GBA Salutes Dumbarton House; MPD’s Reese and Corchado; Chip Dent; Serendipity 3
• June 12, 2013

The Georgetown Business Association held its annual meeting and awards presentations Dec. 14 at Dumbarton House on Q Street. Mayor Vincent Gray and council members Jack Evans and Vincent Orange addressed GBA members and friends. Noting that he had been in Georgetown a lot lately, Gray seemed in high spirits as he teased ANC Commissioner Ed Solomon—“Ed, I am here because of you”—and Ward 2’s long-serving councilman Jack Evans—“How do you get to that stage without an opponent?”

Gray also said he and the council were working to get the Washington Redskins back in D.C. and complimented the Citizens Association of Georgetown on its recent gala and the Right On Band.

New GBA President Rokas Beresniovas proclaimed the state of the association strong and said that lobbying for local interests would be a top goal, and GBA secretary Janine Schoonover introduced the presenters and awardees. The Art Schultz Communitarian Award was presented to Karen Daly on behalf of Dumbarton House by last year’s awardee John Dreyfuss of Halcyon House. The Joe Pozell Public Safety Award was given to the Metropolitan Police Department’s Second District Commander Michael Reese and officer Roberto Corchado as well as to Chip Dent for his work on high-tech videocams. The Business of the Year Award went to Serendipity 3 — presented to co-owner/restaurateur Britt Swan by last year’s awardee Judith Beermann of the Georgetown Dish. Lawyer Joel Bennett certified the election of new board members.
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October’s ANC 2E Meeting
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-The October meeting of ANC 2E did its best to deal with the unusually high influx of problems facing the community. The first major problem was an unexpected lack of seating accommodation, as the modest-sized Heritage room, in the Georgetown Visitation School, found itself overrun with community members. All present were waiting to hear news regarding police efforts, in response to the recent crime wave, and updates on the Tudor Place preservation plan, among the other orders of business.

Metropolitan Police Department Lieutenant John Hedgecock was brought in to discuss the recent crime increse in the neighborhood. “Regrettably, I don’t have a lot of good news,” he said. The recent spike in crime is a trend begun in Georgetown that is extending into the West End and Dupont Circle. The most brazen crime is surely the holding up of an armored truck employee delivering money to the BB&T Bank on Wisconsin. Four men in an unmarked black van intercepted the deliverer on his way into the bank, took the case of money, and fled. They abandoned the van a few blocks down the road, attempting to set it on fire, and made off in a separate getaway vehicle.

No one has been caught or identified.

The other crimes appear unrelated, but no less than ten robberies have occurred on the numbered
and lettered streets of Georgetown over the past two weeks. Some criminals seem to be after iPhones and electronic equipment, devices, their attention compromised.

What is particularly alarming is that these crimes are happening at odd and unpredictable hours of the day: mid-afternoon, late at night, and early in the morning. They are happening in broad daylight. In response, Lieutenant Hedgecock has, “Increased efforts, reorganized strategies, and upped street coverage to respond to recent and frequent reports,” he said. He warned particularly that the police have had numerous arrests on the 3500 block alone and cautions people to be careful and aware in that area.

In lighter news, the new left-bound turn signal at M St. and Wisconsin is reported to be working
beautifully during its hours of operation.

With Bill Skelsey and Aaron Golds retiring from the ANC board (SMD 03 and SMD 04 respectively),
and no other board members facing much in the way of competition for their seats, the new member-elects spoke, presenting their stance on community issues.

Jake Sekka, a Sophomore at Georgetown University pursuing a major in Government and a concentration in philosophy, will be running on behalf of SMD 04, the University District, pledging to represent the student voice on the commission and “ensure safety and economic prosperity in our community.”

Georgetown resident Jeff Jones, who has been living at 3500 and P St., will be running for Bill Skelsey’s seat.

Tudor Place Executive Director Leslie Buhler outlined a $10 million expansion and renovation plan for Tudor Place, the historic estate between 31st and 32nd Street.

As made clear by an opinion column in this issue of the Georgetowner (page 8, “From the Neighbors of Tudor Place”), the surrounding residents are hesitant about a number of the proposed renovation aspects and thoroughly distraught with the dismissive attitude Tudor Place has shown toward them. Granted, on the whole, they’re on board with its preservation, recognizing Tudor Place as a landmark of community and historical significance.

The renovation proposals include a new gatehouse, storage and archive space, and an education and visitors center. One of the main concerns among Georgetown residents was, of course, the potential increase in traffic congestion and visitors that would be brought about by the new facility.

81st Georgetown House Tour 2012 is Underway
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And now a few words from Frida Burling: Good news for our Georgetown! The 2012 House Tour is getting under way for the 81st year.
 
It had been started by John Gill’s mother, a parishioner of St. John’s Church, way back in 1931, as Washington felt the start of the Great Depression. There are rumors that people paid a small amount of money and rode a bus around Georgetown, while a knowledgeable resident pointed out where the important people lived.
 
Over the next 80 years, as the New Deal, World War II and other wars brought more and more to D.C., our little village grew and grew—but still kept its charm. Was it the Kennedy years that brought so many young couples?

Now in the houses where old couples gave lavish dinner parties, young women push strollers to day care centers and then go on their way to their law offices. But still Georgetown has kept its aura.

So, again on the last Saturday in April, the 28th, curious throngs, as well as many of us residents, will take the Georgetown House Tour to see who lives where, and to admire our structures both old and remodeled.

Stephanie Bothwell and Frank Babb Randolph are the co-chairs, planning to show the architecture and the designs that continue to be admired. Their team of volunteers can show residents and guests around and inside some of our beloved Georgetown homes.
 
Watch for more news about this once-a-year special treat. The charge for the house tour goes to a very good cause: to help the needy through the outreach program of St. John’s Church.

For more information visit GeorgetownHouseTour.com

Zoning Board Decides Not to Decide . . . Yet
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The D.C. Zoning Commission has postponed its decision on Georgetown University’s 2010-2020 Campus Plan until May. The commission seeks more information on the University’s proposals to lessen the impact of its students living off campus, such as its SNAP program, M Street shuttle, expanded trash pickup services and student parking. This second delay will likely require more input from Georgetown residents and the University.

“Well, it turns out the final Feb. 9 Zoning Commission hearing on the G.U. Campus Plan, wasn’t [final],” said Jennifer Altemus, president of the Citizens Association of  Georgetown. “This is getting old.”

During the hearing, commissioner Peter May said, “We’re not talking about approving a plan with the intention of avoiding objectionable conditions . . . I think that there is substantial evidence that these objectionable conditions may exist now.” May added that he found the Office of Planning’s proposal that all undergraduate students be housed in university-owned housing. “extreme.”

“I would rather the University find some way to address these issues in a more proactive way. I don’t know what it is, I just know that it has not happened yet,” he said.

May’s puzzlement echoes the doubts felt by many residents and university supporters alike, but other university projects continue as before.

“Despite the uncertainty about housing, many of Georgetown’s long-term goals will not be jeopardized by the delay,” reported university student newspaper The Hoya. “Several of the construction projects included in the plan are extensions or continuations of schemes that had already been approved as part of the 2000 Campus Plan. Such projects include the construction of the Intercollegiate Athletic Center and the renovation of Reiss Science building. Plans for the athletic facility are still under review by the Old Georgetown Board, but construction of the center does not depend on the Zoning Commission’s ruling. . . . Georgetown has agreed to cap undergraduate admissions rates at current levels and cap the increase in graduate enrollment at 967 students if the campus plan is accepted.”

University spokeswoman Stacy Kerr told the newspaper: “Our voluntary commitment to these maximum enrollment levels is contingent on the approval of the campus plan package as we’ve proposed [it].”

Park Service Sets March 3 Meeting on Boathouse Study
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Another Georgetown issue is on the line to generate two sharply divided camps: Should we build another boathouse on the Potomac River? And how should we do it?

The National Park Service has scheduled a March 3 meeting to discuss its ongoing “Feasibility Study for a Non-Motorized Boathouse Zone along the Georgetown Waterfront.” The four-hour workshop seeks to gather public input and will likely begin Saturday morning, but a specific time and place has not yet been determined.

The announcement was sent by Tammy Stidham of the Park Service’s National Capital Region Tammy_Stidham@nps.gov or call 202 619 7474.

Here is where the Park Service stands on any new boathouse on the Potomac in Georgetown: 

The boathouse zone was designated in the 1987 master plan for the Georgetown Waterfront Park, and now that the park has been completed below 34th Street the NPS is taking a step back to look holistically at potential uses and facilities for the zone. The study will be used to inform future decision-making processes.

The study is being conducted to identify feasible ways to enhance visitor access to the Potomac River with non-motorized boats, while finding a balance among different uses of the space. To do so, this study will:

?- Identify the range and quantity of uses and users that should be accommodated in the zone, consistent with physical site limitations and deemed necessary and appropriate uses for the site.
– Lay the groundwork for future decision-making for development and improvements and guide future planning and compliance requirements.
– Establish a programmatic approach to allowing access to the river for a variety of uses, not just non-motorized boat uses.

The project will consider:

– The waterfront land immediately upstream of the Georgetown Waterfront Park at 34th Street, to about 1,200 feet upstream of the Key Bridge, including federal properties north of Water Street/K Street.
– Existing facilities (Potomac Boat Club, Washington Canoe Club and Jack’s Boathouse), stakeholders and the immediate environs around the zone.
– Inclusion of new facilities within the zone.
– Cyclists, joggers, walkers and other users in and near the zone.
– Relationship with the Capital Crescent Trail.

Woman Found Dead in Rock Creek, Feb. 18
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A body of a female was found Saturday morning, Feb. 18, in the waters where the C&O Canal, Rock Creek and the Potomac River meet alongside the House of Sweden—where walkers, runners and rowers were out and about—near Thompson Boathouse.

The D.C. Fire & EMS Dept. had first responded to a call the night before of a person in the canal but found no one. The Metropolitan Police Dept. is investigating. As of now, no identity or cause of death has been released, nor how the woman ended up in the canal.??

Store Owner Arrested for Selling Alcohol to Minors
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The owner of Town Square Market on 4418 MacArthur Boulevard, Richard Dan Ki Kim, was arrested Feb. 18, briefly held by Metropolitan Police and charged with selling alcohol to a minor.??

According to 9 News Now, “A 17 year-old high school student was also arrested, cuffed and detained for buying the alcohol. Minutes before, police had observed a carload of three young men park outside the store and watch one of them go to the counter, buy the alcohol and leave. When he came outside, police asked him for identification, which he had, although it belonged to someone else. All three young men are students at a high school in Arlington.”

??Reporter Andrea McCarren, who had been investigating underage drinking for 9 News Now, including alleged sale of alcohol to minors in the store at the intersection of MacArthur Boulevard and Foxhall Road, briefly left on-air reporting after her children were harassed by classmates and McCarren herself derided on Facebook.??

Montgomery County Police have also been watching Town Square Market, according to 9 News Now. “In recent weeks, officers have issued 38 citations to minors who bought alcohol at Town Square and crossed into Montgomery County.” The store may face the loss of its liquor license.?

Matthew Donahue: 1936 – 2012 (Prospect Street)
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Georgetown commercial real estate owner and executive Matthew Donahue died Jan. 19. The outgoing Donahue was known for his generous and sometimes quarrelsome nature. As easily as he might open his home on the 3600 block of Prospect Street to friends and family, he would hang a banner over his backyard fence that overlooks the Exxon gas station on Canal Road that read “Remember the Valdez.” From his retail space on Wisconsin Avenue, he once held production work of a Disney movie with a poster that read “Disney Family Values?” to protest its film about priests. Donahue was born and grew up in Georgetown close to his last residence and had been a student at Holy Trinity Elementary School and Georgetown University. He was the brother of Claire Farquhar, Mollie Dodd, both of the District, William Donahue of Bethesda and the late Michael Donahue. He is survived by 10 nieces and nephews, as well as 15 great-nieces and nephews. (Memorial contributions may be made to Holy Trinity Living Wages care of Holy Trinity Catholic Church.) To read an interview about Donahue’s life, visit www.CAGtown.org/OralHistory

Richard Myrick: 1920 – 2012 (32nd Street)
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Richard Myrick died Feb. 2 in Santa Barbara, Calif., where he was born in 1920. A graduate of the Thacher School and Princeton’s class of 1943, Myrick went on to earn his Ph.D. in social psychology at Claremont. He served in the Army Corps of Engineers during WWII and then moved to Georgetown where he lived for 50 years and worked at the National Institute on Drug Abuse. After retirement, Myrick spent his summers in Deer Isle, Maine, painting, gardening and supporting the Deer Isle Artist Association, and his winters in his Georgetown studio painting Maine landscapes. Myrick had a way with art, literature and gardening and was always interested in helping others. He was married for a time to Susan Mordecai of Madera, Calif., and is survived by his sister Julie Myrick Allen and three nephews, Pete, Scott and Ted Allen.

ANC Approves Revised Tudor Place Plans
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At Feb. 27 meeting of the Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E, commissioners approved the revised designs submitted by Tudor Place for new buildings on the historic home’s grounds: a garage addition, re-positioned archives and collections building and a new gatehouse on 31st Street. Concerns about the scale of the property additions by 32nd Street neighbors were heard and taken to consideration, with commissioners asking if a smaller rear garage would be “practicable.” Tudor Place director Leslie Buhler defended the plans as part of the non-profit’s mission and future survival and “duty to care” for its property and collections. Other neighbors applauded “the imaginative designs” in the re-do, which will now go before the Old Georgetown Board. Commissioners express their aim was “trying to seek a balance” between nearby residents and the need for maintenance of Georgetown’s history.

In other ANC decisions, the parking of food trucks on residential streets was met with disapproval. Commissioners approved a zoning variance for Noodles & Company, which will open at 1815 Wisconsin Ave., N.W. They opposed designs for a condo at Grace Street and Cecil Place but did give a thumbs-up to renovations at 3401 Water Street for the upcoming Malmaison restaurant.

The ANC will meet next on April 2, 6:30 p.m., at Georgetown Visitation Prep.