Author Archives: nextstoprp

October 19: Public Meeting on DC Comp Plan Area Element

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development and tagged with

DC Comprehensive Plan Public Meeting
October 19, 2016
6:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Location: Columbia Heights Education Campus (3101 16th Street NW)

DC’s Office of Planning (OP) is updating DC’s Comprehensive Plan. This plan provides the framework for development and growth throughout the city.

On October 19, 2016, OP is holding a public meeting on the “Rock Creek East Area Element” of the plan. This part of the plan covers one part of the neighborhood. It is super important that residents participate in the plan amendment process, so if you can make the meeting, it would probably be informative. Otherwise, OP has lots of information on its plan amendment page. And remember to take OP’s survey on how you see DC growing and developing.

 

 

 

Volunteer for the Children’s Museum Fall Fest

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development and tagged with

The Explore! Children’s Museum is having a neighborhood Fall Fun Fest this Saturday. The actual museum is still a ways off from being constructed, but it would be really cool for neighbors to come out and show support for having a neighborhood children’s museum by volunteering and attending this Saturday’s event. It would also be a nice way to meet neighbors, meet the museum staff, and share ideas about what a neighborhood museum could look like. We plan to help out at the event, so we hope to see lots of neighbors there. If you are interested in volunteering, send an email to Irina Rubenstein at irina@wdckids.org.

Fall-Fun-Fest-2016-Flyer

fall-fun-fest-2016

Neighborhood Children’s Museum Fall Fest – Call for Volunteers

Posted by nextstoprp in Cafritz Art Place at Fort Totten and tagged with

Update: The volunteer happy hour has been postponed

On October 22, the Explore! Children’s Museum of Washington DC is holding a Fall Fun Fest to offer families a sneak peek of the new children’s museum coming to Riggs Park (see event details below). Volunteers are needed for the event. See the list of volunteer duties here: Fall Fun Fest Volunteer Job Descriptions (pdf)

Anyone interested in volunteering is encouraged to attend the Volunteer Happy Hour at Hellbender (5788 2nd St. NE) on October 20, 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm, for a brief orientation and to sign up.

For more information, contact Irina Rubenstein at irina@wdckids.org.
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Fall Fun Fest
Saturday, October 22, 1 PM – 3 PM
5455 3rd St NE, Washington, DC 20011

Curious about the new children’s museum coming to the Fort Totten neighborhood? Come get a FREE sneak peek!
• Fanciful music and storytelling with Sylvia Zwi
• Large-scale whimsical weaving
• Saxophone demo with Herbert Scott
• Make your own bird feeder
• Create a spooky mask

Families and children of all ages welcome. Share your ideas for the museum and learn how to get involved.

Repost: Take the Community Benefits Survey

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development

Update: Survey is closed

Plans are afoot to develop the second phase of Fort Totten Square, which will consist of 170-180 townhomes and 26,000 square feet of ground level retail on the southeast corner of South Dakota Avenue and Riggs Road NE. A minimum of 29 of the homes will be offered at below market rate price. The District owns part of the land on which the developers want to build. Therefore, LRCA is exploring a community benefits package related to potential sale of the land for the project. Please take a moment to take LRCA’s brief survey soliciting resident input on community benefits.

Click the link: Community Benefits Survey

October 3: LRCA General Body Meeting

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized

Update: Walmart was not scheduled to present at the October meeting.

Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association Meeting
October 3, 2016
7:00 pm
LaSalle Backus Education Campus (501 Riggs Rd NE, enter on Madison St.)

Packed Agenda:

  • JBG-EYA/DMPED – Fort Totten Square Phase II plans. If you have not taken the community benefits survey related to this project, please take a moment to do so by clicking the link
  • Petco management introduction
  • Walmart – Wine & beer sales
  • Justin Ralston – New principal of LaSalle Backus EC
  • Interim Police Chief Peter Newsham

LRCA relies on membership of residents to operate. Membership is $10 for individuals, $15 for families, and $50 for businesses. Membership forms are available on LRCA’s website and will be available at Monday’s meeting. Please mail membership form with payment to Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association, PO BOX 60272, Washington DC 20039, or bring your completed form with payment to Monday’s meeting. LRCA is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.

Reminder: Take the Community Benefits Survey

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development

Plans are afoot to develop the second phase of Fort Totten Square, which will consist of 170-180 townhomes and 26,000 square feet of ground level retail on the southeast corner of South Dakota Avenue and Riggs Road NE. A minimum of 29 of the homes will be offered at below market rate price. The District owns part of the land on which the developers want to build. Therefore, LRCA is exploring a community benefits package related to potential sale of the land for the project. Please take a moment to take LRCA’s brief survey soliciting resident input on community benefits by October 3.

Click the link: Community Benefits Survey

ANC 5A September 28, 2016 Meeting Recap

Posted by nextstoprp in ANC 5A

On Wednesday, September 28, 2016, ANC 5A resumed its monthly public meetings. The ANC blamed the lack of meeting notice and agenda on the resignation of ANC 5A06 Commissioner Jasmine White, who was the ANC’s secretary. Ms. White moved out of her SMD and therefore had to resign. All of the other commissioners were present. On to the recap:

MPD Report

PSA 405 Lt. Ashley Rosenthal provided the 30 day and year-to-date crime report. Compared to this time last year, violent crime is down for the past 30 days, but thefts are up. Total crime year to date is down compared to the same time period last year. Lt. Rosenthal said there is a trend in thefts from hospitals and schools. She is getting reports of thefts of phones left charging unattended. She asked neighbors who are home during the day to pay attention to what is happening in the neighborhood because many of the thefts and burglaries are occurring during the daytime. See the full report: PSA 405 Sept 2016 Crime Report (pdf)

psa-405-crime-report-sept-2016

Gallatin Street NE Trash Trap

DC Department of Energy and the Environment and Living Classrooms are working together on a project for a solar-powered trash trap on National Park Service land near 14th Street and Gallatin Street NE to divert trash from the Anacostia River watershed. The project is being funded by a settlement with Pepco. From the press release on the settlement:

In addition to the $250,000 civil penalty, under the settlement as reflected in the consent judgment, Pepco will spend $600,000 to install and maintain a “cage-type trash interceptor” at a site at 14th and Gallatin Streets, N.E., on a tributary of the Anacostia River.  This will be the seventh trash trap installed in the Anacostia River watershed. Trash traps help prevent trash and debris from reaching the main stem of the river. Since 2009, trash traps have collected more than seven tons of trash and debris.

The project will have a workforce development component. Living Classrooms will provide education and employment training through its Fresh Start program. Program participants will likely assist in categorizing the trash collected and using that data to help support additional laws aimed at reducing trash in city neighborhoods.

DC Statehood

An official with the Mayor’s Office presented on a statehood referendum that will be on the ballot for the November 8th general election. The mayor plans to follow what is known as the “Tennessee Plan” to achieve statehood. Six states in addition to Tennessee followed this path to statehood. The plan entails (1) drafting the DC Constitution; (2) holding a Constitutional Convention; (3) defining a Federal District and designating the boundaries of the 51st state; (4) holding an advisory referendum; and (5) petitioning for statehood. The city has done steps one through three. If voters approve the referendum in November, then DC officials will petition for statehood. The DC Council is holding hearings on the draft constitution and the mayor plans to launch a speakers bureau to educate residents on the plan for statehood.

DC Statehood Handout (pdf)

dc-statehood-flyer

McDonald’s on South Dakota Avenue

Raoul Alvarez, the owner of the McDonald’s located on South Dakota Avenue and Delafied Street NE, presented his plans to rebuild on site. Mr. Alvarez has held several meetings with nearby residents with the assistance of his consultant Harry Thomas, but last night was the first time he presented to the full commission. Mr. Alvarez stated the current zoning designation for his property permits only a limited renovation. As a result, McDonald’s (franchisor) signed a three-year lease to move operations to the KFC located at Riggs Road NE because that location would permit a drive-thru, which the current McDonald’s does not have. Mr. Alvarez stated he prefers to keep his McDonald’s where it is because it has a long history in the neighborhood, so he is gathering resident support for an application for a planned unit development (PUD) that will enable him to change the zoning designation in order to rebuild on site and open a drive-thru. Mr. Alvarez stated McDonald’s is experimenting with a “New Future” restaurant concept and that DC is the fourth test market for the concept. Under this concept, individuals order their food and the food is brought to them (sounds like a fast casual concept). For community benefits, Mr. Alvarez anticipates offering around $3000 towards scholarships for youth in North Michigan Park and establishing an entrepreneur mentor program. He also hopes that by rebuilding on site, the other businesses in that corridor will upgrade their facilities.

South Dakota Ave NE McDonald’s Handout

south-dakota-mcdonalds_page_1

St. Josephite Seminary Development (12th & Allison Street project)

On August 2, 2016, EYA submitted its PUD application to build 82 homes near 12th Street and Allison Street NE. Ten of the homes will be affordable homes (in the $200,000 to $300,000 price range), over half of which will be restricted to the 50% area median income limit. EYA had to apply for a PUD because the current zoning designation does not permit building rowhomes. This is a bit of a contentious project, so we are not going to go into much detail here because the affected community has lots of meetings about the project and usually has stenographers and videographers at the ANC meeting to capture remarks. A setdown hearing is scheduled for October 17, 2016. EYA walked through the evolution of the project, e.g., reducing the number of homes from 150 to 82, keeping open spaces on the side of the project, building on only part of the property to preserve a larger open space, etc. The homes will be under 40 feet tall and will be 20 feet wide.  They discussed considerations for increasing on-street parking along 12th Street in front of the project or installing bike lanes because the lanes there are wide enough to do so. Predictably the mention of bike lanes was met with grumbles. They also mentioned plans to install a bikeshare station, which (somewhat predictably) was also met with grumbles. For updates on the project, subscribe on the project website.

Ward 5 Councilmember Report

Ronan Gulstone, Chief of Staff to Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, mentioned three emergency bills by Councilmember McDuffie. One bill proposes to increase the maximum age of eligibility for the police cadet program from 21 to 25 to address MPD’s retirement bubble. A related bill proposes to permit MPD to hire retired officers at higher pay grades. Currently, officers can be rehired but only at the officer pay level, even if the retired officer is a lieutenant or sergeant earning much more than the officer pay rate prior to retirement.  The last bill would allow individuals to do change-of-address day of voting. Mr. Gulstone also mentioned that on September 29, 2016, at 4:30pm, there will be a committee hearing by Councilmember Anita Bonds on the ANC Amendment Act. Mr. Gulstone also said Councilmember McDuffie would try to arrange a meeting with Congresswoman Eleanore Holmes Norton and CSX on the train vibration issue because it deserves federal attention.

Mayor’s Office Report

New Ward 5 MOCR Lionell Gaines mentioned that the new Woodridge Library officially opened on September 28, 2016. He noted that renovation of Lamond-Riggs Library is coming soon. He did not have a date yet, but said it is coming up. Mr. Gains will be “in the ward” on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so if there are things that need to be addressed in the neighborhood, feel free to contact him at lionell.gaines@dc.gov or (202) 251-4059 to schedule a Tuesday or Thursday meeting.

October 22: Save the Date for Fall Fun Fest

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development

A new children’s museum is coming to Riggs Park. The Explore! Children’s Museum of Washington DC is hosting a Fall Fun Fest on October 22, 2016, to give residents a sneak peek of the new museum. This blog covered in these posts the decision to locate the museum in the existing warehouses located at 3rd and Kennedy Street NE rather than in a new building to be constructed as part of a much later phase of the Art Place at Fort Totten project.

Fall Fun Fest details below:

Fall Fun Fest
Saturday, October 22, 1 PM – 3 PM
5455 3rd St NE, Washington, DC 20011

Curious about the new children’s museum coming to the Fort Totten neighborhood? Come get a FREE sneak peek!

• Fanciful music and storytelling with Sylvia Zwi
• Large-scale whimsical weaving
• Saxophone demo with Herbert Scott
• Make your own bird feeder
• Create a spooky mask

Families and children of all ages welcome. Share your ideas for the museum and learn how to get involved.

Community Benefits Survey

Posted by nextstoprp in Lamond Riggs Citizens Association, Neighborhood Development

The Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association is conducting a survey to solicit resident input on preferences for community benefits as it relates to sale of District-owned land on the southeast corner of Riggs Rd & South Dakota Ave NE for development of the second phase of Fort Totten Square. JBG and EYA, developers of the second phase, are proposing to build approximately 170-180 townhomes and around 26,000 square feet of ground level retail. A minimum of 29 homes will be offered below market rate. (This blog previously covered the second phase in these posts).

The survey is 3 questions. It is intended for residents who live within the boundaries of LRCA. We encourage residents to complete the survey by October 3, 2016. (Disclosure: I am an LRCA trustee and member of the development task force and had a hand in crafting this survey.)

Click the link: Community Benefits Survey

Two recent neighborhood shootings

Posted by nextstoprp in Public Safety

The Washington Post covered two recent shootings blocks from each other less than one day apart. One young man, 22 years old, lost his life in the first shooting and three people were injured in the second shooting. Condolences to the family.

We had a quiet summer in the neighborhood. And now this. There really are no excuses for this. And we as a community should make it known that we will not accept anti-community, anti-social behavior. People really do know better. We really do know that it is completely ridiculous to fire shots from a car  into a crowd of people at 7:30 in the evening. And it is completely ridiculous to attack someone over manufactured beef, a phone, a wallet, drugs, whatever the case may be, no matter what time of day. So to the individuals who are involved in this really ridiculous anti-community behavior, stop. And to those who know people indulging in this anti-community behavior–be they neighbors, family, friends, acquaintances–tell them to stop. Let’s do better. Because we really do know better.

Reprinted below are the announcements from MPD on the shootings:

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Around 7:30 PM this Sunday, MPD responded to the report of a shooting in the 500 block of Oglethorpe Street, NE. Three victims were found to have been injured from gun fire. All three victims sustained non-life threatening injuries and were transported to local hospitals for treatment. It is believed that a dark colored vehicle was involved in the shooting.

Anyone with information regarding this offense should call the MPD at 202-727-9099 or text at 50411.

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Public Information Office: 202-727-4383                               

September 25, 2016                                       

Homicide: 400 Block of Riggs Road, Northeast

 (Washington, DC) – Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch are investigating a fatal shooting that occurred in the 400 block of Riggs Road, Northeast on Sunday, September 25, 2016.

At approximately 2:42 am, members of the Fourth District responded to a call for the sounds of gunshots in the area of Nicholson Street and Kensington Place, Northeast. While responding, they were flagged down in the 400 block of Riggs Road, Northeast and found an adult male, unconscious and unresponsive, suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. DC Fire and EMS personnel responded to the scene and determined life-saving efforts were futile. The victim remained on the scene until being transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.

The decedent has been identified as 22-year-old Marcellus Thomas, of Northeast, DC. 

The Metropolitan Police Department currently offers a reward of up to $25,000 to anyone that provides information which leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for any homicide committed in the District of Columbia. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the police at 202-727-9099.  Additionally, anonymous information may be submitted to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by text messaging 50411.

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ANC 4B meeting 7:00pm tonight

Posted by nextstoprp in ANC 4B

Agenda reprinted below:

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Self-storage facility in the development mix

Posted by nextstoprp in Neighborhood Development
5600 Second St. NE, site of proposed storage facility

5600 Second St. NE, site of proposed storage facility

Johnson Development wants to build a self-storage facility at 5600 Second Street NE (across the street from Fort Totten Square). Because the project is over 50,000 square feet, it has to undergo large tract review. DC’s Office of Planning asks for comments from ANC 4B by September 19, 2016. ANC 4B’s Design Review Committee is meeting at 6:30pm on September 19 at Shepherd Park Library to review the application.

The developer wants to tear down the building that housed the former print shop and build a four-story self-storage facility. The property is located in an industrial zone (renamed Production-Distribution-Repair zone in the zoning update). Renderings show a facade that is broken up with different materials, a mix of brick and siding, playing off the facade of Fort Totten Square and designed to look more like a residential building. As far as storage facilities go, the rendering is not terrible. The building will have either a green roof and there will be graded streetscape in front. (Maybe we are being nostalgic, but we kind of like the old buildings that are there now. So many cities are repurposing their old industrial buildings in cool ways. But we digress.)

storage-facility-rendering-1

Rendering of proposed storage facility

The application notes that the Comprehensive Plan General Policy Map (GPM) designates the property as a “Land Use Change Area” to encourage adaptive reuse to become a mixed-use community. The developer says self-storage is not inconsistent with this general policy map because it is changing what was an industrial use to a more community-oriented use in that as density increases, demand for storage space will increase. And the developer believes this use fits with the interim green enterprise use contemplated by the plan. Whether these conclusions are reasonable is up for debate, but a self-storage facility is permitted under the current designation.

The developer also notes the Future Land Use Map (or FLUM), adopted as part of the Comp Plan, designates the property as a mixed-use space (moderate density residential and commercial), but of course the FLUM is not a zoning map. And the developer says self-storage is similar to a retail or service use and in fact may have less impact than similarly-sized commercial or retail uses (paraphrasing). Readers might recall, the FLUM became an issue in the 901 Monroe Street NE case in Brookland where the DC Court of Appeals relied in part on the FLUM to reject the developers’ attempt to change the zoning designation for that property (paraphasing greatly). See this Washington Business Journal article for more on that case.

There is lots more in the application about urban design, controlling storm runoff, traffic flow, etc. Note that the developer says it does not have to do a traffic impact analysis because it does not estimate more than 25 trips/peak hour, which it says is DDOT’s threshold for having to do a traffic analysis. (The developer estimates 23 trips/peak hour during evening rush). We already know that intersection is kind of a mess, with drivers trying to exit Walmart’s parking lot and drivers making illegal U-turns in the middle of the street, so at the very least, that needs to be addressed by DDOT. Loading will take place in the interior of the site. With a likely 14-foot clearance, the building will not be designed to handle really large truck deliveries (no 18-wheelers here).

2nd-3rd St intersection

2nd – 3rd Street NE intersection

We are sort of agnostic about a self-storage facility. On the one hand, the small area plan designates this property as a development opportunity site (as acknowledged by the developer in its application) and that is reflected in the general policy map and FLUM. On the other hand, some people complain about more density in the neighborhood, so this is one less building that will be developed with potentially hundreds of more residents and commercial uses, creating more traffic. Once this facility is built, it will not be going anywhere for a long time. And as far as industrial uses go, it is not a super obnoxious use and will be useful to residents. So there are tradeoffs. Plenty would welcome more residents/mixed use spaces; others do not want more density. We would say we will have to decide what kind of density we want as a community, but residents already decided that with the small area plan. And the plan contemplates four corners of development around the South Dakota Avenue/Riggs Road intersection. But that is a different post for a different day.

In any event, ANC 4B’s Design Review Committee meeting is open to the public. It will meet at Shepherd Park library (7420 Georgia Ave. NW) at 6:30pm on Monday, September 19, to review the application.