The Georgetown Metropolitan

Yesterday, the Mayor announced dramatic pull-backs on a wide range of Covid restrictions. Most notably, she called for capacity limitations on restaurants to be removed by May 21st. Bars would follow on June 11th.

Right now, restaurants can only fill their inside dining to 25% of the normal capacity. Additionally, tables are required to meet spacing restrictions. Both of these rules will be lifted on May 21st. So in just two weeks, Georgetown restaurants can return to full indoor capacity.

Georgetown restaurants appear to have ultimately weathered the pandemic fairly well, all things considered. We lost a couple coffee shops (Bluestone Lane, Le Pain Quotidien, Paul Bakery, one of the Starbucks, and Peet’s), and a handful of lunch spots (District Pizza, Johnny Rockets, Luke’s Lobster, Sundavich, Subway, and Wisey’s). But only a few sit-down restaurants closed, including America Eats Tavern, Don Lobo’s, High Street Cafe, and Zannchi. Obviously not great to lose them, but it could easily have been a lot worse.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Why Eastbanc decided to host the Sandlot instead of moving forward with an apartment building.
• GU is going to hold an in-person commencement, but it will be at Nationals Park.

This week on Georgetown Time Machine, GM is donning a fez and visiting the old Masonic Hall on Wisconsin Ave. just above M st.

The photo comes from the Willard R. Ross Postcard collection. The photo is dated from 1911 and shows 1212 Wisconsin Ave. On the first floor is the venerable Weaver hardware store. The building dates to 1858, but this family-owned business has operated there since 1889. The family continues to operate at this same location, which it continues to own.

The hardware store operated on the first floor at the time of this photo. On the second floor was the meeting hall of Potomac Lodge No. 5 of the freemasons. (Freemason halls were always on the second floor to prevent eavesdroppers). This is the oldest masonic lodge in DC, and even predates the formation of DC.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• How a Book Hill boutique is dealing with Covid.
• The Sandlot opened in Georgetown over the weekend, anyone go?

Lover’s Lane

Monday night, ANC2E voted to support a proposal from DDOT to continue the improvements along Water St., including the extension of the separated bike lane.

Serious efforts to improve Water St. stretch back to (at least) 2015. That’s when the BID, led by its transportation director Will Handsfield, hired Toole Design to create a plan to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety along Water St., as well as improve the traffic management.

Central to the plan that Toole came up with was a separated bike lane on the south side of Water St. After some contentious discussions, this proposal was implemented by DDOT in 2017, and the results can be seen today.

However, two elements of the plan Toole created were not initially adopted by DDOT: the extension of the bike lane to the Capital Crescent Trailhead and the creation of a small traffic circle at 34th st. Both of these proposals were put on the back burner due to the imminent Key Bridge rehabilitation project, which needed the space.

With the rehab project complete, DDOT is now moving to complete the vision created by Toole.

The overarching goal with this last piece is to discourage cars from heading west of 34th St. Take a trip down to Water St. on a Saturday afternoon and you can see immediately how unsafe it is. Cars come driving all the way down Water St. looking for free parking, and then need to turn around when they don’t find it. Pedestrians and cyclists are also forced to walk down the center of the street since there are no sidewalks. It’s a combustible mix and it is only a matter a time before someone gets killed or maimed.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Another look at the fight over the Transformers.
• How the comprehensive plan is charting DC’s future, including a future where Georgetown’s waterfront sinks below the river.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• The new beer garden at the intersection of M and Pennsylvania opens this weekend.
• GU continues to record lower Covid cases week-over-week.