ANC 2B09 - Commissioner Noah Smith
Friend, Follow & Connect!
  • Home
  • ANC 2B09
  • Neighborhood Blog
  • About Noah
  • Useful Links
  • Contact

ANC Office Hours This Sunday 7/28 from 10:00 a.m. to Noon

7/27/2013

0 Comments

 
I'm grateful that so many neighbors have chosen to contact me via phone and email over the last six months, but nothing beats face-to-face interaction. I'm going to start hosting some informal "office hours" for folks in the neighborhood to stop by, say hi and chat about anything on their mind. I'll start with once every six weeks or so and see what demand is like. 

Inaugural office hours: 

Sunday July 28, 2013
10:00 a.m. to noon 
Bakehouse - 1407 T St NW (try the iced coffee!)

Topics of conversation may include: parking, rat abatement, the 17th St liquor license moratorium, growth on 14th St, historic preservation, and more!

Please stop by and introduce yourself and let me know what's on your mind. I look a lot like the guy pictured to the right. Hope to see you there,

Noah
0 Comments

14th St Has Been Up-and-coming for Almost a Decade - What Impact Has it Had on the Neighborhood?

7/23/2013

0 Comments

 
This weekend, the Washington Post ran what has become a commonplace story on the exceptional growth our neighborhood has encountered in the last several years. The paper also published an interactive map of the area showing new restaurants and housing units that have opened recently.

Though the story is certain to spark a lengthy conversation among neighbors, I’m more interested in the questions that Ben Harris posed in his Greater Greater Washington piece on the topic. Ben is a former Logan Circle resident and previously ran the blog 14th&U with his wife. His writing has focused more on the impact that the economic growth has had on the neighborhood and its residents:
14th Street is a very popular destination, but as a neighborhood Logan Circle today can feel a bit hollow. Undoubtedly, there are many fun places to go, good drinks to be drunk, and great food to be eaten. It's lively, it's safer, and it's generating a lot of money for the city. "Huzzah!" to all of that.

But before we stamp it with a "wonderful" and seek to determine how we can emulate it in other DC neighborhoods, consider everything that it may not be: Affordable. Approachable. Sustainable. Economically diverse. And then ask yourself what the District would look like if every neighborhood developed along a similar path.
I think we all struggle with these questions and how best to strike that balance. Of equal importance may be the practical question of how we control our own destiny and help shape a neighborhood that we’d want to live in for decades to come.

There is no denying that these questions are in many ways tied to our recent discussion on a liquor license moratorium; but there seems to remain a broader anxiety about the future of the neighborhood as Ben points out so well.

I moved to the area because of the great neighborhood options including entertainment, dining and shopping, but also for its grocery stores and parks and coffee shops. I continue to think about where the balance is between “destination” and “neighborhood” and how the two can co-exist.

There are clearly no easy answers, but there are 155 comments on GGW now and counting, so I know folks have a lot to say - what do you think?
0 Comments


    Welcome! This site serves as a resource for residents of ANC 2B09 in U Street and Dupont Circle. I provide updates with information on upcoming meetings, events in the neighborhood, and discussion topics. 

    You can learn more about me by clicking here. If you have any questions or comments or have an idea for a post, please reach out to me anytime. 

    Archives

    July 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    November 2015
    September 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012

    RSS Feed

    Paid for by Noah for ANC
    1825 New Hampshire Ave NW #714 Washington, DC 20009.
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.