Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 6B held a hybrid meeting via Zoom and in-person Tuesday, May 13 at 700 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. On the dais: Tyler Wolanin (6B01); Gerald “Jerry” Sroufe (6B02); David Sobelsohn (6B03, Secretary); Brian Gorman (6B04); Samuel Pastore (6B05); Anna Krebs (6B06, Treasurer); Vince Mareino (6B07, Chair); Edward Ryder (6B08, Vice Chair) and Karen Hughes (6B09).
A team of architects and consultants representing St. Peter School (422 Third St. SE) presented concept designs for a renovation and expansion of the school. The plans call for the addition of a three-story building on the open space currently utilized as a playground as well as updates including HVAC improvements and ADA access.
The St. Peter building, set adjacent to Providence Park, was first built in 1867 with an addition in 1936, operating continuously for 157 years. The Catholic school serves 240 students from Pre K-3 through Grade eight with 40 staff and is ed by three parishes, including St. Peter, St. Joseph and St. Dominic Churches.
The school is elevated from the street and lacks ADA compliance. The floors on the 1936 addition do not align with those on the original building, adding to the complexity, said MTFA Architect Meagan Jancy. The building also lacks indoor gathering and play space. The mechanical systems have not been updated in between 35-40 years. The goal is to bring the building into compliance so that it can service students throughout the 21st century, Yancy said.
istrative offices will be moved to the ground floor of the new structure, with a two-story multipurpose room above it. An elevator at the inner elbow of the existing structures will facilitate access at differing levels. The main entrance will move to the ground level of the new addition, which will include bay windows and three-tone brick, with a rooftop playground on top.
The school capacity is not set to increase and there will be no changes to the current pick-up and drop off pattern, clarified Kristin Adey, Project Manager with AnchorPoint.
The project has gone through community meetings with the school families and adjacent neighbors. The project is moving into design and the regulatory process, which include Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) and Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) applications, each of which will require a return to the ANC in the summer. The regulatory process will last until late 2025 or early 2026, with groundbreaking slated for Summer of 2026 to facilitate an opening for the 2028-9 academic year. Classes will continue on site throughout the renovation, Rutherford added. Learn more at www.stpeterschool.org, under modernization.
Liquor License Protests
The ANC voted to
- protest an application from Ted’s Bulletin (505 Eighth St. SE) for renewal of a Class C Restaurant license in pursuit of a 60 or 30 day delay in the hearing, whichever the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis (ABC) Board will grant. Commissioners cited violations of the existing settlement agreement (SA) and other complaints related to trash management and storage. The protest is in pursuit of a renewed commitment to the and resolution of existing community complaints.
- ask the ABC Board to defer a hearing on the Class C restaurant License for Café 8 (424 Eighth St. SE) for 30 days to discern the effect of a new security plan on concerns around noise and safety in the neighborhood.
- protest the renewal of a Class C Restaurant License for Ambar (523 Eighth St. SE) to allow time to resolve questions about indoor trash storage and items placed in the alley.
RFK Questions
MOCR Noah Glasgow was asked about plans for an NFL stadium at RFK Campus. He said that for most of District history, federal jobs have made up a large portion of the District economy. That is now changing and the Mayor sees bringing the Commanders back to RFK as the fastest and shortest way to invest in the community and to rebound the economy, he said.
Glasgow said the city was investing $850 million in horizontal costs, meaning infrastructure to prepare the site as well as parking. Separately, he said the extension of the Benning Road Streetcar Minnesota Avenue is still in the Capital Plan. Discussions are underway about metro station expansion near the site.
Asked if the Commanders would collect revenue from the parking garages, Glasgow said the revenue would be collected and allocated to infrastructure throughout the city. Both Commissioners Hughes and Krebs said that had not been their understanding; At the April meeting, Allen told the ANC the revenue would go to the Commanders.
Asked if there was a Plan B, should the plan for the NFL at RFK not make it through the council, Glasgow said “the mayor has put forward plans. That’s what we’re going for and we’re going to go big, we’re going to go big or go home… and we’re ready to go.”
“Are you waiting for a plan B from us?” One attendee asked. Glasgow responded that if there was an alternative, he’d “be more than happy to run it up the ladder.”
Commissioner Mareino observed in ing that during the 50 years the Redskins played in DC, the city lost population every year, bottoming out in 1997 when they left. The population has been growing ever since. “I’m not saying that it’s causality,” he said. “It’s just a fun little coincidence you ought to mention to the Mayor.”
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 in-person meeting held at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 10. See calendar and get information on how to at anc6b.org
