Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6E held its monthly meeting for May 2022 on Tuesday evening, May 3. Commission Chair Michael Eichler (6E01) called the meeting to order with Alex Lopez (6E02, secretary), Frank Wiggins (6E03, treasurer), Rachelle Nigro (6E04, vice chair), Patrick Parlej (6E05), Denise Blackson (6E06) and Kevin Rogers (6E07) in attendance.
Police Service Area (PSA) Reports
Lieut. Doinigian of the First Police District reported an armed carjacking on the 1000 block of Fifth Street, April 8. The perpetrator fired a gun at the victim, behavior that matched a pattern from previous incidents. At the edge of 1D there was an assault at Seventh Street and Massachusetts Avenue, where a phone was taken. Evidence should help to resolve the case. The lieutenant concluded that the crime trend in 1D was stabilizing and starting to decline.
Doinigian added that demonstrations at the Supreme Court may take more of the First District’s resources. Parlej said that he was pleased to see the Mount Vernon area return to normal. He had recently participated in a productive walkthrough of the area with the police.
Lieut. Daee announced that the Third District had a new commander, James Boteler. Nigro asked if there was a shooting at the Second Northwest Co-Op, Saturday night. Daee reported that an apartment window was shot out, along with a window in a parked automobile. Nigro also noted that her area has a problem with packs of all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), which are illegal to ride on District streets and cause noise and chaos. The lieutenant replied that ATV incidents can be texted to the police. He noted that the police have a no-chase rule for ATVs, but that any information gathered can be used to apprehend violators.
Alcoholic Beverage Licensing Committee (ABC)
Alexander Padro, ABC chair, noted that the Alcoholic Beverage Regulatory Agency (ABRA) was renewing licenses by class, so this year all the renewals will be for restaurants. The following restaurants were seeking support for licenses.
Chaplin’s, 1501 Ninth St. NW. A Class C Restaurant license with a sidewalk cafe, it had no violations recorded in the last two years. Motion to support renewal passed unanimously.
Zeppelin, 1514 Ninth St. NW. The committee recommended supporting renewal; motion to support passed the ANC.
Communal Restaurant, 919 Fifth St. NW. The proprietor did attend the ANC meeting and spoke briefly on his request. Parlej said the restaurant was a good neighbor in Mount Vernon and he moved to support the renewal, which passed unanimously.
Stellina, 508 K St. NW. Parlej said that he had no problem with the application. Stellina’s owner noted at the ANC meeting that they had just opened that night. Parlej made a motion to support the license, which passed unanimously.
Busboys and Poets, 450 K St. NW. No violations reported. Motion to support renewal passed.
Giant, 1400 Eighth St. NW. Renewal of a Class D restaurant license for an area in a corner of the grocery, no previous violations. Motion to support the renewal passed.
AC Hotel, 601 K St. NW. Class C Hotel license for a club on the roof. Padro said there had been noise complaints associated with the club and that the proprietors had adequately addressed them before the ANC meeting. The ABC suggested protesting the license. Parlej noted that the hotel had promised to meet conditions to get the license but had not fulfilled them all yet. He suggested protesting the license renewal until the ANC could work out a settlement agreement with the club. He presented a draft letter to ABRA protesting the renewal, on the presumption that the protest would be withdrawn once a settlement agreement was completed. The commission passed a motion to protest.
Pearl’s Bagels, 1017 Seventh St. NW. No recorded violations, ABC supported renewal. Nigro made a motion, which passed, to support the license renewal.
RPM, 650 K St. NW. Its investigative history has issues but they are largely administrative. The committee recommended supporting the renewal. Parlej made a motion to support renewal that passed.
Rumi’s Kitchen, 655 New York Ave. NW. Padro said that the renewal may be delayed because the ABRA placard contained an error. Nigro moved to support the license renewal, which passed.
Transportation Advisory Committee (TAC)
The TAC requested the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) to establish automated enforcement of pickup, dropoff (PUDO) zones on the 400 block of K Street. Parlej stated that the idea came about during a walkthrough of the area with DDOT. He had drafted a letter to DDOT requesting a pilot program to improve enforcement of PUDO zones. The commission approved the letter.
The TAC considered a notice of intent (NOI) from DDOT to establish a commercial loading zone on Fifth Street for the Mount Vernon Safeway. Currently, if the store’s loading docks are occupied, trucks line up along Fifth Street and impede traffic. A loading zone would allow them to park on the street until they could unload. Parlej said he had trouble with the proposal and that residents to whom he presented the NOI thought it would create more congestion and noise on Fifth Street. Parlej suggested either opening the Safeway loading docks earlier or putting one on Four-and-a-Half Street. His motion to oppose the NOI passed by a vote of 7-0.
Another NOI considered was to change the bus stops in the Mount Vernon area to address changes in routes. The commission decided unanimously to support the NOI.
The TAC considered a third proposal to establish a bike lane along New Jersey Avenue up to Rhode Island Avenue. This portion of New Jersey Avenue has allegedly had more crashes than any other part of the ANC. The proposal called for reducing the avenue from two lanes to one lane of traffic, adding a protected bike lane. Nigro said that some commissioners in Ward 5, east of New Jersey Avenue, were concerned about the project. She had heard that it would reduce parking spaces up to 70%. A member of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association commented that the project could accommodate current traffic while being safer. Lopez, TAC chair, made a motion to support the NOI. The motion passed, five yes, one no, one abstention.
ANC 6E will hold its next meeting on Tuesday, June 7, at 6:30 p.m. Plans are to hold this meeting as a virtual conference. Visit www.anc6e.org for more information.
