The GeorGeTown CurrenT
Wednesday, May 10, 2017
Vol. XXVI, No. 40
Serving Burleith, Foxhall, Georgetown, Georgetown Reservoir & Glover Park
POTOMAC PARTY
Neighbors seek pause on Ellington ■ Burleith: Construction
impacts abound, critics say
By MARK LIEBERMAN Current Staff Writer
After complaining for more than a year about problems associated with the renovation project at Duke Ellington School of the Arts, neighbors are now looking toward more decisive action. Residents who live near the Burleith campus at 35th and R streets NW say they’ve made repeated requests for relief from construction hassles like contractors parking illegally on their streets, loud noise at inconvenient
times and debris left behind in their otherwise picturesque residential neighborhood. Last week the ad hoc Duke Ellington Transportation/Management Committee took a further step: asking Sigal Construction and the D.C. Department of General Services to shut down the project until the concerns are ironed out. The Ellington committee was formed at the outset of the arts school’s renovation to connect community groups and residents with the project team. Committee member Ed Solomon — who is also a member of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E (Georgetown, Burleith) — delivered the
Brian Kapur/The Current
The city is scrambling to get the school ready for students’ return.
shutdown request in a May 4 email to Sigal and relevant D.C. officials. A meeting between stakeholders and Sigal executives is now See Ellington/Page 5
Traffic study in Palisades inches forward By MARK LIEBERMAN Current Staff Writer
Brian Kapur/The Current
Georgetown Village held its annual “Party on the Potomac” fundraiser Thursday, where the aging-in-place group honored vice president and neighborhood leader Tom Birch, who received congratulations from Ward 2 D.C. Council member Jack Evans. Birch opted not to run for re-election last fall after 14 years as an advisory neighborhood commissioner.
A group of residents living near the intersection of Loughboro Road and Dalecarlia Parkway NW have complained for nearly three years about an onslaught of drivers using their quiet residential streets to avoid a stoplight at that corner. Now, after numerous delays and escalating frustrations, the D.C. Department of Transportation is promising that relief is close — though the agency hasn’t promised specific solutions. At last Wednesday’s meeting of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 3D, the D.C. Department of Transportation distributed preliminary results of a traffic study of a small area around Loughboro, Dalecarlia and MacArthur Boulevard near Sibley Memorial Hospital. Officials promised more details at a community meeting next week, and more traffic
calming within six months. Still, neighbors hesitated to get excited, and in some cases, lamented that more progress hasn’t been made. “I think what we’re hearing quite clearly from the community is the time for studies is over,” ANC 3D’s Michael Gold said at the meeting. “If I were DDOT, I would come to that next meeting with immediate remedial actions.” (ANC 3D includes Foxhall, the Palisades, Spring Valley and Wesley Heights.) ANC 3D first requested a traffic study in July 2014, shortly after the Transportation Department installed the controversial Dalecarlia traffic light. Since then, issues of speeding drivers on residential streets have come up at numerous ANC 3D meetings and there have been conversations between commissioners and Sibley officials, but little progress has been made, stakeholders say. See Traffic/Page 3
Apple’s plans for Carnegie Library draw early support By MARK LIEBERMAN Current Staff Writer
Plans to convert part of the Carnegie Library building downtown to an Apple Store drew enthusiastic support from neighbors and community leaders on Monday night, marking a win in the first step of a lengthy regulatory process for the ambitious project. Last fall, Apple Inc. announced plans to build its second D.C. facility within the 801 K St. NW building, while leaving ample room for the Historical Society of Washington, D.C., which currently occupies the second floor of the two-story, 63,000-square-
foot facility. Unlike the existing Apple Store in Georgetown, this location will offer more than customer service and product sales. On top of those offerings, developers envision the building as a refined community space for concerts, art exhibits, science workshops and workday hangouts. Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2C (downtown, Penn Quarter) voted 2-0 to support the plans from a preservation perspective in advance of the project’s May 25 consideration by the Historic Preservation Review Board. ANC 2C member Kevin Wilsey either consciously or accidentally invoked one of Apple’s buzzwords while praising the designs.
“I think it’s absolutely genius to bring the public and the private together like this,” Wilsey said. “I think a lot more people will visit the historical society than ever, and it’s going to bring in people who never would have dreamed of going to the historical society.” Apple real estate and development executive Aracibo Quintana attended Monday’s meeting to describe the project. Once work is complete, the first floor will serve as Apple’s main hub, with event space situated in the former reading room area and a Genius Grove assistance space and seating area occupying the area that formerly housed the library stacks. Quintana — an
Rendering courtesy of Apple
Apple plans minimal exterior changes to the historic Carnegie Library building at Mount Vernon Square.
Oyster Bilingual Elementary School graduate whose father Harry served on ANC 1C (Adams Morgan) in the 1980s — described the first floor as “a very serene place with nice beautiful natural trees.” He added that See Apple/Page 14
NEWS
SPORTS
SHERWOOD
INDEX
West Heating Plant
Dynasty toppled
Disability parking
Calendar/15 Classifieds/22 District Digest/4 In Your Neighborhood/12 Opinion/6 Police Report/8
Developers set to take proposal to Commission of Fine Arts despite criticisms / Page 3
St. John’s boys lacrosse ends Gonzaga’s seven-year run atop the WCAC with 7-5 win / Page 9
The city is at last enforcing ‘red top’ meters, but are the fines enough of a deterrent? / Page 6
Real Estate/11 School Dispatches/10 Service Directory/20 Shopping & Dining/14 Sports/9 Week Ahead/3
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