Linked up: Coming Soon

More buzz on the 2010 newcomers to the East End's Asian dining scene.

• Ruth Samuelson explains that Kushi should arrive at City Vista by April as the contract with Eden's and Avant devised with financial incentive to do so. [WCP Housing Complex]
  
• WBJ checks in with Wagamama for a status update on their 2010 opening in Penn Quarter (418 7th Street NW). FWIW, the corporate website suggests September 2010. [WBJ Top Shelf]

As we mentioned on Monday, Ming's is another Asian dining option poised to enter the mix in 2010.

Szechuan Gallery to become Ming's

As reported by the Prince of Petworth last week, a liquor license application under the name Ming's has been posted at the former Szechuan Gallery Restaurant space at 617 H Street NW.


The ABRA notice describes the Nature of Operation as follows:

Dining with an upscale atmosphere serving Chinese/Japanese food including authentic Hong Kong style dishes and sushi. No live entertainment or dancing. Occupancy Load is 143.

Y&H: A Very Early Look at Kushi at CityVista

Tim Carman of the Washington City Paper's Young & Hungry column shares a series of photos from a recent walkthrough of Kushi at City Vista. The restaurant, which will offer sushi and izakaya, is in the early stages of buildout and has a Spring 2010 ETA.

Happy Holidays

Hope you are having a Happy Holiday season. Posting on the blog will be grinding down to a near halt between now and New Years as we enjoy ours. See you next year.

Shoveling away the Snowpocalypse

The big snow event over the weekend produced some great photos and opportunities for fun in the snow. Even better than that for some of us is the 3 day weekend! However life must go on and we have no choice but to shovel and plow ourselves out.



Yesterday in my partial walkthrough of the neighborhood Museum Square, Madrigal, City Vista, and the DuMont had cleared their sidewalks. The large surface parking lots on the 300 and 400 blocks of K Street NW had not. This was especially troublesome on the parking lots 900 block frontage along Eye Street. The 425 Eye street renovations are already blocking off the west sidewalk with fencing so the lack of snow clearing on the east sidewalk leaves pedestrians no choice but to walk in the road.

The east side of the 900 block of 5th Street, along the vacant properties, seems like the snow has been packed down by heavy Safeway foot traffic rather than shoveled. That's a recipe for an icy fall. Hopefully the CID Clean Team can throw down some salt.

What other critical sidewalks or roads in the neighborhood are not yet cleared?

Pics from Snowpocalypse

A few images from the 2009 Snowpocalypse on Flickr. Top two images from Divergence and bottom image is from William Couch.

Former Sales Trailer to be put to use by CID

The Mount Vernon Triangle CID has worked out an arrangement with QDC/Wilkes to put the former Madrigal Sales Trailer back to use. The MVTCID plans to use the trailer for community meeting space and facilities for the Clean Team.


The new day to day activity at the trailer should ensure that the front steps will no longer be a homeless campground. The vagrant who had been squatting at the site had gotten so bold as to place a mattress on the landing this past weekend.

Pic of the day

Segway rider orders a hoagie from Taylor Gourmet at 485 K Street NW.


Image Credit: alykat

Taste of the Nation Discounted Tickets on Sale

by KimFromTheK

Still looking for the perfect holiday gift? Why not get that special someone tickets to Share our Strength's Taste of the Nation?

The event will take place on Monday April 12, 2010 right in our neighborhood at the National Building Museum and will feature over 60 of the DC area's top restaurants, wine bars, and mixologists.

For a limited time (until December 31), you can save 10% off VIP tickets (normally $125) and General Admission (normally $85). Just visit here and follow the instructions for the DC event and enter JINGLE in the promotional code field.

Holiday Tipping

by KimFromTheK

A recent thread has come across our condo's listserv regarding holiday tipping. This is usually a touchy topic this time of year, as many people may be worried whether they tip on par with others, and tipping is certainly a personal choice.

Who do you tip during the holidays and how much do you give? Your doorman/concierge? Property manager of your building? Cleaning people? Hair stylist? Please share for those who are unsure who to tip and how much, especially given the anonymity of writing it here versus on your condo's listserv!

Editor's note: Please refrain from referring to any building employee by name

Bag Bill surcharge begins Jan 1st

Beginning January 1, 2010 the "bag bill" approved by DC Council and signed into law by Mayor Fenty signed into law earlier this year will go into effect. District businesses will charge customers five cents for every disposable paper or plastic carryout bag with the proceeds going to the Anacostia River Cleanup and Protection Fund. The bag fee will not apply to bags used for newspapers, produce, hardware, frozen foods, plants, bakery items or prescription drugs.

A portion of the revenue raised from the bill will go towards education and providing reusable bags to low-income residents. A Skip the Bag, Save the River campaign is distributing 250,000 free reusable bags this month at locations around the district.


I anticipate some customers will arrive at the check out register in January unaware of this change. Hopefully those who are surprised by the surcharge don't shoot the messenger. The cashiers didn't pass the bill or design the awareness program. Nonetheless as a former bagger during my mid-teens I expect short term pain during the transition and for cashiers to take the brunt of it.

GGW recaps Mount Vernon Square District Project meeting

Geoff Hatchard, Jeb Stenhouse, and David Alpert of Greater Greater Washington have summarized the four multi-modal transportation options unveiled at the second public meeting for the Mount Vernon Square District Project. The proposed alternatives aim to transform 7th and 9th Streets into multi-modal corridors that place greater emphasis on pedestrian and cyclist safety. The summary crafted by GGW outlines the alternatives in great detail and links to pictures of the diagrams that Hatchard snapped with his camera.

I'll hash into this more after Office of Planning makes the presentation materials available online.

5th and Eye Update from ANC 6C Meeting

At the request of ANC 6C01 commissioner Keith Silver the development team for the Arts at 5th and I project delivered a status update at this month's full commission meeting. Ty Simpson of Spectrum Management, Bob Holland of Holland Development and Jad Donohoe of Donohoe Development each took the floor to share details with the community.

Ty Simpson explained that the development team has met with the office of the Deputy Mayor of Economic Development office over 120 times (2 times per week) since the RFP was awared in September 2008. To date the development team has spent over $600K in planning the project. The development agreement/ground lease is slated to go before the City Council in the March/April timeframe.

According to Bob Holland the current economic conditions have dried up financing possibilities from Wall Street for the project. To work around this limitation the team has been actively exploring alternatives such as a Sovereign Wealth fund from Europe or Asia.

Hotel rendering from original Donohoe/Holland proposal

Jad Donohoe provided an update on the details of the 5th and Eye project plan. The goal from the beginning has been to expand the project from the 5th and Eye corner lot up along 5th Street to the corner of K Street. Tentative agreements have been reached with all but one property holder on the street. The owner of the narrow 4 story rowhouse at 915 5th Street NW may be determined to follow the path of the "Ledo Building" on Mass Ave.

The current plans are to move forward without the hold out property. The present construction financing climate has made the possibility of funding the entire project from one pool basically nil. This dictates that new construction development be divided into two phases. For Phase I the Me by Melia hotel would be erected on the corner of 5th and Eye Street with ground breaking targeted for 2012. New hi-rise construction north of the holdout property would be Phase 2.

Image of Louis Rogue from Mr T in DC

While the timeline for Phase 2 new construction could be off in the distant future the development team appears committed to breathing life into 5th Street in the short term through different avenues. As previously reported the Boisdale Jazz club is now pegged to move into a renovation of the current Louis Rogue space at 476 K Street. This would put Boisdale on a separate track from the new construction and enable it to deliver on a more rapid timeframe. The Boisdale CEO has signed off on the plans and we could hear saxophones within 12-18 months after the strip club sells and vacates.

To make further strides towards revitalizing 5th Street the development team is also exploring possibilities to lease the former Fun Fair Video building to a new retail tenant rather than let it sit vacant. A new use would create more activity and put eyes on the street. The one-story space needs renovation but offers 2700 square feet.

Donohoe also feels the 5th and Eye grassy lot could be a candidate for some form of temporary urbanism while ground breaking for the hotel is deferred until 2012. I was impressed that Donohoe sought me out after the meeting to discuss this possibility. It wasn't something that the community needed to push on him. He simply saw the general temporary urbanism discussion here on the blog and elsewhere and determined it was an opportunity he wants to investigate. Hopefully the relevant district agencies enable such possibilities rather than throw up road blocks.

Tommy Wells 3rd Annual Livable, Walkable Awards

Monday night Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells honored 3 residents, one organization, and a local business at the 3rd Annual Livable, Walkable Awards. Downtown Neighborhood Association President Miles Groves was bestowed with the Livable, Walkable Honorary Award.

Tommy Wells blog had the following to say about Miles:

“Miles Groves became a resident leader in Penn Quarter almost before there was a Penn Quarter neighborhood,” stated Wells. As the city created a new vision for our downtown, Miles played a pivotal role in turning an area that emptied out at 6 pm, into a vibrant community with retail, restaurants and nightlife, but also supported the new residential neighborhood that emerged. From fighting for better sidewalks, better lighting, stepped up police presence, neighborhood based retail, and most recently, supporting two-wheel alternatives as personal vehicles, he’s been a champion of the revitalization of our downtown.

Miles also helped form and lead the Downtown Neighborhood Association, bringing a voice to City Hall for thousands of his neighbors, and became a mentor to dozens of leaders in the communities around him. Miles was unable to attend the event last night, but Councilmember Wells will present him with his award at an upcoming Downtown Neighborhood Association meeting.

Elizabeth Nelson, Barry Margeson, The Channel Inn, and Moms on the Hill also received Livable, Walkable awards.

Image Credit: Notions Capital

Online Food Ordering

by KimFromTheK

As the weather gets colder and wetter, and the darkness sets in before we’re home from work we’ve been ordering in more often than in warmer months. Recently we’ve been made aware of several online ordering services that deliver to our neighborhood, including Foodler, SeamlessWeb, and GrubHub.

Have you used any of these? What are your thoughts?

NYC Takeout menu collage by Flickr user Shaninigans

So far I’ve only used GrubHub, but I liked that the site let me add in tip as a dollar amount or percentage of my total amount. No need to get out the calculator here—if you choose a percentage option they’ll calculate it for you. My complaint about GrubHub is that while many restaurants don’t charge for delivery, sometimes items are more expensive on the site than if you were to order from the restaurant directly. I reached out to GrubHub’s customer service (via the easy online chat function) and they indicated this shouldn’t be the case and that they would have their sales agent reach out to the restaurant in question (in this case, Himalayan Heritage) however it’s now several weeks later and some of the items are still more expensive than if you were to order directly from the restaurant.

There are a few discounts out there for those interested in trying these services. If you do check them out, please report back:

Save $10 off your first order at GrubHub by clicking here
25% off your order at SeamlessWeb using code DCHOLIDAYS (expires at midnight on Friday 12/11/2009)

Reminder: Mount Vernon Square District Project Meeting is Tonight

Tonight the Office of Planning hosts a followup public meeting for the Mount Vernon Square District Project from 6-8PM at the Carnegie Library Building. The forum will outline learnings from the public input given during the October 1st public meeting and share OP's current recommendations and design options.


Objective
This project is designed to generate implementation‐driven solutions for specific transportation, public realm and real estate challenges and opportunities in the blocks, streets, and reservations surrounding Mount Vernon Square.

Project Goals

• Create a distinctive and sustainable place.
  
• Solve traffic and circulation issues to create a multi-modal hub and appealing pedestrian environment.
  
• Maintain a deep sense of history and local meaning.
  
• Create clear links in all directions to other key destinations.
  
• Maximize the draw of this area as a local destination.
  
• Improve and activate open spaces.

Letter from DDOT regarding Fourth Street construction

Below is a letter from DDOT regarding the Fourth Street Reconfiguration project. Click on the image for a larger version.

Linked up: Dim Sum, Holiday Markets, and Burgers

Chinatown: Ping Pong Dim Sum at 900 7th Street NW had a media preview last night. Doors will open to the public on Dec 12th. [Prince of Petworth]


All Around DC: Tiffany Bridge outlines all the holiday market options in DC. [We Love DC]

Dupont Circle: In a promotion that runs until the end of the year, BGR The Burger Joint will donate one burger to DC Central Kitchen for each burger purchased by patrons. [Metrocurean]

I will gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today.

Northeast: DDOT has shared photos of completed streetcar tracks on Benning Road. [Beyond DC]

Mount Vernon Square: Local businesses are offering big deals on Saturday December 12th. [My Radius]

Linked up: New and old

Northwest One: The new school library at Walker-Jones Elementary opened today. Mayor Fenty, Tommy Wells and ANC6C02 commisioner Mark Dixon were in attendance for the ribbon cutting. [CCCA]

Judiciary Square: Metro is testing new lighting at Judiciary Square's F Street Entrance [Greater Greater Washington]

New York Ave: USDOT director Ray LaHood spreads the word of sober driving this holiday season. The historic white Victorian rowhouses on the 500 block of L Street NW are in the background. [Welcome to the Fast Lane]


Mount Vernon Square: Kent Boese highlights a 1927 photograph of Reservation 176 at the intersection of 7th, K Street, and New York Avenue, NW. [Greater Greater Washington]

Franklin Square: Cary Silverman shares photos from a recent open house at the historic Franklin School at 13th and K. [The Other 35 Percent]

Mount Vernon Triangle: Yet another DC Food blog reviews the new Taylor Gourmet location at City Vista. [DCFUD]

December ANC 6C Agenda

Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6C
Wednesday, December 9, 2009 7 pm
Heritage Foundation, 214 Massachusetts Avenue N.E.

AGENDA
Call to order
Quorum
Approval of agenda
Approval of November minutes
Treasurer's report

• Approval of November Treasurer’s report
  
• Approval of 2010 budget
  
• Approval of additional expense for acoustical engineer ($2400 to $3450)
  
• Approval of $209 for recording minutes and $195 for business cards

Brief community and commissioner announcements

1. Brain Tumor Race for Hope – Nicola Beddow
   
2. Healthy Living follow-up report – Juliette Tahar
   
3. DC Public Charter School Expo – Ariana Quinones
   
4. 2 M Street/Patterson N.W. – status, Steve Green, Wilson C. Smith developer
   
5. Historic Preservation Permit Database – Comm. Hamilton

OLD BUSINESS

Grants Committee (Comm. Brown, chair)

• Extension of time for grant to Southern Baptist Church

Youth and Education Committee (Comm. Hamilton, chair)

Liquor License Committee – (Comm. Phelps, chair)

1. Ethiopic restaurant, 401 H Street N.E. – Meseret Bekele
   
2. Taylor Gourmet, 485 K Street N.W. – Casey Patten
   
3. Oasis voluntary agreement – Comm. Phelps

Transportation Committee (Joe McCann, John Kelly, co-chairs)

• Toscana, 601 Second St. N.E. – outdoor cafe tent – Joe Spinelli

Planning, Zoning, and Environment Committee (Rob Amos, chair)

1. Fifth and I Street N.W. project – update by developer
   
2. 226 N Street N.W. – HPRB application to construct row house – Sanni Mufuta
   
3. Union Station air rights – summary, Rob Amos
   
4. 200 K Street PUD, update on affordable housing – Comm. Phelps

NEW BUSINESS
Resolution recognizing the work of Miles Groves – Comm. Docter

Meeting Adjournment

UPS Store at 455 Mass

Last December a new UPS Store opened for business at 455 Mass offering a one-stop shop for packing, wrapping, shipping, pick-up, printing, mailboxes, and more.


Co-owner Sola Cardoso shared the following with me:

• White House Christmas Ornaments are available @ $21.95
  
• We are providing wrapping, packaging, and shipping options for residents during the holiday period
  
• Personalized 2010 Calendars are available
  
• Free donuts available on Monday mornings for our customers
  
• AAA members get discounts at our store for shipping, packaging, moving supplies
  
• We are working on introducing shredding service early next year and will welcome feedback/interaction from residents if they are interested
  
• We provide shorter lines, great service and low prices. We also offer Postal shipping services (First Class, Parcel Post, Priority Mail, Express Mail, International)

For more information on our local UPS Store visit their homepage (www.theupsstorelocal.com/6047) or follow the frequent tips and updates they share on Twitter and Facebook.

Level Lounge Voluntary Agreement

After several months of negotiations and four rounds of mediation a voluntary agreement has been signed by the applicant from Level Lounge (315 H Street NW) and the protest group. The agreement was signed by the applicant (Pouya Yousefi), ANC 6C and the Downtown Neighborhood Association. The Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) Board of Directors ratified the agreement shortly thereafter.

Negotiations turned the corner when Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells wrote a position letter stating that he could not support the application until core concerns of residents were addressed. That same month ANC 6C approved an independent sound study to craft recommendations designed to ensure maximum sound abatement during the buildout of the space. After the findings from the study were presented the applicant agreed to all terms in the drafted voluntary agreement.


During the final mediation ABRA director Fred Moosally inquired if there was anything in the agreement the applicant was uncomfortable with. The only reservation communicated was with regards to the limit on occupancy of 225 which Mr Yousefi felt was too low. There is a provision in the agreement that allows for Yousefi to apply for a change in application specifically with regards to occupancy after 6 months. If he reaches that milestone in good standing some increase may be awarded.

Acknowledgements
It is important for me to acknowledge those who have been great advocates on the behalf of residents during the process. DNA president Miles Groves has worked tirelessly to help makes this agreement happen. Miles served as the point of contact between the applicant, ABRA and the leaders of the protest group by managing communications and revisions of the draft agreement as it evolved. Most importantly he's been invaluable as a steward in helping residents navigate the bureaucracy of the protest process and focus the objectives on the levers ABRA would be receptive to. ANC 6C commissioner Charley Docter championed the noise study and secured funds to procure an independent sound engineer. As alluded to earlier Councilmember Tommy Wells' position letter to ABRA supporting the concerns of residents provided a critical nudge and ended a stalemate in negotiations. ABRA Director Fred Moosally took on this case personally to provide more credibility to the process. Finally Pathways transitional housing and representatives from both the Sonata and Madrigal Lofts were key contributors to the negotiation process.

Downtown Holiday Market Opens Today

by KimFromTheK

Today is the first day of the Downtown Holiday Market, featuring more than 180 local artisans and crafters exhibiting over the next 20 days. The market is located on the sidewalk on F Street between 7th and 9th Streets, NW and will be open daily from 12 noon - 8 pm through December 23.

The online schedule and map features a listing of vendors and their locations.

Opening day features the following entertainment:

12:00 – 2:00pm Dave Chappell duo (swing & blues)
3:30 – 5:30pm Denny Buck (resophonic blues)
6:00 – 8:00pm Bad Hair Day duo (classic rock)

Live performers will be at the market daily; the entertainment schedule is available here.


In years past I've enjoyed perusing artwork, sampling food, and shopping for decorative items for my home, as well as a variety of gifts.

The market is produced by the Downtown DC Business Improvement District (BID)and Diverse Markets Management (DMM), which also manages the Liberty Market on Tuesday evenings.

Image Credit: M.V. Jantzen

Mount Vernon Square District Project Meeting

The Office of Planning will host a followup public meeting for the Mount Vernon Square District Project on Wednesday December 9th from 6-8PM at the Carnegie Library Building. The forum will outline learnings from the public input given during the October 1st public meeting and share OP's current recommendations and design options.


The project website has posted a digest of the public feedback from the previous meeting. A substantial number of comments urged OP to restore Reservation 177 to a proper bowtie park. Presently MPD has paved over the land to create a surface parking lot.

Henry's Soul Cafe Menu and Hours

The new K Street location of Henry's Soul Cafe opened doors for their second day this morning with a promotion involving WPGC 95.5 where the first 95 guests ate free. I dropped by after work to score some takeout for dinner.

The menu cover (below) that states the cafe's hours will be:

Sunday: Noon-6PM
Mon-Thu: 10:30AM-8PM
Fri-Sat: 10:30AM-10PM

The menu also shares a new website URL (www.henryssoulcafe.com) that is a substantial upgrade over the former ".net" domain.


I ordered a meatloaf dinner off the menu. As I waited for my food to be packaged in the kitchen a Muzak version of Beyonce's Put a Ring on It played over the speakers. I pondered to myself "What is the Muzak verion of Kanye? Urkel?"

For under $10 my dinner included a sizeable loaf of meatloaf, cornbread and two sides. The meatloaf didn't really hit the spot for me because I prefer meatloaf with red sauce as opposed to beef gravy. I didn't think to ask how it was prepared. My cornbread was a bit rock solid but the mac-n-cheese was damn tasty. I plan to go back and try more of their offerings. The item named "Buffasoul Wings" peaks my interest and is a strong contender for my next meal at Henry's.

Revisiting ideas for 4th & L

Back in February this blog wondered aloud if a dog park could be the answer to transform the gravel lot at 4th & L from blight into a contributing use. Unfortunately shortly thereafter investigation of the deeds for the land by MVSNA officers showed that the land appeared to be under title to Bible Way church rather than the District.

While nothing has fundamentally changed on that front, the "Before and After" Community Garden concept rendering created by John Thompson is too slick not to share.



This 4th & L lot would be a great site to put temporary urbanism to practice. Rather than allow the eyesore to persist indefinitely it would be outstanding if a temporary use, such as a community garden, could be identified for the next 5+ years. Then once K Street blossoms and the streetcar arrives the lot could be developed.

Kushi Construction has Begun

by KimFromTheK

According to the restaurant's blog, the buildout of Kushi at The K at City Vista is underway:


There is also a concept sketch of what the exterior might look like:

Henry's Soul Cafe to Open on Wednesday

The following was left as a comment in our posting on the new signage at Henry's Soul Cafe:

Mark your calendar! Please join us, Wednesday, December 2, 2009 at our new location @ 4th and K Street NW Washington DC Downtown The first 95 guest EAT FREE starting @11:30a.m. Be there, or be hungry! 317 K Street NW, Washington DC, 20001 202-477-SOUL (7685)

The menu for Henry's Soul Cafe is available online [here].

UPDATED [12/01/2009 @ 7:10 PM]: Henry's opened today (12/1), however the free food promotion is Wednesday.