Progress on Watkins School Modernization from 12th and E Street, SE. February 26, 2017, circa 4:30pm.
The Week Ahead…CM White’s Bill: 10 Residential Parking Permits to Restaurants for Workers (see Monday & Thursday)
by Larry Janezich
Monday, February 27
- ANC 6A Transportation & Public Space Committee meets at 7:00pm, Capitol Hill Towers, 900 G Street, NE.
Among items on the agenda:
Maryland Avenue Redesign Project – 65% designs now available online
Request from Capitol Hill Classic Race for letter of support
Traffic concerns regarding development of Chik-Fil-A at 1401 Maryland Avenue, NE
Discussion of Small Business Parking Permit Act. Councilmember White has introduced legislation to allow small businesses to get up to 10 parking permits to allow employees to park in RPP zones.
- ANC6A Community Outreach Committee meeting has been CANCELLED. The next meeting of the COC is scheduled for Monday, March 27 at 7:00 pm at Maury Elementary School, 1250 Constitution Avenue NE.
Tuesday, February 28
- ANC6B’s Executive Committee meets at 7:00pm in Hill Center, to set the agenda for the full ANC6B meeting on March 14 in Hill Center.
Wednesday, March 1
- ANC6C Planning, Zoning, and Economic Development Committee meets at 6:30pm, in Northeast Library, 7th & D Streets, NE
Among items on the draft agenda:
638 Orleans Pl. NE (BZA 19467) – Application for a special exception from the rear yard requirements and the nonconforming structure requirements and variances from the building height requirements and the lot occupancy requirements to construct a third story addition and fourth story mezzanine to an existing two-story, one-family dwelling in the RF-1 Zone. application file)
316 G Street, NE – Application for a special exception from the non-conforming structure requirements, the lot occupancy requirements, and the rear yard requirements to construct a rear three-story addition and partial third-floor addition to an existing one-family dwelling in the RF-1 Zone.
316 G Street, NE – Application for concept approval for rooftop addition and new three-story rear addition.
Union Station Expansion Project – Section 106 Proposed study area
Discussion of upcoming Council oversight hearing
Thursday, March 2
- ANC 6C Transportation and Public Space Committee meets at 7:00pm, Kaiser Permanente Capitol Hill Medical Center 700 2nd Street, NE, Room G3-G4
Among items on the draft agenda:
Florida Avenue Multimodal Transportation Study. DDOT has released 30% design plans for Florida Avenue, which includes a cycletrack and sidewalk improvements.
Discussion of Small Business Parking Permit Act. Councilmember White has introduced legislation to allow small businesses to get up to 10 parking permits to allow employees to park in RPP zones.
- PSA 107 Meeting. 7:00pm. Note: this meeting will be held at the DC Library, 330 7th Street NE. Commissioner Scott Price has set up an agenda for the meeting that includes presentations on YRA and GPS monitoring. In addition, MPD will provide crime data.
- Friends of Southeast Library (FOSEL) meet at 5:30pm, Southeast Library, lower level.
Friday, March 3
Ceremony launching the new Eastern Market Main Street Organization, featuring Mayor Bowser. 10:00am – 10:30am, Eastern Market, North Hall.
CAPITOL HILL CORNER 
The Commissioners’ small business parking permit act of 2017 seem wildly impractical. It provides 10 residential parking permits for any small business that “abuts a block” assigned to residential parking. The dictionary definition of “abut” is basically “touching.” This would mean that many, many additional residential parking permits would be added to Ward 6. Small businesses on 7th and 8th and Pennsylvania all abut blocks designated for residential parking..
Discussion of Small Business Parking Permit Act. Councilmember White has introduced legislation to allow small businesses to get up to 10 parking permits to allow employees to park in RPP zones.
What a bad idea! I unfortunately will be out of town for this meeting, but here are some questions that should be answered:
1, This would allow for more than 100 parking permits in the Barracks Row area alone for 100 parking places. Where are those spaces?
2. How will this be controlled? If you give stickers to put on the windshield, what happens when the employee is no longer an employee? Who will be responsible for collecting that sticker? If you give separate cards to put in the windshield, how will those be controlled? Who will account for those permits? It has a gigantic potential for multiplying if those sticker/cards are not recovered.
3. Why should employees be treated differently than many residents, who are ineligible for permits for various reasons?
4. How about thinking about employers paying employees for their parking (like most law firms, for example, do)? Why are lawyers better than store/restaurant employees?
5. Why are we (by doing this) encouraging car use for employees when we are trying to discourage it for everyone else?
6. If the issue is for employees that have to work after public transportation closes down, then either give permits out daily/weekly only and only to those affected employees. Permits should expire in a short time frame (eg. monthly).
7. Why should we subsidize MD or VA residents to our detriment? There should be some substantial cost associated with providing even restricted and time-limited permits (as in #6 above) (eg. what it would cost for paying for the parking)
Karl makes excellent points. The city should turn over a portion of the parking lot under the overpass on 8th SE to restaurant workers on Barracks Row instead of making parking even more difficult for local residents. Regularly VA and MD cars park on my block with permanently borrowed or purchased RPP passes.
There’s nothing preventing restaurant workers from parking there right now, is there?
Karl has it right, this bill is poorly drafted and will break the RPP system in Ward 6. Where is Councilman Allen?