Author: Prince Of Petworth

Our Intern in Columbia Heights, Karen, Attends Homicide Elimination Meeting

By Prince Of Petworth

Karen’s report follows:

This weekend I attended a community forum at the Columbia Heights community center to work with the many dedicated and honorable members of the Comprehensive Homicide Elimination Strategy Taskforce (CHEST) on ideas to eliminate (not simply reduce!) murder in the District. CHEST has been gathering information and ideas from the community since December of 2006 and will report to Mayor Fenty this summer with the recommendations they formulate from meetings such as the one I attended.

The meeting lasted about four hours and was mostly spent in roundtable discussion, mulling over ideas that mostly involved addressing social needs, such as improving community ties, the District

Renovation Question

By Prince Of Petworth

Help a PoP Reader out, he writes:

“I am currently renovating my 1,475 sf rowhouse in Historic Anacostia, and wonder if this proposed change would help or hurt me in the long run:

Right now there are 3 bedrooms upstairs, but all of them are very small and there is no clear “master bedroom”. The bedrooms are all in a row along a hallway, and right now I am considering eliminating the center bedroom and turning it into walk-in closets for the other two bedrooms. Only two of the bedrooms have closets right now, but the closets are extremely small (about 3ft X 3ft each).

I am also thinking about combing the front two rooms to create a larger master bedroom.

Eventually I will sell the house, and need to know if having 3 bedrooms will get me a higher price simply because there are more, or if I could get an equally high price with only two bedrooms, although in the second scenario each bedroom would have sizeable walk-in closets. I am leaning towards the changes because it would make the house more “modern-person-friendly” despite technically having less rooms.

Any and all suggestions and advice would be much appreciated! Thank you!”

My answer: I say you do whatever you will most enjoy. Who can predict what will happen down the road? Within reason, you gotta do what makes you happy? But I super curious as to what others think.

Comment from an Apparent Firefighter Regarding the Jerry’s Kids Fund Raiser

By Prince Of Petworth

I thought this comment from the Jerry’s Kids Firefighter fund raiser was worth noting:

“We were ORDERED out of service to collect money (I do not work at the station pictured.) There was a memo from the “Fire” chief put out stating what companies would be out off service to collect money, and at which metro stations they would be collecting. No one one riding a fire engine or fire truck was happy about this. We come to work to WORK. Volunteer firefighters have always done fill the boot, and while a lot of us volunteer elsewhere, we were being paid by your (and my) tax dollars to do this. There are no volunteers in DC, as it should be. Why weren’t the ambulances staffed by firemen ordered out of service to do this too? In years past, money was collected by asking DC FIREMEN to hand a guy in their firehouse money from their wallet for the MDA fundraiser. The new “Fire” chief is a worthless camera hog.”

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

What was the most shocking or unexpected experience you faced upon moving into your new home or apartment?

Old Soldier’s Home Cemetery

By Prince Of Petworth

Located right on Harewood between Rock Creek Church Rd. and North Capitol, the Old Soldier’s Home Cemetery is a very moving place. It is like Arlington Cemetery in many respects. There is the heartbreaking sight of rows and rows of simple white grave stones. These grave stones have soldiers that fought in the Civil War, the Spanish American War, World War I and II and many others. It is a very humbling place. I went on Sunday when I was the sole visitor. Moving does not begin to describe it. I have a few friends who’ve served in Iraq and a couple who are still serving and I have to remind myself of the sacrifice they and so many others are making. We become numb to the newspaper reports after a while and I think that is why it is so important to visit this place and pay your respects.

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