The Georgetown Metropolitan

Photo by Thomas Hawk.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• How CM Brooke Pinto disagrees, and agrees, with Jack Evans.
• DC apparently has set aside money to buy the soon to be former Georgetown Day School in Foxhall. It appears it will be used as a middle school, and it’s unclear how this will impact Hardy Middle School.

Georgetown Waterfront Park

Since news is slow these days, and everyone seems to love history posts, GM is launching a new series today: Lost Georgetown. In it, GM will explore a significant building from Georgetown’s past that has been demolished. He is starting with about the largest possible candidate: the Capital Traction Company Powerhouse.

Name: Capital Traction Company Powerhouse

Built By: Capital Traction Company

Constructed: 1910

Current Use: Demolished 1968

The Capital Traction Company was one of the two major streetcar companies that serviced the District at the turn of the 20th century. It was the primary streetcar company servicing Georgetown at that time and was centered around the massive Car Barn at 35th and M, which still stands today. Continue reading →

Photo by Matt Kiefer.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• GM hears that Call Your Mother’s opening is still about a month and a half away.
• Blue Alley starts planning for live shows in August.

3400 block of N St.

Photo by Joe Flood.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Nice article on biking, in Georgetown and elsewhere.
• More on the streateries.

1000 block of Wisconsin Ave.

This week for Georgetown Time Machine, GM is checking out a photo of Georgetown Medical School when it was a lonely building. The photo is from June 30, 1931 and looks south across Reservoir Rd. to the building, with the rest of the campus in the background.

While Georgetown University created a medical school in 1851, the building seen here–the Medical-Dental Building–was opened literally days before this photo was taken. The present day hospital would follow 17 years later.

This photo also shows what the grounds of the former Hillandale estate looked like before it was turned into an unfortunately gated community in the 1970s.

Key Bridge

Photo by Vincent.

The science is clear: universal mask use is one of the most important tools in our fight against coronavirus. But how well are people abiding with that in Georgetown?

GM has several observations:

Over the last month, mask use has increased in outdoor settings. It seems most people have come around to adopting the practice, perhaps even if they question its efficacy. On quieter side streets, people can be seen walking without them, but they are less necessary there. On Wisconsin Ave., on the other hand, most people are using them.

Last week, GM took a quick unscientific tally of people on Wisconsin Ave. wearing masks. North of M St., 28 of 36 people were wearing masks (77%). There were too many people on M St. to count, but the mask use was still probably above 50%. Continue reading →