The Georgetown Metropolitan

I’m proud to announce that five former ANC Commissioners from Georgetown have endorsed my candidacy for ANC! They include Tom Birch, Jeff Jones, John Lever, Pamla Moore, and Monica Roaché. They write:

We are former Commissioners of ANC2E, with over 25 years of aggregate experience between us. And we are writing to support the candidacy of Christopher “Topher” Mathews for the Commission this year, representing SMD 02.

We have each worked closely with Topher on various matters around Georgetown and have been impressed with the depth of his knowledge of and commitment to the neighborhood. For instance, some of us have worked alongside Topher in his capacity as board member of the Citizens Association of Georgetown, wading through thorny and contentious issues to arrive at solutions that work for all members of the community. While others of us have known him through his diligent reporting on his local news site, the Georgetown Metropolitan. And beyond that, we have all seen Topher pitch in on countless efforts to improve our neighborhood over the years.

Topher has shared with us his plans should he be elected. To fight the impact of Covid, he will work with stakeholders in the business community and the city agencies to help save the Georgetown commercial district. He’ll work towards reducing the blight of vacant storefronts along Wisconsin Ave. Further, he’ll push the city to take steps to reduce dangerous and street-clogging traffic through our side-streets. And he’ll fight to keep bus service cuts from devastating our transit accessibility.

We know what it takes to be a successful ANC Commissioner, and we are confident that Topher will be one. We heartily endorse him.

Tom Birch – Former Commissioner ANC2E06
Jeffrey Jones – Former Commissioner ANC2E03
John Lever – Former Commissioner ANC2E02
Pamla H. Moore – Former Commissioner ANC2E06
Dr. Monica Roaché – Former Commissioner ANC2E07

I’m honored to have their support!

Photo by Vincent.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Huge water main break at the intersection of M and Wisconsin on Friday.
• Reminder: Tomorrow night CAG is hosting its monthly meeting, focusing on the challenges facing the retail district. Candidates in contested ANC races, including me, will be given a few minutes to speak at the end.

1600 block of Wisconsin Ave.

I’m honored to report that the Georgetowner newspaper has endorsed me for the ANC 2E 02 seat! The endorsement was announced in this month’s issue of the venerable news source. They write:

For ANC2E 02, The Georgetowner endorses Christopher “Topher” Mathews, for his knowledge of Georgetown issues, his earnestness, and his accessibility.

The same issue has a helpful guide for the Georgetown ANC races, as well as endorsements for other elections across the city.

I’m grateful for the Georgetowner’s support as well as the important work they continue to do for our community!

Photo by Daniel Lobo.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• More on the GU student accused of murder.
• GM missed this, but Tudor Place gardens are now open (with timed entry). [hint, hint, Dumbarton Oaks…]

1200 block of 33rd St.

This week for Georgetown Time Machine, GM travels back to 1916, when the arrival of a new fangled car garage was considered noteworthy.

The garage, called the Potomac Garage, occupied a building at 3287 M St. Don’t bother looking it up on Google Maps, the building is long gone, replaced by the unfortunate commercial building on the northwest corner of M and Potomac St.

The location, however, provided for multiple means of ingress and egress, apparently:

(This was during that period around the turn of the 20th century when some of the streets that kept their old Georgetown names, like Prospect and Dumbarton, were called “avenues”). Continue reading →

Photo by Vincent.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Seems like after in initial spike, the GU population is getting their Covid numbers down.
• What happens if you start biking on the C & O Towpath, and just never stop.

1000 block of 33rd St.

It all started with a trip to Cox’s Farm in Virginia. GM and his family wanted to get into the full spirit of the fall season last October and there’s not many places around here better suited to that task. And as you might imagine, GM and fam came home burdened with a bunch of gourds, including an unusual white pumpkin. Little did they realize that that pumpkin would soon make the national news.

The pumpkins, including the white one, were arrayed on GM’s stoop, as one does. But it wasn’t just two days later that he noticed that it was suddenly gone. Now, it’s not terribly surprising to lose a pumpkin or two (or three) over the course of October. Most of the time it’s just drunk college dudes stumbling home late at night, looking for a laugh by smashing them on the ground.

And that’s what GM assumed had happened. But then he remembered his new security cameras and realized he could actually see the culprit. He was not prepared for what he found.

No more than a half hour before GM realized the pumpkin was gone had it been stolen. And it was stolen by that fellow you see above in the tight black jeans. It wasn’t smashed (at least not immediately) it was just taken away, like a hostage being rescued by special forces.

The utter ridiculousness of the scene caused GM to laugh. But better, it provided him with easy content! He wrote up a quick article, hit “schedule” and called it a day.

An easy Monday morning article was about all he expected out the Case of the Tight Jeaned Pumpkin Thief. But so much more ensued. Continue reading →