Alex Grieve, Ward 6 DC Urban Forestry Arborist, appeared before ANC6C’s virtual meeting of the Environment, Parks and Events Committee Tuesday night. Photo: Larry Janezich
Ward 6 Arborist Talks About Trees: DDOT Is Working to Clear Storm-downed Branches
by Hilary Russell
Alex Grieve, DC Urban Forestry Arborist in the northeast section of Ward 6, appeared before ANC6C’s Environment, Parks and Events Committee virtual meeting on Tuesday night to answer tree-related questions – coincidentally, just after Monday’s snowstorm. Grieve assured that DDOT contractors were busy clearing roads and sidewalks impinged by storm-damaged trees.
Grieve’s division, housed within the DC Department of Transportation (DDOT), is the primary steward of some 175,000 public trees that line the city’s streets and sidewalks. He inspects such areas and encourages emails from interested citizens who would like the Urban Forestry Division to come up with a remedial planting plan. He can be reached at alexander.grieve@dc.gov and at 202-671-5133, and welcomes communications from Capitol Hill residents on the following topics:
Tree boxes: Technically, a permit is required to plant a tree in a tree box – preferably a large tree that contributes to DC’s canopy. Neighbors are required to maintain tree boxes, but without disturbing tree roots or adding plants with thorns or those that grow taller than 18 inches. Call 311 to report a tree box that needs a tree or a tree box that could be enlarged, thereby contributing to less impervious pavement. Installing permeable material over a sidewalk tree’s bulging roots has similar impact, but DDOT’s Sidewalk Division, not Urban Forestry, handles such requests.
Watering of public trees: DDOT contractors plant trees and are responsible for watering and maintaining them for at least the first summer, while Casey Trees (the non-profit organization established in 2001 to restore, enhance, and protect the tree canopy of Washington) waters the trees they plant for the first three years. Urban Forestry works to hold their contractors to their warranties and encourages neighbors to water needy trees that are less than three years old. Mature public trees do not need to be watered.
Troubled trees. Urban Forestry limits treatments to Gingko trees (to prevent fruit) and to American Elm for Dutch Elm Disease. The division tracks outbreaks of other diseases, such as crepe myrtle bark scale, and can recommend resources, such as the hiring of an arborist or a University of Maryland extension agent. There is a database of trees marked for removal and their level of priority, but it does not include schedules.
The discussion touched on challenges posed by private developers in reaching the 40 percent goal for the city’s tree canopy. Grieve stated that the laws protecting current and heritage trees are difficult to implement and often the agency can’t protect private trees that obstruct a development plan. He also acknowledged the challenge of communicating across a department as large and complex as DDOT as well as a tangle of agencies that deal with trees, such as DC’s Department of Energy and the Environment and the National Park Service.
The city awoke to thundersnow and the sound of snapping tree branches.A shopper on 10th Street, SE, from North Carolina Avenue. The passing of the storm, circa 3:30pm, Eastern Market Metro Plaza Playground.The US Capitol Police closed the Capitol Grounds to sledding, citing concerns over falling branches. Crews cleared the East Front Plaza after Congress briefly convened to postpone business until tomorrow.The LOC’s Neptune Fountain.Hope springs eternal for those who patiently wait. Photo: Paris Suzzane SingerAnd patience is sometimes rewarded. Photo: Paris Suzzane SingerA skier returns home late afternoon – perhaps from the Mall where skiers head after a snowstorm. Maybe not one for the record books, but still….
On New Year’s Eve, the flags at the US Capitol were at half-staff in honor of former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-NV, who died on December 28. The cause of death was pancreatic cancer.On New Year’s Day, Neighborhood Firehouse Engine 8 at 1520 C Street, SE, distributed rapid Covid tests. People started lining up at 9am for the distribution which began at noon.Pupatella announced last September they were opening a new pizza restaurant at 3rd and Massachusetts Avenue, NE, in the former Romeo & Juliet’s. A look inside though suggests that the build-out is not going as rapidly as the owners might wish. They have five outlets locally, and here’s a link to the Dupont Circle restaurant’s menu: https://bit.ly/31mgIDyICYMI, here’s a shot of the holiday tree gracing the main hall at Union Station. And here’s a look at the lower level food court, in business, with tables separated by an appropriate distance. Here’s a shot of some street art on Constitution Avenue, NE, opposite the Dirksen Senate Office Building that’s been up for a while but which escaped CHC’s notice until now. The building appears to be in private hands. It’s the work of French artist “JR” and part of his “Inside Out Project” – which, according to the website – “… helps individuals and communities to make a statement by displaying large-scale black and white portraits in public spaces. Through their “Actions,” communities around the world have sparked collaborations and conversations.” One gets the feeling that placement, like timing, is everything. The portraits look into Senators’ office windows in the building across the street. See more here: https://www.insideoutproject.net/en/about#section-jr
The Week Ahead….
by Larry Janezich
Tuesday, January 4
ANC6B Planning and Zoning Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
1247 E Street, SE. Zoning Adjustment Application – Modification of Significance to include general retail, service, and office uses in addition to the restaurant use within an existing, semi-detached, two-story with cellar, apartment house. (This is the renovated building kitty corner from Peter Bug’s Shoe Academy at 12th and E Streets, SE.
Historic Landmark Nomination for The Seafarers Yacht Club, 1950 M Street, SE. Nominated by the owner – Seafarers Yacht Club – and DC Historic Preservation Office.
133 Kentucky Avenue, SE. Historic Preservation and Zoning Adjustment applications for Special Exception to construct a rear addition to an existing, attached, two-story principal dwelling unit.
751 10th Street, SE. Historic Preservation and Zoning Adjustment applications for Special Exception to construct a two-story rear addition and a two-story accessory garage, to an existing, semi-detached, two-story, principal dwelling unit.
310 9th Street, SE. Historic Preservation Application, Concept review for a proposal to build a rear addition to a row house not visible from street with no alley rear of property.
ANC6C Environment, Parks and Events Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
327 Constitution Avenue, NE. Historic Preservation Application for concept approval for second-story and attic addition to existing one-story rear portion of main row dwelling (two stories plus attic).
Proposed Zoning Commission rulemaking re parking and loading. In the wake of its October 18, 2021 hearing on the topic the Zoning Commission recently published proposed amendments to the regulations governing requirements for parking and loading.
Thursday, January 6
ANC6B Alcoholic Beverage Control Committee will hold a virtual meeting at 7:00pm.
518 E Street, NE. Public Space Application. The committee will revisit a public space construction permit application at which proposes to replace the existing leadwalk, retaining wall, and existing gate. The combined height of a fence and retaining wall may be no more than 42” tall. The fence must be at least 50% open.
Capitol Point North project) at 1st Street, NE & New York Avenue, NE. Public Space Application for approval of a temporary curb cut to facilitate parking/loading access in the event that the two phases of a certain mixed-use project at Square 671 are not constructed sequentially (i.e., Phase B is developed prior to Phase A). The proposed curb cut would be temporary, and the final construction – regardless of timing – would ultimately provide access from N Street NE for both phases of the project.
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The former Popeyes on Barracks Row after closure in early November. The former Barracks Row Popeyes today.
How the Barracks Row Popeyes Fell Through the Cracks at DC Department of Health
By Larry Janezich
Posted December 28, 2021
ANC6B invited the Food and Safety and Hygiene Division of the DC Department of Health to its December 14 meeting to talk about restaurant inspections. Ivory Cooper, Food Technologist at the DC Department of Health, gave a lengthy presentation on the DC food safety inspection process and FDA guidelines.
After the presentation, ANC6B Chair Brian Ready, referred to the “elephant in the room” – the early November closure of the Barracks Row Popeyes, not as the result of conditions discovered by DC Department of Health, but only after a video by a deliveryman showing a rampant rat infestation inside went viral on Tik Tok and Twitter. The now-closed restaurant was in Ready’s Single Member District and Ready asked Cooper how often his agency inspects restaurants.
Cooper said that the number of inspections is based on how at-risk the Department regards an establishment. Restaurants are ranked 1 through 5, and the intent, he said, is to inspect those in categories 4 and 5 four times a year, and those in categories 1 – 3, two or three times a year. He said, “We reach that benchmark in some cases,” and cited staff shortages as a reason they do not.
Ready said that the issue at the Barracks Row Popeyes was “not new” and had existed for some length of time and wondered if the restaurant had been inspected often enough. He noted that the restaurant had passed inspection and the public didn’t know what conditions were like until the video was aired. “What are you doing to make sure this doesn’t happen again?” he asked.
Cooper said, “We can only cite what we see – our ability to inspect has been limited by the pandemic and when that happens, a site can get out of control. The inspection is based on the moment we go in. It can be clean today and different tomorrow. We can only cite what we see when we’re there. We may miss things or when we go, there may not be a problem. Any time the public reports an issue, we respond within two business days. An inspection is only a snap shot – we are on site one to one and a half hours – five hours out of 365 days. A restaurant can get away with a lot.”
Commissioner Alison Horn asked if inspections are random and whether restaurants get advance notice of inspections. Cooper replied that inspections are random, but proximity of inspections at other places can be a tip off and so can timing – the knowledge that a restaurant will be inspected every four months.
ANC6B’s Executive Committee met last Tuesday night to set the agenda for the January meeting of the full ANC. A couple of things to watch – CM Charles Allen will update on the ANC redistricting process (and is likely to do so for all Ward 6 ANCs) plus, 6B – like the other Ward 6 ANCs will elect new officers in January. Watkins Elementary School was in the news twice last week. Last Wednesday, the Washington Post reported that a Watkins staffer who had previously been convicted of fraud in New Jersey had directed third graders to reenact Holocaust scenes while working as a librarian at the school. The Washington Teachers’ Union, according to the Post, said the librarian had been placed on paid leave pending an investigation. The next day, the Post reported MPD had been charged with the murder of a flag football player after a game on Watkins field in October. See here: https://wapo.st/3HeGSazStory Time Kidz announces the coming soon of a day care center at 1301 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE. See here: https://storytimekidz.com/Pizza Iola at 1123 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, has reopened under new management. Zoca & Crush, a Mexican restaurant owned by the same family that brought Harvest Tide Steak House to 7th Street, SE, will open at 319 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, in the former Stanton & Greene. The former bar is sporting a new coat of paint and a liqour license application placard, which will come up before ANC6B in January. The restaurant’s arrival has been expected, as previously repoerted by Eater DC. See here: https://bit.ly/3Jmv7Rj 319 Penn Ave SE was briefly contemplated as home for As You Are, a new LGBTQ, bar before the owner withdrew the offer to lease. As You Are now plans to open in the former District Soul Food on Barracks Row. Finally, The Fridge has some new paint, here…and here.
The Week Ahead…
by Larry Janezich
The last week of the year is a quiet one. The political and civic organizations which CHC regularly covers have no meetings scheduled.
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To Patronize Restaurants, Bars, Gyms, and Other Private Venues, Proof of Vaccination Must be Shown
Bowser to Impose City Wide Vaccine Requirement Effective January 15
by Larry Janezich
In a Situational Briefing today, Mayor Bowser said that on January 15, patrons of many indoor venues in DC will need to show proof of having received at least one corvid vaccination, and by February 15, two.
Venues include restaurants, bars, nightclubs, indoor cultural and entertainment facilities, indoor recreation and exercise facilities, and indoor event and meeting establishments. The requirement is for patrons and not staff – it is not an employer mandate.
Groceries and churches will be exempt. Additional information on exemptions will be forthcoming.
Mayor Bowser at today’s Situational Briefing at the Wilson Building.Case Rates in DC: Fully Vaccinated Vs. Unvaccinated. As transmission rates increase, unvaccinated people are being hospitalized and dying at staggering rates compared to the vaccinated.
Mayor Bowser announced the reinstatement at a scheduled 11:30am Situational Briefing on Monday. The Mayoral Order on the indoor mask mandate will begin at 6:30am on Tuesday and last until 6:00am on January 31, unless extended.
Other major points from the briefing are as follows:
Beginning Wednesday, December 22, DC Health will launch the Test Yourself Express program. Residents will be able to pick up free at-home rapid antigen COVID 19 testing kits (results in 15 minutes) at 8 libraries across DC (none on Capitol Hill). Libraries will be open six days a week (Monday – Saturday) to distribute 1,000 kits per library per day and more available as the supply increases. Residents can get two free rapid test kits per day. Each kit contains two tests. Proof of residency will be required. Libraries: Pleasant, West End, Cleveland Park, Petworth, Woodridge, Shaw, Capitol View, and Anacostia
100,000 Rapid Antigen tests are being distributed to DCPS and DC public charter schools, to be used to support a safe return from winter break. Every school will receive enough tests for every student, teacher and staff member. DC Public Schools will be closed on Monday, January 3 and Tuesday January 4 to allow time for staff and families to pick up and use tests before returning to in person instruction.
The Omicron variant currently accounts for less than 1% of cases in our region but is expected to increase over coming weeks. Sequencing to identify the virus looks back and takes up to 10 days.
64.9% of DC residents have received two doses of the vaccine – up from 63% one month earlier.
Residents can continue to access free PCR (results in 1.5 days) at sites across the city including 8 firehouses one of which is Engine 8 at 1520 C Street, SE. Hours: Tuesday & Thursday 2:30pm – 7:30pm and Saturday 12:00pm – 400pm. Nine additional Test Yourself DC pick up and drop off sites open at noon today, for a total of 36 sites, including Southeast Library at 403 7th Street, SE, and Northeast Library at 330 7th Street NE.
All employees, contractors, interns, and grantees of DC Government must be fully vaccinated against COVID 19 and must have a booster. No test out option. Specific deadline to be announced.
New COVID Testing & Vaccination Centers will begin coming online in the second half of January with the goal of one center per ward.
Down to the Wire: Rosedale and Hill East Fight Ward 7 Annexation
by Larry Janezich
Posted December 20, 2021
Tomorrow, the DC Council will hold a final vote on the Ward Redistricting map. Residents of ANC6A in Rosedale and north Hill East have mounted a last ditch effort to sway the Council against extending Ward 7 boundaries to include these two neighborhoods.
A petition circulating in ANC6A against the move declares, “We do not want to be pushed out of Ward 6.” The petition states, in part:
In November 2021, after nearly a dozen public hearings and receiving extensive public input, the Redistricting Subcommittee produced a map that preserved Rosedale in Ward 6 to avoid the racial segregation. But Chairman Phil Mendelson arbitrarily rejected that proposal and sent a new map to the full Council to move Rosedale to Ward 7. We cannot let this happen.
Ward 6 is already experiencing massive gentrification, and Ward 7 is already approximately 95% Black. Moving Rosedale to Ward 7 is yet another boost to gentrification. We urge you to contact Councilmembers today – in particular, Charles Allen, Christina Henderson, Elissa Silverman, and Anita Bonds. Impress upon them that you oppose moving Rosedale to Ward 7 because it politically disenfranchises our community.
You still have time to tell the Council you support the ANC’s request, or another approach to redistricting if you do not agree with the “final” map.
ANC6A Commissioner Sondra Phillips-Gilbert, a long time outspoken opponent of extending Ward 7 to Rosedale, said of the upcoming vote:
“Rosedale should remain in Ward 6 to maintain the “Racial Equity” (Black Electoral Vote and Voice) of one of the largest and oldest Black communities on Capitol Hill. Placing Rosedale in Ward 7 will not add “Economic Equity,” but will disenfranchise 69% of the black vote, or 79 % of the total non-white population in my Single Member District. Based on “CORE’s Racial Equity Assessment Report” Bill 24-0371 will likely exacerbate racial inequity in the District of Columbia. The Redistricting Committee further agreed to preserve “Racial Equity” by keeping the Rosedale Community in Ward 6 in their final report.
Forcing Rosedale out of Ward 6 is not legally justifiable (given that the redistricting legal thresholds do not require this displacement). Chair Mendelson used his prerogative to make deals to slip in his map without any public scrutiny, while our elected leadership on all levels watched it happen. This is the question I would like to leave with our elected officials whom will vote on Tuesday, December 21st. How can you advocate becoming the 51st state in the Union, while you’re in the business of “disenfranchising and gerrymandering “a poor and disadvantaged Black Community in our Nation’s Capital?
In Hill East, former ANC6B commissioner Francis Campbell said residents were unhappy about extending Ward 7 boundaries to include them. “Many feel,” Campbell said, “that CM Charles Allen didn’t fight hard enough to keep Hill East in Ward 6.” Hill East south of East Capitol is caught in a hard place – resentful they had no voice in the development of Ward 7’s Reservation 13 despite being the neighborhood most affected, and still wanting their closely knit community to remain with the Ward with which they most identify.
Barracks Row Kaiju Ramen at 525 8th Street, SE, opened in early December. The restaurant specializes in authentic Japanese ramen – wheat-flour Japanese noodles in broth. You can scroll down on their FB posts to find their current menu. https://bit.ly/33KGGBt … and check out this night-time video of the interior, also from their FB page: https://bit.ly/32gumIo Photo: Kaiju Ramen
The Havana Tobacco Mart Smoke Shop at 607 Pennsylvania Avenue is open, marketing cigars, hookah products, CBD, Kratom, and Delta 8.
Here’s a photo inside. Barred in DC reports the permanent closure of Tortilla Coast, cattycorner from the Capitol South Metro stop. Their last day was Saturday, December 18. They have been at the current location since 1996. See here: https://barredindc.com/Barred in DC also reports that Cava Mezze on Barracks Row closed permanently on Sunday, November 28th. It opened in 2009. https://barredindc.com/ Photo: Cava Barry Margeson, DGS Eastern Market Manager, released Eastern Market’s schedule for December earlier this month. Here’s the schedule for the next two weeks. Here’s a shot of the US Capitol’s holiday tree, looking down the Mall. Happy Holidays from Capitol Hill Corner.
The Week Ahead…and Some Photos from the Past Week
Tuesday, December 21
ANC6B’s Executive Committee holds a virtual meeting at 7:00pm to set the agenda for the January meeting of the full ANC.
CAPITOL HILL CORNER 