Give To The William J. Clinton Foundation

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My dad is usually the first to say that it's people like you, working together who create change in the world. And I couldn't agree more.  I also think he deserves a big "thank you" for everything he's done in the past year - especially the inspiring work that doesn't make the headlines, like personally checking on the progress of a soy factory in Rwanda this summer and helping give more American kids access to healthy meals throughout the school year.  I'm helping the Clinton Foundation collect thousands of personal messages of thanks from people like you to share with my dad. Will you write him a quick thank you note today?  Please, click here to say "Thank You" to my dad, President Bill Clinton.  But this is more than just an opportunity to say thanks – it's a chance to join a community of thousands that provides education for a child in Haiti, provides nutrition for a malnourished mother-to-be in Peru and provides mentoring to a young entrepreneur in Harlem.  My father has always felt that if good people unite around a common purpose, with an unshakeable persistence, we can solve even the most intractable problems and that's what we try to do every day at the Clinton Foundation.  Since 2001, the Clinton Foundation has improved millions lives around the world – from negotiating agreements that now ensure lifesaving HIV/AIDS medicines get to 4.5 million people in over 70 countries every day to bringing $2.5 billion in economic development to places like downtown Little Rock to creating sustainable forest management programs to benefit over 353,000 people in forest-dependent communities like in Malawi.  After leaving the White House, my father made the remarkable decision to devote his time as a private citizen to making sure people everywhere can achieve their dreams. His goal is to ensure that people around the world are better off than when he started, and for that, I hope you'll join me and send him a quick note of thanks. When you do, you'll become part of a group of hundreds of thousands of people who believe there's nothing wrong with today's world that can't be fixed by empowering people to dream big and figure out how to enact those dreams into real actions in their lives, their communities, our world.  Sincerely,  Chelsea

President Bill Clinton established the William J. Clinton Foundation with the mission to improve global health, strengthen economies, promote healthier childhoods, and protect the environment by fostering partnerships among businesses, governments, nongovernmental organizations, and private citizens. CLINTONFOUNDATION.ORG

Maryland Democratic Party January 20th, 2013

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Save the Date!
Maryland Democratic Party Inaugural Ball Featuring The Spinners  Along with Maryland’s Democratic Elected Officials and Special Guests  Sunday, January 20^th, 2013 Doors Open at 8:00 p.m. Held at the
Gaylord National Hotel 201 Waterfront Street National Harbor, MD 20745 Black Tie Optional Ticket Prices TBA (Tickets must be purchased in advance) For information contact Andrew Lee at alee@mddems.org or visit www.mddems.com/inaugural

A Prayer for President Obama

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AND HE STILL STANDS TALL...  God's grace and peace upon this man is my prayer, and I pray that before the end of his term, people's heart, mind, and eyes will open.  There will never be another like him.  May he lead and be guided in the way God would want him to lead and guide.  He is not perfect and has never claimed to be.  He and this whole country is in need of our prayers.  It only takes a spark. No President has ever worked this hard for our country.  Many wonder, does he ever sleep??  Only God can sustain such energy, knowledge, and person.  Please let us form a powerful prayer chain around our President and his family and ask God to secure it with love, protection, mercy and grace.  Will you please join in the prayer below?  Lord, We pray for optimum health, mental clarity and political prosperity for President Barack Obama.

We pray that what he lacks in political 'experience' you make up for with supernatural wisdom and power. 

We also pray that when his enemies come upon him they will stumble and fall; and that your love will fill his heart to the end and that 'Your Will' be done through him.  Amen. All you are asked to do is keep this circulating if you are so inclined.  May God bless and keep you.

Let's keep this going!        

Guided Tour Of National Museum of African Art & Lunch

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PART 1 – DETAILED PRIVATE GUIDE TOUR OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN ART
Come join your peers as we explore the ins and outs of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art led by our exclusive group docent. The museum is known as a “spectacular facility” and a living “great tribute to Africa” full of “rare treasures” and fascinating displays; however, due to the size and variety of the exhibits, it is easy to get lost in the museum without an experienced guide to help explain the history behind each piece.

Our private guide will help bring history to life as we examine the historic and evolving culture of several different tribes and cultures from Africa. With hundreds of works – from private collections as well as national and international public collections – we’ll experience a range of artistic genres and media dating from centuries past to the present. Including highlights of the African Cosmos: Stellar Arts, the Tishman African Art collection, Ceramics, and much more!
PART 2 –  LUNCH After feeding your mind, we’ll feed your body with a delicious lunch at the American Indian Museum’s highly rated Mitsitam Cafe. The cafe is wided recognized both by critics and by patrons as a great casual restaurant with a wide variety of meals created from foods indigenous to the Western Hemisphere. Each meal reflects the food and cooking techniques from the region. The lunch is also a great time to further connect with fellow tour participants. After lunch, feel free to explore the American Indian Museum which is home to one of the largest and most diverse collections of Native art and historical and cultural objects in the world.
Suggested Attire:
Casual with comfortable shoes

Directions:
National Museum of the American Indian
4th Street & Independence Ave, S.W.
Washington, DC 

Where To Meet?: 
Meet at the main entrance to the museum which is located in the Enid Haupt Garden on Independence Avenue. You MUST be on time since this is a private guided tour. To purchase tickets, click here

Support The Shaheen Amendment

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Every day, more than 400,000 servicewomen risk their lives in defense of our country and our ideals. For that, they should be honored.

Tragically, right now, they're being denied respect, care, and basic dignity. Each year, an estimated 19,000 of our service members, who make the greatest sacrifice anyone can make, are victims of sexual assault. And yet they are denied insurance coverage for abortions even in cases of rape and incest.

We can't let this continue.

My amendment to give these women the coverage they deserve is in the Senate version of the National Defense Authorization Act. The final vote could come as soon as this week and we have to make sure it's not blocked.

I'm joining with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand to stand up for our servicewomen and make sure our voices are heard loud and clear. Will you join us?

Click here to show your support for the Shaheen Amendment and speak out to protect the rights of women who fight for this country to make their own medical decisions.

These women don't ask for accolades or praise. They go and fight for us because it's the right thing to do. Now, it's our turn to fight for them.

We owe it to their service. Please, join me and show your support for the Shaheen Amendment and these brave women. Click here to add your voice.

I know our servicewomen and their families share my gratitude for your support.

Thank you,
Senator Jeanne Shaheen

What's Your Point of View?

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Have you ever gone into a bar or club and had just a horrible night, only to return a few months later and have a completely different experience? Or what if your original experience wasn't terrible, but it wasn't worth another visit for...oh, a few months. Well this is what happened to me this past week in DC.

If you recall from early last summer, I checked out the newly opened W Hotel and POV Lounge. My experience wasn't horrible. But there were some bumps and bruises from that visit and I frankly haven't had any real reason to return. Granted, Dan K. and I have made stops in the W Hotel lobby for a drink or two. But it wasn't until last Thursday that we returned to the rooftop terrace and lounge of this swanky DC hotel. My impressions have changed.

The first notable element of change is that the obnoxious lines trying to gain entry to the elevator upstairs are gone. This was a Thursday night, so it's possible you could find a line on Friday or Saturday night. But remember, it was a Wednesday night when I encountered close to 50 people dressed to impress waiting for their chance to experience the ultimate DC point of view. The next element of improvement was a staff prepared for anything. We were escorted upstairs, taken to the terrace, offered a place to sit and even offered drinks before I could take off my coat. This was a major change from the first week where POV couldn't decide if they wanted to be a velvet rope club or a tapas restaurant. Clearly, POV has accepted its role as a smooth character on the DC lounge circuit and the composed attitude reflects that.

Another stand-out element from last Thursday was one of the best Bailey's and coffee I've ever had. Dan K. asked me, "how could they mess that up?" I replied..."simple, bad coffee." This particular drink is made with a very smooth bean and brewed at what had to be the perfect temperature. I know it was late, but I ordered two.

POV has also added great music. DJ 2-Tone was spinning a groovy down-tempo hip hop that fit perfectly with the lounge mood. Honestly folks, sitting there sipping my coffee with soulful hip-hop feeding my ears while the Washington Monument stood brightly out the window next to me was a nocturnal dream come true. It was like taking a vacation from the usual high-energy K Street rat race and finding yourself at a rooftop oasis surrounded by history. Is there a better setting for this stuff or what?

The two photos in this post reflect what I saw that night. They reflect what POV has become since opening and what POV was destined to be. They reflect a beautiful rooftop lounge in a beautiful hotel with the best point of view in our city.

Photos by Doug Van Sant

New Renderings of MoCo's Tallest Building

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After building the tallest building in Montgomery County, JBG is putting the final touches on plans for an even taller building next door.  JBG's North Bethesda Market II (NoBe II), a second phase to the development that built the county's tallest structure, will add 400 new residences, 120,000 s.f. of retail, and a 150,000-s.f. office building when completed.  Renderings, completed by ArchiBIM, show the distinctive building rising above the 24-story tower now on the site.  Although a timeline has not been determined, JBG and co-developer MacFarlane Partners have been hoping to break ground on the 4.4 acre site in the first half of next year, producing an iconic, 26-story (300 ft) apartment building designed by Studios Architecture.

Montgomery County approved the building back in March.  The project furthers the goals of increased density and design along Rockville Pike, a goal that got a shot in the arm with the recent release of plans across the street for a replacement for the White Flint mall.  JBG owns more land to the south and west of the two sites, but for now, NoBe II is its sole focus in the area.  NoBe II will be completed in one phase, taking 2-to-3 years once construction starts.








Montgomery County real estate development news

Demolition and Preservation at Former Chinese Embassy

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Drive by the former embassy of the People’s Republic ofChina on Connecticut Avenue and you’ll see an interesting sight: a building façade propped up by an elaborate set of braces, next to another building undergoing wholesale demolition. Much demolition has alreadyoccurred. But the facade is being preserved as part of the Sheridan-Kalorama Historic District, and will be incorporated into a new building on the site that’s beendesigned by Esocoff and Associates.
While the embassy proper decamped for Van Ness Street in2009, the new Connecticut Avenue building will serve as the embassy’s residentialand consular building, containing 136 mostly two-bedroom apartments fordiplomatic staff, and some office space.
The original embassy was actually composed of two distinctbut connected buildings. The more historic structure at 2310 Connecticut Avenuewas built in the 1920s, and its façade is the one that’s being salvaged. Theother structure, at 2300 Connecticut, was the hulking, largely unadornedbuilding that most observers remember as the Chinese Embassy. It started out inthe late 1940's as a hotel, but was turned into an embassy after Nixon’s visitto China in 1972.
Now, most of the latter building is being reduced to rubble.“I think one of the reasons we had unanimous community support was thatremoving a building that unappealing was a mitzvah—a good deed,” explained PhilipEsocoff, adding that demolition of the newer building should be complete by theend of 2012.
But the older building has a different, more delicate story.  Braces have been utilized to preserve the two outside walls andstrengthen them against wind while the building’s interior is removed. “Wewill cut away at the wall behind it, but we’ll have to do it carefully, by hand,”said Esocoff. “That’s a particular kind of process, saving a front wall: youdon’t want to rip the building down inside because it might pull somethingoff.”

Esocoff rendering of the new building's facade

Esocoff said the workers—part of Clark Construction team, unlike the previous Chinese construction crew in Cleveland Park —aresalvaging some of the old bricks and ornamental metal balcony railings, whichwill be incorporated into the new structure. Though it will include an interior courtyard, the new building will fill in some of the empty space that lay above the old edifice's lobby and will therefore be largely thesame size as the original set of buildings.
“I think it’ll be a very well-constructed building, a littlehigher quality than we might do on a standard apartment house because they planon being there forever. It’ll be institutional grade,” said Escoff. “And thiswill really improve the vista as you come down from the bridge.”
Groundbreaking will occur after the first of the year, withthe first step being an excavation of the property’s lower levels to include aparking garage.

Washington, D.C. real estate development news

NoMa's Trilogy Apartments Open Thursday

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NoMa's newest apartments open Thursday as developers and city officials gather for a photo op to inaugurate one of Washington DC's largest apartment buildings.  "Trilogy" - 3 buildings designed by the Preston Partnership and formerly known as NoMa West - will add 603 rental units to the border between NoMa and Eckington at 151 Q Street, NE.

The first of the three buildings - Cirq, Linq, and Esqe - is now open, with the other two opening within the next few months.  Designed by developer Mill Creek Residential Trust to appeal to nearly any taste and architectural preference, each of the three buildings sports several motifs, a "highly differentiated architectural style," say its developers, that will span the centuries, architecturally speaking, with "traditional and contemporary" in Cirq, "warehouse, contemporary and art deco" in Linq, and finishing with the "highly contemporary" Esqe when it completes in March.

The project broke ground in March of 2011, but has been in the works far longer, at least since the team of CSX (as owner) and Fairfield Residential (as developer) plotted a 2006 groundbreaking for the residences.  The torch then passed to Trammell Crow Residential, and finally to the current team, who can finally spike the ball at tomorrow's ceremony.  Mill Creek is also working on an even larger project at the Dunn Loring Metro station.





Washington D.C. real estate development news

10 Questions with Deborah Ratner Salzberg

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10 Questions is a weekly feature in which we interview some of the leading District figures in real estate, architecture, development, and planning. This week's subject ... Deborah Ratner Salzberg, President of Forest City Washington, Inc.

For Deborah Ratner Salzberg, real estate runs in the family.  As President of Forest City Washington, Inc., Salzberg oversees the local branch of billion-dollar development giant Forest City Enterprises Inc., the company her family founded in 1920.  A former attorney at the U.S. Department of Justice, Ms. Salzberg also holds leadership positions with many community, arts, and philanthropic organizations, including The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington, the Washington Ballet, and Arts for the Aging.

1. What's a typical day for you?

Wake up and head to the gym. Go into the office. Check emails. Spend the day balancing Forest City Washington work with community/nonprofit activites. Check emails. I generally have a lunch meeting and after work often head to a fundraiser or nonprofit event.  Head home and check emails. Get an advance start on tomorrow’s headlines on my iPad. Go to sleep and start again.


2. What or who is your biggest influence?

My biggest influences are my relatives. I work with my relatives, and they influenced my decision to join Forest City. I was surrounded by strong independent women growing up. My mother, paternal grandmother and three aunts all worked outside of the home. My father has always been my advisor, biggest fan and supporter. To this day I've never given a speech without running by him first. Although, I didn’t run these answers by him!


3. What neighborhood do you live in?

The Edgemoor area of Bethesda.


4. What is your biggest DC pet peeve?

We can’t see stars at night due to the bright lights.  It’s time to convert to directional street light fixtures.




5. What is the #1 most played song on your iPod?

Born to Run….I play it when I’m working out.


6. Favorite DC haunt?

Sterling.  My gym.


7. What's your favorite thing to do on a Sunday afternoon?

Yoga


8. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?

Here, but I wouldn’t mind a second home in NY, SF, Paris or Tel Aviv.


9. If you couldn't be a developer, what would you be?

An international flight attendant. I love to travel.


10. Name one thing most people don't know about you.

I took a semester off from college my sophomore year and moved to Hawaii where I ended up working in security for McInerny Department Store.

Arlington Publishes Major Plan for its Bikeshare

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Arlington County has just released a six-year blueprint for growth in its share of the Capital Bikeshare system, and planners say the blueprint - with recommendations for growth and funding - could be the first bikeshare Transportation Development Plan (TDP) in the country.

Bikeshare trips to and from Arlington. Image: BikeArlington

Arlington County is part of the Capital Bikeshare system, one of four operators in a group that also includes Washington, DC, Montgomery County and the City of Alexandria.  In total, the system has 1,670 bikes and 175 stations.  As of September, Arlington County's share included 44 stations and 306 bicycles.

Over the past year, the county's BikeArlington staff solicited public feedback both online and in person, surveyed local stakeholders including agencies, businesses, and users, and based on the results laid out scenarios for growth for the system over the next six years.

"Capital Bikeshare is an integrated part of the transportation fabric in the Washington D.C. region, and it should be treated as such," Chris Eatough, program manager for the county's BikeArlington program, which oversaw the plan, wrote in a column published by Mobility Lab, Arlington's transportation innovation branch.

Findings

Existing Arlington bikeshare stations. Image: BikeArlington

According to the report, system data shows almost 50 percent of Arlington's bikeshare users were either coming from or going to Washington DC.  Most bikeshare trips were less than 1.5 miles in length.  Users who bring in the most cash for the system are "casual users" who take trips lasting over 30 minutes (those trips cost more), although those users made up less than 20 percent of riders in 2011.  Commute trips constituted a third of all trips with Arlington's bikeshare.

Funded Growth

In one growth scenario, the report outlines what Arlington can do with existing funding to grow and maintain the system.

According to the report, with existing funding, Arlington would grow most in 2013, adding 40 stations, three through "external sponsorships" and the rest with transportation grants and other funding.  New stations will "build out" the system in Shirlington and South Arlington, along Columbia Pike east of the Washington and Old Dominion trail.

Pending approval by the National Park Service (NPS) and the Department Defense, stations will also pop up at Arlington National Cemetery and the Pentagon.  More stations will go into neighborhoods to create connections between the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor and Columbia Pike, as well as between Crystal City and Shirlington.

Beyond Existing Funding: Big Demand for Lots of New Stations

Funded Arlington bikeshare growth. Image: BikeArlington

Beyond the existing funding for 40 new stations, the TDP estimates a total demand for between 57 and 115 additional Arlington bikeshare stations.  The report calls locations in North Arlington at East Falls Church and Lee Highway the "logical next steps" for bikeshare expansion, and notes that more bicycles in Crystal City, Rosslyn and Court House Square will also be needed.

Funding

Currently, bikeshare gets operating revenue from fares and from station sponsorships.   However, the report estimates continuing operating deficits, and suggests opening up bikeshare station panels to advertising sales, but Arlington County would first have to change its policy against on-street advertising.  

According to the report, the system gets $200,000 in capital revenue from Arlington County vehicle decal fees.  In the past and for 2013, the system has gotten funding from a federal program called Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ), though the continuity of that program is uncertain beyond 2013.


What Comes Next

Next, according to Eatough, the plan goes to the State of Virginia to be considered for transportation funding.

In the meantime, the plan lays out 15 ambitious performance measures that Arlington will monitor to keep an eye on how well things are going with its plan for growing its bikeshare, as well as other more abstract things like sustainability, safety, health, and bicycle culture.  Those performance measures include the ratio of Alrington's bikeshare miles traveled to total vehicle miles traveled, helmet use, crash rates, even average calories burned per trip.

The county is also still accepting public suggestions for future stations with its crowdsourcing map.