They're Fixing A Hole

DG-rad at And Now, Anacostia is reporting that our current welcome is being replaced by something shiny and new.

The plywood will soon be replaced by a collage composition of recycled wood blocks and shiny orange metal that celebrates the gateway to Ward 8.

The current blue plywood corner covering was installed after the original wood-and-chain-link corner cover was destroyed by an errant driver.

Here is the original corner covering:



Here is the current corner covering:



And here is the proposed new corner covering:



Now, I'm not fan of the current corner cover. It's ugly, depressing, unwelcoming, and unimpressive. But I don't see this proposed corner cover as any more attractive. I agree with commenter Rob that the orange just doesn't fit with the neighborhood at all and the recycled wood blocks only add to the feeling of abandonment and neglect, especially against the backdrop of so many empty and decaying buildings. (Maybe it will look better in execution than it does in computer rendering.)

I do understand that this is meant to be temporary, until something gets developed in that space. And I hope that by "temporary" we mean "in less than a year". Because, in my honest opinion, the best possible greeting into Anacostia from the neighborhoods to the west is a new, vibrant, and safe historic "downtown" area.

Nassif Building Returns to Life

Well, it isn't the Nassif Building anymore. Now it's called the Constitution Center. And it's much prettier with this facelift.

Before ...



After ...



Now all they need is a tenant.

D.C. Loves Ugly; Church ... Not So Much

The District's Historic Preservation Review Board decided back in December to make one of the many churches in our fair city an history landmark. The congregation that worships in that building (The Third Church of Christ, Scientist) didn't much like this decision and, in turn, is suing the city to have the status removed because, they say, "it is difficult and expensive to maintain a 400-seat sanctuary that usually draws 40 to 60 people on Sunday".

I'm all for preserving those structures that most and best reflect the beauty of our city. And I do understand that sometimes it is necessary to take such measures to save structures that aren't ... how to say ... aesthetically pleasing to everyone.

But this is a church. A house of worship. A living, breathing building. So in this disagreement, I side with the church. This building is not only hideous but it is unwelcoming and, as anyone who has seen the J. Edgar Hoover Building would agree, it is extremely difficult and expensive to maintain. It does place undue monetary restrictions on how the church can serve the city because the church has to sink so much into the maintenance of the building.

What? You haven't seen the building? Well then, here it is: