CHRS Mother’s Day House & Garden Tour Returns May 7 & 8
The Capitol Hill Restoration Society’s Mother’s Day House & Garden Tour, will take place Saturday, May 7 & Sunday, May 8. Main Tour hours are Saturday, 4-7 pm, and Sunday, 1-5 pm. It’s a hybrid event this year – with a mix of virtual and in-person house tours, outdoor guided walking tours and more. Note that the new owners of the Churchill Condo featured on the WETA television show “If You Lived Here,” are opening their home for the tour.
Four DC Democratic Candidate Forums at Hill Center During May
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 29, 2022
The Ward 6 Democrats have teamed up with the Hill Rag, the Hill Center, the DC Democrats, the Ward 2 Democrats, and the DC Young Democrats to sponsor a series of four candidate forums during May at Hill Center.
These discussions will take place weekly on Mondays in May from 7-9 PM at the Hill Center (921 Pennsylvania Ave SE, two blocks from the Eastern Market Metro stop and near several major bus lines).
May 2 – Dem At Large candidates
May 9 – Dem Attorney General candidates
May 16 – Dem Council Chair candidates
May 23 – Dem Mayoral candidates
The DC primary election is on Tuesday June 21.
Residents with questions should submit them to debate@hillrag.com and indicate in the subject line which forum your question pertains to.
All FOUR forums are listed at the RSVP link – just make sure check the box(es) for the forum(s) you want to attend. You can mix & match some virtual and some in person attendance – just RSVP at the appropriate link.
Proof of vaccination is REQUIRED to attend in person. A 100% check of vaccine cards will be conducted (physical or photo) and IDs at the door.
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CM Elissa Silverman, Chair of the City Council’s Subcommittee on Redistricting at yesterday’s hearing: “What you see behind me is the task force recommended boundaries. You might not think we change the map, but we do.”
Redistricting Hearing: No Movement on Hill East but for ANC6C It’s a Whole New Ballgame
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 29, 2022
Yesterday, CM Elissa Silverman, chair of the City Council Subcommittee on Redistricting, held a second Subcommittee roundtable to hear community concerns – ward by ward – on the proposed new boundaries for ANC and single member districts.
On Capitol Hill, there was little movement on the contentious issue of a separate standalone ANC west of the Anacostia River comprised of single member districts formerly part of Ward 6 plus Kingman Park. Last month ANC6A and ANC6B had both voted unanimously to support a standalone ANC on behalf of their former Ward 6 residents. Ward 7 residents and the east of the river ANC’s are adamant about the creation of two cross river ANCs which make the north and south ends of Hill East part of two existing Ward 7 ANCs.
There are good arguments for creating a standalone ANC west of the river. And the arguments that the Subcommittee’s principles of redistricting are met by creating two cross river ANCs seem to be a stretch. But political and economic considerations far outweigh any practical considerations for a separate Ward 7 ANC west of the river. The only concession made was indicated by ANC 7F Chair Tyrell M. Holcomb (whose ANC would incorporate the southern end of Hill East) who said the commission had created a task force to oversee development of Reservation 13. There is a slim chance that some tweaking of the final map by the Subcommittee could build on this initiative to give Hill East residents a greater voice in development of Reservation 13.
ANC6C Commissioner Mark Eckenweiler’s proposed alternative map for ANC6C
On the other end of Ward 6, ANC6C had better luck with a proposed map drawn up to correct some perceived deficiencies in the Ward 6 Task Force map. Commissioner Mark Eckenweiler presented an alternative to the Ward 6 Task Force map and the ANC unanimously supported the proposal in a letter to the Subcommittee. Eckenweiler also lobbied CM Charles Allen who, Eckenweiler said, consulted with Ward 6 Task Force chair Ivan Frishberg. Eckenweiler told the Subcommittee that Allen supported the map and it was his impression that Frishberg had no objection to the changes. At his community office hours held at Radici near Eastern Market Friday morning, CM Allen confirmed to CHC thiat he supported Eckenweiler’s map. That support seems to assure the proposal’s likely endorsement by the Subcommittee.
Here’s what will happen next. The Subcommittee will vote on the proposed changes to ANC and single member district boundaries on May 17. Next, the City Council of the Whole will vote on the new map on May 24, followed by a second and final vote on June 7.
The map goes to the Mayor for signature and then to the Board of Elections for implementation.
Joseph Brotherton: “I’m a Trumpet player here in DC. I am a participant in the progressive nature of music and am honored to be given the challenge to help it evolve.” Photo credit: Joseph Brotherton
Friday Night Live Jazz at Eastern Market Metro Features Trumpeter Joseph Brotherton
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 28, 2022
The April 29 Friday night Live Jazz performance – 5:00pm to 6:30pm – at Eastern Market Metro Plaza features trumpeter Joseph Brotherton.
Brotherton started trumpeting at age 8. After serving for four years as trumpet player in U.S. Marine Corps Band Quantico he became a freelance musician based in DC and is now regular of the local jazz scene, performing up and down the east coast. He has appeared with a host of music notables (Gregory Porter, Aaron Neville, Dr. John, Roy Hargrove, Nicholas Payton, and Kermit Ruffins) across several genres (R&B, salsa, gospel, studio, fusion and classical). He has a Wednesday-night residency at JoJo Restaurant & Bar, 1518 U Street, NW.
“Joseph Brotherton is an exciting and spectacular soloist, well-schooled in the tradition, and post-bop concepts. His solos are notable for their clarity, connectivity of ideas, clear articulation, intonation, and tasteful and measured use of his ample technique.” – Jazz Improv Magazine
The concert series will continue through the end of October and comes to Eastern Market Metro Plaza through the efforts of Barracks Row Main Street and the Department of Parks and Recreation. CM Charles Allen secured funding for the artists.
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On Saturday, Spike Mendelsohn’s Santa Rosa Taqueria and Margarita Bar opened at 3rd and Pennsylvania Avenue, SE. The photo is from the night before the opening.A La Catrina Calavera Day of the Dead mural leads up the stairs to Santa Rosa’s second floor. Here’s a look at Santa Rosa’s second floor. On a perfect Sunday afternoon, most diner opted for the sidewalk café alongside the building on 3rd Street.The fifth “curatorial riddle” installation of Triple Candie is on display in the 22 square foot space in the front of the former Li’l Pub at 655 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE. The first puzzling assemblage appeared in the space in December. The curious can find details on the previous pieces in the archive at the link below. Triple Candie is a research-oriented curatorial agency run by art historian co-founders Shelly Bancroft and Peter Nesbett. Their purpose is to create alternative exhibition methods making that the object of critical focus rather than what is displayed (which for the most part does not include original artworks). This is a heavy lift – part postmodern, part deconstructionism, part Burning Man Festival. Go deeper here: http://www.triplecandie.org/The Li’l Pub closed in January of 2014 after being bought out by CVS who needed more pharmaceutical space. The sidewalk outside of the exhibit – or space close by – has been occupied for the past 38 years by street vendor Flank Lloyd – Frank’s Place – selling tea shirts, hats, and hand-drawn portraits.Poster at the southwest corner of 4th and Pennsylvania Avenue, SE. According to the website, Absurdly Well is an abstract and street artist serving political street art in public space for community awareness, people empowerment and protest. https://www.instagram.com/absurdlywell/?hl=en
The Week Ahead…& Some Photos from the Past Week
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 24, 2022
The Week Ahead….
Tuesday, April 26
ANC6A Alcoholic Beverage Licensing Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
Blackhawk Helicopters Land at U.S. Capitol for Training Exercise – Photo Essay
by Larry Janezich
U.S. Capitol Police gave fair warning for last week’s training exercise at the U.S. Capitol involving low flying helicopters and emergency vehicles. The exercise was held in conjunction with federal and local law enforcement and FEMS agencies on a cold and breezy evening last Tuesday.
The East Plaza on Tuesday evening before the Capitol Grounds were shut down.Part of the exercise involved evacuating the Congressional leadership, top aides, and a press pool in case of an emergency. These staffers, gathered on the southern edge of the East Front, appear to be stand-ins for their bosses. In an emergency, the Congressional leadership would be evacuated to a secure hardened shelter in Virginia. About 7:30pm, the Blackhawk helicopters approached the Capitol flying west on Independence Avenue and on East Capitol Street – two for the House side and two for the Senate side. A fifth Park Police helicopter landed on the plaza in front of the center steps. Photos were taken from the upper terrace in front of the Library of Congress. The Blackhawks landed on the grassy area – these two on the House side of the Capitol.The departure came about 7:45pm. The Blackhawks can carry about 20 passengers. That’s enough seats for the House and Senate leaders and top aides and press. The rank and file members apparently have to fend for themselves. Leaving the scene, and while walking east on the grounds of the Library of Congress, a second wave of helicopters came in, flying west over Independence Avenue.
Elijah Jamal Balbed at Mr. Henry’s. Photo credit: Elijah Balbed
Friday Night Live Jazz at Eastern Market Metro Features Elijah Jamal Balbed
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 21, 2021
The April 22 Friday night Live Jazz performance – 5:00pm to 6:30pm – at Eastern Market Metro Plaza features the return of award winning saxophonist Elijah Jamal Balbed – one of the premiere Jazz artists in the city.
Balbed and the EJB Quartet were the winners of the 2020 DC Jazz Prix for their performance of Elijah’s “The Karma Suite.” He has performed with a long list of legendary jazz artists including the Godfather of Go-Go Chuck Brown. He also performs internationally, in including Japan, the UK, Qatar, Costa Rica, Panama, Mexico and Jamaica.
During the pandemic, Balbed organized a group of musicians to do pop up performances around the city. When regular performance venues were closed to them they turned to the parks and Metro Plazas to bring music to their fans.
Next up on Friday Night Live Jazz April 29: Joe Brotherton.
The concert series will continue through the end of October and comes to Eastern Market Metro Plaza through the efforts of Barracks Row Main Street and the Department of Parks and Recreation. CM Charles Allen secured funding for the artists.
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Outgoing Eastern Market Main Street Board Chair Manuel Cortes (far left) introduces new EMMS Executive Director Ann Blackwell (center). Also pictured are Board Members Barry Margeson, Manager, Eastern Market (2nd from left); incoming EMMS Board Chair Mary Quillian Helms, owner, Mr. Henry’s (2nd from right); and Mike Berman, owner, Diverse Markets (far right). Councilmember Charles Allen (at right), joins others in a toast celebrating Groovy Owner Manuel Cortez’s six year tenure as Chair of the Eastern Market Main Street Board of Directors. Cortes is stepping down, to be succeeded by Mary Quillian Helms. Earlier, Allen had extolled EMMS’s leadership of the 7th Street, SE, local businesses, which he said, “had made them stronger than ever.”
Eastern Market Main Street Introduces New Exec Director Ann Blackwell
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 20, 2022
Wednesday night at the first post pandemic in-person gathering of the Eastern Market Main Street stakeholders, Chair Manuel Cortez introduced its new Executive Director, Ann Blackwell. She succeeds former Executive Director Charles McCaffrey who resigned last October to take a position as Director of Career Services with the Paralyzed Veterans of America.
Blackwell is both a marketing executive and a small business owner – the founder of DC-based Well Built – a design company that integrates design, commerce and environmental stewardship. She brings both communication skills and experience developing strategies for sustainable practices to the position. Her skill set includes “placemaking” – reimagining and reinventing public spaces – as well as management, marketing, business development, public relations, and event planning. She has worked with museums, municipalities, non-profit agencies and national retailers.
She says, “As the Executive Director of Eastern Market Main Street, I will have the opportunity to work with members of a vital Washington community. It is a perfect formula of Capitol Hill businesses and classic residences; with DC’s iconic, historic Eastern Market as the centerpiece”.
Blackwell has a BFA in Art and Design from the University of Iowa, a Graduate Studies in Architecture from UCLA and recently completed a Masters of Professional Studies (MPS) in the Business of Art and Design from the Maryland Institute of College and Art (MICA).
Out and About – Everything Is Coming Up Yellow – A Photo Essay
By Elizabeth Eby
Posted April 19, 2022
Everything is coming up yellow! Daffodils, pansies, crocus, and forsythia are golden yellow. They share common pollinators – insects with poor vision and are blind to colors other than yellow or white. In addition to the golden color, daffodils have trumpets or rings of highly contrasting color around the stamen to direct the pollinator to the sweet spot.
Some people love this shade of yellow but others call it harsh. Some think daffodils glow in the dark and people speculated that they generated electricity or phosphorescence. This went on until a 20th century German scientist explained that it is an optical illusion, the result of how our eyes perceive bright yellow in the twilight. William Wordsworth’s famous daffodil poem was inspired by a walk through a huge field of wild daffodils one evening when he and his sister experienced this phenomenon.
Forsythia blossoms are among the very first signs of spring. The buds form in fall and look like little nubs along the branch. They bloom before they form leaves. Branches cut as soon as the buds are plump will blossom indoors and eventually root when placed in a vase of water. I laughed out loud when I spotted this forsythia arch. I cannot decide what, if any, aesthetic effect it has on the electric meter in the center. But I love the gardener’s imagination and desire to make use of the every bit of garden space. Moreover, I have come to enjoy and respect topiary. It requires skill, incremental steps, consistency and great patience. Similar to addressing climate change.
Out and About is an occasional photo feature by artist, photographer, and Capitol Hill resident Elizabeth Eby. She finds vignettes while out and about on Capitol Hill.
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Another departure from Barracks Row. Mekki Moroccan Cuisine closed its doors last week after being unable to negotiate a new lease with the landlord. BTW – down on 3rd and Pennsylvania, SE, the reopening of Spike Mendelsohn’s Santa Rosa Taqueria and Margarita Bar which was scheduled for April 16, has been delayed until next Saturday, April 23. Last Friday Night Live Jazz at Eastern Market Metro Plaza featured jazz artist Ellah Brown. Brown, started guitar lessons at age six and began classes at Jazz House Kids (JHK) at age 10. She has appeared at the Apollo Theater, New Jersey Council on the Arts, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Caramoor Jazz Festival in Katonah, New York, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in Newark, and many others venues. She was awarded a National Young Arts Merit Award in 2021. Next Friday, April 22: Elijah Balbed. Here are a couple photos from the National Cherry Blossom Festival’s Petalpalooza at The Wharf on Saturday afternoon. The day-long celebration involved multiple outdoor stages, and featured art, live music and play. The weather turned later in the evening, forcing cancellation of the promised choreographed fireworks show.Orchids: “Hidden Stories of Groundbreaking Women” at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery. The show – jointly presented by the Smithsonian Gardens and the U.S. Botanic Garden, celebrates women scientists, explorers, and artists – and their connection to orchids. The exhibit runs through April 24 in the Kogard Courtyard – which has been called one of the new architectural wonders of the world. The café which made sitting at a table with a coffee under the spectacular glass roof remains closed, so that pleasantry is denied us – but the pleasure of being in such a splendid and spacious environment is undiminished.
The Week Ahead…& Some Photos from the Past Week
by Larry Janezich
Posted April 17, 2022
Monday, April 18
ANC 6A Transportation and Public Space Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
647 16th Street, NE. Zoning Adjustment. Request for special exception zoning relief to construct a third story and rear addition, and convert to a flat, an existing, attached, two-story with cellar, principal dwelling unit.
15th Street Alley. Zoning Adjustment. Request for an area variance to construct six, new, attached, two-story with cellar and roof deck, principal dwelling units.
1802-1806 D Street, NE. Informational presentation on a map amendment to the zoning of 1800-1806 D Street NE, from MU3 to MU4.
1252 H Street, NE. Zoning Adjustment. Request for Special Exception zoning relief from the lot occupancy requirements, from the rear yard requirements and an area variance from the design requirements.
CAPITOL HILL CORNER 