in the nation’s capital, our national and global reputation and our commitment to civil and civic discourse and engagement – to become the premiere academic resource for public policy in the 21st century.”

“There has never been a more urgent need for this work,” McCourt added in the university announcement of the gift. “The issues facing global leaders are more acute, dynamic and interrelated than ever before. We recognize an opportunity here to serve the world in a new way through an innovative approach to public policy research and analysis.”

According to the university, the McCourt School will also house a new Massive Data Institute, “which will harness and navigate the data that new advances in technology and communications have generated in the past decade. The Massive Data Institute will take an innovative approach to shaping public policy by training the next generation of leaders to critically analyze, extract and use these large sets of data to better inform public policy.”

“The generosity and partnership of Frank McCourt brings to life our vision to connect the Jesuit values of service and justice with a critical need in the 21st century for scholars, leaders, policymakers and organizations to work together in new ways,” DeGioia said. “Understanding the data now available to us and using it in the creation of public policy will be fundamental to shaping the public policy of the future.”

“The McCourt family has had a long relationship with Georgetown over multiple generations, and we are very pleased to partner with the university to bring to life the bold vision of a new public policy school,” McCourt added. “Georgetown’s unmatched interconnections with the people, institutions and ideas that shape global public policy make it uniquely qualified to develop the preeminent public policy school for our time.”

The university will officially launch the McCourt School for Public Policy at an academic ceremony Oct. 8 and will host an Oct. 9 event with members of the national and international policy communities, dignitaries and congressional leaders.

Weekend Round Up September 26, 2013
• October 1, 2013

Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Annual Fall Festival of Indian Dance and Arts

September 27th, 2013 at 06:00 PM | $27.50-$125.00 | esaluke@dakshina.org | Event Website

Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Dance Company celebrates 10 years of excellence with its annual fall festival of Indian Dance and Arts. The festival features award-winning artists who have been pioneers in the arts of classical to modern Indian dance, music, theater, and spoken word.

Address

Shakespeare Theatre; 610 F Street NW

Art All Night DC 2013

September 28th, 2013 at 07:00 PM | Free | Tel: 202-265-SHAW | Event Website

Art All Night: Nuit Blanche DC will be presented on September 28 from 7:00 PM to 3:00 AM in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington, DC. This will be the second presentation of the DC version of this Parisian overnight arts festival (a “Taste of Art All Night” was presented in 2012). Over one dozen venues ranging from the 32,000 square foot Wonder Bread Factory to the 500 square foot storefront at 1033 7th Street, NW will be included in the festival.

Address

1033 7th Street, NW

The Land Beneath My Feet, Tom Neel Celebrating 25 Years

September 28th, 2013 at 06:00 PM | Free | art@liveanartfullife.com | Tel: 540-253-9797 | Event Website

The Piedmont’s premiere landscape painter, Tom Neel, celebrates 25 years of fine art sales with a land loving event! “The Land Beneath My Feet” will focus on the beauty of our area and a painter’s passion to capture it. Along with new paintings, the event will feature a full color book and short film also titled “The Land Beneath My Feet”. Hosted by The Hill School in Middleburg, VA. For more information 540-253-9797 www.LiveAnArtfulLife.com/events. RVSP appreciated art@LiveAnArtfulLife.com.

Address

The Hill School; Sheila C. Johnson Performing Arts Center; 130 S Madison Street

Park After Dark

September 28th, 2013 at 06:00 PM | Tickets are $175, of which $125 is tax-deductible | siler@canaltrust.org | Tel: 301-714-2233 | Event Website

Park After Dark is an annual benefit for the C&O Canal National Historical Park put on by the C&O Canal Trust, the nonprofit partner of the Park. Guests enjoy a special evening in the Park under the stars with live music, great food, libations, live and silent auctions, a campfire, a photo booth, and more. This year marks the third year the Trust has held this event for the Park.

Address

C&O Canal National Historical Park; Historic Great Falls Tavern; 11710 MacArthur Boulevard

Meet the Artist Behind Anna Bags

September 28th, 2013 at 03:00 PM | Free | jayne@annabags.com | Tel: 3013539416 | Event Website

Georgetown boutique Sterling & Burke Ltd hosts an opening reception introducing artist behind Anna Bags, a D.C.-based luxury leather handbag company.
Anna Bags is known for combining creative design with the highest quality materials and impeccable craftsmanship. Anna Bags creates works of sophisticated, wearable art. Bags are made in our workshop located just outside Washington, D.C..
During GW Alumni Weekend (Thursday-Sunday), 10 percent of ANNA bags sales will go towards the GW scholarship fund.

Address

Sterling & Burke Ltd; 2824 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW

DC Walk for the Animals and Pet-A-Palooza

September 28th, 2013 at 10:00 AM | $20 for adults $15 for children under 13 | whs@washhumane.org | Tel: 2027237.5730 | Event Website

Join the Washington Humane Society for the 2013 DC Walk for the Animals and Pet-A-Palooza at our new venue, the Kingsbury Center! It’s a celebration of our community’s animals and a walk to end pet homelessness in DC. There’s something for every animal lover. Show how much you love DC’s animals – Sign up to walk with us today.

Address

Kingsbury Center; 5000 14th St. NW

Opera Nova Presents – Season Opening Brunch and Concert

September 29th, 2013 at 01:30 PM | $22-$25 | mcdm1@verizon.net | Tel: 703-536-7557 | Event Website

Come join Opera NOVA supporters for lunch and a creative program by Artistic Director Jose Sacin and his chorus of outstanding voices.

Meet Alexandria Vice Mayor Allison Silberberg, a passionate advocate for the common good, and cheer for special honoree Tony Torchia, beloved tenor with Washington National Opera.

Address

National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) Building; 4301 Wilson Blvd; Arlington, VA 22203.

3rd Annual Chefs Go Fresh and Seafood, Sept. 30

September 30th, 2013 at 09:00 AM | Individual tickets are $75.00 | chefsgofresh@georgetowner.com | Tel: 202 338 4833 | Event Website

For the 3rd year, Georgetown Media Group continues the popular event, Chefs Go Fresh, while highlighting seafood this year. Local chefs rev up for a motorcycle tour of farms near Annapolis, sponsored by the Maryland Department of Agriculture and Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries, in an effort to introduce D.C. area chefs to purveyors of produce, meats, seafood and other local products.

Address

Brasserie Beck; 1101 K Street NW.

Luxe Dining at Dulles, Thanks to Qatar Airways
•

Media guests were treated to five-star dining and comfort onboard a Qatar Airways Boeing 777-300ER on the Washington Dulles International Airport tarmac Sept. 25 without leaving the ground.

Qatar Airways invited food, travel and local journalists to a unique Airplane Dinner that showcased its award-winning “Culinary World Menu.” The event was the first of its kind ever staged in the history of the airline, where its aircraft became a converted restaurant and did not leave its gate.

Guests ordered from an a-la-carte menu—designed by chefs Nobu Matsuhisa, Tom Aikens, Vineet Bhatia and Ramzi Choueiri. While on the airlines’ Boeing 777’s Business Class seats and tables, diners enjoyed delicacies, such as mushroom rice fritters by Bhatia, fillet of beef anticucho by Nobu and braburn apple puree with vanilla creme by Aikens. The chefs, who have earned a combined five Michelin stars, worked together to make sure the menu represented the diversity of Qatar Airways’s clients, blending dishes from all over the globe.

Guests were also introduced to James Cluer, the Qatar Airways Master of Wine, who showcased the airline’s unique champagne and wine selections and discussed how taste palates change at high altitude and the challenge of choosing the best vintages for the rarefied air of 35,000 feet.

“Qatar Airways has a long tradition of offering a hospitable, personable five star signature service. We are glad to share our latest menu developments with visitors at the event,” said Akbar Al Baker, CEO of Qatar Airways, which flies daily to Washington, D.C from its hub in Doha, Qatar and also daily to Chicago, New York and Houston.
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Weekend Round Up September 19, 2013
• September 27, 2013

SAVE THE DATE

3rd Annual Chefs Go Fresh and Seafood, Sept. 30

September 30th, 2013 at 09:00 AM | Individual tickets are $75.00 | chefsgofresh@georgetowner.com | Tel: 202 338 4833 | Event Website

For the 3rd year, Georgetown Media Group continues the popular event, Chefs Go Fresh, while highlighting seafood this year. Local chefs rev up for a motorcycle tour of farms near Annapolis, sponsored by the Maryland Department of Agriculture and Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries, in an effort to introduce D.C. area chefs to purveyors of produce, meats, seafood and other local products.

DC Shorts Film Festival Office

September 19th, 2013 at 06:30 PM | Free-$100 | info@dcshorts.com | Event Website

For 10 years, the DC Shorts Film Festival and Screenplay Competition has screened the world’s top short films to audiences throughout the region. This year, we will showcase over 153 films from 23 nations at 6 venues — including the country’s largest collection of short films by emerging Russian filmmakers. Hundreds of filmmakers and thousands of audience members will gather to mix, mingle and explore the art of short cinema.

Address

E Street Cinema: 555 11th Street NW

11th Annual Michael Wilbon & James Brown Celebrity Roast & Golf Classic

September 20th, 2013 at 07:30 AM | $250-$650 | dccapgolf@sorellegroup.com | Tel: 202-248-1930 | Event Website

Join us on Lansdowne’s Greg Norman championship course to benefit DC College Access Program and the thousands of students DC-CAP serves. Registration/breakfast is at 7:30 a.m., then tee off at 9:30 with dozens of sports, broadcasting and political celebrities and compete for prizes. The day of golf is part of a 2-day event featuring a Celebrity Roast/Auction on Thursday, Sept. 19. Play golf, attend the roast/auction or both. See website for details and sponsorship packages. RSVP by Sept. 6.

Address

Lansdowne Golf Resort; 44050 Woodridge Parkway

Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Annual Fall Festival of Indian Dance and Arts

September 20th, 2013 at 06:00 PM | $27.50-$125.00 | esaluke@dakshina.org | Event Website

Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Dance Company celebrate 10 years of excellence with its annual fall festival of Indian Arts and Dance. The festival features award winning artists who have been pioneers in the arts of classical to modern Indian dance, music, theater, and spoken word.

Address

Shakespeare Theatre; 610 F Street NW

Rachel Farbiarz: Take Me With You

September 20th, 2013 at 06:00 PM | Free | info@heinercontemporary.com | Tel: 202.338.0072 | Event Website

Heiner Contemporary is thrilled to present Rachel Farbiarz: Take Me With You, an exhibition featuring new drawing, collage and installation by the DC-based artist.

Address

Heiner Contemporary; 1675 Wisconsin Ave NW

Library of Congress National Book Festival

September 21st, 2013 at 10:00 AM | Event Website

Come to the 13th annual Library of Congress National Book Festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama are honorary chairs for the event. 10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Address

The National Mall, between 7th & 14th Streets

D.C. Green Festival

September 21st, 2013 at 10:00 AM | $10.00 Day Pass, Discounted tickets available online | jackelin@greenfestivals.org | Tel: 828-333-9432 | Event Website

Come to Green Festival D.C. on September 21st and 22nd and participate in an annual celebration of sustainability and ecological balance at the nation’s largest green living event. Enjoy cooking demos, environmental films, keynote speakers, kids activities, fashion, beer & wine, and a marketplace with hundreds of local and national green businesses at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Hall A. Discounted tickets are available online- Visit Greenfestivals.org for more information!

Address

Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Hall A

Fashion 360 Conference

September 22nd, 2013 at 10:00 AM | $75-$125 | Event Website

District Fete brings the fashion industry to our nation’s capitol with The Fashion 360 Conference (“Fashion 360”). Fashion 360 was created to provide industry insights and participate in engaging skill-building workshops that aid in the proficiency of core areas. It’s where industry leaders and influencers collide with interactive experiences and challenge themselves to increase their performance.

Address

District Architecture Conference Center; 421 7th Street NW

Stop-Work Order on Grace Street Gets Classic Georgetown Postscript
• September 25, 2013

A neighbor alerted the Georgetowner Sept. 20 about a stop-work order by the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs for the small corner condominium construction at 3220 Grace St., NW. The permit cited retaining wall work that lacked permits. All construction at the site has stopped.

The project itself has gone through major changes because of challenges from Georgetown’s influential Advisory Neighborhood Commission as well as the powerful Old Georgetown Board, an advisory committee of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.

Such a shutdown may seem ordinary or routine. Yet it was the added postscript under the order that caught our eye, thanks to our neighbor. It has a classic Georgetown ring to it, helpful but not too haughty.

The unsigned letter is a succinct rebuff and quite the advertisement for one of Georgetown’s favorite architects. It reads:

“Now that the property value of the neighbor has been saved from this incredibly ugly building, please do yourselves and the neighborhood a favor.

“Walk a quarter of a block east and knock on Frank Schlesinger’s door. Let him design a nice set of row houses in keeping with historic beauty of the street you seem hell bent on destroying.

“Frank designed 3303 Water Street and 3336 Cady’s Alley. He made everyone a lot of money with great designs. Please let him do the same for you. Please. Really . . . PLEASE.”

Reporting on the same story, Georgetown Patch earlier contacted Larry Parker of DCRA. He responded to Patch, which explained, ” . . . the stop work order was probably issued for work outside of the parameters of the permits issued for the site, which include a permit for a retaining wall. He also said the permits were not posted anywhere on the site, which could also lead to the stop work order.”

Let’s see if Schlesinger gets a new account.
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Stop-Work Order on Grace Street Earns Classic Georgetown Comment
•

A neighbor alerted the Georgetowner Sept. 20 about a stop-work order by the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs for the the small corner condominium construction at 3220 Grace St., NW. The permit cited retaining wall work that has no permits. All construction at the site has stopped. While the project itself has gone through major changes because of challenges from Georgetown’s influential Advisory Neighborhood Commission as well as the powerful Old Georgetown Board, an advisory committee of the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts.

Such a shutdown may seem ordinary or routine. Yet it was the added postscript under the order that caught our eye, thanks to our neighbor. It has a classic Georgetown ring to it, helpful but not too haughty. The unsigned letter is a succinct rebuff and quite the advertisement for one of Georgetown’s favorite architects. It reads:

“Now that the property value of the neighbor[hood] has been saved from this incredibly ugly building, please do yourselves and the neighborhood a favor. “Walk a quarter of a block east and knock on Frank Schlesinger’s door. Let him design a nice set of row houses in keeping with historic beauty of the street you seem hell bent on destroying.
“Frank designed 3303 Water Street and 3336 Cady’s Alley. He made everyone a lot of money with great designs. Please let him do the same for you. Please. Really . . . PLEASE.”

Reporting on the same story, Georgetown Patch earlier contacted Larry Parker of DCRA. He responded to Patch, which explained, “ . .. the stop work order was probably issued for work outside of the parameters of the permits issued for the site, which include a permit for a retaining wall. He also said the permits were not posted anywhere on the site, which could also lead to the stop work order.”

A neighbor contacted the Georgetowner, saying the architectural plans for the site may be in error. Now, Schlesinger is really needed

French Maternal School Gets N Street Branch
•

The French Maternal School — the small, independent nursery school serving the French, international and diplomatic communities — has opened a second branch in the former space of the Little Folks School at 3224 N St., NW.

It offers French-immersion programs forchildren, ages 2 to 6 (nursery, pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten) and follows the French National Curriculum. Older children are at 3115 P St., NW, while two- and three-year-olds are at the N Street school, which is enrolling now; call 202-333-0183.

Lab School Plans High School Building
•

The Lab School of Washington, a leading school for students with learning difficulties or disabilities, ranging from elementary to high school levels, wants to expand its high school classroom space. It plans to construct a separate high school space, next to the gym on Whitehaven Parkway. This is part of the school’s main campus at Reservoir Road and Whitehaven. School-owned houses will torn down to make way for the new building which should be ready in two years. The addition does not add any new students, as the school remains below its cap of 33o students. The school’s plans have the support of most of the neighborhood; a Board of Zoning Adjustment meeting is set for Nov. 19.

Yearly Visitor Parking Passes Paused by Council
•

The District Council stopped the D.C. Department of Transportation plan that would give an annual visitor parking card to each household within residential permit parking zones. On Sept. 10, the Council voted against the DDOT plan, described as sudden by local politicians who were involved in previous community discussions about parking, was unanimous. Ward 4 councilmember Muriel Bowser’s bill called for a return to “the status quo.” The DDOT new plan called for residents simply getting a parking card to hand to their visitors. Some saw this arrangement as leading to a few selling the free pass and thus outsiders parking all day and protested. Neighbors may continue to visit the Second District police station on Idaho Avenue to get temporary passes for visitors.

Politics and Prose Bookstore: Coming to Georgetown?
• September 23, 2013

As a neighborhood known for its beautiful houses and vibrant business district, Georgetowners like things just so. There is one piece of streetscape that puts frowns on the faces of passers-by. There, a sign reads, “The National Jewel Center,” which sits, aged and forlorn, on the empty 1351 Wisconsin Ave., NW, space.

This address did not always look so homely, and some pieces of its history are still visible in the old signage hanging out front. It became home to the bustling Dumbarton Theater in 1913. It was alight and glorious, a playhouse equipped with seating for 460. The Dumbarton Theater became the Georgetown Theater and began showing movies in 1947. The theater – infamous for showing the Penthouse-produced film, “Caligula,” for months on end — was sold in 1986 to be used for retail.

The National Jewel Center took its turn after the fall of the Georgetown Theater. After 20 years, it closed, leaving the space for sale by the Heon family with no takers yet. It has sat this way for the past two years, as the iconic Georgetown Theater sign collects rust with each passing season. Georgetown is ready for a change.

And, finally, change may be on the way. The dusty space may, after two long years of sitting and collecting sympathy, have an amazing transformation in its near future.

According to the Washingtonian, Politics and Prose Bookstore may be coming to Georgetown. The popular and successful independent bookstore at 5015 Connecticut Ave., N.W., wants to expand and may take over the currently dingy Wisconsin Avenue space.

Politics and Prose, with its workshops, speakers and coffee shop element, would add some real verve to Georgetown. Unfortunately, this business expansion has not yet been officially confirmed. As P&P owners Bradley Graham and Lisa Muscatine are currently out of town, no statement could be received on the matter. Employees at the Connecticut Avenue location have made it clear that only the owners are able to comment on this supposed business plan. So, until the bosses are back in town, Georgetowners can only cross their fingers and dare to dream. Look for a follow-up in next week’s newsletter.