Friday Question of the Day

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

Should single family town homes and single family homes be placed on the endangered species list in DC? I see all the construction going on over the city and it just makes me wonder. I see all many row homes being converted into condos. Given the height limit on new construction and the strong job market in DC coupled with natural population growth, is it possible to maintain single family homes? I’m not talking in five years but in 25 years? 50 years? Will they change the height restriction first? It just seems like the trend is to convert everything to condos or apartments…what do you think?

Furthermore, should we all buy stock in Tyvek?  It seems like they have a monopoly on new construction…

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

Penn Quarter Living already wrote a post on this (and have a better picture than me) but I still think it needs more discussion. So without further ado, is Chinatown too bright? Have you been to Chinatown at night lately, it is like walking around in a football stadium it is so bright. Obviously it feels very safe this way, but is it too much? It is frankly a bit jarring. How do you feel about the 1000 wattage going on in Chinatown?

Ed note: I still call this area Chinatown and will always call it Chinatown, next they’ll want me to call Hell’s Kitchen – Clinton and I’ll never do that.

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

This comes from a reader in the forum section:

“We’re looking to buy in or around Petworth, and naturally we have gathered that there are some areas that are quieter and safer than others. We spend time in the neighborhood and have done our research, but I’d really like to know the point of view of the people who live here. What streets and areas reflect the best of Petworth, and are there places that we should avoid?”

For that matter, what streets and areas would you recommend to live in Columbia Heights as well? Just curious.

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

Why are there so many funeral homes in Petworth and Columbia Heights? I mean there are seriously a lot of them. And they seem to be smack dab in the middle of residential homes. I just don’t understand how there can be such a high concentration. I feel like I’ve been saying this a lot lately – but I mean no disrespect to the businesses – I’m seriously baffled by this phenomenon…

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

Now I don’t really have a dog in this fight but a number of people have written me to discuss it. Ed note: you’ll get the atrocious pun in a moment. At any rate Intangible Arts just wrote a great post about neighborhood dog parks. Like I said it doesn’t effect me very much. But I often walk by a dog park and I’m telling you the joy I see on the people’s faces and the dog’s faces (if that’s possible) seems worth it to me. It really does seem to build a sense of community as well. But others say it is a total waste of money that could be invested in worthier causes. I’m not sure I buy that argument. I think the joy that dog parks bring people and their pets is worth it. As long as they don’t take over the people parks. So what do you think: are dog parks a beautiful site or a complete waste of money and resources?

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

I told you New Hampshire House was selling. At any rate I had the opportunity to speak with one of the new residents who is very pleased with her new digs. I asked her how she chose NH House over some of the other condos and she cited location as the number one reason. Specifically she was happy that it wasn’t right near the strip club on Georgia Ave. nor near the proposed location of the Central Mission Homeless Shelter. So my question is: how devastating will the potential homeless shelter move to Georgia Ave. be on people moving to the area between Petworth and CH? Will the development of 11th St. with Red Rocks, Warehouse, Wonderland outweigh the negatives associated with the homeless shelter?

Friday Question of the Day Special Edition

By Prince Of Petworth

Today’s Friday question of the day is submitted by a reader. Elizabeth asks:
“I have a few questions of the day. Recently, I met a neighbor who has spent the last 37 years living on my block, raising children, and working at at least one business in the neighborhood.

She described the block of 37 years ago as being full of children, who were constantly running in and out of various families’ houses, and she said that her children were raised by the entire community.

Today, we have very few children on the block… or maybe they just stay out of sight. I know two boys who ride their big wheels in the alley, but that’s it.

Why are there no more families with young children?”

If you would like to submit a Friday question of the day just email me at [email protected].

Friday Question of the Day: Whose Responsibility?

By Prince Of Petworth

This newly planted tree is just about as dead as dead gets. As I’ve written before one of the great things about our neighborhood are the many trees. But whose responsibility is it to water them? Is it the homeowner? What about the trees in parks? I’ve seen folks on Petworth News ask people to help out with the watering. Is there no system set up by the city or the parks department to water these newly planted trees? I can’t believe the onus is on the residents?

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

This question relates to something that got a lot of press this week. The issue is DC’s quest for voting rights in the US Congress. Frankly at the moment, I could not care less about this issue. Every Thursday I read the Post’s coverage of local crime by quadrant. When I look at NW Washington, I am horrified by the street names. Webster, Varnum, Georgia, Allison, etc. and I get filled with rage, despair and sadness. Every single week I see the streets of Petworth in the crime report. Unacceptable. How on earth are DC Voting rights going to change that? How are DC Voting rights going to address the graffiti issue? How are DC Voting rights going to address the issue of drug dealing in our neighborhoods? How are DC Voting rights going to address the problem of vacant homes and prostitution? Ok forget all that, I’ll be even bolder, I would way rather have a nice independent book store in Columbia Heights/Petworth than have one voting Congressional Representative. I would trade two DC senators if every Thursday I could open up the Post and not read about crimes being committed on Varnum St., Georgia Ave., and Allison St.? So my question is: What do you think are the most pressing issues for the residents of DC? Voting rights or quality of life issues?

Friday Question of the Day

By Prince Of Petworth

Continuing along the transportation theme, let us talk about the moped. A friend of mine had noted how unusual it was to see people riding mopeds in DC. Yet in the rest of the world in metropolitan areas mopeds are quite a common form of transport. So why don’t we see more mopeds on the streets of DC? Is it just not socially acceptable or “cool”? Is DC not congested enough to warrant the use of mopeds? Is gasoline to cheap?

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