The Georgetown Metropolitan

Georgetown Heritage, a non-profit established to restore and improve the canal, has issued an ambitious proposal to do just that. Call it the High Lineification of the canal, if you will, but it is nothing if not dramatic.

The plan itself divided the canal through Georgetown into eight distinct sections: The Aqueduct, the Bend, the Walls, the Groves, the Locks, Rock Creek Confluence, Rock Creek and Mile Marker 0. Here are some of the more significant alternatives with each of these sections.

The Aqueduct:

The Aqueduct section runs roughly from the old Aqueduct abutment to 34th St. The primary focus of the proposals for this section, not surprisingly, concern the Aqueduct abutment itself.

The plan puts forward two proposals for improving the abutment: Alternative A and Alternative B. In both alternatives, the abutment would receive significant improvements to provide more safety and a finished look to what is currently essentially a ruin. The biggest difference between the two alternatives is that Alternative B proposes the construction of a decorative trestle, meant to evoke the structure of the old Aqueduct Bridge:

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Photo by Vision Planet Media.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Georgetown Main Street opens up shop. (GM is still a little hazy on what this group will actually do, but more the merrier!)
• A multiple generational Georgetown developer and his views on the future of the neighborhood.

Georgetown University

This week for Georgetown Time Machine, GM visits the intersection of Canal Rd., M St., the Whitehurst and the Key Bridge.

Based upon the cars in the photo, it would appear that this photo is in the 1940s. But the Whitehurst didn’t open until late 1949. So maybe this is from the very end of the 1940s, or into the very early 1950s. (Any car experts out there who can date the cars exactly?)

Much of this scene hasn’t changed that much in 60 plus years. The Car Barn is still there (although doesn’t have streetcars coming and going from it). The gas station was there (although it was a Sinclair Oil station). Continue reading →

Photo by Ehpien.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• A first look at some of the proposals for big changes to the canal.
• What sort of businesses or restaurants do you want to see in Georgetown? The BID wants to know!

Georgetown University

This week for Know Your Trees, GM is visiting a gentle giant that you don’t find along sidewalks, but which can be found in Montrose Park: poplars.

Specifically it’s not true poplars you find around here, but rather tulip poplars. The tulip name comes from the tree’s distinctive flower. They are yellow and orange and look like this:

But poplars are often so large that it’s hard to see the flowers actually on the tree in the spring when they bloom. But you find them all over the ground around the feet of the trees. Continue reading →

Photo by Mike Maguire.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Exorcist-themed wedding shoot at the steps.
• The Georgetown cocktail on this list seems a bit much for GM’s taste, but you might like it.

Today is Halloween, and the perfect time for a ghost story. But say you don’t want to import your ghost stories from some distant land. Have no fear! Georgetown is full of ghost stories. And GM’s friend, Tim Krepp, has compiled them in his book the Ghosts of Georgetown. Pick up a copy! Continue reading →