October 17 – Best of Brookland

From Bozzuto Homes:

Join Us at the Festival for All Things Brookland!

Featuring Live Music, Food and Entertainment From Local Hot Spots:

Busboys and Poets | Hälsa | Brookland Pint | Brookland’s Finest | &Pizza | The Dew Drop Inn DC | Menomale | Community Foodworks | Smith Public Trust | A Creative DC | Dance Place | Barnes and Noble – CUA | South Rail | The Low Counts

Sponsored by Gallery Towns by Bozzuto Homes

October 18 – Takoma Park Street Festival

From Old Takoma Business Association:

Reminder! The 34th Annual Takoma Park Street Festival, Version 2.0, will take place THIS Sunday, October 18, 2015 from 10am-5pm in Takoma on Carroll Avenue in Takoma Park, MD to Carroll Street, NW in Takoma, DC.

NEW! We have reschedule one stage of music for the day at the Gazebo. Children’s performer Mr. Gabe will kick it off at 11:00am, followed by 12:00noon -The Meer, 1:00pm – ilyAIMY, 2pm- Jay Summerour and James Mabry, 3:00pm – The Smokin’ Polecats and 4:00pm – Esther Haynes

The festival includes a talented mix of local artists, non-profits, green companies and food trucks. The Crawl is back  – festival attendees may purchase commemorative TAKOMA mugs good for discounted pours throughout the day at participating businesses.  Get your mug at the Takoma Pop Up (near Suntrust Bank) which will also include the latest Takoma gear. We have new colors and designs in adults, womens and kids t-shirts, plus onesies and hats.

For the kids: Mr Gabe, moonbounces plus the Takoma Park Volunteer Fire Department Open House during festival hours. TPVFD, 7201 Carroll Ave http://www.tpvfd.org/

We still need volunteers!  SSL hours available.  Please sign up here: http://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0c4daaae2eaa8-takoma

More information:  http://www.mainstreettakoma.org/featured-events/takoma-park-festival/

Event hosted by the Old Takoma Business Association, Your Main Street Takoma.

For those of you on the Lamond side, Commissioner Judi Jones posted notice of an ANC 4B07 SMD meeting tonight. Agenda includes representatives from Appelles marijuana cultivation center, which will be operating at 6523 Chillum Place NW.

On September, 24, 2015, the Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association teamed up with Streetsense and DC’s Office of Planning (OP) to host “Vibrant Retail Streets – Fort Totten.” This is the final post in this three-part series on the presentation, available here: Fort Totten – Application of DC Vibrant Retail Streets (pdf). The first part discussed the market analysis conducted by Streetsense. The second part discussed ways to impact retail attraction. This post concludes with how to proceed.

Conclusion: Start at step one – Managed

A large amount of retail will be coming online in the next three to five years. The neighborhood will change, maybe not on the scale of say Columbia Heights, but enough to have a noticeable effect on residents. Between the trepidation and enthusiasm many feel as the buildings start to go up and retailers are announced, there is a need to have realistic expectations of what our vibrant streets may look like. Recall that Streetsense and OP identified several characteristics that vibrant streets share:

(1) Managed by a civic/nonprofit or merchant association;

(2) Retail-appropriate spaces like transparent storefronts and wide sidewalks;

(3) Mix of tenants;

(4) Safe as perceived by shoppers and pedestrians;

(5) Championed by private and/or public sectors;

(6) Anchored by a cultural feature that attracts people for a non-commercial use;

(7) Walkable as part of a walkable community; and

(8) Unified by a common character.

The ultimate takeaway from the presentation is that retailers will be most successful if there is an organizational framework in place that can manage the retail process, so starting with step one of the toolkit is the best place to start. According to Streetsense, the purpose of having a retail-specific organization is not to champion the vibrant street, but to have a structure in place to allow residents, retailers, elected and public sector officials, and other stakeholders to all have a seat at the proverbial table. For example, the organization could have an on-boarding process for retailers new to the neighborhood. If residents noticed a problem with trash, then they could take it to the retail organization to have it addressed because the retailer would be part of the organization and would understand its responsibility.

Streetsense and OP brainstormed a few ways in which this organization could take shape. It could be through the civic association, either a committee or sub-committee, through a separate business association, or once fully organized, a Main Streets group. We do not have all the answers right now. We do know, however, that the group should be inclusive, open to residents of the various neighborhoods bordering these projects.

If you have thoughts about any aspect of the presentation, whether market analysis, retail attraction, or how to manage the process, let us know in the comments.

A neighbor asked to post information about a break-in that occurred on Tuesday in the 700 block of Kennedy Street NE:

There was a brazen break-in of a home in the 700 block of Kennedy Street NE yesterday. It happened between 2pm and 4pm, no one was hurt, the residents were not home at the time.  Neighbors should be aware and vigilant about unusual activity around their homes and report anything out of the ordinary to DCMPD.

Glad to hear no one was hurt. The neighbor said the back door was kicked in. On that note, I am a big fan of security doors and house alarms. Security doors are not the most attractive, but they will make it harder for someone to break in by kicking in a door. And house alarms that make a loud, obnoxious noise when they go off and that connect to a dispatch system might scare some intruders off. As always, be vigilant and keep a look out for each other’s homes.

From the DC Office of the Attorney General:

Attorney General Karl A. Racine invites you to attend his Consumer Protection Forum on Construction Violations, Foreclosure Scams, and Mortgage Regulations, which will take place onMonday, September 28, 2015, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm at the Benning (Dorothy I. Height) Neighborhood Library located at 3935 Benning Rd. NE, Washington, D.C.  20019. The purpose of the Housing Forum is to educate the community on the most common types of housing scams in the District, particularly illegal construction and house flipping.  Many neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River, and across the District, are seeing a significant number of houses that are being bought, rehabilitated, and sold for large sums of money.  Many residents may also be confused about foreclosure and mortgage regulations.  So, Attorney General Racine wants to allow you to hear from and ask questions directly to the relevant local and federal agency experts. 

ART PLACE AT FT TOTTEN, LLC

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE NOTICE

Weeks of: September 28, 2015 and October 5, 2015

What to Expect On-Site:

During the next two weeks, the General Contractor, Foulger-Pratt, will continue haul-off of excess soil and receipt of material deliveries requiring heavy equipment accessing the site.

Installation of concrete foundations, waterproofing, sleeves, walls, grade beams, columns and elevated decks continues. Drainage piping and electrical duct banks are being installed, and gravel is being spread out where concrete slabs on grade are now being placed. At garage locations, the slab-on-grade concrete is being placed. The concrete superstructure is working its way across the site and upward. The installation of electrical transformer vaults and conduits along Galloway Street and the future Ingraham Street extension has been completed.

The area of work for Building A is primarily bounded by South Dakota Avenue on the east, the Aventine buildings on the west, Galloway Street on the south, and what will be the new alignment for Ingraham Street on the north.

Lane Closures:

The lane closures to perform new utility installations in South Dakota Avenue and Galloway Street will continue intermittently. This will require up to two lanes to be closed occasionally from the hours of 9 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Construction Hours:

Initial construction activity will be taking place Monday – Saturday between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Contact Information:

For any construction related concerns, please contact Angel Alston, Advisory Neighborhood

Commissioner at 202-556-5958 or email her at angel.alston@anc.dc.gov.

###

DC Public Library is mapping out its 5-year strategic plan. Take a brief survey to help inform the process. Tell DCPL what you love about your neighborhood library and what you would like to see in the library.

Taking a page from Monroe Street Market, here is a view of Fort Totten Square from Chillum Place (at Riggs Road NE). It is an interesting choice. Totten is General Joseph Gilbert Totten. Fort Totten Park, a Civil War defense fort, was named after Totten.

View of Fort Totten Square from Chillum Place NE

Walmart sign is up

View from 3rd Street & Riggs Road NE

ART PLACE AT FT TOTTEN, LLC

CONSTRUCTION UPDATE NOTICE

Weeks of: August 31, 2015 and September 7, 2015

What to Expect On-Site:

During the next two weeks, the General Contractor, Foulger-Pratt, will continue haul-off of excess soil and receipt of material deliveries requiring heavy equipment accessing the site.

Installation of concrete foundations, walls, grade beams, columns and elevated decks continues. Piping and electrical duct banks are being installed and gravel is being spread out where concrete slabs on grade will eventually be placed. The concrete superstructure is working its way across the site and upward. The installation of electrical transformer vaults and conduits along Galloway Street and the future Ingraham Street extension is being completed. Below grade piping and conduit is being installed.

The area of work for Building A is primarily bounded by South Dakota Avenue on the east, the Aventine buildings on the west, Galloway Street on the south, and what will be the new alignment for Ingraham Street on the north.

Lane Closures:

The lane closures to perform new utility installations in South Dakota Avenue and Galloway Street will continue intermittently. This will require up to two lanes to be closed occasionally from the hours of 9 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Storm drain work in South Dakota Avenue is currently ongoing.

Construction Hours:

Initial construction activity will be taking place Monday – Saturday between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

Contact Information:

For any construction related concerns, please contact Angel Alston, Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner at 202-556-5958 or email her at angel.alston@anc.dc.gov.

###

The Washington Post has a story out about Mayor Muriel Bowser’s next door neighbors. Mayor Bowser lives in a semi-detached home in Riggs Park. According to the article, she shares a party wall with a family who moved into their home this past April. It is an interesting read looking at the life of the mayor’s new neighbors and the security bubble that accompanies the mayor.

The article has once again revived the question of whether the city needs an official residence for the mayor. The issue has been debated over the years, as DCist noted back in 2012. The article suggests that the mayor’s home is the most modest mayoral home that the city has seen. I suppose some might think the mayor deserves the grandeur of an official residence to entertain and conduct business. Interestingly enough, not every major city has an official mayoral residence. Chicago and San Francisco do not have one. New York and Los Angeles do, but some mayors have opted out of living in the official residence. Every state does have an official residence for the governor, which some might believe is the more appropriate comparison for DC’s mayor. Even in that case, several governors opt out of living in the official state residence.

I do not have strong feelings about the issue, but I do not think an official residence is necessary. The cost of maintaining an official residence plus the cost of maintaining the private home of a mayor that will likely sit empty while the mayor is in office does not seem justifiable. I think there is something refreshing about having mayors who live in different parts of the city, modest homes or not. I could be persuaded otherwise though.

A WAMU article about a location study for a new pool in Ward 3 (the first for that ward) made me think of chatter about a neighborhood pool. According to DC’s Play DC Master Plan, the goal is for every resident to have an indoor pool within 2 miles, an outdoor pool within 1.5 miles, and a splash pad within 1 mile. 

Play DC Master Plan 7 Elements

Our neighborhood has an indoor pool within 2 miles (Turkey Thicket is just under 1.5 miles and Takoma just makes the cutoff at 2 miles from South Dakota Avenue  and Galloway Street NE). I do not think there is an outdoor pool within 1.5 miles. I know residents who go to the Harry Thomas Recreation Center outdoor pool, which reportedly is very nice and usually not that crowded. There is a spray park at Riggs LaSalle Recreation Center.

There are always lots of questions that come up when a neighborhood pool is mentioned, the first of which is where would one go. I still find it perplexing that the rec center was constructed in 2008 without a pool (or tennis courts or a track for that matter). I do think there are suitable locations in the neighborhood for a public pool. Looking at the Play DC Master Plan, it looks like the area near Walter Reed in Ward 4 is identified as an area that could use access to an outdoor pool and I know residents there have been lobbying for one. Is a neighborhood outdoor pool actually something people are interested in pursuing?

DOES will be having  two pre-screening/application events for the new Wal- Mart at the DOES American Jobs Center-NE (Bertie Backus) on August 4 and August 12.

The new Wal-Mart facility is set to open at Riggs and South Dakota (close to Ft. Totten metro station) and will be hiring approximately 300 associates for a variety of jobs that include professional services, sales floor associates and supervisors, front end cashiers, customer service, cart pushers, greeters, stockers and others. The pre-screening/job application sessions will take place in Ward 5 at the American Job Center – Northeast.

August 4

1:30 p.m. (Participants are asked to arrive on time)

RSVP using this link: http://goo.gl/U6Enac

5171 South Dakota Ave. NE, 2nd Floor

Washington, D.C. 20017

(202) 576-3092 (phone)

August 12

1:30 p.m. (Participants are asked to arrive on time)

RSVP using this link:  http://goo.gl/QuL2HI

5171 South Dakota Ave. NE, 2nd Floor

Washington, D.C. 20017

(202) 576-3092 (phone)