Georgetown Student Finds Greg Monroe’s Wallet; NBA Player a Thankful Hoya
• May 3, 2012

It’s not every day that one discovers a wallet belonging to a National Basketball Association player. Georgetown University student Ed Shehwen did just that last week on Prospect Street, where he found the wallet of the Detroit Pistons’ Greg Monroe. Shehwen’s friend, Chris Scribner who lives in one of the apartments at Halcyon House, tweeted the former Hoya Big East rookie of the year to come get his wallet. It took a few tries to convince Monroe, who is taking summer school classes at Georgetown University. The six-foot-11-inch tall basketball player pulled up in his BMW and thanked his fellow Hoyas for the find. Monroe (G_Monroe10 ) tweeted: huge s/o to @CScribs and his friends! #superclutch .

Walter Reed Army Medical Center Closed
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After 102 years of operation, the Walter Reed Army Medical Center officially closed yesterday with a stirring ceremonial retiring of the hospital’s colors. The Medical Center, which provided care to present and former military members and their families, will relocate, splitting their operations between the newly renamed Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda and the Fort Belvoir Community Hospital in Fairfax by Sept. 15.

This Friday, Maj. Gen. Carla Hawley-Bowland, commander of the medical center, will transfer her position to Brig. Gen. Joseph Caravalho Jr.

According to an article by Meredith Somers for The Washington Times, the hospital’s former location, although it consisted of 72 buildings on 172 acres, did not have the space it needed to expand and accommodate the changing needs of its patients. The move has been planned since 2005, when the Medical Center received orders to close from the Base Realignment and Closure Commission.

At the new site in Bethesda, construction projects have begun to alleviate traffic congestion outside the hospital as an estimated 2,500 additional workers are expected to be commuting to the area each day along with patients and visitors. According to the Chevy Chase Patch, the intersections at Connecticut Avenue and Jones Bridge Road, Rockville Pike and Cedar Lane, Rockville Pike and Jones Bridge Road and Old Georgetown Road and Cedar Lane are all scheduled to be improved.

Summer Restaurant Week
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It’s that time again! Well…almost. For those of you who have been waiting patiently, Washington D.C.’s Summer Restaurant Week is just a couple weeks away; however, if you’ve never participated in one of this city’s most highlighted events, then make sure you don’t miss out this time.

From Aug. 15 through 21, over 200 restaurants from the Metropolitan area invite friends, families, and even visitors to try the best eats of the area at the most unbeatable prices. Whether it is at 1789, a Georgetown restaurant where the Obamas recently dined, or at one of the 2011 RAMMY Award-winning restaurants like Wolfgang Puck’s The Source, lunch is priced at $20.11 and dinner is $35.11 for a fixed three-course menu.

In a recent press release, Lynne Breaux, president of the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington said, “The D.C. area restaurant scene is certainly hot. We have seen a great number of new restaurants open throughout the last year and many are participating in Summer Restaurant Week – offering guests the chance to enjoy, perhaps a place they’ve never been before or visit an old favorite at an excellent value.”

A full list of participating restaurants can be found at RestaurantWeekMetroDC.org. Check which fine dining or casual restaurants interest your taste buds and make a reservation online or by calling in. Hurry as seats fill quickly!

As you close summer 2011, make sure to keep D.C. Beer Week in mind too.

Coinciding with Restaurant Week, from Aug. 14 through 21, various breweries and taps will have a selection of beers and cocktails offered at special prices. The variety of events and deals will take place depending on the time, day, and location. To find more information about the participating bars, visit DCBeerWeek.net.

Dog Days of August
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Hey, Georgetowners! To liven up these hot, “dog days,” we’re taking time to give a hats-off and a good belly rub to man’s best friend, who sticks with us in any weather. Send us pictures of of your pooch along with names (theirs and yours) and your contact information to samantha@georgetowner.com and one lucky doggy will be featured as the face of our “Dog Days of August” issue. The rest will be included online in our “Dog Days of August” photo album alongside our article highlighting the best outings for you and your dog in D.C. [gallery ids="100256,106899,106894,106889,106884,106879,106874,106869,106864,106908,106859,106912,106854,106916,106849,106920,106844,106904" nav="thumbs"]

K Street Kate Takes the 5th . . . Anniversary, That Is
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Kate Michael, online magazine founder of K Street Kate, celebrated the fifth birthday of her D.C. lifestyle blog July 27 at the National Press Club ballroom with drinks and music, themed to “Livin’ La Vida Local.” The media entrepreneur thanked her staff and said she sees a bright future for hyperlocal websites. Friends and fans of the popular Michael, a former Miss D.C., congratulated her for hitting the anniversary whose traditional gift is one made of wood. Life is local and ironic, too.

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IMAX Experience Coming to AMC Georgetown
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IMAX is coming to a theater near you this fall, with the Sept. 9 premier of Contagion, a thriller directed by Steven Soderbergh starring Matt Damon, scheduled to appear via the “IMAX Experience” at AMC Georgetown 14 on K Street.

The IMAX Experience is a modified version of the IMAX theaters in the Museum of Natural History and the Air and Space Museum on the National Mall, and has been dubbed “IMAX-lite” by Ian Buckwalter of the DCist. Like Buckwalter, several local bloggers have expressed contempt and skepticism toward what would appear to be an advance for the theater experience.

But many would argue to the contrary: the IMAX Experience preserves IMAX”ssignature sound quality and involves the same dual digital projection as in the traditional IMAX theaters. The resolution of the projected images is classified as “2K,” making IMAX dual projection superior in quality to normal movie screens with 2k resolution, but sources report that most movie chains have begun to install to 4K resolution projectors in their theaters. If the transition is completed on schedule, the IMAX Experience at AMC Georgetown will have been trumped in terms of image quality in its first year.

Critics are wondering if the IMAX Experience will live up to its snazzy name, or if IMAX is better experienced through the traditional setup at the Smithsonian. We’ll just have to wait until Sept. 9 and see for ourselves.

GBA Reception Honoring Bernie Furin
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The Georgetown Business Association invites the community to join them at this month’s reception, “Networking with a View… And a Salute to Furin’s.” The event will grant special recognition to Bernie Furin in honor of his retirement and the closing of Furin’s after 40 years of catering Georgetown events.

The reception will be held at the House of Sweden on the Waterfront from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 17. The GBA asks that those planning to attend RSVP by Monday, Aug. 15 to Sue Hamilton via email or she can be reached by phone at 202.333.8076.

Homicide In Georgetown [Updated]
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UPDATE: Albrecht Gero Muth was charged yesterday with the murder of his late wife, Viola Drath.

Muth was arrested by D.C. police Tuesday evening and charged with second-degree murder after police found he did not have a credible alibi at the time of Drath’s death and found no signs of forced entry into their Q Street home. Muth allegedly has a history of violent behavior toward Drath.

The death of 91-year-old Georgetown resident Viola Drath, originally credited to natural causes, is now under investigation as a homicide.

Drath died in a bathroom in her home on Q Street on Friday morning. In his obituary submission to The Washington Post the following morning, Drath’s second husband Albrecht Gero Muth classified the cause of death as “head trauma resulting from fall,” but the results of an autopsy have given the D.C. authorities cause to begin a search for Drath’s killer.

Police spent the weekend interviewing the family and collecting evidence from Drath’s home, but have not turned up any leads as of yet. The home shows no sign of forced entry, and the police have not named any suspects or discovered a possible motive for murder.

A native of Germany and reputed journalist, Drath is remembered as a former reporter for Handelsblatt, a German newspaper, and as a columnist for The Washington Times. She wrote several books and was actively involved in foreign policy, particularly affairs involving relations between Germany and the U.S.

Georgetown Students Argue Against ANC Re-Districting
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All politics is local – and sometimes hyper-local – as Georgetown University students and long-time residents experienced during the opening community comment of the September Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC 2e) meeting held on Aug. 29. The issue was the redistricting plan for the Georgetown-Burleith-Hillandale ANC that adds an additional single-member district (SMD) within the university campus for a total of eight in the ANC. Students had put forth a plan that included an additional eighth and a ninth district for students. A neighborhood group, which included students, voted nine to six for a new plan that keeps most SMDs the same but adds an eighth district for the campus. The role of the ANC at the meeting was neither to approve nor disapprove the proposal.

Commission chair Ron Lewis opened the discussion of the re-drawn ANC 2e boundary plan, saying it showed “respect for political geography” and chose to round down the student MSDs to two. He then asked those attending the meeting to limit their comments of pro and con to three persons who could represent the larger group. Students in attendance – who wanted three SMDs for the university area – expressed dismay at the time limitations but rolled with it, sending Georgetown University Student Association president Mike Meaney and president of the Graduate Student Association Paul Musgrave to the podium.

Meaney asked that the re-districting be reconsidered, seeing it as a dilution of students’ voting power and suggested that his group might “appeal to the Committee of the Whole” of the D.C. Council. He reminded the current ANC of its 2002 affirmation “to full representation.” Saying that Georgetown University students make up “45 percent of the ANC’s population,” Meaney maintained that “equal rights mean equal votes.”

Musgrave, a doctorate student from Burleith, called the situation “disingenuous” for its “extreme malapportionment” and said the ANC must “be a truly representative body.” “Representation means representation by person.” He condemned the plan as “unfair” and “unjust,” and stated so “as a resident, a political scientist and a voter.”

In contrast, Nan Bell of Burleith and Cynthia Howar of Hillandale stood up and succinctly said they supported new re-districting plan.

Undergraduate Robert Biemesderfer went to the podium and dramatically held up his D.C. voter registration card and declared: “I am a full participant, I am not a second-class citizen.” Student Ruiyong Chen stood up to add that councilman Phil Mendelson does not support this plan.

Ed Russell, a Burleith resident since 1954, asked debaters to “consider permanent residents who pay property taxes.” Karen Cruise contended that 1,200 students live off campus and thus can run in their own district if they wish. In the hallway, later, the young Biemesderfer and Allan Wendt of Volta Place had a lively and civil conservation about the issue.

Next week, the plan will be passed along to the Ward 2 redistricting group, headed by Tom Birch, and will be likely approved.
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ANC Approves K Street Restaurant; Criticizes O Street Homeowner
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The ANC approved the voluntary agreement and a new application for a liquor license for Malmaison, a restaurant – soon to open at the corner of 34th and K Streets – from the owners of Cafe Bonaparte. The new dessert cafe’s name is a reference to Napoleon’s Château de Malmaison; it can translate into “naughty house” or “ill-fated domain.” The Alcohol Beverage Control protest meeting is scheduled for Sept. 14.

In other design requests, commissioner Jeff Jones showed annoyance at the owner of 3254 O Street. The design for a second story above a back garage was denied, as Jones said that this scheme has bounced around for 10 years. Neighbors of the residence in question left the meeting smiling. Five Guys restaurant was asked to redesign its new awning with fewer “Five Guys” logos (not five) on the umbrella fabric. Designs for a planned four-story condo at Grace Street and Cecil Place was opposed as being out of size and out of whack with the secluded neighborhood.