The April 10 meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6B was transacted in a record-setting one hour and six minutes, much of the business having been resolved in committee and placed on the consent agenda.
The quorum: Jennifer Samolyk (6B01), James Loots (6B03, parliamentarian), Kirsten Oldenburg (6B04, secretary), Steve Hagedorn (6B05), Nick Burger (6B06, treasurer), Chander Jayaraman (6B08, vice chair), Daniel Ridge (6B09, chair) and Denise Krepp (6B10). Jerry Sroufe (6B02) and Kelly Waud (6B07), who were sworn in during the previous week, attended their first meeting as commissioners.
Presentation Rescheduled
A presentation by Councilmember Anita Bonds (D-At Large) will be rescheduled for a later date.
Community Speak Out
Kelly Joeng, Ward 6 liaison for the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations, appeared to announce that the groundbreaking ceremony for the F1 and G1 parcels of Reservation 13, previously anticipated by the end of the first quarter of this year, will take place at 11 a.m. on May 2 at the corner of 19th and C streets SE.
Commissioner Announcements
Oldenburg announced that she had testified before two DC Council budget oversight meetings. In her capacity as Transportation Committee Chair she testified concerning the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), requesting that the DC Council assign $10 million in fiscal year 2019 for construction at the intersection of Potomac and Pennsylvania avenues with 15th Street SE. She also testified for her single-member district at a later hearing in regard to the Department of Parks and Recreation budget, requesting $100,000 for completion of the Virginia Avenue Triangle Parks.
Burger noted that he was the final person to testify at the marathon hearing on the Framework Element of the Comprehensive Plan, presenting the letter approved at the March meeting of ANC 6B at around 2:45 a.m.
Loots announced that Paul Pascal had passed away on April 9. In addition to being a community leader, Pascal was a neighborhood lawyer for more than 40 years and was a driving force behind the creation of the Capitol Hill Business Improvement District (BID), which he later chaired. Loots said he was “personally sorry to hear this news. I counted Paul as a friend and a colleague and I’m certain he will be missed in this community.”
A long-time resident noted that Pascal had been born and raised on the Hill, having played in the Boys and Girls Club band in the 1950s and 1960s. “He was somebody very special,” she said.
Alcohol and Beverage Committee
Jayaraman, chair of the Alcohol and Beverage Committee (ABC), noted there was no business for consideration by the full ANC, but drew attention to two cases that had been approved by the committee. At the request of customers, Torai Grill & Sushi (751 Eighth St. SE) sought support for a Class D Restaurant License. Noting no previous issues with the establishment, the committee fully supported a stipulated license.
Jayaraman also drew attention to the application for an entertainment endorsement from Trusty’s Bar (1420 Pennsylvania Ave. SE) for live entertainment inside the premises and outside in a summer garden. The committee supported the application for indoor entertainment to conclude by 2 a.m., Sunday through Thursday, and by 3 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, but limited entertainment hours outside to midnight on Sunday through Thursday and 1 a.m. on Friday and Saturday, pending a signed stipulated agreement.
Hill East Task Force
Hill East Task Force Chair Krepp said that multiple accidents on Hill East had precipitated a request for DDOT to do a traffic-calming study. A proposal was presented by DDOT representatives at the April 2 committee meeting. Some changes could be implemented immediately, while others required DDOT to issue a notice of intent (NOI), lengthening the process of implementation.
Krepp presented a motion for ANC 6B to approve a resolution requesting that DDOT start the work not requiring an NOI. Work requiring an NOI will be the subject of additional discussion at later meetings.
After some discussion on the merits of flexi-posts versus four-way stop signs, the resolution was supported, 8-1-1, with Oldenburg dissenting and Waud abstaining.
Eastern Market Community Advisory Committee
Jayaraman, the ANC 6B representative to the Eastern Market Community Advisory Committee (EMCAC), noted that EMCAC Chair Donna Scheeder had testified at the budget oversight meeting for the Department of General Services (DGS), which manages Eastern Market, where she asked how the income generated by Eastern Market was disposed of. DGS subsequently produced an expenditure report which revealed that the market income was higher than anticipated, Jayaraman said. The next step was for EMCAC to meet with DGS and discuss a breakdown of expenditures and how they were assigned in terms of staffing and operating costs versus the capital budget.
He added that DGS wanted to issue a request for proposals (RFP) in regard to management of Eastern Market public space, as it was required to find a third party to act in that role, but that EMCAC had requested more time to enable community stakeholders to provide input. On April 10, the day of the ANC meeting, EMCAC sent DGS a process to follow in the development of the RFP.
The next meeting of ANC 6B will take place at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 8, at the Hill Center at the Old Naval Hospital (921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE). Visit www.anc6b.org for more information.
