Posts Tagged ‘Housing Complex Day’
Housing Complex Day: Highlights
Yesterday was Housing Complex Day, a complete celebration of D.C.’s architectural flops and triumphs, failed stadium projects, landlord/tenant battles, forgotten condos, and one City Paper staffer’s wireless theft skills.
Here are some highlights:
Single Best Line of the Day:
3. What else can you tell us about your sweet-ass crib?
It’s filled with ladies. And by “ladies” I mean “pencils.”
-The response by Remy Munasifi—the dude behind “Arlington:The Rap”—to the above question.
Best “Oh yes, I have done that at my house too” moment:
Amanda Hess’s description of how she steals wireless in her home: “Make sure your laptop is good and charged, and then stalk through every floor and room of your house, holding the computer open and checking signal strength every couple of steps. Check out the front and back yards, too—you might be putting in some overtime on the stoop this summer.”
Best public place to steal WiFi, if you happen to need free WiFi in upper Northwest:
Walter Gagliano Runs Hot & Cold On Station 9
Walter Gagliano is an interior designer who has designed 25 restaurants in the Washington, D.C. area. Tonight, he’s accompanying Young & Hungry columnist Tim Carman on a whirlwind architectural tour of District eats to reveal which offerings are hot and cold, off the menu.
Station 9, 1439 U Street NW
Hot: Originally an old post office, Station 9’s Greek revival facade and large stone columns create an imposing presence on U Street. “Walking into the space, the first impression is good,” Gagliano says. The interior boasts a “large open space”—one required by historic regulations which don’t allow Station 9 to divide the room up with walls. Station 9 deals with the wiggle-room well, Gagliano says. “The elements are handled in such a good way that it prevents the space from feeling cavernous.”
Walter Gagliano Runs Hot & Cold On Policy
Walter Gagliano is an interior designer who has designed 25 restaurants in the Washington, D.C. area. Tonight, he’s accompanying Young & Hungry columnist Tim Carman on a whirlwind architectural tour of District eats to reveal which offerings are hot and cold, off the menu.
Policy, 1904 14th St. (202) 387-7654
Cold: Policy’s unmarked entrance can make Policy’s first impressions a bit unmemorable. “When you first walk in, it’s a little cold,” says Gagliano. “There are chartreuse-colored walls, a utilitarian stair-case, and a hostess stand on the inside—it’s like you’re going into a closed nightclub. It gives no impression at all of what you’re walking into. It’s a shame, becuase once you walk in through the second door, it all becomes very cool.”
And Finally, One Place That Is Yucky, and Two Buildings That Aren’t All That Bad
1. This sucks, change it (intersection of 18th and U Streets NW)
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A Good Building
I have no idea what goes on at the Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics. I am glad of this fact. I’m sure they’re marvelous people in there.
Walter Gagliano Runs Hot & Cold On Cork Wine Bar
Walter Gagliano is an interior designer who has designed 25 restaurants in the Washington, D.C. area, including D.C. Coast, Ten Penh, and all three Jaleo locations. Tonight, he’s accompanying Young & Hungry columnist Tim Carman on a whirlwind architectural tour of District eats. Gagliano goes on the record about what’s hot and cold in D.C. restaurants, off the menu.
Cork Wine Bar is located at 1720 14th St. NW, in a spot formerly occupied by Sparky’s espresso cafe.
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Photos: Welcome To ‘Bob’s Beach’
We drive through Kalorama, Georgetown, Burleith, and finally Foxhall Village before we spot a live human being sitting on their front stoop. Just after 5 p.m., we find Bob Siciliano, 67, relaxing in a patio chair. His barefeet resting on a small metal table. His dress shirt untucked and unbuttoned down to his waist.
Siciliano says he left his downtown real-estate law firm at 3 p.m. He’s been on his patio ever since—working his way through a pile of magazines (Consumer Reports, home building mags,”a bunch of crap”), answering messages on his BlackBerry, and zipping through David Ignatius’ latest terrorism-and-nukes thriller.
“I love sitting outside,” Siciliano says. “My neighbors will tell you.” We’d ask them but they’re not out unless they’re hiding behind the well-managed shrubs and tree shade in the small park across the street.
What Having a Yard Means
To 28-year-old Kendall Graham, moving on up in D.C. to a three-level town house with a patch of grass means getting another dog. She already adopted a pomeranian mix and is looking for a companion dog to help her fill out her new place off Florida Avenue, near Howard U. “Baby” doesn’t do well with big dogs, so Graham is shopping at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington for another small variety. She’s taking a good look at Cholula, a chihuahua. “But chihuahuas are so yippy,” she says. “I want a dog that can be trained to be quiet.”
Connecticut, Not Connecting
“I dislike it when design tries to force you to do things you may not want to do,” says Julian Hunt. We’ve just dashed across Connecticut Avenue to a dismal parklet. There’s a statue of someone or another, a reclining person with the world’s most gigantic case of plumber’s butt, and some lunching folks.
This park, Hunt says, “tries to direct you.” There are walls. Planters. Fixed seats. What would Hunt do instead? Funny you should ask.
