Happy April! I hope you’ve had a pleasant reintroduction to the 4 seasons of springtime in DC.
In this update:
Commission Updates
We passed a boatload of resolutions at March’s meeting. You can check out the full set on our website, but some highlights:
- We requested a speed hump for the 2800 block of 6th St NE. This was requested by neighbors there, and we reinforced it. DDOT’s TSI v2.0, the process by which neighbors can request improvements to the streetscape, limits what mitigations can be installed, and where. There are some roads in our SMD that folks have requested be improved, but unfortunately they not eligible under DDOT’s criteria. What we’ve seen, however, is that they occasionally bend the rules based on ANC feedback. If you have a TSI, please reach out and I’ll work with you to get a resolution up for a vote.
- We supported Monroe Street Market’s request to redistribute residential and retail parking between their 3 parking garages. This part of their ongoing effort to attract a grocer to Edgewood. I’ll touch on this in the Neighborhood Updates section.
- We voted to ask the Mayor and Council to take immediate action to fix the ongoing OSSE bussing issue that is impacting families with special needs children across the city. I’ve already heard back from Councilperson Parker that they’re working on it.
- I was elected as the chair of our Transportation And Public Spaces committee. More on this below .
Committee Meetings
- The Public Safety, Health, and Community Engagement Committee will be held on Wednesday, April 12 from 7:00p-8:30p at Tanner Park. If weather is under 50F or raining/inclement, meeting will be located at 224 V ST NE, Washington, DC, 20002. See what’s on the agenda.
Neighborhood Updates
A Possible Grocer at Monroe Street Market
As you’ve probably seen on local social media, the owners of Monroe Street Market (MSM) development have publicly shared that they’re currently in negotiation with a national grocery chain to lease most (if not all) the retail space on the ground floor of The Everton building at 701 Monroe Street NE.
As part of their original regulatory application, MSM had allocated a certain number of retail parking across all 3 of their parking garages. This prospective grocer wants all of them. To that end, they are requesting the city allow them to treat their parking garages as a single pool of parking spots, and move most of their retail spaces to The Everton’s garage.
A concern I had going into my meeting with the owners of MSM was the impact on current residents of The Everton. They provided me with three important points:
- As the majority of their tenants are CUA students, their residential parking in the building is drastically underutilized.
- It would take over a year for a potential grocer to open (meaning no existing leases would be impacted).
- If any current residents are impacted, the landlord would allow them to park in an adjacent building’s parking garage and cut them a deal for the inconvenience.
With these responses, I felt comfortable supporting their efforts. Collectively, ANC 5F felt similarly, and we passed a unanimous resolution saying as much.
While this is an exciting possibility for the community, I encourage everyone to temper their expectations. This isn’t a done deal. The MSM owners have been trying for almost a decade to land a grocer for this space. What’s important for us in Edgewood is to ensure our neighborhood is a place where people want to live, and amenities like this want to operate. To make that more likely, we need to continue to increase density by adding housing, as well as investing in ways for folks to travel to Edgewood. We’re immensely fortunate to have two accessible Metrorail stations, several intersecting bus lines, and the Metropolitan Branch Trail. The foundation is there, let’s build on it.
Sunbelt Rental Action!
If you’ve spent any time on 8th Street NE, you’ve probably encountered industrial vehicles illegally parked in the northbound traffic lane between Hamlin and Irving. These green trucks are property of an adjoining equipment rental business, Sunbelt Rentals. Numerous folks, myself included, have asked the city to do something as the road is too narrow to support them parked there (traffic cannot pass without crossing the median). This week Councilperson Parker’s office stepped in.
Armed with resident complaints, and some additional context and points from me, his team met with their manager. Read about their visit here. tl;dr: it was a success, and these vehicles will be gone by the summer. I personally wish it would be sooner, but this is messy pace of progress.
(repeat) Road Paving on Lawrence
(A repeat from last month) Sometime over the next few months, DDOT will repave Lawrence Street between 8th and 7th streets. Special no parking signs will go up 3 days prior to repaving, so please keep your eyes peeled if you park on that block.
Transportation And Public Spaces committee
As the first chair of the Transportation And Public Spaces committee (TAPS), I’ll be working with other commissioners to find interested residents from the commission area to serve on the committee.
The committee may advise the Commission on issues relating to public space permit applications, issues relating to the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), or other public transportation or public space related proposals, including:
- Hearing from public space permit applicants and making recommendations for support or disapproval of the permit application.
- Developing transportation and public space related letters and resolutions for the Commission’s consideration.
If you’re interested in joining, please fill out our survey and let me know!