A Few Quick Items: Trojans Go for the Gold, MLS Commish not Pleased with DCU Situation, Job Openings at Phillips

- The Jefferson Middle School Trojans football team will play in the DCIAA Middle School Championship Game this Saturday against Kramer Middle School. Game time is at 11am at Cardozo High School (1200 Clifton Street, NW). Good luck to the Trojans!

- The Soccer Insider at The Washington Post reports that MLS Commissioner Don Garber is concerned about the stalemate over DC United's lease negotiations at RFK Stadium and the search for a new home for the soccer club. There appears to be a lack of support from the mayor's office to help finance a new stadium. From the article:

United has sought a partnership with the city, with the club covering most of the costs. Last week, however, Mayor Vincent M. Gray wrote on his Twitter account that “we value DC United & hope they stay in DC. But District is in a challenging fiscal environment now & publicly funded stadium not possible.”

A fan group has emerged called Keep D.C. United that wants the club to stay in DC and build a stadium at Buzzard Point. The group has created an online petition for supporters to sign. Reasons the group states a stadium should be built in Buzzard Point are the following:

Jobs and economic growth through construction, retail, and services for a part of town that has too often been forgotten.

More than just soccer. A stadium would not only host D.C. United and international soccer matches, it could also host high school and college sporting events and community/cultural festivals.

Economic development done right. Developers would seek community involvement through out process and D.C. United has an unwavering commitment to the community through its many outreach programs such as United Builds, United Read, United Drives and United Soccer Club.

- Phillips Flagship is now hiring experienced line cooks for their restaurant along the Southwest Waterfront at 900 Water Street. Check out the Craigslist ad for responsibilities and qualifications. Benefits include medical, dental, vision and 401(k) with company match.

ARTLAB+ Opens at Hirshhorn

Over the summer, renovations at the Sculpture Garden of the Hirshhorn Museum resulted in the creation of ARTLAB+, a free after school and weekend community center for teens. Below is an explanation of what ARTLAB+ does, from their website:

What is the ArtLab?

• A community center outfitted with digital media tools located in the Sculpture Garden of the Hirshhorn Museum

• A drop-in zone for DC area teens to come after school and on the weekend

• A place to experiment with visual and audio technology

• An online space to communicate with other ARTLAB+ teens through a social network

• A resource to meet and work with artist mentors

• A network of interest-based clubs where teens can plan social events

• A studio where teens form production teams and create media projects

• A classroom hosting short and long-term workshops for teens and school groups

What do teens in ARTLAB+ programs do?

• Hang out with other like-minded peers

• Form clubs with teens who share similar interests

• Create production teams and take on their own projects

• Learn the media skills they want to learn from mentors and experts

• Design and compose videos, animations, websites, games, podcasts, and more

• Visit the Hirshhorn and other Smithsonian museums for research and inspiration

• Make unique products for use by Hirshhorn Museum visitors

• Give back to local communities by voicing their opinions on important district and regional issues

ARTLAB+ programs include advance registration workshops (a new one called Art Breakers is starting on November 15 and registration is now open) and club meetings that unite teens who share common interests in gaming, radio broadcasting, photography, or music. Also, teens can simply drop in and explore, hang out, work with mentors on digital projects, etc. during open hours: Mon.-Fri. from 3 to 7 pm, and Sat. from noon to 5 pm. The Hirshhorn is located at 7th Street and Independence Avenue.

A Few Quick Items: SW Waterfront House Legislation Advances, Fish Market is Location of the Month, SEU to be Removed from Metro Name, Maine Ave Road Work Delayed

- Last week, the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee passed DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton's bill to allow the development of the Southwest Waterfront as currently planned to proceed. H.R. 2297 clears up some legal issues regarding the transfer of the Southwest Waterfront that occurred between the Federal government and the District back in the 1960s which will allow the construction of piers that extend out to the Washington Channel. The bill will also ensure the Maine Lobsterman statue and Titanic Memorial will be maintained, although the Lobsterman statue may be moved to another area of The Wharf. An affirmative vote in the full House and Senate will allow the development to proceed. Rendering courtesy of Hoffman-Madison Waterfront

- DC's Office of Motion Picture and Television Development has designated the Maine Avenue Fish Market as the One City Location of the Month for the month of November. Back in March, the MPTD began the monthly designation to help bring attention to sights in the city that can be used as filming locations. The fish market was most recently featured in the film "State of Play". Arena Stage was designated back in April.

- WMATA decided in a meeting last week to make some changes to Metro station names ahead of a reworking of the Metrorail map needed to reflect service changes as well as the introduction of the Silver Line. In Southwest, the Waterfront-SEU station will revert back to its original name - Waterfront. Since Southeastern University is no longer in existence, that appendage has been dropped. A bid to add Arena Stage to the station name, which was supported by ANC 6D, was rejected by the Metro board. Also, a proposal to add National Mall to the Smithsonian Metro station name was rejected. The Navy Yard station in Near SE will become Navy Yard-Ballpark. These changes will be implemented in the fall of 2012.

- ANC 6D 01 Commissioner Bob Craycraft reports on his Facebook page that DDOT has pushed back the completion date of the road work on Maine Avenue near the fish market to the end of November. The road work was originally scheduled to be complete back in mid-October. Below is a description from DDOT about what is being done to the road:

The project will replace the existing 4-foot-wide sidewalk with a new 14-foot-wide trail, accommodating both bicyclists and pedestrians, and replace the existing road surface. Installation of new storm water drainage elements, bio-retention areas, trees, lighting, signs, curb, gutter and fencing is also included in the project. To accommodate these amenities, on-street parking in this area will be eliminated. The number of vehicular lanes will be reduced from two to one and some driveway entrances to businesses will be realigned. 

Wharf Waterfront Park Planning Moves Forward

The landscape architects charged with designing the planned waterfront park at The Wharf came to  the October 24 SWNA meeting and presented their initial concept. Warren Byrd from Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects gave the presentation. The initial concept design was the result of the charrette process held over the past couple of months with community members that was convened by Hoffman-Madison Waterfront, and attended by representatives from Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects, as well as Lee and Associates Inc., the other landscape architectural firm involved with the park.  At the second charrette in early October, the participants walked through the site, then went over two alternatives for the park based on the discussion from the first charrette - one with an oval shape and the other shaped like a fan. 

The 4.2-acre park will replace the parking lot for the cruise ships on the south end of the Southwest waterfront by the police and fire pier. As seen in the above rendering, the design is similar in shape to a fan. An informal lawn area will cover the northeastern corner of the park with a pergola wrapping along the edge and an interactive water feature. This area will be raised higher in order to afford a better view down towards the Washington Channel and Potomac River beyond. Gardens will be planted near the 50-year old willow oaks that frame the northern and eastern border of the park. Play mounds will be provided near the informal lawn and curving paths created throughout the park. One of the "necessary" portions of the park is a pavilion, where some food and beverage service, as well as storage for park-related furnishings will be located. The pavilion will be designed to be less intrusive on the landscape, with the possibility of the pavilion being embedded in the hillside since the access road (another necessary portion of the park) will be at a lower grade than the informal lawn. Rain gardens will be interspersed throughout to help retain rainwater runoff before entering the channel. Tree plantings at the park will offer a variety of color as the seasons change. A total of 26 parking spaces have to be maintained for guests of the townhouses proposed at Pier 4 and the police and fire pier as well as a traffic circle that can be used for emergencies. Most of the land to the south of the traffic circle is owned by the National Park Service, but Hoffman-Madison Waterfront wants to work with NPS to rehabilitate the area leading down to the Titanic Memorial with lawn terraces and a rain garden. 

The charrette members will meet again as the design process continues so the final result of the park will not be a surprise to the community. What do you think of the design draft?

Rendering courtesy of Nelson Byrd Woltz Landscape Architects and Lee and Associates, Inc.

A Few Quick Items: New Website Launched for The Southwester, Station 4 Leads SW Revival, United Eyes Baltimore, Bellevue Library Controversy

- A new website was recently launched for The Southwester, which allows readers to view articles from the latest issue of the paper without having to download a PDF (although that option is still available). Readers are allowed to leave comments as well. Although a few kinks still need to be worked out on the new website (i.e. article formatting), it is moving the paper in the right direction.

- The Hill writes a review on Station 4, which opened over four months ago at Waterfront Station. According to the article, the most popular item on the menu is the crab cake. The article mentions that recent events at the restaurant include Neighborhood Appreciation Night, prix fixe lunch ($18) & dinner ($29)specials. Also, there were "True Blood" themed nights leading up to Halloween.

- According to The Washington Post and The Examiner, MLS has sent out surveys to Baltimore area residents gauging their interest in the possibility of DC United moving to the Westport area of Baltimore City. From the Post article:

United has spent all 16 MLS seasons in Washington but club officials have said playing at 50-year-old RFK is not economically viable. Talks with D.C. officials have shown no signs of progress. Buzzard Point in Southwest D.C., near Nationals Park, has been the club’s primary focus. Previous negotiations, involving Poplar Point in Anacostia and then Prince George’s County in Maryland, collapsed. 

- The Washington Post reports on the controversy over the naming of the new David Adjaye-designed library rising along Atlantic Street in Bellevue.  The DC Public Library Board recommended earlier this year that the library should be named Bellevue, after the neighborhood in which it's located (the previous library was called Washington Highlands, which was named after a neighborhood in SE). However, Mayor Gray supports the proposal to name it after William Lockridge, a Ward 8 activist and member of the State Education Board who died earlier this year. The DC Council held a hearing last month to discuss the naming of the library, but according to the article, Ward 8 Council member Barry has agreed to delay the renaming bill for two weeks in order to hear what the community has to say before making a decision.

A Couple Quick Items: Big Hole in the Ground, Randall Neighbor Day at Corcoran

- Across the street from Nationals Park along South Capitol Street, there is a deep hole in the ground hidden behind a chain link fence. The hole will soon become a foundation for Camden South Capitol, the first new Southwest apartment building in decades. Camden Property Trust is developing the apartment building, which will have 276 units and is located at the northwest corner of South Capitol and O Streets. WDG is designing the project, with amenities including a rooftop pool and deck, as well as ground floor retail. Twelve of the units will be set aside as affordable housing. Leasing should begin around the middle of 2013.

- This year's Randall Neighbor Day at the Corcoran Gallery of Art will take place on December 10. On that day, all ANC 6D residents (those living in ZIP codes 20024 and 20003) can visit the Corcoran for free.  The annual event came about due to the community benefits package the ANC negotiated with the Corcoran in 2007 when they planned to redevelop Randall School at Half & I Street as a college and apartment complex. When the Telesis/Rubell team took over the project in 2010, the subsidy was maintained. In addition, once the new museum planned for Randall School opens, it will be free every day for ANC 6D residents. Special exhibitions at the Corcoran include 30 Americans, which showcases works by many of the most important African American artists of the last three decades. This exhibition is from the collection of Don and Mera Rubell. Other exhibitions include Hank Willis Thomas: Strange Fruit and Gordon Parks: Photographs from the Collection. The Corcoran will be open on December 10 from 10am - 5pm.    

Z-Burger Sneak Peek

If you've walked by the Waterfront Station Z-Burger lately, you may have noticed a sign has been erected outside that illuminates at night. So that means opening is imminent, right? Well...not quite.  The newest opening date told to me by owner Peter Tabibian when I ran into him at the restaurant is three weeks. According to Peter, all of the furniture has been ordered and once it arrives, it will take four to five days to install it all.  In addition to indoor seating, there will be approximately 40 seats outside. There's a lot left to do besides installing furniture, so let's see if this new opening estimate is accurate. Once a more definitive opening date has been announced, I'll let you know. There will also be free food for the first few days..more details to come. Below are some renderings of the restaurant design, courtesy of Z-Burger, along with some interior photos I took earlier this week.  

This is the view from the front door toward the "place order" area of the register. The red tile on the floor will be a "red carpet" leading to the register. On the ceiling is a design of angel wings.

Owner Peter Tabibian shows off the tile that will be used to create the "red carpet" from the front door to the register. Peter designed the new restaurant himself.




This is a zoomed in photo showing the path to the register. You will be able to see your food get prepared behind the register as you wait for your order.



This is a view looking from the "pick-up" area of the register towards the front door.




This rendering shows a seating area of the restaurant just to the right of the entrance.



This photo is looking in the opposite direction from the above rendering. Notice the column on the right that in the rendering is covered in yellow.

A Few Quick Items: Stadium Speculation Continues, Marina Place Profiled, "Melting Pot" Museum, Cast of You, Nero Announced

- Speculation continues on the DC United stadium front, and according to the Soccer Insider at The Washington Post, the 100 V Street site in Buzzard Point is still on top of the list. However, it's debatable how interested city leaders are about keeping the team in the District. From the article:

D.C. government contacts tell my Post colleagues that United officials, realizing the city has no money to help finance a sports venue, suggested to the mayor’s office that they would build a stadium themselves if they received a tax abatement. Other city sources say DCU President Kevin Payne recently met with council members about the general stadium prospects and the discussion "fell flat.”

Talk of putting a jail at the Buzzard Point site seems to have died down.

Above rendering courtesy of Akridge

- Also in The Washington Post, there was an article about how plans for the multifamily project planned in Buzzard Point next to the marina have evolved. The Eric Colbert-designed Marina Place was approved by the Zoning Commission over the summer and the owner is looking for a pioneering developer to partner with him on the project. Duane Deason has owned the site since 2004 and has gone through the ups and downs related to speculation about development of Buzzard Point. With the Coast Guard moving to St. Elizabeths and the possibility of DC United building a stadium nearby, Buzzard Point could look a lot different in a few years.

Rendering courtesy of Buzzards Point LLC

- There's a proposal to build a new museum off the National Mall at Banneker Overlook, according to an article in the Lifestyle section of The Washington Post. This proposed museum is still a long ways off though.  From the article:

Rep. James P. Moran (D-Va.) is sponsoring the legislation that would create a presidential committee to study the Museum of the American People proposal and has rounded up about 20 co-sponsors. He realizes that the museum could be a long way off, but he likes the idea of drawing a line now, “before we have any proliferation of additional ethnic museums.”

- Arena Stage has announced the cast of You, Nero, which will run from November 25 to January 1, 2012 at the Fichlander Stage. A partial list of cast members and a description of the show from the press release follows:

Danny Scheie returns to the role of Nero after starring in both the South Coast Repertory and Berkeley Repertory Theatre productions of You, Nero. Also reprising their roles are Susannah Schulman as Poppaea and Kasey Mahaffy as Fabiolo. Marc Vietor (Kennedy Center’s Company, Broadway’s Present Laughter directed by Martin) joins the cast as Scribonius.

Returning Arena favorites include Helen Hayes Award winner Nancy Robinette as Agrippina (Arena’s Death of a Salesman, Shakespeare Theatre Company’s The Heir Apparent), Laurence O’Dwyer as Burrus (Arena’s Trouble in Mind, Helen Hayes Award winner for Arena’s The Fantasticks) and John C. Vennema as Seneca (Arena’s A Time to Kill). Additional casting for supplemental actors will be announced at a later date.

As Rome collapses beneath Nero’s outrageous narcissism, a forgotten playwright tries to restore order through the art of theater in this “gloriously funny” (New York Times) farce. Amid the chaos of crime, lust and politics, convincing the world’s most famous debaucher to choose virtue over vice proves to be a Herculean task. Amy Freed’s wild romp questions whether well-crafted drama and intellect are any match for decadence and good old-fashioned bloodshed.

Performances will take place on Sunday, Tuesday & Wednesday at 7:30 pm; Thursday, Friday & Saturday at 8:00 pm.; and Saturday & Sunday at 2:00 pm.

Cantina Cup 2011 Video

Below is a video done by SWer Raymond Schillinger of the 4th Annual Cantina Cup Regatta, which took place on October 1 along the Washington Channel. Proceeds from the Cantina Cup benefit DC Sail's adult sailing program.

Cantina Cup 2011 - DC Sail from media | sophe films on Vimeo.

Historic District for Southwest?

Housing Complex wrote a piece last week about historic districts in DC and pondered whether Southwest would be next on the list of neighborhoods to seek designation. Contrary to the HC piece, there are rumblings from within the neighborhood to create a historic district. Typically, buildings need to be at least 50 years old to be considered and there are already a few older properties in Southwest that are on the National Register of Historical Places. Those located south of the Southwest Freeway include Friendship Baptist Church, Thomas Law House, National War College, Randall Jr. High School, Syphax School, James C. Dent House, and the Titanic Memorial. However, the majority of buildings in Southwest are just now turning 50.



Wheat Row was built in the 18th century.



The Thomas Law House was built in 1784.



Capitol Park Apartments at 800 4th Street (now Potomac Place Tower), designed by Chloethiel Woodard Smith and built in 1959, was the first residential tower built as a result of urban renewal and was designated by the DC Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) as historic in 2003 in an attempt by residents to block development of its parking lots and garden into apartments (eventually condos). The HUD headquarters at 7th & E Street just north of the freeway was more recently designated by the HPRB as well as the James C. Dent House (built in 1906). ANC 6D supported the designation of Tiber Island Coops and Condos on the south side of 4th & M Streets as historic at their July meeting (the Thomas Law House, which is a part of Tiber Island, has already been deemed historic). Besides the collection of mid-century modern architecture that dominates Southwest, there are other pockets of buildings pre-dating urban renewal that haven’t been designated, such as the row houses along the 1200-block of Half Street and Carrollsburg Place.

River Park features a high-rise apartment building and barrel vaulted townhomes made with aluminum.

A historic district designation would bring more scrutiny to building additions or new construction within the proposed district. New buildings would most likely need to conform to the standards of structures within the district and it would be more difficult to demolish existing buildings. However, it may spur the restoration of buildings in the neighborhood that are starting to show their age and increase property values. Design adaptation is already happening, to an extent, with newer projects in the neighborhood. For example, the office buildings at Waterfront Station, designed by Shalom Baranes, use terra cotta on their façades, a material that has been used for the shade screens at Capitol Park apartments. In addition, the design of the new St. Matthew’s apartment building on M Street & Delaware Avenue, also designed by Baranes, uses building and landscape design elements from nearby residential buildings. These two building designs borrow from mid-century mod, but have been brought closer to the street and incorporates a mix of uses (in the case of Waterfront Station).

Should the Southwest Waterfront join the ranks of other DC neighborhoods, such as Capitol Hill, Dupont Circle, Shaw, and Georgetown and be designated as a historic district? Vote in the poll at the upper left corner of the page and/or leave a comment. Also, are there specific buildings in Southwest that deserve historic designation (#1 on my list would be Jefferson Middle School)?

Note: For those who are interested in learning more about modern architecture in Southwest, the DC Preservation League will be holding a neighborhood tour on October 22, starting at 10am. Register here.