Summer vacation is over, the overseers are demanding you return to offices and schools even if you have had Covid three times, and Glover Park is active and back to business after a sleepy summer. Here is a rundown of recent activity in the neighborhood:
Wingo’s
Wingo’s at 2218 Wisconsin Avenue was not able to grab an entertainment liquor license during the short period when the long moratorium on such licenses might or might not have expired (the Advisory Neighborhood Commission has since submitted a proposal to ABRA to extend it for another three years). Instead, they were able to amend their settlement agreement with the ANC to allow live music, karaoke and poetry readings, among other activities. The agreement though states that Wingo’s WILL NOT ALLOW DANCING! To prevent this, if someone happens to stand up and move around during a riff of come-on-shake-your-body-baby-do-the-conga, the staff has been issued MPD-approved Tasers and have the authority to zap anyone attempting to move rhythmically until they fall back into their seats. The settlement agreement states that they must not disturb the peace and quiet of neighbors, and in particular they reference the DeVol Funeral Home, because, well, that would be awkward...especially if Stairway to Heaven began reverberating through the walls.
In Bocca al Lupo
The hot new Italian restaurant which replaced Arcuri and is serving great Roman-style pizza from the huge pizza oven will kick off their official grand opening with a fancy soire on Thursday 9/15 from 6:00-10:00 pm at 2400 Wisconsin Avenue. They will have open bar, live music, dinner, dancing (no one will be tazed) and a dough-flipping competition (maybe don’t wear black if you want to participate….). Get your tickets here and plan to congratulate owners Massimo and Carolyn Papetti.
Saka Home
Saka Home Furniture will open a retail showroom soon at 2201 Wisconsin Avenue along Glover Park’s “furniture row”, which includes Theodore’s and Ligne Roset. Saka is a family-owned business which manufactures, sells and repairs sofas, chairs and other home furnishings. No word on an opening date yet, but it is a good sign when retailers buy in to the neighborhood, just as Architessa did a few months ago below the new apartment building where Georgetown Carpet once sat. Architessa has a showroom with a wide range of tile for kitchen, baths and other uses.
F45 Training
Move aside CrossFit! F45 Training is moving into Glover Park in the new building which houses Trader Joe’s and the Glover House apartments. No nonsense, no mirrors, they will make you sweat, they will set your muscles on fire and you will burn more calories in 45 minutes than the contents of that giant Sweetgreen salad you plan to spend 45 minutes eating afterwards. They have been in “soft opening” mode for a few months, no word yet on an official, hard, grand, permanent, for-real opening, but you can sign up for "founding member" discounts.
Stoddert Expansion
The DC Department of General Services is preparing to award the construction contract for the Stoddert Elementary School expansion possibly any day now. The major effort will add 12,000 square feet and renovate another 4,000 square feet to relieve the severe overcrowding at the school. This should increase student capacity to 554, though some projections show even that capacity might be fully absorbed by the time construction is complete. The project will be LEED-Gold certified, will cost an estimated $16.4 million, and should be ready for the 2024/25 school year. This project though, does not negate the efforts to split the neighborhood student population and send some to the planned new elementary school on Foxhall Road. That debate is ongoing. The $1.6 million contract to renovate the old Georgetown Day School on MacArthur Boulevard was awarded last month to the Broughton Construction Company, which has done a number of DC schools and other facilities in the past. DCPS expects to open the new Ward 3 high school (in-boundary for Glover Park) for the 2023/24 school year.
Cannabis, Pot, Weed, Reefer, Ganja
I have noticed that some people do not like that I make jokes about DC’s legalized marijuana efforts. [Please stop reading here]. The evaluation continues for the DC Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration to approve the one slot available for a Ward 3 pot dealer (I mean Caregiver). Two groups have submitted applications for the Subway store at 2216 Wisconsin and Laliguras Restaurant at 2332 Wisconsin Ave. Glover Park’s ANC3B has submitted to ABRA their opposition to the approval of either of these companies or locations. Without ANC support, the likelihood of ABRA approval is very low. Legalized sales are becoming big business in DC, and for DC with the taxation and regulatory fees – see the latest sales report below. Interestingly, the majority of users are from out of state (MD, VA, PA, FL, NJ). DC’s euphemisms are hilarious: User = Patient; Pot Store = Caregiver; Pot Dealer = Healthcare Provider. The words are not important, and whether people support legalization and proliferation, to me is less important than enforcing the laws – no smoking in public places, no driving under the influence, no dealing outside of the well-defined rules. Either enforce them or change these dead-letter laws.
Chris Jones
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