The Georgetown Metropolitan

Photo by William Buetler.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Several historical Georgetown buildings endangered.
• Great info on the status of the Union Station to Georgetown streetcar plans.

Volta Park

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On Tuesday, the alley naming that GM mentioned last week took another step towards reality. Councilmember Jack Evans introduced the Cashell Alley Designation Act of 2014 during the Council’s legislative session.

As you may recall, the story behind this is the type of story to give you some hope for the future. GM’s twelve year old neighbor, Raya Kenney, took it on herself to name the alley that runs behind her (and GM’s) house. She dove into the historical records kept at the Peabody Room and came up with the name of the original owner and developer of the land: Hazel Cashell. Continue reading →

Photo by Anokarina.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Somewhere there’s a golden oyster in Georgetown.
• If you want to live just down the block from GM (and buy a house that needs a ton of work!) check this guy out.

Dumbarton Oaks

Dumbarton Oaks is well known for its spring displays of incredible seasonal bounties. But people often overlook how spectacular the acres of gardens are in the fall. Hurry up and catch it now before it’s gone.

But here’s just a taste. The wildflowers of the Herbaceous Border are breathtaking:

The rest of the garden is at that magical moment when the gardeners loosen their grips and the plants give off one more explosion before the winter:

Continue reading →

Photo by Anokarina.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Some more details on GU’s new student pub.
• Get your patio on longer into the fall at Bourbon Steak.

Dumbarton Oaks

For the first time in decades, us D.C. voters have a genuinely competitive race for mayor on the general election ballot this November. And GM strongly recommends that you choose David Catania for your vote.

David has been a councilmember serving all of D.C. since 1997. In that election, he faced a veteran Democratic pol who probably underestimated Catania and overestimated the value of simply being a Democrat. A precedent we may be seeing repeated next month.

The simple fact is that despite not being a member of the majority party (he switched from Republican to Independent ten years ago in protest of that party’s regressive social policies) David has accumulated a remarkable legislative record. The record largely reflects the committees he’s chaired and the depth with which he can grasp an issue and bring a genuine problem-solving approach to bear.

When running the Committee on Health, he almost single handed saved the only hospital east of the Anacostia river, he pushed through the revolutionizing of the city’s response to the AIDS crisis, and he helped cut the number of uninsured residents in half.

Shifting to the education committee in 2012, Catania has wowed parents, teachers and administrators across the city with the unprecedented commitment he has displayed towards solving the pernicious problem of bad schools. He has personally visited more than 144 schools across the city. He proposed a raft of legislation reflecting deep thought about the issues. Despite a reluctant council that would rather abdicate all responsibility (and blame) to the mayor, David pushed through critical bills that end the damaging social promotion policies and ensured additional funding for schools with at-risk students. Continue reading →

Photo by Michael Cisneros.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Obamas at the Four Seasons over the weekend to celebrate their anniversary.
• Free stuff for students at Chop House.