I am super late on sharing information from the June neighborhood development community meeting, held by the Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association Development Task Force on June 17, 2025. On the agenda for discussion were the Art Place at Fort Totten and the Fort Totten Square developments. Representatives for Fort Totten Square asked to delay their presentation to the community until July so we heard from only representatives of Art Place at Fort Totten.
Paul Tummonds, land use counsel for the Cafritz Foundation (developer of Art Place), introduced Nora Riesenberg who is working with the Foundation on a new kids space pop up project in the former interim library space. If you have not already, please take the survey to share ideas about what you would like to see in the pop up space for kids. (Don’t worry if you have not attended any of the pop ups mentioned in the survey; you can still share ideas).
Art Sparks!
Mr. Tummonds shared that the Foundation planned to launch a new Art Sparks! project. That has been up for a few weeks now.
In this post, we shared information from the Foundation’s request for extension of time, about the plans for the new fence with art as well as light pole banners around the property. The light pole banners went up a few weeks before the fence.
Retail & Other Updates
Menomale & Urban Garden Brewery will be opening along South Dakota in Phase 1. Both are working on interior plans for permit and construction.
There is still space in Phase 1 for more restaurants, so more may be coming.
DC Dental Studio, a general dentistry practice, has a lease for space on second floor near corner of South Dakota & Galloway. (I met the dentist at the author talk a week or so ago. She said that construction permits took a little longer than anticipated but she is still hoping to open this year. Her practice serves primarily adults).
Social Justice School anticipates starting construction on the warehouse building on Kennedy in late July, expecting 11 months for construction.
The Foundation continues to negotiate with a children’s museum for the space behind Aldi.
The Foundation continues to have interest in having an entertainment component for Phase 2 (the phase between Ingraham & Kennedy).
The Foundation continues to seek financing for the housing component for Phase 2. When that is secured, construction will resume.
Keith Sellars, task force co-chair who organized the meeting, suggested that the developer refresh the window signage along South Dakota with “Coming XXXX” signs so that passersby know what is coming in those spaces. (Interestingly enough, a city official on a walking tour a couple of weeks later made the same suggestion). Menomale and Urban Garden Brewery are listed as coming soon on the Art Place website.
Another resident suggested that the developer put updates on the website much in the same way that they used to provide construction updates. No need for weekly updates, but proactively sharing regular updates would be a good idea.
Trash cans
Residents had previously requested that the developer install trash cans near the corner of South Dakota & Kennedy by Aldi. Mr. Tummonds stated those should be coming this month.
EV Charging Stations
A resident shared a need for EV charging stations in the neighborhood. The developer is required to have charging stations for Phase 2. In one filing, the developer indicated that the underground garage on Kennedy has 500 spaces, so theoretically, seems there should be 10 charging stations.
Kennedy Street Lot
I had previously asked the developer to finish cleaning up the lot on Kennedy Street where there is still construction and demo debris and overgrown vegetation along the fence line. I asked if they would consider putting in an interim use on that lot while they wait to resume construction on Phase 2. For example, could they put in a temporary dog run considering there is supposed to be a dog run in Phase 2 as a community benefit. It will take more than a minute for construction to resume so it would be nice to at least have a better looking lot and something in place that could easily be removed in a year or two when construction resumes. The lot was used for construction staging. Sounded like there is reluctance to put something temporary there.
Other things people mentioned:
Request for coffee shop
Suggestion to utilize the platform in Phase 2 for holiday tree
Suggestion to have food trucks on Friday and Saturday evenings
For questions, contact task force co-chairs Julia Larsen (julia@lrcadc.org) & Keith Sellars (keith.sellars1@gmail.com)
* Hosted in conjunction with The Parks Main Street and ANC Commissioners Keith Sellars (5A01), Shelagh Bocoum (5A09), Garrett Moore (4B08), and Danielle Geong (4B09).
UDC offers free workforce development and lifelong learning courses for DC residents. There are several Open House dates during the month of July for residents to learn more information about admissions and enroll for fall 2025.
Open House Location
University of the District of Columbia
3100 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE
Open House Dates
July 10, 1:30 pm-4:30 pm
July 17, 10:00 am-2:00 pm
July 24, 10:00am-2:00 pm
July 31, 1:30 pm-4:30 pm
Important Deadlines
August 8: New Student Application Submission Deadline
ANC Commissioners Elaine Alston (5A08) and Jack Hermes (5A04) are planning a protest of a potential medical cannabis dispensary looking to open at 4942 South Dakota Avenue NE. The protest will be 1pm-3pm on July 13, 2025. For questions, contact the commissioners at 5A08@anc.dc.gov and 5A04@anc.dc.gov.
Join DC Water’s Lead Free DC (LFDC) team for a virtual community meeting on Wednesday, July 9, from 6:00–7:00 PM to get the answers you need.
This session will give you a behind-the-scenes look at how we prepare for lead pipe replacements—starting with door-to-door outreach, digging test pits, and inspecting pipe materials. You’ll learn how these steps help us plan safe, efficient replacements.
Get the latest updates on the LFDC program
Learn how we confirm lead lines and prepare for replacements
Ask questions and share your feedback
AgendaHighlights:
LFDC Program Update
How to Engage with the Program
Featured Topic: Service Line Inventory
Where: Join via Microsoft Teams: http://bit.ly/4k9Zqfl Or call in: +1 202-753-6714, Phone Conference ID #: 748 459 077#
ANC 5A held its monthly public meeting on June 25, 2025. Commissioners present: Keith Sellars (5A01); Timothy Thomas (5A02) – Vice Chair; Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) – Chair; Jack Hermes (5A04) – Parliamentarian; Derrick Holloway (5A06); Valeria Sosa Garnica (5A07); Elaine Alston (5A08); Shelagh Bocoum (5A09) – Treasurer. ANC 5A05 is vacant.
The meeting started late and was unnecessarily long, again. The ANC really should use a timer. This recap contains a little more personal commentary than usual because of the antics of Commissioner Holloway (5A06). This meeting was a lot, and we have 1.5 more years of this. Something has to change. This is why we really need reasonable people to run for ANC.
Commission Business
Looks like the ANC spent $1600 on a laptop for Commissioner Alston (5A08) and $1100 for a phone.
Sounded like the ANC voted to allocate $20,000 more for grants in the budget to total $30,000 that can be disbursed.
The ANC voted unanimously to have Commissioner Sosa Garnica (5A07) assume the role of secretary. Commissioner Lucio had been serving as chair and secretary since the beginning of the term.
For some inexplicable reason, the ANC voted (4-3) to make Commissioner Holloway (5A06) sergeant-at-arms. A sergeant-at-arms is not required under the ANC’s bylaws, and Commissioner Holloway is a perpetual violator of ANC norms, rules, and order. More on that later. Commissioners Thomas (5A02), Hermes (5A04), Holloway (5A06), and Alston (5A08) voted in support. Commissioners Sellars (5A01), Sosa Garnica (5A07), and Bocoum (5A09) opposed.
Grant for New Generation Training & Learning Center (5A08)
The ANC voted in favor of giving a $10,000 grant to New Generation Training & Learning Center for a “Community Day” tentatively planned for August 16 at Faith United Church. Apparently, Commissioner Alston is a principal officer of the organization, so she recused herself from the discussion and vote. Her daughter, Angel Johnson, who is an assistant director at the organization, presented on the grant application.
Apparently, the Office of Advisory Neighborhood Commissions (OANC) gave the okay for the ANC to give a grant to this organization where Commissioner Alston is a principal officer and her daughter is an employee. The OANC told them that they cannot use ANC grant funds for backpacks, so they will find other funding to purchase the backpacks and school supplies. There will be activities for kids, such as photo booth, face painting, and crafts.
A resident asked about the amount of the grant. The grant application and guidelines on the ANC’s website still list a $2500 funding limit. Commissioner Bocoum said this was changed. Unclear when the ANC plans to update the guidelines and application on the website.
Mayor Bowser’s FY26 Budget Presentation
DDOT Director Sharon Kershbaum presented on the mayor’s proposed FY26 budget. The budget is very delayed. Budget information is available at budget.dc.gov. Director Kershbaum focused her presentation on DDOT’s proposed budget. I did not catch everything.
The Council is in the process of reviewing the proposed budget.
Boys Town Campus Redevelopment (5A02) (Teddy Swift & Vicki Davis, Urban Atlantic)
Vicki Davis, founder of Urban Atlantic, presented on the Boys Town campus redevelopment project. The property is located at 4801 Sargent Road NE in North Michigan Park in ANC 5A02. They are planning to build 166-170 duplex homes. Ten percent of the homes (around 17) will be set aside as below market rate homes. Duplexes are permitted as a matter of right in this area, so there will not be a public hearing. Urban Atlantic has to go through a Large Tract Review process by the Office of Planning. We previously discussed that process in this post.
Consistent with zoning requirements, each home will have a minimum lot size of 2500 square feet, rear yard of 20 feet, and side yard of 8 feet.
They plan to open up the campus, remove the two mounds of dirt in front, build sidewalks throughout, provide pedestrian access to North Michigan Park Rec, and maintain the large 8,000 square foot building in the center of the campus.
They plan to retain two heritage trees and plant 90 new trees.
They are still looking at a second egress as part of their traffic study.
They are working with residents on Delafield Street, who apparently have taken to parking on part of the private campus grounds, on a parking solution.
They discussed other things they are planning with respect to preservation, neighborhood connectivity, and transportation/parking (see presentation linked above).
They plan to submit their Large Tract Review application soon.
Lots of residents raised questions that were not really addressed. Commissioner Thomas (5A02) then said he wanted the ANC to vote on supporting “the concept” of the proposed development. Residents questioned why the ANC felt the need to vote on anything at this stage. Commissioner Hermes kept talking about the need to build more housing (no one disagrees) and how developers have to jump through so many hoops to build housing.
The letter does not state the vote count, but all of the commissioners did not vote in support. Commissioner Sosa Garnica (5A07) questioned why the ANC was voting on this at this stage. Commissioner Holloway (5A06) rudely berated her for speaking up on behalf of residents, saying that Commissioner Thomas had done his due diligence. Commissioner Holloway launched into his standard tirade about how long he has lived in the District and owned his own business and how dare this commissioner question what Commissioner Thomas wants to do. It is hard to convey in words how wildly inappropriate his remarks and behavior were. Residents said as much in the chat.
It is not at all clear to me that the ANC knows what they are doing, but regardless, it was entirely appropriate to abstain from this unnecessary vote.
The developer plans to return to the ANC after submitting the Large Tract Review application.
Catholic University Marist Hall Historic Designation Application (5A04)
The building was constructed in 1900 and became part of Catholic’s campus in 1975. Apparently the building is in serious disrepair. Catholic would like to eventually tear down the building and build something else. Catholic University representatives contend that the building is not a notable example of the architect’s work. Catholic and the Preservation League pretty much disagreed on every single point.
The ANC voted to support Catholic’s opposition to the application. The Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) will consider the application this month.
About four years ago, the ANC reviewed a matter involving several apartment buildings along Hawaii Avenue NE and Webster Street NE that were slated for renovation, addition, and conversion to condos. This renovation project was the subject of many ANC meetings. There ended up being an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General for DC.
There are now separate owners of the buildings. The owners of 65-85 Hawaii Avenue NE wish to modify and extend the original Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) order so that all of the 65-85 Hawaii buildings will be 16-unit buildings. Originally six of the buildings were to be nine-unit buildings and five were to be 16-unit buildings. A public hearing is scheduled for September 17, 2025.
Just like four years ago when this project originally arose, Commissioner Holloway (5A06) was ill prepared to discuss the subject. After the development team gave their short presentation, he could not even make a proper motion and made long wandering incoherent remarks. The whole situation was bizarre but also completely typical from this commissioner. Residents were openly wondering how the ANC could have voted him sergeant-at-arms. (He should be removed).
The ANC ended up voting in support of the BZA application. Commissioners Sellars (5A01) and Sosa Garnica (5A07) abstained because Commissioner Holloway neglected to send them the documentation ahead of time, so they did not have time to review it. Commissioner Holloway spent a lot of time alternately insisting that he sent the documents to all of the commissioners but then saying that he did not have all of their email addresses and that is why he could not send them to everyone. (The commissioners do not use personal email addresses; their addresses are listed on the ANC website).
A resident asked that the developer present to ANC 5A06 residents to let them know what is going on because the original project has taken a lot of twists and turns over the years. Commissioner Holloway objected and said that was unnecessary. Unclear if the developer will meet with residents in that area.
Ward 5 Council Report (Andrianna Lovelace, Constituent Services Coordinator for CM Zachary Parker)
Councilmember Parker chairs the Council’s committee on youth affairs. Andrianna Lovelace, constituent services coordinator for CM Parker, stated that the committee markup of the proposed FY26 budget reinstated funding for lots of critical issues.
The Ward 5 Senior Advisory Committee had a meeting at Michigan Park Christian Church on June 26.
There will be a South Dakota Avenue study virtual public meeting on July 9 and an in-person meeting at Sojourner Truth Public Charter School on July 12.
Commissioner Updates
5A08
The ABCA hearing for Clinical Health & Wellness to open a medical cannabis shop at 4942 South Dakota Avenue NE in North Michigan Park is on August 13, 2025. The roll call hearing is July 14, 2025. The ANC previously voted to send a letter of opposition to ABCA outlining concerns with the application.
A resident asked for an update on the McDonald’s rebuilding. Commissioner Alston (5A08) said there were no updates and that she discussed it at her SMD meeting. Turns out she actually had not discussed it at her SMD meeting. The president of the North Michigan Park Civic Association said that the building was not being built to proper specification (unclear what she was referring to but something did start going up and has since come down recently). After some back-and-forth, Commissioner Alston finally agreed to Chair Lucio’s suggestion to add McDonald’s to the special meeting planned for July 30. It took an unnecessarily long time to get to this point.
5A09
Commissioner Bocoum (5A09) shared information about the Riggs Park clean up day and the Heritage Wall companion book author talk, both held on June 28.
The ANC normally breaks for June, July and August, but they plan to hold a special meeting on July 30.
Join DC Department of Parks & Recreation (DPR) & MPD for Late Night Hype at Riggs-LaSalle Recreation Center featuring carnival-style event with food, music, games, dancing, and more. Registration required to enter.
Group picture of residents. The Parks Main Street, Clean Team, and ANC commissioners.
A solid crew of 25 neighbors came out on a humid but not too too hot Saturday on June 28 to pick up trash around the neighborhood and help beautify the green space on the corner of South Dakota Avenue & Riggs Road NE. A member of One Life Fitness who lives in Langdon saw the flyer in the gym and came out to join us. A high schooler from McKinley Tech who lives in Capitol Heights heard about the clean up and helped out to get community service hours. Altogether, neighbors collected about 30 bags of trash. Thanks to everyone, including our youngest clean up leaders in training, who came out to lend a hand.
ANC commissioners (left to right): Shelagh Bocoum (5A09), Keith Sellars (5A01), Danielle Geong (4B09), and Garrett Moore (4B08).
Shoutout to ANC 4B & 5A commissioners Keith Sellars (5A01), Shelagh Bocoum (5A09), Garrett Moore (4B08), and Danielle Geong (4B09) for organizing the event; getting donations of food, snacks, and water; and generally being cheerleaders for the community.
And thanks to The Parks Main Street Executive Director Edwin Washington for supplying grabbers and bags and arranging to have the Clean Team mulch the trees around the green space with a little help from Liam with Casey Trees. The Clean Team was excited to learn something new.
South Dakota Avenue Corridor Safety Project Public Meeting Notice
(WASHINGTON, DC) — The District Department of Transportation (DDOT), in partnership with Ward 5 Councilmember Zachary Parker, invites you to attend public meetings for the South Dakota Avenue Corridor Safety Project from Riggs Road NE to Bladensburg Road NE. DDOT will be hosting two meetings: a virtual meeting on Wednesday, July 9, 2025, and an in-person meeting on Saturday, July 12, 2025.
DDOT staff will provide an update on the progress of the study, present data and community feedback collected, and outline the next steps in the process. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask questions and engage directly with DDOT representatives.
Materials from this meeting will be made available on the study website within 72 hours of meeting conclusion. Those who would like to leave a comment about the study can do so by leaving a comment on the project website
Aldi is open at 5300 South Dakota Avenue NE. A van caught on fire in the parking garage yesterday. The parking garage was closed this morning. Unclear how long the parking garage will be closed.
Working Fire 5300 block S. Dakota Ave NE. Had fully involved van in P-1 parking garage of a supermarket. Fire knocked down. Heavy smoke conditions in parking garage. No reported injuries. Hazmat Unit requested for fuel leaking from vehicle. #DCsBravestpic.twitter.com/oWyAXo2cKG
— DC Fire and EMS Department (@dcfireems) July 1, 2025
Update Working Fire 5300 block S.Dakota Ave NE. Fire under control. Extended operations to remove smoke. No injuries reported. Fire investigators on scene. #DCsBravest r pic.twitter.com/2R9wI21HlR
— DC Fire and EMS Department (@dcfireems) July 1, 2025
[Ed. Note: Looks like ANC 4B has scheduled a special meeting on a holiday weekend. Unclear if it will be rescheduled but for right now it is scheduled for July 6.]
For voice-only participation on a telephone, dial +13017158592, 81406325863#
Meeting ID: 814 0632 5863
Special Public Meeting 1:00 pm – 2:00 pm. Working agenda –
Presentation:
JNM Enterprises One, LLC – BZA Case No 21344 – 264 Carroll Avenue NW (Invited)
Consent Agenda:
RESOLUTION #4B-25-0701: Supporting Historic Preservation Review Board Case No 25-322: 6001 Georgia Avenue NW – Communication Towers Consolidation Project
RESOLUTION #4B-25-0702: Supporting Board of Zoning and Adjustment Case No 21341: 6001 Georgia Avenue NW – Communication Towers Consolidation Project
RESOLUTION #4B-25-0703: Supporting the Special Exemption Request BZA Case No. 21344 – 262 Carroll Street Northwest
Planning Meeting 2:00 – 5:00 pm. Purpose: Strategic planning and brainstorming for the ongoing effectiveness of Commission 4B for the second half of calendar year 2025.
Next Stop...Riggs Park 