Latest News

Georgetowner • September 29, 2014

At-large Councilmember Vincent Orange, chair of the Committee on Business, Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, was joined by Councilmembers Anita Bonds, Yvette Alexander and Marion Barry as well as members of the D.C. small business community at a rally Sept. 23 that posed the question: “Where’s the $1 billion?”

The rally’s theme referred to the D.C. government’s alleged failure to comply with the Small, Local and Disadvantaged Business Enterprise Development and Assistance Act of 2005. The law requires D.C. agencies to allocate at least 50 percent of their expendable budgets towards services provided by small business enterprises based in the District of Columbia. Upon passing in 2005, the law was interpreted as one which would help smaller local organizations thrive through doing business with the District, allowing for local economic development and an increase in D.C.’s tax revenues.

A report provided by the Office of the D.C. Auditor reveals that as of third quarter 2014, only 17 percent of the Small Business Enterprise expenditure goals were met by the District. The report additionally points out that a total of $995,854,922 in funds designated for SBEs was spent elsewhere in fiscal years 2011 through 2013.

“Our small businesses deserve the money that is set aside,” said Ward 7 Councilmember Yvette Alexander. “We are going to hold the mayor accountable and ourselves accountable.” .

Councilman Vincent Orange’s office also received support for the “Where’s the $1 billion,” initiative from Ward 8 Councilmember Marion Barry, who said, “VO is a warrior… I have a reputation as a fighter for D.C., and I’m going to continue that fight.” Barry told the crowd, “Ask Vince Gray, where is the money?” His question quickly turned into a rally chant.

Among the crowd of members from the business community were representatives from the AFL-CIO, the D.C. Chamber of Commerce, and D.C. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, who all made remarks expressing their concern. The National Utility Contractors Association and the National Association of Minority Contractors also filled out the attendance.

Orange’s committee will hold a hearing, 2 p.m., Friday, Sept. 26, to review District agencies’ compliance for fiscal year 2014’s small business expenditure goals, which will also include a public oversight roundtable and testimonies from members of the D.C. business community.
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Georgetowner •

Distilled Truth series – Through The Looking Glass

September 18th, 2014 at 07:00 PM | $50

Next Thursday RiRa will host part 3 of its Distilled Truth series – Through The Looking Glass. Two unique bottles of Scotch from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society will be used to educate on the effects different glassware has on the flavor of Whiskey. This is a very unique event because when those two whiskies are gone, they are gone.
Address

Whiskey Room at RiRa; 3125 M Street NW

Adopt Force One

September 19th, 2014 at 11:00 AM | Free | JRoberts@ITCDC.com | Tel: (202) 312-1552 | Event Website

Downtown visitors are invited to spend part of their afternoon visiting the Washington Humane Society’s mobile adoption van. Cats and dogs greet passersby in search of a play date. And for those who want to give an animal a permanent home, the van is equipped with Wi-Fi and a printer for a speedy adoption application process.

Address

Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, Woodrow Wilson Plaza; 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

“Ink & Grain” Opening Reception

September 19th, 2014 at 05:00 PM | free | info@oldprintgallery.com | Tel: (202) 965-1818 | Event Website

The Old Print Gallery’s fall print show, Ink & Grain, will open on Friday, September 19, 2014 with a free nighttime opening reception from 5-8pm. One of the most ancient forms of printmaking, the woodcut saw an energized revival during the 20th century. American printmakers experimented heavily with technique, by manipulating the grain of the matrix and crafting new methods of ink application. Ink & Grain celebrates this renaissance and the skilled printmakers who worked in the medium.

Address

The Old Print Gallery; 1220 31st Street NW

UNCENSORED Preview Party

September 19th, 2014 at 07:00 PM | msalazar@scottcircle.com | Tel: 202 695-8226 | Event Website

A preview party for UNCENSORED on September 19 will give guests a sneak peek at the art installations and will feature signature cocktails representing local mixologists’ favorite banned books.

The preview party for Banned Books Week will include signature cocktails representing favorite banned books by:

Chantal Tseng, Mockingbird Hill

Duane Sylvestre, Bourbon Steak

Phil Greene, Museum of the American Cocktail

Address

Great Hall; Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library; 901 G Street, NW

The Seventh Annual Joan Hisaoka “Make A Difference” Gala

September 20th, 2014 at 05:30 PM | Event Website

The Joan Hisaoka “Make a Difference” Gala was created in an effort to continue to fulfill Joan’s desire to help others living with cancer and to raise money to support organizations that bring hope and healing to those faced with serious illness. The black tie event includes a reception, program, dinner, silent and live auctions and an after party. Omni Shoreham Hotel. Call 202-302-0053.

Address

The Omni Shoreham, 2500 Calvert Street NW

Wiener 500 Dachshund Dash

September 20th, 2014 at 01:00 PM | Free to attend, $20 per dog to race (all fees go to charity) | JRoberts@ITCDC.com | Tel: (202) 312-1552 | Event Website

Kick off Oktoberfest at the third annual Wiener 500 Dachshund Dash. Enjoy an afternoon of music, food, beer and beverages while watching the races. Dogs will race in heats of up to 8 dogs each, with a championship race for the winners of each of the heats.

First prize is $150, second place is $100 and third place is $50.

Address

Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, Woodrow Wilson Plaza; 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW

Colonial Market & Fair

September 20th, 2014 at 09:00 AM | info@mountvernon.org | Tel: 7037802000 | Event Website](http://www.mountvernon.org/)

The annual Colonial Market & Fair at Mount Vernon features dozens of America’s finest craftspeople and plenty of family fun! Fifty colonial-attired artisans demonstrate 18th-century crafts and sell traditional wares such as baskets, woodcarvings, tin and ironwork, leatherworkings, weavings, furniture, and much more. New this year: Try your hand at 18th century cricket! Cricket games will be played throughout the weekend.

Address

George Washington’s Mount Vernon; 3200 Mount Vernon Memorial Highway; Mount Vernon, VA 22121

Ralph Nader To Speak

September 21st, 2014 at 12:45 PM | Free | office@rruuc.org | Tel: 301-229-0400 | Event Website](http://www.rruuc.org/)

Ralph Nader will speak on his new book “Unstoppable: The Emerging Left Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State” – a path for liberals and conservatives to work together to stop the growing power of “corporatism”.

When: Sunday, September 21, 2014, 12:45 PM

For more information contact: 301-229-0400

Address

River Road Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 6301 River Road, Bethesda, Maryland

From Farm to Fork Dinner

September 21st, 2014 at 05:30 PM | $200-$250 | debra@centralfarmmarkets.com | Tel: 703-922-0933 | Event Website](http://gypsysoul-va.com/2014/09/from-farm-to-fork/)

Join us on September 21 at a Farm to Fork Dinner hosted by Chef RJ Cooper at his newest restaurant, Gypsy Soul, located at Mosaic in Fairfax, VA. The evening will include a seven-course dinner featuring local bounty from CFM’s farmers and food artisans, farm-inspired cocktails, music from Jake and the Burtones and a live auction you won’t want to miss! This event supports Future Harvest CASA. Get tickets online with the link below, or call Stuart Carter at 703-922-0933.

Address

Gypsy Soul Restaurant; Mosaic District; 8296 Glass Alley; Fairfax, VA 22031

Playback The Tape: St. Elmo’s at The Tombs

September 22nd, 2014 at 08:00 PM | Free | info@playbackthetape.com | Tel: 4129510341 | Event Website](http://www.playbackthetape.com/)

free! all ages! 100% home-recorded vhs fun!

playbackthetape presents THE movie in THE bar on THE campus that inspired it… it’s a back-to-school, pre-30th anniversary, edited-for-television presentation of ST. ELMO’S for one night only at georgetown’s historic bar, the tombs. in addition to your favorite cast of brat packers on screen (and delicious 1980s commercial breaks in between), tonight’s event also features a personal videotaped intro by screenwriter Carl Kurlander!

Address

1226 36th street nw

Ethics in a Rapidly Changing World

September 23rd, 2014 at 05:30 PM | $10-$40 | khutt@council.bbb.org | Tel: 703-247-9345 | [Event Website](https://www.prsa-ncc.org/ethics-rapidly-changing-world)

Public Relations Society of America – National Capital Chapter and the Georgetown University Global Social Enterprise Initiative for an interactive discussion on how technology, news cycles and other changes are influencing our ethical judgments and behaviors. Notable panelists will focus on the ethical challenges during times of transition, particularly as elected and government officials, lobbyists, and public relations practitioners move through the “revolving door” of Washington.

Address

McDonough School of Business; Room 415, Hariri Building; Georgetown University; 390 37th and O Streets NW

Robert Devaney •

The District Department of Transportation has begun off-peak single-lane closures on eastbound Canal Road, NW, between Foxhall Road and the Whitehurst Freeway, weather permitting.

These single-lane closures on eastbound Canal Road, NW, will occur on weekdays from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.

These closures will allow DDOT crews to repair a wall area along Canal Road, NW, and install a guardrail along the corridor. DDOT expects the project and associated lane closures to be completed in July 2015.

DDOT advises all motorists to be alert, while traveling through this location and be observant of the work personnel. Traffic controls will be in place to warn motorists as they approach the area.

For more information, please contact Project Manager James Sellars at 202-391-8207.

Dana Farrior •

Fret not because you forgot to feed the meter, you have a spot at the annual Park(ing) Day, Friday, Sept. 19.

In the last couple of years with the help of the Georgetown Business Improvement Development, Georgetown have taken on the parklet project, allowing residents, designers and businesses alike to construct their very own public space. Also, involved are the Downtown and Golden Triangle BIDs for their neighborhoods.

Park(ing) Day’s inception in San Francisco 2005, originated with Rebar Art Studios desire to inspire people to reimagine the environment and their place in it. Its vision is to temporarily convert meter spaces into public parks generating new forms of communal space. What started as a single locale has launched into a global movement with more than 100 cities on over four continents involved.

“The Georgetown BID is excited to see the neighborhood enthusiasm for parklets – a concept that is outlined as an important tool for improving public space in the BID’s Georgetown 2028 Plan,” said the BID’s William Handsfield.

The Georgetown businesses participating are Luke’s Lobsters at 1211 Potomac St., NW, and Baked and Wired at 1052 Thomas Jefferson St., NW, and Flor at 1037 33rd St., NW, near Cady’s Alley.

Patrons of Luke’s will be able to take advantage of food and drink specials that will debut its beer, wine and cocktails offerings. Baked & Wired chose to take a slightly different approach, making their space more interactive by including buckets filled with chalk. Visitors will be able to draw and write messages in the park, allowing the green space to be a forum to bring the community together.

For more information, visit the Park(ing) Day project at www.parkingday.org.

Gary Tischler •

In Washington, a company town of a very special sort, lobbyists and lawyers have a very special place.

In the rest of the great wide country outside Washington, lobbyists and lawyers are the epitome of Washington insiders—the fixers and wheeler dealers who control policy and money.

Thomas Hale Boggs, Jr.—he was called “Tommy” in his youth, and the nickname survived into his adulthood—was the kind of man who carried the aura of an insider, while having an outsider’s outsized personality. He was a warm man who knew politics better than any politician, who came from a time-honored political family, a man of the South (Louisiana) who wore his Washington persona (Georgetown University graduate) like a really good suit that fit him well. He was a big supporter of the Georgetown Senior Center. Unpretentious, friendly, a talker, he headed the firm of Patton-Boggs, a legal firm which took its lobbying duties to high levels.

Boggs, who died unexpectedly at 73 this week, was the kind of man who could probably convince the anti-lobbying and lawyer-joke people in the world that he was an honorable man working in an honorable profession, because that’s exactly what he was and what he believed.

“Tommy was a terrific guy, a very smart guy and a quintessential Washington person in the best sense of the word,” said Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans, who has been of counsel with Patton-Boggs for the past 13 years.

“He was always willing to help out.” Evans said. “He had the personal touch and this gift for bringing people who disagreed with each other together. He wasn’t an ideologue. He worked with Republicans and with Democrats, although he was a lifelong Democrat. He was a classy man, who gave lobbyists a good name by example.”

At the Palms, where Boggs frequently squired clients and friends—and those things seemed to follow one another, they set his table in black, out of courtesy and as a way of celebrating the man.

Given his family and background, it’s a wonder Boggs didn’t become an elected official, a senator or governor. His father, Hale Boggs, was the House Majority Leader, his mother Lindy was a nine-term congresswoman, and his sister Cokie Roberts was a national television journalist. The man he worked for on his first sojourn to Washington was none other than Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn. Young Boggs worked the Speaker’s elevator.

Hale Boggs was killed in a plane crash in Alaska in 1972. His mother, in addition to winning a special election to succeed her husband in the House of Representatives, was named as President Bill Clinton’s ambassador to the Vatican. She died last year at the age of 97.

While advancing and looking out for the interests of a varied group of clients, which included all manners of industries from oil, to drug and insurance companies, he managed always to be something more than K Street royalty. He was the kind of man who didn’t let politics per se get in the way of business or friendships maintained and new acquaintenances made and kept.

That kind of approach would be well suited today to the politics of the times, and it’s sadly lacking, a time where impasse and deadlock seem to prevail more often than not. Politicians are called by that name: because with politicians these days, it’s always about politics.

Boggs succeeded precisely because—although his stock and trade was to ease the path to the doorways of influence,which included knowing whom to call, have for lunch, and having his calls answered—he hardly ever let politics be the deciding factor of his life. Lobbyists, it seemed, on K Street were about knowing politicians, without necessarily embracing politics.

Anders Kristofer Ohm •

The Georgetown Piano Bar plans to open its doors Sept. 12 and will be located at 3287 M St., NW, where the lounge bar Modern was.

The team creating the bar is composed of piano player Hunter Lang, former Mr. Smith’s manager Gene McGrath, former Mr. Smith’s employee Morgan Williams and Bill Thoet, according to the Washington Business Journal

The idea for the piano bar started three months ago when the employees heard that Mr. Smith’s – known for its piano bar — was closing its doors, the Journal reported. What they didn’t know then was that another manager from Mr. Smith’s, Juan Andino, was working to reopen the place at a new location. Mr. Smith’s is relocating to 3205 K St., NW, where Chadwick’s once stood for many years.

Georgetown Piano Bar plans to separate itself from the rest by having the piano be the main attraction. The bar will be “built around live piano entertainment,” the new business stated on its website. “The first thing you will notice as you walk down the stairs is our bright red piano.”

There will be no food at Georgetown Piano Bar, only drinks to keep the main focus on the piano and the music. However, the bar acquired Modern’s tavern license and its settlement agreement with the community, which, according to the Georgetown Metropolitan, requires the holder to receive 15 percent of its revenues to come from food and that the holder will not have live music.

There will be lyric books on all of the tables to promote singing along with the piano to keep music as the main attraction on the M Street establishment.

Gary Tischler • September 19, 2014

Finally, there was a debate, and just in the nick of time, what with only a little more than a month left before voters decide who is going to be the next Mayor of the District of Columbia.

You might cherish the memories you have of this debate, held at a Katzen Hall auditorium at American University, given that front-runner in the polls Ward 4 Councilmember Muriel Bowser, who won the Democratic  Primary and has a hefty lead in the polls over challengers has said flatly that she will participate in only four debates, including Thursday’s affair at AU.

She is being challenged by Independents David Catania, a prominent at-large District councilmember, and former councilmember and frequent mayoral candidate Carol Schwartz, bidding to be back all the way after a six-year absence from the political and electoral scene.

It’s been months since Bowser won the primary over incumbent Mayor Vincent Gray—still under the shadow of suspicion for his 2010 campaign—and other challengers including Ward 2 councilmember Jack Evans and Ward 6 councilmember Tommy Wells. During that in-between time, there have been no candidate forums, a lot of posturing and position statements, the arrival of Schwartz bidding for a political comeback, Bowser going hither and yon throughout the community—and sometimes the country—and Catania delivering position statements and being a very active councilmember and producing a 126-pages position booklet, detailing his proposals for how he would govern the city.

There’s been a great deal of anticipation about the first debate, and the possibility that it might be a volatile affair. 

Bowser was buoyed by the news of a hefty lead over her rivals in a Washington Post-NBC News-Marist poll which came out the day before and had 43 percent of likely D.C. voters favoring Bowser, with 26 percent for Catania and 16 percent for Schwartz. Catania has questioned the poll, saying an in-house poll of his campaign showed the race to be much closer.

The so-called debate—billed as a conversation with the candidates—was moderated by NBC newsman Tom Sherwood, a veteran of such affairs and included a panel of Washington Post political writer Clinton Yates and WAMU reporters Patrick Madden and Kavitha Cardozo.

Sherwood, at times, took on the aspects of a no-nonsense and sometimes frustrated cowboy, herding and snapping a whip, as he tried to make both the candidates and the audience behave. He had little patience for excessive clapping, candidates interrupting each other or breaking the time limit, although the candidates, as they are wont to do, did just that and often.

It’s fair to say that nobody won this affair, and that nobody was mortally wounded either.  Verbal shots were fired to be sure, and some of them even nicked their targets. Much of what happened was predictable, and the fresher aspects and revelations, while unexpected, were not of the “Stop the presses or put it on Twitter” kind.

Bowser, in basic black and pearls, came on strong and confident, offering to lead securely a changing city that was financially well off, promising that everyone would benefit and that in a boom town, nobody should and would be left behind.  Catania in quite the blue suit, stood up every time he talked, while Schwartz and Bowser sat. He presented himself as the man with the experience, the man who had done more for education and made more education legislation than anyone else, while painting Bowser as a legislative light weight, which she vehemently denied.  Schwartz in her own inimitable style—down to earth, warm, but also tough when need be—recalled that she was an education champion long before anyone else, that she was for the worker and took positions which in the end cost her her job. “I knew it wasn’t politic to do that, but I did it anyway,” Schwartz said.

Yet who knew Catania, for instance, has never gone to a Nationals baseball game, even though he was once a left-handed second baseman?  Catania fought the battle against the baseball team and stadium because “I didn’t think it was a good deal to have the owners pay nothing and the city everything.”  Bowser suggested that the reason Catania did not go to a game was that he was still angry about losing the fight.  “It kind of speaks to his temperament,”  she said.

Bowser complained that Catania was trying to take credit for everything. “Next thing you know he’ll take credit for the blue skies and rolling seas,” she said.

Other odd things came up. Yates asked in the interests of finding out something new: “If you had to give up your car, how would you travel in the city—Metro rail, bus or bicycle?”  Bowser said she loved and preferred to travel by bus, Catania and Schwartz would take the Metro.  “Let me get this straight,” Yates asked. “No bicycles?” 

It was a strange reaction, given that there’s been quite a bit of controversy about a veritable boom in bicycle use and rentals. “I think it’s a great thing, and I believe in a growing transportation system in which everyone obeys all the laws, stops for stop signs and red lights,” Schwartz said.

They were asked—by Yates again—what one book they would have students read.  Bowser suggested Barack Obama’s “The Audacity of Hope.” Catania said, “I wouldn’t want to tell  a student what to read. I’d want them to make their own choice.”   Schwartz chose Charles Dickens’s “A Tale of Two Cities,” which she felt resonated in this city, which has yet to become one city.  This is the book that begins with “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” which in this town is always true.

Round one of four rounds had its entertainment values and its informational rewards, but as a brawl, nobody walked out limping. [gallery ids="101859,138026" nav="thumbs"]

Robert Devaney • September 18, 2014

Yes, the flag is most definitely still here — and for 200 years.

The 200th anniversary of the writing of the song by Georgetowner Francis Scott Key that became the nation anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner,” was given the highest salute Sept. 13 and Sept. 14 at the place where it all came together, Fort McHenry and Baltimore, Md., during the War of 1812.

Penned after the British Navy stopped the bombardment of Fort McHenry, which guarded Baltimore and its harbor, and departed the Chesapeake region, “The Star-Spangled Banner” was an instant hit and aptly described the scene and feelings of onlookers on Sept. 13 and Sept. 14, 1814.

Over the weeklong celebrations, the Star-Spangled Spectacular in Baltimore told the history of Baltimore’s role in the war and how the city’s defenders stymied the British, as it hosted tall ships and navy vessels from the U.S. and other nations. The Inner Harbor was festooned with banners, full of vendors, events and visitors. Proud Baltimore rolled out the red-white-and-blue carpet for all and looked its very best.

Highlights of the bicentennial parties were the Sept. 13 evening show in front of Fort McHenry with fireworks as the finale and Sunday morning’s “By the Dawn’s Early Light Flag-Raising Ceremony,” performed to the moment when the Star-Spangled Banner was seen 200 years ago to the relief of defenders and Francis Scott Key.

The Sept. 13 events included a stamp release ceremony by the U.S. Postal Service — a “Forever” stamp which depicts the shelling of Fort McHenry in 1814 — and an air show by the U.S. Navy Blue Angels.

The evening’s program included a major performance by the U.S. Marine Band, the “President’s Own,” as well as singing by the Morgan State University Chorus. Local politicians welcomed the crowd, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown, Gov. Martin O’Malley and Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, who was hospitalized overnight due to a respiratory infection. “I pushed myself a bit too hard, given all the excitement around Star Spangled Spectacular and the tremendous opportunity the festivities presented to showcase the very best of Baltimore,” Rawlings-Blake said.

After spirited and witty remarks by the ambassadors of former enemies, Canada’s Gary Doer and Britain’s Peter Westmacott, the evening’s last speaker was Vice President Joe Biden, who gave a final, rousing address for the flag: “Does the Star-Spangled Banner still wave? Did it wave … at Normandy … at Ground Zero? … It will wave and not just wave … it is in our hearts.”

And, then, there were fireworks above the fort, the best ever in Baltimore, which one news photographer proclaimed as “the best I’ve ever seen.”

The next morning, with the Third U.S. Infantry, U.S. Army “Old Guard” howitzers, Fort McHenry Guard Field Music and the U.S. Navy Band on hand with former Secretary of State Colin Powell, also a retired general, a 30-foot-by-42-foot replica of the original Star-Spangled Banner garrison flag, was raised at the exact moment of its hoisting 200 years ago.

Yes, the flag was most definitely still there, thanks to the defenders of Fort McHenry — and their brave story, remembered to this day, recorded by and thanks to Washingtonian and Georgetowner Francis Scott Key and his “Star-Spangled Banner.”
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