Town Topics

Georgetowner •

Dominique Strauss-Kahn, no longer the active managing director of the Washington-based International Monetary Fund, is sitting in New York City’s Riker’s Island prison, denied bail after being arraigned for the attempted rape and other alleged sexual offenses of a 32-year-old maid on May 15 at a midtown Manhattan hotel near Times Square. Few Americans knew who Strauss-Kahn is, and fewer Georgetowners knew that he and his wife Anne Sinclair live nearby on Dumbarton Street across from the First Baptist Church near Rock Creek Park. Busy with international work, they have been in D.C. for only three-and-a-half years. A profile of Strauss-Kahn in the latest Washingtonian Magazine reveals how he and his wife rarely interact with social Washington and would be quite anonymous dining at Cafe Milano.

The break in the leadership of the IMF, a key player in worldwide financial bailouts, causes uncertainty in the global economy. Strauss-Kahn was also seen as a leading contender to become the next president of France, although he was already known for his womanizing as “le grand seducteur”—the great seducer. Observers in France view the arrest as a “thunderbolt” and “political earthquake.” Accused of a lavish lifestyle by his political opponents, Strauss-Kahn will remain in custody at least until a May 20 hearing and faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted of attempted rape, criminal sexual act and unlawful imprisonment.

Robert Devaney •

Halloween Turns Ugly: Shooting on M, Robbery on N

Georgetown’s Halloween customs of residents greeting young trick-or-treaters at their doors in the early evening and of the later, older reveling crowds along M Street and Wisconsin Avenue were shattered Oct. 31 just before 11 p.m. with gunfire near 28th and M Streets. One teenager remains in grave condition and is on life support.

According to sources close to the Metropolitan Police Department, a 17-year-old boy was shot in the head after a fight between two groups. Also, a woman was robbed at 36th and N Street around 8 p.m.; four black males were arrested by MPD. Sources also said that a person with a sawed-off shot gun was arrested near Wisconsin Avenue and M Street. One source, recounting walking along M Street, said “Rough crowd . . . large groups pushing through sidewalk . . . intimidating.” Checking out the scene in his neighborhood district, commissioner Bill Starrels was shoved on the sidewalk, he said.

According to the Washington Post, Sofiene Ben Mansour, owner of George’s falafel restaurant at 28th and M streets, said he heard three gunshots about 10:50 p.m. The shots set off a scramble amid the throng in the street, he said, with people “just going all over.” According to the accounts he heard from witnesses, Ben Mansour said, an automobile passed between two groups of people, and shots were apparently fired from it. It threw a fright into the crowd, he said, leaving people talking rapidly and “just scared.” He said they were “saying ‘like, a car just shot somebody.’?”

From WJLA, this report: The victim’s injuries appear to be life threatening, according to D.C. police source. The victim has been transported to an area hospital. Officers have closed M Street. ABC7’s Pamela Brown reports hearing three shots and seeing people scatter. Witnesses say two groups of people were involved in a confrontation earlier in the night on Wisconsin and M, allegedly jumping on cars and yelling at each other. Thirty minutes later, the same two groups were arguing at 28th and M. One witness says a man across the street started firing shots at the group, and one victim fell to the ground.

From George Washington University’s student newspaper, the Hatchet, comes this entry: Metropolitan Police officers arrested multiple suspects on campus in connection with a shooting in Georgetown late Monday night. Three to five shots ripped through M and 28th streets after 10:30 p.m., near the Georgetown Four Seasons Hotel. Later, at least one person was transported away from the scene in an ambulance. An officer said he suspected the incident would be labeled a homicide.

Two suspects were arrested by Metropolitan Police officers near the Foggy Bottom Metro. “At approximately 11:15 p.m., the George Washington University Police Department was notified of armed suspects in the I Street Mall area.

Both suspects have been arrested by the Metropolitan Police Department,” university spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard said. The I Street Mall area is also the Foggy Bottom Metro area.

It’s a Contest for Next GBA President

Rokas Beresniovas, vice president of the Georgetown Business Association, who works at HSBC Bank USA, and Ed Solomon, an advisory neighborhood commissioner and owner of Wedding Creations on P Street, are vying to be the next GBA president. Also under consideration for position at the GBA: Riyad Said and Beth Webster for vice president; Janine Schoonover for secretary; Karen Ohri and Alan Helfer for treasurer. Other board positions are being determined as well.

The GBA is a non-profit membership organization. Its two principal goals are to: “connect Georgetown businesses with potential customers, other businesses and Georgetown and D.C. leadership” and “advocate on behalf of the Georgetown businesses and professionals.”

Fine Arts Commission Approves Kennedy Center’s Double Stairs to Potomac

Here is the report from the Commission of Fine Arts on the Kennedy Center stairs, linking its west esplanade to parkland on the banks of the Potomac River:

In its Oct. 20 meeting, the Commission of Fine Arts reviewed the revised concept submission for pedestrian access stairs and elevators to link the Kennedy Center terrace with the recreation trail of the Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway. Commending the elegance of the design, the commission approved the submission with the following comments.

With their endorsement of the revised design, the commission members raised several questions about the long-term maintenance of the project. Noting that the lack of a ramp makes the elevators a critical component for accessibility, they emphasized the need for an ongoing program of maintenance. Likewise, they raised concerns about several material selections—including the non-slip glass treads, the glass guardrails, and the metal mesh—as potentially burdensome to keep clean and safe.

In their discussion of the proposed plaza and landscape, the commission members made several suggestions to refine the details of the design, emphasizing the importance of considering the transition from the park trail to the plaza, including the design of such elements as the pavement and the railing along the bulkhead at the river’s edge. They also recommended simplifying the form of the stone plinth intended to prevent circulation beneath the stairs, and they suggested increasing the number of trees as possible within the constraints of the site to make the plaza a more comfortable place for visitors and provide a sense of separation from the adjacent roadway.

The commission looks forward to a submission that addresses its concerns and comments regarding the refinement of the proposal’s details.

Monumental, Prime Property: GSA’s West Heating Plant on 29th Street

The West Heating Plant and property is now listed as “excess property” by the General Services Administration, setting up a sale to the public. The government buildings and land – a two-acre site – border 29th Street, the C&O Canal, Rock Creek and K Street. It sits south of the Four Seasons Hotel. Completed in 1948, the steam plant generated power for federal office buildings to the east. Later, it converted to natural gas and then closed 10 years ago. “It has racked up $3.5 million in maintenance costs,” according to the White House which wants to speed up sale of unused government property.

In meetings to come, the neighborhood will have its say on how the property can be re-used: whether restoring some of the land into a park, leading to the creek, and revamping the huge building on 29th Street or some other plans.

‘Spirit of Georgetown’ Honors the Smiths

Page and Howard Smith were awarded the “Freddy” by the Georgetown Ministry Center at the Spirit of Georgetown Benefit Oct. 13 for their volunteering and assistance to the homeless since the late 1980s as well as work at Christ Church, Tudor Place, the GMC board and the Children’s Law Center. The award in its new version is named after Freddy, a homeless man who died of exposure on the street in 1984. His death prompted the creation of the Georgetown Ministry Center, headquartered at Grace Church.

Robert Devaney •

The Final Bell? Zoning Hearing on G.U. Campus Plan, Nov. 17

The punch counter-punch continues between the university and the town, as groups prepare for the final zoning meeting Nov. 17 on Georgetown University’s 2010-2020 Campus Plan.

Agreeing with Georgetown and Burleith residents’ group, Georgetown’s advisory neighborhood commission last week fired a final volley against Georgetown University’s future development plans with its ANC 2E Supplemental Submission for the D.C. Zoning Commission (Z.C. Case No. 10-32), “G.U.’s Campus Plan, as Amended, Still Does Not Adequately Address the Objectionable Conditions in the Neighboring Community.”

The ANC began: “ANC 2E agrees with the comments submitted by the Citizens Association of Georgetown (CAG) and the Burleith Citizens Association (BCA) in response to G.U.’s rebuttal materials and new initiatives. The overwhelming objectionable impact of the university’s proposed plan on the neighboring community is that it would keep in place a very large number of off-campus transient student group houses and all the problems they bring. G.U.’s grudging, small-scale responses to community concerns throughout this case have been disappointing. . . . GU has come back with no commitment to additional on-campus or satellite housing beyond the token number of beds conditionally offered in its March 31 filing. Instead, G.U. offers essentially more of the same policies and practices that have failed for the past 20 years.”

The ANC also outlined the following in its 46-page submission: “G.U.’s Campus Plan, as amended, still does not adequately address the objectionable conditions in the neighboring community; G.U.’s rules for on-campus vs. off-campus partying encourage off-campus partying; G.U.’s campus density (students per acre) compares very unfavorably with its peer universities; the Zoning Commission is authorized to require the university to obtain prior approval before acquiring further real estate in zip code 20007; unremedied existing objectionable conditions are legitimate grounds for ordering relief in a campus plan case; providing university housing on campus or in a satellite location for G.U.’s undergraduates is the only remedy that will adequately mitigate G.U.’s objectionable impacts on the community . . .”

Citing an Oct. 23 editorial in the Washington Post that appeared to favor Georgetown’s efforts and most of its campus plan, the university’s president, John J. DeGioia, sent out an email letter to supporters:

“Georgetown’s campus plan offers modest, targeted growth opportunities that will meet our strategic needs for the next decade . . . Last week, the Washington Post editorial page wrote about our plan, recognizing the important economic contribution that Georgetown and other higher education institutions make to our city. As the largest private employer in Washington, Georgetown paid approximately $175 million in wages and salaries to D.C. employees last year and spent $86 million on the purchase of goods and services in the District. We are proud that 40 percent of our 9,800 employees are D.C. residents. . . .

“We’ve heard the concerns of our neighbors, and we have responded by investing in a number of successful initiatives. In August, we started a new M Street Shuttle, moving more than 9,300 students so far between campus and M Street on weekend nights. We have collected more than 120 tons of trash from neighborhood streets on new, twice-daily trash patrols. And we have increased our partnership with D.C. police, funding seven officers in the neighborhood on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights to help keep our neighborhoods safe. The 2010-2020 campus plan and our investments in our surrounding neighborhoods will allow us to continue to attract and educate the very best students.”

The university is touting its website for the neighborhood: neighborhood.georgetown.edu. The site also debuted “Rocky’s Report,” a weekly public safety message from the Office of Public Safety for the Georgetown neighborhood. University spokesperson Stacy Kerr said it is posted by Georgetown Chief of Police Rocco Del Monaco to connect with residents. “Rocky will separate fact from fiction, set the record straight and give a report directly from the folks who are in the neighborhoods responding to concerns and proactively working to keep us safe,” she said.

The Zoning Commission hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Nov. 17, 6:30 p.m., One Judiciary Square, 441 4th Street N.W.

Forum: Find Ways to Let Small Businesses Flourish

A wide-ranging forum at the City Tavern Club Nov. 9, put on by the Georgetown Business Association and the Georgetown Business Improvement District, was led by GBA’s Janine Schoonover who introduced the panelists and asked submitted questions of each: Karen Ohri, Georgetown Floorcoverings; At-large Councilman Vincent Orange; Michael Fitzgerald, Bank of Georgetown; lawyer Joel Bennett; Ward 2 Councilman Jack Evans; Charles McGrath, MRP Realty, Washington Harbour; 2E Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Bill Starrels; and John Hays, owner of The Phoenix.

Among the highlights: advocating for small businesses and making government regulations and programs more responsive to small businesses. Orange stressed D.C.’s business development efforts, including the Streetscape Survival Fund. Ohri recalled how becoming a D.C. Certified Business Enterprise had saved her company, allowing it to compete against bigger businesses. Evans said that $120 million has been put into Georgetown over the past 10 years and reminded the audience of the exploding manhole covers in 2000. Everyone agreed how much progress has been made and how Georgetown is in fine shape. It was the issue of maintaining what works and making it better. McGrath echoed such sentiments as his company wants to take the Washington Harbour complex to a Class A level, he said. Hays, who said living and working in Georgetown “make it a wonderful place,” later suggested that Wisconsin Avenue be closed on Sunday once a month to be used as a pedestrian mall. (Hmm, nice idea, but sounds impractical what with bus routes and all.)

Other ideas touched on: better mentoring, planning and capitalization for businesses — along with studying other successful commercial corridors. At the end of the panel discussion, a few in the audience stood up to their opinions of business matters: Sharon Hays of the Phoenix touted the shops up Wisconsin Avenue, not just those on M Street; Sara Mohktari of Tari brought up the tension between preservation and development and obstacles for her businesses, adding that she “would not invest in Georgetown again.” One last Georgetown Park tenant, Rush Hour Printing, lamented the end of the shop’s lease and asked aloud how it might survive in Georgetown – underlining to all how the unneighborly and non-communicative Vornado Realty Trust, owner of Georgetown Park, would not understand such an open business forum, discussing issues only doors from its entrance on M Street.

D.C. to Receive $6M for Georgetown Library Fire

Stunned lunchtime on-lookers at Wisconsin Avenue and R Street who witnessed the April 30, 2007, fire of the Georgetown Public Library have been grateful for the library’s rebirth. They can now be pleased that the District will receive $6 million from that day’s construction contractor after a lawsuit settlement; nearly $18 million has been spent by the city to rebuild the library. A worker’s “mechanical heat device” accidentally started the blaze which began in the top floor, according to investigators, causing its cupola and roof to collapse.

The library’s unique historical items of Georgetown – the Peabody Collection – were saved by water from the fire hoses but needed to be frozen quickly to prevent mold and begin the restoration process. The Peabody Room has been restored but needs $125,000 to finish the job.

To help out, visit this Saturday’s Georgetown Library Book Sale, Nov. 19, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. – art and children’s books, DVDs as well as autographed and rare books. The Friends of the Georgetown Library are running the sales tables.

Evans Challenger Drops Out

“I made some mistakes in trying to wage a campaign, but I don’t consider it a mistake that I tried. After six weeks of intense effort, I decided I just wasn’t ready to mount the kind of campaign it would take to win,” said Fiona Greig, a Democratic candidate for the Ward 2 council seat long held by Jack Evans, as she dropped out of the race last week and also claimed intimidation from her opponents. The D.C. primary will be held April 3, 2012.

To read Greig’s official statement, go to Fiona2012.org/Statement
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Robert Devaney •

ANC: Wisconsin Avenue Work in Glover Park; Neon Annoyance

Georgetown and Burleith’s advisory neighborhood commission (ANC 2E) met Nov. 28 to discuss the details of the Wisconsin Avenue streetscape project in Glover Park and its effects on Georgetown to the south. To improve safety and the aesthetics along Wisconsin Avenue from Whitehaven Parkway north to Cathedral Avenue, DDOT will begin March 2012 to spruce up Glover Park’s main drag, sidewalks and lights. Construction is expected to last six months.

Residents expressed concern about traffic tie-ups as well as cut-through traffic on smaller streets.
There will be medians on this stretch of Wisconsin Avenue, some with left turn lanes. In the works since 2006, plans call for cutting the number of lanes for traffic from three to two during rush hours and from two to one during regular hours as well as widening of sidewalks, some of which do not meet disability access standards. The reduced lanes are intended to slow down traffic and improve pedestrian safety in the neighborhood known to many for Whole Foods, Sushi-Ko and Good Guys. DDOT said: “High numbers of vehicle crashes throughout the corridor are indicative of an environment with higher operating speeds with no provisions for left turning traffic which led to sudden lane changes by motorists.”

“We can’t play Russian roulette anymore,” said Glover Park ANC Chairman Brian Cohen who was invited to the meeting, recalling two deaths a few years ago as well as an Oct. 5 accident, when a police car hit a woman in the walkway at Wisconsin Avenue and 35th Street. Concerning that intersection, commissioners asked DDOT to consider placing a flashing light to slow down cars on the hill. At the same intersection next to Holy Rood Cemetery, there will be a sidewalk bump-out to slow down cars making right turns from the avenue onto 35th Street. (The ANC approved of the plans and asked for regular work updates to the public.)

Also during the meeting, commissioner Bill Starrels said Prince Cafe on lower Wisconsin Avenue could be cited for its neon sign as a fine arts violation along with a shop in the 3200 block of M Street for its signage.

We guess it is the next big, little thing: Macaron Bee, coming to 1669 Wisconsin Avenue, got approval for its tri-fold window from which shopkeepers will sell pricey macaroons (that’s the English spelling) to sidewalk sweets-lovers.

New Plan to Develop GSA’s West Heating Plant Property

The Levy Group, a longtime and well-known owner of Georgetown commercial real estate, and The Georgetown Company of New York City, which is working with Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Strategic Hotels & Resorts, Inc., are proposing a project to build a Four Seasons Private Residences and create an adjacent park on the site of the West Heating Plant. According to the group, “the proposal, which has been developed over the past year and a half, is being made public following the GSA’s recent announcement that it plans to dispose of the underutilized and inaccessible property that sits at the confluence of the C&O Canal and Rock Creek Park at the foot of Georgetown.”

“We and The Georgetown Company have joined forces with the Four Seasons to bring life to a cordoned-off section of Georgetown,” said the Levy Group’s managing principal Richard Levy. “Our priorities are clear: transform the West Heating Plant into an attractive and contributing building that complements and respects the neighborhood and create a new park that links the Canal and Rock Creek Park with the fabulous Georgetown Waterfront Park. We look forward to working with Four Seasons, Strategic Hotels & Resorts, the National Park Service and the broader Georgetown community to make this vision a reality.”

In another statement from the group, Paul White, vice president of residential for Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts noted: “Since opening more than 30 years ago, Four Seasons Hotel, Washington, D.C., has been a vibrant hub for locals and visitors; the premier place to conduct business or to retreat with family in Washington’s only five-diamond hotel. Four Seasons is enthusiastic about the plan developed jointly with The Levy Group and The Georgetown Company and we are confident that working together with the community we can make this a welcomed addition to Georgetown. We have decades of experience in operating wholly-owned residences designed and built to Four Seasons standards, offering the same degree of caring, customized service that discerning hotel guests have come to know and love.”

“Located at 1051 29th Street, N.W., the proposed renovated building will include approximately 80 Four Seasons Private Residences in a LEED-certified building directly across the C&O Canal from Four Seasons Hotel,” according to the group. “The planned low-density residential component with adjacent park would ensure that the area doesn’t become over-crowded as it would with high-density towers and the related traffic congestion. A significant part of the property south of the West Heating Plant will be dedicated to parkland which will supplant the coal yard and the four oil storage tanks. By so doing, the area will be returned to its natural environment and linked to the point of confluence of Rock Creek and the Canal. Inspired by the National Capital Planning Commission’s 1986 plan, the new park will connect Rock Creek Park directly to the Georgetown Waterfront via a bridge and provide a powerful reminder of industrial Georgetown and its origins as a port town.”

Beyond creating construction jobs, the group says, “this undertaking would augment the D.C. tax base with taxes from high-income suburban empty nesters moving into D.C. as well as add revenue from an estimated $1.5 million in annual real estate taxes, $5.4 million in real estate transfer and recordation taxes and $1.6 million in construction permit fees.”

Halcyon House under Contract to Evermay’s Owners

For sale since August 2008, Halcyon House, one of the more recognizable historic homes of Washington, D.C., went under contract to S&R Foundation two weeks ago. Its present owners – The Dreyfuss family – have held the property longer than anyone else in its 225-year history.  Owners of the Evermay Estate, Ryuji Ueno and his wife Sachiko Kuno, who purchased that east side historic gem for $22 million in July, have signed a contract for S&R Foundation to buy Halcyon House for $11 million, according to tenants’ documents. (There are six rental units and a townhouse along with the main house at 3400 Prospect St., N.W.)

Purchased by Edmund Dreyfuss and Blake Construction in 1966 from Georgetown University via John Truver, Halcyon House – built by Benjamin Stoddert, first Secretary of the Navy, between 1785 and 1787 – was restored and improved by artist John Dreyfuss, son of Edmund Dreyfuss, and Prospect Associates during parts of the 1980s and ‘90s. Dreyfuss and his team received the top award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Once called Stoddert House, the Prospect Street mansion is a well-known party and wedding venue around Washington. 

“The restoration of Halcyon House … meant a great deal to everyone in the Dreyfuss family,” said John Dreyfuss, who has lived there for many years and is considered a great neighbor to the community. “We were committed to doing the hard work both structurally and in the craftsmanship that this Federal building deserved. Every effort was made to restore both the historic interiors and gardens. It is our hope that the next steward will maintain the standards set for this extraordinary national heritage.”

Founders of Bethesda-based Sucampo Pharmaceuticals, drug researchers Ueno and Kuno – who also own a house on P Street – are not well known to most Washingtonians, but they are known in philanthropic circles, such as the Washington Opera and the Smithsonian. The couple founded S&R Foundation in 2000, a non-profit that encourages scientific research and artistic endeavors among young individuals – and “to recognize talented young scientists and artists for their distinguished work in fields of science and fine arts, especially those who contribute to U.S.-Japanese understanding.”

Beresniovas Elected GBA President

On Nov. 16, the board of directors of the Georgetown Business Association elected its officers for 2012 and held its networking reception at F. Scott’s restaurant on 36th Street.

Succeeding Joe Giannino as president will be Rokas Beresniovas of HSBC Bank USA. The new vice president will be Riyad Said of Wells Fargo; treasurer, Karen Ohri of Georgetown Floorcoverings; secretary, Janine Schoonover of Serendipity3. They begin their one-year terms Jan. 1.

“Building on great leadership for the past two years, the GBA has new energy and is getting younger members,” Beresniovas said. “We have to sustain that, and we have built better relationships with many community groups.” The GBA – which also acts as a lobbyist for small businesses – works closely with the Georgetown Business Improvement District, which is not allowed to lobby.
The GBA’s Dec. 14 annual meeting on Dumbarton House will elect new members to its board and celebrate the holiday season.