All Souls Bar Mobilizes Social Media to Support Outdoor Service

CORRECTION: When originally published, the first sentence of this article said the patio would be at the corner of "8th and I Streets". Apologies.

All Souls Bar (725 T Street NW) has launched a campaign on social media to gain community support for a planned patio at the corner of 8th and T Streets. As a result, Nick Baumann, chair of the liquor-licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street, has received about 50 emails in support of the planned patio as of last Thursday evening, April 2, when the ANC had its regularly-scheduled monthly meeting. (Baumann also tweeted this information on the same day.) By comparison, at a meeting of the liquor-licensing committee on March 18, Baumann reported he had received eight emails, divided for and against.

From All Souls Bar's Facebook page

In order to serve outside, All Souls will have to get permission from DC liquor-licensing authorities. The first step toward this permission would be getting buy-in from the community, including the ANC. Neighbors of, and property-owners near, the establishment have come to the last two meetings of the liquor-licensing affairs committee of the ANC to oppose the proposal -- see SALM blog posts of February 25 and March 25.

On April 1, All Souls Bar published a post on its Facebook page asking for community support. At the same time, it tweeted a "call to action", directing readers to the Facebook post.

The Facebook post has pictures of the proposed space (see above) and also cites reporting on this blog. All Souls Bar's owner/operator David Batista writes he feels "opposition is unwarranted with some misinterpretation of the law and our intentions." Batista also writes:

We want to take a barren lot and surround it with trees and plantings to beautify the corner for pedestrians and patrons alike. We want a patio with table service only—no standing, no speakers and no smoking (sorry folks). A patio with limited hours.

The post urges supporters to email Baumann and ANC Commissioners and "let them know why you support All Souls and our patio". As of this writing, the post has 190 "likes" and has been shared 40 times, including on the SALM Facebook page.

Shortly after the post was published, it was shared on the Facebook-based blog U Street Buzz and was the subject of a sympathetic article on the blog Popville. In both places, it received many additional likes and favorable comments. The Popville article also has some unfavorable comments.

Since the original Facebook posting, All Souls Bar has thanked it supporters on Twitter for the "great and truely humbling" response, and urged supporters to "keep the emails coming, you are being heard".

At the April 2 meeting, several ANC1B Commissioners said they had received emails in support of the patio. Baumann told the ANC the matter would come up again at the next regularly-scheduled liquor-licensing committee meet, and he expected it to be "contentious". There was little further discussion and no vote of any kind on the project at the April 2 meeting.

The next meeting of the liquor-licensing affairs committee of ANC1B is scheduled for Wednesday, April 15. Meetings usually start at 7pm, and take place at the Thurgood Marshall Center (1816 12th Street, between S and T Streets).

Two Questions about Outdoor Seating for All Souls Bar

CORRECTION: Someone wrote to me that the "neighbor" mentioned below does not actually live in the neighborhood. Whenever he is referred to as "neighbor" in the text below, I changed it to "man". Apologies for the error.

David Batista, owner/operator of All Souls Bar (725 T Street NW), with his attorney Andrew Klein of Veritas Law Firm, appeared at last meeting of the liquor-licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street on March 18. They wanted to talk about the details of proposed outdoor seating at the corner of T and 8th Streets. They had artist's renderings already on set up on easels, ready to show the committee. But the papers covering the drawings were never removed, and the committee never saw them, as neighbors once again were there to object.

All Souls Bar (grey building left) wants to serve here

"Not much has changed since the last meeting," said committee chair Nick
Baumann. The only development, Baumann said, was that he had received about eight emails total on the topic -- some for, some against.

All Souls Bar has not officially applied to DC's Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) for permission to serve outdoors. The ANC has taken on the task of trying to negotiate between the parties.

ANC1B Chair James Turner (Commissioner for district 09) urged all parties to try to arrive at a durable solution.

"Everybody wants a patio, a roof deck, a pop up, a pop out, a shoot out," Turner said in exasperation. Turner told both sides the ANC wanted "something we're not going to get a noise complaint about later".

The discussions at the meeting generated two questions...

Was the decision to allow the bar to open illegal?

"ABRA put a bar there even though there is a law against it," said one of the neighbors man about a 2012 decision (13-page .pdf here) that allowed All Souls to open.

Attorney Klein said: "I would suggest that he [the neighbor man] familiarize himself with the law." Klein sarcastically referred to this neighbor man as "the gentleman from Montgomery County".

The law the neighbor man refers to is a DC law forbidding issuance of liquor licenses to establishments within 400 feet of a school -- in this case, the Cleveland Elementary School (1825 18th Street), which is across T Street.

The neighbor man would be wise to take the attorney's advice about familiarity with the law. As this Greater Greater Washington blog post explains, ABRA found the prohibition against a liquor licensee within 400 feet of a public school did not apply in this case, since there was already another licensee (an Ethiopian market/restaurant on 7th Street) operating within 400 feet. This stipulation is clearly laid out in the law -- see DC Code §25-314(b) here.

The neighbor man could, perhaps more accurately, state that enforcement of the spirit of the law -- to protect schoolchildren from seeing and interacting with drunk patrons -- had been violated over a technicality. The Ethopian market/restaurant on 7th Street is around the corner and out of sight of the school, therefore drinking there not a matter of immediate concern to parents. The tavern, on the other hand, is across the street, clearly visible from the school.

However, this argument also is unlikely to gain traction in this case for two reasons: (1) All Souls is committed to operating only outside of school hours, and (2) ABRA's 2012 decision clearly states it is not in the business of shielding children's eyes from seeing establishments where liquor is served.

What's the law on outdoor service near schools?

Rule 23-302.5 of DC Municipal Regulation (available for download here) says

No alcoholic beverage shall be sold or served by a licensee upon any portion of any premises which fronts upon, abuts, adjoins, or is opposite to the premises of any of the institutions or recreation areas mentioned in this section unless that portion of the premises where alcoholic beverages are served is within a building; provided, that the restriction of service within a building is not applicable to Class C or D licensees on non-school days, weekends, and after 6:00 p.m. on weekdays, allowing alcohol products to be served on licensed outdoor patios which are part of the licensee's premises.

All Souls Bar is a class C licensee, so service after 6pm school days, and longer hours on other days, is possible, according to the regulations. So neighbors of the bar will probably make a case for denying outdoor service on the basis of "peace, order and quiet" -- this being the most frequently used language when neighbors oppose a liquor license.

All Souls Bar is located in ANC1B district 01 -- Brian Footer is the Commissioner. It is also borders on district 02 -- Ellen Nedrow Sullivan is the Commissioner. These two will have the task of trying to bring the sides together. Sullivan is on the liquor licensing affairs committee and said she was planning to start meetings with a protesting neighbor in the week following the meeting.

No vote was taken on any aspect of this proposal at the March 18 meeting.

All Souls Bar Meets Opposition to Outside Service

David Batista, owner/operator of All Souls Bar (725 T Street NW), came before the liquor licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street on February 18 to re-open the question of outside service. He met opposition from neighbors, at least one of whom is on the committee.

Lot on the left, normally grassy, was recently snowy.

"We've been open for 14 months. We've been good neighbors," Batista said.

Batista asked the committee to consider approving a patio to be located on a large grassy lot (see photo) adjacent to All Souls Bar on the west, facing 8th Street. Batista characterized the area "a city lot that we maintain". However, everyone agreed, it is not public space in the sense that the sidewalk is public space. Public records available at Property Quest, DC's public land-use database, indicate that the grassy area and the bar building are located on a single lot of property. The place in the database where the name and address of the lot owner normally appears is blank.

There is a much smaller paved area in front of the bar, and allowing outside seating there was discussed as a substitute for or an addition to the outside seating as Batista requested it.

Batista also told the committee that his appearance was supposed to be the beginning of a dialogue and no official request had been filed. Batista said he hoped the outside seating could be open until 11pm Sunday to Thursday and 1am on Friday and Saturday, and that there would be no music, live or recorded, outside the bar.

In June 2012, All Souls Bar was granted a liquor license by DC's Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) despite strong opposition centering on the bar's location across T Street from Cleveland Elementary School (1825 18th Street NW). Unusually for a liquor license application, the hearing of the case of All Souls Bar in March 2012 generated TV news coverage from WJLA (Channel 7) -- see video here.

Batista told the committee he had intended to have outside seating from the bar's opening but had withdrawn the request from his original application in the hopes it would make the process go more smoothly. 

Of the four people who came to the meeting to object to outside seating, none of them identified themselves as having a connection to Cleveland Elementary School. All of them self-identified as neighbors. 

"We don't want a patio," said one neighbor, who is also a member of the committee.

Another neighbor, who owns an abutting property, told the committee that the neighbors had fought for a settlement agreement with All Souls that excluded outside seating, and that they did not want the agreement changed. The tenant of the same abutting property also appeared and said she was against outside seating.

Yet another neighbor said he was against the bar at its opening but was now a customer of All Souls Bar. Still, he said, he was against outside service.

No vote was taken on the request. ANC1B Commissioners will take on the difficult task of finding common ground between the parties and negotiating an agreement

See the 2012 ABRA order issuing a liquor license to All Souls Bar here. The settlement agreement with the neighbors is attached as the final two pages of the 13-page .pdf document.

The 2012 application was the subject of coverage in many blogs, including Borderstan, Popville, GrassrootsDC, and Greater Greater Washington.

1415 T Street: "This Is Essentially a Pop-up"

A committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont Circle, at a meeting on September 3, heard a proposal to add an extra story on the roof of a row house at 1415 T Street NW. This was the first step on a long bureaucratic journey for the project -- after this meeting, it will be presented to the full ANC, and then to DC's Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB). After that, it will have to do the entire process over again -- first committee, then full ANC, before appearing before DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA).

1415 T Street

The plan is to add a penthouse and two roof decks to the top of the existing house. Architect Patrick Brian Jones told ANC2B's Zoning, Preservation and Development (ZPD) Committee called the addition a "small roof structure" and said that it would not be visible from any point on the sidewalk of T Street, because it will be set back more than 20 feet from the front of the building.

Commissioner Noah Smith (district 09) asked if the planned addition would be a condo unit. Jones said that it would be.

"This is essentially a pop up," Smith said.

"Yes," Jones said.

1415 T Street is in Smith's ANC district.

The project has a letter of support from an apartment building abutting the property to the east. This building is taller than the existing row house.

The abutting neighbors to the west are Ramon Estrada and Elwyn Ferris, who are, respectively, President of the Dupont Circle Citizens Association and Secretary of the Shaw Dupont Citizens Alliance. Both of these groups pay close attention to development in the area.

The home owner said she had sent an email to Estrada the previous week, but had heard nothing yet. In the absence of any reply, she was considering going ahead with the process.

Members of committee told the homeowner that Estrada and Ferris would almost definitely have an opinion about the plan and advised them not to proceed any further until hearing from them.

Commissioner Smith said he would recommend that the ANC support the project, because it was not visible from the sidewalk across the street and it was not out of character for the neighborhood. However, Smith's support was conditional upon the applicants providing evidence they had consulted with all the neighbors, including Estrada and Ferris, and that there were no objections.

Presenters also told the committee that the project will need to go before the BZA because the building is presently "non-conforming" (i.e., in violation of zoning code) with regard to lot occupancy, meaning the footprint of the building is larger than that envisioned by zoning regulations.

This case may be considered at the next meeting of ANC2B, scheduled to take place on Wednesday, September 10, at the Brookings Institution (1775 Massachusetts Avenue).

The project needs to go before the HPRB because it is located in the U Street Historic District. The HPRB case number is 14-633. It is scheduled to be heard by the HPRB within the next month.

1415 T Street has a placard from the HPRB on its front door, notifying the public of the proposed project. This is the first time I have seen HPRB placarding in ANC2B. Read more about placarding for historical preservation projects here and here.

Carriage Houses: Horizontal Pop-ups?

Summary: I believe DC's Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) is encouraging, when possible, those wishing to expand homes in historic districts to forego pop-ups in favor of constructing new "carriage house-like" buildings at the rear of their properties. Plan for these new buildings often trigger a review by DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA), as the old and new buildings combined take up a greater percentage of the lot than is permitted by law. The BZA seems to be willing to go along with these rear additions. The small number that have been approved so far have not changed the profile or density of historic districts. If the trend continues, there may be negative consequences.

Homeowner a no-show at meeting

On Monday, July 21, the Design Review Committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street had a meeting. The only significant item on the agenda concerned 919 T Street NW. The owner sought ANC endorsement on a request to the BZA for a special exception to permit an addition at the rear of the property. The addition, the meeting agenda said, would serve as the primary residence of the owner.

919 T Street, as seen from 9-1/2 Street

There was a quorum of committee members, but owner did not show up. The chair of the committee called the owner. There was no answer. As there was no other business, the meeting disbanded. It is unclear whether the owner will be able to arrange another hearing with the committee and then with the ANC before a scheduled BZA hearing on September 9.

919 T Street is located in the U Street Historic District, so the owners got approval from the HPRB for their proposed new rear structure. The HPRB report characterizes the proposed new structure as a "two-story carriage house-like addition at the alley". (The alley is also known at "9-1/2 Street", and has 6-8 homes on it.)

The footprint of the proposed new building, combined with that of the original building, put the lot over the limit for "lot occupancy", which is why the project has to go before the BZA.

A pattern emerging?

This is the third "carriage house-like" rear structure that I've seen HPRB approve in the last two months -- see SALM blog posts for June 12 and May 30. (I also reported on one last October.) The properties are located in a variety of ANCs (1B/U Street, 2B/Dupont Circle, and 6E/Shaw) and historic districts.

In each of these cases, HPRB-approved rear structures (sometimes designed to look like long-demolished rear carriage houses) put the homeowner over the lot occupancy threshold.

In the cases reported on June 12 and May 30, the homeowner had been strongly discouraged by HPRB from pursuing a pop-up addition before receiving an approval for a rear addition. And, also in both of these cases, the homeowners subsequently received the zoning permission they sought from the BZA.

I don't know how many instances constitutes a trend, but there seems to be a pattern in HPRB, and subsequent BZA, approvals: more vertical living space -- no; more horizontal living space -- OK.

HPRB can be the good guy

This is probably a clever move for HPRB. Instead of being the agency that always says "no", they can be the agency that gives viable alternatives. It is then up to the BZA to be the bad guy if it turns down homeowners on the basis of lot occupancy, which could be perceived as an abstract, unimportant technicality.

So far, it seems like BZA is not inclined to be the bad guy, as evidenced by their approvals of lot occupancy exceptions.

Lot occupancy restrictions are, presumably, there for a reason. One DC Zoning Commission document from 2010 (21-page .doc download here) says the intent of lot occupancy restrictions to preserve adequate light and air to building residents. Another function is as a guard against excessive density. Yet more carriage houses (or alternately "out buildings" or "mother-in-law houses") on the rears of properties will surely increase density, and affect the light and air in the immediate area. Like popups, no one will mind the first carriage-house-like rear addition on a property, or maybe even the second. But what will happen when many houses on the block want them? Will the BZA continue to approve these requests?

More lot occupancy = more water runoff

More rear lot additions will also increase the amount of land in historic districts which is impervious to rainwater. DC Water is so concerned about impervious areas that it has instituted an "impervious area charge" on all customers. The impervious area charge is the single biggest component of this year's proposed 13 percent increase in water rate -- see SALM blog post of April 29.

The charge is based on how much impervious-to-water surfaces (such as rooftops, paved driveways, patios, and parking lots) a homeowner has on his or her property. Impervious areas contribute to groundwater runoff entering the District's sewer system. Popups, which by definition sit on top of existing buildings, do not increase the amount of impervious area on a lot.

More rear structures mean greater lot occupancy. Greater lot occupancy means more impervious area. More impervious area means more water runoff. More water runoff means more wear and tear on the sewer system, and also greater possibility of flooding during major rain events or hurricanes.

Solving one problem, creating another?

A few additional residential spaces by themselves are unlikely to cause more flooding, of course. But if a quick trip through the city bureaucracy becomes the norm for "carriage houses" and similar rear structures, the cumulative effect of hundreds of one- and two-story rear additions could be significant.

This may be a case of government agencies focused narrowly on their own briefs, to the exclusion of other considerations. HPRB's brief is the appearance of the exterior of properties in historic districts. The BZA's is to identify and prevent inappropriate and unsafe land uses. The knock-on effects of increased density are not an immediate concern to either body.

Will there be a time when we starting thinking that an attempt to control one problem (pop-ups) has opened the door to others?

See the latest HPRB document on 919 T Street here.

Documents concerning the request by the owners of 919 T Street for a special exception can be viewed by going to the BZA's Interactive Zoning Information System and entering case number 18810 in the search bar.

1201 T Street: "It's Kind of an Eyesore"

The new homeowner of 1201 T Street NW bought the house in December 2013. He didn't realize he needed special permission to replace his front walk (facing T Street) and side patio (facing 12th Street). So he went ahead and started to take them up. That's when he got a stop work order slapped on the window of his house, right above the half-removed side patio.

The offending patio

The house is located within the U Street Historic District, so any exterior changes or renovations must get the blessing of D.C.'s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB).

Before that, the homeowner should seek the endorsement of the local Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC). That's what brought him to the last meeting of ANC 1B/U Street on June 16.

"It's kind of an eyesore," the homeowner said of the partially-completed project.

The side patio facing 12th Street is now 10 feet by 15 feet. HPRB took a look at it and said they would only allow 5 feet by 5 feet. In addition, the homeowner had to prepare a plan which specified the type of material that would be used, and the color.

The committee discussed the member of HPRB staff who was assigned to the case. This particular committee member is known for especially zealous enforcement of historic district guidelines.

"That's why you're getting five by five," one committee member said.

The committee unanimously passed a motion to endorse the homeowner's proposal to complete the project. The motion also supported the homeowner's desire to have a patio larger than five by five.

The committee's recommendation will go to the full ANC for approval. It will probably be considered at the next meeting, which is scheduled for Thursday, July 10, at 7pm, at the Reeves Center (14th and U Streets).

Online records indicate 1201 T Street was bought in December 2013 for $1.125 million.

ANC1B Endorses Right Proper Brewing Sidewalk Cafe

At its regular monthly meeting June 5, Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street endorsed the public space of application of Right Proper Brewery (624 T Street NW). Right Proper Co-founder Thor Cheston appeared before the ANC to ask for the endorsement, which had been previously approved by the ANC's Design Review Committee.

28 seats here

The outdoor space will be 490 square feet and contain 28 seats. It will be surrounded by "heavy but removable" fencing.

Right Proper Brewing should have no trouble with its immediate neighbor, the Howard Theatre, with which it does many cross promotions.

The establishment also got the endorsement of the LeDroit Park Civic Association.

Commissioner Jeremy Leffler (district 02) checked to make sure Right Proper was willing to consent to the ANC's standard closing time for outdoor spaces of liquor-serving establishments, which is 11pm Monday-Thursday and midnight Saturday and Sunday. Cheston agreed with the hours.

"I believe in the old saying 'Nothing good in a bar happens after midnight'," Cheston said.

Commissioner E. Gail Anderson Holness (district 11) asked Cheston where he was from. Cheston said he graduated from Georgetown University. He had lived elsewhere, he continued, but he was born in DC.

"Native Washingtonian? We support you," Holness said.

The motion by Holness to support the application was approved by all the Commissioners present.

The application now moves for final approval to the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), which has authority over all public space applications.

Moving Proposed Howard Theatre Beer Garden Discussed at ANC1B Meeting

Neighbors currently objecting to a proposed beer garden in the rear parking lot of the Howard Theatre (620 T Street NW) might consider dropping their objection if the beer garden were moved to the front of the theater. The idea was tossed around at the meeting of the liquor-licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Committee (ANC) 1B/U Street on May 21.

Single-family homes on Wiltberger Street

"The devil would be in the details," one of the  neighbors said.

Two neighbors, residents and homeowners on adjoining Wiltberger Street, talked to the committee about their concerns. The neighbors said their homes would be less than 500 feet from the location of the proposed beer garden.

"We already have enough problems in the area," one said.

There are seven small single-family homes on Wiltberger Street, six of which are occupied. One of the homeowners is 90 years old and homebound, one of the neighbors told the committee.

A neighbor told the committee that he works in the music business, he had helped the Howard Theatre in the past, and he "couldn't feel more excited about its success". But he said the neighbors were concerned with the way they have been treated.

"The Howard could be a better neighbor," he said. "They haven't given any indication that it [i.e., the beer garden] would be anything other than a real mess."

The neighbor reminded the committee the rear parking lot where the beer garden is proposed to take place was actually slated to be the site of a cultural and music education center -- see drawings of the proposed center on the Howard Theatre's web site here. The theater was supposed to have raised six million dollars to build the center.

"According to my last conversation with [Howard Theatre trustee] Chip Ellis, he raised zero dollars," the neighbor said.

The neighbor said the Howard Theatre has more general financial woes.

"The Howard told us that they wish to do this beer garden because they are having severe financial problems," he said.

"It's not the abutting residents' job to make sure a business is successful," a committee member said.

Liquor-licensing committee chair Nick Baumann floated the idea of moving the proposed beer garden to the Ellington Plaza area, in front of the theater on T Street. This would move the alcohol consumption, along with at least some of the noise and other problems associated with it, around the far side of theater building from their homes. The original proposal for the beer garden envisioned it being run in conjunction with activities on the T Street side of the theatre, which would be temporarily closed off and given over to displays by local artists.
 
The neighbors seemed willing to consider it but could not speak for the other homeowners.

Chip Ellis originally brought the beer garden idea before ANC1B's liquor-licensing affairs committee in April -- see SALM blog post of April 22. Since the border between two ANC districts runs down the center of Wiltberger Street, the neighbors have also appealed to their own ANC for support -- see SALM blog post of May 7.

There was no motion made or vote taken on this matter by the committee at this meeting, and no representatives of the Howard Theatre were present.

CORRECTED: T Street Bike Lane in Shaw to Become a Trench for the Summer

CORRECTION: Ben Klemens emails that the bike lane will be a trench for "four to six weeks", and NOT months as I reported. Apologies for the error.

Ben Klemens, Chair of the Transportation Committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street, told the ANC on May 1 travel along the T Street bicycle lane in Shaw will be disrupted for four to six weeks several months. The disruption should start in May or June, and last four to six months.

T Street between 7th and 11th Streets will receive a set of more elegant-looking street lights from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) -- see SALM blog post of April 28. DDOT officials told the Transportation Committee about the project at the Committee's meeting of April 16. At that time, the officials said that's as part of the project, they'd need to dig a trench, in sections, along one side of the road. A committee member asked if the trench would be on the side of T Street with the bike lane, or the other side. DDOT promised to check and get back to the committee with the information.

On May 1, Klemens told ANC1B the trench would go "right down the bike lane", according to DDOT. When crews were not working in the trench, Klemens said, they would cover them with sleet plates. It was agreed that this was not the optimum arrangement for bicyclists, especially when it rains.

When the project is finished DDOT will install manhole covers and resurface T Street.

At the same time, DDOT will also be working on the neighboring sidewalks, so using them as an alternate route may not be an option.

The next meeting of ANC1B's Transportation Committee is scheduled for 7pm on May 15th at the Thurgood Marshall Center (1816 12th Street NW).

Howard Theatre Neighbors Mobilize ANC6E Against Beer Garden

At its regular monthly meeting last night (May 6), Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6E/Shaw heard from neighbors opposing a planned beer garden in the rear parking lot of the Howard Theatre (620 T Street NW). ANC6E voted to send a letter to D.C.'s liquor-licensing authorities stating it wished to be included in the decision-making process concerning the beer garden.

Wiltberger Street (Google Street View)

A trustee of the Howard Theatre rolled out the idea on April 16 to the liquor-licensing affairs committee of ANC 1B/U Street -- see SALM blog post of April 22. At that time, the trustee said the planned beer garden would operate in the parking lot behind the theater on Saturday and Sunday evenings during the summer until 11pm.

The Howard Theatre, and its rear parking lot, is located on the border between two ANC districts. The theater is in ANC1B. Its neighbors are in ANC6E. The border runs down the center of Wiltberger Street, on the east side of the Howard Theater. On the west side of Wiltberger Street are seven small single-family homes, six of which are currently occupied. A resident of Wiltberger Street appeared before ANC6E to ask for help.

"We really don't think this parking lot on Wiltberger Street is the right place", the resident said. "We're really concerned about the noise issue."

"The Howard Theatre has not been a particularly good neighbor," she also said. "We don't think they'll get better."

The ANC Commissioner for the neighbors is Kevin Chapple (district 02). Chapple told ANC6E he had met with the Howard Theater May 5. The meeting was "unsatisfactory", Chapple said.

Chapple then said -- incorrectly -- that ANC1B had voted to support the beer garden. He urged ANC6E to oppose it.

ANC6E Chair Alexander Padro (Commissioner for district 01) said he had communicated with ANC1B Chair James Turner on this matter. Padro said the liquor license application had not yet been placarded so it was not yet the right time to protest the application. Instead, Padro suggested sending a letter to D.C.'s liquor-licensing authorities, asking them to include ANC6E as "active participants" in the deliberations about the Howard Theater's liquor license.

ANC6E voted unanimously to support Padro's proposal.

Read an article about the Howard Theater's planned beer garden from Washington City Paper's "Young and Hungry" blog here.

T Street: New Streetlights from 7th to 11th Streets

T Street NW between 7th and 11th Streets will get more elegant-looking street lights soon. The Transportation Committee of Advisory Neighborhood Committee (ANC) 1B/U Street heard about the project at its April 16 meeting.

Out with these

In with these

Representatives of the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) told the Transportation Committee the design phase of the project is 95 percent complete. The all of the 11 existing 400-watt "cobra-head" street lights (right) will be replaced. Ten new street lights of the same design will be added. The new 100-watt street lights will have a retro look (see example left), with a vase-shaped glass lamp on a column.

"They'll look really great," a DDOT representative said.

Work along T Street will start in May or June and take 4 to 6 months. DDOT will have to dig a trench and eventually resurface the entire stretch of road. The trench will be dug along one side of the street, section by section. Steel plates will be put over the trenches when work is not in progress. When the work is in progress, there will be no room for parked cars. After completion, there will be dedicated manholes on T Street for the street lights.

"Is this going to interrupt traffic?" a committee member asked.

"Every project is going to interrupt traffic," the DDOT representative replied.

T Street has a bike lane.  Members of the committee asked if the trench was going to be dug on the side of the street with the bike lane. The DDOT representatives were not sure and promised to get back to the committee with the information.

ANC1B Commissioner Ricardo Reinoso (district 05) asked if the residents had been informed.

DDOT representatives said they were using email, ANC meetings, and postal mail to inform residents in the affected area.

A flyer distributed by DDOT at the meeting promised sidewalk repair along T Street will be coordinated to coincide with the work on the new street lights.

The old "cobra-head" street lights will be retained by DDOT and used elsewhere as needed.

Representatives of DDOT may be back to present to the full ANC at their next monthly meeting. This is scheduled to take place Thursday, May 1, at 7pm, at the Reeves Center (14th and U Streets).

(Photo credit: left - from DDOT brochure distributed at the April 16 meeting, right - Google Street View of 900 block of T Street)

Howard Theatre Plans Weekend Summer Events in Ellington Plaza

Roy "Chip" Ellis, a trustee of the Howard Theatre (620 T Street NW), came before the liquor-licensing affairs committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 1B/U Street April 16 to brief about a new plan to use outside space around the theater on the weekends, starting in June. The plan includes a summer beer garden behind the theater. As the plan stands now, the beer garden will be open Saturdays and Sundays until 11pm.

Howard Theater in 2013 (Wikipedia)

Ellis said the Howard Theatre would be working with the non-profit organization Shaw Main Streets on a concept called "Made in Shaw". As currently envisioned, the section of T Street in front of the theater will be closed off. Local artists will display on the closed street and on Ellington Plaza, a pedestrian area near the front of the theater.

However, there will not be alcohol service on the area in front of the theater, Ellis said. The beer garden behind the theater has a projected capacity of "less than 200". There are no plans to have outside concerts, Ellis told the committee.

"We might have one person playing the guitar," he said.

There will also be food service. Ellis did not talk about the menu for food or drink, but he did say: "We have Right Proper Brewery right next door."

Liquor license aspects

The plan means a "substantial change" to the Howard Theater's liquor license. Any substantial change to a liquor-license must be placarded for 60 days placarded for 45 days, per D.C. Code 25-101 (41). "Made in Shaw" may wish to open while the placarding period is still in process. To do so, the Howard Theater will also need a stipulated liquor license, which will allow the beer garden to operate while the D.C. liquor-licensing bureaucracy processes paperwork.

There was no vote by the committee. The Howard Theater will be back in front of ANC1B to request both to endorse its substantial change and to grant a stipulated license. A stipulated liquor license is one of the few powers an ANC has that is more than advisory in nature.

Liquor-licensing committee chair Nick Baumann asked Ellis to make sure the residential neighbors were consulted.

"We plan on knocking on every door," Ellis said.

Public space aspects

Another committee member asked if there was a traffic plan. She said valets from Howard Theater were parking customer vehicles in nearby residential alleys.

"Your valets are filling up the alleys," she said. "Do you have any plans to make it better?"

"When we come back, we will have a traffic plan," Ellis said.

The project may also require a public space use permit from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT). ANC Chair James Turner (Commissioner for district 09) asked Ellis to call on ANC1B's Transportation Committee to talk about public space aspects of the plan.

Ellis is also CEO of Howard Theater developer Ellis Development Group.

Thanks to Brain Molloy of the DC Liquor Law Blog for setting me straight on the length of the protest period (corrected above).

Long-term Street Lane Closures in Shaw Starting 2017

Good news first: a massive DC Water project will ease chronic flooding in Shaw, LeDroit Park, and Bloomingdale. Bad news: to complete the project, it will be necessary to close traffic lanes for periods of 18 to 36 months on and near Rhode Island Avenue NW, starting 2017.

(from DC Water web site)

One closure is in Shaw. The other is very near Shaw and will severely affect east-west traffic in Shaw.

Want to know more? DC Water will hold a Ward 6 town meeting tonight (Tuesday, April 15) at 6:30pm in the Multipurpose Room of Eliot-Hine Middle School, 1830 Constitution Avenue NE. The meeting will address all aspects of the DC Water project, including street and lane closure both in Shaw and elsewhere in D.C. This meeting is part of eight ward-wide town meetings DC Water is holding this month.

If you can't get to the town meeting

DC Water presented the outlines of the ambitious project to Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6E/Shaw at its regular monthly meeting on April 1.  The street lane closures are only a small part of the plan to build the Northeast Boundary Tunnel, a hole 23 feet in diameter, located 100 feet underground. The tunnel will not only reduce flooding but also is necessary under a 1998 multi-party consent decree designed to clean up water in the Anacostia River and beyond. The district ratepayer is footing the bill for the project.

The projected closure in Shaw will be one lane for 24-36 months around the perimeter of Cooper Park (a "pocket park" made from a triangular patch of land bounded by Rhode Island Avenue NW, 6th Street, and R Street). The projected closure near Shaw will be two lanes at Florida Avenue and Third Street NW (near Rhode Island Avenue) for 18 months.

Some work at the Florida Avenue site should have started already. The plan is for this work to be completed by April 21. Later, DC Water will also have to drill holes in the ground at this site. There is no projected date to begin, but, once begun, work will take "two to three months", according to the presenters at the ANC meeting.

The presentation said the final design and construction phase of the project will start in December 2016.

Cooper Park

Cooper Park (left) at RI Avenue, seen from 6th Street

Since the Cooper Park site is in ANC6E, it got the more attention at the April 1 meeting. Like the Florida Avenue site, DC Water will, at some uncertain date in the nearish future, drill some holes in the ground at Cooper Park. This work is exploratory and there will not be any lane closures. This phase of the work will take two or three months.

During the 2017 construction phase, the park will be used as a staging area. The complete restoration of the park is included in the budget for the project. DC Water has hired a landscape architect and has a conceptual design for the park restoration. It solicited comment from the Commissioners on this point. ANC6E Commissioner Alexander Padro (district 01) suggested public art for the new space, and asked DC Water not to forget a water source in the park. Commissioner Marge Maceda (district 05) asked DC Water to include "playable art".

It is difficult to drive across town now. The lane closures will make it even more difficult. Padro worried about the impact the closing of a lane on R Street at Cooper Park. R Street carries a lot of crosstown traffic, Padro noted, and cannot be completely blocked.

"You must have some carrying capacity there or all hell's going to break loose," Padro said.

Padro also asked about the piles of sandbags around the vent on the median of Rhode Island Avenue at 7th Street, next to the Watha T. Daniel Library (1630 7th Street NW). The sandbags are there to prevent flooding on Metro's Green Line. Padro would like to see the sandbags removed. DC Water said the removal of the sandbags was not part of the DC Water project.

ANC6E videos its meeting and puts the videos on YouTube in 30-minute chunks. The presentation by DC Water can be view by following this link, starting at the beginning of the video, which is part two of the meeting. However, you cannot see the accompanying slideshow presentation. I was unable to find a copy of the slideshow presentation on DC Water's web site.

The Committee unanimously voted to send a letter to DC Water summarizing its concerns as articulated at the meeting.

Compass Rose Asks ANC1B for Sidewalk Cafe

Rose Previte, one of the aspiring proprietors of the bar/restaurant Compass Rose (1346 T Street NW), came before Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street at its December 5 to ask for endorsement of a sidewalk cafe on T Street. However, no vote was taken because there were not enough Commissioners present to obtain a quorum (see December 9 SALM blog post).

1346 T Street (Luis Gomez Photos, used by permission)

ANC1B Chair Tony Norman (district 10) told Previte that the matter would be handled at the ANC's "executive session" on December 19, when Norman expected to be able to obtain a quorum.

Previte told the Commissioners in attendance that her public space permit for the sidewalk cafe from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) had already been approved pending endorsement from ANC1B.

Previte also said Compass Rose hoped to open in January 2014.

According to documents submitted at the meeting, the sidewalk cafe will be tiny -- 11.5 feet deep by 17 feet wide. It will have four tables with 10 seats. The iron fence that surrounds the space now will not be altered.

Compass Rose is working with Baltimore-based design collaborative Alter Urban on the design of the establishment's physical space, including sidewalk cafe.

Compass Rose has had a struggle to open. After long negotiations with the community group Shaw Dupont Citizens Alliance (SDCA) and other actors, a detailed agreement on bar operating hours and other details was approved by ANC1B in April. Further conflict resulted in June when the SDCA attempted to block Compass Rose's opening on the basis of area zoning.

Abandoned 30 Years, 1442 T Street to Get Renovation

The electricity was turned off sometime before 1983. A significant portion of the existing structure has decayed and collapsed. Some walls are braced from the inside. D.C. authorities have replaced part of the roof with plywood sheeting.

Inside 1442 T Street today (Photo credit below)

A committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont Circle has heard a plan to covert a long-abandoned single-family house at 1442 T Street NW into a livable space. If it clears the necessary bureaucratic hurdles, 1442 T Street will once again be a single family home. It will be expanded to three levels and approximately 2,700 square feet, of which about 700 square feet will be in the basement.
 
Representatives of E/L Studio made the presentation at the regular monthly meeting of ANC2B's Zoning, Preservation and Development (ZPD) Committee last night (December 3).

The proposed design would replace the existing L-shaped footprint. In its place would be a third story addition at the rear, and would create an enclosed lightwell on the north side of property.

According to testimony at the meeting, the proposed third floor addition would not be visible from T Street.

E/L Studio is seeking ANC2B endorsement on the renovation before they bring their project to D.C.'s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) for approval. HPRB approval is necessary because 1442 T Street is located in the U Street Historic District. No additional permissions or zoning variances will be required for the project to move forward.

ZPD committee chair Leo Dwyer (Commissioner for District 07) expressed enthusiasm for the project.

"It will be taking an abandoned structure and revitalizing it," he said.

No vote was taken at the meeting, but remarks by the commissioners indicated they would probably endorse it at the next meeting of the full ANC, scheduled for December 18 11, 7pm, at the Brookings Institution (1775 Massachusetts Avenue). Commissioner Noah Smith (district 09) said he would write up a resolution and circulate it to the other ANC Commissioners before the meeting.

1442 T Street is in Smith's ANC district.

Online records show 1442 T Street was built in 1870 and sold in September 2013 for $450,000. 

(Photo credit: from documents presented by E/L Studio to the ZPD Committee) 

Policy Restaurant Seeks Extended Thanksgiving, New Year's Hours

The manager of Policy Restaurant (1904 14th Street NW) appeared before Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont Circle October 9 in connection with his restaurant's settlement agreement. It was the third ANC meeting in six months at which they appeared.

Policy's T Street side

Raj Multhani, owner/operator of Policy Restaurant, asked the ANC to approve later opening hours on the day before Thanksgiving (November 27) and New Year's Eve. If the hours are not approved, Policy will have to close at half past midnight. Many of its competitors can stay open later.

The competitive disadvantage

DC regulations routinely allow liquor licensees to stay open an extra hour or more on the day before holidays. However, if the licensee's normal operating hours are explicitly stated in the settlement agreement, then the operator must seek permission for extended hours from all the counter-parties.

In this case, the counter-parties are ANC2B, the Dupont Circle Citizens Association, and a group of five neighbors. 

Multhani was before the ANC in June, seeking to terminate his settlement agreement. At that time, he noted that newer neighboring establishments had negotiated settlement agreements that do not state operating hours. Multhani's requests to keep Policy open as long as other liquor-licensees were rejected by some settlement agreement counter-parties.

Two previous attempts by Policy to extend hours on holidays have failed, according to information presented at the meeting.

Policy's recent behavior

"I have not received a single complaint since I have been in office," said Commissioner Noah Smith (District 09). Policy is in his district. Smith has been in office ten months.

Smith said Policy Restaurant has been fined twice in the last five years by the DC government. In 2010, it was fined for a violation of its settlement agreement. In 2012, it was fined for keeping inadequate records.

Smith said he would compose a letter to liquor-licensing authorities indicating the ANC is willing to grant Policy's request.

ANC2B voted 6-0 in favor. Two Commissioners were out of the room when the vote was taken, and one recused himself.

Settlement agreements are negotiated between liquor-serving establishments, ANCs, and members of the community. There may be two parties to the agreements, or more. They usually set in writing certain aspects of operations that effect the community, like opening hours, trash collection, vermin control, and public space use.

Multhani was also before ANC2B in August on behalf of Policy-- see the August 23 SALM blog post.

1315 T Street Renovation Passes ANC1B on Third Try

The third time was the charm for the owner of 1315 T Street as Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street finally expressed support for his proposed renovation. The renovation was approved at ANC1B's October 3 meeting.

An August 29 SALM blog post detailed the initial endorsement of the renovation by ANC1B's Design Review Committee. The renovation's two unsuccessful attempts (in spite of the Design Review Committee's recommendation) to get full ANC approval were the subject of a September 11 SALM blog post.

1315 T Street

Since the September 11 ANC meeting, the 1315 T Street renovation was reviewed and approved by DC's Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB), reported architect Will Teass of Tektonics Architecture. The proposal was now slightly revised due to HPRB adjustments. These included an adjustment to the height of the proposed roof of the third-story addition to the house.

Still, ANC support was sought for the proposal's second approval process -- this one scheduled for October 22 at the Board of Zoning Adjustments (BZA).

As requested by the ANC at its September meeting, the architect and owner did extensive outreach with the "Wallach Place Neighborhood Association", which was characterized as "not necessarily a formal group".

Commissioner Ricardo Reinoso (district 05) thanked the presenters for their extra effort.

Commissioner Zahra Jilani (district 12) noted that, after the consultation, the project had "even more letters of support". She said the additional letters were "really a waste of paper".

1315 T Street is in Jilani's ANC district.

The project received unanimous approval from the seven ANC1B Commissioners present at the meeting. Five Commissioners were absent.

1315 T Street Renovation Twice Fails to Get ANC1B Endorsement

A routine-seeming renovation and improvement on a row house at 1315 T Street NW failed not once, but twice, to obtain endorsement from Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street at their regular monthly meeting on September 5. The matter will now head to DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) and Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) without ANC comment either for or against.

1315 T Street NW

The request seemed ready for routine approval. The ANC1B Design Review Committee had, at its previous meeting, unanimously recommended the request be approved. Zahra Jilani, the ANC Commissioner for the district (12) where the house is located, had endorsed the project. (Jilani was not present at the September 5 meeting.) The homeowners had letters of support from several neighbors, including two who lived directly behind them on Wallach Place.

The problem seemed to start at the September 5 meeting when Commissioner James Turner (district 09) asked if the homeowner and his representative had met with an association of homeowners on neighboring Wallach Place.

The homeowner and representative said they had not met with Wallach Place homeowners.

A community member who resides on the 2300 block of 14th Street urged the homeowners to reach out to Wallach Place homeowners prior to getting ANC approval.

Commissioner E. Gail Anderson Holness (11) said the ANC should wait to vote until after the homeowner had met with Wallach Place residents.

Commissioner Jeremy Leffler (02) made a motion to support the homeowners' petition contingent on approval from a committee of residents of neighboring Wallach Place. It failed -- two votes (Leffler and Turner) in favor, four against, three abstentions.

If the motion had passed, the homeowners would have had six business days to attempt to find, convene, and convince the Wallach Place neighbors before their renovation is scheduled to be reviewed by the HPRB on September 24.

Google searches for the name "Wallach Place Homeowners Association" and similar variants yield no evidence that an official organization of exclusively Wallach Place residents exists.

After the first motion failed, Commissioner Tony Norman (10) made a motion to support the Design Review committee recommendation, which was to endorse the application with no stipulations. This motion also failed.

Norman is chair of both the Design Review Committee and the ANC as a whole.

Three ANC Commissioners, including Jilani, were absent from the entire meeting.

The BZA hearing on the renovation is scheduled for Tuesday, 22 October.

1315 T Street Expansion Backed by ANC1B Committee

The residents of 1315 T Street NW have received approval from the Design Review Committee of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 1B/U Street in connection with the proposed renovation and expansion of their row house at 1315 T Street NW. The approval was unanimous, with one abstention.

1315 T Street is the blue building, center

A representative of the residents appeared before the Design Review Committee of ANC 1B at its monthly meeting, held on August 19th at the Thurgood Marshall Center (1816 12th Street). Documents submitted to the board say the renovation will remove an existing third-floor addition and construct a new one. A roof deck will be added, and the basement enlarged.

The new addition will not be visible from the street, the representative said.

The project at 1315 T Street will require zoning relief from DC's Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) for several reasons. First, after the renovation, the whole structure will cover 70% of the property. The limit under current rule is 60% for this zoning category. Secondly, an existing open court behind the building is non-compliant with zoning regulations. The regulations say such a court should be 10 feet wide; this court is 3.7 feet wide at its narrowest point.

A public hearing on the renovation is scheduled at the BZA (441 4th Street) for Tuesday, 22 October.

It will also require a building permit from the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB), because the building is within the boundaries of the U Street Historic District. The residents and their architect are filing a request for conceptual review with the HPRB.

An ANC's recommendations legally have influence, but are not binding, before both the BZA and the HPRB.

The residents of 1315 T Street have a letter of no objection from the abutting neighbor to the east. They have letters of support from two neighbors to the rear of the property. At the hearing, the residents' representative said that the abutting neighbor to the west, a landlord with renters, had been informed, but had not responded.

The architect for the project is Will Teass of Tektonics Architecture.

The committee's recommendation will probably come up for approval at the next meeting of the full ANC, scheduled for Thursday, September 5, at 7pm, at the Reeves Center (14th and U Street)

Policy Restaurant Revises Public Space Application Due to Contractor Error

Raj Multhani of Policy Restaurant, 1904 14th Street NW, appeared before Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2B/Dupont on August 14, asking for assistance due to an error caused by a contractor.

The contractor installed a decorative fence on Policy's T Street side four feet west of the location specified in a previously-approved public space application. As a result, an extra 56 square feet must be added to the public space usage request. All of the area in question is on Policy's leased land.

The restaurant is not requesting additional seating, tables, or umbrellas.

ANC2B passed a motion that it does not object to the addition. Policy's request now must go to the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) for approval.

Policy last appeared before ANC2B in June. At that time, it wanted to void an agreement between Policy, the ANC, a community group, and a group of neighbors, concerning restaurant operating hours and other conditions. The reason: attempts to negotiate a change directly with the neighbors have failed, and the restricted operating hours in the agreement put Policy at a disadvantage compared to its neighbors.