Permits, Repairs, and Renovations are the Order of the Day

Our building is over 100 years old, as are most buildings on Capitol Hill. Many are a lot older than that.  Most of the land square footage has been taken up in the "old neighborhoods," so there is little new construction. And if anything needs to be repaired, or there is a request for renovation, strict rules and regulations must be followed in this historic area. Just south of us near the National's Stadium, many new buildings have been made to look like Capitol Hill, but it is also filled with high rises that all look the same. It's a peculiar person who cares to live in these vertical and very old structures. So any time we walk around the neighborhood, it is always full of craftsmen and work crews - lot of exterior painting using three story ladders; complete gutting of the interiors and starting all over on the inside only; and very unglamorous jobs to check for underground leaks and such. It hardly matters if it is a residential space or a public, private, or federal office building. Everyone must abide by the specifications. There is something about the architectural design elements on Capitol Hill which distinguishes it from a lot of other places. But it comes at a cost, and sometimes it is very inconvenient - but very pretty.