Originally Posted by
silent_chief
The furley comes with bb5 iirc. (these are the brakes) Which get really bad reviews. Discs are probably over kill too. If I had your budget I'd get a complete (and geared) Surly Crosscheck. If you find after a while you don't like the gears, you can convert your existing bike. I think you will probably want to keep them. Downtown DC is in a bowl. Unless you live in the city proper, you are going to be coming up a hill on your way home.
+1 Surly x-check complete. You can also build up an IRO with great parts with what you'd spend on the furley. I keep mentioning IRO... I believe that frame can support bigger tires as well.
Disc brakes are definitely overkill.