Former Editor-in-Chief Ryan Avent writes a weekly column about neighborhood and development issues. The Washington Highlands neighborhood of the District of Columbia is terra incognita for many Washingtonians. Tucked up against the District’s southeastern border with Maryland’s Prince George’s County, the area is walled off from the rest of the city by Oxon Run Park, the Anacostia Freeway, Bolling Air Force Base, and the Anacostia River, not to mention the yawning gap between its economic... more ›

Jonetta Rose Barras: "The District government is spending millions to send children to a controversial special education residential facility in Massachusetts that uses electric shock to discipline students." Wow. Talk about an opening sentence. Rose Barras dedicated her column this week to the 10 District students who have been sent to the facility -- the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, Ma. -- arguing that its unorthodox methods of treatment are reason enough to bring... more ›

For all the hand wringing over the Nats 9-17 April record (the second worst in baseball), the month's last game provided some vindication for many of the teams fans, and especially for centerfielder Ryan Church. At the beginning of April, Church's fate with the team was cloudy, with his supporters almost hoping he could be traded to find another opportunity. A quick glance at the lineup before a 3-2 win over the Padres late Monday... more ›

> > Totally uninformed theory: Wonderland robbery actually masterminded by the mild-mannered members of Norfolk & Western? Just putting it out there... > > Xmas In Washington play to feature Marion Shepilov Barry playing a heroic angel who sings "Stormy Weather" (WTFx10?!?) and comes to the rescue of Katrina evacuees separated from their children. Gloria Hightower says Barry's star turn comes from a desire to make the character "realistic"--which can only mean the following... more ›

One of the first lessons you learn about blogging is that timing is everything. Earlier this week I was emailing DCist Matt about a story idea, a two part story that would ask the question that just had to be answered: Who is crazier more eccentric, Gilbert Arenas or Clinton Portis? We decided to write it over the weekend and run it next week. Great in theory, right? But then Esquire had to go... more ›

"People wear these things as if they were bars on their uniform," Smith said. "I think that some people, particularly young people, want that extra patina of prestige. In Washington, you are much more recognized as a position than as a personality."

for Shakespeare," it's almost your time of year. more ›

If you like your composers Russian, your theater traditional and your Shakespeare, well, everywhere, the Kennedy Center's 2006/2007 season has much to please. As part of "Shakespeare In Washington," the Bard shows up in lots of the Center's theatre, dance and orchestral offerings, from a Royal Shakespeare Company production of Coriolanus to the Kirov Ballet's Romeo and Juliet. The season also brings with it two new partnerships: Arlington's Synetic Theater, which just had a hand... more ›

Scorching housing markets across the country might be taking a breather, but Washington area buyers and sellers don't seem particularly fazed by rising interest rates and uncertain economic conditions. The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight is reporting year on year growth for the last quarter of 2005 of 12.95 percent nationwide, which equates to a fair amount of continued energy for the country as a whole. In Washington, however, prices last quarter were 22 percent higher than in the same period in 2004, good for the fourth highest rate of growth in the country. In Maryland, the number was 21.5 percent and in Virginia, 19.7 percent, placing all three state-type things in the national top ten. more ›

But for a few cities in flyover country the baseball season is effectively over, and the rest of the nation has turned its full attention to the gridiron. In Washington, the story is no different, this being the peak of the D.C. sporting year, and the Post is in full Skins swing, plastering banner photographs on Monday editions above war news and natural disasters. For real baseball towns, however, the offseason is an art in... more ›

As Gothamist and Google reminded us, yesterday was Frank Lloyd Wright's birthday. The master American architect certainly shaped the way our nation viewed building and our relation with space. It's too bad that countless other builders hacked up his vision by creating cookie-cutter suburban split-levels and other such throw-away exurban homesteads. One thing this DCist misses about the Midwest is the close proximity to Wright's architecture. In Washington, we aren't as fortunate. Corinthian columns and pediments are the norm. more ›

When D.C. woke up this morning, the sun was preparing to set on Baghdad. On such an historic day -- Iraq's first post-Hussein national elections -- millions turned out to vote, despite attacks that left more than 30 people dead. In Washington, a city that has been awaiting this day for quite some time, we woke up to fresh snow and John Kerry on NBC's "Meet the Press." The roads were fairly empty and everyone... more ›