Flower Power - Tulip Planting This Sunday

Back in 2009, Frank Asher of Old City Green and I got together to organize the first Shaw Main Streets tulip planting on 9th Street. It’s been such a pleasure to see the blocks in bloom each spring since, and the plantings have proven to be fun community efforts.

This Sunday (October 30, 2011) from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. will be the third annual tulip planting on 9th Street. And this year is our most ambitious bulb planting yet -- we're planting thousands of tulips in tree boxes in the 1300 to 1900 blocks of 9th Street, NW (we're also weeding, mulching and putting down chicken wire to protect the bulbs from squirrels), with a heavy focus on boxes north of Rhode Island Avenue (which have never been the subject of our plantings).

To carry out this year’s project, we need help! If you’d like to make Shaw bloom for years to come, then plan on meeting up with neighbors and business owners at Old City Green (902 N Street, NW) at 10 a.m. to get started (late comers welcome too...). Bring your own gloves and tools; bulbs, other supplies and refreshments will be provided.

We are also in need of financial sponsors for the event. $55 covers the cost of the bulbs, soil and mulch for 1 box.

Contact me (renewshaw@gmail.com) for more information or to make a donation to the event.

Third Annual Ninth Street Tulip Planting
Sunday, October 30, 2011 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Meet at Old City Green (902 N Street, NW)

MANY THANKS TO OUR CURRENT (AND GROWING) LIST OF SPONSORS:

1905 Restaurant -- Bread for the City -- Convention Floral -- Frank Snodgrass -- Independence Federal Savings Bank -- Long View Gallery -- Old City Green -- Salem Baptist Church

Third Annual Tulip Planting October 30

Mark  your calendar:  on Sunday, October 30 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. is the third annual tulip planting on Ninth Street.  We're hoping to have the biggest tulip planting event yet -- with a heavy emphasis on the treeboxes between Rhode Island Avenue and U Street. 

If you're interested in sponsoring a tree box for $55 (and getting a shoutout for the same on this blog and in other places for the same), e-mail shawmainstreets@gmail.com.

Third Annual Ninth Street Tulip Planting
October 30, 2011
10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Meet at Old City Green at Ninth and N

Callbox Project Organization Meeting Saturday

This Saturday (8/27/2011) at 3:30 in Conference Room 2 at the Watha T. Daniel/Shaw Neighborhood Library, the Shaw Main Streets Design Committee is holding an organizational meeting for the execution of a project to repurpose thirteen historic police and fire callboxes throughout the neighborhood.  The cast iron relics, many over century old, will each be transformed into beautiful historical markers, providing information about the surrounding area and each receiving an artistic overhaul.

The call boxes, some of which were originally the bases for gas streetlights, facilitated calling for assistance in the days before cellphones. The boxes covered by the project are located at 10th and N, 8th and N, 6th and N, 7th and P, 6th and R, 6th and S, 9th and S, 8th and T, 7th and Rhode Island, 8th and Q, 9th and Rhode Island, and 10th and Rhode Island. All are in various states of disrepair – some are mostly intact, some are missing parts and some are missing altogether.

One of the callboxes to be repurposed

Upon completion of the transformations, the callboxes will be another interesting draw to the neighborhood. Maps will be available at local businesses for self-guided tours, a website will be set up to help with their promotion, and local youth will be trained for providing tours of the call boxes.

If you are interested in taking a substantive, leading role in the project, please rsvp to shawcallbox@gmail.com and plan on making this Saturday’s meeting. Some of the upcoming tasks that will be assigned include fundraising, analyzing best practices of similar projects elsewhere, revising/editing text for callbox plaques, securing historic images for the plaques, and obtaining quotes from vendors on casting plaques and missing parts.

Tulip Planting Project Saturday, November 6 [UPDATE]

[UPDATE]  Due to this weekend's rallies on the mall, we've decided to postpone the tulip planting one week, so mark  your calendars for a morning of fun on November 6 planting tulips!

Last fall, neighbors gathered to plant over 800 tulips in the 1300, 1400 and 1500 blocks of Ninth Street. Despite an incredibly harsh winter, many of the tulips brightened up the streetscape with their beautiful red and purple blooms this spring.

When we completed last year’s planting, we announced that this year’s planting would take place north of Rhode Island Avenue.  In light of the fact that we lost more plants than anticipated, we’ve decided to supplement the tree boxes we planted last year with more tulip bulbs and defer our north-of-Rhode-Island-Avenue-planting one more year.

To that end, clear this coming Saturday morning (October 30, 2010) for a morning of tulip planting and fun with neighbors. The planting will kick off at Old City Green at 10:00 a.m. We’ll have coffee, instructions, supplies, and maybe a few tools (bring your own gloves and trowels if you have them). We’ll assign volunteers tree boxes and send everyone their way.

Please send me an email at slumhistorique@yahoo.com if you can lend a hand in planting bulbs on October 30, as we need a rough headcount.


Shaw Treebox Tulip Planting
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Meet at Old City Green at 10:00 a.m.

This project is once again brought to you by Shaw Main Streets and Old City Green. If you would like to help fund this planting, please send me an e-mail; donors will be recognized.

CarbonfreeDC To Help Green Shaw

This is a pretty cool announcement from CarbonfreeDC:

On July 22, CarbonfreeDC won 1 of 5 $20,000 grants from National Geographic and Sun Chips in the Green Effect competition. From over 2,500 entries, CarbonfreeDC's Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover proposal won over the judges, even becoming Frito-Lay VP Dave Haft's favorite submission.

The Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover aims to help 20 deserving families green their homes and lower their energy bills with energy-efficient upgrades, weatherization, water conserving enhancements and much more. As part of the project, CarbonfreeDC will host educational workshops in the selected neighborhoods to help others take action in their own homes.

CarbonfreeDC is excited to announce the DC neighborhoods of Deanwood and Shaw have been chosen to be a part of the Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover. Thanks to Pastor and Mrs. Newell of the New Covenant Evangelistic Center and Commissioner Sylvia C. Brown for their compelling nominations that lead to our decision to choose these neighborhoods. Now we will go about the process of choosing 20 deserving homes from these neighborhoods to receive the green makeover treatment.

CarbonfreeDC also just rolled out a revamped website, CarbonfreeDC.org, with the following new features:

*The Extreme Green Neighborhood Blog: See their latest announcements and updates. Learn about sponsors and see new pictures or videos.

*The Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover Proposal: Learn about their plan to green 20 homes in Deanwood and Shaw.

*The Extreme Green Gala: If you're as excited about this as they are, join them on October 9th to celebrate and support CarbonfreeDC and the Extreme Green Neighborhood Makeover.

*Partnerships Page: CarbonfreeDC is looking for local businesses & groups interested in helping with this project in return for good karma & great promotions.

You can also keep track of CarbonfreeDC's progress on Twitter.

Shaw Neighborhood Cleanup This Saturday!

Treebox Vodka's back at it with a neighborhood cleanup this Saturday (September 27). These cleanups are great ways to connect with neighbors, show some pride in Shaw, have some fun, and help the environment. Go here for updates and the most current information.

Shaw September 2008 Neighborhood Cleanup
Date: Saturday, September 27th
Time: 10:00 AM
Where: 9th & O Streets (by Azi's)
What: We'll be starting at Azi's and fan our way out to the neighborhood.
Bring: Gloves, friends, any additional tools you want to use for cleaning.
Treebox Vodka Will Supply: Trash bags, a few extra gloves, and some trash picking tongs.

Shaw Monthly Cleanup this Saturday

Treebox Vodka wants to set a group record by having 30 volunteers show up at this Saturday's installment of the Shaw Monthly Cleanup! This great monthly event really is a fun way to band together and show some pride for our great neighborhood. Below are the current details for Saturday, but go here for the latest updates:


Shaw Monthly Cleanup - March 2008
Target Area: 7th Street
Meet: Rhode Island Avenue and 7th Street, NW
Time: Saturday, March 8, 2008 at 10:30 AM
Bring: Gloves, friends, any additional tools you want to use for cleaning. Treebox Vodka will Supply trash bags, a few extra gloves, and some trash picking tongs.

Treebox Vodka Announces Shaw Monthly Cleanups [Note: Innaugural Date Changed]

Check out this awesome new initiative announced by Treebox Vodka today! Treebox, with the support of ANC2c02, is the mind behind the monthly cleanup project, which will clean up a different area in Shaw the first second Saturday of every month. The innaugural cleanup will be held on August 4 August 11 and will target the 7th Street corridor from Rhode Island Avenue to New York Avenue. Refer to Treebox's post or the cool .pdf flier for full details.


Innaugural Shaw Monthly Cleanup
Saturday, August 4 August 11, 2007
9:00 AM
Meet at the Watha Daniel Library; Bring gloves, friends, and some water for yourself.


Logo image designed by SugarB Studio.

Weekend Shoutouts

The forecast looks sunny and warm, so get outside this weekend!

1. Keep Shaw Beautiful Day Saturday – The kickoff to the cleanup and greenup event is at 9am at Shaw Junior High School, 925 Rhode Island Avenue, where you can pick up your tools and supplies and move to locations throughout central Shaw to weed, plant, and mulch treeboxes, pick up trash, and remove and paint over graffiti. Afterwards, food and refreshments will be provided at Shaw Junior High. If you are in MVSQ , meet at 4th & M at 8am!

2. Enjoy an Iced Coffee Outside – Both Azi’s (1336 9th St NW) and Breakwell’s (900 M St NW) have outdoor patios that provide for some great people watching.

3. Gallery Hop – We’ve got some great galleries in and around Shaw (notably Parker’s Gallery/Michelson’s Framing, Warehouse Arts Complex, The Long View Gallery, Ninth Street Gallery, and Project 4); beautiful weather is a great excuse to stroll into them.

4. Shaw Walking Tours on Sunday - On Sunday, April 22, Shaw Main Streets will present two free walking tours of Shaw, led by SMS Executive Director Alexander M. Padro. These free tours focus primarily on historical events, buildings, and personalities, but also include the character of the area and more recent developments. The two Shaw tours to be presented are as follows:

+ Shaw: Where DC Comes Together, Part I (10:00am - 12:00pm)
Starts at the northwest corner of Seventh Street and Mount Vernon Place, NW.
Since its earliest days, Shaw has always been a commercial, intellectual, and cultural crossroads. Today, the southern half of central Shaw's historic commercial district is best known for the new Washington Convention Center. But at one time, it consisted of woods, a few farms, and orchards. Originally a streetcar suburb, many notable historic figures have lived, worked, and worshipped in lower central Shaw, including explorer John Wesley Powell, African American US Senator Blanche K. Bruce, and historian Carter G. Woodson. Participants learned about these leaders and visited dramatic new spaces inside restored Victorian exteriors.

+ Shaw: Where DC Comes Together, Part II (12:30pm- 2:30pm)
Starts at the west corner of Seventh and R streets and Rhode Island Avenue, NW.
Entertainment in all its forms has long been the focus of the northern half of Shaw's central commercial district - from the Howard Theater, where every star in the Black entertainment pantheon performed to the pool hall where Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington decided to become a musician. This tour of places associated with entertainment legends included a newly renovated movie theater building and the city's first African American YWCA. Led by Shaw Main Streets Executive Director Alexander M. Padro and presented by Shaw Main Streets.

5. There's Always This Fun Stuff Going on in Shaw - Check out the Liberation Dance Party at DC9, the shows at 9:30 Club, Black Cat, Arena Stage, and Studio Theater, the cultural offerings of the Warehouse Arts Complex, Project 4 Gallery, the Ninth Street Gallery, and the Long View Gallery, and the chance to get your freak on and knock back some drinks at places like Avenue, Be Bar, and Old Dominion Brewhouse.

I'm definitely leaving a lot off--let others know what I'm missing in the comments.



Have a Weekend Shoutout suggestion? Email me at slumhistorique@yahoo.com!

This Saturday Is Keep Shaw Beautiful Day

It looks like the weather is cooperating in bringing us a beautiful Saturday for Shaw Main Streets' third annual Keep Shaw Beautiful Day. This "cleanup and greenup" event runs from 9am to 1pm. The kickoff at Shaw Junior High School, 925 Rhode Island Avenue, will feature a performance by the award-winning Shaw Junior High School Band. Participants will then pick up their tools and supplies and move to locations throughout central Shaw to weed, plant, and mulch treeboxes, pick up trash, and remove and paint over graffiti. Afterwards, food and refreshments will be provided at Shaw Junior High.

Neighborhood groups participating in this year's event include the Mount Vernon Square Neighborhood Association, Mount Vernon Square Business Alliance, the French Street Neighbors Association, and the Westminster Neighborhood Association.

For more information, call 202-265-SHAW.

Weekend Shoutouts

Do some good, fight some crime, drink some cold ones, play in the dirt, buy something nice, eat something good, or just have a blast in the great neighborhood that is Shaw this weekend. Here are a few options before you:

1. Opening Day at the Seventh Street Garden Saturday - Paint signs, prepare beds, build new beds, build a compost bin, and more at the Seveth Street Garden this Saturday from 10am to 4pm. All are welcome--both kids and adults--and no gardening experience is necessary. Just bring an interest to have fun, meet new people and be outside, and show up to the Seventh Street Garden.


2. Community March and Rally Against Crime Saturday - Tomorrow's march will begin at noon at 9th & O Streets. It will conclude with a rally at 7th & O Streets. Invited guests include Mayor Adrian Fenty, DC Council Members, Sen. Barack Obama, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton, Rev. Al Sharpton, Rev. Jessie L. Jackson, and Many Others. There also will be a health fair, a job fair, and free refreshments. A .pdf of the flyer is available here.

3. X at be bar Saturday Night - (Fashion + Electronica + Design + Belly Dancing + Projections) + YOU = X. 6pm-10pm Saturday night. For more info, click here.

X at be bar
1318 9th Street, NW
202.232.7450

4. Take the G2 Bus to the Dupont Farmers Market on Sunday - The Dupont Farmers Market resumes its warm weather schedule and celebrates its 10th year running this Sunday morning. It's not "in shaw" per se, but the bus ride to freshness couldn't be easier.

Dupont FreshFarm Market
1500 block of 20th St., between Massachusetts Ave. and Q St., in the adjacent parking lot of PNC Bank
9am to 1pm

5. All the Stuff You Know and Love in Shaw - Check out the Liberation Dance Party at DC9, the shows at 9:30 Club, Black Cat, Arena Stage, and Studio Theater, the cultural offerings of the Warehouse Arts Complex, Project 4 Gallery, the Ninth Street Gallery, and the Long View Gallery, and the chance to get your freak on and knock back some drinks at places like Avenue, Be Bar, and Old Dominion Brewhouse.

I'm definitely leaving a lot off--let others know what I'm missing in the comments.

Have a Weekend Shoutout suggestion? Email me at slumhistorique@yahoo.com!

Dining for a Cause

My apologies for not posting sooner, but if you're still debating what to have for dinner this fine Thursday evening, consider eating out at one of the area's restaurants participating in Dining Out for Life. On this special day, 150 restaurants in the Washington metropolitan area will join together to support men, women and children living with HIV/AIDS, cancer and other life-challenging illnesses by contributing a percentage of their sales to Food & Friends. Several restaurants on the list are in or around our wonderful neighborhood.

Shaw in Bloom

Commissioner Chapple’s forum has two new posts relating to gardening, a topic on my brain a lot lately. The first post is about splitting perennials (I must admit I’m unsure what, if anything, in my humble plot of land constitutes a perennial. I don’t think anything does, unless that grassy stuff that sprouts purplish flowers counts). The second post is about upcoming events at the Seventh Street Garden*, a really cool asset to our neighborhood.

With my mind focused on working in the dirt rather than walking through the snow, I thought I’d give a shoutout to some inspiring banter on one of the Yahoo! Group message boards from a couple months back. A few neighborhood residents have transformed the tree boxes and otherwise barren plots of land at Scott Montgomery Elementary (at 421 P Street) into beautiful flowering gardens for the community—and for the school kids—to enjoy. Working with neighbors, friends, the school and others, these great citizens have purchased and installed iron treeboxes, tirelessly weeded and mulched, planted flowers and plants, and taken care of these areas since 2005 2001. I’m sure they’re eager for warmer weather to get back to it, and I can’t wait to check out their work in full bloom in a few weeks.

Before our Neighbors' Intervention:
After our Neighbors' Intervention:
What great neighbors! I'm now on a mission to find a little plot of public land near me needing a little neighborly TLC. Anyone near Shiloh interested in joining in?


*The Seventh Street Garden is a community food garden wherein low income residents learn to grow, utilize and market local, seasonal and affordable produce will greatly contribute to food security and economic opportunity in this community. It seeks to educate and engage youth and adults, instill a sense of neighborhood pride where ideas can flourish, senses will be engaged, defenses will be disarmed and multi-disciplinary educational opportunities will abound. Volunteers are needed.


PHOTO CREDIT: Photos of Fifteenwren on Flickr, available here

Weekend Shoutouts

Have some fun and do some good in the great neighborhood of Shaw this weekend. Here are some of the many options awaiting you:

1. DJ Dredd at Vegetate on Saturday - Check out DJ Dredd on the 2nd floor lounge at Vegetate every Saturday starting at 8pm. He'll be spinning a diverse mix so come grab a drink and a bite to eat and listen to some great music. With their stipulated liquor license in hand, Vegetate offers awesome natural homemade cocktails and an eclectic list of wine and beer. Check out their current menus here.

Vegetate
1414 9th Street, NW,
202.232.4585

2. A Meal--Any Meal--at Queen of Sheba - Did you know that Queen of Sheba serves breakfast, lunch and dinner daily and that its menu is derived from Ethiopian, Italian and American traditions? Word on the street is that they make some killer lasagna and some huge, delicious pancakes. Check out their menu here

Queen of Sheba
1503 9th Street, NW
202.232.7272

3. GNP’s Son of Bush at Warehouse Theater on Saturday - The GNP two person comedic production runs every Saturday at 8 and 10 p.m. at the Warehouse Theater. Tickets for the 8 p.m. show are $30, $25 for seniors and $20 for students. The 10 p.m. show is $15 for all age groups. Tickets can be purchased at the GNP Box Office by calling (202) 783-7212. Find out more information about the show and even make an online reservation at their website.

Warehouse
1017-1021 7th Street, NW
202.783.3933

4. Happy Hour at OD Tonight - En route home from work, check out the Old Dominion Brewhouse's weekday happy hour(s) special, offered Mon-Fri from 3:30-6:30pm, which always features $2.99 all drafts and 1/2 price on appetizers.

Old Dominion Brewhouse
1219 9th Street, NW
202.289.8158

5. Kick Some Trash and Graffiti Butt - The long awaiting thawing of ice and snow has revealed that we've got some work to do in terms of trash and graffiti fighting efforts. Use this weekend's spring-like temps to pick up some trash and to show the taggers who's boss.

6. There's Always Cool Stuff Going on in Shaw - Check out the Liberation Dance Party at DC9, the shows at 9:30 Club, Black Cat, Arena Stage, and Studio Theater, the cultural offerings of the Warehouse Arts Complex, Project 4 Gallery, the Ninth Street Gallery, and the Long View Gallery, and the chance to get your freak on and knock back some drinks at places like Avenue and Be Bar.

Weekend Shoutouts

The following are some suggestions of things to do in and around our great neighborhood this weekend:

1. Artist Reception at Long View Gallery - An artist reception commemorating the new Matt Hollis exhibition will be held tonight from 6 to 8 pm at the gallery. I am in love with this show and look forward to meeting the artist tonight. If you can't make the reception, swing by the Gallery some time this weekend; it's open daily from 11 am to 7 pm.

Long View Gallery
1302 9th Street, NW
202.232.4788

2. Food, Drink and Merriment at Old Dominion Brewhouse - This will be O.D.'s first full weekend in business following its grand opening last Saturday. See why this place will be a great neighborhood hangout and destination by grabbing a bite to eat, enjoying your first O.D. draft beer, watching a game, or playing photo hunt.

Old Dominion Brewhouse
1219 9th Street, NW
202.289.8158

3. Check Your Resolutions - How are you doing on your neighborhood improvement oriented resolutions? Use the weekend to play catch-up on or to figure out what you're going to do to implement your resolution. I myself am buying a broom-y pick-up trash thing and have to make up for lost time (despite the weekend's frigid forecast, I plan to pick up a lot of trash; I haven't done so in 2 weeks).

4. The Usual Cool Stuff in and Around Shaw - There's so much to do it's hard to list, like the Liberation Dance Party at DC9, the shows at 9:30 Club, Black Cat, Arena Stage, and Studio Theater, and the chance to get your freak on and knock back some drinks at places like Avenue and Be Bar.

Get Your Butt Off the Sidewalk

I needed to catch up on my resolution to pick up at least 5 pieces of trash a day, so I decided to use yesterday's GORGEOUS WEATHER as an excuse to make up for lost time. Trash bag in hand, I made my way up and down my side of my block for about an hour and a half picking up litter. I mean, I knew there was an excessive amount of trash on my block, but I had no idea there could be so much. The most common thing I found was discarded cigarette butts. The most uncommon thing I found was a bio-hazard bag (ugh. . . I didn't realize what it was until I'd grabbed it by one of its corners. . . mental note, wear gloves next time I help clean up my block).

I am ecstatic that DC has gone smoke free in its bars and restaurants (I've got my fingers crossed that we'll go trans-fat free, too, soon, but that's a different story). But with the smoking ban in effect, restaurants and bars are going to have to be vigilant in accommodating and taking responsibility for their smoking patrons. By far, the highest concentration of cigarette butts I picked up was in front of a restaurant, and I noticed no cigarette receptacle by the restaurant's front door.

That's not to say that I didn't find a hell of a lot of cigarette and cigar butts on the rest of the block. Smokers need to be much more responsible, too: cigarette butts ARE trash and should be discarded as such rather than thrown on the ground or in a tree bed. Here are a few annoying facts about cigarette butts that are worth stressing:

1. Cigarettes are the most littered item in America and the world. Source

2. Cigarette butts are not biodegradable in the sense that most people think of the word. The acetate (plastic) filters can take many years to decompose. Smokers may not realize that their actions have such a lasting, negative impact on the environment. Source.

3. "[Cigarette butts] also present a threat to wildlife. Cigarette filters have been found in the stomachs of fish, birds, whales and other marine creatures who mistake them for food ... Composed of cellulose acetate, a form of plastic, cigarette butts can persist in the environment as long as other forms of plastic."
Clean Virginia Waterways.

4. They pose a fire hazard. The most common cause of fire related deaths and injuries in the U.S. is careless smoking. While the majority of these cases involve indoor smoking, many of these fires are the result of littered cigarettes, whether tossed out of a car or thrown on the ground by pedestrians. Source.


PHOTO CREDIT: PR Web, available
here.

A few neighborly resolution suggestions for 2007

As you're formulating your resolutions for 2007, consider one or more of these neighborhood-enhancing commitments:

1. Pick up at least 5 pieces of trash outside a day.

2. Volunteer in our neighborhood. Here are a few options; contact the volunteer coordinators for specific opportunities:

+ Voulunteer at the new (ugh--modular) Library and help make the best of the temporary library situation. To learn more about volunteering at the Library, call Bill Turner, Volunteer Coordinator, at 202.727.4968 or send him email at bill.turner@dc.gov.

+ Volunteer at one of our neighborhood schools. Contact DCPS community relations office at 202.727.0488.

+ Volunteer at the Kennedy Recreatrion Center or at one of the local parks. Contact the Department of Parks and Recreation at dprpartnerships@dc.gov to choose from a variety of volunteer opportunities ranging from a one-day project to a long-term commitment.

+ Volunteer at Bread for the City. Complete the volunteer application available on their website or contact Valentine Woods, Volunteer Coordinator, to request one at 202.386.7611.

3. Organize and/or participate in a neighborhood watch for your block. Check here for more information.

4. Become a graffiti fighter. Buy paint now and, every other week, paint over tags.


My creativity's tapped after a long night of celebrating--anyone have any resolution suggestions?

I hope everyone had a safe and fun time ringing in 07!!