‘I’ve Seen Six Engagements From My Balcony’
At the top of a hill in Ravello, Italy—more than 4,000 miles from home—David Miller was chatting with the owner of a pottery factory. When he mentioned where he was from, the owner perked up.
‘Washington DC, my lovely city!’ she exclaimed. ‘I have my best friend growing up there!’
Two months later, David had a business dinner at Café Milano. He told the waiter he had a personal message for the owner, Franco Nuschese—all the way from Italy.
‘I told Franco I met someone in Ravello, and immediately he knew and was so thrilled. He cleared the table and brought out all this fabulous wine! It’s a small world.’
David has lived in Georgetown for nearly seven years, drawn in no small part to its international composition.
‘It’s a monolith for the world. Georgetown shows that, under the right circumstances, everyone plays well in the sandbox. People don’t care about all these differences. They look at what brings us together, what are our common denominators.’
Born and raised in Manhattan, David’s accent remains loyal to New York City. But the rest of him belongs to DC now. He moved to the metro area in 1979, living most of his adult life in North Potomac. A decade ago he bought a condo in Georgetown—a place to spend his weekends.
‘Most people buy in the mountains or the beach; we bought in the city. I love the city.’
A few years later, David sold his suburban home and moved to Georgetown full-time. His condo south of M Street overlooks the C&O Canal, with 900 sq. feet of outdoor space.
‘I’ve seen six people get engaged on the 33rd Street bridge, just standing on my balcony,’ he says. ‘I’ve seen photoshoots, music video shoots. It’s probably one of the more unique views in Georgetown.’
It’s a neighborhood David knows inside and out, day and night. Five years ago he also moved his financial services company, The Joelle Group, to M Street. He’d spent his early career teaching and coaching sports, followed by a second career at a manufacturing company. At 40, he reeducated himself and entered the financial services world.
‘I had my son’s bar mitzvah four months in front of me and I was starting all over.’
He hasn’t looked back since, his roots in a business that—conveniently—is a four-minute walk from his front door. Most things are, in fact. His bank, his favorite restaurants, his computer repair shop, the place where he gets his glasses.
‘To me, a city is an aggregation of small neighborhoods that are brought together in a large street grid. And you become a part of your neighborhood. I go to Fiola Mare and they know me. I go to Ristorante Piccolo and the owners come out to see me. You just have unique things that you don’t have elsewhere.’
David has seen tremendous change in Georgetown, and says he shares the vision of the Georgetown BID as he looks toward the future.
‘I see a lot of really good things going on. Georgetown is very dynamic right now. I so hope that gondola goes in, and the end of the liquor license moratorium should bring in new restaurants and opportunities. The flower baskets, the maintenance work—everything happening right now makes this a very special place.’
He’ll continue traveling as much as possible, but David doesn’t see himself moving anytime soon. From his role as President of Joelle Group and Trustee of the Lindsey Joelle Miller Memorial Fund—a local charity whose mission is to make a positive impact on the lives of children in need—to boating weekends on the Potomac, David’s home is where his heart—and everything else—is.
‘I have to wake up every day and feel blessed that I’m able to live in Georgetown, work in Georgetown, and enjoy everything the area has to offer.’
Georgetown, his lovely neighborhood.
