Monday, May 18, 2015
Bloomingdale Civic Association Meeting
St. George’s Episcopal Church, 160 U Street NW
Board member attendees: Teri Janine Quinn, Austin Pearl, Sherry Howard, Derrick Jones, Bertha Holliday, Robert Brannum, Serita Sanders
Meeting opened at 7:01 pm. The board members present were introduced.
Public Safety (MPD 5D Update)
Sergeant Ellis of PSA 502 introduced Officer Dennis of PSA 501. Sgt. Ellis reviewed the recent PSA 501 crimes, focusing upon five Thefts From Autos. He encouraged residents to keep items out of view in their cars. Officer Dennis said that he has flyers regarding neighborhood burglaries. A burglary person of interest has been identified. Officer Dennis suggests that when leaving your houses, check to look around on the block and call MPD if you see something suspicious. Sgt. Ellis suggests when walking alone to keep your cell phones out of view. It was noted that an unlocked bicycle was stolen within the past 15 days from a porch. Officer Dennis commented that MPD asks people who hang out at the BP Amoco station to move along. Sergeant Ellis had no update on last week’s homicide along North Capitol Street NE.
Preparing for Summer Heat Forum
Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (Dr. Roger Mitchell)
Dr. Roger Mitchell, DC Chief Medical Examiner, briefly spoke. He said that he took over the office about a year ago. He described his office’s responsibilities. All cremation requests must be approved by his office and costs $75. He self-identified as an elder-abuse expert. He described the five manners of death that his office addresses -– accident, homicide, suicide, natural and undetermined. The Chief Medical Examiner’s responsibilities include mass fatalities, such as the Navy Yard shootings. All five death types must go to his office. Out of the 250 accident al deaths, about 120 of them are drug overdoses – mostly from opiates, including heroin. Dr. Mitchell noted that the heroin users in DC tend to be long-time heroin users in their 50s’s and older. His office also performs surveillance of the five types of death, etc. He mentioned the DC Office of Aging’s fall prevention campaign. He stressed the importance of de-hoarding the homes of some homes of the elderly. Age-Friendly DC has a fall prevention campaign. Ms. Quinn asked about any deaths arising from synthetic drug use. He said that there have been two deaths. His office is now testing for synthetic cannabinoids, but not bath salts yet.
Death certificates – he is the Chair of the Deaths-in-Custody of the National Association of Medical Examiners. It is important that medical examiners organizationally do not report to the police department. DC has a good record of deaths in custody. It is not known how many US deaths are deaths-in-custody. He suggested that a multidisciplinary approach to violence is key. He is working to get a checkbox to the death certificate for public health reporting purposes. He made a few copies of his office’s annual reports available. OCME website has the reports.
Brown Outs/Cooling Centers
Sarah Case-Herron and Ed Gilmore from DC Homeland Security and Emergency Management (HSEMA) made a presentation on HSEMA’s goals and services. It was noted that Robert Brannum is a HSEMA Community Outreach participant. Ms. Case-Herron had handouts on spring and summer storms. Mr. Gilmore discussed community preparedness – get informed, make a plan, make an emergency kit and be aware. He described the HSEMA app which is customizable for your specific neighborhood. He displayed a list of DC emergency telephone numbers, including 911. He discussed senior and emergency preparedness. He mentioned Smart911.
The discussion then migrated to blackouts and brownouts. Mr. Gilmore described what people should do before, during and after a blackout or brownout. Similarly, he talked about preparing for extreme heat, which is declared when the heat index reaches above 94 degrees. Three DC public libraries and a pool are available as cooling centers for Bloomingdale.
Community Updates/Information
ANXO Information Presentation
Sam Fitz and chef Brad Walker have applied for a winery license both locally and federally. The ANXO tavern-class liquor license has been placarded and the ABRA hearing is in June 2015. Ms. Quinn said that the outdoor seating specified in the license application asks for full hours, identical to the hours for inside. Mr. Fitz and Mr. Walker assured that they would clarify the information with ABRA to indicate shorter outdoor seating hours. Mr. Walker described the prospective menu – Basque food and small plates. The 2nd floor will have 49 seats. The first floor will have more seats. Mr. Fitz advised that the building requires much renovation work. Mr. Brannum advised that the 5D CAC has automatic standing on any liquor licenses in the Fifth District.
House Tour Committee
Dr. Holliday of the BCA House Tour Committee provided an update on this year’s house tour. She reported on the two needs of the committee: 1) grant writing skills are needed for the committee to apply for available grants, 2) social media & marketing needs. Please contact her if you can volunteer. The next committee meeting is this Wednesday, 05/20/2015, at her residence. The tour will focus upon four components.
DC Water/First Street Tunnel Update
Ms. Howard advised that the next DC Water 1st Street Tunnel Forum will be on Thursday, May 28, 2015.
BCA Administrative Matters
Membership Happy Hour – June
BCA Membership Committee Chair Corey Ruple advised another BCA Membership Happy Hour will be scheduled soon.
Historic Preservation Committee
Ms. Quinn said that the topic of neighborhood historic designation was discussed at the recent BCA board retreat. Ms. Sanders provided a status update. She said that Zoning Case 14-11 will address pop-ups to some degree. A separate dedicated BCA meeting on neighborhood historic designation was suggested. Ms. Sanders offered Wednesday, June 10, 2015, or Wednesday, June 24, 2015 for a potential BCA neighborhood historic designation meeting. She solicited volunteers to join the committee. Dr. Holliday said that the process can take out a year or two to complete the process.
Voting Items
Street Naming in Honor of Mr. William H. Jackson
The representative from Jak & Co Hairdressers was not present at the meeting. No vote was taken.
DCity Smokehouse ABRA Application
Melvin Hines and Scott Jacobs from DCity Smokehouse asked for the community’s support. Ms. Quinn noted that the hours of outdoor operation needs to be changed. Dr. Holliday questioned the ventilation. She was assured the ventilation be adequately addressed. A motion to approve DCity Smokehouse application contingent to adjusting the hours per the discussion. Motion carries.
BZA for 2026 North Capitol Street NW
Mr. Pearl advised that the BA zoning hearing has been pushed back to June 26, 2015. He generally described the requested zoning variances. A neighbor commented that this specific developer seems to pursue projects that exceed R-4 lot occupancy. The deck at 2026 that was built exceeded the scope of the permits issued. Mr. Pearl said that he is not happy that he now has five decks overlooking is property. This developer has developed 2108 1st St NW, a house on U St NW and on Channing St NW. Mr. Brannum advised the DC Attorney General’s office is pursuing bad developers. There was no vote this evening – it was deferred until next month’s Bloomingdale Civic Association meeting.
Items Not on the Meeting Agenda
Bloomingdale Village Center
Dr. Holliday reported that the BCA has applied for a grant from the DC Humanities Council for a Bloomingdale Village Center. The purpose of the village center install benches, design a bulletin board, etc. [Get text from Bertha.] Zach Sherif said that the intent is to use local people to implement the project. Ms. Quinn clarified that there has been no vote to pursue the project. There will be a vote by the BCA board if the grant is awarded.
Community Representatives
Ward 5 and At-Large Council Representative
Laisha Dougherty, Ward 5 Constituency Services Coordinator
She reported on the DC Council budget wins and about the upcoming Manna tour on May 30, 2015.
Bloomingdale ANC 5E Commissioners
ANC 5E09 Commissioner Dianne Barnes
She reported that the deadline on comments on the Mayor’s Agent for McMillan has been extended to June 3, 2015
ANC 5E07 Commissioner Bertha Holliday
She reported that some progress has been made regarding the pop-up at 1833 1st St NW in Bloomingdale’s commercial corridor.
Meeting adjourned at 9:15 pm.