CAPITOL HILL CORNER

A. Litteri, 517 Morse Street, NE, Washington’s Oldest Italian Grocery

Miss the eclecticism and approachability of Frager’s?  A. Litteri Italian grocery in the warehouse district will remind you of the Capitol Hill institution.  Litteri’s features house made Italian sausage – hot or mild – some 80 brands of olive oil, and legendary Italian Subs.  It’s an easy drive – ten minutes – from Capitol Hill, straight north on 8th Street to Florida Avenue, left on Florida to 6th Street, one block right on 6th to Morse.  A. Litteri is in the first block on the left behind the unpretentious exterior, painted in the Italian flag’s white, and green.  Inside is a option-overload of Italian food and wine choices – items and brands unavailable elsewhere.

Update on Fundraising for Frager’s

by Larry Janezich

Gary Peterson, who is spearheading the Capitol Hill Community Foundation’s (CHCF) fundraising effort, says the CHCF has raised in excess of $100,000 to benefit employees of Frager’s and employees of Frager’s tenants in the aftermath of the June 5^th fire.  In addition, a fundraising effort coordinated by Julia Robey has reportedly raised in excess of $30,000.  Petersen said that the CHCF has received its first request for a grant – this from an employee of one of Frager’s five tenants.  Frager’s employed 35 full time employees and 30 part time employees.  Frager’s tenants employed five full time and five part time employees.  While full time employees are eligible for unemployment benefits, part time workers are not.  Frager’s carried interruption of business insurance, but it is not clear how long employees will benefit.  Peterson says he expects that whatever amount is raised, all of it will be needed to help the employees.

There are several Frager’s fundraising/recognition events scheduled in the coming days.

Friday, June 21 – Eastern Market, 6:00pm – 8:00pm

Al Fresco for Frager’s Food Festival will be from 6:00pm-8:00pm beneath the farmer’s line shed at Eastern Market.  Over a dozen noted neighborhood restaurants and popular food purveyors will serve up great culinary Tickets, two for $6 and purchased at the event will allow a sample from vendor’s tables on a one for one basis.  Part of the sale of each ticket will go to the Frager’s Fund, managed by the Capitol Hill Community Foundation.  Little Red and the Renegades, a well-known, six-piece Global Zydeco band will provide musical entertainment.  Other sponsors and contributors to the event include Bowers Fancy Dairy Products, Boxcar Tavern, Canales Delicatessen, Fine Sweet Shop, Market Lunch, Market Poultry, Montmarte, Pitango Gelato, Puddin’ Po Boy, Seventh Hill Pizza, Silver Spork, Tortilla Café, Tunnicliff’s Tavern and Union Meat Company.

Friday, June 21 at The Fridge at 6:30pm (516 ½ 8^th Street, SE – the alley behind Shakespeare administration building)

The DC Rollergirls and The Fridge host a benefit concert on behalf of Frager’s.  All ticket sales from the event will be donated to the Frager’s Fund set up by The Capitol Hill Community Foundation.  The lineup includes The Throckmortens, The NativeMakers and Rodney Henry of The Glenmont Popes. Tickets are $20 at the door.

Tuesday, June 25 at Nationals Park

Join the Frager’s employees and owners at National’s Park next Tuesday June 25 at 7:05 pm to watch the Nationals face the Arizona Diamondbacks.  A local family has donated 40 tickets for Frager’s employees, and tickets are available for purchase in Section 320 for anyone who wishes to join in the event.  Wear your Frager’s T-Shirts and try to score a cameo on Nats HD, or just raise a ballpark beer to toast these hardworking neighbors.  A special recognition is scheduled for the bottom of the fourth inning, so if you are not in Section 320 turn your attentions to the scoreboard or come on up to cheer.  Tickets available at http://www.nationals.com

Friday, June 28 at Christ Church, 620 G Street, SE, 6:00pm – 7:00pm.  Spaghetti Dinner. Suggested donation – $30 per plate (includes 1 glass of wine – additional glasses $5 each).  Children 9 and under are free.  The Capitol Hillbillies will provide musical entertainment.

Epworth Church at 700 A Street SE

Interior of Epworth Church With Windows

Epworth Church Rosette Stained Glass Window

SAVED? City Orders Preservation of Epworth’s Stained Glass Windows – Photos

by Larry Janezich

 Last Thursday, the DC government ruled that the character-defining stained glass windows at the 1895 Epworth Church, 700 A Street, NE, must be preserved.  Portions of the windows have been  removed without a permit and these are currently in storage waiting the ultimate outcome of the efforts by owners to permanently remove them.  See previous posting here:  https://capitolhillcorner.org/2012/03/20/neighbors-rally-to-save-historic-church-windows-historic-preservation-runs-up-against-religious-freedom/

World Mission Society, Inc. (Church of God), current owners of Epworth Church, removed portions of the windows in January of 2012, justifying the action as being required by their religious belief that prevents them from worshiping in the presence of images.  Neighbors alerted the city’s Historic Preservation Office who contacted the owners and was told by them that they had not removed the windows.  Neighbors provided evidence that the owners had, in fact, removed the windows and HPO ordered their restoration.  The Church responded by filing a Historic Preservation Application with Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) to legally remove the windows. 

Neighbors activated the Capitol Hill Coalition for Sensible Development established in 2000 to oppose the move by World Mission, and recruited allies, including ANC6B, CHRS, the DC Preservation League, and David Holmes, commissioner from adjoining ANC6A03 to support the preservation of the windows.  HPRB agreed with them, denying the Historic Preservation Application.  The World Mission Society, Inc, then appealed the decision on the grounds of religious freedom to the city – the Mayor’s Agent – a final administrative appeal before redress is sought in court.  Last week’s decision by the Mayor’s Agent re-affirmed the earlier decision of the HPRB.  The Mayor’s Agent ruled that the church “created the confilct between the preservation law and its religious doctrine” by failing to provide due diligence in the purchase. 

Bobbi Krengel, Chair of the Capitol Hill Coalition for Sensible Development, said, “We are fully expecting the owners to appeal this decision to the Court of Appeals, and do not know if there would be any role for the neighborhood to play there, but stand ready to participate in any way that may be required to protect our neighborhood.

It is clear to us that community participation is essential to good government, and makes our community strong enough to survive devastating fires, bureaucratic bungling, and greedy developers seeking to cash in on our cachet.”

ANC6B Butts Heads with Capitol Hill Restoration Society

ANC Flexible on Historic Standards for Adding Rear Third Story to Townhouse

by Larry Janezich

Backing away from the Historic District hard line backed by Commissioners Garrison, Oldenburg, and Frishberg on not supporting third story additions that are visible from the street in front of the residence, a majority of ANC6B Commissioner voted on Tuesday, June 11, to permit a third story rear addition at 639 South Carolina Avenue, SE.  The addition did not receive the approval of the Capitol Hill Restoration Society (CHRS) who weighs in on such matters before the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) with the same legal standing that any civic group has.  City code, however, requires the HPRB and other city agencies to “give great weight” to the opinion of the city’s ANCs.  

According to a summary released at tonight’s Capitol Hill Restoration Society Board meeting, the proposed new addition would be visible from South Carolina Avenue and from The Maples, a former DC landmark structure undergoing conversion to condos.  The CHRS Historic Preservation Committee – and thus, under the practices and precedents of the CHRS, the entire CHRS Board – found that the project is not compatible with the Historic District and noted that it does not comport with the DC Historic Preservation Guidelines for Additions to Historic Buildings.

Last Tuesday, ANC6B Commissioner Dave Garrison warned that once you start moving away from a hard and fast standard, you start down a “slippery slope.”  A majority of the ANC, however, felt that it was more important to permit the addition so that a young and growing family could stay in the neighborhood in a case where the additional was “minimally” visible.  ANC6B Chair Brian Flahaven, who supported the addition, said that the ANC was advising HPRB, and “the staff there might come up with a different conclusion.”  Ivan Frishberg, opposed the addition, saying that once you start making everything subjective it risks making the process a free-for-all where every architect will sell every owner on what they think they can get through, and the homeowner will suffer.  Flahaven said he thought Frishberg was overstating the threat to the neighborhood.  The Commission agreed, and the motion to approve the Historic Preservation Application for the addition was agreed to 7 – 3. 

The vote presages what is likely to be a struggle over the CHRS plan to expand the Capitol Hill Historic District under its “Beyond the Boundaries” project.  Many newer residents of Capitol Hill have found that the only affordable homes are outside of the Historic District and preservation of those townhouses under the strict rules for altering, upgrading or adding to these homes does not appeal.  Evidence of this was the move to create the Barney Circle Historic District in 2010 which seemed on track until derailed by push back by Hill East residents and the taking over of ANC6B by a group of reform candidates representing (by and large) a different demographic than exists inside the Historic District.  HPRB may well end up backing the CHRS, but any expansion of the Capitol Hill Historic District in Hill East will depend in large part on the backing of ANC6B. 

The project will be before the Historic Preservation Review Board on July 11.

Barracks Row Medical Marijuana Dispensary Aims For July Opening

Facebook Will Not Support Medical Marijuana Advertising

by Larry Janezich

Mike Cuthriell, owner of the future Barracks Row medical marijuana dispensary, Metropolitan Wellness Center (MWC), tells Capitol Hill Corner that he expects his dispensary, located at 409 8^th Street, SE, above the Barracks Row Popeye’s, “to open in July.”

He added that MWC is currently pre-registering patients and “walking them through the process by which they formally register with the Department of Health.  We are also actively participating with physicians to educate them on their rights and the rights of their patients, as well as the effects and uses of cannabis. Our team has been walking patients and physicians through the process to get signed up.”

Doctors are being directed to request the formal Recommendation Forms from the Department of Health.  These forms have to be completed so that the department can mail the official Recommendation Form to them.  Patients are being directed to fill out the Patient Application Form now.  This gets attached to their Physician’s Recommendation and mailed to the Department of Health for processing. The patient MUST select a single dispensary to become a member of in their application.  In order to prevent abuse the program, patients are not permitted to go to multiple dispensaries.

All physician info is outlined here: http://mwcdc.com/physicians/

All patient info is outlined here: http://mwcdc.com/join-mwc/

Advertising the dispensary is important for its success, but it has not been easy.  Cuthriell says that on the MWC’s Facebook page, he, following the practice of other businesses, “tried to pay to boost posts” – Facebook’s advertising tool for businesses.  He was then notified by Facebook that MWC posts “will not be permitted for advertising because Facebook’s policy doesn’t support the nature of our business.”  Cuthriell found this especially odd since the particular posts he was trying to boost “were specifically about the Department of Health’s applications for patients and the recommendation forms for Physicians.  I’ve since learned that this has been their policy for years and no [marijuana dispensary] has been able to use Facebook as an advertising platform other than having a page setup for that business.”

At Mayor Gray’s community meeting on Thursday night hosted by the adjoining ANC6A across East Capitol the question was raised of how much DC Department of Health is doing to increase awareness among physicians and patients about how to participate in the program.  Gray pledged to reach out to medical marijuana dispensaries for input about their needs.  The Mayor also cited a little-known fact that medical marijuana dispensaries will have to be conducted on a cash basis, since credit card companies will not honor marijuana transactions – a federal crime.  To that end, the mayor said, ATMs will be placed in dispensaries to facilitate the needs of patients and to reduce the crime hazard involved in carrying cash to the dispensaries. 

For additional information including pre-registration of patients, please visit:  http://www.mwcdc.com

 You can follow Metropolitan Wellness Center on twitter here:  twitter.com/mwcdc

Currently at The Fridge: Men of Steel, Women of Wonder*

The Week Ahead…The Fridge Holds Benefit Concert for Frager’s

by Larry Janezich

Monday, June 17

The Friends of Rosedale Library (FORL) will hold a general meeting at 6 p.m. at the Library (1701 Gales Street NE).  The topics will include Library programs and services; FORL activities including fundraising events, committee formation and outreach; and recent Library news.  For more information or to join FORL, please email FriendsoftheRosedaleLibrary@gmail.com or call 571-213-1630.

Tuesday, June 18

CHRS Board of Directors meets at 6:30pm, Capitol Hill Townhomes, 750, 6^th Street, SE. 

Wednesday, June 19

ANC 6B Outreach & Constituent Services Task Force Meets 7:00pm – 8:30pm, Hill Center

Thursday, June 20

CHRS membership Forum, The Height Act: Friend or Foe?  Guest speaker is Attorney Laura Richards –  6:45pm, The Hill Center. 

PSA 108 Meeting featuring MPC Lt. Michael Thornton, 7:00pm-8:00pm, Liberty Baptist Church, 527 Kentucky Avenue, SE

Friday, June 21

Event: Benefit Concert for Frager’s Hardware, 6:30pm – 9:00pm. The DC Rollergirls and The Fridge are hosting a benefit concert on behalf of Frager’s Hardware.  Doors open at 6:30pm. All proceeds from ticket sales for the event will be donated to the Frager’s Fund set up by The Capitol Hill Community Foundation.

Lineup includes:

■The Throckmortens

■The NativeMakers

■Rodney Henry of The Glenmont Popes

Tickets are $20 online or at the door. 

Sponsored by DC Brau Brewing Company, Dangerously Delicious Pies and Quicksilver Productions.

*Currently at The Fridge in The Mini-Fridge: Men of Steel, Women of Wonder –Through June 30.   2013 brings the 75th anniversary of Action Comics #1 (1938), the first appearance of Superman and Lois Lane in print. For Men of Steel, Women of Wonder.  Curator Asad “ULTRA” Walker has invited up-and-coming names in DC’s underground and street art scene to bring their vision to modern mythology: comic book heroes.

ANC6B Backs City Dogs Boarding and Grooming for 1310 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE

by Larry Janezich

Last Tuesday night, ANC6B supported establishing City Dogs boarding and grooming service at 1310 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE.  The Commission voted 9 – 0 – 1 to support the variance and special exception City Dogs’ owner is requesting from the Bureau of Zoning Adjustment in order to operate the pet service business.  The City Dogs proposal appeared to be in trouble after significant opposition to the business from nearby businesses and residents arose in the ANC’s Planning and Zoning Committee hearing earlier this month.  Subsequently, Commissioner Nichole Opkins, in whose single member district the site is located, won concessions in a written Operational Conditions Agreement from City Dogs operators regarding sound, trash, odor control, parking, and deliveries.  In addition the agreement establishes a liaison committee with the neighborhood to address any problems which might arise.  However, not all neighbors were mollified, and some expressed considerable unhappiness, maintaining that the proposed business was not compatible with businesses or residences on the block.

Capitol Hill Residents Turn Out to Support Frager’s at Tabula Rasa Fundraiser

Tabula Rasa Frager’s Fundraiser, June 14, 2013

Tabula Rasa Frager’s Fundraiser, June 14, 2013

Tabula Rasa Fundraiser, June 14 2013

Amanda Clarke, Owner of Tabula Rasa, Thanks Frager’s Supporters. Also pictured is Gary Peterson of Capitol Hill Community Foundation

Tablua Rasa Hosts Frager’s Fundraiser

by Larry Janezich

Tabula Rasa, the Barracks Row event and meeting venue, and several Capitol Hill businesses and restaurants joined forces to sponsor a fundraiser for Frager’s on Friday evening.  All proceeds went directly to the Capitol Hill Community Foundation to support the businesses and employees displaced by last week’s fire.

Co-sponsors of the event included ArtSee, Barracks Row Main Street, Capitol Hill Community Foundation, CAVA, DCanter, First Vine, Highway to Hill Flowers, Le Pain Quotidien, Schneiders, tabula rasa, TCI Typecase Industries, Occasions Caterers, and Zest.

Capitol Hill Fitness is the Brainchild of Breelaun Marchai, pictured above

Barracks Row Capitol Hill Fitness Opens Saturday, June 15, at 725 8^th Street, SE

by Larry Janezich

The new fitness studio’s grand opening will be held Saturday, June 15, from 10-4 pm.

Capitol Hill Fitness is featuring a kick-off ten week special designed to help Washingtonians get fit – every Sunday, from 12-3 p.m., and Tuesday, from 4:30-8:30 p.m. Until Labor Day, everyone is invited to stop by for a NYOP (Name Your Own Price) class.

Capitol Hill Fitness says it is dedicated to helping individuals build their core muscles and improve their posture, flexibility, strength and endurance through low-impact circuit training:  “While a lot of exercise programs are harmful to your joints, low-impact exercise is all about strengthening your joints. Trainers will lead clients through a circuit of 8 to 14 exercises during each class, making the workout well-rounded and fun. There is no monthly fee; just pay for the classes you take. It is small-group personal training at an affordable price.”

The training ability behind Capitol Hill Fitness is Breelaun Marchai, a former Air Force instructor, Emergency Medical Technician and fitness expert from Los Angeles. This is his first studio on the East Coast.

Classes will be held from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., including the Full Circuit, Circuit 3.0, and 20M Ab’s. Each class is $15, with discounts for purchasing a 10-class-pass. There are no dues or commitments. Additional class opportunities, such as Pilates, yoga, total-body conditioning and meditation, will be added.  Visit http://www.CapHillFitness.com for a class schedule or to join the mailing list.  They will be open seven days a week