UPDATED: Lux Lounge Landlord to Terminate Lease after Shooting

UPDATE (July 2, 7pm): A tweet from D.C.'s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) says Lux Lounge's liquor license was summarily suspended today.

Douglas Development, the landlord of 649 New York Avenue NW, will terminate the lease of Lux Lounge, it was announced at the meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Committee (ANC) 6E/Shaw last night (July 1). Lux Lounge was the site of a large-scale brawl that started inside the club and ended in a shooting. The shooting occured just outside the club after the brawlers were ejected at about 3:30am Saturday morning (June 29), according to a report in the Washington Times.

Screenshot of Lux Lounge Website

According to information disclosed at the ANC meeting, one person was shot in the melee, one was injured with a broken bottle, and one person was left unconscious.

After the incident, DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier invoked emergency police powers to order the club closed for 96 hours.

ANC6E Commissioner Rachello Nigro (district 04) said at the meeting that Douglas Development had given Lux Lounge the legally-required 120 days notice to vacate the property.

ANC1B Committee Protests Indulj Liquor License, Approves Many Others

The liquor-licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street will recommend a protest of an application by Indulj Restaurant and Lounge (1208 U Street NW) to renew their liquor license. The decision was taken at a meeting of ANC1B's Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Committee last night, October 22.

Indulj in December 2012 (Luis Gomez Photos)

Commissioner Jeremy Leffler (district 02), chair of the committee, reported that, according to ANC1B's newly adopted guidelines on liquor license renewals, more than three liquor-license-related infractions by an applicant would cause the committee to debate protesting their license renewal application. Indulj had had five infractions related to their liquor license during the last three years.

Much of the discussion of Indulj centered around a December 3, 2012, incident where three men were shot outside the bar. The incident caused DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier to close Indulj down for several days. Indulj reopened, and DC liquor-licensing authorities took no further action against Indulj as a result of the shooting.

The committee voted unanimously to protest the liquor license renewal application until Commissioner Zahra Jilani (district 12) can discuss what additional steps, if any, Indulj has taken to modify the establishment's security plan. Indulj is located in Jilani's ANC district.

No representative of Indulj was present at the meeting.

It is the season for ANCs throughout the city to consider the renewal of tavern licenses. This means quite a bit of work for ANC1B. A long list of local restaurants and taverns received ANC support to liquor-license renewal with little or no debate at the same meeting. These included: Cafe Saint Ex, Bar Pilar, Mockingbird Hill, Twins Jazz, Ben's Next Door, and Dodge City, among others.

Applications for renewals by DC9 and Bohemian Caverns generated some discussion at the meeting, because, like Indulj, they had had more than three infractions in a three-year period. Also like Indulj, these clubs had had recent high-profile brushes with the law. Unlike Indulj, both DC9 and Bohemian Caverns sent someone to speak at the meeting.

The committee decided to support the renewal applications for these two establishments.

The recommendations made by the committee will come up for approval before the full ANC. The next scheduled meeting is November 7, at 7pm, at the Reeves Center (14th and U Streets).

Jack Evans Asks What's on ANC2F's Mind

DC City Councilmember for Ward Two Jack Evans introduced DC Chief of Police Cathy Lanier at the October 2 meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle at the Washington Plaza Hotel (10 Thomas Circle NW). He then listened to Chief Lanier's remarks, occasionally adding a comment. After Chief Lanier concluded and departed, Evans stayed on to answer questions on various topics from the standing-room crowd of 80-90 community members.

Chief Lanier's remarks are reported in a separate blog post.

ANC2F listens to Jack Evans

Evans and Lanier

Evans said Lanier was "doing a fabulous job". He noted that last year's homocide rate was the lowest in 60 years, and that this year's was on track to be even lower before the recent shootings at the Navy Yard.

During Lanier's Q-and-A session, ANC2F Commissioner Peter Lallas (district 01) asked about anti-loitering laws as a tactic to get drug dealers off the streets. Lanier said such laws have often been found found to be unconstitutional.

Evans said if Lallas could find a law that would pass constitutional muster, Evans would be happy to support it.

"If you can find a better law, I'll introduce it immediately," Evans said.

Evans alone

After Lanier's departure, Evans talked briefly about DC's financial situation in the wake of the federal government shutdown. DC has about 1.5 million dollars in the bank, and will be able to make payroll through October -- but not after that.

Evans introduced Sherry Kimball Sherri Kimbel, constituent services director for Ward Two, to a round of applause. Kimball Kimbel told the meeting that "all the circles" -- e.g., Logan, Scott, Thomas -- are US Park Service property. As such, they are effected by the federal shutdown of non-essential services, particularly in the area of trash collection. Kimball Kimbel said that the Logan Circle Community Association was looking to spearhead a drive to keep the circles relatively trash free. She urged community participation.

Then Evans tooks questions from the community.

"What's on anybody's mind?" he asked.

Community Questions

Someone asked about a plan to move the Spy Museum to the Carnegie Library in Mount Vernon Square. Evans didn't have any information about this, but ANC2F Commissioner Greg Melcher (district 06) said there was "plenty of time for community input".

In response to a question, Evans declared himself "dead against changing the height act".

Commissioner Walt Cain (district 02) asked about the recent Council decision to reject proposed changes in the visitor parking pass program.

A woman from Vermont Street asked about an "uptick in the homeless". She was against just shooing them away, but couldn't something be done.

 "These people gravitate to Ward Two, the center city," Evans said. "The homeless issue is a very delicate issue."

There were two questions about traffic lights. One resident of N Street said DC traffic lights were not synchronized, were too short, and were getting shorter.

Evans agreed, saying he drove up 15th Street to R Street every day, then west on R. He found the traffic lights infuriating. "If I get to be king," he said, stopping for audience laughter, "I'm going to fix all that. There's no reason in the world for it."

The second resident complained about drivers at the corner of 15th and N. Drivers did not pay sufficient attention to pedestrians. Evans promised to look into it.

An ANC2F resident complained about the proposed K Street trolley line. City officials were bent on connecting the trolley to Georgetown, whether it was practical, and regardless of the inconvenience caused.

"There's a large vocal group against it, including businesses on K Street," Evans said. "There's a smaller but still vocal group in favor."

Evans received a round of applause when he departed.

Chief Lanier at ANC2F about Logan Circle Shootings

The community turned out to see Cathy Lanier, Chief of DC's Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) talk about local crime at regularly-scheduled October monthly meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle on October 2 at the Washington Plaza Hotel (10 Thomas Circle NW). 

Chief Lanier listens to her introduction

About recent shootings

Lanier announced there had been two arrests the previous evening in a stun gun robbery in Petworth. There have recently been a series of stun gun robberies in DC, including one in Logan Circle. Chief Lanier told the Washington Post the MPD did not know if the Petworth incident is tied to the other stun gun robberies.

Lanier reminded the audience that crime was down dramatically in the area, which was why the stun gun robberies got police attention.

There was little indication of progress on two other recent shooting incidents in the Logan Circle area. This was in spite of reported email assurances from the MPD more than ten days ago that the police "know who did this" and "were looking to make an arrest".

Lanier said the person shot during the September 12 incident on 14th Street was not cooperating with the police, which was making the investigation difficult. She also said there was a lot of misinformation "out there" about the shootings and there was "nothing to support these theories".

Community Q-and-A

During a question-and-answer session, a pastor of the Asbury Methodist Church (11th and K Streets) asked about prostitution and human trafficking in the neighborhood. In the subsequent discussion, it was said that prostitution seemed based on Internet advertising was now more common, as opposed to solicitation on the streets. Potential johns made appointments online and then met on street corners. The intersections of 5th and K, 12th and I, and 12th and M Streets were noted as frequently-used meeting spots.

An attendee from the 1400 block of R Street reported there was a lot of drug dealing and drinking on his block, and his car had been broken into twice this year. This is thought to be the work of a small group of juveniles. Some of these don't live in the neighborhood, but have friends who do. Others live in the neighborhood, so the police cannot use a "stay away order".

Another attendee from 13th and R complained that "follow through is lacking" in the case of the Logan Circle shootings. One witness saw the car and the shooter but was never interviewed by the MPD. Another woman, whose car windshield had been shattered by gunfire in the incident, had been asked three questions by the police, after which she had heard nothing.

Over 80 community members came to hear Lanier speak and listen to questions for about 40 minutes. All the seats were filled and people had to stand.

Lanier was introduced at the meeting by DC City Councilmember for Ward Two Jack Evans. Remarks by Evans to the meeting are the subject of a separate blog post.