The DMV tells me that it only takes 15 signatures to get a street zoned, so maybe it actually happened. You’d think maybe they’d notify the residents. But, the woman I spoke with couldn’t tell me whether our street had actually been zoned, or if the signs were just wrong. She transferred me to someone who could, but no one answered. I have the number, though, so I’m going to call back.
Tag: dc
Cant I just park in front of my house?
I spoke too soon. In late July, I sent this letter to contest a parking ticket. I thought I had achieved victory when they forgave the ticket.
It turns out that I just won round one. Round two has now begun.
Yesterday, I looked out the window and noticed a parking ticket on the Disaster Magnet. Since my car was parked a few spaces away, I went to check mine.
Sure enough, there was the ticket. $30 for “P003 RESIDENTIAL PARKING”. Do you know what they’ve done? Sometime over the last week or so, they replaced all the parking signs on our street. They now state that a zone 1 sticker is required. No one notified me that there were new parking restrictions. I don’t know if the city is legally obligated to tell me, but they should be. Now, the DC DOT website still lists our block as un-zoned. I don’t know whether it just hasn’t been updated, or if they put up the wrong sign. In any event, at 9AM on the button I’m calling the DMV to find out what’s going on. I left a note on my car to hopefully prevent another ticket. I politely stated that I live on the block, I became aware of the new parking restriction last night, and I’m going to the DMV today. I have no idea if it will help.
So, let’s summarize my tickets since I moved here. The first I paid. It was for violating a temporary ‘No Parking’ sign. I thought I was past the area where parking was restricted, but there’s apparently some rule that you must be a certain distance away from the posted sign that isn’t printed on the sign. Maybe I could have contested it, I don’t know. My second was the $100 ticket for failure to register that I got while I had a temporary permit from the police. That one is still being contested. I think we’re going to call soon to see the status because we haven’t heard anything. The third was $30 for not having a residential permit, which we contested and won. And now this one, the fourth. All of these tickets, mind you, are for parking within 100 feet of my front door.
I hear rumors that the DC government brings in a huge portion of its revenue from parking tickets. I don’t know if that’s true, but I’m starting to feel a little persecuted. We have tons of people living in Maryland and Virginia who drive past Metro into the city for work. Shift the tax burden to them! Shift the burden to the giant beaurocracy of the federal government! Shift it anywhere but your residents, who already pay extremely high tax rates.
Anyway, I will keep you updated. I don’t think I’ve adequately expressed how infuriating this is. It’s going to make me even madder if my suspicions prove true – that this is a sign mistake, not a change in parking rules. I was told by the DMV that it requires approval from a ridiculous percentage of the residents of a street to zone an un-zoned street, and no one knocked on my door.
If I ran for mayor with a platform of, “Let the Marylanders and Virginians pay the parking tickets”, do you think I’d win? I’d vote for me.
Thanks for the reminder – give blood
DCist: Morning Roundup: Answering ANSWER Edition
Summer blood shortage worse than usual (click here to find donation opportunities).
The wife and I talked about this a little while ago and haven’t done anything about it. Maybe after our houseguests (arriving today and Friday, I think) are gone, we’ll actually go give blood. Neither of us is really thrilled with the prospect. I gave blood once, during a high school blood drive. I didn’t feel faint, I didn’t pass out, but the nurse nearly took out the needle. I’ve never liked thinking about what goes on underneath my skin. It all seems too complicated, and if I think about it, it might stop working. So I like to pretend that I’m solid skin all the way through.
It’s not the blood that bothers me. I don’t get freaked out at the sight of blood. But while giving blood, I was shaking a bit. I sucked it up and finished, though. And I should do it again. I don’t remember my blood type, and I don’t think it’s one of the rare or really versatile ones, but I’m sure someone can use it.
Anyway, I’m going to give blood. You should, too. You really don’t need ALL the blood you have. There’s bound to be someone who needs it more.
Curse you, four car train
Seriously, I’ve had it with the four car trains. Someone at WMATA needs to get it through their head that you can’t send a four car train ANYWHERE during peak commuting times. I didn’t even have space to read the Economist. How am I supposed to be informed if I can’t read on the Metro?
I don’t know if it’s a money thing. I suspect it is. It probably won’t really work to raise prices. They’re already pretty high. A tax to shift the burden to people who don’t actually ride Metro would be nice. If people want to drive in the city, that’s fine, but they’re going to subsidize those of us who avoid it as much as possible.
Anyway, it’s a crummy way to start the day.
Renovations to begin on Harvard Street
Construction is set to begin tomorrow, according to the contractor. They’re going to put a dumpster in our driveway for a couple of hours. While I’m not looking forward to the noise and mess and whatnot, it’s exciting that something’s going to happen to the house. I would much rather have a renovated house on the block than a boarded up one. It means we’re going to have to put up the blinds in our bedroom. Currently, the only way to see in is through a boarded up window, but that probably won’t be boarded up for long.
ColumbiaHeightsNews.org back from the dead
Columbia Heights News – Washington, DC – Two Retailers Sign Lease With DC USA
Peter Mallios of Newmark Knight Frank, the leasing agent for DC USA, was equally mum about Ellwood Thompson’s. Mallios informed us that he is no longer allowed to speak with after the backlash from the whole Ross Dress for Less. See Whole Foods Or Ross? This is unfortunate as Mallios had been so informative. But perhaps this means Ross is backing out? We will keep you updated as we learn more.
This is what you’re missing out on by not reading the Columbia Heights forum and the mailing list. Locals got so upset that Ross was coming to DC USA instead of Whole Foods that DC USA has cut us off. It was quite a heated response, I suppose. I don’t actually read the mailing list – the forum is heated enough for me.
Although occasionally a little heatedness can have positive impact – the site linked above has come back from the dead after a forum member made a replacement site. They hadn’t really updated in a few months, but now they’ve been posting more or less regularly. The site owners claim to have been busy with having a new baby. Mind you, they have not yet produced this baby. Although, I don’t actually know them in real life, so maybe I just missed it. Nevertheless, it can’t be considered a real excuse until I see a baby.
The unfortunate part is the supposition that Ross might be backing out will undoubtedly renew the discussion on the merits of Ross. I’ve never actually shopped there, so I can’t really comment. I suppose I’ll have to give them a shot when DC USA opens.
New construction on Harvard Street
There are two buildings on our street that have been abandoned since we moved in last February, and it looks like renovation has started on both. Work on the abandoned row house will begin this Monday, according to the developer. And there is a work permit hanging on the side of the apartment building, although I didn’t really read it because it was starting to rain.
I’m curious how the housing market is going to look in a year or so when these places are finished (hopefully). DC USA should be open by then, but so should the surrounding apartments and condos.
Still, it’s exciting that the eyesores will be going away. The first thing I would do with the row house, were I the developer, is paint over the profanity that someone has spray-painted on the front steps. I think that would go a long way towards making the place look a little nicer.
I’m going to take some pictures of the buildings this weekend so I can compare them to the finished product when construction is complete.
No more four car trains at rush hour!
Don’t get me wrong, four car trains are great if they save a little energy at off-peak times. But how can you use them on the Yellow line at rush hour? The Yellow line, unlike the Orange line, actually has seats available most of the time. But not this morning. This morning, I was waiting as usual at Mount Vernon Square where the Green line dropped me, at my usual spot. My usual spot is near the back end of the train, because that’s where the Columbia Heights escalator drops me, and I’ve never really had a need to move. The end cars are usually empty compared to the rest of them.
This morning, the WMATA powers-that-be decided that they’d just skimp a little and send a four car train. I have no idea why. It’s quite possible they had a really good reason, but I frankly don’t care. This means that everyone standing in front of where they expected cars five and six to be has to run down the platform and get onto the last car. This makes it somewhat crowded. The fourth car was full by the time a few people pushed on at Archives, but it didn’t get really bad until 300 clowns going to the Pentagon jumped on at L’Enfant Plaza.
I’ve been riding the Green and Yellow line since the end of March, and this is the first time been jammed into a train like this. Yes, I realize I shouldn’t complain. But when there is plenty of room on the train for five months, and then suddenly one day I have a sweaty Marine pressed into my back and a large shoulder bag pressed into my groin, someone is wearing really bad cologne, and people are making dumb “stuck in an elevator” jokes, then WMATA has failed. Perhaps they were too busy playing with their new maps to notice.
But I notice. And fear not, WMATA, I will continue to notice, and to complain.
Also, a note to people who pile on to an already full train at rush hour – there will be another train in six minutes or less. Seriously. You can wait. You’re just going to work.
Is it just me?
Or is it hot outside? It’s not so bad now, but when I got home from work, there was a hot breeze blowing that made me want to move to San Fransisco.
It’s good to be back home, though. Vacation was nice, but the cat missed me.
And, if I ever get a reasonable internet connection at work, I’ll try to get back in the habit of posting regularly. I know I’ve been a bad, bad blogger lately.
You should go to Fleet Feet
If you need any sort of running gear, go to Fleet Feet. However, unless you really have to (And I know I linked to it), don’t go to their website. It resized my browser window, which is absolutely unacceptable.
However, the service at the store is fantastic. At the end of May I bought a new pair of running shoes. I’ve since put probably 40 miles on them. There is now a hole worn in the heel on the inside of the left shoe. This seems a little ridiculous.
So, I went to Fleet Feet, where they promptly exchanged the pair of shoes for a new one. I hope it was just a defective pair, because I really like the shoes. And I have weird, skinny, flat, bony feet. It’s really hard to find shoes that fit me.
Anyway, I have been very happy with my experience at Fleet Feet. I’ll definitely go back next time I need something. Just hopefully not for these shoes again.