MPCA Minutes June

Michigan Park Citizens Association
6 June 2017
Ross Auditorium, Providence Hospital

President David Conrad opened the meeting at 7:20 pm with the Pledge of Allegiance. No treasurer’s report was presented this evening. Ms. Marita Raddick made a few announcements and passed out some flyers on behalf of Councilmember McDuffie.  Ms. Raddick was questioned about the perceived lack of responsiveness to community members by some Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners (ANC) members in 5A.  By law, ANC representatives must hold public meetings and announcement the meetings, which is being done. One member recommended working with Councilmember McDuffie to codify additional expectations of the ANCs.

The Capital Grid Project. Mr. Marc K. Battle, attorney and vice president of Pepco Region District of Columbia, along with his colleagues Marc Battle and Mousa Hejazi, presented plans to upgrade the District’s electrical infrastructure through 2021. The planned improvements include the undergrounding of a major new transmission line from Takoma Park through the District to the Waterfront. This is a slow and laborious process requiring the closure of two lanes of road with 20 feet progress per day. Riggs Road will be affected. Simultaneously, substations will be upgraded or newly built. These upgrades will allow for a more robust grid, redundancy in capacity and an ability for redistribution to support solar. As a public utility, PEPCO must receive approval from the Public Service Commission which ultimately decides on any rate increases to support this infrastructure project (See attached flyer).

PEPCO 1

PEPCO 2

BAZZUTO DEVLEOPMENT. Mr. Robert Byrd discussed his current plans for development of the Providence Hospital property on Varnum Street, NE.  Mr. Byrd stated he will not build beyond 40’ (or three stories) but he will ask for a variance for a pitched roof, which would characterize the building under current regulations as four stories.  The highest number of housing units he could envision is 57, but that he currently is planning for 54. He is in conversation with DDOT about traffic impact.  Mr. Bazzuto anticipates architecture by September of this year and construction beginning no earlier than Fall of 2018.

Location of Proposed Bazzuto Development

MUNDO VERDE. Mr. Steve Lowe, local resident, discussed recent activity in ANC 5A concerning the proposed opening of Munda Verde Public Charter School at 4401 8th Street NE.  ANC 5A during a general meeting passed a resolution similar to the association’s stated position. However, Mr. Lowe related, Mr. Edwards, ANC 5A Chairman, later agreed in writing to three options – identifying another facility in the area, amending an educational model that reaches scale of 458 students per year, and constructing an addition to the facility or otherwise expanding the facility to accommodate additional students.

Location of Proposed Mundo Verde School

SAINT JOSEPH’S SEMINARY. Dr. Anita Green provided an update on EYA’s planned urban development (PUD) application before the Zoning Commission. The Zoning Commission held a public hearing of April 27th.  As public testimony was not completed by 11p.m., a second Special Public Hearing was held on May 18th. A final public hearing is scheduled for June 26th.

COMPREHENSIVE PLAN. President Conrad noted that the District’s comprehensive plan is under revision and open for public comment through June 23, 2017. A motion by Anita Green was made and accepted to, “Issue a letter by the President in support of comprehensive plan amendments proposed by ANC5B Commissioner John Feeley, focused on the neighborhoods of Michigan Park and University Heights, pending approval by the MPCA officers.”

This meeting is the final scheduled gathering for the summer. Our next scheduled meeting is Tuesday, September 5th, at Turkey Thicket Recreational Center. This location will be a change of venue from our regular meeting location at Providence Hospital.

This entry was posted in Minutes. Bookmark the permalink.