According to an email he sent to the Shaw neighborhood listserv this afternoon, Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans will shelve controversial legislation that would have given Shiloh Baptist Church a tax break on the development of several properties it owns along 9th Street NW. "In light of the community opposition to the legislation regarding the Shiloh Baptist Church’s properties, I have withdrawn the legislation and contacted Rev. Wallace Smith, Pastor of Shiloh, of such," the email states. The proposed bill would have reclassified 1526, 1528, 1532, 1533 and 1534 9th Street NW as residential buildings, rather than vacant, if Shiloh met certain financial requirements -- it could have saved the Church approximately $100,000 in taxes if it had passed. more ›

Renovation work began late last week on the exteriors of several long-vacant properties owned by Shiloh Baptist Church in the 1500 block of 9th Street NW. more ›

After decades of promises but little action, Shiloh Baptist Church in Shaw has decided to sell two of its controversial vacant buildings and use the proceeds to fund a major redevelopment of its remaining properties. more ›

WJLA picked up the story that Renew Shaw first reported last week: DCRA now confirms that a handful of controversial, long-vacant properties owned by the trustees of Shiloh Baptist Church in Shaw were improperly reclassified as no longer vacant, thus allowing the church to avoid paying additional nuisance property taxes. WJLA cites an official who estimates that the city lost out on $100,000 in revenue due to the error. more ›

>> Don't forget: thousands of dirty hippies and the gun-toting maniacs who hate them are getting together for a big ol' hootenanny down on the National Mall tomorrow morning. It's the War on War on War. >> At the Washington City Paper, editorial assistants who make mistakes aren't just named, they're taken out back and tortured with one million paper cuts using the latest issue while Erik Wemple screams "you're not good enough to... more ›

>> D.C. Fire Chief Dennis Rubin is reportedly fine after he was involved in what the department is calling a very minor traffic accident in Adams Morgan. [NBC4] >> Members of Shiloh Baptist Church in Shaw officially filed suit in their effort to oust current pastor Rev. Wallace Charles Smith, who they claim has mismanaged the church's assets. [FreeRide] >> Asylum Skate Shop to be replaced by unnamed fresh casual food establishment. [Penn Quarter... more ›

Repair work has begun on a series of controversial, condemned vacant properties owned by a local church in the Shaw neighborhood. more ›

We've been following the fate of the 9th St. NW Shiloh Baptist Church properties since they were condemned in mid-May. No visible repairwork has since been performed on the buildings, despite an order from the District to fix the roof, gutters, masonry and generally clean up and make the buildings safe. Yesterday at a meeting of the D.C. Board for the Condemnation of Insanitary Buildings, the board ordered DCRA to either perform the repairs... more ›

Written by Vince Wadhwani When Vegetate and Queen of Sheba applied for liquor licenses in September 2005, Shiloh Baptist Church unexpectedly protested, causing both restaurants a lengthy delay which, in the case of Queen of Sheba, is still ongoing almost two years later. For Vegetate, however, the news is brighter, with legislation being passed earlier this year allowing them to serve wine, beer, and cocktails. Many restaurants may have folded up under the pressure of... more ›

To date, four days past the official deadline set by the city for repair work to be completed, no work has even started despite promises to comply by the church leadership. Mayor Fenty has said that should Shiloh fail to complete the required repairs, he would order the work done and place on a lien on the properties to force the church to pay for them. DCRA spokesperson Karyn-Siobhan Robinson tells us that as of today, no action has been taken on the properties, but that the D.C. Board for the Condemnation of Insanitary Buildings will hold its regular semi-monthly meeting at DCRA this Wednesday, June 13, and the Shiloh properties are on the agenda. We'll be sure to update on Thursday when we know what happened at the meeting. more ›

Still no action on the condemned Shiloh Baptist Church properties. I've been posting photos of these buildings, which are under order by the city to be repaired by May 31, for a full week now. It seems unlikely this work, even if it began over the weekend, could all be completed in time to meet that deadline. The city has vowed to do the repair work and charge the church, via a lien, for it should Shiloh fail to comply. more ›

Still no sight of any repairs having begun on the condemnded Shiloh Baptist Church properties today. The church has until May 31 to complete a list of repairs to four rowhouses on 9th St. NW before the city claims it will do the work on its own and place a lien on the properties to pay for them. more ›

Here's the view today of the front of 1536, 1534 and 1532 9th St. NW, three of the four condemned rowhouse properties owned by Shiloh Baptist Church. Yesterday I posted a rear view of some properties that are also seriously dilapidated but that had some visible yard work recently completed, and one commenter pointed out that those are not the same buildings. This is absolutely correct: those properties, located next door, are part of... more ›

I heard some promising construction-like noises coming from the direction of the condemned Shiloh Baptist Church properties this morning, but alas, it seems I was fooled by some friendly garbage men doing their normal Monday pick-ups. Since the buildings were condemned on Wednesday and the church was given orders to complete a list of repairs, including cleaning the interiors, installing new roofs, fixing brickwork and installing gutters, Shiloh has pledged to complete the work... more ›

Four properties on 9th St. NW that are owned by Shiloh Baptist Church have been officially condemned by the city. Notices on the buildings indicate the city’s Board for the Condemnation of Insanitary Buildings considers the properties “in such insanitary condition as to endanger the health or the lives of the occupants thereof and/or persons in the vicinity.” Shiloh's vacant properties have been a subject of heated debate within one of the most acrimonious ANCs... more ›

We've used the power of blogging to get potholes fixed, so why not use it to spur some local development? At least that's what one blogger and Shaw resident is looking to do. The anonymous blogger behind Off Seventh -- My Chronicles of Shaw is sick and tired of seeing properties in the fast-growing neighborhood boarded up and undeveloped, and he wants do something about it. He writes: My wife and I were heading to... more ›

It may have been buried towards the bottom of a Post article this morning, but this little piece of news is sure to please some people: In other action, the council approved an emergency bill that allows exceptions for businesses that are within 400 feet of a school, college or District-operated recreation area applying for liquor licenses. D.C. law prohibits such proximity, but the bill will allow exceptions for businesses in commercial areas.It's been a... more ›

In the 70's, Karen Carpenter sang that "Rainy Days and Mondays" always got her down. Well, this would chart as a real downer, as today combines the two. On a cheerier note, Saturday morning I took in the unveiling of Cultural DC's Shaw Heritage Trail, which included a fabulous performance by the Shiloh Baptist Church choir and had a great turn-out from the community; check out the Trail, and the local Shaw businesses, sometime in... more ›

Today the on-going tiff between Vegetate and Shiloh Baptist Church in Shaw gained mainstream media attention. Well, sort of. Washington Times columnist Adrienne Washington reporter Amy Dolittle today explores the two sides of the conflict in the wake of the city's recent decision not to grant the vegetarian restaurant a liquor license. City officials based their decision on an existing law forbidding the sale of alcohol within 400 feet of a school. One point of... more ›

In order to keep DCist's newly veg food editor happy and well fed, Sidra Forman and Derrick Bullock (formerly of Viridian, Perrys, and Rupperts) have moved to Vegetate, the new all-vegetarian restaurant/locus of neighborhood tension in Shaw. more ›

Last November we wrote about a brewing development fight in Shaw, where the Shiloh Baptist Church was exercising considerable influence against the applications for liquor licenses for two restaurants, Queen of Sheba and Vegetate. Recently DCist's own Rob Goodspeed reported on the continuing struggle, writing that Vegetate was lobbying Council-member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) to act upon a clause in District law that would finally allow the vegetarian restaurant to get its liquor license. According... more ›

Last Saturday DCist checked out one of the newest Ethiopian restaurants to open in D.C., Queen of Sheba. You may remember from this September City Paper story that the restaurant found their efforts to obtain a liquor license thwarted by Shiloh Baptist Church, which operates a child care center next door to the new restaurant and is located directly across the street. The church has also moved to block the license of Vegetate, located a block away. In both cases the church contended that the restaurants were too close to the nearby Seaton Elementary school, however they are curiously silent about the liquor store they share the corner with -- or the nearby Giant Supermarket which sells beer and wine until 10 p.m. during the week. more ›

It's a familiar sight to anyone who's driven in D.C. on a Sunday: rows upon rows of double-parked cars. The vehicles belong to churchgoers, many of whom make the trip in from the suburbs for worship services. The spectacle lasts for the better part of the day, cutting many streets down to a single lane in each direction and occasionally trapping the cars of unprepared neighborhood residents.

So far as we know, the double parking is technically illegal — but police and parking enforcement officers turn a blind eye. After all, traffic is light on Sunday, and it doesn't seem right to pick on churchgoers.

But it looks like a storm is brewing over church parking. Today, WJLA's website carries a story about the parking situation; and just yesterday this DCist came across an NBC4 camera crew (pictured above) shooting material for a piece about the issue.

More importantly, area businesses and residents are starting to complain. The Logan Circle News blog reports that a campaign has been started asking city officials to crack down on the illegal parking. And the manager of Vegetate has told DCist that Shiloh Baptist Church's objections to his restaurant may be motivated by parking concerns: Vegetate's brunch offerings seem destined to make Sunday parking on Ninth Street a contentious issue.

Some argue that parking enforcement should be completely even-handed. Others point out that many congregation members have been displaced by gentrification, and that denying them easy access to their churches would add insult to injury. The only thing that's certain is that the city's economic boom means the debate isn't likely to fade away. What do you think?

New development in the historic Shaw neighborhood has put two restaurateurs' liquor licenses on uncertain footing and sparked a conflict about the future of the neighborhood. The restaurants are located on Ninth Street between the new Convention Center and Rhode Island Avenue, just blocks from both the Mt. Vernon Square and Shaw Metro stations and steps from where this DCist lives. They also both happen to be located a stone's throw from Shiloh Baptist Church,... more ›