News & Politics

Georgetowner • September 20, 2012

Pizzeria Uno Chicago Bar & Grill at 3211 M St., N.W., for more than 30 years has closed its doors. The once popular modest Italian restaurant follows its erstwhile neighbor from half a block away on Wisconsin Avenue, Papa-Razzi, which closed in May.

Georgetowner •

Less than a month to go before its Oct. 19 opening, Drybar — at 1825 Wisconsin Ave., N.W. — is now taking reservations (202-609-8644). The “No cuts. No color. Just blowouts.” salon is ready to rock D.C. for $40 a pop. All this is conveniently located next to the Georgetown Safeway and the upcoming Noodles & Company.

Georgetowner •

A Vornado Realty Trust retail opportunity flyer, obtained by the Georgetown Metropolitan blog, had the neighborhood’s attention over the weekend. A map of Georgetown Park — now closed and under reconstruction — revealed space available for two large restaurants along with space already made available to designer discounters, T.J. Maxx and HomeGoods.

The blog continued: “The flyer also shows an expanded J. Crew. GM also learned that while the flyer doesn’t show it, one of the other primary tenants will be a Michaels arts and craft store. Essentially, when Vornado is done with it, the bulk of the mall will have been converted into a couple big box stores that have all the charm and destination-appeal of Rockville Pike.”

As previously reported in the Georgetowner from an Aug. 20 hard-hat tour of the on-going reconstruction of the Shops at Georgetown Park by Vornado Realty Trust’s Jennifer Nettles, who is manager of the huge 3222 M St., NW, retail space:

“Escalators are gone and so are the fountains on either side of the complex. Demolition is moving along, as plans call for the floors to be extended from front to back. The group looked out at the open space of the atrium which once provided a dramatic look and feel for the shopping center, opened in 1981. The atrium and its green railings will soon disappear. ‘This is the de-mallization, Nettles said . . .

“Where once sat 130 stores, there will now be 15, she said. The largest one of them will take up 45,000 square feet, making it the largest retail space for Georgetown; another will be 31,000 square feet. Some will have multiple levels; all will have an entrance from the street, whether it is from M Street, Wisconsin Avenue or the remaining entrance next to Dean & Deluca. There will be no mall-like corridors for the public.”

The tight-lipped Vornado does not readily respond to media inquiries, especially those from Georgetown and other D.C. news outlets.

Georgetowner •

Here are highlights from the Sept. 4 meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E:

Marvelous Market, the food specialty shop at Wisconsin Avenue and P Street, was criticized for its allegedly poor work in keeping trash bins properly contained — and too often overflowing — and thus open to pests and rodents. “It’s a buffet for rats,” said commissioner Tom Birch. Commissioners questioned a Department of Health official and a representative of Marvelous Market. The business said it had installed locked tops and apologized.

Ten cameras have been donated to the Metropolitan Police Department by the Georgetown Business Improvement District, John Weibenson said. The BID, he added, also approved $300,000 to its budget for police overtime work.

A representative from the Shops at Georgetown Park, owned by Vornado Realty Trust, gave an update with no specifics on future tenants but added the mall’s garage was being re-done. The Wisconsin Avenue garage entrance is now closed but the garage’s Potomac Street entrance, at the back of Dean & Deluca, has re-opened for tenants of Georgetown Park condos.

Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E will meet Oct. 1, 6:30 p.m., at Georgetown Visitation Prep, 35th Street and Volta Place.

Georgetowner •

Someone call the Jeffersonian, and get Dr. Temperance Brennan on the case. It might make a great TV show. Name it “Bones.”

O.K., so the real Smithsonian Institution was contacted after contractors first called the Metropolitan Police last week because of bones found while digging along a driveway between 3333 and 3329 Q St., N.W., as first reported in Georgetown Patch. The contractors had discovered what looked like a skull of human skeleton. An expert from the Smithsonian told Patch that the discovery was not forensic, i.e., related to a crime, but rather the bones were “obviously historic in nature.”

The home where the bones were found is across from Volta Park which in the 19th century was a cemetery for the local Presbyterian church.

Georgetowner •

In this day and age, there are a number of ways to find people we have lost. We — Washington, the arts community, the theater community, actors, writers, musicians and students — lost Jaylee Mead last week. The astronomer and arts philanthropist died at the age of 83 of congestive heart failure.

Even though she’s gone, we can still find her. If you love the performing arts, just look around you. The Mead name belonged to Jaylee and her late husband Gilbert, who died in 1997, and it is on any number of lobbies, theaters, spaces, and buildings where their focused, passionate philanthropy had an enormous effect, from the Arena Stage to the Studio Theatre, in addition to places like the Kennedy Center, the Woolly Mammoth Theatre, the Levine School of Music, the Mead Theatre Lab for Experimental Plays, among many other groups. They were also active in education and youth causes.

Look to YouTube, where you would be delighted to find Mead holding forth in a parent role in a local production of “Pippin” singing “It’s time to start living because spring will turn to fall in no time at all.”

The Meads, with the focus of their trade, and the hearts and passion of their tastes and intelligence, were active all over Washington and left their mark on the city. There was no question that Jaylee Mead had a huge impact on the theater world of the city, and as a result, the city itself.

Spectacularly and most notably, the Arena Stage now bears the name of The Mead Center for American Theater, owing to the Meads’ $35 million in gifts to go with matching pledges.

Joy Zinoman, the retired artistic director and founder of the Studio Theatre, described Mead’s efforts as “unparalleled.”

Mead provided a million dollar loan to Zinoman when she was contemplating to move the Studio Theatre to the 14th Street space it occupies now. “It was brave. It was a great risk. She was providing this for a place at the time we could only rent and not buy for ten years. That was the situation at the time,” Zinoman said.

“She was my friend, certainly, but more than that—benefactor, sure, inspiration, sure, but also a kind of mother figure, even though we weren’t that far apart in age,” Zinoman said. “She was just so brave, undaunted, she took off on a car trip across the country, she was at the theatre almost every night. I admired her more than you can imagine. We all loved her. It’s a great loss that you feel strongly.

“She was very tough and rigorous in her approach to giving. She knew what was needed, and she approached giving with the rigor of a scientist and the spirit of a great soul,” Zinoman said. “She had a vision, just like the rest of us, and she helped us to achieve ours.”

Zinoman acknowledged that Mead was an influence on her in more personal ways as well. “I can be, let’s say, a little volatile. I think that’s no secret. I could get angry easily and lash out. And Jaylee, well, I think she tempered me, helped me be a little calmer in those situations.”

It’s generally acknowledged that the Meads changed Washington with their philanthropic efforts. Most folks would concede that while the later presence of Whole Foods near 14th and P Street helped, it was the Studio Theatre in its bigger, new location that pioneered the economic revival of the area. Something similar is happening in the Southwest waterfront area where the Arena Stage is located.
We lost Jaylee Mead on Sept.14, but look around—she and her husband left a big footprint on the Washington landscape and its culture, a footprint you could tap dance in.

Jack Evans •

Our first legislative session of the fall was this week, and I’m looking forward to finishing out the year on a positive note. For those of you who regularly read the Georgetowner, I recently wrote a piece highlighting a few gaps I see in our public schools and library services. Just before the summer recess, I introduced a bill to expand our library hours. This week, I introduced a bill that would require each public school to have a full time librarian, art teacher, and music teacher. It is hard for me to believe we continue to invest nearly $2 billion a year into our public schools—yes, that’s “billion”—with the highest per-pupil funding formula in the nation, and yet have the worst educational outcomes in the nation. This suggests to me our money is not being spent in the right places.

I also introduced a bill to limit the way the Council is able to intervene in the contracting process. Too often, we have seen allegations of ethical violations by members of the Council who are seen as advocating for or against a particular vendor that may have personal or campaign involvement with the member. Some of these contracts are for large amounts of money. I believe contracting should happen through a merit-based selection process insulated from political pressure.

On a related note, campaign finance reform is another area of focus for me this year. There will be a lot of discussion about new laws and regulations, even as the election cycle is in full swing, in light of the Mayor’s legislative proposal last month. Keep in mind the legal troubles several members of the government have been facing are not because the laws need changing, but rather because the laws already on the books have been allegedly violated. For ethics and campaign finance rules, I have consistently supported enhanced disclosure requirements, more rigorous enforcement when violations are discovered, and more meaningful penalties assessed on violators. Current practice is to simply assess a penalty a year after an election is already won; for example, politicians can view a penalty as simply a cost of doing business, and it is invariably paid with campaign funds rather than out of an elected official’s own pocket.

Last on the legislative front, I introduced a resolution again relating to the future possibility of a commuter tax. Many Virginia and Maryland residents take advantage of the infrastructure and business opportunities offered within the District every day, and yet don’t contribute to its upkeep through their income tax dollars. I have had productive discussions with Congressman Darrell Issa, who chairs the House Committee with oversight over the District, and believe we may have Republican support for this proposal along with concepts such as budget autonomy.

I look forward to the upcoming Council session and working on the challenges ahead.

Georgetowner •

In the early 1970s, the late comedian Pat Paulsen wrote a book called “How to Wage a Successful Campaign for the Presidency.” In it, he prepared speeches, advertisements, debate responses, and answers to media questions for any candidate.

If Paulsen were alive today, he might have written a mock acceptance speech from a Presidential candidate that looked something like this…

Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you, delegates.

I am so proud to accept your nomination for the [Republican / Democratic] candidate for President.
Isn’t my wife great? Aren’t my kids beautiful and great?

Our nation’s economy is [in trouble / improving].

In September 2008, when our financial system was on the edge of collapse, the government did the [right / wrong] thing by letting a few large investment banks fail and then stepping in to save the others.

Many economists [agree / disagree] this led our nation, as well as the world economy, into its greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression.

A few weeks later, the nation’s largest commercial banks, where you have your checking and savings accounts, were on the brink of collapse. The government had to decide whether to let them [live / die] [with / without] government assistance.

A Republican President and Democratic Congress worked together on a $700 billion bailout. I believe they did the [right / wrong] thing.

A few months later, another President and Congress agreed on another $800 billion bailout for the auto industry and the rest of the economy. This time, I believe they did the [right / wrong] thing.
Since then, the situation [has / has not] improved [because / even though] the private sector has created 4.5 million new jobs. That is [as good as possible / not enough] given the circumstances. Government is smaller and has trimmed more than 600,000 jobs. That is [good / bad] because there were [too many / not enough] teachers, police, fire fighters, and other public servants.

Now, we [are / are not] through the worst of this crisis, and must move the country forward.
I have a five point plan to put the country back on track.

First, we must make our country energy independent. Our nation is blessed with vast quantities of natural resources that can allow us to be energy independent by 2020 and fuel our country for a century or more. We need to develop domestic sources of [fossil fuels / natural gas, nuclear power, wind, and solar energy]. We [must ease / are easing] the regulatory burden on our energy companies. New sources of energy can provide the new high paying jobs and become our largest export.

Second, we must improve our educational system and give everyone a better chance to succeed. I am so fortunate to have gone to Harvard [with / without] government assistance. Only an educational system designed at the [federal / state / local / parental] level can compete with Germany and Japan. Steve Jobs told me that Apple needs 30,000 new engineers who can be trained in America. My iPod has music from [fill in this blank to appeal to your voters].

Third, we [must negotiate / are negotiating] free and fair trade agreements so American workers and businesses play on a level playing field. We must stand up to China, and protect our intellectual property and the dollar.

Fourth, we must reduce the deficit by [raising / lowering] taxes. Spending is [out of / hard to] control because of [this / the previous] President.

Finally, we must [start / continue] to help small businesses, they are the source of new jobs of the future. Over the past four years, government has [hurt / helped] small businesses more than ever before.

If you vote for me, we will do this together. We can change the direction of our nation.
Thank you. Thank you so much.

God Bless the United States of America.

Pat Paulsen called this comedy. Today we call it “talking points.” This year’s candidates could have taught Paulson a thing or two about debating. When several of them got questions they didn’t like, they ignored it and said, “You ask the questions you want; I give the answers I want.”
If only Mitt Romney and President Obama could make us laugh.

Georgetowner •

Much has been said about Linda Greenan’s legacy [The Georgetowner, Sept. 5, editorial] as she retires from her long tenure as vice president for community relations at Georgetown University. For nearly two decades, Linda played an integral role in securing District government approval for university development projects such as the Canal Road entrance and the Southwest Quadrangle. She was the face of the university in negotiations with the community on the Campus Plan and on student conduct issues.

But Linda’s most lasting legacy may be as a leader in securing voting rights for college and university students in the District of Columbia. Sixteen years ago, a group of GU students sought to take a more active role in local government by voting in local elections and serving on Advisory Neighborhood Commissions. They launched a student voter registration drive and nominated G.U. students to run for seats on ANC2E. But a handful of Georgetown residents vigorously opposed them. They challenged the right of students to register in the District, and they challenged the credentials of students attempting to vote, creating long lines at the polls on Election Day.

Linda passionately believed that everyone should have the right to vote and to run for local office. She encouraged the students to stand up for their rights and guided them to victory at a day-long hearing before the Board of Elections.

As a result of Linda’s leadership, university students now can vote in the District and can serve on ANCs, and they routinely do so. College and university students in the District have Linda Greenan to thank for this. A fine and lasting legacy, indeed.

Grace Bateman,
Georgetown