WASHINGTON — A hotel in Northeast D.C. will be required to improve its security measures after a history of violent crime, Attorney General Brian Schwalb announced Thursday.
The Ivy City Hotel saw two homicides, two armed robberies, three apparently drug-related deaths and multiple other incidents that led to police finding a ghost gun, a high-capacity magazine, cocaine, fentanyl, LSD, amphetamines and mushrooms — all in just a one year period between February 2023 and 2024.
Now, the Office of the Attorney General has stepped in after the Metropolitan Police Department referred them to further investigate.
The OAG has the authority to take legal action against property owners and managers if they fail to put sufficient security measures in place after a pattern of illegal drug-, firearm- or prostitution-related crimes emerges on their properties under the District’s Nuisance Act.
“I am committed to using every legal tool available to improve public safety in the District including, where appropriate, requiring property owners to take meaningful measures to deter crime,” Schwalb said in a press release.
The Ivy City Hotel, located at 1615 New York Ave NE in Ward 5, is owned by Ivy City Lodging, LLC, which purchased the property in 2016. WUSA9 has reached out for comment but hasn't heard back.
The OAG began investigating the hotel after the crimes early this year. Ivy City Lodging cooperated with the investigation and took preliminary steps to improve security at that time.
On Tuesday, Ivy City Lodging and the OAG signed an assurance agreement to work together on additional safety measures.
Under the agreement, Ivy City Lodging must increase security staffing overnight, register its security cameras with the D.C. Police’s Real Time Crime Center and maintain bright exterior lighting, ensure security cameras are working properly, and keep security guards on staff. The OAG will also inspect the hotel through August 2025.
The hotel owner will have private security 36 to 46 hours per week during the overnight hours.
"We will be monitoring to make sure this owner complies with this agreement, and we're always hopeful there will be a reduction in crimes with these kinds of changes," Assistant Deputy Attorney General Beth Mellen told WUSA9.
The agreement says if Ivy City Lodging fails to comply, the OAG can sue the company to enforce the agreement. To read the full agreement, click here.
The Ivy City Hotel is where 31-year-old Christy Bautista was killed in March 2023 while she was visiting D.C. for a concert. In February 2024, 36-year-old Romaine Maddox was killed in the hotel as well. Both of their killers were arrested and charged with first-degree murder, among other charges.
Sheila Bautista, Christy Bautista's aunt, said the family is appreciative of the decisions made by the OAG.
"What happened to Christy and other crime victims at the Ivy City Hotel should never happen again," she told WUSA9. "We're happy that the attorney general recognized that there are steps that there are steps that need to be taken to protect the community and promote public safety and we support the steps that they decided to take."
George Sydnor is charged with her death. Jury selection for his trial is scheduled for November 6.