The Current Newspapers, distributed in northwest Washington to every door step, are not available on line. This week features an article on Frederick Steiner’s campaign:
The Libertarian Party has been planning to buy a building for its national headquarters for over a year now, having always rented office space at various locations in DC (and briefly, Houston, Texas) since the 1970s when it was founded.
The Libertarian National Committee is meeting this weekend in Alexandria, Virginia, a few blocks from the building it has under contract at 1444 Duke Street. This video is the first time libertarians generally have been able to see it.
There was a little controversy and buzz at the LNC meeting because of the recent purchase, by the Marijuana Policy Project, of a co-op unit (a kind of condominium that is common in DC and Manhattan — where the owner owns a perpetual lease to a particular unit and shares of stock in the association that owns the building — with a very few in other states and cities including Florida, California, Virginia and Maryland), for the same price, at 2370 Champlain Street NW in D.C.’s Adams Morgan neighborhood. Many had felt that being forced out of D.C. proper by D.C.’s higher real estate prices was a shame for a national political organization, and some worried that the buyer agents working for the LNC may have neglected to show them D.C. properties, including the one MPP knew about and some on the LNC fear they did not.
Here’s the MPP building, where they have a large unit on the first floor. And here’s a the interior. (I actually sold a residential apartment in the same building a few years ago, for someone who is now an Obama/Hillary political appointee at the State Department.) Both the MPP unit and the LNC HQ are selling for around $825,000. The MPP building has a better location, many think, but it also has a high monthly fee. It’s possible that some people also thought the Adams Morgan side street MPP bought on is too “transitional” or unsafe – a non-DC person would think that. But in fact it is likely to appreciate faster than the Alexandria location. Both are near a Metro (subway) and inside the Beltway, which means they will be the continued recipients of Federal Reserve inflation as all D.C. metropolitan real estate is (like the stock market, and unlike the real estate in much of the country.) But the new LNC HQ is close to being a strip mall at the outer edge of exurbia, with a giant anchor of the area, the U.S. Patent Office, rumored to be moving away. The MPP location is featured in a recent real estate blog article which crows “Is Adams Morgan Becoming Posh?”
(For full disclosure let me say that I am a realtor with licenses in D.C., Maryland and Virginia, and though everyone asked for my opinion this weekend, no one from either the LP or MPP asked for my advice or assistance in their property search.)
So this does raise the question of what else is on the market that the LP could be buying and what else was on the market in the past year that it could have bought. In both cases I see some D.C. candidates I would want to have considered, aside from the MPP purchase.
There are a number of properties that closed in the past 12 months in DC that were commercial spaces over 2500 sq ft and under $1 million, two of which look like good candidates. One is a 3000 sq ft ground floor space just around the corner from where MPP bought, 1745 Kalorama Road, that sold for $100,000 less than either MPP or the LP paid, and which has a very low condo fee (under $500). It’s downside – it doesn’t own a parking space. But it is in a condo that has a garage where one could buy or rent spaces as needed and one can park on the street (sometimes difficult in D.C.)
Even more exciting is a large townhouse on the Kalorama/Dupont Circle border, two blocks from the subway and a block from the offices of reason magazine, at 2121 R Street, in a row of art galleries, embassies, the Phillips Collection, restaurants, and $1-3 million houses. It is also larger, 3000 sq ft, but it is also more expensive, selling for $998,000, and needing renovation.
There are also a number of properties for sale now in D.C. that might be better than the commercial townhouse under contract. One intriguing one is a 3200 sq ft corner building with garage in LeDroit Park currently with a store with a beer and wine license on the ground floor, at 1901 4th Street. It’s interesting because, besides being in one of the most rapidly appreciating neighborhoods, it’s diametrically across from the home of the Rev. and Mrs. Jesse Jackson.
Another interesting possibility is this commercial storefront townhouse on the commercial strip in Mount Pleasant, about 3 blocks from the Columbia Heights Metro stop on 14th Street. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have any parking of its own.
The real contender however, is 921 12th Street NE, near Capitol Hill, Union Station (which has both a subway stop and Amtrak), National Public Radio’s gleaming new building, and the NoMa subway stop. This is new construction in the most rapidly appreciating section of town, and it is over 4000 sq ft, much bigger than either the MPP purchase or the Alexandria unit the LNC has under contract.
********************************************************************************
By contrast, the Republican National Committee is housed at 300 First Street SE, in a building popularly called the Capitol Hill Club, in a building the tax assessor thinks is worth $6 million . The Democratic National Committee is only a few blocks away (both behind the row of House of Representatives office buildings on Independence Avenue SE) at 430 South Capitol Street SE in a building assessed at $16 million.
Now for a little “shoulda, woulda, coulda” — history of the Libertarian Party national headquarters. It has been at least four places before its current D.C. location as a tenant at the Watergate office complex in Foggy Bottom near the Potomac River: 1516 P Street NW in the 1970s, a little building in the early 1980s at 2300 Wisconsin Avenue (the corner of Hall Place – which used to have a florist and a barbershop and now houses a Starbucks, with a current tax assessment of $4 million), briefly Houston, Texas, and the (former) outskirts of Capitol Hill on Pennsylvania Avenue SE.
1516 P Street NW, in the 1970s, was a sketchy neighborhood where friends who worked at the old Young Libertarian Alliance (the defunct youth arm of the Libertarian Party) tell me everyone locked up at 5:00 pm and skeedaddled before sundown. (Most D.C. newbies don’t remember when every other mansion on 16th Street NW in Dupont Circle was boarded up with broken windows and a front yard full of trash and broken glass, muggers abounding, even until the late 1980s, when I lived at 1832 16th Street NW near Swann Street.) It’s now the border between Logan Circle and Dupont Circle, full of million dollar lofts, a Whole Foods, theaters, upscale bars, and restaurants. 1516 and the two adjoining town houses at 1514 and 1518 have most recently been for sale for around $8.5 million – though they were for sale back in 1999 for $331,000. Currently it houses the National Congress of American Indians, one of the groups lobbying to get the Washington Redskins to change their name.
Mr. Neale’s term as national chair also ends in 11 months, when there is an election for a new Chairperson of the Libertarian National Committee at the 2014 Libertarian Party national convention in Columbus, Ohio.
Laura Delhomme is now on the ballot in the 47th District (Arlington, Courthouse).
Lindsey Bolton, running for delegate from the Crystal City area has also qualified for the ballot.
 |
Silver Circle will be coming to the belly of the beast, the same place the entire movie is set! This premiere is going to be visited by liberty orgs and hopefully some politicians in the area! (We’ve extended an invitation to Bernanke…I hope he’s free).
Showtimes are in! 7pm – Friday will have a Q&A with the director and an after party at: Bailey’s Pub & Grille Friday: 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:10 Saturday: 12:10, 2:20, 4:40, 7:00, 9:10 Sunday: 12:10, 2:20, 4:40, 7:00 Monday-Thursday: 2:20, 4:40, 7:00 About Silver Circle: Join us at the Regal Cinema in the Ballston Mall on April 12-18th for multiple showtimes (Details TBA) everyday! If you’re interested in collaborating with us to have your meet-up or organization sponsor a night, contact Megan@SilverCircleMovie.com! We’ll have special events planned as time gets closer and tickets will be available soon. |
Contact Steve Newton, New Castle County Chair,
Libertarian Party of Delaware (302) 229-7197
Libertarian candidates in Delaware challenge their opponents on marriage equality:
Libertarians would prefer to get the government out of the marriage business all together, but today’s reality is that marriage confers social, economic, and legal advantages on the couples whose unions are recognized by the State.
We thus jointly agree with Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson that marriage is a civil right, and that the so-called Defense of Marriage Act is an unconstitutional attempt to deny the civil rights of some Americans in favor of the religious and social beliefs of others.
As citizens of Delaware we applaud the incremental move toward marriage equality in the legalization of civil unions, but this is only a necessary first step.
As Libertarian candidates for State and local office, we take the uncompromising position that Delaware should make the enactment of marriage equality a priority, and we pledge to work toward that end if elected.
We challenge each of our respective opponents, and all candidates in this year’s election, to make an unequivocal statement regarding their position on marriage equality, so that Delawareans in November will enter the voting booth knowing exactly where they stand.
Yours in Liberty,
Margaret Melson, candidate for State Representative, 14th District
John Machurek, candidate for State Representative, 16th District
Will McVay, candidate for State Representative, 32nd District
Wendy Jones, candidate for State Senate, 6th District
James Christina, candidate for State Senate, 7th District
Scott Gesty, candidate for US House of Representatives
Andrew Groff, Green/Libertarian candidate for US Senate
Though the recall effort against Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker failed, some Libertarians are already conducting a recall campaign against Libertarian Party chairman Geoff Neale. I don’t actually understand all the issues involved but here is their petition: http://www.change.org/petitions/recall-geoff-neale-from-the-libertarian-party-s-chairmanship?utm_campaign=friend_inviter_modal&ut Signatures 1 out of 100 Petitioning Recall Libertarian Party Chair Geoff Neale Created By Gregory Bailey Logan, WV About this PetitionPetition Letter The Libertarian Party (LP) chairman Geoff Neale has gone against the party platform that he is the chairman of. In http://www.lp.org/news/press-releases/libertarian-party-says-gov-walker-made-right-first-step he has discussed the topic of public-sector unions and their right to collective bargaining. This absolutely goes against the LP platform under 2.7 Labor Markets and is essentially an endorsement of government force and fraud against their own employees. The last part of that sentence is extremely important because Mr. Neale had to sign a pledge to be against the use of force and fraud in order to join the LP. What Mr. Neale is saying is also a part of a recommendation from the LP Platform Committee. These recommendations, especially the part about government worker unions, were voted down at the LP National Convention in Las Vegas. However, Mr. Neale, through his words, seems content with pushing forward this agenda. He needs replaced. He needs recalled. By signing below, you will be asking LP Party Chairman Geoff Neale to step down. Recent Signatures Gregory Bailey (Logan, WV)
DCLP convention
Saturday, March 24, 2012, 3:00pm
Please join the District of Columbia Libertarian Party as we reorganize the party, elect officers and delegates to the national LP prez nominating convention in Las Vegas over Memorial Day.
Please help spread the word. All District Libertarians are welcome.
Soho Tea & Coffee
2150 P st. NW, Washington, DC 20037
Last weekend Vieginia elected delegates in Richmond and this Saturday the Maryland Libertarians elected a not completely full slate of delegates and alternates to the national Libertarian Party nominating convention in Las Vegas in 9 weeks. The 17 Maryland LP Delegates to the Libertarian national convention, include Senatorial candidate Dean Ahmad, 5th District Congressional candidate Arvin Vohra, Tanuja Paruchuri, Bruce Majors, Mike Linder, Scott Spencer, Tim Sutton, Erin Smith, George Reynolds, Stuart Simms, Eric Blitz, Steve Soffen, Chris Doscher, and Lorenzo Gaztanaga. Alternates include Steve Boone and Darlene Nicholas.
New LP member and Gary Johnson supporter Chris Barron, who blogs at “The Real Red Barron,” is supposed to be organizing a DC LP mini convention, which we will promote here when details are known.
DC Libertarians 
