From Zachary Ammerman, candidate for ANC single member district 5A09
Zach Ammerman, ANC candidate for brand-new Single Member District 5A09, will be hosting an informal meet and greet from 6 to 8 pm on Thursday, Oct. 6, in the Resident Lounge at the Modern at Art Place (400 Galloway Street NE). Come say hello in an informal setting, learn about Zach’s priorities if elected, ask questions, and let him know about any issues or concerns you have about our neighborhood.
Light finger food and refreshments will be provided from DC’s vegan soul food restaurant NuVegan café.
WHAT? Informal meet and greet with your ANC Candidate, Zach Ammerman
WHEN? Thurs., Oct. 6, from 6 to 8 pm, This is an open-house style event: drop in at any time and for any length during the two hour period.
WHERE? Resident Lounge, Modern at Art Place, 400 Galloway Street NE. Dial 005 to enter building, then follow signs to lounge.
ANC 5A Public Safety Task Force Wednesday, September 14, 2022 6:30 pm
Providence Health 1150 Varnum Street, N.E. Ground Floor Lecture Hall
ANC 5A is launching a new task force to work together to help address public safety issues in ANC 5A. We welcome anyone in the community to participate.
For more information, please contact Commissioner Gordon Fletcher 5a08@anc.dc.gov
ANC 5A held a special public meeting on August 31, 2022.
Commissioners present: Damion McDuffie (5A01); Charles Lockett (5A02); Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) – Secretary; Diego Rojas (5A04); Ronnie Edwards (5A05) – Chair; Sandi Washington (5A07) – Treasurer; Gordon Fletcher (5A08) – Vice Chair.
At the top of the meeting, the commissioners removed discussion of the Riggs Road NE cycletrack from the agenda and replaced that item with discussion of a new school zone parking program. The cycletrack will be on the agenda for ANC 5A’s public meeting in September.
ANC 5A Public Safety Task Force Draft Budget
Image of proposed ANC 5A public safety committee budget from Commissioner Gordon Fletcher (5A08) presentation
Commissioner Gordon Fletcher (5A08) presented a proposed budget for ANC 5A’s public safety task force (public safety committee). The request is to spend a little over $2,000 for reflective safety vests, flashlights, batteries, and whistles. My understanding is that this budget request is just a starting point for discussion. Robert Oliver, a resident in Commissioner Fletcher’s SMD who apparently is chairing the committee, said the idea is for residents to be able to walk around their neighborhoods to report safety concerns or things that need to be addressed by District government, such as sidewalks that pose a tripping hazard. Previously, Commissioner Fletcher talked a lot about bringing back the “Orange Hats.” Mr. Oliver said he does not expect that people will want to do exactly what the orange hats did in the past as far as walking the neighborhood during all times of day including late night hours, but they might be willing to do occasional walks to report things that need city attention. Unclear if the expectation is that ANC 5A residents will simply borrow the items. Right now, Commissioner Fletcher anticipates that the items will be housed in what he calls the ANC’s satellite office at The Modern at 402 Galloway Street NE. (The Ward 5 Mutual Aid group has been operating out of the ANC’s office for several months so there will need to be some discussion about how that group will continue operating out of the space).
The ANC voted to form a public safety committee a couple of years ago, but there always seems to be confusion about what exactly the committee is doing. In response to feedback, Commissioner Fletcher stated that he will work on developing goals and priorities for the public safety committee in order to align spending with those priorities. He plans to have a meeting on September 14, 2022, to discuss the issue.
Trinity Social Bar & Grill ABRA Application (5A05)
The owner of Trinity Social Bar & Grill, located at 200 Michigan Avenue NE, is now requesting a Class C alcohol license in order to have outdoor seating (what is known as a “summer garden” endorsement). Previously the owner was seeking a Class B alcohol license (originally covered in this post). The plans call for approximately 5 to 6 two-seater tables along the walkway outside the restaurant. There was some discussion about making sure there was enough space to be ADA compliant. Also, the owner will need to get a public space permit from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT).
According to the hearing notice, the applicant is also requesting an entertainment endorsement for indoor live entertainment.
The petition deadline was September 6, 2022. The ANC voted to support the application with no comment on the summer garden endorsement. Commissioner Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) abstained.
DDOT has rolled out a new school zone parking program in response to DC Council legislation. The program allows schools to request school zone parking permits for purchase by school employees to park on RPP blocks near the school so that those employees do not get parking tickets. ANCs can pass a resolution in support of a school’s application in order to expedite the process, but schools can also get school zone permits without ANC support. The ANC just has to be notified. The program website has a handy guide outlining program requirements (school transportation coordinator, school commuter survey, and a school sustainable transportation plan) and a list of FAQs.
Haley Peckett, DDOT’s director of cubside management, explained that the program is new and the idea is that perhaps some residents will use their cars during the day, freeing up on street parking for school employees to park. (Admittedly, I do not understand that reasoning at all because city officials are also encouraging people to use alternatives to driving and certainly many residents take public transportation to work during regular business hours). DDOT will determine the number of permits the school receives based on a formula. Schools will receive permits for the ANC in which they are located. Schools located near an ANC border may receive permits for more than one ANC.
The discussion was prompted by an application for parking on RPP blocks by Bridges Public Charter School (PCS), located at 100 Gallatin Street NE near Fort Totten Metro station. Bridges is just one in a cluster of public charter schools in that location, along with Mary’s Center Fort Totten location. With the nearby apartments, condo buildings, and rowhouses, there is already a lot of demand for on-street parking for cars in that area.
Ms. Peckett said that DDOT welcomes feedback from ANCs about how the program is working. For example, Commissioner Sandi Washington (5A07), in whose single member district Bridges sits, asked whether the application process could include requiring the school applicant to explore other parking options first before requesting parking permits for RPP blocks. She noted that DC Bilingual PCS, which recently expanded, and Briya PCS, are both located near Bridges PCS and those schools are renting parking spaces in nearby off-street parking lots. (The application does ask what parking the school already provides, such as in commercial garages or remote lots, but it does not specifically ask whether the school has sought out other nearby parking options before submitting the application).
There were some questions about why school employees get what is seen as a special privilege as opposed to other DC government employees. (I can understand why there may be some sympathy from District officials for teachers, in particular, who might want to drive to their school sometimes. They often have to schlep a lot of items to their classroom and can sometimes work well into the evening hours). In response to a question, Ms. Peckett did note that school employees in DC are eligible for free Capital bikeshare memberships and they are also eligible for a small subsidy towards the purchase of a bike. A resident noted that it would be useful to have bikeshare stations and bike parking by school campuses so that school employees can more easily use personal bikes or bikeshare to get to their school campus. Also the school zone program is designed to nudge schools towards reducing reliance on car trips by school employees by gradually reducing the number of approved school zone permits over time.
Bridges PCS and DDOT will return to the ANC’s regularly scheduled September meeting to discuss the application from Bridges more. In the interim, Commissioner Washington will continue talking with the leadership of Bridges about their plan.
Summer is winding down and that means community meetings are starting up again. Fun times!
Now is a good time to make sure you are on the distribution list for your neighborhood and Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) so that you can stay abreast of meeting notices and neighborhood happenings.
Also, other elected officials and District government agencies have email lists to which you can subscribe if you like getting lots of information in your inbox.
Lamond-Riggs
The Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association (LRCA) meets at 7:00 pm the 1st Monday of each month from October to June.
Coverage area is generally east of Fort Totten Metro red line tracks, from Galloway Street NE to Underwood Street NE/NW.
You can easily join LRCA’s distribution list by filling out the form at the bottom of the organization’s website at https://lrcadc.org.
North Michigan Park
The North Michigan Park Civic Association meets at 7:00 pm the 1st Wednesday of each month from September to June.
Coverage area is generally from Gallatin Street NE to points south.
To join NMPCA’s distribution list, email NMPCA president Carmen Williams at carm8954@aol.com.
NMPCA is having a public meeting tonight September 7.
ANC 4B
ANC 4B meets at 7:00 pm the 4th Monday of each month except July, August, and December.
ANC 4B does a nice job of posting meeting notices & information on its website at http://anc4b.org.
ANC 4B also has a number of committees. Meeting notices for those committees are posted on the ANC’s website.
Commissioner Alison Brooks (4B08) has a single member district (SMD) distribution list. Email her at 4B08@anc.dc.gov.
I understand the ANC is putting together a distribution list.
ANC 5A
ANC 5A meets the 4th Wednesday of each month except July & August.
To join ANC 5A’s email list, you can either –
(1) Email ANC 5A Secretary Commissioner Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) at 5A03@anc.dc.gov.
OR
(2) Fill out the contact form on ANC 5A’s website at https://anc5a.org and say you wish to be added to the ANC’s distribution list.
Individual commissioners have their own distribution lists as well, so I recommend reaching out to your commissioner to find out if they have an SMD distribution list. I know that these commissioners have SMD distribution lists:
Commission Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) – email 5A03@anc.dc.gov
Commissioner Gordon Fletcher (5A08) – email 5A08@anc.dc.gov
I have not inquired about other commissioners in ANC 5A, so feel free to reach out to your commissioner to ask.
Also, Commissioner Lucio helpfully posts notice of her SMD meetings on ANC 5A’s website so you can also look for her meeting notices and minutes there. Commissioner Lucio is having an SMD meeting tomorrow September 8.
Each of the DC At-large Councilmembers and the DC Council Chair distribute a newsletter.
DC Muriel Mayor Bowser & District government agencies
If you find yourself often having questions about certain District government agencies, it is a good idea to subscribe to the distribution lists for those agencies. Visit mayor.dc.gov to subscribe to newsletters and email updates for Mayor Bowser as well as a long list of District government agencies. You can also subscribe to individual agency newsletters by visiting the agency’s website.
DC mayor office liaisons (known as MOCRs) typically have a distribution list. There is regular turnover in the MOCR office, as each MOCR typically serves around two years. Reach out to your Ward 4 or Ward 5 MOCR to be added to their list.
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD)
The police department has a google group for the Fourth District.
From Zachary Ammerman, candidate for ANC 5A09, which will include The Modern at Art Place, Aventine at Fort Totten, and part of North Michigan Park.
Map of ANC single member district 5A09, effective January 2023, from DC Board of Elections.
My name is Zachary Ammerman, I’m a first-time candidate for Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner in the brand-new single member district 5A09 which, as you may already be aware, will cover the area just east of the Fort Totten metro including part of Riggs Park, Fort Totten and North Michigan Park. 5A09 was largely carved out of the old 5A08 as a result of population changes following the 2020 Census.
For those that aren’t familiar with the position, ANCs serve as a sort of liaison between a neighborhood district (each with about 2,000 people) and its residents and the DC government, helping to get services like trash removal, potholes filled, or a stoplight put in, among countless other things, and also advocate more broadly on behalf of the neighborhood.
I just wanted to briefly introduce myself and let you know about some of my priorities I’ll be hoping to tackle if elected.
I’m a full-time artist and mapmaker (you can see some of my work here and here) and a former French Embassy Economic Department staffer running as a first-time candidate for ANC with three top priorities in mind:
traffic safety, particularly on South Dakota Avenue, but also on some of the side streets in the SMD like Galloway and Gallatin. I plan on pushing for DDOT to take an “all-of-the-above” approach to calming traffic on South Dakota, including speed and red light cameras, installing new stop lights at intersections that don’t currently have them, considering a road diet long-term, as well as considering putting in protected bike lanes (as identified in the 2015 Move DC plan), and potentially bus lanes.
I am also not waiting until I get elected to start pushing for these changes: I’ve already filed multiple requests for traffic safety investigations (which have a wait time of around 130 days, so right around the time I would be taking office) for multiple different intersections and stretches of road in our district in the hopes that DDOT will be getting around to them early next year. See my website for more details on this;
putting pressure on NPS to take better care of the parks in our area, including finishing the trail between the Fort Totten metro and North Michigan Park, as well as just generally doing better maintenance like mowing and trash removal;
and supporting more housing density in places like surface parking lots near the metro in order to help alleviate the region’s housing affordability crisis and contribute to DC’s climate/sustainability goals.
You can find more detailed information about me and all of my proposals on my website, www.zachforanc5a09.com. Feel free to reach out to me with any questions or concerns you may have via the contact me section of my website, or via email at zammermanANC@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ZachANC5A09. I’ll be campaigning more as the election gets closer and look forward to meeting many more residents in person in the next few months.
Budget Amendment – to Establish a Public Safety Committee Operations Budget – Commissioner Fletcher will develop a proposed budget for consideration.
ABRA-121427 – Retailer’s Class “C” Tavern – Expansion of Previously approved Class “B” Application Trinity Grill & Social Marketplace, LLC 200 Michigan Avenue NE
Riggs Rd NE Connector Cycle Track DDOT (added August 27, 2022)
Budget Amendment – to Establish a Public Safety Committee Operations Budget – Commissioner Fletcher will develop a proposed budget for consideration.
ABRA-121427 – Retailer’s Class “C” Tavern – Expansion of Previously approved Class “B” Application Trinity Grill & Social Marketplace, LLC 200 Michigan Avenue NE
There is still time to pick up petitions to run for a seat on the Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) in ANC 4B and ANC 5A in the November general election. Petitions are due at 5:00 pm on August 10, 2022. Information about how to run for the ANC is available on the Board of Election website at https://dcboe.org/Candidates/ANC-Commissioners.
Each ANC commissioner represents approximately 2,000 residents who make up a single member district (SMD). Redistricting following the 2020 Census adjusted the boundaries of ANC single member districts. These new boundaries will become effective in January 2023. ANC redistricting opens the door for new ANC commissioners in ANC 4B and ANC 5A, the two commissions that cover Riggs Park. You can double check your SMD to make sure you are running in the correct SMD with the Office of Planning 2023 ANC/SMD locator.
For the SMDs covering parts of Riggs Park, individuals have picked up petitions for ANC 4B10 (Stefan Nagey), ANC 5A01 (Duvalier Malone), ANC 5A02 (Karlus Cozart) and ANC 5A09 (Zachary Ammerman). That leaves ANC 4B09 as one Riggs Park SMD without a candidate to date.
[Edited to add: The boundaries of Riggs Park generally are New Hampshire Avenue NE to the north, Eastern Avenue/MD-DC border to the east, Galloway Street NE to the south, & the Metro red line tracks to the west. So The Modern at Art Place and Aventine at Fort Totten are in Riggs Park. I don’t make the rules. Lamond is north of New Hampshire Avenue NE to Underwood Place NE/NW. Together, they make up Lamond-Riggs.]
ANC 4B09
ANC 4B09 includes Fort Totten Square, Riggs-LaSalle Recreation Center, LaSalle-Backus Education Campus, the few businesses across from Fort Totten Square, EYA’s Riggs Park Place, and lots of residents east of South Dakota Avenue NE and north of Kennedy Street NE. The second phase of Riggs Park Place is anticipated to break ground sometime in 2023, so it would be great to have someone paying attention to that project. If you live in that area and you have been thinking about running for ANC, there is still time to pick up petitions and get signatures in by 5:00 pm on August 10.
ANC 5A
Maps of ANC single member districts 5A05, 5A06, & 5A07, all of which need candidates to run for ANC.
Outside of Riggs Park, there are a few seats in ANC 5A that still do not have a candidate – ANC single member districts 5A05, 5A06, and 5A07.
Working from north to south.
ANC 5A07
With redistricting, current ANC Commissioner Sandi Washington (5A07) will no longer be in ANC 5A07 in January 2023, so that means someone in the northwestern part of ANC 5A will need to run for ANC 5A07. ANC 5A07 is just west of the Fort Totten Metro red line tracks. This area contains a few apartment buildings (some converted to condos), Mary’s Center Fort Totten location, Mamie D. Lee community garden, and DC Bilingual Public Charter School. DC Bilingual is currently undergoing a big expansion. ANC 5A07 will also include Metro property along 1st Place NE. Metro has revived plans to develop the long-term parking lot at Fort Totten Metro station. Depending on how quickly Metro moves on that effort, it would be useful to have a commissioner in place to help shape that project. The last time Metro sought to develop the long-term parking lot, Metro officials presented the bids they received privately to just the ANC 5A commissioners. That former plan ended up getting shelved but Metro plans to try again soon. In general though, it would be great to have a commissioner who can proactively work with Metro and the National Park Service about perennial issues with those agencies, both of which have properties with large footprints in ANC 5A that they do not do a great job of maintaining.
ANC 5A06
ANC 5A06 has a mix of single family homes and apartment buildings. A few of the apartment buildings have redevelopment plans. Current ANC Commissioners Derrick Holloway (5A06) and Sandi Washington (5A07) will both reside in 5A06 effective January 2023. I am pretty sure neither plans to run for election to represent 5A06, so if a resident was waiting for one of them to announce plans to run, now is the time to pick up petitions to make sure that area has representation.
ANC 5A05
Pocket of residents outside of the AFRH who could run to represent ANC 5A05
Beginning in January 2023, the residents who live in Park Place and The Cloisters, including current ANC 5A Chair Ronnie Edwards (5A05), will be in ANC 5E. ANC 5A05 will largely consist of the Armed Forces Retirement Home (which has large development plans in store), properties for MedStar Washington Hospital Center and VA Medical Center, and a couple of schools. There is a tiny pocket of residents in the northern portion of the SMD west of Hawaii Avenue NE in between Taylor Street and Varnum Street NE in the few single family homes and apartment buildings (including Brookland Ridge) who could conceivably run to represent ANC 5A05. So on the off chance that there is a reader who lives in that tiny pocket who may be interested in running for ANC 5A05, go ahead and pick up petitions to run. Lots of people will thank you.
If you call yourself a reasonable, respectful person interested in improving where you live, consider running for a seat on the Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC). Nominating petitions to run for the ANC in the November general election are available at the DC Board of Elections. They are due at 5:00 pm on August 10, 2022. Information about how to run for the ANC is available on the Board of Election website at https://dcboe.org/Candidates/ANC-Commissioners. Greater Greater Washington is hosting a training on how to run for ANC tonight July 21 at 6:00 pm. Register at the link.
Each ANC commissioner represents approximately 2,000 residents who make up a single member district (SMD). Redistricting following the 2020 Census adjusted the boundaries of ANC single member districts. These new boundaries will become effective in January 2023. ANC redistricting opens the door for new ANC commissioners in ANC 4B and ANC 5A, the two commissions that cover Riggs Park. You can double check your SMD to make sure you are running in the correct SMD with the Office of Planning 2023 ANC/SMD locator.
In the redrawn ANC 4B09, there will not be an incumbent commissioner so if you are a reasonable person interested in representing the area covering the Riggs-LaSalle Recreation Center, LaSalle-Backus Elementary School, and Fort Totten Square, go ahead and pick up a nominating petition.
In ANC 5A, current ANC Commissioners Charles Lockett (5A02) and Gordon Fletcher (5A08) will be in the same SMD beginning January 2023 (5A08). Current ANC Commissioners Derrick Holloway (5A06) and Sandi Washington (5A07) will both be in the redrawn ANC 5A06. Finally, current ANC 5A Chair Ronnie Edwards (5A05) will be in an entirely different commission (ANC 5E) beginning in January 2023. So all that means that even if the current commissioners were inclined to run for re-election, there would still be a few SMDs without an incumbent commissioner, specifically newly drawn ANC 5A02, 5A05, 5A07, and 5A09 (I think I have that right).
I always like to put in a little plug for my SMD, ANC 5A01. I do not know just yet if ANC Commissioner Damion McDuffie (5A01) plans to run for re-election. I hope he does, but if he decides not to, someone pleasant should run. It is a nice manageable area with the Lamond-Riggs Library and UDC-CC Backus campus (the latter will see some small and large changes in the next couple of years, post on that to come). I think the residents in this pocket of the neighborhood are pretty low-key, nice folks.
We really do need good folks to run for ANC seats. ANCs can weigh in on all sorts of matters that affect residents (think planning and development projects, services by District agencies, etc.) so it really can make a difference to have proactive, reasonable people in these positions. If you are a reasonable, respectful person who would not mind doing some unpaid community work and would enjoy interacting with residents, District agencies, and neighborhood businesses to make our neighborhood a bit better, go ahead and run. We all thank you in advance.
Short recap of the ANC 5A meeting that took place on June 22, 2022. Commissioners present: Damion McDuffie (5A01); Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) – Secretary; Diego Rojas (5A04); Ronnie Edwards (5A05) – Chair; Sandi Washington (5A07) – Treasurer.
ANC Business
The ANC will hold a meeting at a future date to discuss their financial report. Some of the commissioners had questions about the contract for the ANC website.
Ward 5 Council Kenyan McDuffie Report(Laisha Dougherty, Chief of Staff)
The Council completed the budget cycle. The Council will recess July 15, 2022. CM McDuffie is working on a holistic approach to addressing violence in the city.
McDonald’s Map Amendment (Upzoning) Request
McDonald’s returned to the ANC for support of its map amendment (upzoning) request that would permit them to rebuild the McDonald’s at 4950 South Dakota Avenue NE with a drive-thru as a matter of right (Zoning Commission case number 22-19). North Michigan Park president Carmen Williams sent a letter to the ANC stating that her questions were answered and that she was comfortable with moving forward. The ANC voted unanimously to support McDonald’s request, and the commissioners asked McDonald’s to draft language that they can use in a resolution in support.
Ward 5 Mayor Office Report (Nokomis Hunter, Ward 5 MOCR)
Mayor Muriel Bowser celebrated the completion of the extension of the Metropolitan Branch Trail from Brookland to Takoma. A walk with ANC Commissioner Sandi Washington (5A07) was scheduled for June 28, 2022.
Single Member District (SMD) Reports
ANC Commissioner Emily Singer Lucio has been working with the developer of the Kennedy School townhome project at 801 Buchanan Street NE (BZA case number 20751). The hearing date on that project has been delayed until October. She stated that in response to community input, the developer did offer assurances that they will include a tot lot and a playing field in their project. Commissioner Lucio is also trying to work with Ascension, which owns Providence Hospital, to make some progress regarding future plans for the Providence campus.
Lamond-Riggs Library (Robert Oliver, President of Lamond-Riggs Library Friends)
Ribbon cutting scheduled for June 27, 2022. A larger community celebration will be held on a weekend in July (date set for July 23). Work is still being done as a result of supply chain issues.
Catholic University (Cheyenne Range, Associate Director of Government and Community Relations)
The university is welcoming a new president. Catholic will send the ANC a list of job opportunities at the university and will schedule a meeting with the ANC commissioners as part of the university’s community engagement efforts.
Miscellaneous
ANC redistricting is complete. Find new ANC and SMD boundaries that will become effective on January 1, 2023, on the Office of Planning website.
A resident complained about the new flexiposts that DDOT placed along 12th Street NE. Commissioner Lucio stated that she had reached out to DDOT about why they did not provide any notification about this plan to the ANC. DDOT told her they will get back with her.
Michigan Park Community Playground Opening Event June 5, 2022 10:00 am-12:00 West lawn of St. Joseph’s Seminary 1200 Varnum Street NE RSVP at EYA.com/MPplayground
ANC 5A held its monthly public meeting on April 27, 2022. Commissioners present: Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) – Secretary; Diego Rojas (5A04); Ronnie Edwards (5A05) – Chair; Derrick Holloway (5A06); Sandi Washington (5A07) – Treasurer; Gordon Fletcher (5A08) – Vice Chair
DC Public Charter School Board (DC PCSB) was on the agenda, but no one from the board showed up at the meeting.
MPD Police Report (MPD 4D Lt. Patrick Schaut)
MPD did not have an update on the homicide that took place in the 5000 block of South Dakota Avenue NE on April 25, 2022. It is still under investigation. Police were called to the scene for a traffic crash and discovered that an individual had been shot. The few details available about that shooting are in the police release at https://mpdc.dc.gov/release/homicide-5000-block-south-dakota-avenue-northeast.
Continue to be vigilant about not leaving cars running unattended.
Car wheel thefts continue to be a problem across the city. (Note: MPD occasionally publishes tips on how to make it harder to steal car wheels).
Taylor Street NE Projects (5A03)
Image of 824 Taylor Street NE & 828 Taylor Street NE via google mapsImage of proposed building at 824 Taylor Street NE via application
There are two condo projects by two different developers happening on Taylor Street NE – 824 Taylor (BZA case number 20648) & 828 Taylor (BZA case number 20678), which are currently vacant, semi-detached apartment buildings. Both developers were present at the ANC meeting to present. These projects border ANC 5B. The developers previously attended single member district meeetings of ANC Commissioner Emily Singer Lucio (5A03) and ANC Commissioner Colleen Costello (5B05).
The projects will require BZA special exception relief. The developers are proposing to tear down the existing structures and build completely detached condo buildings with a common staircase from the sidewalk to a common courtyard with entrances to each building off the courtyard. Residents in that area had previously asked if the developers could work together a bit to coordinate design so that there would not be two completely different looking buildings. They also asked the developers to coordinate construction and trash pickup to the greatest extent possible. Note there is another building in that row of apartment buildings on Taylor Street currently for sale.
824 Taylor
Eight 2-bedroom units, each approximately 900 square feet
4 proposed parking spaces in rear (only 1 required under zoning)
Trash in rear
Opting into inclusionary zoning, will have one below market-rate unit
Bay element
828 Taylor
Eight 2-bedroom units, each approximately 850 square feet
5 proposed parking spaces in rear (only 1 required under zoning), including 1 ADA compliant space
Trash in rear
Opting into inclusionary zoning, will have one below market-rate unit
Balconies
Someone brought up traffic concerns. (Note: DDOT submitted its reports on the projects after the ANC meeting. Looks like DDOT anticipates minor increase in vehicle, bike, and pedestrian trips, and impacts to on-street parking from these projects). The commissioners voted to support both projects. I was not able to get a final count, but sounded like one commissioner opposed and one abstained, but do not quote me on that.
Mayor’s Fiscal Year 2023 Budget (MPD Chief Contee)
Chief Contee mentioned the mayor’s proposed incentives for hiring and retaining more police officers, including incentives for housing. Currently there are roughly 3,500 MPD police officers. Chief Contee and Mayor Bowser state that the ideal number to serve DC is 4,000 officers. There is money proposed to hire over 300 new officers. With expected attrition, the mayor expects a net gain of about 47 officers. Chief Contee said it would be irresponsible to try to hire 600 officers at one time. I pointed out that there is already a housing incentive program for District government employees. Chief Contee acknowledged such a program exists and said this police-specific proposal could also help with rental housing as opposed to purchasing housing.
Commissioner Gordon Fletcher (5A08) brought up the orange hats again and asked if MPD officers would be willing to participate in community walks. Chief Contee stated that he would be willing to have police support communities in the manner that communities want. Some communities do not want police officers walking with orange hat-type community walks. Many of the commissioners present let it be known that they personally welcome having more police in the community.
In response to a comment that there are lots of police in this city if you count federal law enforcement, Chief Contee stated that when someone calls 911, MPD is the responding agency, not the Park Police, Metro Transit Police, or any number of federal law enforcement agencies present in the city.
In response to my comment that there should be a firm statement from the top that police need to respect the constituional rights of residents and that serving as an officer is a privilege that should come with certain values that are demonstrated every day, Chief Contee said he reiterates that message all of the time with cadets and MPD officers.
Ward 5 Council Report (Laisha Dougherty, Chief of Staff)
Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie is focused on finishing up the committee budget report for the Committee on Business & Economic Development.
Ward 5 MOCR Nokomis Hunter stated homelessness is down in DC based on the latest point in time count.
Mr. Hunter is planning an event with North Michigan Park Civic Association president Carmen Williams for May 12, 2022.
Commissioner Sandi Washington (5A07) raised the issue of many residents with housing vouchers being placed in the apartment buildings along Fort Totten Drive NE, where there have been a few shootings recently. Commissioner Washington stated that she had a walkthrough of the area with representatives from District government and that more needs to be done to provide services for individuals.
(I also asked about the extent to which DC government provides services to residents placed in housing through the rapid rehousing program. It is not realisitic tome to expect individuals to be able to pay market rent after 12 months.)
Miscellaneous
Commissioner Lucio will have an SMD meeting on May 5, 2022. On the agenda is the zoning change being requested by McDonald’s (along with a couple of other items). (The zoning case number for that matter is ZC 22-19. Details about the requested change are available in their application). If you are interested in attending, please reach out to Commissioner Lucio.
Commissioner Washington is in touch with the developer of the 1 Hawaii Avenue NE project to assist with relocation of residents as needed. The developer has reached out to nearby apartment communities such as The Modern and Brookland Ridge to assist with temporary relocation of residents. The residents must move from the Hawaii Avenue building by July 1. Commissioner Washington plans to invite the developer to ANC 5A’s May meeting.
Chair Ronnie Edwards (5A05) stated that some commissioners across the city are circulating a template resolution to get buy-in to request reducing the number of petition signatures required to run for ANC in the general election from 25 signatures to 10 signatures. Most of the ANC 5A commissioners present stated that they did not think getting 25 signatures was onerous, so it does not sound like the ANC will be bringing forth this issue for a resolution.
Finally, shoutout to Commissioner Lucio for spending her birthday at an ANC meeting.
824 and 828 Taylor Street BZA (5A03) • BZA Application No. 20648 of 824 Taylor Street NE, LLC May 11, 2022 9:30 am • BZA Application No. 20678 of Taylor Lofts, LLC May 11, 2022 9:30 am
Community Updates
MPD
Mayor’s Office- Director Eduardo Perdomo of The Mayor’s Office of Latino Affair (MOLA) to present the FY2023 Budget update
Ward 4 Task Force Map RecommendationWard 5 Task Force Map Recommendation
The ANC redistricting task forces submitted their reports with recommendations for new ANC and SMD boundaries to the DC Council on April 1, 2022. The DC Council Subcommittee on Redistricting held a public hearing on the task force recommendations on April 7, 2022. If you missed the chance to testify at that hearing, there will be another opportunity to testify on April 28, 2022. The deadline to sign up to testify is April 26, 2022. Written testimony will be accepted for the record until 5:00 pm on May 13, 2022. Instructions on how to sign up to testify and how to submit written testimony are in the hearing notice.
The reports from the eight ANC task forces, detailing their recommended new ANC and SMD boundaries, can be found here.
Maps of the recommendations from each ANC task force are available here.
Tentative final Ward 5 ANC map created by Ward 5 ANC redistricting task force
In this post, I shared the tentative final map that the Ward 5 ANC redistricting task force created. The task force will vote on the map today at 6:00 pm. Meeting agenda here.
Tentative final ANC 5A map created by Ward 5 ANC redistricting task force
I previously submitted feedback on the task force’s three discussion maps to the effect of (1) keep 5A01 as is; (2) if 5A01 absolutely has to change, keep a sensible grouping of residents on South Dakota Avenue, Galloway, Hamilton, Jefferson, Ingraham, 7th, and 8th together; and (3) keep the residents east of South Dakota together with the residents west of South Dakota. I do not know what other feedback the task force received about 5A01. These were just my thoughts; I am certainly not trying to speak on behalf of all 5A01 residents.
I think the task force attempted to draw a district keeping as much of 5A01 together as possible, but because of the way the streets are designed and the way the census blocks are drawn in this area, the map continues to look strange and not make a lot of sense. You can see a map of the census blocks with populations here.
I continue to believe trying to carve up 5A01 is a fool’s errand (no offense to the task force, they are just trying to do the task they were assigned). The resulting tentative final map is evidence of the futility of this task. In the tentative map, residents on South Dakota Avenue between Hamilton and Ingraham would be in the same SMD as residents in the 400 block of Jefferson Street, but not the same SMD as residents on South Dakota Avenue between Ingraham and Jefferson.
I think the biggest challenge to drawing a sensible map is census block 0095081005, which you can see in the picture below. It is bounded by South Dakota Avenue, Jefferson Street, Chillum Place, Ingraham Street, Hamilton Street, and 11th Street.
Image of census block populations in SMD 5A01
Unless there are going to be manual splits somewhere (and not clear where those splits would be), it is not going to be possible in my mind to draw a map that makes sense. So part of my feedback to the task force remains advocating for keeping all of 5A01 together. I continue to believe there is a strong defensible argument for keeping this SMD as is. (1) It is constrained by census geography (very large census blocks covering multiple streets that cannot be easily split). (2) It is constrained by political geography (the Ward 4/Ward 5 and state line boundaries). (3) It has a natural geographic boundary (Fort Circle Park). (4) It keeps a cohesive neighborhood unit intact.
SMD 5A01 started out with 2,139 residents following the 2010 Census. In 10 years, it has grown by a little over 200 residents. I suspect (but haven’t researched) that some of that growth is from families and families with children moving into the area. Because this SMD primarily consists of single family homes with a few established apartment buildings, I don’t think there is a risk that the population will grow so much as to be super problematic for purposes of representation.
The task force is making allowances for SMDs with up to 2,250 residents, but so far they have decided that 2,389 is just too far outside the max limit of 2,100 residents. I don’t fault them for deciding that. I still think there are good reasons for allowing it.
Proposed Amendment to Tentative Final Map for ANC 5A(link)
Proposed amendment to 5A map by task force member
One amendment affecting this neck of the woods will be proposed at the task force meeting tonight by one of the co-chairs, from what I understand. It would shift roughly 48 residents on the west side of 7th Street (the folks who share the alley with UDC’s campus) to an SMD west of South Dakota Avenue. The folks on the east side of 7th Street would remain in 5A01. The residents across the street from UDC’s campus on the north side of the 500 block of Hamilton Street would remain in 5A01.
The amendment would also shift part of the apartment community along Sargent and Eastern to 5A02, which currently sits south of the park. It looks like the apartment buildings sit in three census blocks (census blocks 0095082000, 0095082007, 0095082008), with one of those census blocks sitting across Sargent/Eastern. The amendment is only proposing to shift two of those census blocks out of 5A01, so part of the apartment community would be in a different SMD from the rest, from what I can tell.
Alternative to proposed amendment to 5A map by task force member
It looks like there is also an alternative to the possible amendment. This alternative is based in part on a map that I shared with the task force as I was playing around with the numbers for 5A01 and 5A08. My thinking was really to take the carveout of 5A01 residents from the discussion maps and group those residents with the other Riggs Park residents directly west of South Dakota Avenue rather than grouping them with North Michigan Park residents catty-corner across South Dakota Avenue. So I drew a partial map focusing on 5A01, 5A02, and 5A08 to see what the numbers might look like. The co-chair played around with those SMDs, plugged in the other SMDs, and came up with this alternative. I do kind of think the alternative (and my conceptual map) suffer from the same problem as all of the other maps though.
Next Steps
The Ward 5 ANC redistricting task force will vote on a final Ward 5 ANC map today. The task force’s report with recommendations is due to the Council on April 1, 2022.
The Council will hold hearings on the ANC maps before they are finalized. The first Council hearing on the ANC boundaries will be on April 7, 2022. Sign up to testify by April 5, 2022. Written comments will be accepted until May 13, 2022. Instructions are in the hearing notice.
Next Stop...Riggs Park 