Because neither the Dupont East applicant nor the protestants had reached an agreement and further mediation was deemed not possible, as reported at August 16th Status Hearing, the case has now moved to the Protest Hearing stage. At that proceeding in October, the specific issue that will be considered by the Board will be applicant’s petition to terminate its current Voluntary Agreement.

The related petition seeking approval for a lateral expansion into an adjoining commercial space on Q Street just three doors east of 17th, will be considered at a Status Hearing scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday, September 8. At that proceeding a determination will be made whether or not the parties have reached an agreement in resolution of the issues and if not, why not, and if further mediation deemed not possible a formal protest hearing before the ABC Board will be scheduled.

SINGLETON CLEANING Service. Bonded & Insured. Affordable. (202) 526-0259. [42-2:3]

OUR CLEANING LADY who is highly recommended by us seeks additional jobs in neighborhoods easily walkable from Metro stations. She is conscientious, dependable, honest & just a very nice person. Speaks and reads English very well; citizen & DC resident for 40+ years. Call us between 2-6 pm, Mon.-Sat. (202) 667-5667. If not in, please leave name & number on answer machine for callback. [41-12:4]

COMPUTER SERVICES

COMPUTER SERVICES. Problem with your PC or Network? Computer Systems Engineer will come to you with help. Home Business. Call: D. Guisset, (301) 270-4848. [42-1:12]

HOME IMPROVEMENTS

FLAT ROOF SPECIALIST. Flat, rubber, metal roofs –- new & repair. We stop leaks! Emergency service. Roof certifications; gutter work; interior/exterior painting; waterproofing; chimney repairs. Roof coating from $199.00, Roof maintenance plans from $25 p/mo., Full roof & gutter inspections $34.95. Credit cards accepted. Licensed, bonded, insured; member BBB. Boyd Construction, Inc. (202) 223-ROOF (7663). [42-12:12]

DIAL A PLUMBER, LLC. Furnace repairs & replacement; Licensed gas filters; Water heaters; Boiler work; Drain services. Serving DC/refs.; Licensed & bonded (DC license plumber #707). Dial (202) 251-1479. [42-3:4]

MISCELLANEOUS SERVICES

STAMP COLLECTIONS, AUTOGRAPHS purchased/appraised. Call Alex, (301) 309-6637; ARogolsky@gmail.com. [41-12:1]

INTERIOR DESIGN CONSULTATION. Would you like to receive professional interior design advice from a DC-licensed ASID designer? Get answers to your design dilemmas. Call for an in-home appointment. $100 p/hr. Kerry Touchette Interiors, Inc., (202) 667-3249. [41-12:4]

MOVING SERVICES

CONTINENTAL MOVERS. Local/Long Distance. Hauling & Deliveries. Great refs. (202) 438-1489, (301) 340-0602; www.continentalmovers.net. [42-2:6]

GREAT SCOTT MOVING. Local & Long Distance. (202) 546-8190,  (301) 699-2066; www.greatscottmoving.com. Top-rated by Washington Consumers’ Checkbook for superior p Performance in Moving. [42-4:12]

FOR SALE

ANTIQUE CHINESE WEDDING CABINET. 1780-1800. Yu wood traditional black lacquer frame w/ golden images of huts, flowers/branches/hillside on red panels. Dimensions: 51”W x 67”H x 21”D. 2 permanent & one (new) removable shelves. Great for storage; can be modernized by inserting framed panels of natural materials. Very good condition. $750, negotiable. Call (202) 445-1285; will email photos. [42-2:1]

ANTIQUE CHINESE SIDE TABLE. 1900-1920. Solid wood w/ panels of carved leaves/foliage, traditional curved legs, 2 drawers w/ brass key plates/handles. Dimensions: 39″W x 35″H x 20″D. Great hall or sofa table. Has slight damage; rear panel needs re-gluing, otherwise, in very good condition. $425, negotiable. Call (202) 445-1285; will email photos. [42-2:1]

ASIAN-STYLE DINING CHAIRS. 1940-1950. Black walnut, recently refinished, 2 arm & 2 side chairs. Dimensions: 41″ from floor to top of chair; 18½” from floor to top of seat; seat approx. 18½” square. Great for small living spaces. Excellent condition. $400, negotiable. Call (202) 445-1285 ; will email photos. [42-2:1]

BERGÈRE-STYLE CHAIR. Black walnut, recently re-upholstered. Dimensions: 37″ from floor to top of chair; 19″ from floor to top of removable seat cushion; seat approx. 20″W at back, 29″W at front x 22″D. Great for small living spaces. Excellent condition. $300, negotiable. Call (202) 445-1285; will email photos. [42-2:1]

REAL ESTATE / SERVICES

YOUR HOUSE RESEARCHED. Do you know your house or bldg. history? We research the architects, builders & owners; when it was built, how it changed, who lived there, and where they worked. Detailed chronological text & vintage photos presented in color! Free estimate! Kelsey & Assoc., call (202) 213-9796 or email DCHouseHistory@aol.com, or visit www.washingtonhistory.com. [41-12:6]

© 2010 InTowner Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited, except as provided by 17 U.S.C. §§107 & 108 (“fair use”).

The rich feasted on strawberries and cream. England’s Cardinal Wolsey, who first tried the dessert after a banquet of porpoise, popularized the treat. “Raw crayme undecocted, eaten with strawberries . . . is a rurall mannes banket,” the 16th century writer Andrew Boorde observed. He cautioned, however, that “such bankettes hath put men in jeopardy of their lyves.” France’s King Louis XIV, who delighted in strawberries in wine, ate the fruit voraciously. His doctor finally ordered him to stop his indulgence, because it was causing indigestion.

The nobility also appropriated the strawberry as a symbol of honor and virtue. The fruit was displayed on the coronets of English lords — six leaves for a duke, four for a marquis. The strawberry, herbalist John Parkinson felt, enhanced the stature of wealthy ladies. It was “fit for a Gentlewoman to weare upon her arm, as a raritie instead of a flower.”

The strawberry played a powerful mythic and symbolic role in Medieval and Renaissance culture. It epitomized purity and righteousness.

The sacred fruit had a strong attraction for monks, who drew its likeness in the borders of prayer books and in “illuminated” manuscripts. These drawings and tiny illustrations were done in special honor of the Virgin Mary and the baby Jesus. For European painters, art historian Elizabeth Haught contends, the strawberry was the “symbol of perfect righteousness.”

In one early 15th century French miniature, Joseph extends a strawberry in his hand toward the child Jesus, encouraging him to walk. In Madonna of the Strawberries, the painter Martin Schongauer portrays the Virgin sitting on a raised bed of strawberries and wearing a garland of the fruit’s leaves.

This emblem of virtue also conveyed darker forces as well. In both the literary and the popular imagination, the strawberry’s inviting allure was often seen as a form of dissembling. The Roman poet Virgil creates an atmosphere of dangerous portent around the fruit. He warns children to be vigilant when picking strawberries: “Ye who cull flowers and low-growing strawberries, Away from her lads, a chill snake lurks in the grass.”

In Othello, Shakespeare masterfully employs the strawberry to suggest the web of falsity that ensnares his leading character. A handkerchief “spotted with strawberry” that Othello gave his beloved Desdemona disappears. The schemer Iago convinces Othello that this offering of trust has fallen into the hands of Cassio, who, he says, has been carrying on a secret liaison with Desdemona. Successfully manipulated, Othello rages against his wife.

A representation of Venus, the strawberry is prominent in the licentious scenes of Hieronymus Bosch’s painting, The Garden of Earthly Delights. Oversized strawberries appear in the forefront of cavorting young nude figures. A short ravenous youth tries to bite into a fruit, whose massive size dwarfs him. Bosch’s voluptuous strawberries reveal the lusty appetites of the partiers in this seductive setting.

Real events in the tale of the strawberry would turn out to be as extraordinary as anything dreamed up in the imagination. The accidental arrival in Europe of a new strawberry from the Americas opens a fascinating chapter in the fruit’s history.

A French spy who stumbled on a large, fruited berry in Chile sets the story in motion. Amédée-François Frézier, a naval officer and engineer, whose family name ironically derives from the French word for strawberry, is sent on a mission to Chile and Peru by Louis XIV in 1712. His assignment was to gather information about Spanish fortifications, supply routes, and military assets.

While doing his surveys, a strawberry patch growing in a sand hollow near the Chilean town of Concepion caught his eye. The large fruit, which surpassed the tiny variety growing in Europe, was, he exclaimed, “big as a walnut, and sometimes as a hen’s eggs, of a whiteish red.”

The Chilean, or sand, strawberry was native to 10,000 miles of the Pacific coast from Alaska to the Southern tip of Chile. Indians domesticated the fruit, selecting the plants with the biggest berries. They dried the fruits in the sun and fermented them for wine.

Their homeland’s strawberries, the early Spanish settlers felt, were no match for these Latin American fruits. “They grow as big as pears,” the writer Alonzo de Ovalle observed of the Chilean berries in 1646.

Eager to introduce his countrymen to the striking berries, Frézier in 1714 potted runners from five plants to take on his voyage home. He chose those with the largest fruits. Unfortunately, only two plants survived the trip from Chile to France.

On his return, he donated the strawberries to private gardens. But their horticulturalists were unable to get the much-heralded plants to bear fruit. No one could explain the puzzling phenomenon.

Next month, in Part III, two American fruits meet and mate in the Old World.

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Strawberry Surprises

Mercadito Ramos (2213 14th St., NW; tel., 462-1440) sells Fanta strawberry soda, a soft drink popular with its Central American customers.

Smoothie King Dupont (1621 Conn. Ave.; tel., 239-5590) uses strawberries as one of the ingredients in drinks, it says, promote health and energy.

Copyright (c) 2010 InTowner Publishing Corp. & Joel Denker. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited, except as provided by 17 U.S.C. §§107 & 108 (“fair use”).

That’s the first fact you need. The second is this: Kushi is noisy, with decibels high and sounds bouncing off floor, walls, and ceiling. Chances are slim, maybe nonexistent, that you’ll hear your friend unless he/she is shouting in your ear.

Last point: Finally, it’s true. The food at Kushi absolutely dazzles with primo seafood arriving probably every other hour and the tops in beef — well, it is from Wagyu herds, after all. And the other meat products are equally first-rate: heritage breed chickens, Berkshire pork, Moulard duck, and farm-fresh veggies — though that does not apply to the seaweed, obviously.

If you find the menu a bit puzzling, don’t hesitate to ask one of the jacketed host types to answer questions. Our table had no idea how to proceed, so we did just that. An izakaya, explained the host, translates loosely as a “sake house,” and Kushi is no exception. As the staffer said, the restaurant offers two hot and 45 cold sakes for sampling or swigging — your choice. Pointing over our shoulders to a central grilling station, the robata grill, he added that that is a traditional wood grill where certain menu selections are cooked and served up. Its curling smokiness added a delicious aroma, and fires up lagging appetites.

Finally, when pressed about how to order, he said to consider this a Japanese tapas restaurant, so cull through the menu, and order like that, filling out your choices on the sushi sheet each table gets, writing in any of the day’s specials we wanted.

So many choices, and already several beckon: the Wagyu beef short ribs, the buta bara (pork belly), and the chicken breast with a wasabi smear come as charcoal-grilled skewers. And, yes, there is a wait because everything is cooked to order and (seemingly) 5,000 people are already at the restaurant, many crowded at the robata bar surrounded by swirls of the aromatic smokiness.

Friends turned to the specials and other menu offerings, from the sashimi and maki sushi to the wood-grilled, small plates, and kushiyaki dishes. We picked various sushi and sashimi, especially the fatty tuna, or o’toro, sashimi, which was bargain-priced that night at $22 for 5 pieces. After accumulating a king’s banquet table and a king’s ransom worth of eats, our group looked forward to the tapas, which come out a few plates at a time. A lesson learned that night: if you crave your solitary indulgence in, say, the short ribs, eat here solo. Sharing is expected, and unless you grab your plate and sit under the table, your faves will disappear before your eyes.

Despite the noise and crowds, Kushi offers an unforgettable meal with all the trappings that come with such a popular destination — noise, music, crowds, and a buzzy atmosphere. Perhaps the solution to its noisy shortcomings is to sit down for an unhurried lunch, when presumably the setting is calm and reflective. Whatever, it’s time to eat, and I want sushi and short ribs.

Kushi Izakaya & Sushi | 465 K St., NW; (202) 682-3123; www.eatkushi.com. Lunch, Mon.–Fri. 11:30am-2:30pm, Sat. & Sun. 12noon-2:30pm; Dinner, Mon.-Sun. 5:30-11pm. Individual sushi prices $4.50-$9; sashimi, $3.50-$12; robata, $3-$18; sushi sashimi sets, $24-$40; kushiyaki, $2-$10.

Noted American telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) built his house at 1331 Connecticut Avenue beginning in June of 1891 at an impressive cost of $31,000. Like many inventors, he integrated new technology and experiments into the design, including what was one of the earliest experiments in household air conditioning.

Bell had been born in Scotland, but immigrated along with his parents to Canada in 1870, when he had already been working as a teacher to deaf-mutes through his 1864 “invisible speech” method. Several years later, young Bell began to teach at Boston University, where he met his future wife, Mabel Hubbard. She had become deaf due to scarlet fever, and was the daughter of wealthy lawyer Gardiner Green Hubbard (1822-1897), who owned a house nearby about the time he became the first president of the National Geographic Society.

In 1877, after their marriage, Hubbard became Bell’s business manager and the first president of the Bell Telephone Company. Alexander and Mabel first moved into a newly purchased house at 1500 Rhode Island Avenue, just a year after becoming internationally famous for demonstrating the telephone in public at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition with the words “Watson, come here; I want you” to his lab assistant Thomas Watson. After the Rhode Island Avenue house was damaged by fire they had it rebuilt and sold it to Vice President Levi P. Morton, following which they began construction of 1331 Connecticut Avenue.

In 1893 He had architects Hornblower and Marshall design a wing on the Connecticut Avenue house for his famous “Wednesday Evenings” that entertained scientists and society for decades.

At the house, Bell also experimented with an early form of air conditioning: On a hot summer day, he placed a block of ice in the attic covered with salt, to which he connected a large diameter tube extending to his office; by opening the upper windows, he reduced the temperature of the room from 90 degrees to 65 degrees.

The house was also designed with a large rear yard that led to the two houses of his daughters, facing 18th Street. After his death, the house was inherited by his daughter, Mrs. Gilbert Grosvenor (wife of the founder of the National Geographic Society), who ran it as an antique shop and tea room. It was razed in 1930 for an office building.

Bell was also responsible for having established the Volta Bureau in Georgetown in 1880 to serve as a center of information for deaf and hard of hearing persons. Initially located in his father’s house in the 1500 block of 35th Street, NW, in 1893 he had built across the street the structure that is still in use by the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, which had taken over the work of the Volta Bureau in 1908.

Aug., 14 & 15 (10am-4pm): The second weekend of “ARTS ON N,” the event being hosted along N Street between 7th and 9th by the city’s arts commission and convention center, will again be featuring as the official press release stated, “indie talents of the handmade expression.” DC artists and organizations have been provided free spaces along the two-block stretch to sell their handmade goods and bring exposure to their artwork. For more info, call the DC arts commission at (202) 724-5613.

18th Street Reconstruction Public Meeting Set

Tue., Aug. 17 (7-8:30pm): The DC Transportation Department (DDOT) will be holding an 18th Street CONSTRUCTION UPDATE Public Meeting at the International Student House (1825 R St.). The project, which extends between Massachusetts and Florida Avenues, is now starting the sidewalk and street reconstruction phase. Barriers and detours are being set in place along 18th Street as construction proceeds. Attend and learn about what is to occur during the coming weeks and months.

Home Foreclosure Clinic to be Held

<BULLET> Wed., Aug. 18 (12noon): Housing Counseling Services (2410 17th St., suite 100) a HUD-approved non-profit agency, will hold a free FORECLOSURE PREVENTION CLINIC to help homeowners in danger of losing their homes. Attendees will receive valuable information and individual counseling to help them identify their realistic options for avoiding foreclosure and to avoid “foreclosure rescue scams.” (The Federal Trade Commission recently issued a report warning of the costs and dangers of falling behind on a home loan and encouraging homeowners in danger of foreclosure to immediately seek assistance from a HUD-certified housing counseling agency.)

This clinic program will be repeated on Wednesday, the 25th at 6 p.m. For more info, call (202) 667-7425.

Textile Museum Holding Fun-Filled Event

Wed., Aug. 18 (6-9pm): The Textile Museum (2320 S St.) The Textile Museum will be hosting “MOD MADNESS,” its second after-hours “PM @ The TM” event, in the spirit of cable channel AMC’s Mad Men to coincide with its current exhibit of textile designs from the 1950s and ’60s. Enjoy cool drinks, noshes and live jazz by the Pete Muldoon Quartet in the museums expansive garden and join one of the gallery tours of the exhibition, “    led by We Are Science with music provided by DJ Jahsonic in the exhibition, “Art by the Yard: Women Design Mid-Century Britain.” (See review included in the “At the Museums” feature, InTowner, July 2010, PDF page 15; available in Current & Back Issues Archive.) Admission, $10 (includes two drink tickets for Textile Museum members; one drink ticket for non-members). Advance tickets recommended and may be purchased online at www.textilemuseum.org. For more info, call (202) 357-2700

Deadline Nearing to Order Christmas Cards; Proceeds Help the Needy

Tue., Sep.1: In the middle of one of the hottest summers on record, it’s hard to contemplate Christmas – but an announcement from the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church reminds us that September 1st will be the deadline for PLACING ORDERS for their Christmas cards, the proceeds for which help pay for clothing and other assistance for the city’s downtown homeless and indigent people. For each box sold, the church’s homeless ministry will be able to provide a full outfit of new or good-quality used clothes for one of its constituents. The cards, which feature scenes from this past winter’s snowstorms on the front and the message “Peace on earth, good will toward all” inside, are $15 for a box of 20. For more info and photos of the cards, visit https://sites.google.com/site/radclifferoom or the church at 1313 N.Y. Ave., NW.

On the cover page of the July 30th edition of the City Paper it is stated that Vincent Gray “is a creature of process,” followed by the question, “Is that what DC’s government needs?”

Absolutely. In our view, the current mayor has too often displayed a total disregard of “process” by, for example, openly defying the will of the legislature, our city council – for procedures enacted into law intended to ensure that statutory mandates are properly carried out by the Executive Branch. Among other transgressions that come to mind is his penchant for steering contracts to friends while figuring out ways to circumvent the statutory requirement that contracts of $1 million or more must first be approved by the Council. There has been too much of this sort of thing.

The Mayor’s excuse always seems to be that his shortcuts guarantee that things get done, projects get built –- full speed ahead and damn the consequences (to paraphrase a famous line). The problem with that approach to overseeing a complex governmental machine and other finagling with funds is that by so doing the mayor has been thumbing his nose at our elected legislators who are responsible for enacting the city’s budget. Consider the most recent outrage, his gambit to take away the dollars intended to assist the homeless so as to pay for an extra six days of youth summer employment in a program that was already over budget, a fact that had conveniently never been revealed to the council when it first became known.

We could go on and on –- the litany is loud and long. But it is what one can expect when we have a mayor who plunges ahead, cowboy fashion, with his own agenda notwithstanding that others may have different priorities.

We are strongly endorsing Vincent Gray because, among other things, he believes in “process” and collegiality; we are confident that his stated intention of working closely with the council and engaging all parties in setting priorities will be a hallmark of his mayoral tenure. We need to re-set the tone and to have a leader who believes in eschewing the adversarial approach to governing. Vincent Gray is that kind of leader, one who respects all groups and individuals and who is by nature a consensus builder. This is what we very much need at this time of reduced –- and further reducing –- resources.

Furthermore, we certainly do not need to elect a mayoral candidate who a month before the primary election has gotten so desperate that he has unleashed a hateful, negative advertising campaign with such vile imagery, as reported by the Washington Post on August 12th, in which in “grainy black-and-white photos, Gray is depicted as a sinister bureaucrat who mismanaged city funds and critical social services.”

We have heard and read much that Fenty must -– presumably at all costs –- be re-elected, otherwise School Savior Michele Rhee will depart in a huff. The assumption is that Gray would not keep her on anyway, though we have not heard him say so. But, contrary to all the hysteria, Rhee is not indispensable. Just because Gray has raised issues with things about how matters are going in the school system does not mean that he is not as committed to improving public education in the District as anyone else, Fenty included.

Rhee has engineered an amazing public relations self-promotion blitz that has carried nationwide to ensure that it’s all about her –- and to a lesser extent Fenty (though in her national PR he seems to be a mere footnote). Why he is so enamored with her can only be explained by the fact that he has built his entire reputation around having hired her. Will he acknowledge that maybe she isn’t the miracle lady he has been claiming now that the new DC Comprehensive Assessment System report, required by the federal No Child Left Behind law, is out showing a more than 50 percent drop over last year in schools meeting the federally-mandated minimum standards? Of the mere 15 out of over 150, only two high schools, Bannecker Academic and School Without Walls, made the grade –- and these are the city’s two magnet high schools requiring application and testing for admission.

In closing, we want to make one thing totally clear: Our endorsement of Vincent Gray is not to be interpreted as one of those “anybody but the other guy” endorsements, We are fully behind Gray’s candidacy for not only the reasons discussed above but also because of his deep understanding of the nuts and bolts of municipal governance and for the ease and personal confidence in himself that he displays in his gracious and empathetic interaction with citizens –- as distinguished from swaggering arrogance which only suggests fear of failure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AS PRIMARY DAY NEARS, WHOM SHOULD WE ELECT? – PART I

[Note: Part I, which was originally published in the July issue, is also available in the Publisher’s Desk archive.]

This month our focus is on the city council, specifically the Democratic primary races for the Ward 1 and one of the at-large seats. Our vote will be for the incumbents –- Jim Graham for Ward 1 and Phil Mendelson for at-large.

Yes, there’s talk that it’s “time for a change” but we are not in that camp.

In reviewing Councilmember Graham’s performance over the past four years. our view is that he has benefited his Ward 1 constituents immensely; we can discern no compelling reason to opt for somebody new, somebody without the kind of experience and incredible dedication to all economic and cultural sectors of this most diverse collection of dynamic neighborhoods.

Several example come to mind, including the influence he has gained over matters regarding public works (through his chairmanship of the council’s public works committee and his close involvement with Metro as a member of its board). In the extremely vital area of public works and transit he has been able to closely watch out for the interests of Ward 1 residents –- as well as all residents citywide. What can possibly be gained by giving up his influence over, and know-how about, these matters and the agencies which have responsibility for delivering the very “bread and butter” municipal services that are so important? Our answer is, simply, there can be no advantage.

But it’s not just public services that the council member has directed so much of his time and attention: it is housing and crime and neighborhood economic development, to name some vital quality of life areas, that he has worked diligently to craft practical solutions to deal with what often seem to be unsolvable problems.

Among many thingsm and just to single out one area, we give high marks to the council member for his tireless work directed toward ensuring more affordable housing and to preserving  rent control for citizens with limited financial means. By so doing, he has been instrumental in helping to maintain the diversity that we hear from so many residents is something they prize about city living and that they consider to be extremely important. These are residents who tell us that they do not want to see our city evolve into a bland demographic pool like the boring suburbs that more and more people are abandoning in favor of the more interesting and dynamic life in our vibrant downtown neighborhoods.

Our brief recitation of Councilmember Jim Graham’s work on behalf of not only his own constituents but all of us throughout the city who have benefited from the initiatives he has pushed has only scratched the surface. We enthusiastically urge his re-election without hesitation.

The other city council primary race that we believe is very important indeed is that of the at-large seat open to a member of the Democratic Party. In light of Councilmember Phil Mendelson’s long record of effective advocacy for residents across the city and for his thoughtful approach to carefully analyzing the complexities of policy issues as they affect our laws and regulations –- and ultimately our daily lives –- and crafting legislation solutions, we have no reason to suggest that there might be any good purpose to vote him off the council.

When we took a look at the 25 bills, eight resolutions, and five reports that the council’s public safety committee, of which he is its tireless chairman, has been responsible for issuing over the past year-and-a-half, we can only conclude that its highly competent output reveals much about the skill and worth to our city of the council member. This we are not prepared to advocate tossing aside.

Among his accomplishments that are of major importance has been his work in getting the council to declare the role of the city’s attorney general as being independent from the Executive Branch and calling for the position to be filled by election.

Another major accomplishment has been his bringing to fruition the “Omnibus Public Safety and Justice Amendment Act” which affected 39 separate laws by improving various provisions thereby improving law enforcement. The Act also created new crimes, including one dealing with illegal firearms in motor vehicles, and added a new authority to address gang violence by establishing a practical, on-the-streets intervention mechanism designed to reduce such violence.

We are puzzled by complaints that we hear in some circles that the council member is not “aggressive” enough, that he’s too “low-key” and therefore isn’t effective. We strongly disagree. While we admire legislators who come on strong (but only if they are especially smart and knowledgeable), this doesn’t mean that one who is quiet isn’t equally effective.

This is a council member who is deliberative, a stickler for detail, one who watches out for every nuance in the language of the legislation that he is called upon to vote. We need members on the council with that skill to ensure that what gets enacted into law doesn’t later reveal flaws that create unintended consequences for the city or for individual citizens.

With this, along with his constant watching out for efforts by city government officials seeking to chip away at civil rights in the name of crime prevention or other perceived dangers by bureaucrats, we enthusiastically urge the re-election without hesitation of at-large Councilmember Phil Mendelson.

[Note: Photographs accompanying this news story can be viewed in the current issue PDF.]

A crowd of over 100 neighborhood and nearby residents, DC Public Library trustees and staff, DC Mayor Adrian Fenty, DC Council Chair Vincent Gray, DC Council Members Evans, Thomas, and Graham, ANC commissioners galore, Library Friends and civic associations and activists, architects and construction firm executives — all braved a threatening storm to assemble on August 2nd at 7th Street and Rhode Island Avenue directly across from the R Street Metro station to celebrate the long-awaited opening of the brand new Shaw/Watha T. Daniel Library.

Sitting on a prominent triangular lot — one created by the diagonally directed, east-west Rhode Island Avenue bisecting the north-south 7th and 8th Streets between Q and R Streets, the site is effectively landlocked, with no curb cuts and surrounded below grade by Metro tunnels and ventilation shafts and by the usual warren of utility pipes, conduits, and junction boxes.

The previous mid-1970s branch library building on this site was designed as an extreme example of the Brutalist, concrete constructed fashion of that decade’s avant garde architecture. (For a photo of the replaced building, see “Long-Awaited Library in Shaw to Open Aug. 2; Building Design Hailed,” InTowner, July 2010, PDF page 1; available in the Current & Back Issues Archive.)

It was a short-lived fashion, and the building was especially disliked; its dark and foreboding façades, broken only by narrow slit windows more appropriate for archery or gun-mount defenses, sat on an even darker bomb shelter-style basement. The building repelled users, and after efforts to brighten its interior and make the outside of the building more welcoming failed, the library trustees announced its closing in December of 2004, promising a replacement with a state of the art facility more reflective of neighborhood needs and desires.

Initial efforts, including the creation of a single, model branch library design that could be replicated for each of the first four branch libraries being closed by the trustees foundered on community and DC Council objections.

Under a new library board and with dramatically changed library staff leadership, the model design was in turn replaced with a widely advertised design competition for individual architectural proposals for each of the four new buildings. The firm of Davis Brody Bond Aedas won two of the competitions, the already – and by all accounts — spectacularly successful Benning/Dorothy Irene Height branch in Ward 7 and the new Watha T. Daniel branch.

In design and execution, the work of the Davis Brody Bond team, led by principal architect Peter Cook, was greeted by enthusiastic and immediate use of the three-level, 22,000 square-foot facility — chock full of 40,000 books, DVDs, CDs, and 32 public access computers (both PCs and Macs).

High ceilings, glass window walls protected from glare by an ingenious metal mesh screen wall on the Rhode Island Avenue façade and alternating fretted/clear glass panels on the sleek R Street side, and an open plan for library user movements from functional areas, age related alcoves, and book and other materials stack areas serve to maximize light, visibility, and the sense of airiness. The 8th Street side — the base of the triangular lot — sympathetically points toward its grand avenue to its left and faces the narrower cross street with corner windows and double triangular points, directly across from New Bethel Baptist’s Foster House apartments.

The main entrance on 7th Street — at the dramatic tip of the triangle pointing toward the Asbury Dwellings across Rhode Island Avenue — will be further brightened later this month with the installation of sculptor Craig Kraft’s competition-winning design of a colorful steel and neon lighted structure called Vivace, named by the artist to reflect the movement of jazz music. (Ed. note: A photo of the artist putting the finishing touches on his work outside his R Street studio can be seen at page 6 of the July issue article cited above.)

The library’s site-specific contemporary glass and steel structure is topped off with a flat, vegetative green roof for a building that includes energy efficient lighting, floor mechanicals that heat or cool only the first six feet of each level’s volume, and the use throughout of recycled materials.

Forrester Construction’s prowess reflected in the building’s successful completion was vigorously noted, and the leadership of the library trustees and John Hill, its president, and that of the DC Public Library’s Chief Librarian Ginnie Cooper and her technical and professional staff was especially commended by Mayor Fenty, Council Chair Gray, and Ward 2 Councilmember Evans, whose ward includes the new library.

Architect Peter Cook emphasized to this reporter the team efforts involved and the successes created by having outstanding teams from all parties working together to complete this remarkable new facility — notably Ginnie Cooper and her staff. Community activists also remarked of the intense involvement of Shaw, Logan Circle, and Mt. Vernon Square neighborhood residents in their long-standing agitation for a branch library that was ample in size and a structure light and airy in appearance — both inside and out — with glass rather than metal wall panels and a comprehensive library collection and user-friendly new computers — all of this in a safe and secure new structure.

Shaw ANC Commissioner Alexander Padro, who also serves as president of the Library Friends, best expressed the community’s opening day sentiments in conversation with this reporter by summing up what had been accomplished by the creation of this new library facility, contrasting the old Brutalist structure with its new glass and steel replacement:

“From a concrete bunker to a glass jewel box; from a building that looked like a prison to one that’s a shining beacon of knowledge for the community, this building is truly a fitting tribute to the man whose name it bears who led us from the prospect of neighborhood annihilation — like in southwest — to the mix of the old and the new that is home to such a diverse community.”

[Note: Photographs accompanying this news story can be viewed in the current issue PDF.]

Eagerly awaited is the 32nd Annual Adams Morgan Day Festival on Sunday, September 12, from 10 in the morning until 7 in the evening. Visitors and locals can choose from a plethora of diverse offerings: five stages and plazas of varied live music, performance, and dance acts, plus artwork, food, services, craft and gift vendors. Popular attractions like the Dance Plaza and Kid’s Fair return, along with new features added to this year’s festival which showcase cultures and diversity.

Adams Morgan Main Street Group, assisted by many volunteers, organizes this annual festival known for celebrating international cultures, cuisine, arts, music, and bringing visitors to local and indie business storefronts. New elements this year will include a Health Pavilion and a Pet Zone welcoming four-legged visitors to the festival. Sponsored by Kaiser Permanente, the Health Pavilion showcases yoga and fitness to clinics and personal health to holistic and positive lifestyle to sports and spas. The Pet Zone features services, products, green pets and pet health grouped together on 18th Street’s Marie Reed tennis court, complete with a nearby doggie wading pool.

The Green Pavilion, sponsored by Washington Gas, DC Department of the Environment and Zip Car, will be a tented area on the Marie Reed School’s 18th Street plaza showcasing all things green. There will be found vendors specializing in planet-friendly items and services, such as design and installation of solar systems for home and office, tree planting and care, energy-saving remodeling, renewable energy, energy and water conservation, personal care, organic food, home products, and recycled furniture. Green media partners are Skincando and Grassfed Media.

Longtime favorites, the Florida Avenue and Columbia Road live music stages at each end of 18th Street will again be offering diverse performances throughout the day. Florida Avenue stage coordinator Pablo Grabiel is producing Latin and World music, from Irish to Reggae and in-between, with the popular salsa competition at 3 p.m. The Columbia Road stage, coordinated by Kat Hansen, will be hosting groups with American music roots and beyond, including rock, soul, and Afro pop –- maybe even a Grammy-nominated act.

A Global Community of Cultures is the recurring theme of the festival, sponsored by the Adams Morgan Partnership and PNC Bank. “It highlights a message that creativity comes from the synergy of diverse cultures and applauds celebrating together, a special quality of the Adams Morgan Day Festival,” says Lisa Duperier, President of Adams Morgan Main Street.

“Arts on Belmont,” sponsored by Harris Teeter, opens the festival at 10 a.m. with diverse works of 45 artisans and with explanation by the artists. Coordinated by Avner Ofer, the shady residential side street hosts original works in a variety of media. Visitors can meet collectors and artists and browse high quality items from contemporary to traditional, including fine art and sculpture, crafts, jewelry, and photography.

At Kalorama Park on Columbia Road, with a slower feel, “Jazz in the Park” will be presenting a great lineup, ranging from individual and group to traditional and modern. Here one will find a shady retreat from sun and crowds, with a grassy area to sit down on and take in the music.

Retail stores in Adams Morgan will, as customary every year, be open for business, as will the restaurants and sidewalk cafés. Local businesses such as Himalayan Heritage, Mixtec, Tibet Shop, Smash, and Mint Fitness also take part showcasing their offerings along with the vendors.

Sponsored by Bank of America, the Cultural Stage is being upgraded this year with a showmobile stage on the Marie Reed school ball field. Celestino Zapata returns as the coordinator and will be featuring a mix of musical genres, theater, dance, and cultural performances, including the students from the famed local Adams Morgan Sitar Center. The nearby Kid’s Fair at Marie Reed school will offer free activities and games for children of all ages and a family area that includes a rock climbing wall, obstacle course and prizes. “Chalk 4 Peace” allows kids and adults to create personal sidewalk art embodying themes of peace and love.

Always a popular collector’s item, the commemorative Festival T-shirt will be available throughout the festival area. The interactive Dance Plaza will be located at Marie Reed School near the Green, Health and Pet Pavilions. Sponsored by Safeway, watch or join in with diverse cultures such as the all female Brazilian Batala Drummers and Dancers or the Malcolm X Drummers. Bolt Bus, DC Lottery, Hilton Washington, and Comcast are also festival sponsors.

According to Executive Director Janet Lugo-Tafur of the Main Street Group, “We could not do the festival without many hardworking local volunteers who donate their time and organize vendors, layouts, work on petition signatures, stages and plazas, and execute the actual ‘day of’!” Volunteer opportunities include working at stages, pre-festival activities, and ‘day of’ and breakdown. To volunteer, contact Volunteer Coordinator Sheray Wright at: VolsAMDay@AMMainStreet.org. Also visit www.AdamsMorganDayFestival.com; for general information about the dynamic neighborhood, www.AdamsMorganNOW.com.

Adams Morgan Main Street originated a festival layout which leaves the business storefronts accessible and visible, and shows off the local small-scale architecture. For more information, call (202) 232-1960. Visitors are encouraged to use Metrorail, Metrobus and the Circulator bus. Limited parking will be available at The Park at Adams Morgan, the former Security Storage and now a five-level parking garage at 1711 Florida Avenue).

*Kristen Barden, originally from Upstate New York, has been a DC resident for 16 years, and is the Executive Director of the Adams Morgan Partnership BID, and formerly a DC Council staffer.

Copyright (c) 2010 InTowner Publishing Corp. & Adams Morgan Main Street Group. All rights reserved.

[Note: Photographs accompanying this news story can be viewed in the current issue PDF.]

If you walked down U Street 15 years ago and walked down the same street today, you might not recognize it.

Following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., the neighborhood fell apart. After the riots, many businesses moved out. When businesses left, crime made its way in.

However, the neighborhood that was once the heartbeat of the District in the first half of the 20th century has made its way back to the vibrancy for which it was previously known. Walk down U Street today and you will see sports bars, wine shops and modern, up-scale condominiums.

One example of the revitalization on U Street is the Floridian. The condominium, located on 9th Street at Florida Avenue, opened in February of 2010,and is proof

that the U Street neighborhood is back. According to Gerard DiRuggiero, the broker and managing partner of UrbanLand Company, who are the real estate brokers for the Floridian, the area shows a lot of potential.

“The location at 9th and Florida just shows a tremendous amount of upside for buyers, the way that a lot of other locations in town just don’t,” said DiRuggiero. “And the prices that we’re offering the units at are roughly $450 a square foot and are frankly very tough for other buildings to compete with.”

Another relatively new business at the eastern end of the U Street commercial corridor –- at the corner of 9th Street — is Nellie’s Sports Bar. The owner, Doug Schantz, is also excited by what the revived U Street has to offer.

“It is no longer uncommon to hear of a new business opening in DC’s vibrant U Street corridor,” wrote Schantz in an email responding to questions by this reporter. “The community has come to count on Nellie’s to host events for local sports teams, alumni groups, charities, and even birthday parties.”

The improved U Street, however, has not created the same boom in business as others in the neighborhood. This is true of Lee’s Flower Shop at 11th Street. The shop opened in 1945, and its workers have experienced the lows and now the highs of U Street. According to owner Rick Lee, who has been working in the family-owned shop for 42 years, business for the most part has stayed the same. “It’s good for business [but] it’s not booming,” he said. “We have clients who we’ve had for years and years. They’re the ones that sustain us, but we [do] have some new business coming in.”

Lee thinks the reason the change in the neighborhood has not had a noticeable impact on business is because the newer residents are not around during the day, although he does think many of them have been attracted to the store’s actively visited website to place orders for direct delivery (a service that supermarkets, for example, that sell flowers do not offer).

“There are some new folks, but it’s not knocking us out; it could be better,” Lee observed. “Because a lot of the new people — people who are moving in — work downtown or somewhere else and are not really in the area during our working hours, so there isn’t a lot of walking traffic during the daytime.”

Although every business on U Street may not be feeling the effects of the boom, there is no denying that this neighborhood is back. As Schantz put it, “It’s hard to predict the future but U Street seems to be headed towards an exciting comeback and Nellie’s is proud to be a part of that revitalization.”

*Ben Lasky, a contributing writer for The InTowner, is also a staff writer for The American University’s student newspaper, The Eagle, while he pursues his degree in communications and journalism at AU.

Copyright (c) 2010 InTowner Publishing Corp. & Ben Lasky. All rights reserved.