1324 W Street: Single-family House to 4 "Probably Condos"

The Design Review Committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street has heard a proposal to turn a single-family house at 1324 W Street NW into a four-unit residence. The presentation took place at the Design Review Committee's regular monthly meeting on November 18.

1324 W Street was built in the mid 1890's.

Jim Shetler of Baltimore-based Trace Architects made the presentation, in search of ANC approval before he takes his project before D.C.'s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) for a concept review. Trace Architects must seek HPRB approval because 1324 W Street is in the U Street Historic District. In addition, the project will need review by D.C.'s Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA).

Not so fast

"The clients are going to be in a hurry," Shetler said.

The clients are going to be disappointed. Design Review Committee Chair Tony Norman (Commissioner for district 10) told Shetler he was going to call HPRB to request the hearing on the project be postponed six weeks, until late January 2014.

Shetler had plainly stated there had been no attempt to contact nearby residents or groups.

"We need to notice it," Norman said, meaning the ANC had to inform the community that the Design Review Committee, and later the full ANC, would have public meetings about the presentation.

"The neighbors were not informed," Norman said. Norman then suggested Shetler start by speaking to the U Street Neighborhood Association, who had a representative in the room.

The proposal 

The house would be converted into four units, Shetler said. They would be "probably condos".

The view of the red-brick rowhouse would remain the same from W Street, but an addition would be added to the rear of the building. From the rear, the new addition of the second and third floors, and a new fourth floor, would be visible. The walls would be made of fiber cement panels with metal-clad wood windows and doors. There would be decking in the rear, supported by steel tube columns and protected by a wire mesh guardrail. There would be a top floor roof deck.

The ground floor would be excavated and a portion of the cellar would be removed to create two parking spaces. Parked cars would be partially protected by the ground floor deck.

In response to committee questioning, Shetler said HPRB recommendations included lowering the height of the proposed addition, reducing the depth of the balconies, and using alternate cladding.

"Have you decided to do those changes?" Norman asked.

"The only issue is the height," Shetler responded.

Norman said the proposal could be considered again at the next meeting of the Design Review Committee, which is scheduled for Monday evening, December 16, at 6:30pm at the Thurgood Marshall Center (1816 12th Street).

Norman is also the chair of ANC1B as a whole.

See a two-page .pdf document containing HPRB's staff report on the proposed renovation here.

1324 W Street was sold in July 2013 for $1.15 million, according to online records.

ANC1B Liquor License Roundup

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street made relatively short work of a long list of liquor license renewals during its regular monthly meeting on November 7. The meeting clocked in at under two hours, an astonishing achievement given ANC1B's previous practice.

ANC1B meets at the Reeves Center (14th and U)

A few licensees received the majority of the committee's attention.

Indulj

Indulj Restaurant and Lounge (1208 U Street NW) testified at the meeting in the hopes of overturning the recommendation of ANC1B's liquor licensing affairs committee (reported in the October 23 SALM blog post) to protest the application to renew.

The general manager of Indulj testified that, in the wake of a high-profile shooting in December 2012, Indulj had acted quickly to provide police with Bevidence from the establishment's security camera. This evidence showed the shootings took place outside the establishment, using guns taken from cars after the participants exited Indulj.

The vote was 5 - 0, with three commissioners abstaining, to endorse the application for liquor-license renewal.

Climax

ANC1B voted unanimously to protest application of Climax Restaurant & Hookah Bar (900 Florida Avenue) for a renewal of its liquor license.

According to official documents, Climax was fined $2000 in September as for operating an outdoor "summer garden" without a license. The summer garden was found operating in June 2012 by an investigator from D.C.'s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA). Other documents show that, in February, Climax was fined $500 for a separate instance of the same charge of operating an unauthorized summer garden.

Also in September, ANC1B missed a chance to protest an application by Climax to make its outdoor summer garden legal because the ANC's representative missed a mandatory meeting with D.C.'s Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Board about the matter.

No representative of Climax attended the ANC meeting.

Chuck and Bill's Bison Lounge

At the previous meeting of ANC1B's liquor licensing affairs committee, it was reported that Chuck and Bill's Bison Lounge (2718 Georgia Avenue) had received five liquor license-related citations in the last three years, including citations for sale to a minor and interfering with ABRA investigation. There had also been a homocide in January near the club, and an incident of groping in September. The committee recommended no action on the liquor license renewal request until further community discussion.

At the meeting of the full ANC, it was reported that the operator of Chuck and Bill's Bison Lounge had agreed to install cameras and meet with police. The operator of the establishment was expected to sign an agreement with the ANC the following week.

ANC1B voted unanimously to protest the liquor license renewal, with the provision that the protest would be dropped if the agreement was signed.

Town

ANC1B agreed to lift its protest of a substantial change to the liquor license for Town Danceboutique (2009 8th Street). The proprietor appeared before ANC1B with a scale model showing the improvements he had made to mitigate noise coming from the club.

Town Danceboutique is working with architects and Polysonics Acoustic & Technology Consulting on this project, which features sound-absorbing walls 10 feet tall and 5.5 deep, of the type used to absorb noise from airport runways.

Town Danceboutique also had letters of support from its neighbors.

Routine approvals

About 30 other liquor licenses were on the agenda, all the subject of little or no discussion. On many of them, ANC2B chose to take no action. In a few others, ANC2B voted to endorse the request for a renewal of their liquor license. In either case, it seems the licensees won't have a problem renewing their licenses.

Establishments in this category include: DC9 (1940 9th Street), Dodge City (917 U Street), Ben's Next Door (1211 U Street), Bar Pilar (1833 14th Street), Mockingbird Hill (1843 7th Street), Bohemian Caverns (2001 11th Street), Lost Society (2001 14th Street), Cafe St. Ex (1847 14th Street), and many others.

Of the twelve Commissioners on this ANC, three were absent for this meeting: ANC1B Chair Tony Norman (district 10), Commissioner Sedrick Muhammed (district 03), and Commissioner Deborah Thomas (district 04). In Norman's place, Vice-Chair E. Gail Anderson Holness (district 11) presided. Anderson Holness said her practice when presiding was to vote only to break ties. She did not vote about any liquor-licensing matters.

ANC2B, Bar Charley, and the Group of Five

November 18, 3:30pm - Note: In the title and some places in this article, I mistakenly wrote that the name of the bar was "Bar Charlie". Apologies for the error. Thanks to IMGoph for pointing this out. (This blogging platorm does not allow strikethrough in titles.)

Also, there is an update at the bottom of the article.

An obscure part of D.C.'s liquor license protest regulations may marginalize a group that wishes to protest longer opening hours for Bar Charlie Charley (1825 18th Street NW).

Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2B/Dupont Circle voted unanimously to protest the application by recently-opened Bar Charlie Charley to make a "substantial change" in its liquor license, specifically, to extend its hours of interior operation for an additional three hours a day, until 2am Monday - Thursday, and 3am Saturday - Sunday. The vote took place as part of ANC2B's marathon November 13 meeting.

Bar Charley replaced a Cajun restaurant.

The Dupont Circle Citizens Association (DCCA) and a group of five neighbors are also protesting.

For and against at the meeting, and before

First, Bar Charley's owner-operators put the case for extended hours, then ANC2B Chair Will Stephens (Commissioner for district 08, where Bar Charley is located) spoke in favor. Finally, four neighbors (three against, one in favor) also spoke. A woman from the 1700 block of Swann Street said she had 80 signatures on a petition against the extended hours. Her statement against the petition received applause by about 15 people in the audience.

Many other members of the community wished to comment but were not given permission to do so because of time constraints -- the ANC still had petitions from other restaurants, as well as foreign embassies and multiple property developers, to consider. Representatives of all these groups watched and waited, displaying various degrees of patience.

Meanwhile, an ill-tempered anonymous leaflet of leading "questions" for Stephens was distributed at the meeting. Example questions: "...why did you personally deliver leaflets supporting an establishment with pending business before your committee?" and "...why are you mischaracterizing the customary operating hours of our neighborhood restaurants... ?"

Stephens' web site also had hosted expressions of community opposition, both polite and not. Nine days before the ANC meeting, Stephens authored an article about Bar Charley's request. At the end of the article, Stephens said he planned to support the request for longer hours. This post drew community comment. In one comment, one anti-Bar Charlie Charley post called Stephens' claim of divided community opinion on Bar Charley "a blatant lie". Another respondent wrote to "respectfully disagree". Still another supported Bar Charley.

There was an additional comment made on Stephens' blog after the meeting: 

I would have loved to state [my opinion] in person at the meeting yesterday. Curiously enough there was not enough time for me to speak, after ample amount of time was dedicated to statements from all three owners of Bar Charley and yourself, all in defense of the license application.

Taken together, the anti-Bar Charley faction seemed determined to imply Stephens had made up his mind before the meeting and was doing Bar Charley's bidding.

Nevertheless, the ANC (including Stephens) voted to protest the application. The reason, according to a tweet from ANC2B Commissoner Kevin O'Connor (district 02): "Because DCCA & a group of 5 or more are protesting, we thought it best to be at the table. The owners [of Bar Charley] welcomed the idea."

The obscure rule

In addition to ANCs, two other types of entities can protest a liquor license application, renewal, or change. One is a registered community organization, which must hold public meetings and meet other requirements. The DCCA is such an organization. Its protest will having standing with D.C.'s Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA), next to the ANC's protest.

The other type of entity that can protest is a group of five or more. This case also has such a protesting group.

There is an obscure ABRA rule part of D.C. law that says an agreement between an ANC and a liquor-licensee "bumps" a group of five's protest. To put it another way: If the ANC enters into a agreement with an establishment about opening hours, the group of five's protest will be dismissed automatically, whether the group of five is satisfied with the agreement or not.

If the recent behavior of Bar Charley's protesting neighbors is any indication of the character of the group of five, the group of five is more strongly opposed to the extended hours than ANC2B is. It may be difficult for Stephens and the ANC to convince the group of five and their allies that the ANC is really acting with their interests in mind.

A November 14 blog post by the web site Barred in DC provides more detail about this vote.

UPDATE:

After publication, I received the following information from ABRA. The section of the law which allows an ANC to "bump" a group of five is highlighted:

The law was recently updated by the Omnibus Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Emergency Amendment Act of 2012 as follows:

(w) Section 25-609 is amended as follows:

 (1) The existing language is designated as subsection (a).

 (2) The newly designated subsection (a) is amended as follows:

 (A) Strike the phrase “if any,” and insert the phrase “if any, and serve

a copy upon the applicant or licensee,” in its place.

 (B) Strike the phrase “Whether or not” and insert the word “Whether”

in its place.

 (C) Strike the phrase “The applicant” and insert the phrase “The

applicant or licensee” in its place.

 (3) A new subsection (b) is added to read as follows:

 “(b) In the event that an affected ANC submits a settlement agreement to the Board on a protested license application, the Board, upon its approval of the settlement agreement, shall dismiss any protest of a group of no fewer than 5 residents or property owners meeting the requirements of § 25-601(2). The Board shall not dismiss a protest filed by another affected ANC or by a citizens association meeting the requirements of § 25-601(3) upon the Board’s approval of an ANC’s settlement agreement submission.”

17th and Q to Get Organic Indian Grocery Store

Updated November 15, 4pm - see below

An organic Indian grocery store named Pansaari will open at 17th and Q Streets NW, the future owner/operator announced at the regularly monthly meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont Circle on November 13.

1603 17th Street is on the right

The store will be located in the basement of 1603 17th Street NW, the former location of Club Chaos nightclub, which closed in 2008.

Owner/operator Rano Singh spoke briefly to the ANC about her vision for the new establishment. She described it as a "Indian organic grocery and cooking school". As for her reason for opening in downtown D.C., she said: "I'm tired of running to Rockville and McLean" in search of genuine Indian ingredients.

She also said there would be a chai bar, but no take-out, so members of the neighborhood would be forced to stop and get to know each other.

Pansaari has a web page where you can sign up for email updates about the grocery's opening.

Although the word Pansaari (also spelled "Pansari") is translated by online Hindu-English dictionaries as "Grocer", a 15-minute promotional video for the new store (available here) has another explanation. A "Pansaari", the video says, is a traditional herb and spice merchant, whose store is also a sort of holistic pharmacy for practitioners of Ayurvedic medicine.

The video also details Singh's influences and inspiration for the new venture.

Some digitally-created visions of the future store's interior appearance are available here.

Update

Thanks to an email from ANC2B Commissioner Kishan Putta (district 04) for this additional information:

• Pansaari has signed a lease on the space.
• Architectural drawings are being finalized before submission to D.C. authorities.
• Projected timetable: Construction starts in December, storing opening March.
• Pansaari may seek a wine/beer license.

Putta adds: "In the Internet age, a liquor license moratorium does not save or promote retail business in the District. Innovative and unique business ideas are the keys to success. I welcome Ms. Singh to the neighborhood and wish her the best of luck."

Liquor License Endorsements, Protests from ANC2F

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2F/Logan Circle voted on a handful of liquor-license-related matters at its last regular monthly meeting on November 6. ANC2F voted to protest one liquor license application, and approve four others. It also voted to endorse a new settlement agreement with a "The American (soon to open in Blagden Alley), and against a request by The Park at 14th to terminate a settlement agreement.
A "settlement agreement" is often reached between an ANC and a liquor-serving establishment and codifies the establishment's operating hours and other details which effect the community.

The American

The roll-up garage door (right) was a bone of contention

ANC2F unanimously voted to support a settlement agreement negotiated between the ANC and Blagden Alley Entertainment, LLC., which will operate "The American" restaurant. The official address will be 1209 - 1213 10th Street NW, but the restaurant will actually be located in Blagden Alley, a historic district inside the block bordered by 9th, 10th, M, and N Streets. 

There was much community interest and some community opposition to the opening of The American. It was the subject of the September 24 SALM blog post.

Among the provisions of the settlement agreements are:

• The restaurant will close at 1 a.m. Monday - Thursday and 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.
• The outdoor consumption of food and drink will cease at 11 p.m. Sunday - Thursday and 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
• Outside music will cease at 11 p.m. Sunday - Thursday and 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday.
• Deliveries will be made by hand truck -- no trucks in Blagden Alley.
• The American will discourage smoking outside the restaurant.

The text of the entire settlement agreement is available here.

There were still a few neighborhood voices protesting the restaurant up until the very last minute. One attendee accused The American of hiding a mandatory public notice on a roll-up door, so that it was not visible to the public most of the time. The notice contained information about The American's liquor license application, including times and places when members of the public could attend hearings on the matter.

I took the picture accompanying this article (above) in September. The notices can be seen on the metal garage door in the right of the picture.

Commissioner John Fanning (district 04) would look into the allegation, which would be a violation of liquor-license regulations if proved true. Fanning is chair of ANC2F's liquor-licensing affairs committee.

The Park at 14th

ANC2F voted 7 - 1 to oppose the termination of the settlement agreement between The Park at 14th nightclub (920 14th Street), an abutting neighbor, and the ANC. The lone vote against was by ANC2F Chair Matt Raymond (Commissioner for district 07).

The Park at 14th's operators appeared before the full ANC at its last meeting on October 2nd to say they wished to terminate the agreement, comparing the agreement to handcuffs. This was reported in the October 9 SALM blog post.

The Park at 14th's operators also said the agreement was unfair because many of their competitors were not compelled to have a settlement agreement. It has been informal ANC2F policy for many years not to require settlement agreements for establishments south of Massachusetts Avenue, because the area is largely non-residential. It is not clear why The Park at 14th (which is in this area) became an exception to this policy. However, this anomaly led to accusations of bias against The Park at 14th's operators at the October ANC2F meeting.

The commissioner voted to make formal policy stating that all new and existing liquor licensees, no matter where in ANC2F they were, should come before the ANC to acquire, renew, or change the conditions of their liquor license. The vote was 7 - 1, with Commissioner Raymond once again the sole "no" vote.

Vita Lounge

ANC2F voted to protest the liquor license renewal request for Vita Lounge (1318 9th Street). It was reported the establishment had 28 violations of liquor-licensing rules. The manager had been called by the ANC and told the ANC she would not come to the ANC meeting.

ANC2F's liquor-licensing affairs committee had unanimously recommended the full ANC protest Vita Lounge's application. 

Sherri Kimbel, Director of Constituent Services for D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans, suggested ANC vote to make two separate protests against the Vita Lounge. One protest would concern its liquor license, the other protest would concern its cover charge, dancing, and entertainment endorsement. ANC2F followed her advice and passed two separate protest motions. 

Commissioner Greg Melcher (district 06) promised to contact the operator of the Vita Lounge about the protest. The Vita Lounge is in Melcher's ANC district.

Records show Vita Lounge was fined $750 in April for a violation of its settlement agreement. Another document shows Vita Lounge failed to pay this $750 file within 30 days as ordered. The same document indicates Vita Lounge had a further outstanding fine from January.

Separate records show Vita Lounge has an appointment to appear before D.C.'s Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Board on December 4 because it "failed to comply with the terms of its offer of compromise dated October 24, 2012".

Routine approvals

The full ANC followed the recommendation of its liquor-licensing affairs committee to approve liquor license renewals for the following establishment: Capitale (1301 K Street), Ghibellina (1610 14th Street), Number Nine (1435 P Street), and Vegas Lounge (1415 P Street). There was no debate or discussion about these applications.

ANC2F's summary of the entire meeting of November 6 is available here.

1618 Q Street Renovation: ANC2B to Protest Tonight?

The full Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont Circle will have its regularly-scheduled monthly meeting tonight at 7pm at the Brooklings Institution (1775 Massachusetts Avenue NW). One of the items on the agenda will be the proposed renovation and expansion of 1618 Q Street. If statements at the last meeting of ANC2B's Zoning, Preservation and Development (ZPD) Committee are any indication, the full ANC may vote to oppose the project.

1618 Q Street was built in 1880.

Single family home to seven apartments

The ZPD Committee met on November 5 to hear the presentation of Desiree Holler Pollard of Workshop T10 about the project. The proposal, if implemented, would convert the single-family home into seven apartments. It would deepen the basement and add a third floor at the rear of the property.

Workshop T10's presentation to the Dupont Circle Conservancy on this project was the subject of the October 15 SALM blog post.
The presentation to the ZPD committee was nearly identical to the Dupont Circle Conservancy presentation.

The renovation is entirely "by right", meaning, it is not necessary to get zoning variances or special exceptions from D.C.'s Board of Zoning Adjustments (BZA). However, the house is in the Dupont Circle Historic District, so all significant changes to the exterior of the building must be approved by D.C.'s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB). Workshop T10 seeks ANC2B support for its HPRB petition.

Neighbors object

The abutting neighbors to the west of 1618 Q Street came to voice their concerns. The new third level on the building would block their light, they said. Also, the proposed third-floor roof deck will be "a few feet" from their bedroom.

Would all the residents of 1618 have access to the roof deck? they asked.

The answer: No, only the residents of the two-story apartment on the front side of the building.

The neighbors indicated they were concerned about the roof deck's effect on their privacy, and also possible late-night noise. The committee members worried whether approving a roof deck would create a bad precedent.

Committee Chair critical

Committee Chair Leo Dwyer (ANC Commissioner for district 07) asked Pollard if she had consulted the other neighbors. Hollar Pollard said she had not. She felt it was too early, because the plans weren't finalized.

Dwyer recalled Pollard had phoned him on October 1. This was the day of the previous month's ZPD Committee meeting. Pollard had asked to be put on the agenda for that day. Dwyer was not able to do so. He said he told Pollard at that time to engage in community consultation.

"I mentioned a month ago you needed neighbor notification," he said.

Dwyer mentioned he had other concerns. For example, there was evidence some of the plans presented to the board were not accurate.

Pollard promised to get updated plans to Dwyer by Monday, November 11.

There was also discussion about the impact the third floor would have on the local skyline. It had been demonstrated that the third-floor addition will not be visible from the front of the property. However, the lot backs on to Stead Park. The addition would extend to the rear of the building and be plainly visible from the park to a great number of neighborhood residents and park users.

Other question marks were the provision of only two parking spaces for seven apartments, and whether seven apartments were appropriate for a zone designated "medium density".

"We're possibly going to not support the project," Dwyer said.

Dwyer suggested eliminating the roof deck and addressing the parking issue. He also indicated he would want to see better plans and more outreach to the neighbors before he would think about endorsing the plan.

"Lack of outreach to the neighbors was a big concern," he said.

No official vote on the project was taken at the meeting.

The HPRB hearing on the 1618 Q Street renovation is scheduled for November 21, at 9am, at 441 4th Street, NW, in room 220-South.

If it is approved, Hollar Pollard said, the project is planned to start in February or March and last about six months. 

Carlyle Suites Roof Deck Moves Forward

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont Circle will likely support the request by the Carlyle Suites Hotel (1731 New Hampshire Avenue NW) to add a roof deck. At the November 5 meeting of the Zoning, Preservation and Development (ZPD) Committee, Chair Leo Dwyer (Commissioner for district 07) indicated the committee would recommend that the full ANC support the project. The other Commissioners and committee members present seemed to agree.

Carlyle Suites opened in 1939

The Carlyle Suites Hotel's request is on the recently-published agenda for the next meeting of the full ANC, scheduled for tomorrow, November 13, 7pm, at the Brookings Institution (1775 Massachusetts Avenue).

The proposed roof deck was the subject of community interest and lengthy debate at the previous month's ZPD Committee meeting -- see the October 5 SALM blog post.

Still skeptical

The people living in the neighboring apartment buildings are still skeptical of Carlyle Suites Hotel's intentions. Specifically, they believe the roof deck may someday host a noisy late-night bar/restaurant operation. Although hotel management have repeatedly assured the neighbors there are no present plans for outside eating and drinking, they have also clearly said they can not completely rule out a change in their plans.

"It's clear that the hotel doesn't want to be fettered," said one neighbor at the meeting.

Carlyle Suites manager Scott Dawson argued there were practical reasons why the hotel would not want to operate a bar on roof.

"They'll be a couple of hundred people sleeping right underneath," he said.

Much community consultation

There had been a great deal of community consultation in the last few weeks. ZPD Committee Architect Michael Lee Biedler counted four community hearings and eight or nine meetings. ANC Commissioner Stephanie Maltz (district 03) tweeted the hotel had hosted five community meetings, and said at the meeting there had been "countless emails".

The Carlyle Suites Hotel is in Maltz's ANC district.

Although the neighbors still were suspicious of the ultimate use of the roof deck, they seemed to understand there was little point forcing a confrontation at this moment. The Carlyle Suites Hotel seeks design approval only for its roof deck from D.C.'s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB). HPRB's brief is preservation only and is extremely unlikely to take into consideration, or even listen to, talk about future noise or liquor consumption in the space, whether the talk comes from an ANC or individuals.

Designed to minimize noise

There had been some changes made as concessions to neighborhood concerns about noise and privacy. The edge of the roof deck had been pulled 3 - 4 feet back from the edge of the roof.

The plan had also been changed so that the deck now has an five-foot-high wall of frosted glass on its perimeter. The glass wall will reflect sound toward the inside wall of the area, which there is a sound-absorbing stucco trellis. Outside the walls, there would be greenery in planters.

Why was the greenery on the outside? someone asked.

"To keep people from throwing [stuff] into the planters," was the reply.

Since the previous ZPD meeting, HPRB had looked at the design and recommended, for aesthetic reasons, the trellis not extend all the way around the interior wall. However, the ZPD and the neighbors seemed to agree noise considerations should trump aesthetics in this case.

Commissioner Dwyer said he would recommend ANC support for the project with the trellis extended.

Commissioner Maltz said she would circulate a draft letter to Commissioners before the next meeting of the full ANC.