Photo by randomduck.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- DSK puts his Georgetown home on the market.
- Long stalled boutique hotel on 31st st. apparently has found financing and hopes to be open by January 2013.
Monthly Archives: September 2011
The Morning Metropolitan
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
City Updates Vacant House List
Photo by ~ragio~.
Via Michael Neibauer, the city recently updated its list of vacant and blighted buildings and several of those buildings are in Georgetown.
The city keeps track of vacant and blighted buildings since it charges a much higher property tax on those properties. For instance, an ordinary residential building is charged 85 cents for every $100 of assessed value. If a building is found to be vacant, though, the rate is $5.00 per $100 of assessed value. If the city finds that the house is blighted, the rate jumps to $10. The purpose of these increased rates is to discourage extended vacancies, which have a long list of negative societal impacts.
Typically the discussion of vacant and blighted buildings focuses on transitional neighborhoods like Shaw. But vacant buildings exist in neighborhoods like Georgetown, and their negative effects can impact any neighborhood, rich or poor. Continue reading
Filed under Government
The Morning Metropolitan
Photo by M.V. Jantzen.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- GM’s not sure he gets the WWII reference, but safe rides between the campus and the bars sounds like a good idea to him.
- Is the rent too damn high?
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
Not So Long Ago: Wisconsin and Dumbarton
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This week on Not So Long Ago, GM stops by an old favorite for a lot of Georgetowners: the late Au Pied du Cochon.
Au Pied du Cochon means “With a Pig’s Foot”. The Georgetown location was probably named after the famous Paris brasserie of the same name, which has been open since 1947. Several other Au Pied du Cochons exist throughout the globe, including a rather well regarded one in Quebec.
Georgetown’s Au Pied du Cochon was not without its sordid history. Most famously it was the location where in 1985 Soviet defector Vitaly Yurcenko escaped from his CIA handlers by sneaking out the bathroom window and running up Wisconsin Ave. to the Soviet embassy in order to un-defect.
The restaurant closed in 2004. GM would like to say he misses the old place, but frankly he thought the service and the fare did not live up to the atmosphere. Not that having Five Guys is remotely better, though. Hopefully someday it will revert back to a French bistro.
It looks like the restaurant once spread over to the space next door. A rather dramatic and unfortunate renovation of that neighboring space took place in 2004. Now the building is faced with metallic formstone. And it’s empty. Oh well.
One last cool item: in both pictures, you can see an old ad for The Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Co. (i.e., the A & P) on the side of the far right building. Continue reading
Filed under Not So Long Ago
The Morning Metropolitan
Photo by xtinelabbe.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- Pinball Museum closes up shop and will move to Baltimore, where it probably will be better appreciated, frankly.
- Volta Bureau inspires local DJs, at least in the naming department.
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
Georgetown’s Other Apple Store
It’s still technically summer, but the signs of fall are popping up here and there. And one thing that always makes GM cheery despite the shorter days is a striking apple tree on Cambridge Pl.
It appears to produce Granny Smiths, and quite large ones at that. It makes people do a double take to see supermarket-sized green apples scattered on the sidewalk.
So if you’re looking for a sweet treat, swing by Cambridge. But since the tree is on private property, please don’t actually pick the fruit! Just pick one up off the sidewalk, take it home, wash it, and bite into nature’s tart gifts.
Filed under Around Town
The Morning Metropolitan
Photo by tericee.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
- Rats take over Georgetown streets late at night, and other things you’d rather not think about.
- DC Mud goes in deep on the future of the mall.
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
The Georgetown Metropolitan 
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