Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6B held a hybrid meeting via Zoom and in-person at 700 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. Attending were Frank Avery (6B01, treasurer); Jerry Sroufe (6B02); David Sobelsohn (6B03, secretary); Chander Jayaraman (6B06); Vince Mareino (6B07, vice chair); Edward Ryder (6B08, chair); and Matt LaFortune (6B09). Frank D’Andrea (6B04) was not present. 6B05 is currently vacant.
At the November meeting of ANC 6B, Erica Lehman from DLR Group presented new concept designs for Brent Elementary School (301 North Carolina Ave. SE) to be presented to the District’s Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) Nov. 21. DLR Group is part of a t DC Public School (DS) and Department of General Services (DGS) design build team selected for the modernization. The plans call for the total demolition of the current building and replacement by a new, three-story school.
Brent Elementary School is a high-demand school that currently serves approximately 421 Pre-K3 to grade 5 students and is located on the corner of North Carolina Avenue at Third Street SE. Currently, the building is at capacity with temporary buildings located throughout the playground and fields. The new building is being designed for a projected enrollment of 563 students in School Year 2028-29.
The Capitol Hill Restoration Society (CHRS) has written a letter stating that the existing school building is non-contributing to the historic district. The existing structure would be demolished over about four months starting in fall/winter 2025. It will be replaced with an L-shaped three-story building plus basement.
On the outside, the new building would define the street corridor, wrapping around the corner with the main entrance located at the intersection of North Carolina Avenue and Third Street SE. The play area will be moved to the interior space along D Street, tucked away from the street by a service area. Dumpsters and generator will be enclosed there by a masonry wall with a sliding gate. The early childhood playground will be tucked behind a streetscape park along North Carolina Avenue SE. There are staggered green terraces on the roof, which provide the opportunity for students to go outside on different levels.
The center of the building will be located where the two wings of the building meet, called the column. The lower level consists of mechanical spaces and a gymnasium, with light coming from ground floor windows. On the main floor are istrative offices and a dining room. The dining room can be closed off for use as community space. Specials classrooms are located on the next level, and on the top floor, the library. Regular classrooms will be located along the two wings in grade-level “neighborhoods.”
The Brent community is expected to move out of the school in summer 2025 using Meyer Elementary (2501 11th St. NW) as swing space. Construction is scheduled to begin in Fall 2025 and end in Fall 2027.
More information on the project can be found at https://sites.google.com/dc.gov/ds-facilities/modernizations/brent-es
New Guidelines for Streeteries
The District Department of Transportation (DDOT) is rolling out new permanent streetery guidelines. Basically, the changes mean the ANC will not resolutions in favor of individual streeteries but will review them through the Transportation Online Permitting System (TOPS). The Public Space Committee will hold a hearing on the new guidelines Dec. 5.
The original streetery program was put in place during the COVID pandemic. The new program will address traffic, pedestrian and infrastructure concerns that have subsequently arisen as well as issues with ADA compliance. The new standards also address issues with safety as well as aesthetics.
The ANC asked DDOT to provide clarity on the ANC role in the application and approval process. The ANC voted to empower ANC Transportation Committee Chair LaFortune to attend the hearing and to ask DDOT whether there are changes or differences in how ANCs provide input and respond to streetery applications versus sidewalk areas for sidewalk cafes. If there are differences, then LaFortune will ask on behalf of the ANC that DDOT align guidelines around ANC input.
The ANC voted to :
- A resolution requesting that the Council of DC initiate a legislative process for a beverage container deposit law. Following a presentation from a coalition in October, the ANC suggests the bill would require consumers to pay 10 cents per beverage container at the time of purchase to be refunded when empties are returned.
- An application to the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis istration (ABCA) for a retailers grocery license for Union Kitchen (430 Eighth St. SE), set to open in the former Subway Sandwich shop. The ANC has a signed Settlement Agreement (SA). The establishment will be open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. and will make sandwiches, hot breakfasts and will sell various grocery products as well as wine and beer.
- An application from Folger Theatre (201 East Capitol St. SE) to amend the existing SA to change their café operations, allowing additional hours and the issuance of a stipulated license for those hours. The Folger plans to open the Crumb and Quill in the Great Hall by the end of November. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. At a later date the ANC will discuss an application for a sidewalk café on the plinth terrace on East Capital Street to facilitate outdoor programing.
- A Historic Preservation Application (HPA) to raze an existing two-story building and construct two new three-story buildings with cellar at 609 Independence Ave. SE. The current building sits on two lots and will be replaced by two family flats separated by 14 feet.
ANC 6B generally meets the second Tuesday of each month except August. The next regular meeting of the full ANC will be a hybrid online and unperson meeting held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 10. See calendar and get information on how to at anc6b.org
