“Dear PoPville,

Our DC rowhouses aren’t conducive to “aging in place”. My wife and I are both getting on in years, and we’re becoming a bit unsteady on our legs, needing handrails to manage stairs. For that reason, last fall I bought a couple of nice steel handrails for our front steps, needing merely to be bolted in place.

Permits are required, because our steps are, as is frequently the case, on Public Space (and Mount Pleasant is in a Historic District). I was determined to go through the proper permit process, as an example to my ANC constituents, whom I advise to file for permits, rather than just doing the work and hoping that nobody complains.

I’ve been in Permit Purgatory for more than four months now, (more…)


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