Nellie’s rooftop by singlecupofcoffee
This afternoon at around 1:15pm, a robbery took place at Nellie’s Sports Bar involving the use of a gun. According to Borderstan, the number of robberies with guns in the area of 12th and U street NW has doubled in the past year. (Note to self: don’t walk down U street with your camera in plain sight.) According to the police alert, the robbery involved two black males in a white vehicle of unknown make. If you have any tips, call 911, and don’t be afraid to Rock the Red tonight at Nellie’s.
Oh shit! I heard some girl on the street got rushed to hospital after some gay on the Nellie’s balcony threw a glass at her! Nellies is crazy, yo.
Oh I walk down U street with my camera in full sight nearly every day and I’m always fine. Robberies happen, they are scary, but I’m not changing my habits out of fear and I hope most others don’t either. U street is predominantly a safe street as long as you know what you’re doing.
Oh, my. This is certainly a sign that Nellie’s should be open 24/7. And, when I’m your mayor, that will be my first act as executive.
“Doubled” sounds scary until you realize that the number is small–from 12 to 24. We’re not talking a rampant crime wave here.
Maybe I should just get insurance for my camera(s) instead? Or I’ll walk with you and you can protect me.
Also, notice that the Borderstan post stated that the total number of robberies has gone down. It’s just the ones with guns that have gone up.
True, but guns are scary.
You still only have a 6.6% chance of it happening to you on any given day of the year. It’s just gone up from 3.3%. Two times a small number is still a small number.
Actually, that’s wrong. There’s now a 6.6% chance of it happening to someone in the area of 12th and U on a given day. The chance of it happening to you, specifically, is well below 1%.
Actually, being over six feet tall and mean looking, my chances are basically 0%.
BTW, I’m not trying to scare anyone away from that neighborhood, just reporting the facts. Thanks for your input, Adam.
You know, come visit the neighborhood and tell me if you’re scared. I’m not sure, from what you’ve said, if you’ve ever even been. People get robbed in every part of every city, and in DC, just as many get robbed in Georgetown as U street for that matter. 43 people have been robbed in PSA 206 (Georgetown’s district) in the past year. 46 have been robbed on U street. Do you feel comfortable walking in Georgetown with your camera out? I bet you do.
This is clearly a misunderstanding. I’m not afraid of U Street or Georgetown (I love both areas of town). Columbia Heights? A little. Anacostia? Even more so. Regardless, I keep my camera tucked away unless I’m like, taking a picture.
And Max, you’re not reporting the facts. You’re editorializing them. You also don’t specify that the statistics Borderstan is mentioning is for the U street area not just the 12th and U block (area is not specific enough a word). I expect more We Love DC, honestly.
If my post came across as an editorial on the crime rate at 12th and U, I apologize. Clearly I have offended some people. Let me summarize the original intent of the post:
A robbery involving a gun happened at Nellie’s today. Go Caps.
That is all.
Thanks Max. I appreciate it. Go Caps!
I’ve lived in the U Street area for the past 2+ years, my partner and I bought our new home within the area (right off 8th) and I helped Nellie’s open years ago as a bartender there so it really sickens me to see one of the few establishments thats helped breath new life into the area being targeted. My heart goes out to the entire Nellie’s staff and is thankful no one was hurt.
In regards to the safety level for the 12th and U street area I don’t feel any less safe then I usually do. As U Street Girl pointed out crime happens all over the city, not just in the U Street area, so don’t let something like this stop you from going out and having a good time.
Oh my goodness. Reading this exchange has been frustrating and entertaining at the same time.
I’ve lived all over the U.S., and I’ve never hated any home city as much as I have DC. New York City in the early 90’s didn’t even leave as bad a taste in my mouth as DC does. HOWEVER, it has made some significant changes in the past – and Tuffle is right. Every city has its issues, and those issues can pop up any time of day, any day of the week, any month of the year.
And I echo his sentiments about Nellie’s and the staff. Gay men (and women) are so often rejected by much of the general population, we strive to find out ‘home’ just to be among friends (“… where everybody knows your name …”), and Nellie’s was that home for me when it opened. No bartender goes to work preparing him/herself to be face-to-face with a useless, humanless, slug of a thug with a gun demanding money the thug’s incapable of making themselves.
DC has changed, gotten better in some ways, worse in some ways. But most importantly, no one at Nellie’s was hurt.
You are at a greater danger Moon walking when you cross the street. Im from the burbs and have walked down U st without even thinking of looking over my shoulder
“You also don’t specify that the statistics Borderstan is mentioning is for the U street area not just the 12th and U block”
The Borderstan article itself says that the area in question is the 1000 ft radius of 12th and U. Just check the article for more information.
I’m not quite sure why Borderstan is analyzing this information since Nellie’s, being on 9th and U, is not even within that 1000 ft radius.
In the 1000 ft radius of 900 U St, the number of robberies has gone up slightly from 14 to 17, which is fewer than the number within a 1000 ft radius of 12th and U (of course there is a bit of overlap).
I think it’s pretty safe to assume that robberies are up is because of the increased pedestrian traffic to the U St area, particularly from people riding the Metro (and getting off at 12th and U), many of them visitors or tourists with cameras, iPods, smartphones, etc. This is the same reason that other high traffic areas like Adams Morgan and Georgetown suffer from spates of crime even though they are generally considered safe areas among people who live there.
Has anyone discussed the fact that this was a robbery in broad daylight? I think that’s a bit scary.