CAPITOL HILL CORNER

Photos and renderings illustrating the changes that developing the townhouse at 1015 E Street, SE, will have on backyards of 505 and 503 11th Street, SE

When New Development Comes at Neighbors’ Expense

by Larry Janezich

The need and desire for more housing on Capitol Hill is the main argument offered in support of the conversion of one or two unit townhouses to multifamily housing.

With increasing frequency, as developers convert townhouses, development comes at the expense of the property’s neighbors.  In some cases, the negative impact is limited to the unsightliness and irregular proportions of pop ups and more competition for street parking.  In more dramatic instances, the damage to the neighbors is substantial, decreasing the value of their homes and quality of life – and the attitude of the city and ANCs seems to be: “we’re sympathetic, but our hands are tied.”

A case in point is the conversion of the townhouse at 1015 E Street, SE, just steps east of Hill Center, in the Capitol Hill Historic District.  The property is a townhouse on a site which is zoned for commercial.  Owner/developer Bruce Athey is converting the building to a five unit apartment house by building a large two story rear addition all the way to the rear property line as a matter of right.  The new construction would result in a 24 foot high wall across the back of two residences on 11^th Street which sit at right angles to the new construction.  (see photos and renderings)

The matter came before ANC6B last night as the developer is seeking a zoning adjustment to extend a side-yard the length of the addition to the rear of the property.

ANC6B found no compelling reason to oppose the request to extend the side yard and accommodate the construction of the two story addition.  Caught between sympathy for the neighbors and the fact that the planned expansion is a matter of right, the ANC voted to take no position on the request for the variance. Taking no position leaves the decision on the side yard in the hands of the Board of Zoning Adjustment which is likely to grant the developer’s request.

Commissioner Chander Jayaraman said he opposed the variance and the building itself, voicing support for residents and constituents who are disadvantaged by developers who take advantage of regulations resulting in dramatic changes to neighbors’ quality of life.

Commissioner James Loots summed up the feeling of a majority of commissioners: “I can’t in good conscience oppose the variance on the basis of damage done the neighbors,” noting that he is sympathetic to the neighbors but that the question before the ANC is not directly related to their concerns.

The final vote on the motion to take “no position” on the request for a variance was as follows:

In favor, Commissioners Oldenburg, Loots, Flahaven, Burger, Hagedorn, and Hoskins.  Those opposed: Commissioner Jayaraman, Krepp, and Symolyk.  Abstaining:  Commissioner Chao.

Editor’s Note:

The Capitol Hill Restoration Society voted to oppose the request for a variance to continue the sideyard on the west side of 1015 E Street, citing the 24 foot wall cutting off light to the 11^th Street properties.

Gary Petersen, Chair of the CHRS Zoning Committee, said that he thinks that the extension of 1015 could be built as a matter of right without the variance, but “for whatever reason” the developer wants the continue the sideyard – perhaps for windows and light and to provide access to the rear of the property.

Buchanan School/International Graduate University, 13th and D Streets, SE, Across From Watkins Field and Backing Up to SE Safeway

The O

Major H Street Developer Has Buchanan School near SE Safeway Under Contract

Residences Planned for Site – Community Meeting Tuesday Night

by Larry Janezich

(Update:  Go here http://bit.ly/1Od5GSN to see Insight’s plan for developing site.)

Insight Property Group has the Buchanan School at 13^th and D Streets, SE, under contract and hopes to preserve and enhance the historic structures which date to 1895 and raze the newer additions to make way for a series of new townhouses fronting D and 13^th Streets, SE.  The historic building on the 92,899 square foot site – which lies just outside the Capitol Hill Historic District – would be converted to residential units.

According to a company spokesperson, no mixed use is anticipated for the project at this time.  The plan would provide for redevelopment of part of the site by right – building within the R-4 residential zoning regulations.  The company would seek zoning relief for part of the project to permit frontage of townhomes on D and 13^th Streets.

Although the company has not yet purchased the property, if the deal does go though, the company hopes to start construction in the first quarter of next year, and complete the project in two years.

Insight Property Group is the developer behind the Apollo H Street project at 600 H Street, NE, a mixed use project with 432 rental apartments and retail that will feature the H Street Whole Foods.  Work began on the project in September, 2014.

No word yet where the Peter Bug ‘s Shoe Repair Academy which occupies the site’s corner at 13^th and E fits into the plan.

Buchanan School was purchased for some $1.5 million in 1998 by Walter Boek, who established the International Graduate University (IGU) there – an institution which never became fully functional.  Boek battled the DC government for years over the non-profit status he claimed for IGU which was at odds with what the city thought he owed in taxes.   After Boek died in 2012, the property has been under control of the IGU Board of Directors.

Insight Property Group will host a community meeting to talk with nearby residents and other interested parties about their ideas for redevelopment of the site.  The meeting will be Tuesday, April 21, at 7:00pm, at Hill Center.

“The Independence” at 133 7th Street, SE, goes on the auction block Thursday.

13 Unit Building Near Eastern Market Goes on the Auction Block

by Larry Janezich

A 13 residential unit building at 133 7^th Street, SE, across Independence Avenue from Eastern Market, will be sold at a bank auction on April 28.  According to one potential bidder, the building likely will become condos, though a resumption of its former life as an apartment building is not out of the question.  Given the trends and the location, CHC is betting on condos.

Sunday morning, c. 8:00am. The Liberty Pole with its wooden base having been removed overnight for safety reasons.  The remaining aluminum pole is topped with a Phrygian cap, sometimes called a liberty cap, a symbol of freedom and the pursuit of Liberty.   One proposed design for the Statue of Freedom atop the US Capitol included a Phrygian cap for the headgear of the statue.

The Demonstration on the National Mall on Second Street facing the West Front of the US Capitol Building, is slated to end today at 4:20pm.

The six day Liberty Pole Demonstration, organized by the DC Cannabis Campaign and its head, Adam Eidinger, will wrap up today at 4:30pm, with a ceremony and speeches focused on three issues: statehood for DC, home rule, and human rights. The demolition and decamping will begin at 5:00pm and Eidinger says the group will be gone by 6:00pm.  While he cannot encourage a cannabis civil disobedience event in connection with the end of the demonstration, Eidinger clearly would not be unhappy to see one spontaneously develop.

The Week Ahead….

by Larry Janezich

Monday, April 20

ANC6B meets at 7:00pm at Hill Center.

Among items on the agenda:

Presentation on Anacostia River Clean Up Update: Richard Jackson & Sharon Cooke, District Department of the Environment.

Presentation on DC Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency (HSEMA) Initiatives

Renewal A

325 5th Street, SE, request to allow construction of a two story rear addition to an existing single family dwelling.

1015 E Street, SE, another request for variances from side yard requirements to allow developer renovation & expansion of existing building to create five-unit apartment building at the expense of adjoining neighbors.  See before and after illustrations below.

148 11th Street SE, another special exception to skirt regulations to allow construction of two-story rear addition with accessory apartment connected to dwelling by covered walkway.  by connecting the structures with a covered trellis.  Pending changes to zoning regulations will eliminate the need for this fig leaf.

The Ugly Mug Dining Saloon, 723 8th Street SE, add fixture (trash receptacles), PSC hearing – Thursday, April 23, 2015.

Letter blasting the administration of the 2015 Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon & Half Marathon.  Expect some fireworks here as event organizers attempt to shift the blame to Homeland Security Taskforce.

Letter to District Department of Transportation regarding lack of funding for ANC 6B’s 2014 Performance Parking Zone project awards.  A complaint about the failure on the part of DDOT and city officials to follow through on promised funding for community projects in return for regulations designed to increase city revenues through parking regulations.

Eastern Market Community Advisory Committee Report.  Maybe an update on the relocation on the weekend flea markets to 7^th Street, and how that process will unfold.

Hine Community Advisory Committee Report. Maybe a progress report on the remediation of the asbestos issue at Hine Jr. High and some additional insight on the timeline.

Monday, April 20

ANC 6A Transportation & Public Space Committee meets at 7:00pm at Capitol Hill Towers 900 G Street, NE.

Among items on the agenda:

DDOT’s second proposed rulemaking on “pocket” parks.

Update from DC Streetcar Team.

Request that DDOT move Linden Court to the top of its alley-repair list.

Parking and pedestrian safety issues at northwest corner of 14th Street NE and East Capitol Street NE.

Monday, April 20

ANC 6A Community Outreach Committee meets at 7:00pm, at Maury Elementary School, Multi-Purpose Room, 1250 Constitution Avenue, NE (Enter from 13th Street).

Among items on the agenda:

Grant Application Revision.

Grant Outreach Plan and Implementation Strategy.

Website – Review and Outreach Process.

Tuesday, April 21

ANC6A Alcoholic Beverage Licensing Committee meets at 7:00pm, Sherwood Recreation Center, 10th and G Streets, NE.

Among items on the agenda:

Discussion of request by Nomad Hookah Lounge at 1200 H Street, NE, to extend its public space patio hours and/or to remove the provision in its amended settlement agreement setting last call at least a half hour before the closing time of the patio.

Discussion of license renewal for 18th & D Liquors, Inc. t/a Master Liquors at 1806 D Street, NE.

Discussion of license renewal for 7 River, LLC t/a 7 River Mart at 250 11thStreet, NE.

Discussion of license renewal for Jumbo Liquors at 1122 H Street, NE

Discussion of license renewal for Myongwoo Inc. t/a Grand Liquors at 409 15th Street, NE.

Thursday, April 23

CSX will host the next open house meeting about the project feom 4:30 to 7:30pm at the Courtyard Marriott Hotel, 140 L Street S.E. There is no fixed agenda for the meeting, so visitors are welcome to stop by at their convenience to learn about the current status of the project. A free shuttle will operate between the Arthur Capper Senior Apartments (900 5th Street S.E.) and the Courtyard Marriott Hotel. For more information about the free shuttle service, or if you need special accommodations or language assistance services (translation or interpretation), please email VAT@CSX.com or call (800) 494-1049.

Saturday, April 25

PSA 106 Meets at 10:00am at the Capper Senior Apartments, 5th & Virginia Avenue, SE, with  Sgt. Pabrezi.

Mayor Bowser last Thursday night at ANC6A

The Mayor’s appearance sparked a heavy turnout – many among the crowd were parents concerned about school budget cuts

Bowser Responds to ANC6A Parents Asking Restoration of School Budget Cuts

by Larry Janezich

Last Thursday night, concerned parents in ANC6A  – some with children in tow – pleaded with  Mayor Bowser to restore $12 million in cuts from her education budget, citing neighborhood schools without sprinkling systems, doors on class rooms that do not lock, outdated video monitoring systems and deplorable bathroom conditions.  DC Board of Education Ward 6 representative Joe Weedon subsequently posted photos from Eliot Hine to Twitter to illustrate conditions.

Bowser replied that the city needs to finish modernization of schools which have already been started as well as construct new middle schools in Wards 5 and 7.  She said, “The city cannot modernize all schools at once.”  The question, she said, was one of priorities, with the top priority being to finish projects underway, then prioritize by utilization rate: “It can’t be ‘us not them’ – I don’t want the conversation to be about a tradeoff between schools.  We have to worry about all wards, not just six.”

She said she would be truthful regarding what we can do with the schools – “We can’t put school funding in the budget only to have to shift it in October“ [the end of the fiscal year].  She implied that the final decision would be up to the City Council:  “If City Council wants to move things around – I still would not support shifting money within the school system.  Maybe we don’t want $50 million to go to parks and instead put that into schools.”

Yesterday, Bowser toured Elliot-Hine School, cited by parents as badly needing upgrades, with her Deputy Mayor for Education, Councilmember Charles Allen, and some of the parents who raised the modernization issue at last Thursday night’s meeting.

Mayor Bowser, Councilmember Allen, Deputy Mayor for Education, and others tour Eliot Hine on Wednesday. Photo credit – Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education.

The NOVA Consort, This Evening at The Corner Store

The NOVA Consort, a newly formed ensemble that includes some of the area’s finest early music performers, presented music from Renaissance Italy, reprising a program first heard at the opening of the Piero de Cosimo exhibition at the National Gallery of Art.  Members of the consort are Barbara Hollinshead, mezzo-soprano; Robert Petillo, tenor; Tina Chancey, viola da gamba; Amy Domingues, viola da gamba; and Howard Bass, lute.

The Week Ahead……

by Larry Janezich

Monday, April 13

ANC 6D meets at 7:00pm, DCRA 2^nd Floor Meeting Room, 1100 4^th Street, SW.

Among items on the tentative agenda:

Public Safety Report – First District MPD (PSA 105 and 106).

Alcohol Beverage License Renewals for Cap Liquors and Shulman Liquors.

Recommendations to Alcohol Beverage Regulation Administration regarding pub crawls.

Buzzard Point L’Enfant Plan regarding proposed street closings.

Public Space Permit for paving, bike rack fixture and landscaping for 222 M Street, SW.

Tuesday, April 14

(ANC6B Postponed until April 20)

Tuesday, April 14

Public meeting at 6:30pm, Pilgrim AME Church, 612 17^th Street, NE, to discuss the “under 25 year” lease negotiated by the Deputy Mayor of Education for the Monument Academy Public Charter School slated to open at the Gibbs Elementary School, 500 19^th Street, NE.  In attendance:  CM Charles Allen, Yvette Alexander, Anita Bonds, David Grosso, Deputy Mayor of Education, Jennifer Niles, and Monument Academy Public Charter School reps. 

Wednesday, April 15

ANC6A Economic Development Committee meets at 7:00pm at Sherwood Recreation Center (640 10th St, NE).

Among items on the agenda:

Historic Preservation recommendation regarding two story rear addition at 224 9^th Street, NE.

Board of Zoning Adjustment recommendation regarding two story addition at 242 10^th Street, NE.

Letter to advise the Zoning Administrator of the use of a portion of a lot at 20 14th Street, NE, as a parking lot without appropriate approval.

Thursday, April 16

DC EMANCIPATION DAY:  DC GOVERNMENT WILL BE CLOSED.  No trash pick-up and no parking enforcement except at National’s Park and on H Street, NE. 

Friday, April 17

Open Stage at the Corner Store, 7:00pm – 8:00pm, 9^th and South Carolina Avenue, SE.

Open Stage is a Washington, DC based open mic event for theatre artists – providing writers and performers a “casual, intimate setting” to present new one acts or excerpts from longer plays in 10 minute segments. Contact Openstagedc@gmail.com for info/rsvp.

Sunday, April 19

Capitol Hill Seventh Day Adventist Church will hold a “Community Shred It” event to celebrate Earth Day 2015.  Residents may bring up to five boxes (paper ream size) of documents for confidential shredding.  9:00am – 12:00pm, 914 Massachusetts Avenue, NE.  Free. 

Fridge Director Alex Goldstein leads a discussion of the works of Rose Jaffe (center) on Saturday afternoon.  The presentation was signed by a colleague of Jaffe’s. 

Rose Jaffe:  Women in Color – Photo Essay from a Show at The Fridge

by Larry Janezich

The subject of the show is young women today – the women depicted are part of the artist’s creative community, her family, as well as Jaffe herself.   She says it’s important to her that all the women in the pieces in this show are part of her life.

The surface is wood and the medium is burned wood and paint.  The result is a synthesis of the synthetic and natural.  Jaffe imprints images of women on the wood instead of painting them on top of it.  She uses a wood burning tool for lining and then adds paint with a bold color palette evidently inspired by time spent in Latin America.  In some pieces she adds another layer of meaning and complexity with “sacred geometry.”

Jaffe says, “For these works, I want to explore color’s role in the mood, sensuality and purpose of a piece. I have changed a significant amount since moving home to Washington, DC, and these pieces reflect that transformation. This show aims to redefine color away from our skin tone. I look into our bodies, our energy, our movements, emotion and thoughts – to the potentially endless pulsing colors running in and around us – and bring those to the outside.”

On Saturday afternoon, The Fridge’s Director and the show’s curator Alex Goldstein, led a discussion of the artist’s work.

The show will continue through April 26.  There will be a closing reception Sunday, April 26, from 3:00pm until 6:00pm.  The Fridge is located at 516 ½ 8^th Street, SE (rear)

For more info, go here:   http://www.thefridgedc.com/about/

317 7th Street, SE, Slated to be the future home of Capitol Hill’s Second Bullfrog Bagels

Bullfrog Bagels to Open Shop Near Eastern Market

by Larry Janezich

Capitol Hill Corner has confirmed that Jeremiah Cohen, owner of Bullfrog Bagels at 1341 H Street, NE, will open a second bagel outlet at 317 7th Street (the Sheehy House), near Eastern Market.  The location, a former frame shop now owned by a group comprised of developer Ken Golding and his two sons, will need renovation – likely to last several months – before it’s ready for a new occupant.

Cohen told Capitol Hill Corner that he hopes to open in September and that the menu will be largely the same but will feature some new bagel and cream cheese flavors.  Cohen, the former general manager of Tabard Inn, opened the H Street location in September, 2014, featuring the shop’s signature New York–style bagels.  The menu for that location can be found here:  http://www.bullfrogbagels.com/#!menu/c3x0  The hours of operation for the Bullfrog Bagels on H Street are Tuesday – Sunday: 7:00 am – 1:00pm. Closed Mondays.  Bullfrog Bagels are also available elsewhere in the city, including The Coupe, Tryst, Open City, The Little Red Fox, and Room 11.

317 7th Street, The Sheehy House, was formerly “The Frame Up” – the studio, shop, art gallery and home of prolific artist Richard Sheehy, who died in February, 2014.  For more on the Goldings’ plan for development of Sheehy House, go here:  http://bit.ly/1lOTKr5

Editor’s Note:  After an initial plan anticipating outdoor storage for trash, the Golding group subsequently modified their proposed renovation for 317 7^th Street, SE, to provide for indoor trash storage.  ANC6B Commissioner Ivan Frishberg had this to say about indoor trash storage in his September, 2014 newsletter to his constituents:

“Restaurant News

Two big developments have conspired to create what I view as the new standard in Capitol Hill restaurants for the future: No, I am not talking about the national acclaim for Rose’s Luxury, but I am talking “Indoor Trash Containment.”

It doesn’t sound glamorous, but the best way to stop restaurants from creating havens for the rat population is how they manage their trash. If you look at the back of 8th street behind Cava and other restaurants you see an alley filled with trash and grease containers that, creates a playground of opportunity for rodents. If you look at the trash facility from Montmartre and District Taco you notice not much at all. The difference is having an internal rodent-proof space with temperature control and drainage to manage and store trash until it is hauled away. The difference on the cleanliness of the neighborhood is significant.

Two recent cases have suggested that this approach is now the new standard being set.  317 7th Street is a new space being likely created for restaurant use.   It is a small space, but working with the ANCand a few neighbors, the owners agreed to a system of inside trash storage. Similarly, in the case of the ANC and neighbors required extensive physical changes and operating conditions that are centered around indoor trash handling. The success in both of these cases (in two very different spaces) suggests that there is no reason this cannot be applied for any restaurant doing business in the area. Indeed, this idea was brought up by 7th street neighbors to Mayoral candidate Muriel Bowser who offered tentative support for this kind of approach after hearing that it was being used in Philadelphia and New York City.

We know we are going to have more restaurants and we know we are going to have to make them up their game so that they doesn’t create noise, odor and rat problems that are an obvious problem for the neighborhood. These two recent cases are more than just good outcomes, I believe they set a new standard.”

Wale Concert Sets Up (Virtually) In Neighbors’ Back Yards With No Notice

H Street Concert Easter Weekend Sparks Outcry From Irate H Street Neighbors

Lack of Notice, Poor Judgment Fit Larger Pattern of City’s Indifference

by Larry Janezich

It probably seemed to be a good idea to all concerned in the planning:  a secret, free concert on H Street Easter weekend where recording artist Wale could promote his new album. The organizers behind the event included Events DC and the partly city-funded* (see below) Washington, DC Economic Partnership, H Street Main Street, and &pizza among others.  WestMill Capital Partners provided the venue:  the Auto Zone Parking Lot on H Street between 11th and 12th.

Whatever good publicity Wale generated among his fans – many of whom appeared to be out of state and brought in by tour bus – the brief afternoon concert on Saturday came at expense of the nearby residents of H Street, a dynamic that fits a larger, disconcerting pattern whereby the city prioritizes business over the quality of life of city residents.

Residents of Linden Place, the block backing up to the parking lot, already feel under siege by an ongoing battle with the city over enforcement of rodent control and sanitation and access regulations in the abutting alley behind H Street, which includes restaurants and ongoing construction. (See photos below)

But on the Saturday afternoon before Easter, the quality of life for these residents near H Street sunk to unprecedented levels.

With absolutely no notice given to nearby residents, several thousand concert goers gathered in the lot on H Street. According to ANC6A Commissioner and Chair Phil Toomajian, no notice of the event was given to the ANC.  In response to complaining constituents, Toomajian said, “I too was disappointed to hear the loud noise from this event inside my own home 5 blocks away when I brought my newborn son home from the hospital this afternoon.”

The noise was disruptive to many, but even more offensive was the character of some of the lyrics the neighborhood was subjected to, which one poster to a local listserv described as follows:  “I was walking by and heard some of it. A lot of “n word this, n word that. Eat that puxxy! Fxck that bitch!” Not once in awhile but nonstop – every other word…Not appropriate music to blast in public.”

Respectfully setting aside the fact that, for many, when used in the specific context of modern rap, the n* word does not carry the offensive character that it does elsewhere, the remaining lyrics still raise questions about the judgment used in scheduling this event.  Any woman, any child, any person close to this location in the middle of the day on a holiday weekend heard lyrics which they would be well within reason to regard as offensive.

The concert started at 2pm and went until nearly 5:00pm.  After the concert, a large crowd, which some neighbors characterized as intoxicated, remained on the site until three vans of Metropolitan Police, called by a resident, arrived to disperse them.

Residents who complained to Councilmember Charles Allen and to Mayor Bowser’s office received the following reply from Allen:

“Thank you for adding me to this email chain. After getting your notes, I contacted Greg O’Dell, head of Events DC, this afternoon to let him know about the issues and complaints, as well as the lack of notice to neighbors and the ANC. He committed to me that he will have his staff review their event and get back to me with how they’ll change moving forward. They do not have another pop-up concert scheduled at this site (although they do apparently have one scheduled for Yards Park – which is probably a more appropriate venue to begin with given the weekly concert series already taking place there).  Thanks again and I’ll work with neighbors and the ANC on more follow-up.”

Allen did not raise the possibility of a fine or penalty of any kind for the poor handling of this event.  The debacle poses serious questions about how community norms relate to issues that affect the character of public and private space and what is the process by which such a discussion should be undertaken.  Also, as has come up repeatedly on this blog, just how much of a burden must nearby residents be forced to bear as the city encourages the development of commercial corridors devoted to restaurants and bars while maintaining a stony indifference how this development affects the quality of life of neighboring residents.

From Wikipedia:  “Olubowale Victor Akintimehin (born September 21, 1984), better known by his stage name Wale (/ˈwɔː leɪ/ wah-lay), is an American rapper from Washington, D.C.. He rose to prominence in 2006, when his song “Dig Dug (Shake It)” became popular in his hometown. Wale became locally recognized and continued recording music for the regional audience. Producer Mark Ronson discovered Wale in 2006 and signed him to Allido Records in 2007. While signed to that label, Wale released several mixtapes and appeared in national media including MTV and various black magazines.”  Wale performed at an event celebrating Mayor Bowser’s inaugural.

The City has provided token response to neighbor’s complaints about trash, rodent, and access issues in the alley behind Linden Place to seemingly little effect.

Rat Abatement Container and Food Waste In Alley Behind Smith Commons

Open Trash Containers Behind Smith Commons

* Washington, DC Economic Partnership, according to a representative, is in public/private partnership with the city. As a nonprofit organization, some of the initiatives are partially funded by city grants, but they are not wholly funded by this.