My Favorite Ward 8 Houses

Art of War Concept: The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought.
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A friend recently posted on facebook that her and her husband were looking to move to a new home for their growing family and asked her facebook friends for recommendations on neighborhoods they should consider. She said she was considering 4 neighborhoods. Unfortunately, none were listed EoTR (that's for another blog post - why do people start in Ward 8 and then move).

So I thought about some of my favorite homes in Ward 8. Not sure who lives in these, but I always admire the charm and character of each one as I drive by. Let me know your thoughts.

Let's start with my favorite neighborhood...

Anacostia Historic District

I think the front and back porches of this house are cool. Plus the nice side yard

I always liked the charm of this little home. Notice the cool shutters

One of my favorites on W St. We got to get this within the Historic District boundaries

Valley Pl. Big House + Big Yard + Cool Owner

Truly represents the beauty of Anacostia

The Bell Tower is Awesome!

Newly renovated house on W St. The side yard is dope!

Let the picture speak for itself

Fairlawn

This is one of the coolest houses in Ward 8. Huge backyard and a whole lot of charm.

Minnesota Ave SE

Another on Minnesota

Recently renovated with a garage car port in the back

I love how this sits on the hill

The barn homes on Minnesota Ave

No need to be big to be awesome. Hacienda style

Talbert St

Hidden on Talbert

Talbert St has a couple of neat homes

The owner did a great job rebuilding her family home

Congress Heights

Off of Brothers Pl and Sterling

Guess who's house?

Congress Heights could really become a historic district in some areas

If someone renovated this home it could be cool. I dig the attic window

Neato...

A lot of history in this home. Owned by one of Ward 8's Whos Who...

Charm on Alabama Ave

Bellevue

The Star of my favorite + Its on Xenia St (cool name)

Off of South Capitol. I think MPD uses this house as a stakeout

Bigger is not always better!

Art All Night -- Congress Heights

Art of War Concept: For them to perceive the advantage of defeating the enemy, they must also have their rewards.

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I want to congratulate Congress Heights Main Streets and the Ward 8 Arts & Culture Collaborative for a job well done on the Arts All Night event held a couple of weekends ago. Arts All Night was an all-night exploration and celebration of contemporary art, encompassing five of DC’s most vibrant neighborhoods. This year the event was hosted in four neighborhoods across the city. Congress Heights represented Ward 8!

These two organizations turned the St. Elizabeths Pavilion into an art extravaganza. From fashion shows to mural drawings there was something for everyone! It was great was you could tell they made a concerted effort to infuse the energy of the community into the event. I hope this is the first of many events in Congress Heights. I fully expect that next year it will be bigger and better!

Check out some pics below.

Great times!

Something for everyone...

A bunch of stuff

Jewelry Makers...

Hey who is that pretty lady? Mrs. Wilson :-)

The runway...

 The audience had front row seats!

 The Photags were out in force!

One of many fashion shows during the night

Carnival theme fashion show...

Woodcrest Villas?

Art of War Concept: Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt

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It looks like some things have quietly changed in Congress Heights. I am sure many of us have read about and failed housing development on 4th Street SE that went belly-up about 2 years ago and set vacant for a while. Last year the property was auctioned off and looks like some new money has been pumped into the project.  

This past weekend while at the Whole Foods Market at the St E’s Campus Pavilion I came across a flyer advertising the development entitled “Woodcrest Villas.” I stopped by on Saturday and saw brand-spankin new development where the houses are selling for $350+ and the condos are $250+. Each unit comes well equipped with all the bells and whistles a homeowner would desire. The listing agent says many of the interested buyers are employees from the Coast Guard on the West Campus of St. E's....Interesting. Check out the pics below.

The condos are selling for $250+

The houses are selling for $350+

Brand new everything!

The are selling more...get yours today!

Broccoli Fest Comes to Congress Heights

Art of War Concept: Thus the energy developed by good fighting men is as the momentum of a round stone rolled down a mountain thousands of feet in height. So much on the subject of energy. 

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Did you by chance hear the loud concert music in the neighborhood this weekend? If so, it came from the Broccoli Fest. On Saturday, concert goers from the DMV verged onto the East Campus of St. Elizabeths for a full day live hip-hop concert. Yup, local artist from Just Blaze to Cam’Ron energized the crowd.  It actually felt a little bit like a Howard Homecoming event.

The Broccoli Fest is more than just music…it’s a cause that promotes health eating, environmental sustainability and the importance of building strong communities – sounds like a great fit for Ward 8. It was a positive event and took advantage of a great facility using the Pavilion. My hope is that one day we can move the Capital Jazz Fest to the St E’s campus or the Anacostia waterfront (hint, hint).

If you missed it hear are some photos below…

Had to been a couple thousand people in attendance

Great time in Congress Heights

The Concert stage...

It felt that Howard Homecoming in Congress Heights

All kinds of vendors

Show City...love the tv commercials

More Vendors

More and more people

Need a bracelet or necklace?

If you paid a little extra you got to watch the concert from the top

Nice touch...green umbrellas

Good seats up top

Nice!

Folks having a good time

There is the West Campus across the street

Party Over Here!

And a Party over There!

Don't come between a man and his broccoli!