Ballou HS Rocks the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Morning Roundup: Black Friday Edition
Photo of the Day: November 27, 2009
Caps Thankful for Varly in 2-0 Win
Thanks to This Week's Advertisers
Many neighborhoods in the District tend to go through a rather predictable routine. They start as fringe areas, slowly attract residents and business owners looking for good deals on housing and commercial properties, see an influx of newcomers as word spreads, and soon become the city's next hot destination. And throughout the process the usual conflicts tend to emerge -- between old and new residents, between local and national businesses. Yesterday the rather tranquil Barracks Row area on Capitol Hill became the next scene for such conflicts.
The Washington Business Journal reported yesterday that one investment firm has been eying properties along the Eighth Street SE corridor for national chains such as The Gap, J. Crew, Ann Taylor and American Apparel -- and pushing out Alvear Studio Design & Imports, a local art, furniture and design store. That news did not sit will with Julie Olson, the local ANC commissioner. She fired off a letter that was posted on a neighborhood listserv, writing:
Speaking as an ANC Commissioner for the west side of 8th street, and as the current Chair of ANC 6B, and as a nearby resident to Barracks Row for over 13 years, I am astounded that anyone would want to make our lovely little neighborhood into a souless Georgetown with a Gap or J. Crew. This is EXACTLY what we DON'T want in this neighborhood...We need to keep the original and unique quality of our beloved Main Street, with unique shopping experiences, and not put in big box retailers, and I can guarantee you will find the neighborhood up in arms if that happens.
Of course, not the whole neighborhood agreed. One resident replied:
Have you lost your mind?! You don't speak for me or for any of my friends or neighbors. Please don't assume that any of us wish share your quixotic attempt to keep a growing area confined to niche shops.Another added:
You like the dollar store and that's fine, but don't pretend that you speak on behalf of the whole neighborhood when you are expressing your own personal opinion...I personally would like to be able to buy things I actually need in my own neighborhood. Very little on Barracks Row fits that description.But another resident jumped to Olson's defense, writing:
If you feel the need to shop at one of the everyone is like the other chain stores, it’s real easy to hop on the subway and go to Pentagon City.The area, which only years ago was to be avoided, has attracted businesses, bars and restaurants since the District spent $8.5 million to brick sidewalks, install new lighting and increase parking as part of the Great Streets Initiative. And as more and more businesses have started moving in -- Matchbox will soon open its second District location along the stretch -- the conflict became inevitable.
The area south of Pennsylvania Avenue down towards the Potomac Avenue Metro Station has started picking up as of recent, and with it have come more and more demands for better shopping and dining on the east end of the Hill. Of course, those demands create the same tensions that have been on display in other parts of the city. Should local businesses be preserved only because they are local, quality notwithstanding? Can chains serve to increase traffic while not having a negative impact on the area's feel? How do such business decisions affect residents, both new and old?
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Barf, the same damn chain stores for the city. The GAP is soo passe, who shops there anyways? Although I guess generic bland american style is in demand on the Hill. If American Apparel comes I want beaver shot ads like in LES of Manhattan! (see gothamist).
How about a fucking grocery store?
I should think a store like the GAP that is paying sales tax would be better than an closed store or abandoned building....
uhh, what closed store? They would be replacing a locally owned store that is already in business.
Appalling. The Great Streets website - http://greatstreetsdc.com/draftreports.asp -doesn't work well now so I can't tell where the federal portion of the funding (USDOT? Filtered through the Mainstreet USA program?), but GAP and other chain stores violate the first two "Great Streets Characteristics":
"Great Streets are representative of the place"
"Great Streets are memorable and interesting"
Maybe I missed the part that says ""Great Streets are exactly like suburban shopping malls, but with traffic and public funding."
The GAP in Old Town didn’t kill King Street’s character. Although much larger, I think King St is an example on how chains and small boutiques can coexist.
The GAP is soo passe, who shops there anyways?
The tourists who spend millions in DC, maybe?
Funny thing about tourists. They want to visit new places, but still crave the comforts of home. Hence the popularity of glamping among the rugged outdoors congnoscenti. It's why there's Ruby Tuesdays and McDonalds and Fuddruckers in Gallery Place, and it's why they're always full of people in Gap baseball caps and Planet Hollywood teeshirts. Have you ever been in a foreign country and stopped in a Mcdonalds for Big Mac fix? It's not because you like the slop, it's because it's a reminder of home when you're a stranger in a strange land. Can you grok on that?
Besides, this is the usual way an urban neighborhood gentrifys: crime gives way to affluence which gives way to disposable income and the inevitable chain stores that want it.
Or to paraphrase Tony Montana, "First you get de money, then you de the power, then you get de Gap."
COME TO H STREET!
Not if you're a biking-riding, tree-hugging hipster. Abandoned buildings add character to the neighborhood.
How about a fucking grocery store?
How about Harris Teeter? Or doesn't that count?
Yes, Gap is boring.
And Alvear Studios, the store they may or may not be replacing, is anything but boring. They've got some pretty interesting stuff.
But it's stunningly expensive. I can get a lot of the same stuff (Mexican-theme art) on ebay for about 1/4 the price.
A lot of stuff on Barracks Row is ridiculously expensive (ever try to get something framed at the frame shop on Barracks Row?).
My favorite silliness on Barracks Row is the pet store, Chateau Animaux. They answer the phone 'Bonjour'. Really nice guys, but I just can't imagine anything stupider.
At least Gap wouldn't charge me $250 for a mirror I could get on ebay for $60.
A Gap in their neighborhood?? What man would want you now, Barracks Row?
monkeyrotica
I stand corrected. Because, yes, HT does count - is the one on Kalorama open yet, BTW?
Yep, can't wait for Gap. I won't feel ok until this whole city is million dollar condos and chain stores.
Harris Teeter is block and plywood right now...it was supposed to open a year ago.
Dunno about the Kalorama HT, but it can't open soon enough. Between the noisy drunk clubgoers and those who chose to buy a condo behind clubs full of noisy drunks, and then complain about the clubs full of noisy drunks, I imagine there will be fisticuffs aplenty in the frozen burrito section.
HT in Adams Morgan isn't scheduled to open until March 2008 at the earliest. The construction management team was just at the ANC meeting last week.
ANCs.....fighting market forces at every turn. DC givernment is a fucking joke.
Good grief. Gap can open up wherever the hell it wants. It's a free country. Quite frankly if everyone hated the Gap so much they would have been put out of business years ago. Somebody other than tourists are obviously shopping there, I suspect some of those people may even live (gasp!) on capitol hill. Not to mention how comical it is that corporate giants dunkin donuts and starbucks on 8th street are overflowing with the well heeled residents of barracks row but god forbid corporate giant Gap tries to sell khakis on the same block.
Seriously, some numbnut has the nerve to complain about the GAP? Like that's not useful developmet. This reminds me of my friend who complained non-stop about a mystery starbucks that was supposed to open in Mt Pleasant. She went on and on about how chain coffee places are putting nonchains out of business and expensive their pastries were and how their sizes got smaller and I stopped her. I haven't bought coffee from starbucks since at least 2000. When did she last buy coffee from Starbucks?
"Everyone buys coffee from Starbucks, I go there a couple of times a week, but I don't LIKE going there, it's soulless."
"Isn't there a Caribou Coffee near you?"
"I'd have to walk like two blocks out of my way to get there, Starbucks is on my way."
yeah, ok, how about if I don't believe one word of these anti-Gappers, ok? Sorry guys, your protests lack any credibility.
You all should put up posters... like ANSWER does!!! :)
It's just about balance. (Almost) no one wants chain stores up and down the block, but there is nothing wrong with a Gap (except to hipper-than-thou urban blog commenters).
To be fair, I wouldn't be wild about seeing U Street (my 'hood) turn into Georgetown's M Street. And there is a natural and legitimate fear that when one chain shows up the rents are going to soon drive out the local businesses. I saw it happen to a once cool area in Boulder, Colorado.
So what's should the local gov't/neighborhood role be in promoting BALANCE? (a mix of local businesses with the national chain store here and there?)
I love it when ANC Commissioners tell me what I don't want in my neighborhood. Give me a break.
Personally, my disgust with the GAP is reflective of the overall retail situation in the city. The same bland stores: Ban Repub, Ann Taylor, Gap can afford the super high rent that the damn developers hold out to get, and thus the lack of fashionable-edgy options at low prices that are present in most global cities and severly lacking here in D.C.
The rents on Barracks Row and U Street and Dupont are "super high" partly because the taxes are super high. Until DC has a tax policy that favors small local businesses, national chains are the only ones who can afford the exhorbitant property taxes. But when your economic development policy consists of generating the maximum tax revenue per square foot, look forward to more overpriced boutique stores and bland chains and sterile office cubes with no ground floor retail. And the occasional last-minute tax reprieve for small business landmarks like Ben's Chili Bowl when their tax bill doubles or even triples.
#24
DC is not fashionable-edgy nor will it ever be, we are bland people and we like it.
Monkey: All true, but regardless of high or low taxes, it is also undeniably true that national chains have an economic advantage in that they can almost always pay more for a given space than a local business.
I live on Cap Hill and have shopped in the Gap more in the past week than I have shopped in any Cap Hill clothing stores over the past 8 years I've lived on Hill. Would Cap Hill residents be up in arms over an Apple store? How about DWR, Whole Foods or West Elm?
Plus, as a parent of a young child, I'll take Baby Gap over Dawn Price any day.
If there's not a small-business owned rail ouside to lock your bike onto, you don't want it in your city...pretentious hipster hypocrites. Take your bike and vegan dogs and go away!
re: guest 29
This isn't about being a "hipster" or liberal tree-hugger (seriously, dude, what's your problem?!) -- it's about ensuring the economic vitality of DC-resident owned small business. Sure, the GAP will also provide sorely needed sales tax to DC, but it doesn't encourage local residents to buy or start businesses, nor does it encourage people to move into the city to do so. The owners of GAP don't provide anything to DC other than sales tax and some minimum wage paying jobs. Local business owners do the same AND encourage the growth of local business independent of national trends and the federal government. It's great that tourists will want to spend money, but what about the people that live in this city (and actually change their driver's license and voter registration)?
And maybe GAP is cheaper than many of the boutiques that exist in DC (I buy GAP jeans btw), but if we can't create a setting where small local businesses can thrive we'll never have anything in DC except expensive high-end boutiques and big box stores. And, as Gawker points out ad nauseum, isn't that part of what makes DC so lame? More GAPs never made anyone move anywhere except a suburb.
Not that I take anything Gawker says with more than a grain of salt...but it should be noted, they hate hipsters too!
guest #29: Why must bikes get all wrapped up in this? What, are you worried someone might get there faster, cheaper, or have less trouble parking than you? Why must you self-identify against my preferred mode of urban transportation? I don't have any problem owning or using a car, or letting you use one as long as you respect my ability to use the road.
I'm a bike-rider who's more than willing to concede that having a Gap on Barracks Row won't be the end of civilization as we know it. In general, I'm inclined to agree with monkey's comments on tax policies, and I'm also inclined to point out that the height restriction is a key reason why commercial space is scarce. Still, the Gap is a pretty middle-class chain clothing store at this point; the fact that they've chosen to open up in the Eastern half of the city says to me that they're banking on the notion that the economic divide in this city might finally get a little less stark. As far as I can tell, that's progress.
Doesn't feel good to be stereotyped now does it, mr. bikerider? As a black resident in Barracks row, I'm happy to see The Gap taking interest in my neighborhood. Finally, I don't have to leave the hood to be able to buy some decent clothes for my family. That's why I'm raging out at you people who are boohooing about this "terrible chain store". Why don't you put yourself in somebody else's shoes for once? Guess that's too difficult for ya.
Re: 33
I have to say that though I think (and said) that it sucks DC keeps getting big box, it's not about me being some white elitist hating on affordable choices for my neighbors or picking "unique trendiness" over accessibility. I don't have much money either and like I said, I buy my jeans at the GAP or at Target. What I was trying to say is that I think the problem lies with the fact that though local residents can afford to shop at stores like the GAP, they often can't afford to own them. I agree with monkey that the city needs to reshape its policies and tax structure so that local places can thrive. I think it's great when neighborhoods get stores with affordable items, I just wish that local stores could price things the same and still afford their property taxes. I'm certainly not one of those people boo-hooing the Marshalls coming to Columbia Heights because I want a Banana Republic or an Anthropologie or a local high-end fashion boutique. I just wish could have some sort of a local and affordable alternative to those options. You know, where locally-owned is a viable choice both for me, the consumer, and my fellow DC-resident, the entrepreneur?
HT in Adams Morgan isn't scheduled to open until March 2008 at the earliest. The construction management team was just at the ANC meeting last week.
Bummer. I guess they pushed things back a bit. HT management told Jim Graham recently it would be open in February, with the Capitol Hill store following a month later.
Why should I care if the owner is someone living down the block or some CEO living 2000 miles away?
Does this impact me in any way?
Locally owned stores are are locally owned and not chains because they generally suck.
You think the owner cars?
At some point the GAP was a locally owned store in SF.
~Anonymous Douche
I live four blocks from Barracks Row and I rarely go there because most of the restaurants are subpar (Belga is the worst) and the only shop worth visiting is the bicycle store (even though I don't own a bike).
I would not welcome a Gap but Eastern Market desperately needs a men's clothing store, along with other types of commerce besides bars that happen to serve food. I thought the Marvelous Market would help but so far it's been a major disappointment.
If the growth path continues as it is, the area is going to turn into a poor man's Dupont Circle. I'd rather it look like Georgetown, as sad as that sounds. At least I can buy something in Georgetown.
I live near Barracks Row and the difference between pre and post 6pm is stark. The restaurants seem to be doing rather well, but the retail stores are yes, locally-owned, eclectic, and struggling. Part of the problem, as others have pointed out, is that they're expensive and/or narrowly focused (knitters, pet-owners). The row needs the equivalent of a department store anchor to attract foot traffic. I think the GAP is a flailing chain nationally; H&M would do better, although it already has two DC locations.
Hillman: I recall you made the same ebay comment about the oriental furniture in the Eastern Market flea market and I remember thinking that it must be true. I actually checked out two identical items -- they were both more expensive on ebay at minimum bid.
I think we're making a lot of assumptions about smaller stores.
First, a lot of small store owners don't live in DC. They live in MD or VA. As such, DC gets no more in taxes than they do from a large corporation.
In fact, the big retailers probably make a lot more $$ than the small outfit does. So from a strictly tax income view, the big retailers are probably better for the city.
And just what do we consider 'local'? Is Five Guys local? How about Cap City Brewery?
Another poster said height restrictions are one reason for high commercial property prices. I don't see how that would affect retail. Retail is almost always on the first floor so the inability to go up another ten floors isn't really relevant. A far more limiting factor is the fact that well over half the city is blighted, with high crime rates. Retailers get sick of being robbed out of existence.
Gap versus some weird African clothing store that sells a bunch of crazy crap that no one would actually ever buy.
And there are still some abandoned storefronts on 8th Street.
Upper Georgia Avenue is going through a similar battle. It seems that any chain with the exception of a godly Whole Foods is not accepted as a form of redevelopment.
What's wrong with Georgetown anyways?
#33: I'm assuming that was directed at me. Maybe you missed the content of my post, but I agreed with you. Every neighborhood in this city does not need to be the next iteration of Dupont Circle (or whatever it is that people perceive as the virtues of Dupont Circle). In fact, if there's anything that DC needs, it's more middle-class and working-class neighborhoods that are modest, safe, and affordable, but that retain some degree of local character.
I don't actually think that most residents in this city, black or white, hipster or not, really disagree on this point. Not that DC doesn't have its share of people who are completely out of touch with reality, and not that the obvious purchasing power of certain segments of the population don't make a difference, but I think you'll find that even most new residents of the city want more or less the same thing.
Personally, I think most of the disagreements between people that come up on these boards are difference in perspective on the same goal. Most of the newcomers to this city have lived all their lives in places that were relatively affordable and perfectly safe, but lacked any semblance of character. It's no surprise that those people are going to defend the preservation of whatever it is that they see as character; they left their bland suburban backgrounds in search of it. Similarly, longtime residents in many parts of DC have gone decades without neighborhoods that are safe from violent crime or that cater to their residents. The very dearth of these neighborhoods has pushed prices to skyrocket in the few neighborhoods that have these features, and has caused several neighborhoods to undergo rapid and jarring change. Why are we surprised that these folks are trying to ensure that neighborhoods cater to their residents and remain affordable?
The character that independent stores bring is an important thing, but the existence of one Gap in Southeast DC should be a welcome indication that a major national retailer is interested in serving the people of a community that has until now been highly under-served. I'm pretty confident that there's no shortage of other options in Barracks Row for the people who choose not to patronize the Gap.
This is what's wrong with Georgetown. I swear, I'd just as soon eat a fistful of dog poop as step into the Georgetown Clydes. Anybody remember when they were doing construction out front and they put up a temporary wooden wall, and some wag spraypainted, "This wall keeps rats from jumping at you"?
Uh, Clydes is a local outfit. Wouldn't this sortof go against the 'local good, national bad' mantra?
Motofoto, Quiznos, Starbucks(x2), Popeyes, Dunkin Donuts, Subway (x2), Cosi, 7-11, Mattress Discounters, Blockbuster . . . not to mention Union Station
No shortage of soulless chains on the Hill. The Gap would fit right in.
Has anyone ever bought a mattress from that Mattress Discounters? I've never even seen anyone go in the store, much less buy anything. I always suspect that stores like that are really a front for organized crime.
And that Blockbuster on 8th sucks bigtime. Filthy store, surly patrons, etc. The usual DC retail experience, just brought to you by a national chain that cuts it's movies for content without telling you.
Plus, the only gap us Hill residents are interested in is the gap between the mens room stall and the floor - all the better to keep those friendly rightwing senators in town during their down time (so to speak).
Just because it's local doesn't mean it's any good. And just because it's a chain doesn't mean it's lousy.
Clydes is a lousy, local chain. Really, after I had their Veal Saltimbocca, I couldn't poop straight for a week. It was like a cholera epidemic minust the sweet embrace of the crypt.
What would be a middle-class neighborhood with useful, affordable, local, non-chain retail? New Urbanist resorts don't count. Perhaps it exists in the US, but I've only ever seen it working abroad, in Japan and Taiwan.
I don't competely agree with this idea of "character" but let's be clearer about why national chains on the whole are bad for consumers. (We all know why they are good for consumers.) They are designed to ignore regional differences and produce a homogeneous standard. Their employees are poorly treated and so don't stick around for long. With a few exceptions, the ownership doesn't work in the stores; the transaction is made between you and corporate finance. Home Depot is cheap but no one really can be bothered to answer your questions. Economies of scale drive out local alternatives. And then there is the Walmart effect on hospital emergency rooms.
Hillman: sounds like you really hate where you live. Listen, I've got a great, empty one bedroom in Alexandria that I need to shift before my rate resets...
Barracks Row has a lot of potential. It has improved mightily since just a few years ago. But there is still room for improvement. A Gap would improve the retail selection. You can get $20 polo shirts, or a striped crewneck sweater for $35. The problem is that great places are defined by their unique assets, and the Gap is as ubiquitous as they get (but their ubiquity is derived from their popularity, so I'm not alarmed). As long as Barracks Row still has unique assets, adding the Gap would add a nice balance. Is the Gap better than Alvear Studio? Though Alvear adds a nice identity to the block, I'm less likely to buy something there than at the Gap, sorry to say.
Barracks Row should focus on its current strengths - proximity to the Marine compound, the Navy Yard, Eastern Market... A store like Marine Specialties in Ptown (http://www.ptownarmynavy.com/) would be perfect (note their wares are cheap, comapred to Alvear), and maybe more food specialty shops to tie in to Eastern market.
I love supporting local shops (my fave is Home Rule on 14th St), but sometimes it's easier to go in a "soul-less" chain because the owner isn't staring me down praying to God I will buy something. Sometimes I like having soulless wage slaves to buy underwear from because I know they don't care if I'm just browsing.
And if you really hate the Gap, just don't shop there. The market is reasonably democratic. You can hate the other folks who do shop there, but we don't hate you for eating tofu and wheat grass (joking!). (I like tofu and wheat grass.)
And most importantly, if you think your neighborhood needs more independent businesses, support the ones you like and open new ones yourself!
Guest 50:
I like where I live well enough. But I've lived in and been to other places so I know enough to to call BS when people pretend DC isn't what it is, and when we all act like paid members of the DC Chamber of Commerce instead of being honest about the city, for better and worse. We all seem to want to pretend that there is no crime in DC, and that DC doesn't have a terrible customer service atmosphere overall (with a few notable exceptions).
And it's not just DC. It's region-wide. People that have lived here all their adult lives think it is normal. The rest of us know better.
Where exactly are these utopian "international" cities brimming with nothing but successful locally owned businesses?
It sounds like some people interested in Barracks Row want to see increased foot traffic. A popular chain store would do that for the area.
I actually like Georgetown. I often hear people say they don't like the national chains in Georgetown - esp. Banana Republic, Gap. But, I wonder how many of those same people realize that Georgetown is also the base of international boutiques and stores in DC such as Energie, Diesel, and many other stores that are found in most other global cities around the world. Those stores are not based in the US, and there are plenty more of them in Georgetown. Plus, Georgetown still has plenty of independent, local stores and eateries. I like the mix that Georgetown has, and that is probably why it is so popular. It has an international flair and many people that visit DC from abroad find it to be quite refreshing.
For the ANC member to call Georgetown soulless is bit drastic.
Chains do bring in more foot traffic to an area. They serve as anchors and that can benefit independent stores and restaurants in more ways than one.
I would take a reliable chain store any day over a mediocre or less-than-mediocre independent store. And, DC does have plenty of mediocre independent stores. Plenty. I am not going to defend those.
DC is still an underserved retail market in most categories. Even 30 years ago, it was an underserved retail market.
Chain stores (all of which are not US-based btw) and independent stores have plenty of opportunity in DC. There are plenty of boarded-up storefronts and buildings in many popular areas of the city for indies to open up in. We should have a mix of both.
This debate sounds like Cap Hill old guard vs new. The old guard loves the young professionals and families settling on the Hill/Hill East because it boosts housing demand and signals increased safety. Many newer residents are younger (coupled and uncoupled), less married to long standing local businesses (imho largely mediocre to worse) and feel underserved (chain or no chain).
This is really well summed up in another debate about Trader Joes potential entry on the Hill (playing out on various listservs). Seems like a no-brainer if TJs wants to open shop, but there's even vocal opposition to TJs from the old guard.
It bugs me to see the crowds at some of the awful eateries on the Hill, with a few exceptions. H St is more promising destination than Penn Ave/Eastern Market/Barracks Row triangle.
Best Comment Ever: "DC is not fashionable-edgy nor will it ever be, we are bland people and we like it."
Isn't that why its the Hollywood for ugly people?
PS-- Anyone with $18 (okay, call it $25 with commission and fees) can be an owner of The Gap. At that rate, owning a "big box" has a MUCH lower barrier to entry than owning a "local business." Plus, you can be a business owner without having to work the closing shift on Saturdays.
Look for it as GPS on the New York Stock Exchange.
This capitalism thing is really pretty sweet.
it's about ensuring the economic vitality of DC-resident owned small business.
----
Right, but you do understand that single-location brick and mortar stores no longer exist in the united states, right? That era ended around 2002 and it will never, under any circumstances return. I have friends in the restaurant industry and when they invest in new restaurants they get the decor, menu and all the feel of the place down, have one success and then open 5 or 6 around the country, because what works in DC works in Atlanta.
Look at something like Olives on 16th St. There are no more than 20 Olives in the United States, but there are a few of them out there. Look at the Chart House which serves local seafood in 20 different cities.
Look at Five Guys burgers. That business was going to go out of business unless it opened 20 locations. I'm not talking about opening a second location, I mean it had to borrow millions to open 20 or just close shop because there is no middle ground.
This is true of every US city and while for people who like odd food variety it sucks, it's simply like the decline in using horses to pull carts, that era of business has ended. Wishing and hoping is not going to make it viable again.
If you were to open a clothing boutique in DC, you better get the money to open one in NY and LA at the same time and have an online store as well because you'll need that revenue to keep from going bankrupt. All my acquaintances that opened mom and pop record stores or hipster hangouts went broke because they had one location and one group of customers when they had the plans that could have opened multiple stores...
and Hillman, the concept that half of the city is blighted is patently false. I drive through the city and it's not even remotely true. There are plenty of retail and carryout options in the worst parts of Anacostia. Northeast is a funky paradise, and all of Northwest, the largest part of the city, is 100% free of blight.
unless "blight" is a code word for something you won't post.
PS-- Anyone with $18 (okay, call it $25 with commission and fees) can be an owner of The Gap. At that rate, owning a "big box" has a MUCH lower barrier to entry than owning a "local business." Plus, you can be a business owner without having to work the closing shift on Saturdays.
Look for it as GPS on the New York Stock Exchange.
This capitalism thing is really pretty sweet.
-----
Owning stock is nothing, not anything remotely, like having control over a business and that's ALL that we were talking about, so take your stock ownership back to fantasyland.
I'm assuming that was directed at me. Maybe you missed the content of my post, but I agreed with you. Every neighborhood in this city does not need to be the next iteration of Dupont Circle (or whatever it is that people perceive as the virtues of Dupont Circle). In fact, if there's anything that DC needs, it's more middle-class and working-class neighborhoods that are modest, safe, and affordable, but that retain some degree of local character.
---------
No, you're actually really missing the point.
The region needs farms and farming, but should Washington, DC put aside swaths of 9th St NW for families to build cattle farms?
No. They shouldn't. It might be fun, but it's not real.
Could DC survive catering only to the middle class and upper class and super wealthy? Of course.
Because the suburbs also can provide places for people to live just like the suburban counties provide farms.
When I was a teenager Georgetown's M St looked like U st does now and Adams Morgan looked like H ST NE does now. U St was boarded up and when I was a punk in the 1980s and people don't get this, there were still buildings boarded up with fire damage from the 1968 riots. Now Georgetown looks like Friendship heights, now Adams Morgan looks like Georgetown circa 1990, now U St looks like Adams Morgan circa 1988, now H St looks like the 900 F St... Come on, the whole area is improving, there are plenty of funky places in NE, think of GLUT for instance, and it's a big wide open place for people to rent or buy group houses.
Every community here has changed and the farmers were completely 100% pushed out of Washington, DC itself. It's not at all strange to think market forces will push out entire classes of people from the small confines of district lines. Let's start with the drug dealers first...
Hillman, the height restriction does impact retail, because if there is artificial pressure to get as much value out of a parcel of land as possible, then there is an incentive to use all of the vertical space available to maximum profits. If there was no restriction, they could get the same amount of office space and just build one floor higher to make room for ground level retail, at minimal additional cost. The restriction removes that option and forces corners to be cut.
But of course the ground level retail mantra that I hear all the time here only really makes sense in neighborhoods with a significant portion of residential. Another consequence of the height restriction is to reduce density such that business and residential zones are less able to coexist in close proximity, and with less residential there is less demand for that retail you want built in. There are a select few places in the city that get this balance quite right under the current environment.