Celebration Condemnation!

The eyesore down the street has FINALLY been condemned by the District of Columbia. Thanks to the work of ANC6A and Commissioner David Holmes to get this done! I saw the condemnation notices on the building the other day, ran over to look at them, and started jumping up & down, fist-pumping and going "yessss!" People stared.

My friend John affectionately calls this structure "the crackhouse." It has been in some condition of decrepitude for years.

The brief history: It used to house a corner store. The former owner of the structure let the store's lease expire, and completely neglected the building, allowing the corner tower to collapse. The structure was then bought by a business partnership which intended to renovate it and turn it into condos. They re-built the tower, brick by brick, did some framing inside, and did some other brickwork. The work would happen sporadically, then it would stop. Finally, it stopped altogether. A chain link fence was erected. We heard that the partnership had gone sour in some way. The building has been sitting there, deteriorating, for three years. The weeds grew. The trash accumulated. We all worried about rats and vandalism. I'm sure the neighboring rowhouses worried about wall collapse.

But last week - hallelujah! I saw those bright orange signs that mean the city has taken over! I never knew I could be so happy about the condemned! Or about DC taking something over! The property has been cleaned up; there's plastic over the windows again, and I assume the District will auction the property off at some point. So, if you're the (really) handy type, and have a hankering for a little fixer-upper on the Hill, get your checkbook ready.