Author Archives: nextstoprp

Ward 5 Industrial Land Transformation Report “Ward 5 Works” Released

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized and tagged with ,

Ward 5 Industrial Land Transformation Study

We are back from summer break to take a look at “Ward 5 Works” (pdf), the long-awaited report from the Ward 5 Industrial Land Transformation Task Force, released to the public on August 27, 2014. The report sets forth policy recommendations concerning the industrial land in Ward 5 for the next 5 years:

  • Create an Industrial Advocate to serve as a liaison to Ward 5 residents and spearhead marketing, business attraction, technical assistance and coordination among businesses
  • Revise the zoning code to preserve industrial land, buffer residential uses from industrial impacts, encourage inclusion of retail space in production, distribution, and repair (PDR) businesses, and reduce the amount time to obtain a building or occupancy permit
  • Improve waste management activities and limit future ones and launch a pilot Good Neighbor program
  • Coordinate workforce development program with the Industrial Advocate to ensure a pipeline of PDR jobs for District residents
  • Help Ward 5 business access financial resources and technical assistance
  • Build support for industrial uses and change perception of Ward 5
  • Explore potential for a “creative hub” and partner with private sector to support development of affordable space for PDR
  • Enhance access to Ward 5 with investment in bicycle infrastructure, pedestrian connections, bus service, streetcar and other premium transit options
  • Invest in new and upgraded community amenities, such as parks, retail, restaurants, streetscapes and family-friendly destinations

The area around Fort Totten metro station, where most of the industrial land in the neighborhood is concentrated, seems to be more of a footnote in the report.  There are probably a few reasons for this. The report focuses primarily on the Ivy City neighborhood and the New York Avenue and Rhode Island Avenue corridors because most of the industrial land in the ward is concentrated in those areas. It also highlights Brookland as a potential creative hub, building off of the energy created by Dance Place, the artist housing, and the Monroe Street Market Arts Walk.  There is not much vacant or underleased land around Fort Totten on the Ward 5 side. Some of the land has already been developed for residential use. For example, the Aventine Fort Totten Apartments sit on WMATA-owned land. Also in the neighborhood are the Capital Area Food Bank, salt domes, a privately-owned plumbing business, and the trash transfer station. The report notes the municipal facilities have a natural buffer in Fort Totten Park, so the nuisance factor is limited. (Though we cannot forget about the recent fire at the trash transfer station and the fact that the hilly road portion of the MBT between Fort Totten and Brookland does not offer a pleasant biking experience). And finally, the Riggs Road/South Dakota Avenue small area plan, which went into effect in 2009, offers plenty of recommendations for the neighborhood, many of which we are seeing come to fruition.

The report, then, has limited value in terms of official action for the neighborhood. The few specific recommendations have either already been done or are in the planning process. For example, it recommends a bikeshare station at the metro station (check) and improved pedestrian/cycling connections along South Dakota Avenue (on DDOT’s planning list). However, that is not to say some of the ideas advocated for other areas, such as culinary incubators, small-scale local production, media and creative arts spaces, urban agriculture, and tool libraries, cannot be done in this neighborhood. Probably the most important recommendation in the report is to consolidate the municipal facilities along West Virginia Avenue NE and create a PDR hub. The report notes that DC’s government will continue to need an industrial land base for municipal functions. Some municipal functions and industrial uses are more of a burden than others. We have already seen the neighborhood jockeying taking place over WMATA’s desire to either renovate or build a bus barn to serve the upper Northeast and Northwest areas of the city. To the extent government officials can actually follow through on the report’s recommendation to develop a master facilities plan to protect land for municipal functions, while reducing the nuisance factor on neighboring residences, this neighborhood will be well served by the report. 

For media coverage of the report, see the Washington City Paper, Washington Post, and the Washington Times.

Five Guys to Fort Totten Square

Posted by nextstoprp in Fort Totten Square, Uncategorized and tagged with ,

Editor’s note 7/24/2014: We should have added the usual caveat that the brochure does not mean a lease has been signed. We’ve been told the developers have a letter of intent with Five Guys, not a signed lease just yet.

According to an updated brochure from JBGR (the retail arm of developer JBG), Five Guys will be joining Subway at Fort Totten Square on the corner of Riggs Road & Chillum Place NE. That space was to be occupied by Carolina Kitchen/TKO Burger before they pulled out. This addition leaves one vacant retail space between the Subway and the Five Guys, as well as the vacant space on the corner of 3rd Street & Riggs Road, to which the developers have been hoping to lure a coffee shop.

Fort Totten Square Site Plan

Timeline for additional phases at Art Place at Fort Totten

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

 

At the request of the Zoning Commission, the Cafritz team provided a timeline for the remainder of the Art Place at Fort Totten development.  Recall the development will be constructed in multiple phases.  Construction recently started on Building A (1st phase), a mixed use building slated to have 510-550 residential units and over 100,000 square feet of retail.  Building A is expected to be complete in late 2016/early 2017.

Anticipated construction start dates and uses for remaining buildings

Early 2019:  Building B – Children’s museum, additional retail, community recreational uses

Late 2023:  Building C – Residential building with approximately 400 units

Mid-2024:  Building D – Arts and community uses

These anticipated construction dates and uses are subject to change as the Cafritz team assesses the viability of potential uses.

View the full letter, which provides some background information about getting Building A off the ground: Art Place Status – Phasing Plan

 

 

Nearby Farmers Markets + Potomac Pastry

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized

Check out nearby farmers markets this summer.

Brookland Farmers Market #1

  • Tuesdays, 3:30 pm – 7:00 pm
  • Location:  Near 10th & Otis Street NE, under the Michigan Avenue bridge (next to Brookland metro station)

At the Tuesday market, in addition to traditional market fare like fresh fruit and veggies, you will find Potomac Pastry, a new dessert and pastry business founded by a Brookland resident.  Potomac Pastry serves super delicious, fresh treats like croissants, macarons, kouign ammans, and more.  If you have not tried a kouign amman, believe me you will want to try one.  Check out Potomac Pastry at the Tuesday market and support local.

Brookland Farmers Market #2

  • Saturdays, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
  • Location: Arts Walk, Monroe Street Market (716 Monroe Street NE)

Petworth Community Market

  • Saturdays, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
  • Location: Upshur & 9th Street NW (at Georgia Avenue)

Takoma Park Farmers Market

  • Sundays, 10:00 am – 2:00 pm, all year round
  • Location: Laurel Avenue, historic Old Takoma (just a short walk from Takoma metro station)

 

ANC 5A Meeting Wrapup

Posted by nextstoprp in Lamond Riggs Library and tagged with , , ,

The June 25 ANC 5A meeting was the last meeting before the summer break. Meetings resume in September.

Crime

A report from Commander Kim Missouri: There has been an increase in thefts from autos, burglaries, robberies (mostly phones), and stolen autos. The police have determined that recent gun incidents involve a back and forth between juveniles from North Michigan Park and Riggs Park. They have identified one person of interest and they are continuing to focus on juvenile curfew enforcement, particularly around the metro station. Common tips to prevent crime:  lock doors/windows, do not leave valuables in cars, be aware of surroundings when walking, and call 911 if you see anything suspicious or out of place. You can anonymously text crime tips to 50411.

Lamond Riggs Library

A committee chaired by Commissioner Angel Alston has been formed to ensure that Lamond Riggs Library remains and is renovated at its current location. Recall that the Cafritz Art Place at Fort Totten project is a multiphase development and one of the later phases contemplates the construction of a new neighborhood library. Also recall there was supposed to be funding in the budget for renovating the library. It turns out that money would actually come from selling the library to the developer so that the developer can then build a new one. The sale would have to be approved through the surplus process. Assurances have been made by a couple of elected officials that the library will not be sold, but the commission and residents want to make sure they stay on top of things. The committee will meet again in September. Contact Commissioner Alston for more information.

School Boundary Redrawing Proposal

With respect to the redrawing of the school boundaries, the commission voted to adopt a resolution stating the focus should really be on ensuring a quality, matter of right K-12 education for every student.

Renaming of Gym at North Michigan Park Recreation Center

The Mayor’s Office will likely forego renaming the gym at the North Michigan Park Recreation Center after Medric Mills, the gentleman who tragically passed away across the street from a firehouse on Rhode Island Avenue NE. Mr. Mills was a 46-year employee of the DC Department of Parks and Recreation and DPR thought it would be a fitting honor to name the gym after him. NMP residents and commissioners were not alerted of DPR’s proposal ahead of time and expressed their belief that Mr. Mills, a resident of Riggs Park, should be honored in a different manner.

New Brookland Restaurants

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized

Neighboring Brookland is enjoying a restaurant blitz.

Brookland’s Finest Bar & Kitchen (from the owners of The Pug and Solly’s) officially opened June 9. Location: 3126 12th St. NE. Facebook page

Smith Public Trust (from the owners of Smith Commons) is in soft open mode until after the World Cup. Location: 3514 12th St NE. View the menu here.

Steel Plate (from the owners of Rustik) opened June 25 and will offer a 20% discount to diners until June 29. Location: 3523 12th St. NE. View the menu here.

Brookland Pint (from the owners of Meridian Pint) anticipates a late July opening in Monroe Street Market.

Comment by June 24 on surplus designation of Riggs Road/South Dakota parcel to be sold to Fort Totten Square developers

Posted by nextstoprp in Fort Totten Square
South Dakota and Riggs Rd Parcel

City-owned parcel on SE corner of Riggs & South Dakota being negotiated for sale to FTS developers

South Dakota and Riggs Rd Project Background (background document on the parcel; we also discussed this topic in this post)

On June 10, the Mayor’s Office held a public hearing on designating the city-owned parcel at the southeast corner of Riggs Road and South Dakota Avenue NE surplus property so that it may be sold to the developers of Fort Totten Square to develop a second phase to the project.  (Full disclosure:  I gave conditional support for the surplus designation at the hearing and participated in the process for preparing comments by the Lamond Riggs Citizens Association, which also provided conditional support for the surplus designation.)  The mayor’s office will accept written comments submitted to Project Manager Marc Bleyer by June 24, 2014 (email here).

The council has the final say on declaring the property surplus (to say there is no public need for the property) and approving its sale.  It approved a sale in 2006 to Lowe Enterprise, at that time the sole developer of Fort Totten Square.  In 2008, the developer and the mayor’s office entered into a land disposition agreement that eventually expired in 2011 before closing.  Now the sale is being renegotiated with the current Fort Totten Square developers (JBG and Lowe).

The hearing appeared destined to be short with the initial commenters commenting in favor of the surplus designation.  In my own comments, I stated that I support the surplus designation, but that any development should incorporate some public benefits.  I figure I have little reason to believe the city will actually do anything with this land that is bookend by the sidewalk and the land that is already owned by the developers (see photo at top of post).  The LRCA submitted comments requesting that certain public benefits be incorporated into the land disposition agreement addressing affordable housing, business development, workforce development, and neighborhood support and improvement.  One person commented that some residents use the land to walk their dogs and also expressed concern about having amenities for low-income residents in the community.  A few commented on the need for affordable housing.

Eventually, a few ANC 4B commissioners got around to questioning the process.  The mayor’s office is not putting the land out for bid because the council already approved the sale at one point and the mayor’s office has the right to renegotiate the 2008 agreement.  One commissioner questioned why the mayor’s office did not bring any visual aids so that people would know exactly what parcel was the subject of the hearing.   The commissioners also questioned why the developers, who were present at the hearing, did not present on their plans for the property beforehand so that people could decide whether they liked those plans before saying yes or no to disposing of the land.  ANC 4B plans to address the surplus designation at its monthly public meeting on June 23, 2014.

After the hearing concluded, the developers presented a concept plan for the property if they are successful in obtaining the city-owned portion.  Just as with Fort Totten Square under construction on the north side of Riggs Road, they plan to construct a mixed-use development.  Two of the buildings would have retail on the ground floor with apartments (rental or condo) above.  The third building, which would face South Dakota Avenue, would be all residential.  There would be a structured garage behind the buildings.  The idea is to have 8-10 retailers to create a shopping destination for the neighborhood.  Preliminarily, they have agreed to the same conditions as the 2008 agreement (see link to background document above).  Again, the council has to declare the property surplus and approve the sale in order for them to proceed.

If you have any thoughts you would like to share with the mayor’s office, do so before June 24.

Street closures around Art Place coming soon – Plan accordingly

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

Street detour signs for Galloway, Hamilton, and 4th Street NE surrounding Art Place at Fort Totten are now up.  Road and alley closure signs and barriers are visible behind the chain link fence.  Plan accordingly.

  • Hamilton Street will be closed between South Dakota Avenue and 4th Street.  Pedestrians who are used to taking Hamilton to the metro station should plan to take Galloway Street.  Drivers will not be able to turn west onto Hamilton from South Dakota.  Galloway is the detour route.  Residents in the 500 & 600 blocks of Hamilton initially might see more traffic as drivers also detour east onto Hamilton.
  • 4th Street between Galloway & Hamilton will be closed to traffic.  Drivers can instead detour through the alley behind Aventine Fort Totten.
  • Drivers who are used to parking along Galloway, Hamilton, and 4th Street should make alternate plans.
  • Drivers who are accustomed to using Galloway and Hamilton as shortcuts to travel west of South Dakota probably will be better off avoiding the area altogether and taking Riggs Road instead.

The impending street closures are a good sign that construction is in fact finally starting.  According to Elevation DC, at last month’s Bisnow development event Jane Cafritz indicated construction would start this month.  She has been marketing the project heavily in recent weeks.  Construction is expected to take 30 months.

 

 

Draft moveDC plan released

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized

Remember attending all of those open houses for moveDC?  DDOT has released its draft moveDC plan.  An online survey is available and feedback on the draft plan will be accepted until July 6, 2014.

It is worth taking the time to look at the plan, which has laudable policy goals and big-ticket items that will affect how people travel throughout the city.  This post focuses on the items specific to the neighborhood.

Bicycle Element

The plan lists a number of bicycle elements relevant to the neighborhood.

  • Completion of the Metropolitan Branch Trail (MBT)
  • Cycle tracks on Missouri Avenue NW, New Hampshire Avenue NW, and South Dakota Avenue NE
  • Bicycle connection between Brookland and Columbia Heights
  • Completion of Prince George’s Connector from Gallatin Street NE to the Prince George’s County Line
  • The plan sets a goal that 75% of DC residents and 90% of DC employees be located within a quarter-mile of a CaBi station
  • Fort Totten metro station is listed as one area in which DDOT should concentrate to improve accommodations for bicyclists

However, in terms of priority, completion of the MBT from Fort Totten to the Maryland line is listed as Tier 1, while the Prince George’s Connector and South Dakota Avenue project are Tier 3.  The plan states prioritization is based on community/stakeholder support, existing commitments, and ensuring that investments are distributed across the city in service of current and future residents.

Transit Element

High-frequency bus service connecting Fort Totten and Friendship Heights is listed as a Tier 2 priority. Most of the Tier 1 priorites involve the streetcar.  The Takoma/Silver Spring line is listed as a Tier 2 priority.

Vehicular Element

New street crossings north of the Fort Totten tracks (Longfellow Street NE between 1st Street NE and 3rd Street NE; Sligo Mill Road between Oglethorpe Road NW and Chillum Place NE) are Tier 3 & 4 priorities, respectively.

Other elements include transportation demand management; parking and curbside management; and sustainability and livability.  Visit the moveDC site to read about all of the elements and the policy and implementation frameworks.  Comment by July 6, 2014.

June 10: Surplus hearing on Fort Totten Square south site property

Posted by nextstoprp in Fort Totten Square and tagged with ,

 

City-owned parcel subject of surplus hearing on SE corner of Riggs Rd & South Dakota Ave NE

City-owned parcel subject of surplus hearing on SE corner of Riggs Rd & South Dakota Ave NE

The mayor’s office is holding a public hearing to designate city-owned land on the southeast corner of South Dakota Avenue and Riggs Road NE surplus property in order to be sold to the Fort Totten Square developers for the second phase of the development.  Phase one of the development is well underway on the north side of Riggs.  The mayor’s office is required to solicit comments on designating the property “surplus,” which means that the land is not required for a public purpose.  The hearing will take place on Tuesday, June 10, 2014, at Riggs-Lasalle Recreation Center at 6:30 pm.

The mayor’s office will hold this public hearing and then present a package with a land disposition agreement to the council for the council’s approval.  The council will then hold its own hearing before deciding whether to declare the property surplus and approve the sale of the land.

The parcel, which is sometimes referred to as the Fort Totten Square south site, was the subject of a 2006 council resolution that provided for the sale of the land to Lowe Enterprise.  Lowe, which at that time was the sole developer of Fort Totten Square, owns a parcel adjacent to the city property and sought the city-owned land to make a more viable development.  The 2006 resolution provided for a number of conditions to the sale including:

  • The developer will develop a mixed-use project in accordance with a master plan.
  • The Mayor will retain design review over the master plan
  • The developer and the Mayor will agree to a profit participation program
  • The developer will abide by a First Source Agreement and execute an LSBDE MOU to contract with local, small businesses for at least 50% of the pre-construction and construction on the project
  • The developer will provide no less than 20% affordable units: 10% affordable to households earning 80% AMI or less; 5% to households earning 60% AMI or less, and 5% to households earning 30% AMI or less.

The sale was delayed by DDOT’s reconfiguration of the intersection.  In the interim, Lowe teamed up with JBG to develop Fort Totten Square and now the city is once again negotiating with the developers over the sale of the land.  If you have thoughts about the surplus designation, let the mayor’s office know at the June 10th hearing.  The record will be kept open for a period of time after the hearing for people to submit written comments.

Hearing notice

Hearing notice

Gym for Art Place at Fort Totten?

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

XSportsFitness has listed a location coming soon to Fort Totten, specifically at South Dakota Avenue & Galloway Street NE.  That of course is the location of the Art Place at Fort Totten development.  The website states that in addition to cardio equipment, the gym will offer a number of amenities such as group fitness classes, pool/whirlpool, sauna, basketball court, personal fitness training, tanning salon, and children’s play area. 

We know that the brokers for Art Place have been targeting a gym (the team has publicly stated interest in a gym and a gym has been pictured in all of the renderings).  We have seen businesses prematurely announce upcoming locations on their websites in the past only to backtrack (here’s looking at Carolina Kitchen/TKO Burger), but we are still posting this here since it is on the company’s website and the representative we spoke to on the phone confirmed that they are in the beginning stages of opening a gym in that location.  One more item to check off our neighborhood wishlist!

Art on 8th Summer Festivities

Posted by nextstoprp in Arts and tagged with

Art on 8th festivities have started for the summer.  Art on 8th is a co-presentation of Dance Place and Monroe Street Market, offering free arts events on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from May to October.  The festivities take place at venues close to the Brookland metro station, just a hop, skip, and a jump from the neighborhood.  Check out the free events for May and the rest of the summer.  Live jazz, a dance jam, and arts & crafts are on tap for this week.

ANC 5A meeting wrapup

Posted by nextstoprp in Uncategorized

Guest post

On April 23, 2014, ANC 5A held its monthly community meeting at the Backus Campus of UDC’s Community College. The meeting included information on the following topics.

Auto-Related Crime Has Increased

MPD Officer Lucas reported on police activity in the Fourth District.  Year-to-date, there have been dramatic increases in the number of stolen autos and the number of incidents of theft from autos.

Officer Lucas reminded us of the steps that each of us can take to avoid becoming a victim of auto-related crimes. (Click here and here for auto crime-prevention tips.)

New Trash/Recycling Receptacles

Call 311 to arrange pickup of your old, unwanted trash and recycling receptacles

2015 Budget

The DC budget cycle for FY 2015 is in-progress, so public hearings on the budget are being conducted. This website has the 11-page public hearing schedule for DC’s “Fiscal Year 2015 Proposed Budget and Financial Plan.”

Bike Lanes

Commissioner Edwards said that DDOT is moving ahead with its plans for bike lanes this year. (See this list of “2014 Planned Bikeways” and this link for a map of those bikeways). These plans include bike lanes on Harewood Road between Michigan Avenue and Taylor Street, and on Fort Totten Drive between Bates Road and Rock Creek Church Road. If you need more information on the bike lanes or have comments, contact DDOT Bicycle Program Specialist Mike Goodno at mike.goodno@dc.gov or (202) 671-0681.

National Park Service Options; Comments Due May 2nd

The Commissioners passed a resolution in support of a direct path between Gallatin and Galloway Street, the option that the community agreed upon at the recent SMD 5A08 meeting on improvements to the NPS paths between Gallatin and Galloway Streets. Contact Commissioner Alston about wording of the resolution. Remember comments are due May 2nd on the project’s website.

New Charter School to Open on AFRH Campus This Fall

Golnar Abedin, Ph.D., is Executive Director/Principal of the Creative Minds International Public Charter School, currently located at 3224 16th Street NW in the Mount Pleasant neighborhood.

Dr. Abedin said that this fall, the school will open an additional facility, for pre-school through 5th-grade students, on the campus of the Armed Forces Retirement Home (AFRH; aka the Old Soldiers’ Home).

After Dr. Abedin described the School’s programs and admissions policies, the ANC 5A Commission voted to pass a resolution in support of the School’s AFRH facility. (Note that the application period for Creative’s 2014-2015 school year closed in March.)

An April 2nd article in the Washington City Paper about the school’s additional facility also mentions other ways the AFRH campus could soon be open to non-AFRH residents.

Education Officials Discuss Plans

DC Councilmember David Catania and DC School Board President Mark Jones spoke about various initiatives in the DC public school system.

Councilmember Catania, who is Chair of the Council’s Committee on Education, described the Committee’s recent legislative efforts. President Jones announced that the Deputy Mayor for Education is holding a series of community meetings to get the public’s opinions on the proposals she has made to change school feeder patterns and boundaries.  (Greater Greater Education blog has a post discussing the boundary change process that also includes a link to an app created by Code for DC to help families determine how the proposed changes affect them.)

Also, President Jones described the School Board’s work on revisions to high school graduation requirements to ensure preparation for college or careers.

Former ANC5A Commissioner Rip Preston reminded us that a non-profit, community-based organization, the Ward 5 Council on Education, is working to improve the quality of education in Ward 5 schools.

DC Humanities Council Offers Grants; Proposal Deadline is May 9th

Natasha Brown, from the Humanities Council of Washington, DC, announced that proposals are due May 9th for applications for the DC Community Heritage Project (DCCHP) grant. This particular grant provides funding and support to community leaders interested in preserving the history, architecture, and collective memory of their neighborhoods. The Humanities Council has other community-based grant programs as well.