You know, this building has been abandoned for a very long time. I’d say over 15 years, possibly longer. It’s surrounding property used to be a mecca for homeless a few years ago — many used to reside next to the building.

I have walked by this corner every weekday morning on my way to work for a long time. At times, I remember having to shield my nose from the intense smell of human feces, general lack of sanitation and health issues. Once, I even saw a homeless dude defecating on the building, and coughing up blood. I placed 1 or 2 calls to the coalition for the homeless in DC b/c I was worried for these men.

Thankfully, the property is now fenced off, and hopefully, these men have been cared for.

I’m sure the building itself is in dire straights — probably needs to be torn down from the inside out, or demolished.

It’s next door to the youth hostel and across from Brasserie Beck, one block from a Bright Horizons daycare and right on K! Wonder what the holdup is.

Anybody have a picture of it before the ad went up? It looks like a beautiful old building.

That used to be a row of 7 rowhouses. Only 3 survive now. I think there’s a photo of the original row on the Shaw Heritage Trail.

About a year ago I found this website, http://www.victoriansecrets.net/oldsoldiers2.html , it explains a lot of history of Victorian era dc. It has the story of this mansion, not house, at K street, which was the home of a Union Civil War general. It was once at the edge of a series of mansions that went all the way up 16th street, until they were slowly torn down in “improvement” projects during DC’s “wonderful” 1970′s/1980′s.

MATH IS HuRD