ADVISORY NEIGHBORHOOD COMMISSION 8A Government of the District of Columbia Fairlawn/ Historic Anacostia/ Hillsdale/ Sheridan August 18, 2011

Chairman Kwame Brown 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Suite 504 Washington, DC 20004

Re: Threat to the Economic Vitality of Ward 8s Commercial Corridors

Dear Chairman Brown: I am writing at the urging of my constituents, community leaders, business leaders and fellow ANC chairs to respectfully request that you not allow Calvary Womens Shelter (CWS) to relocate to the downtown Anacostia commercial corridor. With the political and financial support of your office, CWS is seeking to locate a transitional housing shelter in the center of an already struggling commercial corridor. Our primary concern is that CWS use of the facility may jeopardize our ability to maximize opportunities for economic vitality and job growth in downtown Ward 8. To date, CWS has bypassed the ANC process which provides the ANC with great weight and allows for substantial community input. See No. 1-261, DC code, 1982 ed, and Title 11 DCMR 3115. CWS has not met with the community or its leaders to articulate its program, its intended use of the property or its plans to ensure that the transitional housing facility does not attract loiters or behavior that is not conducive to a viable commercial corridor (see the attached photo of its current location which shows loitering). It has also come to my attention that on two occasions CWS has been hit with a stop work order for the unpermitted demolition of the interior of a historic property. CWS actions demonstrate its ability to violate the Citys rules and to disregard the need for community buy-in and support. CWSs potential new site is located one block from a methadone clinic, a liquor store, and alcoholic anonymous/drug rehabilitation program as well as a day care center, a family-friendly, two-week old convenient store, a jobs training center, and the Department of Housing and Community Developments new headquarters (strategically placed in the downtown zone to spur revitalization). While we are not seeking to disparage CWS or its noble mission, we are raising valid concerns about the potentially negative impact that a transitional housing facility will have on an area 1- with such a wide-range of businesses, service providers and non-profits, and 2- that is also struggling to attract viable retail.
2100-D Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., SE Washington, DC 20020 Phone: (202) 889-6600 Fax: (202)889-6602

Numerous reports provided by City agencies tout the need for additional retail in the Ward 8 business corridors, including: The Washington D.C. Economic Partnerships 2011 Neighborhood Profiles, which highlights Anacostia as a historically designated commercial corridor that has already experienced new development and investment. The Profile points out Four Points LLCs plans to rejuvenate the commercial center of Anacostia by redeveloping Riverview Plaza into a 1.5 million square foot mixed use center, anchored by a grocery store and movie theater. The Office of Plannings Retail Action Strategy produced in December 2009, which notes that while redevelopment across the river is increasing the level of amenities provided along the Anacostia riverfront and increasing momentum for the revitalization in far southeast, that the properties in the Anacostia commercial corridor are in disrepair and that continued disinvestment has contributed to high crime rates in the area. This report in particular notes that the City should focus its efforts in retail investment on filling in gaps to make a more contiguous retail street. Similarly, the first point of your jobs program listed on your website is championing economic inclusion suggesting that you will serve as a champion for economic vitality, business growth, and job creation across the City (including in Ward 8). Within the next week, we request that you facilitate a meeting with CWS, community leaders, local business leaders, interested residents and the following CWS supporters, advisors and partners in an effort to address our concerns: The Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Goulston & Storrs (Linda Goldstein of Goulston & Storrs co-chairs DCBIAs East of the River Neighborhood Development Committee and should also be invited) Mark G. Anderson Consultants OTJ Architects Clark Construction Group Shapiro & Duncan CS Consulting Engineers Inc. Walter L. Phillips Inc.
2100-D Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., SE Washington, DC 20020 Phone: (202) 889-6600 Fax: (202)889-6602

We also request your assistance in supporting the economic revitalization of Ward 8s commercial corridors and our efforts to better control/limit any uses which may jeopardize the long-term success of our area. We request that you support our efforts to revise the zoning maps for Ward 8 to prohibit any transitional housing facilities from being placed in commercial zones. If any such use is permitted an applicant would be required to seek a variance from the Board of Zoning Adjustment. Such a modification to the zoning map would provide the ANC the ability to thoughtfully weigh-in on any request for variances and, where appropriate, authorize the variance subject to an agreement by the housing provider to enter into a good neighbor agreement or similar concession agreement that protects the communitys interest. Attached to this letter is a petition executed by several hundred residents expressing their support for a moratorium on the approval of permits of any new board, transitional, community based or similar temporary residential facilities in Ward 8 and ANC 8A, in particular, until there is a comprehensive approach to addressing the overwhelming density of these facilities in our neighborhood. Please note that while our concerns are premised on the situation presented in the Anacostia commercial corridor we are not alone. Our fellow ANCs share our concerns about how particular matter of right uses may threaten the viability of the commercial corridors throughout the Ward. As such, my fellow ANC chairs have demonstrated their support for our efforts by also executing this letter. Thank you in advance for taking the time to address our concerns. We look forward to your prompt attention to this matter. Sincerely, ANC COMMISSION 8A Anthony Muhammad Chairperson Lendia S. Johnson Vice Chairperson Barbara Clark Treasurer Anthony Muhammad Secretary Commissioners Anthony Muhammad SMD 8A01 Barbara Clark SMD 8A02 Greta Fuller SMD 8A03 Charles Wilson SMD 8A04 Carolyn B. Ward SMD 8A05 Gregg Jabril Justice lll SMD 8A06 Lendia Johnson SMD 8A07

2100-D Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., SE Washington, DC 20020 Phone: (202) 889-6600 Fax: (202)889-6602

SUPPORTING ANCS:

ANC8B

ANC 8D

ANC 8C

ANC 8E

cc:

Mayor Vincent Gray Councilman Marion Barry (Ward 8) Victor Hoskins (DMPED) Harriet Tregoning (OP) David Maloney (HPO) Jamison Weinbaum (OZ) John Hall (DHCD) Commander Joel Maupin (MPD, 7D) James Bunn (Ward 8 Business Council and Congress Heights Main Streets) Arrington Dixon (Anacostia Coordinating Council) Butch Hopkins (Anacostia Economic Development Corporation) Stan Voudrie (Four Points Development) Charles E. Wilson (Historic Anacostia Block Association)

2100-D Martin Luther King, Jr. Ave., SE Washington, DC 20020 Phone: (202) 889-6600 Fax: (202)889-6602