Around the City

Urban affairs, neighborhoods, subways and the people who are affected by them all.

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May 12, 2011 | 11:59 AM | By

Report: Some D.C. Rents Could Increase by 10 Percent

Flickr: Joshua Davis Photography

Rents in D.C. are quite high, and they’re going to continue to rise: the District ranks as third among U.S. cities where rent is rising the most rapidly, according to a new U.S. News & World Report list.

Real estate research firm Reis, Inc. estimates American rents will increase by 3.6 percent in 2011 now that the economy is making a slow recovery. They also estimate that the annual rent increase in the District will be 5.4 percent citywide, but could be as high as 10 percent in some “hot areas” of the city.

This is how U.S. News & World Report describes D.C:

Average rent: $1,521; annual increase: 5.4 percent; unemployment rate: 5.8 percent.

There’s been no recession to speak of in the nation’s capital, where the federal government is a huge industry of its own. In addition to federal workers, D.C. is filled with contractors, lobbyists, and trade groups that feed off the government sector. That has kept demand for all kinds of housing strong.

That is a little misleading. To say there is “no recession to speak of” ignores the high unemployment rates in some parts of the city. Ward 7, for instance, has an estimated 20 percent unemployment rate.

And can rents really increase by 10 percent? Yes, they can. Many D.C. rentals are subject to some form or another of rent control, but when a unit is vacant, a landlord can increase rent by up to 10 percent higher than the previous tenant’s rate. All of that isn’t welcome news for renters, who represent 55 percent of the city’s population, and in particular the 68 percent of renters who already can’t afford rents.

Here is a list of the top 10 areas where rent is increasing the most rapidly:

Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Around the City, Media, Housing, U.S. News and World Report
May 11, 2011 | 4:29 PM | By

Taking Risks Can Be Expensive

Flickr: Ken Mayer

DCentric reader Martin Moulton left this comment on Elahe’s post about WABA’s attempts to encourage bicycle use east of the Anacostia River by hosting riding classes for adults:

Bravo WABA. In California, 40+ years ago, my mom cycle commuted daily to work well into her late 30s. You see a lot of African American men taking advantage of cycling as well as Latinos going to and from work downtown. But I think that minority women in DC are still [wisely] waiting for facilities and safety conditions to improve. Those who are sole heads of households can’t take hazardous risks every day when they have young or senior citizens who depend on them.

According to Elahe, the majority of the ten people who showed up for WABA’s class were women. Still, reading Martin’s last sentence reminded me that being able to try new things is a form of privilege. Biking in the city is already daunting for some people; single parents who work at jobs that don’t include health insurance or sick days may– with good reason– think twice about taking risks they cannot afford.

FILED UNDER: Around the City, biking, DCentric, Race and Class
May 11, 2011 | 3:03 PM | By

Farmers Markets Cheaper than Supermarkets?

Abdullah Pope/AFP/Getty Images

A customer examines heirloom tomatoes at a farmer's market near the White House.

Corner stores could be one solution to D.C.’s food deserts, but what about farmers markets? A new study of Vermont farmers markets found that many conventional grocery items were cheaper at farmers markets than at large supermarkets. And what’s more, organic items were 40 percent cheaper at farmers markets than supermarkets.

The exceptions included potatoes and eggs, but non-organic cantaloupes, cucumbers, lettuce and peas were cheaper at farmers markets than their supermarket counterparts.  Barry Estabrook at Politics of the Plate writes:

We’re all familiar with the accepted gospel: Only well-heeled food snobs can afford the exorbitant prices charged for those attractively displayed baby greens and heirloom tomatoes at [farmers] markets, while those who can’t afford such greener-than-thou food-purchasing decisions must paw through limp broccoli, wilted lettuce, and tennis-ball tomatoes at supermarket produce departments.

It seems that at least this study adds some doubt to that notion (and here in D.C., FRESHFARM Markets do accept food stamps). Organic foods, however, are still generally more expensive than non-organic items.

FILED UNDER: Around the City, Farmer's Market, Organic Food
May 11, 2011 | 1:32 PM | By

Tweet Of The Day, 05.11

Harry Jaffe says no people making over $200K live in Cleveland Park. A 25-yo couple w/2 lawyers makes over $200K. Lots in CP @TBDNewsTalk
May 11, 2011 10:36 am via TweetDeckReplyRetweetFavorite
@ggwash
Grtr Grtr Washington

This is in response to Washington Examiner columnist Harry Jaffe’s appearance on NewsTalk with Bruce DePuyt.

FILED UNDER: Media, The People, Class, Harry Jaffe
May 9, 2011 | 4:16 PM | By

How To Encourage Biking East Of The River: First, Don’t Tell Everyone

Courtesy of Eric Gilliland/Capital Bikeshare

Students listen to WABA instructor Sarah Miller explain how to check a bike before going for a ride.

About 10 people mounted pedal-less bikes and coasted downhill in front of the Anacostia Library on Saturday.

Once they had their balance, they earned one pedal. Then, two. Within an hour, almost all were riding bikes, thanks to two Washington Area Bicyclist Association instructors.

Some of the students in WABA’s adult riding class, like 59-year-old Mary Buckley, hadn’t been on a bike since childhood. Others, like 32-year-old LaStar Matthew, had never learned how to ride a bike in the first place.

Over the past three weeks, WABA has offered free classes instructing adults on how to ride bikes and how to ride them confidently in the city. But usually whenever the organization advertises such classes, which are enormously popular, “our core contingency follows us,” WABA executive director Shane Farthing said. People from Northwest D.C., or even Maryland and Virginia, fill up the classes rather than the Ward 7 and 8 residents the classes are intended to serve.

So this time around, WABA limited its advertising to posting fliers and other materials around the neighborhoods where the classes were to be held. And it worked: although the turnout was comparatively low, as expected by WABA, the participants were mostly from the neighborhoods. The last class had the highest turnout. Matthew saw a flier posted at her bus stop. Others found out at the library or via word-of-mouth.

The outreach is part of Farthing’s goal for the year. He wants to push bike advocacy in Wards 7 and 8, and WABA is doing it through grassroots methods such as these classes, setting up mobile bike shops and sending bike “ambassadors” to ride daily East of the River and encourage cyclists living in the neighborhoods.

“Especially where economic conditions are a little tougher, I think having a bike is a way to remove that expense of a car” or remove the uncertainty of depending on public transportation, Farthing said. “[Biking] is such a solution to all of the problems there, but until you have enough folks riding, you don’t have enough of a demand to get the facilities to make it safe.”

Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Around the City, Captial Bikeshare, East of the River, WABA
May 9, 2011 | 12:11 PM | By

Combating Anti-Muslim Stereotypes Through Art

Last week, co-blogger Anna John reported on how D.C.’s South Asian Muslims reacted to the death of Osama bin Laden. Afshan Khoja, a Muslim of Pakistani descent, told John:

“When I heard the chants of ‘U-S-A, U-S-A,’ I felt fear. I don’t understand why, but I wanted to lock my doors. This morning I heard about vandalism and graffiti at a mosque. Between yesterday and today, three people have already asked me why the Pakistani government didn’t know that Osama was in Pakistan for years – I don’t know!

“The fact is, regardless of this news, none of that has stopped. This may be a significant blow to a terrorist network, but for a Pakistani Muslim living in the U.S., I’m not sure if it changes anything.”

Crescent Moon Nights

A group of young Muslims in D.C., aware of the negative stereotypes against them, started a monthly open mic five years ago in an effort to build bridges across cultural and religious divides. WAMU’s Matt Laslo reports that Crescent Moon Nights is still going strong. Co-coordinator Tahir Amin Kayum tells Laslo:

“Pretty much it is different people of all backgrounds, cultures and nationalities, for them to come, express and share on the open mic,” says Kayum. “So we have featured artists for the evening, and we have various artists just come up, poets, singers, rappers, whatever, just coming up to share from different backgrounds.”

FILED UNDER: Culture, Delightful City, The People, Crescent Moon Nights, Islam
May 6, 2011 | 2:16 PM | By

Aldi Won’t Accept Government Subsidy Payments

Johannes Eisele/Getty

Aldi has plans to open a store in Northeast D.C., but customers won’t be able to use federal Women Infants, and Children program subsidies to purchase groceries there. The Gazette reports that Aldi doesn’t accept WIC payments because the store sells Aldi brands only:

A spokeswoman for the ALDI grocery chain said federal government guidelines governing the Women Infants and Children program precludes them from taking payments from customers enrolled in the program because the guidelines require that those customers buy only certain national brands of food. The chain offers its own brands of food, the spokeswoman said.

… ALDI will be unable to offer WIC because of its reliance on its own brands, a spokeswoman for ALDI Inc. said.

“We have explored ways for the WIC program to work within our operational structure,” spokeswoman Julie Ketay wrote in an e-mailed statement. “However, since the majority of our grocery products are under our own ALDI select brands and are not national brands, unfortunately, we simply don’t qualify within the program’s current guidelines.”

WIC is meant support low-income women, children and infants, and part of the program includes food subsidies. Aldi is known for selling low-cost items, something the German-based grocer is able to pull off in large-part because it only sells Aldi brands. Its reputation as a cheap grocery store has led to some debate over the type of clientele that would be attracted to the D.C. store, which is being built in a gentrifying area. But those using WIC subsidies may find themselves patronizing the nearby Safeway instead.

FILED UNDER: Around the City, Aldi, Supermarkets
May 6, 2011 | 1:06 PM | By

Fired Chipotle Worker Miguel Bravo Speaks

Yesterday, I covered a local protest against Chipotle. Approximately 40 people marched down Irving Street NW to the fast food chain’s Columbia Heights location on 14th Street. Miguel Bravo, one of the fired workers, addressed the crowd. Check back for comment from City Council members and Chipotle’s Communications Director, Chris Arnold.

FILED UNDER: Around the City, Columbia Heights, Immigrants, Politics, Protests
May 5, 2011 | 5:49 PM | By

Fired Workers March on Columbia Heights Chipotle

Flickr: Mr. T in DC

Heading to Columbia Heights to see the the latest protest against the firing of Chipotle workers.

A coalition of leaders, activists, religious organizations and community groups in the Washington D.C. area will soon descend on Chipotle’s doorstep…They intend to gather at 5 pm at The Sacred Heart Church in Columbia Heights, at which point those in attendance will march to the store in a powerful expression of protest against the disgraceful actions of Chipotle Mexican Grill.

According to the change.org article “On May 5th, (Cinco de Mayo, no less) fired workers will team up with everyday citizens to restore the inherent dignity and worth of all individuals in our communities”. Cinco de Mayo commemorates the Mexican army’s unlikely victory over the French at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862.

This will be the second protest for the workers at the Columbia Heights Chipotle who were allegedly fired over documentation issues.

According to DCist.com, the workers said the firings occurred during a 30-minute break and when they came back from the meeting their replacements were already wrapping burritos. New allegations by the former employees say Chipotle hasn’t compensated them for back wages and won’t meet with City Council Members Jim Graham and Michael A. Brown, who marched for the workers in the first protest.

Check back tomorrow for an update.

FILED UNDER: Around the City, City Council, Columbia Heights, Food, Immigrants
May 5, 2011 | 1:41 PM | By

In Photos: Mount Pleasant 20 Years After the Riots

The Mount Pleasant riots began on May 5, 1991 after a police officer shot a Salvadoran immigrant. Last week’s Metro Connection took a look at what happened during those two tumultuous days, and today’s Kojo Nnamdi show featured a discussion around the legacy of the riots for D.C.’s Latino community.

The riots, which also spilled over into Columbia Heights, left a lasting mark a neighborhood that has changed dramatically in the past 20 years. We take a look at Mount Pleasant today:

FILED UNDER: Around the City, History, Kojo, Metro Connection, Mount Pleasant riots