Meeting Minutes
July 26, 2018,7:30 pm
The meeting convened at about 7:38 PM. Commissioners Bender, Ehrhardt, McHugh and Quinn were in attendance. Commissioner Hall arrived later.
Announcements / Open Forum– opportunity for members of the community to raise issues of concern or importance to the 3E neighborhood
An attendee suggested that if the ANC were to support Sunrise’s proposal for redevelopment of the Wisconsin Ave Baptist Church the Commission should consider requiring Sunrise establish an escrow account to pay for any construction damage caused to neighbors’ homes. Another attendee inquired about the schedule for Sunrise’s hearings.
An attendee complained about dogs running loose at the Chevy Chase Rec Center in the mornings that were preventing her from using the tennis courts. Commissioners stated that there is an informal agreement between various groups to allow dogs to be off leash between 6:30 am and 8 am but that all residents should be able to utilize the facilities. Ian Maggard, the Ward 3 Liaison to the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations,stated he would request DPR Park Rangers to follow up on the situation. This issue was further addressed during the police report.
Doreen Hope, Community District Manager with Washington Gas provided an update on the gas pipeline replacement work in the community, part of a 40-year plan to replace the gas lines throughout the District. The contractors are finishing up work in Westmoreland Circle, but rain has delayed the project clean-up. The grass replacement work will continue through spring 2019. They will also be repaving the traffic lane on Massachusetts Ave from Westmoreland Circle to 49thSt and replacing some curbs. Commissioner Quinn asked if Washington Gas could consult and/or coordinate with DDOT about installing bulb-outs.
An attendee asked if the Commission knew if a private property on Belt Road between Harrison and Garrison that recently removed approximately 15 mature trees had obtained the proper permits prior to the tree removal. Commissioner Quinn said he would contact the Urban Forestry Department to investigate if the proper permits were obtained.
Ian Maggard announced that there will be many Kids Ride Free card distribution events taking place around the city this summer. The Mayor recently released her 42 Month Progress Report.
Leigh Catherine Miles, Executive Director of Tenleytown Main Street (TMS) distributed their latest newsletter. Miles also announced the opening of Olive Bistro and Café in the old Bread & Salt location. Friends of Fessenden Park will be hosting Yoga in the park at 7:30 AM on August 4.
Presentation by 2nd District Police
Lt. Hill from the 2ndDistrict provided an update on crime in the area. Over the last 30 days, there were 46 crimes reported versus 47 during the same time period last year. Hill stated that thefts are trending higher, but that is to be expected during the summer. Attendees asked about the stabbing that occurred at the Friendship Heights Metro. Hill stated that the incident happened underground and actually is believed to have happened in Maryland and is being investigated as a self-defense case.
Commissioners asked: what plans the MPD had in advance of schools starting next month; for traffic enforcement at the intersection of River/Ellicott/Fessenden once GDS is back in session; if MPD could send an officer to Chevy Chase Park in the mornings to investigate the off-leash dogs. Hill stated they can issue tickets for the off-leash dogs but try to get dog owners to voluntarily comply with leash laws first; and for follow up on a series of thefts from autos around 41stSt. One Commissioner asked LT Hill what he recommends residents do when they go out of town to prevent thefts. Lt Hill can be contacted at alan.hill@dc.govwith any additional questions.
Discussion of and possible vote on changes to Buredo’s ABRA license to allow them to serve alcohol in their sidewalk café.
Buredo would like to amend its ABRA license to allow alcohol sales in its sidewalk café. The sidewalk café would have the same hours as other restaurants, Sunday – Thurs 11-10 and 11-10:30 on Friday and Saturday. Ms. Miles asked Buredo to reach out to TMS regarding streetscaping. There were no other questions from attendees or Commissioners. Commissioner McHugh moved, and Commissioner Hall seconded a motion to support the amended liquor license application. The motion was approved 5-0-0.
Discussion of and possible vote on supporting application for grant funding to paint a mural on the wall behind McDonalds
Chuck Ludlum a resident of ANC3C is working with artist, Jarrod Ferrier. Ludlum will file a grant application with DC Department of Cultural Affairs and Arts and Humanities for $50,000 to paint a mural on the 10-foot-high by 140-foot-wide retaining wall at the back of the McDonalds parking lot. They presented a draft design for the project which would celebrate the creation of Rock Creek Park (the wall sits across the street from a branch of Glover Park) and are seeking input from residents in the area, the three adjoining ANCs, the Rock Creek Conservancy, and other groups. A decision on the grant application is expected in October.
Attendees asked questions about how the design was chosen. Commissioners suggested that they put a plaque to interpret the mural or add a QR code to allow people to scan to obtain more information about the mural.
A friendly amendment was offered for the draft resolution. Commissioner McHugh moved, and Commissioner Hall seconded a motion to approve the amended resolution in support of the grant to paint the mural. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-0-0.
Discussion of issues with the Friendship “Turtle” Park sprayground
Commissioner McHugh stated that in June there was an overwhelming sewer odor at the sprayground in Turtle Park. DPR closed the sprayground and investigated the smell. The fountain was designed so that chlorinated water from the sprayground would be gathered into a cistern, filtered and recycled back into the water feature. When the park was built, an airgap was installed at the connection of the drain for the fountain and the sewer line for the park. DPR believes that someone flushed a diaper in the toilet in the rec center that accidently got through the airgap and backed up into the sprayground cistern. DPR replaced the airgap with a backflow preventer to keep this from happening again. DPR is also looking into allocating additional funding in the next budget cycle to upgrade the sprayground to make it larger and more interesting.
Attendees asked about the flooding last year in the water retention pond that ran into nearby neighbors’ basements and how they sanitized the sprayground.
ANC Business
- Approval of June 2018 meeting minutes – Commissioner Hall moved, and Commissioner Bender seconded a motion to approve the amended June 2018 Meeting Minutes. The motion was approved by a vote of 4-0-0.
- Approval of expenditures – Commissioner Quinn moved, and Commissioner Bender seconded a motion to approve payments of $418.75 to Sherry Cohen for administrative support and $47.90 to FedEx Office for copying services. The expenditures were approved 4-0-0.
The meeting was adjourned at 9:27 by unanimous consent.