Sunset on Wisconsin and M by Jim Malone.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
Come out this Sunday for the second annual Merriment in Georgetown festival. The festivities kick off at 3:00 and the current forecast is a high of 46 (so hopefully we’ll avoid last year’s bone-chilling colds).
There will be horse-drawn carriage rides, entertainment, food, Santa Claus and much, much more. This festival is a great addition to the Georgetown calender and GM hopes to see you all out there!
On another note: GM would like to compliment the BID on its great marketing of this event. The posters and website are wonderfully graphic and nostalgic. If only the BID could take the $30,000 it spends on its own website and make it look as good as the Merriment in Georgetown website. That would truly be money well spent.
Filed under Events
Photo by Pinachina.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
Last night in the wee but beautiful Renwick Chapel, members of the neighborhood came to hear a presentation from Argos Group to redevelop the historic Hurt Home into high end condos. While the plans are at an early stage (the city hasn’t even officially chosen them for the project, although there are no other candidates) they were clear enough to draw sharp protests from the audience.
The Plan’s Basics
The current plan calls for the construction of 41 units in the development. These units would be spread across the existing historic structure and a new wing that would be built off the back of the main building (the standing modern addition would be torn down).
A little less than half the units would be constructed in the historic building, the rest would be built in the new wing. According to the project’s presenter, Argos president Gilbertos Cardenas, the development would set aside roughly five units for below-market rates. Because of the building’s historic role as a home for the blind, Argos has reached out to the DC Council of the Blind to develop units specifically for blind residents. Cardenas also mentioned the possibility of workforce housing for D.C. police or firefighters.
The project has already changed shape a bit. Originally it was 46 units with 36 parking spots. The current plans are for 41 units and 41 parking spots (more on that below). The size of the units would skew much larger than normal DC apartments. According to the presentation:
Cardenas estimated that very roughly speaking, the units would cost 250-280 per square foot for the below market units and 500-600 for the market rate apartments. That would mean the below market rate apartments would be roughly $275,000 – $300,000 and the market rate apartments would be around $700,000 – $800,000. Continue reading
Filed under Development
Waterfront grass by Dani920.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
The ANC met last night for the final time in 2009. After a year of contentious fights over topics from the Apple store to drunken alumni parades, the final meeting last night seemed a bit anti-climatic. But that’s not to say there were no interesting developments.
Fiat Neon Lux
The most exciting item on the agenda was the proposed renovation of the Georgetown theater sign. The iconic sign at 1351 Wisconsin has not lit up in many years and has slowly rusted away. The plan discussed last night would fix that.
The BID is kicking in $50,000 to restore the landmark. There’s a bit of deja vu with this since several years ago another plan was floated to renovate the sign, but never got off the ground. Let’s hope this time is different.
The sign will be repainted in its original black color and the neon lights will be their original “rose” color.
When (jokingly) asked whether this meant the theater was coming back too, the architect laughed and said he couldn’t say. (Translation: no).
GM is thrilled that this sign will be returned to its former glory. A little more clarification on what is going to happen to the building it’s attached to would be even better. Continue reading
Filed under ANC
Christmas Tree by M. V. Jantzen.
Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:
Filed under The Morning Metropolitan
The Georgetown Metropolitan 
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