The Pandemic Hit Cities Hard And Then There's Washington, DC

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I wonder how many of you actually live in DC. We live in the U Street/Logan area and it's basically like there never was a pandemic. If you need to move to Frederick because of housing prices and "social unrest," well, good luck to you. You'll be replaced soon enough by the more prosperous.

Oh, a couple days ago a realtor knocked on my door and literally begged me to sell my townhouse. If DC is dying, you sure can't tell from the real estate prices.

So many suburbanites seem to get off on DC's impending demise. It's ain't gonna happen.

I believe you that your neighborhood is doing great. People who used to go into offices and spend money downtown are now spending their money closer to home. When is the last time you went downtown?

+1. Funny that PP even brings up her hot neighborhood and the market value of her home. It’s obvious she is in deep and unable to see the forest from the trees. Downtown is suffering and it will spread. Clients aren’t coming back to office for a long time. Conference and tourists? Same story. There is a world of hurt coming.

This is the thing most seem to be missing. It’s not just commuters. I work in government relations and, pre-covid, we had a constant stream of executives from out of town paying for hotel rooms, cabs and fancy meals downtown. That has gone away, along with conferences. Remember how busy downtown was when the Realtors were in town? Or the phone company execs, Rural Electric Cooperatives, etc etc? Gone. Most lobbyists are spending a huge amount of time at their beach house. People don’t go to the Hill, like they used to. My friends still on the Hill say it’s eerie how quiet it is. The restaurants near the Hill that used to be hopping are empty. It’s not good.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have friends in NYC who said it was very depressing to live there during the pandemic.

I feel like living in DC has proven to me how great this city is.

DC has the nation's best park scores:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/dc-has-the-nations-best-park-system-study-says-arlington-isnt-far-behind/2019/05/21/ecbd528c-7b1f-11e9-a3dd-d481bcdabfe6_story.html

Which my family took full advantage of during COVID.

That alone is huge.

Our architecture (adjoining row houses with neighboring porches) makes it much easier to talk to your neighbors. We got to know many more people who live near us during the pandemic.

As a city, DC has done well in this pandemic.

Predictably, some areas downtown with few residents and high concentration of office workers are still a bit empty. Not surprising given how dominant an employer the Federal Government is and how few members of that workforce have been called back.

But that real estate will never be worthless. It's a ten minute cab ride from Capitol Hill. A place that will never change its address. I'm fairly confident that's worth something.

All this proves is that you weren’t in DC during the 80’s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

spoken like someone who has never lived in the district.

I lived in DC for years. I don’t think I ever met anyone who moved to DC for anything other than work. I never met anyone who moved to DC because it is such a great city. I did meet people who enjoy living in DC. But DC isnt a city like NY where recent college grads move there without having a job yet because they so badly want to live in NY.

DC is a company town that revolves around the government. Even removing 25% of the workforce will have a profound effect

Then you must not have been here very long. Did you live in the suburbs? DC is more than a company town. I used to live in Charlotte. THAT was a company town. Yes, there are lots of jobs that revolve around Congress, but there is also tech, lawyers, think tanks, etc.

All funded by the business of government: contracts and influence peddling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

No. I don't.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

DC resident here. No I don’t remember this outside of Fox News. There were a couple of broken windows but it wasn’t as wide scale and pervasive as Fox painted it.

City dwellers will only move out for more room if they can’t afford a house in DC. Most will stay for the restaurants and social activities. You are just stuck in a house on the burbs, why would anyone want to WFH in the ‘burbs? It’s isolated and depressing. In DC, I work from home then meet up with friends to do fun stuff —eat at great restaurants, go for drinks, go to shows.

[Anonymous]

We moved from DC to the burbs for better schools and less crime. It was a decision based on the best environment for our children, not based on restaurants and shows. Nothing in the past two years since we moved indicates we've made the wrong decision.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

DC resident here. No I don’t remember this outside of Fox News. There were a couple of broken windows but it wasn’t as wide scale and pervasive as Fox painted it.

City dwellers will only move out for more room if they can’t afford a house in DC. Most will stay for the restaurants and social activities. You are just stuck in a house on the burbs, why would anyone want to WFH in the ‘burbs? It’s isolated and depressing. In DC, I work from home then meet up with friends to do fun stuff —eat at great restaurants, go for drinks, go to shows.

This is so ridiculous. Lying about things people can see with their eyes is just stupid. There was not one single cvs in the entire city (including spring valley ffs) that wasn’t looted. Everything with any booze was looted. I mean, give me a break. Observing this FACT with one’s own eyes does not a MAGA make. The refusal to deal in reality will really harm the city…

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

DC resident here. No I don’t remember this outside of Fox News. There were a couple of broken windows but it wasn’t as wide scale and pervasive as Fox painted it.

City dwellers will only move out for more room if they can’t afford a house in DC. Most will stay for the restaurants and social activities. You are just stuck in a house on the burbs, why would anyone want to WFH in the ‘burbs? It’s isolated and depressing. In DC, I work from home then meet up with friends to do fun stuff —eat at great restaurants, go for drinks, go to shows.

This is so ridiculous. Lying about things people can see with their eyes is just stupid. There was not one single cvs in the entire city (including spring valley ffs) that wasn’t looted. Everything with any booze was looted. I mean, give me a break. Observing this FACT with one’s own eyes does not a MAGA make. The refusal to deal in reality will really harm the city…

Sorry man that’s not a fact. I live in DC and have three CVS’s in my neighborhood. None were vandalized, certainly not looted. I don’t think you live here or have a good sense of DC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

DC resident here. No I don’t remember this outside of Fox News. There were a couple of broken windows but it wasn’t as wide scale and pervasive as Fox painted it.

City dwellers will only move out for more room if they can’t afford a house in DC. Most will stay for the restaurants and social activities. You are just stuck in a house on the burbs, why would anyone want to WFH in the ‘burbs? It’s isolated and depressing. In DC, I work from home then meet up with friends to do fun stuff —eat at great restaurants, go for drinks, go to shows.

This is so ridiculous. Lying about things people can see with their eyes is just stupid. There was not one single cvs in the entire city (including spring valley ffs) that wasn’t looted. Everything with any booze was looted. I mean, give me a break. Observing this FACT with one’s own eyes does not a MAGA make. The refusal to deal in reality will really harm the city…

So where is your photo blog f looted CVS stores if you visited every one?

But let’s say you were right and all of them were looted, we were down at the wharf last weekend and it was packed and the CVS was open. Seems like whatever BLM/MAGA/Aliens vigilance happened has been fixed and forgotten.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

DC resident here. No I don’t remember this outside of Fox News. There were a couple of broken windows but it wasn’t as wide scale and pervasive as Fox painted it.

City dwellers will only move out for more room if they can’t afford a house in DC. Most will stay for the restaurants and social activities. You are just stuck in a house on the burbs, why would anyone want to WFH in the ‘burbs? It’s isolated and depressing. In DC, I work from home then meet up with friends to do fun stuff —eat at great restaurants, go for drinks, go to shows.

This is so ridiculous. Lying about things people can see with their eyes is just stupid. There was not one single cvs in the entire city (including spring valley ffs) that wasn’t looted. Everything with any booze was looted. I mean, give me a break. Observing this FACT with one’s own eyes does not a MAGA make. The refusal to deal in reality will really harm the city…

Sorry man that’s not a fact. I live in DC and have three CVS’s in my neighborhood. None were vandalized, certainly not looted. I don’t think you live here or have a good sense of DC.

Spring Valley was vandalized. Friendship heights. But it sounds more like a crew of burglars targeted them during the unrest than something like the LA riots.
Coordinated and timed like a bad heist movie.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/public-safety/a-wig-shop-apple-store-jeweler-bank-and-cvs-were-all-targeted-in-burglaries-carried-out-during-week-of-protests-police-say/2020/06/05/15aab814-a6c2-11ea-b619-3f9133bbb482_story.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

spoken like someone who has never lived in the district.

I lived in DC for years. I don’t think I ever met anyone who moved to DC for anything other than work. I never met anyone who moved to DC because it is such a great city. I did meet people who enjoy living in DC. But DC isnt a city like NY where recent college grads move there without having a job yet because they so badly want to live in NY.

DC is a company town that revolves around the government. Even removing 25% of the workforce will have a profound effect

Then you must not have been here very long. Did you live in the suburbs? DC is more than a company town. I used to live in Charlotte. THAT was a company town. Yes, there are lots of jobs that revolve around Congress, but there is also tech, lawyers, think tanks, etc.

All funded by the business of government: contracts and influence peddling.

It’s remarkable that people don’t comprehend this. Similarly funny how they don’t seem to grasp that the head of OPM determines if they go to work or not on any day regardless if they work for the government.

It’s not a “company town” and yet the company’s head of HR dictates everyone’s in towns work schedule.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not surprised that DC has been hit harder than other cities.

There are many people who live in NY, LA, SF etc because they are world class cities and have a lot to offer.

Most people live in DC because of....work. Now there have been shifts in work structures that will likely result in a portion of DC office workers having a hybrid or fully remote work arrangement. I don’t see these people staying chained to DC like I might expect someone to still stay in NY or LA.

On top of that, add in the high COL, social unrest, homeless people and crime. DC is on the decline. It’s pretty easy to figure this out. Now see what happens with a government shutdown!

We actually live in DC b/c we love DC. What social unrest? The Trumpers who came and left? SF and LA don't have a worse homeless situation than DC? Really?

Seriously? You don't remember BLM, Antifa, shattered windows, burning cars, looting?

DC resident here. No I don’t remember this outside of Fox News. There were a couple of broken windows but it wasn’t as wide scale and pervasive as Fox painted it.

City dwellers will only move out for more room if they can’t afford a house in DC. Most will stay for the restaurants and social activities. You are just stuck in a house on the burbs, why would anyone want to WFH in the ‘burbs? It’s isolated and depressing. In DC, I work from home then meet up with friends to do fun stuff —eat at great restaurants, go for drinks, go to shows.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujtPygMy1I8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWuBkqIaCvw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSQujl4Pkgk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gelO1ZUYjGw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0KvU4oJrnQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZntBe29UXSI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qscMD6_8_U

Don't think for a moment I'm excusing the Trump rioters, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We moved from DC to the burbs for better schools and less crime. It was a decision based on the best environment for our children, not based on restaurants and shows. Nothing in the past two years since we moved indicates we've made the wrong decision.

What’s interesting to me is that this move has been happening in DC for decades. What makes the current situation different is only that there is a big cohort of people making families and having babies at the same time (Millennials) and Covid provided an impetus for a big number of this big cohort to do it at the same time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We moved from DC to the burbs for better schools and less crime. It was a decision based on the best environment for our children, not based on restaurants and shows. Nothing in the past two years since we moved indicates we've made the wrong decision.

This doesn't make you special or different. It's nothing new. You have kids, you become Karen. The city doesn't miss you.