ANC 5A held its monthly public meeting on February 26, 2020. Commissioners present: Grace Lewis (5A02), Emily Singer Lucio (5A03), Ronnie Edwards (5A05), Claudia Barragan (5A06), Sandi Washington (5A07)

DC Fire & EMS

The ANC recognized DC Fire Engine 14, which responded to a fire in the 4800 block of 10th NE in which an elderly resident unfortunately lost her life. The crew was returning from refueling when they saw smoke coming from the residence and went to investigate. The fire department stated the fire started because of a portable space heater that was plugged into a defective extension cord. The home did not have any apparent working smoke detectors. Reminder: Space heaters should only be plugged into a wall socket. Same for major appliances. Never plug a space heater into an extension cord or surge protector. Homes should be equipped with working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.

DC Fire provides free smoke detectors to DC residents in need. You must own and live in the property where the smoke detector will be installed. Contact 311 to make an appointment. Only one free smoke detector per home is available. DC Fire also planned to be in the community around 10th Street the morning of March 4 to speak with residents about smoke detectors.

MPD Report

Here are the latest MPD stats for the neighborhood. Thefts from autos remain a problem. Do not leave anything in your car. It will be taken and you will have a busted car window. Car tires have also been taken. Consider getting a guerilla lock for tires, especially if you own a Honda Accord.

Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie Report

Silas Grant, Senior Advisor to Councilmember McDuffie, stated the councilmember planned to submit his budget priorties letter to the mayor soon. You can see the letter here.

Metro Transit Police Department

Stephen Deveaux, District Commander for MTPD’s Fort Totten station district, stated that the district covers Northeast, Northwest, Montgomery County, and Prince George’s County. There is always at least one MTPD officer at Fort Totten metro station, usually two. There has been an uptick in robberies/snatches on the green line from Prince George’s Plaza to Gallery Place.

The supervisor responsible for the competition that was reported by the Washington Post is no longer assigned to the district. Mr. Devaux stated MTPD conducted a four-day invvestigation, the results of which are not publicly available. Expect to see more of Mr. Deveaux at future meetings.

Providence Health System

Providence returned with a presentation about the services offered at the Providence campus. Providence is attempting to “right-size”the system. They did that mainly by eliminating the emergency department. They hope to open the diagnostic center this fall. View the handout for more details.

Veteran Retirement Tax Exclusion Amendment Act of 2019 (B23-0129)

A group of military veterans is lobbying the DC Council to pass legislation to exempt retirement military pay from personal income taxes. The presentation was a bit strange because their argument was that veterans are choosing not to settle in the District because DC taxes military retirement pay and that veterans are instead choosing to settle in Maryland and Virginia. According to the presentation though, Maryland does not tax military retirement pay while Virginia does. That seems to suggest there are perhaps other reasons that veterans are not settling in DC. View the handout for more details.

Catholic University

Catholic is building a new dorm, which will help the university achieve its goal of having students spend the first three years of their study in on-campus housing. Also, Catholic wants to open the Bates Road gate when there are events so that patrons will have easier access to a nearby parking lot. That led to protracted discussion of parking issues residents near Catholic University’s field experience when there are events. Commissioner Washington (5A07) was not in favor of opening the gate. Catholic strangely made it seem as if the university cannot do anything about how and where guests attending these events are parking in the neighborhood. They will continue the conversation with the affected commissioners, Commissioner Washington and Commissioner Barragan (5A06).

2020 U.S. Census

The commission supported (with one opposition) the spirit of a resolution encouraging ANC commissioners to help promote participation in the 2020 U.S. Census. Census data affects how resources are allocated, so please participate.