Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6A met via Zoom on Nov. 13 with Dave Wethington (6A05) presiding. Commissioners Amber Gove (6A04, vice chair), Roberta Shapiro (6A03, treasurer), Jeff Giertz (6A06, secretary), Paul Spires (6A01) and Stephen Kolb (6A07) were in attendance. The 6A02 seat remains vacant; former Commissioner Mike Velasquez participated as chair of the ANC Alcohol Beverage and Cannabis Committee.
The commission spent much of the meeting discussing results of a survey conducted by Shapiro on Sherwood Recreation Center (640 10th St. NE), a topic that Shapiro said generates more constituent email than almost any other.
According to Shapiro, the ANC received 289 household responses representing 988 people, 98% of whom live within a mile of Sherwood and 71% within a half-mile ‒ “people who really have an opportunity to use the facility,” she noted. Yet roughly two-thirds said they either never use or do not use the indoor facilities. When asked why, respondents cited lack of awareness of programs, lack of offerings that interest them and concerns about cleanliness, maintenance and safety. Those concerns were echoed across dozens of narrative comments.
Outdoor amenities such as the playground, track, field, basketball and tennis courts are used more broadly. But more than half of respondents said they receive no communication from DPR about programming at Sherwood.
Ratings of the center’s performance were largely negative. Only 14% rated programming as “good,” Shapiro said. Equipment earned a “good” rating from 23% of respondents, maintenance and cleanliness from 25%. While programming was the worst rated aspect, residents expressed strong interest in having more of it, including preschool activities, adult exercise classes and school-aged sports, among others.
The survey also asked how to spend roughly $4 million set aside in the FY26 DC capital budget for Sherwood improvements. Half of respondents said they’d like to see a kids’ splash park similar to the water feature at Eastern Market Metro Plaza; about a quarter expressed interest in community gardens.
Shapiro shared the survey with Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen’s office, Sherwood site director Robert Robinson, DPR staff and the Department of General Services (DGS). She emphasized the need for “real effort to engage the community” before capital dollars are spent, adding that DPR staff have promised community engagement but are “behind schedule.”
There are some early signs of change. Sherwood staff are taking training to offer a Tiny Tots preschool program starting as early as January, Shapiro reported. Commissioners discussed next steps, including using the data in testimony at DPR’s performance oversight hearing and a Dec. 3 DC Council hearing on Allen’s bill to expand rec center hours, potentially including Sundays. There was no vote on the matter.
ABC Committee: Proper Exotic Protest Updated
ANC 6A Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis (ABC) Committee chair Mike Velasquez presented an update to the October ANC letter to the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA), protesting a medical cannabis dispensary license application from Proper Exotic at 313 Eighth St. NE.
ABCA adopted new rulemaking on medical cannabis licenses as of Oct. 22, Velasquez said. The new rules expand “appropriateness standards” for cannabis facilities, including factors such as good order and safety. They also note the effect of proximity to preschools, libraries and similar facilities.
Given Proper Exotic’s proposed location near Petit Scholars and other child-serving uses on Eighth Street NE, Velasquez proposed the ANC revise its letter to “take advantage of the new appropriateness standards,” before the Dec. 19 protest hearing. ANC 6A has long argued that public comment on cannabis licenses should be treated similarly to alcohol cases, he noted. While the law was not changed, “the rules were” in ways that align with the ANC’s earlier letters to ABCA and to Councilmember Charles Allen (D-Ward 6).
The commission approved the revised protest letter unanimously on the consent calendar. Allen’s staffer Erik Salmi thanked ANC 6A for “trying to bring some order” to medical dispensary siting and said the councilmember is drafting legislation to address loopholes, though he cautioned that new limits may face challenges on council.
On consent, the commission voted to:
- support a Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) application one-year order extension for Salvation Arts LLC’s six-story, 30-unit, mixed-use project at 1371-1375 H St. NE;
- support a BZA application including special exceptions for rear-yard and lot-occupancy relief at 1332 Corbin Place NE. The applicant wants to construct a third story and a three-story-with-basement rear addition to an attached two-story with basement;
- request the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and WMATA to replace the H Street streetcar, set to end service in March 2026, earlier than expected;
- write to DDOT requesting priority for “easy win” protected bike lanes in and around ANC 6A under the Strategic Bikeways Plan.
In other business, the ANC formally appointed Lorena Gill as a new member of the Community Outreach Committee.
ANC 6A generally meets at 7 p.m. on the second Thursday of each month. The next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 11. Find agendas, minutes and login information at www.anc6a.org.
