The Georgetown Metropolitan

1500 block of 33rd St.

After years of construction to repair and shore up Key Bridge, which left the landmark looking sparkling clean, the abutments were recently tagged with graffiti.

GM first noticed the tags last week, and he believes they were added within a couple weeks. One of the tags says clearly “JACK”. (Former Councilmember Jack Evans did not reply by press time to deny he was the artist since GM did not actually reach out to him.) The others say “GEO” and “JTEA”.

It’ll take some powerwashing, but the graffiti is unlikely to leave any permanent damage. It still goes to show, though, that you can scrub a wall clean, but someone out there will simply see it as a clean canvass.

Photo by M.V. Jantzen.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• California woman pleads guilty to placing a bomb threat against Georgetown Visitation in response to the school’s decision to list same-sex weddings in the alumni magazine.
• Another splashy video in support of the planned beer garden at Penn and M St.

Potomac Boat Club

Walk down M St. today and you’re treated to a nearly endless string of moderate to expensive clothing stores, carefully planned to target the regional and international visitors who populate the brick-lined sidewalks alongside you. Dig a little further back into history and those same blocks were populated much more by moderate to rowdy bars and restaurants, representing one of the only such dining destinations in the Capital.

But dig even further back into the 20th century, and you’ll discover an M St. that is almost unrecognizable to the M St. of today. That’s because in the middle part of the 20th century, M St. was extremely car oriented.

GM was struck by this fact recently while perusing a collection of photos published by DDOT. Many of the photos GM had seen before, but seeing them all together in succession really hit home how dominated M St. was by a thick collection of gas stations, car dealerships, service stations, and other businesses built entirely around the car.

A few years ago, GM recounted how many gas stations once lined M St. But it went far beyond just a place to get gas. You can see them in the DDOT photos. Above is 30th and M, and shows the used car lot that once stood where, well, the Latham Hotel once stood.

Here are the others (in no particular order):

This is just east of 33rd and M, with Sunoco gas station, a used car lot, and a Chevron billboard (to boot) on the left. Another used car dealership in on the right in a building that no longer exists.

Here’s another shot from 30th and M, showing that there was a Sinclair gas station next to the used car lot. A bit further back, you can just make out the Ford dealership that once occupied the Nike Store building. Continue reading →

Photo by M.V. Jantzen.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• In a sign of the times, Reverie transitions to being a pizza shop for the time being to weather the winter.
• Here’s a nice rundown by the Georgetowner of other restaurant openings and temporary changes around Georgetown (and elsewhere).

Potomac Boat Club

GM says this every year, but this year his case is stronger than ever: let’s keep up our holiday light longer!

Surely it makes sense to chuck your Christmas tree and stow away your inflatable Santas come January, but it does not follow that you should take down any strings of lights or other greenery as well. We are only just entering the bleakest of midwinter, and making our streets and sidewalks darker makes no sense. And as we lumber on through yet another month of this pandemic, a little extra twinkle of light is all the more necessary.

So please join GM and keep up some lights outside your house at least to February. Our collective mental health will thank you!

Photo by M.V. Jantzen.

Happy New Year Georgetown! Here are some stories GM missed over the break:

• The home of Dale and Melissa Overmyer was gutted by a fire allegedly set by a man later arrested.
• Georgetown Suites is being converted to apartments.
• The story of how Take Me Home Country Roads was written in Georgetown.
• After all that hubbub a few years ago, the Georgetown scenes in Wonder Woman 1984 were like 10 seconds total.

GM is going to wish you all Happy Holidays and sign off for the year. See you in 2021!