According to the Downtown DC BID:

“Get ready for Redline, a dual-concept sports pub and upscale-casual restaurant. The sports pub, scheduled to open this month, will occupy the first level and feature table-side taps and a big projection screen. Once it opens in mid-December, the second floor restaurant will serve American food with a French flair and offer outdoor seating and patio space. Mick Dadlani, who owns Fly Lounge in Dupont Circle, is giving the space a modern design with exposed brick and natural light.”

“Dear PoP,

You promised to give us periodic updates on the O St. Mkt and the Howard Theater. While it seems that the Howard renovation is moving along nicely, nothing has been touched at the O St. Market. What gives?”

Update on O Street Market – Ain’t shit happening.

Related update on Kelsey Gardens across the street – Ain’t shit happening.

Stay tuned for more updates when(ever) construction starts.

If you have any fun or interesting animal/pet photos or news please shoot me an email to princeofpetworth(at)gmail(dot)com with ‘Animal Fix’ in the title and say what neighborhood you’re from or upload to the PoPville flickr pool. I can’t guarantee I’ll get them all posted but I’ll do my best.  I’m aware not everyone loves pets.  But they bring me (and others) a lot of pleasure.  It’s cool, hold tight, a new post is coming in a half hour, you can make it!

Photo by PoPville flickr user pablo.raw

Photo by PoPville flickr user caroline.angelo

“Dear PoP,

This black cat has been hanging around my house at 17 & Euclid NW in Adams Morgan for about a week and a few nights ago decided to live full-time in the entryway to my English basement apartment. It’s definitely a domesticated cat – it seems healthy, friendly, not scared of humans and has tried to come inside several times. I’ve been giving it food, water and a blanket to sleep on, and I’d love to keep it myself but can’t for various reasons. Can you please post the cat’s picture on your blog in hopes the owner will recognize it?

We caught the cat last night and took her to a vet to get checked out, and a friend of mine is going to keep her as a foster cat for now. It’s a healthy female cat, probably around age 5. We’re still going to register her with the Humane Society but she’ll have a safe home until someone decides to adopt her. Of course, we don’t want to keep her away from her rightful owner if there is one out there, so if you can still put her picture/info up on the blog I would really appreciate it!”

If you think this is your cat or would like to adopt it please send me an email and I’ll put you in touch with the reader.

This rental is located at Girard Street at Georgia Avenue, NW:

View Larger Map

The Craigslist ad says:

“HUGE ENGLISH BASEMENT — approximately 1,100 Sq. FEET

MOVE IN READY or DECEMBER 1 — Spacious studio basement apartment for one person

DETAILS:
- 6 blocks to Columbia Heights Metro or Howard University (Green/Yellow line)
- Private Entrance
- Brand new washer/dyer
- 2 petite windows for some natural lighting
- Central AC / Heat
- Private bathroom
- Vaulted lighting throughout with a dimmer in the “bedroom” area
- Closet and lots of storage
- Sorry no pets
- And walking distance to Target, Washington Sport Club, Marshall’s, Best Buy, Bed Bath & Beyond, Staples, and Giant.

The basement is furnished with a large IKEA geometric bookshelf that separates the bedroom from living space, a red love seat, two end tables and a coffee table. There’s a small kitchen but no stove. The previous tenant used a counter convection oven and burners. Perfect for young professional / student!

RENT: $975 a month. $975 deposit. 6-month lease preferred but not necessary. We can do a month-to-month—I am flexible. Credit/background check ($30 application fee). Utilities are split with the main part of house. Utilities (which are separate from rent) will be for Comcast with box and remote / WIFI, gas, electric, and water which runs an average of $100 a month.”

Does $975 sound reasonable?

Art by PoPville flickr user hipchickindc

“Dear PoP,

I am planning to move out of my house and intend to rent it. I was wondering if you would ask your readers their opinion on what they think fair market rental value would be.

It is a 2 BR/2.5 BA house in Bloomingdale near Big Bear Cafe on First Street. It is 1200 sq. feet (two levels) and has all new wood floors, a renovated eat-in kitchen with stainless steel appliances and granite countertops, a separate bar area, 2-car driveway parking, w/d, and CAC. I have looked around Craigslist but am having difficulty getting a good sense of the market.”

I enjoy seeing what folks think are fair rates. I’m thinking somewhere in the ballpark of $2750. What do you guys think?

Photo by PoPville flickr user ekelly80

Submit your photos to the PoPville flickr pool here. Follow PoPville on twitter here.

Photo by PoPville flickr user gc-dc

Photo by PoPville flickr user sciascia

“Dear PoP,

I’d like to ask your readers about what they thought of Redfin, not the website which I think is pretty great, but actual experiences with their agents. I’ve had 2 underwhelming experiences so far, the first with a field agent in Virginia, and the second with the actual “top rated” agent in DC. I will probably just go with a real agent now, but I was wondering if I was just unlucky? I mean, all of their agents have such great reviews!

The field agent in Virginia insisted that since my budget is so low ($400k), I shouldn’t be looking in Old Town and I should look in Fairfax, Burke, and other areas I wasn’t interested in. Then he proceeded to tell me that he’ll send me listings from MLS of those areas, which I also wasn’t interested in. I mean, isn’t that what the Redfin website is for? So you can look for yourself? His pushiness was just very off putting.

The field agent in DC was actually really great, and told me that someone submitted an offer on a foreclosure we were going to look at, and said if we wanted to make an offer at above asking there’s a possibility that the bank would accept. Anyway, we emailed the agent immediately after the tour and said we can make a cash offer, and asked him a few questions about the place. I kind of expected an agent would respond immediately if his client is interested in making an offer, but it wasn’t until the afternoon when he responded to our questions and then the next day he said he can write a backup offer. He was very professional in his replies, but I took his lack of urgency as a sign of disinterest. This is an investment property that me and my mom are purchasing, and neither of us are first time homebuyers, so I don’t think we’ve set unrealistic expectations.”

Anyone have similar experiences or is this just bad luck on the part of the reader?

This home is located at 1367 Perry Place, NW:

View Larger Map

The flier says:

“A new beautiful renovation in Columbia Heights – steps from Tivoli Square shopping and restaurants. 3 bdrm (2 master suties) and 3 full bath with finished basement. Bamboo flooring, granite counter tops, stainless steel appliances, maple cabinets, marble bathrooms and many more amenities.”

You can find more info here and a mouse on house tour here.

What do you think of the renovation? Does $569,900 sound right for this 3 bed/3 bath home?

I’ll admit, I’m far more interested to see “Notable Pastry Chefs Sculpt Monument Out Of Pancakes”. Anyone already check out the IHOP at DC USA? If so how was the experience?

From a press release:

Free Flapjacks For First 1,500 Guests; Notable Pastry Chefs Sculpt Monument Out Of Pancakes; Live Entertainment Over 100 New Jobs, Continued Rebirth of Community

· The first 1,500 guests will be treated to (or receive a certificate for) a free short stack of IHOP’s famous buttermilk pancakes.

· Notable D.C. pastry chefs (Leslie Goldman-Poyourow of Fancy Cakes by Leslie and Randi Goldman of Creative Cakes, Inc.) will create an iconic replica of one of Washington’s most famous monuments using thousands of pancakes with the help of students from the culinary program at Bell Multicultural High School.

· Live entertainment (magician, clown, stilt walker, etc.) will entertain the crowds
· A contribution will be made to the Multicultural Career Intern Program (MCIP), the 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that supports Bell Multicultural High School

WHY: IHOP is celebrating its leadership in sales and restaurant openings in the family dining category, has plans for additional growth, and wants to thank the community of Columbia Heights for its support.

WHO: Mayor Adrian Fenty
Councilmember Jim Graham (Ward 1)
Council Chairman Elect Kwame Brown
Julia Stewart, Chairman and CEO, DineEquity, Inc. (parent company of IHOP and Applebee’s)
Jean Birch, President, IHOP
Clarence Jackson, Sr., Clarence Jackson III and Tyoka Jackson (The Jackson Investment Co. LLC, Local IHOP Franchisee)

WHEN: TUESDAY, November 23, 2010

6 00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Guests allowed to line up for free flapjack certificates
6:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Pancake monument sculpting by notable pastry artists
9:00 a.m. Ribbon cutting with dignitaries
7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Live entertainment for guests (Stilt walker, Clown, Magician)

WHERE: IHOP at DC USA, 3100 14th Street NW, Washington, D.C. (Columbia Heights)

Photo by PoPville flickr user slightlyworn

You can talk about whatever is on your mind – quality of life issues, a beautiful tree you spotted, scuttlebutt, or any random questions/thoughts you may have. I’ll open this thread every Monday and Friday. So anything good happen to you this weekend?

Any fun Thanksgiving plans?

Despite having the greatest name of all-time Beveragemania was not able to stay in business at 849 Upshur St, NW. The space has been closed since May ’09. I happened to spot a permit on the window saying the new proposed space will be for a restaurant. Keep in mind – Beveragemania was also listed as a restaurant but unless it becomes a take out place I think this will be good news for the block. Stay tuned for more info as it becomes available.

Sorry I didn’t get to post about the Grand Opening on Sunday but I found out about it a bit too late. But it looks like this is going to be a great addition to Pleasant Plains. (This is the former home of Showoff apparel that we checked out in ’08.) According to their Web site:

Pleasant Plains Workshop is a shared studio space with a storefront that features works by its resident artists along with a rotating lineup of works and projects by other DC-based artists and designers.

Kristina Bilonick is a native Washingtonian who uses screen printing, found objects and other media to create art installations that are often interactive. She has shown her work at at local art spaces such as Transformer, Honfleur Gallery, and Civilian Art Projects. Kristina also has an ever-changing line of clothing, accessories and housewares. Her most popular items are her long ‘all over print’ cotton scarves featuring repeated prints such as marching buffalo or overlapping prints of foliage. By day, she is program director at Washington Project for the Arts.

Anthony Dihle / Fire Studio
Anthony Dihle has screen printed concert posters for local and internationally known bands such as Greenland, Exit Clov, Elvis Costello and Jay-Z. In addition to making work, he has curated multiple gallery shows at local art spaces such as Civilian Art Projects and the Athaneum, featuring works of other masterful printer-designers. Dihle also creates hand printed greeting cards and t-shirts.

I chatted briefly with Anthony who said that the storefront part will be opening on Saturdays the week after Thanksgiving.

I’ll be sure to update when special events take place.

Grand opening was smashed crowded!

Couple more shots after the jump. (more…)

The Post reported late Friday afternoon:

…a police spokeswoman said Lanier had placed Groomes on “administrative leave pending further investigation into an allegation that she was involved in compromising a test administered to some members of the command staff as part of their in-service training.”…

Groomes said last night that “I am sorry for my actions and bad judgment . . . and for the discredit I caused to the best chief, department . . . and city.”

There has already been a lot of support for Chief Groomes on various listservs throughout the city. I just wanted to publicly add my voice to that support. Of course, Chief Groomes made a mistake and she should face a reprimand for her action. Nevertheless, while MPD has many assets, Chief Groomes is hands down the most responsive and helpful MPD representative I have ever worked with. Often times readers write me about incidents and/or issues that I do not post about. Though, when possible, I do try to help the reader out and in that regard Chief Groomes has been invaluable. It does not matter if it is day, night, over the weekend or even while she is on vacation – Chief Groomes has always been able to provide help and/or guidance.

Our neighborhoods and our city will benefit greatly with Chief Groomes in a continued leadership position with MPD. I hope she is able to return soon.

After the jump a note from MPD’s temporary replacement – Assistant Chief Alfred Durham (more…)

HR 57 is located at 1610 14th Street, NW. We last spoke about them back in Jan. ’10. And we’ve said that they are one of the best spots to hear live jazz/blues and we’ve also listed them as one of the best date spots in the city.

That is why I think the news is so devastating for the Logan Circle neighborhood of 14th St, NW. It is such a unique space that can not easily be replaced. Logan Circle will obviously still thrive but removing this neighborhood gem is a punch to the gut even if it is replaced by a really good restaurant. I had heard about the possibility of a closure for a while but I sorta pushed it to the back of my head hoping it couldn’t possibly be true. I’ll be honest – I’m destroyed by this news.

The huge news was broken by City Paper Sunday afternoon:

“Tonight, however, staffers — including owner/director Tony Puesan — confirmed that the first week of January will find HR-57 relocating to a property at H and 9th Streets NE. “It’s a very nice place,” says Puesan. “It’s just in a little bit cheaper building.” The current building, which Puesan owns, is being sold.”

The author Michael J. West speculates:

“it’s a risky venture trading a Metro-accessible location in the U Street corridor’s established jazz district for a still up-and-coming neighborhood whose transit options consist of a shuttlebus and still-unfinished streetcar system.”

I think this is a huge score for the H St, NE area. Despite the concerns mentioned above, I think they will be hugely successful. Of course I haven’t seen the new space at 9th and H St, but I’m certainly looking forward to checking them out.

What do you guys think – will HR 57 thrive on H St, NE?

At long last Chidogo’s will be opening up on Monday at 1934 14th Street, NW just south of 14th and U. I had the chance to check the space out on Sunday and taste a hot dog. It was my first Chicago style hot dog and I gotta say, it was pretty damn good. You can see their menu here. They even offer a couple of Chicago brewed beers on tap for $5.50 “312 Goose Island Beer and Goose Island Seasonal.”

Photos of the inside after the jump. (more…)