C A P I C O S T I A

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/wendy-s-at-center-of-dc-s-dave-thomas-circle-to-close-tuesday-mayor/ar-AAOBNuK?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531

Union Square at 941 North Capitol Street, NE, currently hosts the Office of Tax and Revenue Customer Service Center (photo from Wikimedia Commons) Since the early 1960s, the once bright and modern shops of  Penn Branch Center - bank, drugstore, barber shop, liquor store - have sat at the corner of Pennsylvania and Branch Avenues, in the Capitol Hill area of Southeast Washington, DC. My once very strong desire to see them renovated into a small 'town center', with condos, has ..evolved. There was a time, when I could imagine a new shopping complex resembling newly renovated Fox Chase in Alexandria, Virginia, ..and I still can, truthfully. Though, I am not sure that would best serve Penn Branch and surrounding areas. I simply do not think that, with new developments on the horizon, like Capital Gateway (also in Ward Seven), promising to fatten the city's coffers with more annual revenue than Penn Branch can presently generate, that having a...

By Mel Dyer All of the speculation about Skyland Town Centre is very exciting. For those of us, who remember when Skyland gave us a movie theatre, a Sears & Roebuck  department store, a Safeway AND a Giant, a drugstore, a gentlemen's club, Discount Mart, Gussini Shoes, Blockbuster, law offices, a  diner ...[Sigh] it's especially exciting, because we remember when Skyland was our commercial center! Trust me, ..the excitement and the optimism is justified. Should this new Skyland be Seven Bee's town center again, and is that neighborhood, ready? Can it be? Here are some selections from our latest poll... 1) The new Skyland should be 7B's town center, and the neighborhood is ready.   2) The new Skyland should be 7B's town center, but, the neighborhood is NOT ready.   3) The new Skyland should NOT be 7B's town center, and the neighborhood is NOT ready!   4) We sheeple of 7B don't need a 'town center' and should continue t...

  The new name of the blog may be Naylor Dupont, but, the spirit's still pure, unadulterated 'CAPICOSTIA', ..and the same  optimism that got us through the worst of times, into these great neighborhoods,  still keeps us flying. We will never forget it.

The Santorini Islands, rumored to be lost Atlantis. I looked EVERY-where! [Wikipedia.org] Since re-focusing this blog, about a month ago, I've been desperately searching for two things: the lost continent of Atlantis ..and the Naylor Dupont Advisory Neighborhood Commission 's official website. Neither has proved easy to find; so, this afternoon, I did some digging on ANCFinder.org and made some phone calls about it. I found out that Seven Bee has a new website, and, like Atlantis... It's not in Anacostia . Can you tell I am really sick of West Bankers calling us 'Anacostia'? Is that showing, just a little, tiny bit? I sure as hell,  hope so. Anyway, ..have a look.

A rendering of Skyland Town Center from SkylandTownCenter.com MORE STATEHOOD FUN...   I am still wondering what will happen to our neighborhoods, if Washington, D.C. becomes a state. Will eight, new counties be created from D.C.'s eight wards? Will the Advisory Neighborhood Councils create exciting, new towns from ANC districts, within those eight, distinct wards?   Exciting...   Imagine that our own historic ANC-7B, Naylor Dupont, is now an incorporated city in the new 51st state of New Columbia. What should our new, shining city on a hillcrest be called?   1. Davistown, New Columbia - taken from historic Fort Davis 2. Hillcrest City, New Columbia - named for historic first neighborhood of ANC-7B 3. Skyland, New Columbia - inspired by what might become Downtown ANC-7B 4. Naylorville, New Columbia - taken from ANC-7B designation, Naylor-Dupont 5. Randletown, New Columbia - named for the first developer of the Southeast ...

By Mel Dyer Yes! Penn Branch has an urban legend.  That of the Big Bird or Hawkwoman, who haunts our wild, emerald hills... If you're over 35 and grew up in the Southeast D.C. neighborhood, known as the 'Hollywood Hills'  in the mid-1960s, you've probably seen or heard of this creature, at one time in your life. You probably thought you were imagining things ..or that it was just crazy-talk. You may have even heard that it had a woman's head and white, bulging eyes, ..or that it was a  witch. While I don't believe that part, I've seen the creature that might have inspired this urban legend, with my own disbelieving eyes, ..perched menacingly on a rooftop, at Carpenter Street and Highwood Drive. It was a turkey vulture ... Right here, in Penn Branch. Why not a hawk? Well, ..I have seen the kinds of hawks we have in this area, up close - like, walking around on a neighbor's lawn - and I don't think they are anywhere ...

MORE STATEHOOD FUN...   I am still wondering what will happen to our neighborhoods, if Washington, D.C. becomes a state. Will eight, new  counties be created from D.C.'s eight  wards? Will the Advisory Neighborhood Councils create exciting, new towns  from ANC districts, within those eight, distinct wards?   Exciting...   Imagine that our own historic ANC-7B, Naylor Dupont, is now an incorporated city in the new 51st state of New Columbia. What should our new, shining city on a hillcrest be called? 1. Davistown, New Columbia - taken from historic Fort Davis 2. Hillcrest City, New Columbia - named for historic first neighborhood of ANC-7B 3. Skyland, New Columbia - inspired by what might become Downtown ANC-7B 4. Naylorville, New Columbia - taken from ANC-7B designation, Naylor-Dupont 5. Randletown, New Columbia - named for the first developer of the Southeast hills ...

Union Square at 941 North Capitol Street, NE, currently hosts the Office of Tax and Revenue Customer Service Center (photo from Wikimedia Commons) Since the early 1960s, the once bright and modern shops of  Penn Branch Center - bank, drugstore, barber shop, liquor store - have sat at the corner of Pennsylvania and Branch Avenues, in the Capitol Hill area of Southeast Washington, DC. My once very strong desire to see them renovated into a small 'town center', with condos, has ..evolved. There was a time, when I could imagine a new shopping complex resembling newly renovated Fox Chase in Alexandria, Virginia, ..and I still can, truthfully. Though, I am not sure that would best serve Penn Branch and surrounding areas. I just do not think, with new developments on the horizon, like Capital Gateway (also in Ward Seven), promising to fatten the city's coffers with more annual revenue than Penn Branch can presently generate, that having a stable taxb...

See that part on the map (below) that reads 'Territory of Columbia'? What is the point of naming the City Formerly Known As D.C. something like 'New Columbia', if we're all still in the same, old Columbia? So far, our poll reports that there are more people, who want to name our new, non-capital territory just plain, ole, stinky 'Columbia', than anyone else. Common sense prevailing, I think.

Councilwoman Alexander and Mayor Gray leading other D.C. officials in protest for municipal budget autonomy. (Staff photo from YvetteAlexander.org) Editorial [Second Edition] This will be my last editorial as a community blogger ..and as the publisher of what might have been (with better marketing) a great D.C. blog,  Capicostia Heat.   It has been my experience, as a writer and a man,  that, sometimes, the grandest things are best said simply and sincerely, ..with authenticity.  So, there you have it. There were times, just a month and a half ago, during the disastrous aftermath of the rogue storms that devastated the D.C. area, that it seemed my mother's Penn Branch community had been entirely abandoned by the District of Columbia.  Penn Branch was left sitting in the dark with no power, no visible police presence (police patrol cars, etc), in the middle of the worst heatwave of recent memory - temperatures of one hunde...

There's nothing worse than having a sick animal friend or pet in your home, who is ill and cannot speak for itself. It's a helpless feeling, and you want to get your pet to someone, who can help them, as quickly and easily as you can. For Capicostia, that doesn't mean popping over to Capitol Hill, Old Anacostia or Northwest D.C., where you know there'll be no parking. It probably means hauling your pets out to Maryland's P.G. County, where parking and lots of space for it is practically guaranteed. That's how I found the Forestville Vetinary and Bird Hospital . It is located on Marboro Pike, right around the corner from the Penn Mar Shopping Center on Donnell Drive, in District Heights, Maryland, ..and it's got more than just convenient parking. FVBH is headed up by Ukraine-educated vetinarian and animal friend-spirit, Dr. Abdoul Diarra , and a caring staff of vetinary students, pet grooming and kennel professionals and vetinary technicians. Rest assu...

See who wrote us up on his weblog, right here .

(NYDailyNews.com) "Authorities say a young South Philadelphia teen was so angry his mom took away his PlayStation that he killed her with a claw hammer. The motive was revealed as Kendall Anderson's confession to the brutal crime, committed on the day after Thanksgiving, was read in court, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on Tuesday. The 16-year-old allegedly told police he decided to kill his mother, Rashida Anderson, after a 90-minute argument that culminated in her taking the video-game console away. Anderson considered his actions before killing his 37-year-old single mother, said the judge who read the teen's statement in Philadelphia Municipal Court. The teen paced for three hours mulling over what he would do before deciding to kill her, said his confession, which he gave to a police detective. Anderson struck her 20 times with a claw hammer while she slept. In an effort to get rid of her body, he tried to "cremate her" in..." Read full story

Yeah, after a week, Capicostia, successor to the irascible Penn Brangler and the frightfully irregular Mel's Penn Branch Life, is still floating in Cyberspace, undiscovered by her River East sister-blogs. I was warned, prior to The Big Move to this new blogspot, that this could happen, if I didn't mail out engraved invitations to our new location. I didn't. I did, however, post a thread pleading everybody, who carried PennBranch.blogspot.com, to change our listing to Capicostia.blogspot.com that would show up as a title on their blogs and hoping that would put our friends on notice. I was hoping, also, to spare them the unsightly matter of carrying dead links , which I hate to find in my own list. The press for the new direction of this blog, all created right here, toted the Capicostia idea as being a blog about Middle River Easters (D.C.'s Silver Coast), who identified more with the international, big city experience that 'Capitol Hill represents', t...

(Washington Examiner) "Former Prince George's County Executive Jack Johnson was indicted Monday on eight federal charges of conspiracy, extortion and bribery as well as tampering with a witness and evidence. Authorities say Johnson took bribes from developers seeking favorable treatment, and he and his wife attempted to cover it up. The indictment, filed in U.S. District Court in Greenbelt, also says Johnson conspired with..." Full story here

(WUSA9.com) "WASHINGTON (WUSA) -- DC Police confirm that they are investigating an allegation of sexual abuse against Washington Redskins player Albert Haynesworth. Haynesworth is accused of touching a waitress' breast while paying his bill Sunday night at The W hotel on 15th Street, NW. According to the police report, the waitress' hands were full of dishes when Haynesworth wanted to pay his bill and he asked if he could put his credit card in her blouse near her breast area. She nodded yes and he placed the card in her blouse, sliding his hand further..." Read more here

See that part on the map (below) that reads 'Territory of Columbia'? What is the point of naming the City Formerly Known As D.C. something like 'New Columbia', if we're all still in the same, old Columbia? So far, our poll reports that there are more people, who want to name our new, non-capital territory just plain, ole, stinky 'Columbia', than anyone else. Common sense prevailing, I think.

Bullet-proof, Amazon yuppies get along just fine in River East, I'll have you know! People have a lot of stupid ideas about life east of the Big Dirty, and River Easters are fed up ! What do you think is the most common 'wrong idea' about our great neighborhoods? Take the poll on the right and share your views.

The Wikipedia listing for Anacostia (here, meaning all of D.C. 'East-of-the-river' ) ends abruptly with the opening of an unnamed supermarket in 2007. So, where's the rest? There's Denny's (a Dyer family fave), the Fireside Resaurant, Honfleur Gallery, the River East Emerging Leaders, Ray's The Steaks, the Savoy, the Grays, Big Chair Coffee, Uniontown Bar/Grill, the Hive and two NEW libraries and a museum . All of that is happening right here, in River East, and everyone should know. So, if you already have a blurb somewhere on all of the above and any new developments I might have missed, send it to the people at Wikipedia, so they can get this right. Mel Dyer