Is Blagden Alley a Street?

The proprietor of the Lost & Found bar (1240 9th Street NW) came to a committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle on March 25 to propose an outdoor patio of four tables and 16 seats. The proposed outdoor patio would be in Blagden Alley out behind the building where the bar is located. As proposed, it would take of seven feet of space in the alley and close at 10pm. It would be located in a corner of the alley, near where the alley dead-ends.

Chairs and tables here an impediment?

The discussion at the meeting is only preliminary -- no official application to use the public space has yet been made, nor has Lost & Found applied for the necessary revision to its liquor license that would enable outdoor service.

Members of ANC2F's Community Development Committee (CDC) were reluctant to encourage the application. The main sticking point objection seemed to be that Blagden Alley was a "street right of way" -- also known as a street. Vehicles would have the right to pass, make deliveries, etc., so you could not put tables in Blagden Alley any more than you could put tables in 14th Street.

"I'd want a clarification that you can use that land," said one committee member, directing Lost & Found's proprietor to get an opinion from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), which has authority over public space use issues.

One woman, a resident of the 1200 block of 10th Street, told the committee she supported the public space application because the area would be safer if more businesses were open and operating in the evening.

"It would be a real opportunity to make a safe space on the street," she said.

Another person, whose property abuts Blagden Alley, was against the use of alley space for safety reason.

"The determining factor should be: Can you get a fire truck down there?" the property owner said.

The committee directed the proprietor to get a written opinion from DDOT on its right-of-way policies and also to consult the Blagden Alley Naylor Court Association before moving forward with the application.

1216-1226 9th Street: "Peace in the Valley" Sought over Zero Parking Building in Blagden Alley

A group of neighbors of a proposed development at 1216-1226 9th Street NW have asked DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) for standing as an interested party in an application for zoning relief, especially for a request to reduce the number of required parking spaces from 14 to zero. As a result, the BZA has postponed a hearing on the application, originally scheduled for January 27, to March 11, while the developers and their representatives attempt to get the neighbors on board for the relief.

Millstein (right) presents the project

Toward this end, Douglas Development had a public meeting, attended by representatives of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle and some of the neighbors, at La Colombe Coffee (924 M Street in Blagden Alley) in the early evening of February 11.

Paul Millstein of Douglas Development started off the meeting by stating: "We always appreciate a turnout."

Millstein and Andrea Gourdine of Douglas Development were joined by attorney Leila Batties of Holland & Knight, as well as a traffic engineer, and others, six in all. This was about the same number as the neighbors who came to the meeting. Ten neighbors, all living on the 900 block of M Street, signed the BZA document asking for standing.

Millstein told the neighbors he sought "peace in the valley".

He then recapped many of the details of the project, including its prospective high-end tenants who have signed leases (including celebrity chef Jeremiah Langhorne and a new incarnation of the "award-winning" cocktail bar The Columbia Room). Millstein also explain the reason why the developers are seeking zoning relief now, after the project had started, rather than the usual order of approval first, construction second. Most of these details were unchanged from November 2014, when the developers successfully sought ANC endorsement of the zoning relief -- see SALM blog post of November 24, 2014. The full ANC endorsed the zoning relief request at its December 2014 meeting.

In reply, a neighbor made the primary concern plain.

"Parking is a nightmare," she said. This building was one of many in the area trying to get permission to build without the required parking spaces (for an example, see SALM blog post of November 10, 2014). The neighborhood would be overwhelmed by cars coming in from the suburbs to eat and drink at "destination" restaurants and bars.

"Parking enforcement is part of the problem," the neighbor said. "We want to make sure these things are addressed now."

As a negative example, the neighbors sited the case of Le Diplomate (1601 14th Street).

"There was no dialogue", one neighbor said. As a result, there were constant traffic problems caused by the Le Diplomate's valet parking service at the corner of 14th and Q Streets, the neighbor said.

About the petition for standing in the zoning case, the neighbor said: "We filed because we want to make sure these things are addressed now."

Millstein urged the group to "get a collective voice", meaning, a point of contact who could negotiate on behalf of the whole group. If that happened, maybe some parking remedies could be put in writing and agreed on.

"If you don't get parking, you can't proceed," one neighbor said.

"We're going to hammer something out," Millstein said.

Millstein also told the neighbors that customers for both Langhorne's restaurant as well as the Columbia Room would, if the proposal went ahead as planned, enter and exit through Blagden Alley, rather than through the building's front on 9th Street, which would have other tenants, including Reformation Fitness. The prospect of cocktail bar patrons exiting through the alley did not seem to please the neighbors, but there seemed to be agreement that this had to be handled as part of the liquor-licensing process (which will take place later), and not as part of the zoning process.

The neighbors were urged to act as quickly as possible, as the filings for the March zoning hearings were due on February 18.

ANC2F Commissioner Charlie Bengel (district 06), in whose ANC district the property is located, announced the meeting at the February 4 meeting of ANC2F. Bengel and ANC2F Chair John Fanning (Commissioner for district 04) attended the meeting.

The documents related to the request for zoning relief, including the petition by the neighbors for standing, can be seen by going to DC's Interactive Zoning Information System and entering case number 18905 into the search bar.

ANC1B Committee Votes to Protest License for 24-hour Operation by Satellite Room

Satellite Room, a "hipster diner" located across from the 9:30 Club at 2047 9th Street NW, is asking for a change to its liquor license which would allow 24-hour operation. However, Ian Hilton, one of the co-owners of the Satellite Room, told the liquor-licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street on January 21 that the intention was to operate 24 hours only on weekends, from opening at 5pm Fridays to "last call" Sunday night.

Satellite Room in 2012 (Photo credit below)

The sought-after changes would not only allow the establishment to stay open all night, but also to serve alcohol, both inside and outside, until 3am. Hilton said the intention was to stop serving alcohol at 2:30 am "last call" and not resume until 11am. Those remaining would be able to order food and remain inside.

The committee voted to recommend to the full ANC a protest for the proposed change in the license until a modified settlement agreement can be worked out between the Satellite Room, the ANC, and a group of objecting neighbors who are resident at The Floridian condo (929 Florida Avenue). The motion was made by ANC1B Commissioner John Green (district 12). Eight of the 11 committee members present voted for the motion, none against, three abstained.

A settlement agreement is a binding legal agreement. In the case of DC liquor licensees, a settlement agreement often deals with hours of operation, noise, trash disposal, parking, and other matters of community interest. A settlement agreement is part of the establishment's liquor license.

In this case, a settlement agreement (see page 4 of a 6-page .pdf here) was entered into in 2011 by the establishment (then called "Satellite Pizza") and the ANC. It allows the establishment to routinely stay open until 3am on the weekends. If the Satellite Room wishes to get DC's Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) to consent to the increase their opening hours, they will have to get the ANC to agree, as well as placating the residents of The Floridian who are planning to file a "group of five or more" protest.

Nick Baumann, chair of the ANC1B liquor-licensing affairs committee, said he had received "several emails" objecting to the extended hours. Baumann read one email as representative of all. The email complained of the noise from the Satellite Room's rear outdoor patio, which is legally defined as a "summer garden", even though it is largely concrete.

A married couple were present at the meeting to represent the residents of The Floridian. They reported that about 1/3rd of the units in face the Satellite Room on 9th Stree. They had 16 signatures of Floridian residents against the change in hours, and planned to get more.

"All of the unit owners are bothered by the current state of affairs," one of the Floridian residents said.

"You get the bass, the people talking over the music," she said.

She also said that, although the summer garden has a legal capacity of 24 seats, there are "roughly a hundred people there on many nights".

"Everyone's having difficulty sleeping," she said, adding that residents have to use white noise machines and ear plugs.

In addition, there have been problems with late-night smokers congregating in front of the condo, as well as on-street vomiting near the condo.

Owner Ian Hilton disputed that noise had been a problem, noting that DC authorities had visited his establishment after the neighbors had complained. ABRA had taken readings, and NOT cited his establishment for noise violations, unlike some of his neighbors.

"We've had visits from ABRA," he said. "We've been a compliant owner."

Hilton called the accusations of noise from his establishment "a case of mistaken identity"

The Satellite Room is in ANC1B district 11. The newly-elected ANC1B Commissioner for the district is Robb Hudson. Hudson was present at the meeting, and it seems like the task of trying to negotiate an agreement will fall to him.

The full ANC will probably vote at its next regularly scheduled meeting on the recommendation to protest the application for the liquor license change. The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 5, at 7pm, at the Reeves Center (14th and U Streets).

ABRA will have a "roll call" hearing on February 17, 10am, at ABRA headquarters on the fourth floor of the Reeves Center. The ANC and "group of five or more" will have to show up and have standing as a protesting group officially accepted. After that, there will probably be attempts at mediation.

(Photo credit: Borderstan.com, used by permission)

ANC2F Endorses $45,000 Benefits Package from Developer to Community Groups

At its regular monthly meeting last night (January 7), Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle endorsed a Planned Unit Development (PUD) package that would, if accepted by the DC government, allow a planned hotel-and-apartment complex at 9th and L Streets NW to go ahead. The package was passed by the ANC without audible objection.

The future site of the development

As part of the PUD package, the ANC implicitly endorses the design and zoning aspects of the project. In return for this, Quadrangle Development pledges to contribute $45,000 to three community groups, specifically:

• $5,000 to Thompson Elementary School (1200 L Street) to purchase "equipment"
• $20,000 to a community group dedicated to the maintenance of Samuel Gompers Park, located at intersection of 10th Street, L Street, and Massachusetts Avenue.
• $20,000 to a community group dedicated to the maintenance of 10th Street Park, located between L and M Streets.

Last November, ANC2F held a committee meeting in which community organizations asked for a total of $55,000 in benefits, and Quadrangle Development came back with a counter-offer of $15,000. The committee asked Quadrangle to come back to the committee's December meeting with a better offer (see SALM blog post of December 1, 2014, for more details). Quadrangle apparently did so, and the offer as presented to the full ANC was approved by the committee at its December meeting. The ANC's decision last night ratified the unanimous committee vote.

See explanations of the PUD process -- one by the U Street Neighborhood Association here and another by the blog Greater Greater Washington here.

9th & L Street PUD: "You'd Have an Attitude Too If It Were Your Money"

A committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle, the developers of a large parcel of land at 9th and L Streets NW, and various community members took a first crack at hammering out some sort of deal at its November 19 meeting. The deal would take the form of a Planned Unit Development (PUD), in which the developers would give money to certain community and school groups in the vicinity of the planned development. In return, the developers would be able to forego the long and uncertain process of applying to the DC government for many individual instances of zoning relief.

Artist's conception of the development (photo credit below)

It will be difficult to come to an agreement that pleases all parties, if the lengthy discussion at the last meeting of ANC2F's Community Development Committee (CDC) is any indication. From the summary of the meeting on ANC2F's website: "Several members of both the Committee and community rebuked what they felt was a closefisted $15,000 in financial support..."

The developers did not think they were closefisted. A leader of the development team -- Robert Knopf, Senior Vice-President of the Quadrangel Development Company -- said: "I think we've gone out of our way to accommodate everyone's request."

A few minutes later, a committee member told Knopf had an "argumentative attitude".

"You'd have an attitude too, if it were your money," Knopf shot back.

Jockeying for a piece of the PUD

PUDs are complex animals governed by a bewildering variety of laws, regulations, and customs. Lawyers get paid handsomely to understand them. My understanding, by comparison, is rudimentary.

However, I believe that the money or other benefits that developers are supposed to hand over to the community as part of a PUD are in theory supposed to defray or help repair damage that the proposed development will cause. For example, this development may render one or two small parks nearby (specifically, 10th Street Park and Samuel Gompers Park) less inviting during construction and more in need of cleaning up after the construction is finished. 

So, groups of "friends of" these parks came forward to ask for a contribution to upkeep and improvement as part of the PUD. At the meeting, a representative of the developers said that a group that supports one of the parks asked for an annual contribution of $500. The developers consulted with DC zoning officials and discovered they don't like open-ended commitments of money. So the developers are now offering a one-time payment of $2,500 to each park. The supporters of Samuel Gompers park have accepted the offer, the developers reported. But there was some confusing talk later in the meeting about whether this was really the case.

The developers seemed less enthusiastic about supporting other groups who wished to claim some PUD benefits. In one case, a community association in Logan Circle wished to get a contribution toward the maintenance of streetside tree boxes. Discussion at the meeting indicated the developers considered supporting this request until they discovered the tree boxes would not be anywhere near the site of the development, and therefore would not compensate for damage to the community. In at least one case, they said, the tree boxes to be beautified would be in front of a competing hotel. The developers cut this project out of its proposal.

Another group pursuing financial support from developers was from Thompson Elementary School (1200 L Street). This request seemed to greatly raise the ire of Robert Knopf of Quadrangle Development, because the school asked for $2,500 to fund a ski trip for the school. He said at the meeting that a ski trip was an inappropriate use of PUD money. Some members of the community reminded Knopf that some of the children who go to the school reside very near the site of the construction. In addition, the ski trip is a opportunity to get urban-dwelling kids out of the inner-city. Knopf gave no indication he was convinced by these arguments.

After much debate, CDC Chair Walt Cain (Commissioner for district 02) asked the developers to consider what was said at the meeting. He said the developers should come back with their "best and final offer", identify specifically what public benefits are on offer, and show comparisons with other projects with PUDs.

"We're giving you an opportunity to take the feedback and respond to the feedback," Cain said.

See explanations of the PUD process -- one by the U Street Neighborhood Association here and another by the blog Greater Greater Washington here.

This project has already cost developers more than anticipated (they said at this meeting) as they are obliged to partially salvage, renovate, and integrate a handful of historic buildings into the city-block wide development. The developers made an unsuccessful attempt to get permission to demolish one historically protected building on L Street. This was the subject of SALM blog posts on September 30, October 21, and October 28.

(Photo credit: from publicly-available documents of DC's Office of Planning. Please note that the image is not the latest iteration of the design, specifically, it does not include historic buildings that were originally slated to be torn down but now will be preserved.)

1218 9th Street: Zoning Relief for Future Home of Celebrity Chef Jeremiah Langhorne

At a November 19 meeting, a committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle voted unanimously to endorse zoning relief for Jemal's 9th Street Gang of 3, LLC, and Douglas Development, developers of 1218 9th Street NW. The building in question will be the future home of the Dabney, a new restaurant from celebrity chef Jeremiah Langhorne, as well as The Columbia Room, an "award-winning" cocktail bar migrating from a nearby Blagden Alley location.

What the finished project might look like (credit below)

The developers appeared before the Community Development Committee (CDC) of ANC2F to tell how changing plans for their development have dictated a mid-development application for zoning relief. Previously, the project had been "by right" (meaning, not requiring zoning relief).

If the third floor were to be residential space, no zoning relief would be required. However, since the developers are now planning office space, and have rejiggered the design to add 4,000 square feet of space, the number of parking spaces the developer is required to provide on-site has increased from zero to 14. There is clearly no room on site for 14 parking spaces.

One member of the committee asked the developers to explore offering parking mitigations (e.g., bike/car share memberships) to tenants. Aside from that, there was no objection from the committee.

One member of the audience, a frequent attendee at ANC meetings, remarked that ANC2F had at their previous meeting endorsed a request by a neighboring building for the relief of the requirement to supply 66 parking spaces for over 130 residential units. In comparison to that request, the audience member said, this request was very reasonable, and he agreed with it.

The ANC's endorsement of the developers request also includes endorsement of zoning relief for floor-to-area ratio (FAR). (See an explanation of FAR here.) The maximum allowed now is 1.5 FAR. The developers seek 2.07 FAR.

In April 2013, the developers successfully sought endorsement for its plans from the CDC prior to petitioning DC's Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB). The project was required to go through HPRB because it is located within the boundaries of two separate historic districts -- the Shaw Historic District and the Blagden Alley/Naylor Court Historic District.

The documents related to the request for zoning relief can be seen by going to DC's Interactive Zoning Information System and entering case number 18905 into the search bar.

See a Douglas Development webpage advertising the development here and a flyer here.

See a June 2014 post about this property from the blog DC Vacant Properties here.

(Photo credit: detail of artist's rendering of finished project from publicly-available documents of the Office of Planning.)

Logan Circle ANC Endorses Zero Parking for 90-91 Blagden Alley

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle has endorsed a request from the developers of 90-91 Blagden Alley NW that would allow construction of a 132-microunit residential development with no parking spaces. The decision took place at the November 5 regular monthly meeting of the ANC.

According to information on PropertyQuest, 90-91 Blagden Alley is zoned category C-2-A. Under current zoning regulations, there must be at least one parking space for each two dwelling units, or 66 spaces.

The vote concurred with the recommendation of ANC2F's Community Development Committee (CDC), made at its meeting of October 29, to support the request for zoning relief from the parking requirement -- see SALM blog post of November 4. The CDC's recommendation was also a split decision, 5 in favor, 2 against.

Four Commissioners voted for the endorsement, three against.

Commissioners voting for the no-parking option: John Fanning (district 04), Jim Lamare (05), Greg Melcher (06), and Matt Raymond (07). The planned development is in Melcher's ANC district.

Against the no-parking option

Commissioners voting against: Peter Lallas (01), Stephanie Dahle (03), and Kevin Keeley (08).

"We have to be incredibly vigilant about parking in our areas," Keeley said.

"A few things concern me about this," Dahle said.

Dahle pointed out that it would be very easy for the projected long-term temporary residents of the building to get a temporary street parking pass which would be good "for months on end"

Several audience members spoke against endorsing the request.

"I'm really opposed to letting people out of their parking agreement," one said.

Katherine Gordon, Commissioner-elect for ANC2F district 01, also spoke against zero parking.

Motion to remove car-free accommodations defeated

The developers had previously presented a list of benefits they plan to give to future tenants to encourage car-free living, including funding a new Capital Bikeshare station at a cost of $75,000 -- see SALM blog post of October 7. This list was included in the ANC2F motion to endorse this request for zoning relief. ANC2F Chair Raymond made a motion to strip this list of accommodations out of the motion to approve the zoning relief, and approve zoning relief without stipulation.

Raymond said he didn't like the precedent that requiring stipulations would set.

Raymond's motion went down to defeat, 6-1. Raymond was the only one to vote in favor.

An additional SALM blog post on this project also appeared on September 26.

The matter will next be considered by DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA). The BZA postponed a hearing on the matter, originally scheduled for the same day as this ANC meeting, until December 2. The BZA hearing will start at 9:30am, at a BZA hearing room, Room 220 South, 441 4th Street (Judiciary Square metro).

See ANC2F's summary of the meeting where this discussion took place here.

90-91 Blagden Alley: Developers Commit $75,000 for New Bikeshare Station

Representatives of developer SB-Urban told Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle October 1 that, if a development at 90-91 Blagden Alley NW is approved, the developers would contribute $75,000 for the establishment of a new Capital Bikeshare station. This promise was made during ANC2F's regular monthly meeting on October 1.

Conception of development viewed from across M Street

The previous week, the Community Development Committee (CDC) of ANC2F tabled SB-Urban's request for a zoning variance that would allow the 132-microunit Blagden Alley development to be built without parking -- see SALM blog post of September 26. They asked the presenters to rework their plan and present it again.

The request is on the agenda for reconsideration at the next meeting of the CDC, scheduled for 7pm, October 29, at the Washington Plaza Hotel (10 Thomas Circle). The offer to purchase a bikeshare station will be part of the amended plan.

CDC Chair Walt Cain (Commissioner for district 02) began the discussion by calling SB-Urban "an example of people who have dealt with the CDC in good faith". Attorney Cary Kadlecek of Goulston & Storrs represented the developers.

Bikeshare

At the September 26 meeting, committee members observed that the additional of 132 small residences with no parking would probably great additional demand on the nearby bikeshare stations. So the developers came back with the promise to fund the station.

In an email, a representative of Capital Bikeshare said a 19-dock bikeshare station in central DC would cost around $55,000, plus about $25,000 for the first year of operation and maintenance. After the first year, Capital Bikeshare handles the cost of maintenance and operation.

Loading, unloading, deliveries

The conversation also continued about the developers' plans to deal with deliveries and garbage pickup. The revised design presented by the developers included the addition of a package delivery room facing M Street. If implemented, delivery drivers would stop on M Street and dash across the sidewalk to deliver packages. They would not need to drive bulky delivery trucks up narrow, brick-paved Blagden Alley to deliver packages to residents.

There would also be a 75-foot-long loading zone on the 9th Street side of the development where larger delivery trucks could park, presumably for a longer time. This was mentioned as a possible staging area for deliveries of supermarket food products from vendors like Peapod. One possible problem with this would be people using the loading zone to pick up and drop off from the businesses already operating on 9th Street, such as pet grooming and boarding shop Wagtime (1232 9th Street).

Garbage

A remaining sticking point seemed to be garbage pickup. The developers continue to plan to have all the garbage from the 132 units brought out to the curb in two-wheeled containers and picked at M Street. This was the same as the plan they presented at the September 26 meeting. However, Kadlecek presented a new revision to the design, with a trash room and holding area on the east side of the M Street front of the building, with a door out onto the sidewalk.

"We won't have trash sitting outside for a long time," promised a member of the team representing SB-Urban.

Among the variants discussed was requiring trash pickup services to radio ahead when they are in the neighborhood, so that trash containers could be moved out to the curb and emptied as quickly as possible.

However, there will still be on-street parking in front of the building. Attendees observed it would be difficult to get the trash removed between the bumper-to-bumper parked cars. The presenters said they were not planning to ask for any M Street parking spaces to be removed to facilitate trash pick up.

No motion was proposed or vote taken at the October 1 ANC meeting.

At the September 26 CDC meeting, representatives of SB-Urban said a hearing at DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) on the proposed zoning relief was scheduled for November 5, roughly 10 hours before the next possible meeting when the full ANC could vote to approve a revised proposal. Attorney Kedlecek asked the ANC to take special measures to expedite their request, so an approval was voted on before the scheduled hearing. Cain said he would see what he could do.

On October 1, however, Kadlecek sent a letter to the BZA, asking for the hearing to be postponed from November 5 while SB-Urban continued to work with the ANC on outstanding issues. The letter asks that the meeting be rescheduled "as soon after November 5 as possible".

At copy of the letter asking for postponement, plus other documents related to the request for zoning variance, can be seen by going to the BZA's Interactive Zoning Information System and entering case number 18852 in the search bar.

Carter Woodson Park to Get a Long-awaited Facelift

The contract has been awarded, the statue has been cast in bronze, and construction will start in June on a long-awaited improvement of Carter G. Woodson Park in Shaw. That's what the D.C.'s Department of General Services (DGS) and Office of Planning told Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6E/Shaw at its regular monthly meeting on May 6.

"We are at the end stage of going through this review process," said Chris Shaheen of the Office of Planning.

Carter G Woodson Park now

The park is located on a triangle of land bordered by Rhode Island Avenue, 9th Street, and Q Street NW. The park was named after Woodson, an African-American writer and historian, in 2001, whose nearby home is a national historic landmark. Since the park was named in honor of Woodson, there have been several unsuccessful attempts to improve the park so that it adequately honors Woodson. Right now, the park is mostly a triangle of asphalt with no place to sit down (see photo).

Presentation about the park

A representative of DGS made a presentation to ANC6E and solicited the ANC's comment on their project and its design. The DGS representative said at the meeting that a copy of his slideshow was available on the website of D.C.'s Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR). I could not find it there. However, I did find a copy on the website of the National Park Service. View a copy of the presentation, with artist's renderings of what the park will look like, here.

(Artist's rendering from the presentation)

The park will feature a statue of Woodson (see photo), which has already been cast in bronze, the ANC heard. The statue will face Rhode Island Avenue when installed. The redesign of the park will take place around a mature tree on the site. All the details have not been finalized, but the plans include grass on much of the site which is now asphalt. Six benches are also in the plans.

Suggestions from ANC6E

The committee had two suggestions for the presenters. The first was that they refrain from using bricks on the site's walkway. Bricks often look good at the opening, but then are not maintained properly.

"I do not recommend putting bricks down anywhere because they never get repaired," said Commissioner Rachelle Nigro (district 04).

A member of the audience asked about a water source to maintain the green areas of the park. The presenter said irrigation had been discussed but "that's still in the works".

ANC6E Chair Alexander Padro (Commissioner for district 01) said he had been a participant in earlier stages of the planning and a water source had always been included.

"I am shocked to hear that there has been a change in terms of the water source," Padro said.

Carter G. Woodson Park is in Padro's ANC district.

Padro also remarked at the meeting of the long string of failed attempts to get a fully-funded park project. A 2007 blog post said design work was underway for the park, including a "larger-than-life" statue of Woodson. A 2008 post on the same blog said the renovation of the park had been put on hold due to "funding technicalities". Another blog said in 2009 that "2010 should bring us a redesigned triangle park honoring Dr. Carter G. Woodson".

ANC6E voted unanimously to endorse the plans for the park, provided that there is a water source in the park, and that paths or walkways are made of limestone or concrete materials.

According to Shaheen, the project will now go to a commemorative works committee, with representatives from nine D.C. agencies plus three citizen members. After that, it will go to the City Council for final formal action.

ANC6E videos its meetings and then posts them in their entirety on its Youtube channel. The section of the May 6 meeting dealing with this topic can be viewed by going to video 00046 here, starting at 29:45. The discussion continues on the next video, 00047, here.

Mention You're a Shaw Resident for Discount at New Hotel

At its regular monthly meeting April 1, Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6E/Shaw granted a stipulated liquor license to the soon-to-open 182-room Cambria Suites Hotel (899 O Street NW) located above City Market at O. The full ANC followed the recommendation of the liquor-licensing affairs committee of ANC6E to grant the stipulated license. The vote was unanimous.

And also a hotel for out-to-town visitors

As part of the presentation in support of the request for a stipulated license, attorney Stephen J. O'Brien of the law firm Mallios & O'Brien told ANC6E that Shaw residents will get a discounted rate at the new hotel if they make reservations directly by phone to the hotel after it opens on May 1. O'Brien conceded residents themselves would have little reason for a hotel room for themselves. This discount is aimed at Shaw residents who are hosting out-of-town guests and cannot adequately house them in their tiny inner-city apartments.

The discount will not be advertised on the hotel's web site.

"The community will have to know enough to ask for it," O'Brien said. If the person answering the phone at the hotel doesn't know about the discount, he added, Shaw residents seeking the discount should ask to speak to Francisco Selles, the General Manager, who would make sure the discount was applied.

There may be blackout periods, O'Brien also said.

It was admitted at the meeting that it is impossible to collect or maintain a full list of Shaw residents. So, the discount will operate on the honor system, meaning, anyone calling and claiming to be a Shaw resident would receive the discount.

The Cambria Suites Hotel would be primarily aimed at the business traveller, according to O'Brien. As a result, the operators expected most of the guests to stay between Sunday and Thursday evenings. More rooms will be available on Friday and Saturday nights which, O'Brien hoped, would compliment the needs of local residents who have out-of-town guests coming for the weekend.

The hotel's web site is accepting reservations for check in after May 14.

On-line information says the hotel project represented an investment of over $40 million and created an estimated 300 jobs in the Washington area. The majority of employees are D.C. residents, according to information presented at the meeting, and there are still "a handful of jobs" left. They can be applied for through the company web site, www.concordhotels.com.

Granting a stipulated license is one of the few actions that an ANC can take that is more than advisory in nature. On the basis of ANC6E's action, the hotel will be able to legally serve alcohol until its long-term liquor-license application makes its way through the D.C. liquor-licensing bureaucracy, assuming no other party makes an official objection.

Alcohol will be served in the hotel lobby bar, which will be one level up from the street. There will be a summer garden with alcohol service. It will close at 11pm.

ANC6E videos its meetings and puts the videos on Youtube. Watch the section of this meeting that deals with the Cambria Suites Hotel here, starting at time 11:00.

Initiative to Change O Street Traffic Pattern

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle heard a proposal last night to change the direction of O Street NW between 9th and 11th Streets. The proposal was made at ANC2F's regular monthly meeting last night (December 4).

Intersection of 10th and O Streets (Google Street View)

Paul Harrison, a resident of the 1000 block of O Street, came before ANC2F to announce the initiative of a group of concerned citizens. Harrison reported that most of the people on that block had signed a petition to D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans (Ward 2), requesting the change in traffic pattern.

If the change went through as request, O Street would turn one-way westbound between 10th and 11th Streets, and one way eastbound between 9th and 10th Streets. To put it another way, O Street traffic would diverge from 10th Street.

Harrison said the block had many families with young children who were concerned their street was no longer safe. O Street is currently a two-way street. Traffic had increased dramatically on it due to activity around the future site of City Market at O at the corner of O and 7th Streets. Many trucks have started using O Street as a regular route.

The proposal was supported by Sheri Kimball, constituent services director for Evans. Kimball told ANC2F she lived on the block. Of the residents of the block, only three had not signed the petition for the change, she said.

"The truck traffic down O Street is outrageous," she said.

In the ensuing discussion, it was asked why there were not signs banning trucks from the block. It turns out that there are, but the ban is not enforced.

Kimball told ANC2F that changing the traffic pattern on this stretch of O Street was just a matter of appropriate signage. It would be easy to remove the signs back again if the traffic pattern change turned out to be problematic.

"It would take about five minutes to undo," she said. "If it causes all kinds of problems, it won't be the first thing we've have to undo in this city."

ANC2F did not vote on the proposal.

Salina Restaurant: Liquor License Renewal Protest by ANC1B

The liquor licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Committee (ANC) 1B/U Street decided on November 25 to protest the application by Salina Restaurant (1936 9th Street NW) for renewal of its liquor license. Since Salina's liquor license was last renewed, there was a homicide connected with the bar, as well as 10 liquor-license related violations. Additional public information indicates Salina has had problems with health inspections as well.

Salina Restaurant (Google Street View)

"This place has a lot of issues," said ANC1B Commissioner Jeremy Leffler (district 02). Leffler is the chair of the liquor-licensing affairs committee.

Leffler mentioned that there had been a homocide connected with the establishment during the last liquor license period. However, D.C. liquor-licensing authorities decided to take no action against Salina in connection with the incident. For more information about the May 2010 slaying, read a report by Washington City Paper here.

On October 6, 2010, Salina was ordered to install security cameras within 30 days.

Leffler also read to the committee a list of liquor-license related violations which led to a total of $10,000 in fines against the establishment during the period. Most of these violations seemed to be connected with inadequate bookkeeping.

Official documents show Salina Restaurant was closed by D.C. authorities on October 23, 2013, after failing to pay outstanding fines and fees. It was allowed to reopen the next day after the fines and fees were paid.

Also mentioned at the meeting were health violations connected to the restaurant. The website of D.C.'s Department of Health shows that inspectors found three or more critical violations every year for the last three years. The problems noted in the 2013 inspection reports included improper storage of raw chicken and fish, unclean work surfaces, and no soap or paper towels at staff sinks. There were inspections in August and September 2013.

The committee voted unanimously to protest the liquor-license renewal on the basis of peace, order, and quiet, and indicated it wished to see a security plan for the establishment.