Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 2G held its monthly meeting on July 13. Commission Chair Alexander M. “Alex” Padro (2G02) called the meeting to order. Commissioners Anthony “Tony” Brown (2G01, Treasurer), Steven McCarty (2G04, Secretary), Sheena Berry (2G05) and Rachelle P. Nigro (2G06, Vice Chair) were in attendance. ANC 2G03 is currently vacant.
Resolutions on Parking and Noise
Commissioner McCarty developed two resolutions on issues that affected his single member district, as well as other areas, that he wanted the commission to pass. To start, he noted that there was a lot of illegal parking in the alleyways. His first resolution urges the Department of Public Works to enforce current rules prohibiting parking in District alleys.
The second resolution wants the District to address the issue of noise from deliveries. McCarty’s resolution would ask the Council Committee on Public Works and Operations to add deliveries to the District’s Noise Control Act. Both resolutions passed unanimously.
Alcoholic Beverage Licensing Committee (ABC)
1547 Seventh Street, Ambar Shaw. Commissioner Padro announced that the commission had completed a settlement agreement with Ambar Shaw. The agreement includes specifics on the opening of windows and the retractable roof and the timing of deliveries. Trash pickup is restricted from 9:00 p.m. to 8 a.m.
The ANC 2G seat for Ambar’s single member district is currently vacant, so Padro made a motion to accept the settlement agreement with Ambar and withdraw the ANC’s protest of its license renewal and entertainment endorsement application. The motion was approved unanimously.
Foster House Apartments
Commissioner Brown introduced a resolution on the redevelopment of the Foster House Apartments, which is in his single member district. He characterized the current redevelopment of the building as being mired in controversy. Brown explained that the apartments were built by New Bethel Baptist Church after the 1968 riots to provide affordable housing for Shaw. Reverend Dexter Nutall, the pastor of New Bethel church, explained further that as the building and its systems outlived their useful life, they looked to redevelop the property to preserve its role as a source of affordable housing in the neighborhood.
Some of the tenants sued to block the development. Then the DC Office of the Attorney General sued to put the building under receivership. It is currently under four receivership orders. New Bethel would still like to develop the building, which would provide a mixture of market rate and affordable units to the community.
Commissioner Nigro noted the number of lawsuits involving the building. She asked how many residents are still in the building; answer: 34. Nigro wondered if an ANC resolution would help the situation. She said she needed to have more information about the matter.
After Brown read the text of the resolution, he concluded that the commission was not ready to act on the matter. He decided to table the resolution until the September ANC meeting.
Shaw Community Center
A resolution was introduced to support the inclusion of the Shaw Community Center in the redevelopment plans for Lincoln Temple. Sudi West, Executive Director of the center, explained that it was founded 33 years ago to provide support services to Shaw neighborhood residents. It currently serves about 200 families.
The center wanted a resolution to show the ANCs support for keeping the Shaw Community Center at the Lincoln Temple building. Since the church closed, the United Church of Christ has aimed to redevelop the property. However, the center has not been informed of what the plans for the development are, or if they will include the Shaw Community Center. There are no alternate suitable spaces for the center within walking distance of their current location.
Commissioner Brown read the resolution supporting keeping the Shaw Community Center at Lincoln Temple. The resolution passed 4-0-1.
ANC 2G Special Election
Commissioner Padro announced that the Special Election to fill the ANC 2G03 seat would take place on Thursday, August 3. It will be a hybrid ANC meeting with a physical presence at the Shaw library, as well as allowing some commissioners to participate remotely. The election will start at 3:30 p.m. The commission will stay in session until after the election closes at 7:30 p.m. There must be at least two ANC 2G commissioners physically present in the room during the election.
When the voting closes, the OANC will count the votes and declare a winner. Then ANC 2G has to pass a resolution to the Board of Elections, informing the board who the winner is and that the seat is no longer vacant. The winner of the election must be sworn into office by the Ward 2 councilmember before they can take the seat.
Commissioner Berry asked exactly where the special election would take place. Padro said it would be in Meeting Room One of the Watha T. Daniel Library. He mentioned that he tried to get the Kennedy Recreation Center as a venue, but they said they could not accommodate the commission. Commissioner Nigro asked why the vote had to start at 3:30. Padro said that the rules for special elections had changed, and that voting had to be conducted for four hours. Berry asked if there would be a notice of the special election on the ANC website. Padro answered that in addition to the website posting, the ANC would mail out post card notices of the election to all registered voters in ANC 2G03.
Transportation Committee Chair
The vacancy left by Alex Lopez, ANC 2G03, meant that the position of Transportation Committee Chair was also open. Commissioner Berry volunteered to take on the position. A motion to make Berry chair of the Transportation Committee passed unanimously.
The next meeting of ANC 2G will be a special meeting scheduled for Thursday, August 3. The meeting will start at 3:00 p.m., at the Watha T. Daniel/Shaw Library. Plans are to hold this meeting as a hybrid physical/virtual conference. Visit www.anc2g.org for more information.
