There was a gun robbery at 9:41 pm Monday night at 15th and W Streets NW.

From DC Alerts: ”Police Alert-Robbery (Gun). Robbery (Gun) 2141 hours 15th & W St NW LOF: (2) B/M 17-20 years, both wearing dark tee-shirts, jeans, caps L/S north Euclid St NW DO NOT TAKE ACTION CALL 911 W/EVENT #I20110243594.”

Today's photo in the Borderstan Flickr pool is from luisgomezphotos.

From Luis Gomez. You can follow Luis on Twitter @LuisGomezPhotos and at One Photograph A Day.

Photos of the Day are pulled from the Borderstan Reader Photos pool on Flickr.

Today’s photo, “Kentucky Derby,” was taken by luisgomezphotos on the morning of May 7 at the corner of 15th and R Streets NW. Did you go to any Derby parties?

If you don’t already have a Flickr account, you will need to sign up for one, and then join the Borderstan Reader Photos group. Already a Flickr member? Join the group! You can submit up to five photos per day in the Borderstan reader pool. We are looking for photos from D.C.’s Dupont, Logan and U Street neighborhoods.

This hawk, or one of his friends, has been spotted several times recently in the vicinity of 15th and Q Streets NW.

From Matty Rhoades

It was a quiet Saturday morning at home. The window shades were up with the back garden in full view. I have some transitional spring flowers in hanging baskets and my summer red geraniums are already in the boxes on the fence. It’s a nice view.

Suddenly my spouse said, “Something horrible is happening back there!”

“What!?” says me. I went to the window, thinking there was probably a dead rat on the patio. Instead, I saw a grayish-brown hawk dining on a dead pigeon — the small downy feathers of the unfortunate bird scattered on the bricks.

Hawks, which are raptors, are sometimes spotted in urban areas. Mice, rats, pigeons and small birds are all good meals for them.

Read the full story

We saw a lost black dog near 15th and R Streets NW around 8:15 pm Sunday evening. The dog appeared to be a lab mix and was wearing a red collar. He/she was slender and long and weighed around 50 to 60 pounds (best guess). Several people pursued the dog as he/she ran east on Corcoran toward 14th, but the dog kept running.

If you have information, please leave a comment on this post.

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From Michelle Lancaster. Got a news tip or event? Send Michelle an email.

Lanier to Stay as Chief of Police

Washington Post has the scoop – Mayor-Elect Gray appears to be leaning towards keeping current Chief of Police, Cathy Lanier, in her position. The article touts her accessibility; here’s hoping she can chime in on our recent crime post!

15th Street Bike Lanes Nearly Completed

WABA has the latest update on the 15th Street NW bike lanes. Painting is nearly done; important details like signage are still awaiting installation. Do our neighborhood bikers agree with the status? Experienced problems? Tell us in comments!

Sell the Car, Use Those Bike Lanes – Condo Prices On the Rise

The median price of condos in D.C. rose about 4% this year, reports DC Metrocentric.

Food and Drink in Borderstan

U Street Girl has the latest on BBQ at American Ice Co. (opening Thursday); we told you Hank’s Oyster Bar was finally granted permission to expand and We Love DC reports DC9 is still on track to re-open today.

Do You Disagree with the Selections on This ‘Best Of’ List, Too?

Twitter and Facebook were awash with angry comments on WUSA Channel 9’s ‘Best Of’ list today. Borderstan was pretty well represented. Most of the ire was over Lucky Bar and Lauriol Plaza as ‘best after-work bar’ and ‘best Mexican’, far as we could tell.

How to Beat Your Inner Grinch – Happy Hour & Ugly Sweaters

Join TBD at their Holiday MeetUp at The Big Hunt tomorrow, December 16, from 6 – 8 p.m. If beer, cookies and Skee-Ball can’t beat the holiday blues, I’m not sure what can. If that doesn’t work, try old-fashioned mockery and join their Ugly Sweater Contest or check out Washington City Paper’s R.E.M. Christmas song review.

Note: This is a firsthand account.

At approximately 10 pm a Maryland couple was driving their 1995 Isuzu SUV north on 15th Street NW when they noticed flames coming ouf the truck on the driver’s side. They stopped the truck at the northeast corner of 15th and Corcoran and got out before the truck went up in flames. No one was injured and the fire did not spread to surrounding vehicles or buildings.

DC police officers on the scene verified the details of the incident.

Click to enlarge: Photos of the truck fire tonight at 15th and Corcoran NW. (Luis Gomez Photos)

The fire and sounds of melting plastic and glass caused loud popping explosions that could be heard for several blocks. Police arrived on the scene and blocked off 15th Street NW. However, it was an estimated 8 minutes (the estimated time is confirmed by reports from several people on hand) before the DC Fire Department arrived.

The vehicle was burning out of control when the fire trucks arrived, but the fire was easily extinguished. The couple driving the SUV were able to move safely away from the vehicle and were giving a report to DC police.

The District Department of Transportation (DDoT) announced Wednesday that starting Monday, March 15 there will be no more rush-hour reversible lanes on 15th Street NW south of Massachusetts Avenue. This means the the southbound (west side) lanes on 15th Street between K and Massachusetts will no longer become northbound lanes between 4 and 6:30 p.m. North of Massachusetts, 15th Street is one-way going north at all times.

Read the full story

Click to enlarge: These guys built an Igloo on the 1600 block of 15th Street NW. It is still there today. Lupe thought it was very interesting. (Luis Gomez Photos)

Click to enlarge: Two of our neighbors built an incredible snow fort at the corner of Corcoran and 15th Streets NW. Part of it remains today. (Luis Gomez Photos)

We ran into two great pieces of snow sculpture Saturday evening. First, there was the the snow fort. Then later in the evening several guys were constructing an igloo. Both are pretty amazing and took a great deal of work.