Introduction

All about the Edgewood Neighborhood of Washington, DC

Questions/Comments/Story Ideas - email me at lifeontheedgewood@gmail.com





Friday, November 26, 2010

Edgewood Home Sales


Here is this week's data on homes for sale in Edgewood. I am using Redfin because it allows you to search by neighborhood, but if you have any other ideas or ways to get listings or open houses please let me know!

Here is the link to the data in Redfin:

Edgewood DC Real Estate

Edgewood has a very diverse housing stock with a wide range of sizes and prices. Right now the most expensive places listed are the new homes being built in Chancellor's Row listed at $591,900 while the least expensive listing is a 1 bedroom condo listed at $99,000. It seems that there are a steady number of houses selling across the price ranges and there are quite a few pending sales that have yet to be posted.

There are two new sales posted:

330 Bryant Street NE sold on November 17th for $302,000
3000 7th Street NE #124 sold on November 18th for $52,000

There are no open houses listed for Edgewood.. If you know of any please add the information to the comments section.

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

The Future of the Rhode Island Avenue Shopping Center


The Rhode Island Avenue Shopping Center at the edge of Edgewood is an homage to suburban shopping centers in the city and was built in the late 1980s. I met part of the Vanguard Realty Group at the DCBIA Met Branch Trail project volunteering and thanks to my favorite DDOT employee I was able to talk to him in length about the shopping center and the changes that are coming to it and the community. I was surprised to learn that while most of the attention has been about Safeway leaving and the center needing a new grocery store, especially from the seniors, the rest of the center is fully leased. Here is the listing for the empty Safeway space.

Here are the current tenants of the center:

Forman Mills
Key Kiosk
Judy's Beauty Supply
Rainbow
H&R Block
Cricket
Rent-A-Center
Susan Fashion
Subway
Popeyes
Ashley Stewart
Payless ShoeSource
CVS/Pharmacy
Neighborhood Legal Services Program
New Vision Photography Program, Inc.
Zipcar

The truth is that Safeway left our neighborhood with a year left on their lease. I would like people to take that in, as well as, the condition of the store and conclude that Safeway was not going to invest in the Edgewood community. When people were protesting Safeway leaving and wanting the City Council to intervene I was very confused. I shopped there occasionally because it was quick to walk to, but besides the location the only thing it had going for it was a few really great employees.

What's next for that space? The Vanguard Realty Group is actively trying to lease the space and was in talks with a discount grocery store and a discount retail store last time I checked. I have put in a call to see if there are any updates and will let you know as soon as I do. I was told that whatever moves in it will not happen until Spring 2011. They are looking for a store that will sign a 10 year lease and that is complicating matters. Most of the stores in that center have about 8-10 years left on their leases except for Forman Mills which has about 12 years.

You may be wondering why the length of the leases matters so much and that is because all of this is background to my questions about the future of the center. If you attended any of the Rhode Island Avenue Great Streets meetings you would know that the plan suggested extending roads into this shopping center and making it more urban and pedestrian friendly. Given the current lease terms it looks like the development of this shopping center will not happen for another 8-12 years. While I am sad to report this I will say I do feel more positive about the shopping center and their plan for growth. The owners of the shopping center and the leasing agent have been very active in the community. They have allowed for the creation of community murals, an entrance to the Met Branch Trail, volunteered with DCBIA community improvement day on the trail, been supportive of hosting an Edgewood Farmer's Market, and are excited about the pedestrian bridge from their center to the metro. They have also stated that they would be open to developing the center one half at a time if Forman Mills is the only one left with a lease.

PSA 501 Meeting, November 17th

The PSA 501 meeting will be on Wednesday, November 17, 2010 @ 1900hrs at the Harry Thomas Recreation Center located at 1743 Lincoln Road, NE.

We look forward to meeting residents and or business owners to form or enhance current partnerships to reduce crime and make neighborhoods safe that are located in PSA 501.

Thank you for your support and assistance without these essentials we could not achieve success.

Brian Grogan
Captain
Fifth District, PSA 501
1805 Bladensburg Road, Northeast 20002
(202) 698-0118 or Cell (202) 506-0694
brian.grogan@dc.gov

Special 5DCAC November Meeting, November 18th

5th District Citizens’ Advisory Council, Inc.
Metropolitan Police Department
in association with
Ward 5 Councilmember Harry Thomas, Jr.
Stronghold Civic Association

Special Monthly Meeting Thursday, 18 November 2010 7:00 – 8:30 P.M.
Stronghold Community Public Safety Meeting

Come and share your public safety concerns with Councilmember Harry Thomas, 5DMPD officials, and the Office of the US Attorney for the District of Columbia

All Nation’s Baptist Church
2001 North Capitol Street, NE

ANC 5C Meeting Tonight


Tonight's ANC 5C meeting is now being held at Harry Thomas Rec Center starting at 7:00 p.m.

Ward 5 Holiday Party

Mark Your Calendar Now to Attend the
Ward 5 Holiday Party
On Thursday, December 16, 2010!

Mark your calendar now to attend Councilmember Thomas' Ward 5 Holiday Party! Event details are as follows:

WHO: Ward 5 Councilmember Harry "Tommy" Thomas, Jr.

WHAT: Ward 5 Holiday Party

WHEN: Thursday, December 16, 2010 -- 6:30 pm to 8:00 pm

WHERE: Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Ave., NW -- 1st Floor

Environmental Assessment of Met Branch Trail

The Environmental Assessment (EA) required to continue the sections of the Met Branch Trail from Fort Totten to Takoma (and including the Prince George's Connector) is now available for public comment. Go to the link below to review and send your comments (which must be submitted by Dec. 15, 2010).

http://ddot.dc.gov/DC/DDOT/About+DDOT/News+Room/Public+Notices/Notice+of+Public+Availability+for+the+Metropolitan+Branch+Trail+Environmental+Assessment

d. Heather Deutsch | Bicycle Program Specialist/Trail Planner | Policy, Planning & Sustainability Administration | District Department of Transportation | 2000 14th St., NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20009 | tel: 202.671.2638 | fax: 202.671.0617 | heather.deutsch@dc.gov | www.ddot.dc.gov

Friday, November 12, 2010

Edgewood Home Sales


Here is this week's data on homes for sale in Edgewood. I am using Redfin because it allows you to search by neighborhood, but if you have any other ideas or ways to get listings or open houses please let me know!

Here is the link to the data in Redfin:

Edgewood DC Real Estate

Edgewood has a very diverse housing stock with a wide range of sizes and prices. Right now the most expensive places listed are the new homes being built in Chancellor's Row listed at $604,810 while the least expensive listing is a 1 bedroom condo listed at $99,000. It looks like the overall prices of the available housing stock in Edgewood has moved up about $40,000 at both ends of the spectrum over the last two weeks. It seems that there are a steady number of houses selling across the price ranges and there are quite a few pending sales that have yet to be posted.

There is one new sale posted:

326 Bryant Street NE sold on November 1st for $160,000

I am willing to bet that we will see the above address posted for sale again after it is renovated.

There is one open house listed for Edgewood at 106 V Street NE and it is open from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 13th. If you know of any more please add the information to the comments section.

WBJ: DDOT has issues with Abdo's Brookland/Edgewood project road-related plans

See this Washington Business Journal article on the Jim Abdo Brookland/Edgewood project.

Transportation officials don`t like route Brookland project is taking

Premium content from Washington Business Journal - by Michael Neibauer

Date: Thursday, November 4, 2010, 1:57pm EDT.

[http://www.bizjournals.com/washington/print-edition/2010/11/05/transportation-officials-dont-like.html]



Few major projects have coasted through the District`s complex development process like Abdo Development LLC`s 8.9-acre, mixed-use mammoth that will connect the Brookland and Edgewood neighborhoods.

However, the D.C. Department of Transportation, one of the last bureaucratic hurdles to be cleared, has become an unpleasant, if not unexpected, bump in the road.

DDOT detailed its opposition to a half dozen roadway-related pieces of the Northeast D.C. project in an Oct. 20 memo to the D.C. Office of the Surveyor. The challenge, which the department describes as procedural, has nonetheless slowed an otherwise fast-moving redevelopment that promises to transform the neighborhoods.

It`s been relatively smooth sailing for the $225 million development on the former south campus of The Catholic University of America, where Abdo is working with Bozzuto Development Co. and Pritzker Realty.

The project is expected to include 800-plus residential units, 45 townhouses, close to 85,000 square feet of retail, 27 artist studios and exhibit space. A tunnel will link the project with the Brookland/CUA Metro station.

The planned-unit development application has the D.C. Zoning Commission`s approval and a thumbs up community groups. It is backed by Mayor-elect Vincent Gray.

But developers still need the council`s OK to close portions of streets and adjust rights of way — the legally granted access to property owned by someone else — to make room for construction and realigned intersections. That`s where DDOT comes in.

The agency has problems with all but one of the developers` road-related plans, although DDOT doesn`t want its written opposition to be seen as actual opposition.

``In the world of street closures, the legal counsel is that we must write our reports to `object until and unless,``` wrote Karina Ricks, associate director for the DDOT`s Policy, Planning and Sustainability Administration, in an e-mail. ``Although the report, at first reading, very much sounds like an objection, it is not.``

Legislation before the council would authorize the creation of a right-turn lane at Michigan Avenue and Monroe Street, realignment of the Seventh Street and Michigan intersection into a T-intersection at the entrance to the university, development of a public square at Michigan and Monroe featuring a clock tower and fountain, and the redevelopment of Eighth Street from Monroe to the Michigan Avenue viaduct as a pedestrian-only walkway that ends in a public piazza.

But those plans, developers say, mean closing portions of Monroe, Seventh and Eighth streets and Bunker Hill Road, removing some public land from D.C.`s long-term highway plan and dedicating some public property on Monroe to the right-turn lane.

Ricks told the surveyor she opposes all but one of those plans for reasons including roadway design issues and traffic impacts. The developers responded in testimony before the council that the roadway changes are critical and ``we will not be able to satisfy`` several DDOT objections.

The parties say this back-and-forth won`t kill the deal even if it does add delays.

The DDOT is ``very supportive of the development plan,`` Ricks said, but legally the agency has to oppose it. Abdo will have to file more material to satisfy the concerns, Ricks said, such as establishing an easement to ensure the department retains the ability to maintain the Michigan Avenue bridge.

Toby Millman, Abdo`s vice president of project development, agreed that DDOT`s opposition is a matter of course. The agency, he said, doesn`t have a another word in its legal toolbox to denote ``concern.`

Tree Planting on Met Branch Trail on December 11th


It may be cold outside, but Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and Casey Trees are already preparing for next summer’s hot sun by planting 35 trees on the Metropolitan Branch Trail – and we need your help!

REGISTER TODAY – Space is limited!

When: Saturday, December 11, 8:45 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Where: Met Branch Trail between Rhode Island Avenue and Franklin Street, NE (map)
Remember:
Wear work clothes, including closed-toe shoes.
Bring a water bottle. Refreshments will be provided before we begin.

This Community Tree Planting Day is made possible by a grant from Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s Metropolitan Grants Program, supported by leadership funding from The Coca-Cola Foundation. More trees will be planted in Spring 2011, and all trees will be cared for by Casey Trees through 2012.

We look forward to seeing you on December 11!

Happy trails,
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

McMillan Wikiplanning Site

Dear Edgewood Residents,


The McMillan Sand Filtration Site Planning sessions continue apace-- we had more great turnout last Saturday, and hope to have more participation going forward. The next meeting will be Saturday, November 20, 2010 from 9AM to 12PM.

Please take the time to visit ENVISION McMILLAN, the wikiplanning site for the project, which launched on Saturday. To login, you must provide your email address and your zip code. Please email me if you have any trouble logging into the site. The primary function of the site is to capture your input, ideas and feedback. There are places for you to share your photos, examples and ideas; there is a survey up now that we would like you to take. There is also a message board where you can leave questions, comments, concerns and engage in conversation with one another.

There are also bios and quals for the development and design team;, meeting notes and photos; and reports.

Last but not least, the site provides the opportunity for you to invite others toparticipate. If you have neighbors and friends that should come to the site, please send them invitations so that we can get their feedback, too!

Thank you for your input,

Tania Jackson

Ward 5 Council on Education Meeting November 16th

The Ward 5 Council on Education (W5COE) will hold its monthly meeting at Michigan Park Christian Church on Tuesday Nov 16, 2010 at 6:30 pm.

Please read about this organization below as it was described by Darin Allen who serves as as the Community Relations Officer for the W5COE.

The Ward 5 Council on Education was established in January 1989 as a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. It was established in the District of Columbia by Clyde B. Richardson and former Ward 5 Board of Education member Angie King Corley. These two Ward 5 citizens inspired others to come together to support our schools. The organization has become well known for its active role in Ward 5 education issues. Raenelle Humbles Zapata is now the current president of the council.

The Ward 5 Council on Education was founded to improve the quality of education in Ward 5 schools. It achieves this goal through enabling parents, teachers, citizens, students, and educators/administrators an opportunity to share their views on school needs and issues with the Ward 5 State School Board Representative. The Council provides awards and scholarships to students, parents, and teachers from each Ward 5 public school for outstanding achievements during the school year.

Edgewood Tree Planting November 20th


November 10, 2010

Greetings Neighbors and Friends,

On Saturday, November 20, 2010, the Edgewood Civic Association in partnership with Casey Trees Endowment are excited to launch a premier tree planting project of a variety of trees to canopy one of the District of Columbia’s main street’s in Ward 5, of the Edgewood community. This is one of many cultural green landscape project designs to improve the environment and to create more beautiful,livable space in the District of Columbia. Additionally, this project will pay tribute to one of this
community’s youth, whose life was loss to senseless crime – a memorial tree will be planted and dedicated to her family and friends; it is our statement of the value we place on her life and of all of citizens these communities and of the District of Columbia.

It is our endeavor to involve all of community as a matter of civic duty. For this service project, we are seeking volunteers (schools, churches, business, citizens, etc), to serve from 9:00 AM until 1:00 PM; however, any amount of time is welcome and appreciated. For any period served, we are obliged to provide a light breakfast and lunch.

For all students who volunteer; we encourage, and invite them to bring school forms to document these community service hours, official signatures will be provided.

This event promises to be a rewarding experience, as each one gives back to our community where we live, work, educate or worship.

The Edgewood Civic Association [ECA] is a 501-c3 award-winning charitable organization and a member of the DC Federation of Civic Association since 1953, ECA’s mission is to serve the citizens of Ward 5 residing in the Edgewood-Eckington communities through education, information and advocacy. The Casey Trees Endowment mission is to restore, enhance, and protect the tree canopy of the Nation’s capital.

If you or your group is interested in volunteering, please reply to Mr. Timothy Clark on 202-359-0582 or email: theedgewoodcivicassociationdc@yahoo.dc.

Sincerely,

Michael D. Clark, Sr., President
The Edgewood Civic Association