quality of life

Did You Know There Was a “Multi-Door Resolution Division” To Deal With Neighbor Disputes?

By Prince Of Petworth

I thought this was pretty interesting. From an MPD email:

“We get inundated with calls for service in regards to neighbor disputes. DC Superior Court’s developed the Multi-Door Resolution Division to assist in cases that are outside the realm of MPD. This is NOT meant to replace our responsibilities to investigate alleged criminal allegation. It’s just another tool that we can utilize. Below is a brief description off their website along with a link to their website.

Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division

Hours of Operation

Mondays-Fridays: 8:30a.m.-5:00p.m.
No appointment necessary

Location

Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division
D.C. Superior Court
515 5th Street, N.W.
Suite 105
Washington, D.C. 20001

Main Contact

Phone: (202) 879-1549
Jeannie Adams, Director

The Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division (Multi-Door) helps parties settle disputes through mediation and other types of appropriate dispute resolution (ADR), including arbitration, case evaluation and conciliation. The name “Multi-Door” comes from the multi-door courthouse concept, which envisions one courthouse with multiple dispute resolution doors or programs. Cases are referred through the appropriate door for resolution. The goals of a multi-door approach are to provide citizens with easy access to justice, reduce delay, and provide links to related services, making more options available through which disputes can be resolved. The Multi-Door Dispute Resolution Division of the D.C. Superior Court assists parties to reach agreements that meet their interests, preserve relationships, and save time and money. Our mediators and dispute resolution specialists are trained at Multi-Door to serve in a wide range of cases, from civil to small claims, to family.”

What are the scenarios in which you think this service would be helpful?

Kate on Bringing Stooping Back to P Street by Danny Harris

By Prince Of Petworth

Danny Harris is a DC-based photographer, DJ, and collector of stories. In September, he launched People’s District, a blog that tells a people’s history of DC by sharing the stories and images of its residents. Every day, People’s District presents a different Washingtonian sharing his or her insights on everything from Go Go music to homelessness to fashion to politics. You can read his previous columns here.

“I have lived in DC for 5½ years now. I love my apartment and my location, but I don’t love the neighborhood. You know, people have a real pride about living in a place like Mt. Pleasant. But, this specific neighborhood doesn’t even have a name. We don’t know if we’re Logan Circle or Dupont Circle. It is total Puggleville. People are out walking their puggles all of the time and no one makes eye contact. There is no neighborhood feel to it.

“I love to walk. I go walking every day for at least an hour, and I walk up around Mt. Pleasant and even in the back parts of Adams Morgan. Right around dusk, especially in the summer, people are all out stooping. They’re all hanging out, pouring wine for each other and just being buddies with whomever is around. It is this whole feeling of community that is the reason why I love DC. DC is a place where 5½ years in, you can feel like you know so many people. I can’t walk outside without running into people. But, I don’t get that sense where I am living; it feels very nondescript to me. There is not a real sense of identity for this area.

“So, I went back and forth for a while about whether I should move to Mt. Pleasant. Then I realized that I could just be my own agent of change, and I started stooping. I have friends over for dinner a lot and we started a stooping routine, just hanging out on the stoop with a glass of wine. I started buying a pack of cigarettes in case people want to stoop out with that. And it’s funny, it freaks a lot of people out, especially in the twilight hour. People are super confused about why two people would be sitting outside chatting. I mean, I’ve never seen anyone stoop on this street. But, I think that I am the only person in the building who knows my neighbors’ faces. You get to hear so many stories from hanging out here. I heard this great story about my neighbor interviewing Woody Allen the other day. But, it’s still just friends that come by, no strangers, that’s the goal. People are very focused here and they miss the opportunity to just chill out.

“People are down on DC because it is not New York, because it is not big enough and because it doesn’t have a lot going on, but I think that is what DC has going on. It gives you the opportunity to make it a small town for yourself. In such a transient city, you need to set roots. That’s why I stoop.”

Read more about finding the right stoop and the games you can play on them, including stoopball, here.

Dear PoP – ADT Security Reps Knocking on Doors?

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

Tonight three men saying they were from ADT security came up to my basement apartment window asking me to come outside to speak to them. My roomate was inside and aware of the situation so I went to speak to them. They were asking questions like if I lived alone, and how big the apartment was, and if I had my own system installed and wondering if I was a student. They were dressed up as ADT men with polos and badges and gave me a card, but the questions they asked and the fact they were walking around after dark put me ill at ease. Have you heard of these men walking around recently and do you know how to find out if they are legit?”

A few months ago I heard from someone saying something similar happened in the Bloomingdale neighborhood. I’m not sure if it was ADT or another company. I know I had a representative from another service come to my door and start asking about my alarm system. I simply told him I was happy with my service. He then continued to keep talking about his service and I said I wasn’t interested. He continued talking and I raised my voice a level, not yelling but firm, looked him in the eye and said, “did you hear me? I’m not interested”. At that point he walked off.

My suggestion if this happens to others is to first to say you’re not interested if you open the door at all. If you are slightly interested I would highly recommend asking for identification. If they refuse to give you ID, say thank you, and close the door right away. You should also feel free to call the police if they don’t show you ID. If they do show you ID, make sure it has the companies name on it and it would also be smart to write down the name of the person.

My general rule is to never engage folks who come door to door. Has anyone else been receiving these visits?

Dear PoP – Do bad fences make bad neighbors?

By Prince Of Petworth

“Dear PoP,

Attached is a photo of the fence behind our house. As you can clearly see, it is not in the best of conditions. When we moved in this summer, there were hornets nesting in the “gate” and I had to soak the wood with bug killer to make it safe to go on the patio. It could give the leaning tower of Pisa a run for its money. It’s at the point where several of the holes in the fence are big enough for my two dogs to fit through if there was something (a squirrel perhaps) worth chasing. It needs to be fixed. The awkward part is that we are renting the house (SE DC Capitol Hill) and the owners/landlords have told us it’s not their fence, it’s the neighbors’. I have asked the landlords to address this issue with the neighbors but they live down in Maryland (like two hours away) and trying to find time for them to visit to address home issues is tough. I’m the kind of person that wants to walk over, knock on their door, and ask them to repair it because it’s becoming unsafe and obviously unsightly. We shouldn’t be able to not enjoy our patio because of the neighbors’ negligence although I also know fences are not inexpensive. Suggestions? Are there any codes that cover fences in DC? Do we suck it up and deal until we have to go knock on their door to liberate our dogs from their yard?”

A couple years ago I asked if good fences made good neighbors?. This is a slightly different scenario. What would you guys recommend in this situation? I’d think that the landlord should approach the owners of the fence. Since they live far away, perhaps they could call the owners of the fence? What do you guys think?

Does the New Dog Park at 17th and S Streets, NW Stink? Literally.

By Prince Of Petworth

The new dog park at 17th and S Streets, NW has only been open for a few weeks but I’ve already received a number of emails about it. I’m told that, perhaps due to the rain, the park can be smelled from a block away. I walked by Sunday afternoon to ask some pedestrians and folks in the park what they thought. Every single person I spoke to said the park did not smell particularly bad, with or without the rain. One woman in the park told me she lived half a block away and has never had a problem with the odor. For me, I’d say it did smell a bit of wet dog. But as someone else told me at the park – “it probably smelled of wet dog because there are tons of wet dogs in the park”. However the funniest comment came from someone who said, it doesn’t smell like wet dog, rather “it smells of dog shit near the entrances where the trash cans are filled with dog shit”. Ah, very good point. Indeed the entrance did have an overpowering smell of dog shit. But the question remains – can you smell the park from a block away? For those that live nearby – is the smell overwhelming? Do you think it has anything to do with the rain and/or artificial surface?

Documentary on DC, Education and Hip-Hop Filming in Columbia Heights

By Prince Of Petworth

The District Rhyme – Teaser 1 from Dave Adams on Vimeo.

Every now and then I need to hear something great like this so I don’t lose my mind. I hope this makes you as happy as it made me. I’ll post updates on the film as it becomes available. From an email:

“I met the people over at Words Beats and Life (wblinc.org) a couple years ago, and did some video work for them, but had always wanted to feature their work in a feature doc about using Hip-Hop to supplement the Education of DC youth.  There are a number of artists in the area who are also school teachers such as Bomani and Asheru (who are both featured in the teaser).  Much of the work is being done in the Columbia Heights area.  One of the WBL campuses is housed at St. Stephens church on Newton, Asheru does a lot stuff over at Bloom on Kenyon, etc.

Long story short, we just want people to be aware of what we are doing so they can follow progress on the website (thedistrictrhyme.com).”

Why Can’t We Have A Movie Theater in Columbia Heights?

By Prince Of Petworth

We’ve touched on this issue a bit in the comment section of previous posts. But I’ve received a surprising number of emails asking why Columbia Heights doesn’t have a movie theater. And Sunday when I was walking downtown I passed the great E Street Cinema (just east of 11th Street, NW) and it made me think about it again. It seems that the E Street Cinema is wildly successful. So I hope I’m not being naive. I’m not saying that Columbia Heights should have a one screen independent theater. But why can’t Columbia Heights have a multi-screen independent theater modeled after the E Street Cinema? It seems like there is a real market out there.

I imagine the theater would attract folks from Adams Morgan, Mt. Pleasant, Shaw/U Street/Logan Circle, Columbia Heights of course, Park View, Petworth, Brightwood, Brookland, and even Woodley Park/Cleveland Park among other neighborhoods. Is that not enough people to support a movie theater? If you think Columbia Heights could support a movie theater, where could it realistically go? How many screens would be ideal? Could it support a theater that shows independent films like E Street or a more traditional theater like Chinatown/Gallery Place Regal Cinemas?

Really? People Are Still Like This in 2009?

By Prince Of Petworth

Ed. Note: I’m not relaying the following incident because I’m looking for an atta boy. I’m also not naive and realize that hateful people exist in the world. However, in my experiences I haven’t encountered incidents like the following in DC so I was totally shocked. I’m also going to quote some pretty hateful language but I feel it is necessary to get the point across.

On Saturday night/Sunday morning at 2:30 am I was chatting with a friend on her stoop in Mt. Pleasant. A neighbor of hers was walking by and decided to sit with us. A very good looking girl walked by a few minutes later and the neighbor escorted her home. Not long afterward two black men walked down the street. The neighbor looks over at me and says, “you see with the way she was dressed, I’m glad I walked her home with these niggers on the block”.

It was like I was punched in the face. I mean literally. I instantly had a huge adrenaline surge and all I could say was “we DON’T say that where I am from!” then we stared each other down for a few seconds in silence that felt like an hour. Believe me, I am not a macho person at all but I was fully prepared to get into an all out street brawl with this guy. I don’t really know what overcame me. I definitely am glad I didn’t let his comments slide but fighting is rarely an appropriate response. I think I was so upset in part because I have so many amazing black neighbors who I truly love and respect. It just killed me that they have to deal with an asshole like this living in our city.

So anyway, he goes on to say, “you don’t understand, I’ve lived on this block for 15 years” and I respond “We DON’T say that where I am from!” It was really odd, every time he spoke all I could say was “We DON’T say that where I am from!” it was like my brain totally froze and couldn’t produce any other words. He finally says, “I see that I have offended you”. And of course all I could say was “We DON’T say that where I am from!”. Fortunately no punches were thrown and he finally walks away. And I was left with my friend on her stoop nearly speechless.

Then I caught a cab ride home from an elderly black gentleman. All I could think about was that I can’t believe what this cab driver must have experienced in his life and that the racism that he surely experienced in the 50s/60s was still alive today. I believe that this Mt. P resident is a poison on our streets just like drug dealers are.

I hope whether it is racism or any other type of hate speech, if we hear people uttering it we will not let it slide and calmly explain that that type of language is unacceptable.

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