News from Adams Morgan businesses

AMPBID Board of Directors meeting and marketing committee meeting

Food Truck regulations - a summary

Work at Home in Adams Morgan networking lunch - April 4th 12:30 at the Diner

Movie Nights at Marie Reed Field with PTA May 20, June 10 and June 24

Taste of Adams Morgan - April 29th

Fifth Annual Summer Concert Series - begins May 3

Registration is now open for BTWD - May 16th

DDOT RiverSmart Rewards progam

DO IT FOR DC! Challenge - need businesses to help

News from Adams Morgan businesses

3) Please be alert to recent bank robberies:

There is a mann who has hit 3 banks in 4 days: Mt Pleasant on Friday, Columbia Heights yesterday and Chinatown/Gallery Place today.

He uses a note each time at the teller.

Suspect is a B/M, dark complexion, 5’5 to 5’6, thick build, between the ages of late 20’s to early 30’s years, thin dark black mustache, dressed in a black pea coat, black and grey hooded shirt, (with the hood on his head), light blue jeans pants, black sunglasses, black backpack.

The suspect entered the bank presented a note to the victim teller demanding money and stating that he had a gun.  The victim noticed that the suspect did not have a gun and called 911 while he was standing at the teller station.  Once the suspect realized that the victim was not going to complied he walked out of the bank southbound on 14th Street from 3101.

The suspect did not obtain any FDIC insured funds.

Please contact Lead Detective Stacey Carey at 202-489-8788 if you have any information in these cases.

Food Truck Regulations - a summary

A number of Adams Morgan business owners have requested a summary of the food truck regulations so here you go:

DCMR Title 24, Section 533 (Vending Locations: Mobile Roadway Vending Locations: General)

Subsection 533.3 – A MRV vehicle must be legally parked.

Subsection 533.7  – No mobile roadway vending shall be authorized within two hundred feet (200 ft.) … of a designated MRV location during the designated hours.(10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on weekdays.)

DCMR Title 24, Section 534 (Vending Locations: Mobile Roadway Vending Locations: Authorized Locations)

Subsection 534.3 – Only MRV vehicles may park within each designated MRV location during the hours of 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on weekdays.

Subsection 534.4 – MRV vehicles parking in designated MRV locations must vacate designated MRV locations at 2:30 p.m. on weekdays.

Subsection 534.5 – There shall be no parking, standing, or stopping in any designated MRV location from 10:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on weekdays except District government holidays, unless authorized by the DDOT Director.

Subsection 534.10 – A designated MRV location shall not be established: (d) within twenty feet (20 ft.) of any driveway; (g) ten feet (10 ft.) of a fire hydrant; (i) any location that is not a legal parking space; (j) any location that is immediately adjacent to a duly permitted sidewalk café.

DCMR Title 24, Section 535 (Vending Locations: Mobile Roadway Vending Locations: Additional Locations)

Subsection 535.1 (c) – obey all posted time restrictions. (no meter feeding)

Subsection 535.2 (c) – [shall not park] where the adjacent unobstructed sidewalk is less than six feet (6 ft.) wide.

Subsection 535.2 (e) – [shall not park] within twenty feet (20 ft.) of any other driveway;

Subsection 535.2 (j) – [shall not park] Any location that is not a legal parking space;

If you see a violation of these regulations report them - with a photo if possible - to Vincent Parker - Vincent.Parker@dc.gov Office: 202-442-4512

He is the Special Events/Vending & Regulatory Investigations Program Manager at the DC Department of Consumer & Regulatory Affairs (DCRA)

1100 4th Street S.W,  4th Floor Washington, DC 20024.

Work at Home in Adams Morgan networking lunch - April 4th at 12:30 at The Diner

Do you have a home based business in Adams Morgan? Do you want to start-up a home based business and are interested in learning from others who’ve done that successfully? Or do you work from Tryst and wonder who else there might be based in Adams Morgan too?

If you are interested in networking with other home based businesses in Adams Morgan, we are starting a networking group that will meet for lunch on the first Friday of every month beginning on Friday April 4 ^th from 12:30 to 2 pm at The Diner, 2453 18 ^th Street, NW, WDC 20009.

No need to RSVP, just show up. For planning purposes salads run $6.99 to 12.99 and sandwiches are $5.45 to $11.99 so lunch should not cost you more than about $15.00. Depending on level of interest, we will move this around each month to different restaurants.

Hope to see many folks there on Friday. Please spread the word.

Movie Nights at Marie Reed Field with PTA - May 20, June 10 and June 24th

Announcing Adams Morgan Movie Nights:  May 20, June 10, and June 24

Community film series have been enthusiastically supported across the city, and the Adams Morgan Partnership BID is excited about presenting one here with the Marie Reed PTA.

Adams Morgan Movie Nights will be held at the new soccer field next to the Marie Reed Elementary School at 2201 18th Street, NW, corner of 18th and California Streets, NW and will be a family friendly way to bring the community together, broaden the perception of what Adams Morgan has to offer and will benefit residents and businesses alike.

The recent upgrades to the site, including hillside seating, make this one of the best neighborhood screening locations in the city. This season’s series will include a range of award winning films with an emphasis on classic and/or animated features.

The Adams Morgan Partnership BID is organizing this series along with the Marie Reed Elementary School Parent Teacher Association, which will be selling refreshments at the event to raise funds for the school.

The Adams Morgan Movie Series is a great chance for you to promote your business leading up to the summer months. We'll be offering Adams Morgan swag bags at each showing (depending on availability) with promo items (coupons/flyers/freebies). Also, we're asking for feedback about a neighborhood stamp card e.g. get X number of stamps and receive discounts at participating businesses. We could kick off the stamp card at the movies and keep it as an ongoing promo.

Would your business like to participate in the swag bag and/or the discount card?  Please contact Cathy Chung cathy@meepsdc.com with your feedback. We’ll have more information about other ways local businesses can be involved soon. Thanks!

Reminder: Taste of Adams Morgan - April 29th

Taste of Adams Morgan

Interested in attracting new patrons to your business and raising money for a worthwhile cause?  Then we have the event for you!

Mary’s Center and the Adams Morgan Partnership Business Improvement District (AMPBID) would like to invite the restaurants of Adams Morgan to participate in the Second Annual Taste of Adams Morgan set for Tuesday, April 29th, from 5:30-9pm.

Last year’s event raised over $3,500 and we need YOU to make this year’s event an even greater success!

Similar to last year, Taste of Adams Morgan will provide city-goers with a chance to sample from Adams Morgan’s best restaurants while supporting their neighborhood and Mary’s Center, in the process.

Tickets will be available for purchase online as well as the day of the event with proceeds going to Mary’s Center.  Each ticket may be redeemed for one pre-fix “taste” at the participating restaurants, so with tickets in hand, attendees can stroll down 18th Street at their leisure, ready to whet their whistles and partake in some of the best dishes that Adams Morgan has to offer.

Not familiar with Mary’s Center?

Just off of 18th Street at the corner of Ontario and Kalorama (we are neighbors!), Mary’s Center’s bustling main offices have been serving the DC metro area since 1988.  Entering our 26th year, with now six locations and two mobile medical units, Mary’s Center continues to fulfill its mission of building better futures through the delivery of health care, education, and social services.  We embrace culturally diverse communities and provide them with the highest quality of care, regardless of ability to pay.  Learn more about President/CEO Maria Gomez and Mary’s Center on our website: www.maryscenter.org .

Interested in participating in Taste of Adams Morgan ?  For more details, please contact Monique Perry at mperry@maryscenter.org or call (202) 420-7113.

Sixth Annual Summer Concert series - begins May 3

The 6th Annual Adams Morgan Summer Concert Series begins on Saturday May 3rd at 5 pm!

There will be another fantastic line up of bands playing in the BB&T Plaza at Columbia Road and Adams Mill Road for six Saturdays in May and June from 5 to 7 pm (May 3, May 17th, May 31, June 7, June 21 and June 28). More details can be found here .  We will be promoting the concert series in full detail soon too. However, right NOW we want all Adams Morgan businesses to consider:

OFFERING A SINGLE-DAY DISCOUNT AND ATTRACT ALL OUR SUMMER CONCERT GOERS TO YOUR STORE OR RESTAURANT.

Would increased foot traffic and more customers on summer Saturdays be music to your ears? If so, you will be thrilled to know that we are bringing back the bracelet program again. As we did last year, every concertgoer will be able to receive a same-day promotion in participating businesses if s/he attended our concert.  We would like you to offer a promotion so that visitors feel welcome and truly encouraged to frequent our businesses.

As you know, in each of the past 5 years, our summer concerts have drawn hundreds of people to the neighborhood each summer Saturday.  Before and after the concert, and during intermission, we always encourage concertgoers to shop and eat in Adams Morgan. Still, it was a bit of a mystery to know who did stick around.

We have come up with a way to not just bring visitors to our community to hear the concert, but also to encourage attendees to visit our best businesses.  All concertgoers will receive a distinctive red paper wrist band at the concert.  Upon presenting this wrist band in participating businesses, the concertgoer will be entitled to a special discount available just that day, and only to concertgoers with the wrist band.

This is where you come in.

The more discounts our businesses offer, the more attractive the wrist band, and concert attendance, will be. So, please contact Kristen Barden at kbarden@adamsmorganonline.org or call 202-997-0783 and let us know what discount or other promotion you will offer on concert days. You shape the deal--a percentage off, a "buy X get Y" deal, perhaps a freebie for concertgoers with any purchase.  Just make it persuasive, so our concertgoers, their toes still tapping, will boogie on down to your business to spend their hard-earned dollars.

We will also hand out a complete list of all businesses offering some kind of special (along with details about the special) at the concert each week.

Please let us know by April 20th what special you will offer so we can compile the list. Thanks!

Registration is now open for BTWD - May 16th, 2014

Bike to Work Day 2014 - May 16th

On Friday May 16, 2014 Commuter Connections and, Adams Morgan non-profit, the Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) invites you to join over 10,000 area commuters for a celebration of bicycling as a clean, fun, and healthy way to get to work. Attend one of 79 pit stops throughout D.C., Maryland, and Virginia to receive refreshments, and be entered into a raffle for bicycles being given away. Free T-shirts available at pit stops to the first 14,000 who register and attend.

The BTWD web site has launched and registration is now open: www.biketoworkmetrodc.org

We have partnered with City Bikes for our Adams Morgan pit stop again. They will be donating a bike for the raffle and will have their very popular bike clinic too. Any Adams Morgan business is welcome to participate that morning by donating give aways and food for the more than 400 people who come through.

DDOT RiverSmart Program

The District Department of the Environment (DDOE) recently launched two new programs, RiverSmart Rewards and the Stormwater Retention Credit (SRC) Trading Program . RiverSmart Rewards provides a discount of up to 55% on the DDOE Stormwater Fee, which is billed to a property’s water and sewer bill. Properties that have installed and maintain stormwater Best Management Practices (BMPs), such as green roofs, bioretention, rainwater harvesting, and permeable pavement, would qualify for a discount. Discounts are calculated based on stormwater retention volume of the BMPs on the site. The SRC Trading Program is a market-based program for managing stormwater in the District. Regulated sites can buy and use SRCs to meet their regulatory requirements for retaining stormwater. SRCs are generate by sites that voluntarily manage stormwater or manage above their regulatory requirement.

DDOE would like to let commercial property owners know about these new programs so that they can begin to take advantage of the savings through RiverSmart Rewards or start selling SRCs to regulated sites. There are no deadlines to apply; however, for RiverSmart Rewards, DDOE offers a retroactive discount to properties that installed BMPs prior to the availability of the program. In order to be assessed a retroactive discount, properties must apply for a discount by July 31, 2014.

Contacts for each program are Emily Rice ( emily.rice@dc.gov or 202-834-0186) for RiverSmart Rewards and Evan Branosky ( evan.branosky@dc.gov or 202-535-2295) for SRC Trading. Emily and Evan would be happy to talk to businesses and commercial property owners. Please feel free to contact them with questions.

Do It for DC! Challenge

The Do It For DC! Challenge is a citywide initiative from the District Dept of the Environment and powered by Going Green Today. We are challenging District residents to save $2,000 off their cost of living by reducing one-third from their carbon footprint. Participants sign up online and receive a tailored 90 day action plan with short, simple actions each day to save money and go green.

To incentivize participants and connect them to the local economy, we want to offer them access to a DIFDC Discount Club. It's free for businesses, and will be available to participants in the Challenge both after they sign up and as part of their daily action plan. It's a great way to encourage participants to commit to sustainability and introduce them to businesses that support a greener, healthier DC.

If your business is interested in becoming part of our Discount Club, or would like more information about DIFDC, please contact Greg Rockwell at (704) 501-7208 or greg@goinggreentoday.com .