The Georgetown Metropolitan

As part of its update to its Transportation Plan for the Circulator, DDOT is proposing to cancel the Wisconsin Ave. leg of the Georgetown-Union Station route. It is a move the agency has proposed multiple times in the past, and it would be very bad for Georgetown residents.

Right now the Circulator comes up Wisconsin Ave. from K St. and continues past M St. all the way up to Whitehaven. Since a large portion of Georgetowners live closer to the stops on Wisconsin than to M St., this provides residents with access to the route.

But DDOT hates this leg. It has proposed cutting it multiple times in the past. For instance, back in 2009 the agency tried to kill the leg, and it took intervention from Mayor Fenty to save it.

The logic behind the animosity is that this leg does not get the ridership to justify its cost. As a result, the subsidy-per-rider is high. This is true, as far as things go, but the subsidy to this leg is nothing compared to, for instance, the subsidy for the Navy Yard or Skyland routes. But since those lines have powerful defenders on the Council, DDOT will keep them chugging along. Continue reading →

Photo by Joe Flood.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Yesterday was the anniversary of the demise of the City of Georgetown.
• Free mint on 31st St.

3400 block of Volta Pl.

CityLab published an article yesterday discussing the great life’s work of DC resident from the last century: John P. Wymer. As a personal hobby, Wymer spent thousands of hours between 1948 to 1952 charting the geography of the District and taking thousands of photos. After decades of the photos being hidden away, the work of a dedicated librarian is making them available again.

Wymer ultimately took 4,000 photos of average life around DC. Jessica Richardson Smith, the librarian, is meticulously digitalizing these photos and merging them with Google Streetview to enable you to quickly place all the photos on the map. She has already digitalized about half of the photos and the map can be found here. Continue reading →

Photo by Bill Starrels.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Luke Russert was at the ANC meeting the other night, rallying against the Key Bridge Exxon development.
• What’s the future of retail in Georgetown?

3200 block of Reservoir St.

Last week, GM accidentally advertised an open house at his daughter’s school for last Saturday, when the open house is actually THIS Saturday. Sorry! Here’s the corrected announcement! If you’re interested, GM hopes you can make it!

If you’re looking for a great nursery school right here in Georgetown, look no further than the fabulous Children’s House of Washington. The school is having an another open house this Saturday, June 3, from 9 am – 12 pm. It’s located in the Dumbarton Methodist Church at 3133 Dumbarton St., just east of Wisconsin Ave.

The Children’s House of Washington (or C.H.O.W.) is a Montessori school. GM has sent his daughter there for three years, and he can say with confidence that it was absolutely one of the best decisions we made for her. Continue reading →

Photo by Mike Maguire.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Georgetown did pretty well on Washingtonian’s Best Of lists.
• As a Tiki lover himself, GM can approve of this recommendation of Farmers, Fishers and Bakers’ Tiki menu.

3300 Block of Q St.

The ANC meets tonight for its June session. There are a couple of interesting items on the agenda:

• Several items relating to the saga of the Duke Ellington School renovations. The Burleith community has been raising alarms recently about the impact of the rush to finish the construction in time. Some have even called for the construction to halt, which is not likely to happen. DCPS has staked too much on finishing this and will likely barrel through whatever complaints to get there.
• An item in community comment will address the widespread issue of unpermitted work.
• Zannchi is adding a tea bar upstairs called Kung Fu Tea.

Here’s the rest of the agenda: Continue reading →