Inside
Community
Calendar
p. 2
Community
Input Meetings
p. 3
S.W.
Parade Photos
p. 4, 5
SW
Split Between Ward 2, 6
p. 7
NARFE
Award
p. 7
Parade
& Oral History
p. 8
Half-pints In Plastic Bags, ANC Urges
A Southwest liquor store has agreed to sell half-pints of liquor and single bottles of beer in clear plastic bags, at the request of the SW Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC2D).
At its June meeting the ANC received the agreement of the operators of
Bernstein’s Reliable Liquor at 39 M St. S.W. to use clear plastic bags
rather than brown paper sacks for these small items. It will be easier for the
police to enforce the law against consuming alcoholic beverages in public.
Renewal of licenses by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division is often
the basis for similar agreements suggested by neighborhood representatives,
especially ANCs.
Buzzards Point Owners Face Restrictions
Because the D.C. Home Rule Act requires zoning to conform to the Comprehensive Plan, industrial uses on Buzzard’s Point should not be grand-fathered by zoning rules, but be considered non-conforming uses which have limitations. That is the opinion of the D.C. Planning Director Andy Altman.
The comprehensive plan for the District of Columbia requires mixed use
residential on Buzzard’s Point.
At its July 9 meeting the ANC2D will consider comments it wishes to
make about Buzzards Point rezoning at the July 19 meeting of the D.C. Zoning
Commission
S.W. Workshop Lists Priorities
The 80 or so Southwest residents who discussed local issues with Mayor Anthony Williams and his staff of planners and coordinators at an evening workshop at 65 I (Eye) St. S.W. gave highest priority to Housing, Safety and Schools.
Waterfront Development and “Youth Development/Community Programs”
were close behind.
The participants were asked to identify “essential ingredients,”
defined as “those community elements that are critical to building and
maintaining a healthy and livable neighborhood.”
In assigning priority values to each item, the group gave 35 priority
points to “Affordable/Diverse Housing,” 31 points to “Public Safety,”
and 24 points to “Public Schools.”
On an open-ended request for suggestions for “action items,” there
were 35 suggestions under those top three categories.
Names, addresses and telephone numbers were given for three
“coordinators” working for the D.C. government. Residents of Ward 2 are
encouraged to call them with problems and questions.
They are:
Michael
Bonds, Office of Public Advocate – 727-7985 – 441 4th St. N W ,
Suite 801. E-mail: Michael.bonds@dc.gov
Clark
Ray, Office of the City Administrator – 727-8587- Plymoth Apartment
Building, 1236 Eleventh St. N W -
E-mail address; clark.ray@dc.gov
Chris
Shaheen, Office of Planning – 442-7631 – 801 N. Capitol St. NE, Suite 4000
– E-mail address chris.shaheen@dc.gov
Capitol Hill Comes To The Waterfront
In September and November 2002, voters in Southwest and on Capitol Hill will now have the same ballot card on election day for selecting one of the thirteen members of the D.C. Council. We have always had the same list to choose from for the four at-large council members and Council Chair.
On June 19 the Council gave final approval to boundary lines for the 8 Wards – an exercise they must perform every ten years after the census figures are released. The 11,000 people in Southwest had been part of Ward 2, which included Downtown and Georgetown. Ward 2 had grown in population so much between the 1990 and 2000 census that it had to shed part of its territory in order to help make the 8 wards roughly equal in population. Ward 6 and several other wards had lost population in those 10 years and needed to gain some.
Because the new ward lines take effect in January, 2002, Southwest residents will no longer have Jack Evans as their ward council member. Ward 6 Council Member Sharon Ambrose will be our ward council member.
At-large Council Members Phil Mendelson, Harold Brazil, Carol Schwarz and David Catania, as well as Chair Linda W. Cropp, all were on city-wide ballots, and will continuue to represent us on the council.
We Love A Parade SW Style
With the stirring sound of “Anchors Aweigh” by the U.S. Navy band and the stars and stripes waving from the U.S. Coast Guard color guard, Southwest was introduced to an hour of ceremony and fun along First St., P St., Fourth St. and M St. on June 2.
Young and younger, black and white, dignitaries, seniors, more than two
dozen drummers and an assortment of decorated vehicles representing AARP,
Cavaliers, SWNA, Westminster Church’s Jazz Night, and Voter Registration
brought onlookers out to the streets in amazement. People along the route were
electrified by the wonderful martial tunes and marching beat by the Navy Band,
Dunbar High School’s Marching Band, and drumming units from Bowen and Amidon
Elementary Schools,
Performances along the route by a clown and unicycle riders, Tae Kwon
Do trainees, baton and flag twirlers and fancy stepping by marching units
added to the display.
Jefferson Jr’s Math Counts and Science Clubs were joined by
“Benjamin Banneker” dressed in his costume of the 1790s
when he helped lay out the boundaries of the District of Columbia.
Jefferson Jr. also had “High Steppers”, Social Science Club,
English and even athletes in sweat suits. Kids on skates and bicycles came
from Channel Square. Housing units with banners and signs included Syphax
Gardens, Riverside Condominium and River Park Cooperative Homes.
It reminds us all of how lucky we are to live in a community that cares
– Southwest Washington, D.C.
For photos turn to p. 4 and 5 of this issue and the photo gallery in
the Southwest Neighborhood Assembly’s web site http://www.swdc.org.
PAGE
2
Five repeat ads from June – Paet, classified for Darland, Hurd, Saini, and Podiatry. A new ad in the folder for Frederick Grill – one col. 3 ½ in.
Deadlines in box and at end of calendar are Wed. July 11
Community
Calendar
July,
2001
June 29 FRI So. Washington Collaborative Retreat. 11 am to 4 pm – St. Matthew’s Church 222 M St. S.W.
July 3 TUES Recreation Dept. meeting on construction at King-Greenleaf Rec Center – 7 pm at KGL Center, 203 N St. SW
July 7 SAT. PSA 110 Walkathon, 11 am 240 M St. S.W.
July 7 SAT. Komen Toastmasters Club 10 am SW Branch Library 920 Wesley Pl. S.W.
July 9 MON Advisory Neighborhood Comm. 2D Meeting 7 pm Westminster Presbyterian Church 4th & I (Eye) St. S.W.
July 10 TUES. (Notice date change)First Dist. Citizen’s Advisory Council Mtg. 7 pm First Dist. Hq 415 4 St SW Community Room
July 11 WED Fil-Am Toastmasters Club 6:45 pm SW Branch Library, 920 Wesley Place SW
July 14 SAT Anacostia River Workshop 9am to 2 pm SEU 6th & I (Eye) St. S..W. Public invited.
July 19 THURS PSA 110 7 pm Westminster Church 400 I (Eye) St. S.W.
July 21 SAT. Komen Toastmasters Club 10 am SW Branch Library, 920 Wesley Pl SW
July 25 WED Fil-Am Toastmasters Club 6:45 pm SW Branch Library, 920 Wesley Place SW
Please submit
calendar items for the next issue by Wed. July 11 to C. W. Hargrave, 554-8284
WWCA Thanks Clean-up Sponsors
Mike Bouchard of the Washington Waterfront Citizens Association has
asked The Southwester to pass on his appreciation for all the work and help of
dozens of individuals and businesses who tried to have a waterfront clean-up
June 16.
Remnants of the hurricane washed out the event, which hopefully can be
rescheduled for next fall.
(caption)
Southeastern
University drew crowds to it annual International Festival, with food of many
nations and distinctive dress and dance.
PAGE
THREE
New video ad in folder; repeat Bashoor ad from June issue
“Community
Input” Goes On And On And On
One measure of the intense efforts to create a vibrant Southwest might be the frequent opportunities for community input in planning.
The June 14, 2001, “Community Workshop” at 65 I (Eye) St. S.W. was the latest – but not the last – effort by the D.C. government to learn what the residents of Southwest want.
Future neighborhood meetings, we are told, will include:
A. “action planning meetings” that “further define the action steps, timeline, responsibilities, and budget.”
B.
“One or two community meetings …to finalize and validate the neighborhood
plan.”
Not counting four similar meetings tied to the “Anacostia Waterfront
Initiative”, the June 14 meeting is the fourth “workshop” or series of
interviews conducted by Mayor Anthony Williams, his Department of Planning
officials and various professional planners on contract with the city.
I.The Mayor’s “Summit” at the D.C. Convention Center on Nov. 20,
1999, brought out 40 S.W. residents, who made a list of suggestions. (The
Southwester, January 2,000, p. 1 and p. 5; Nov., 1999, p. 1).
II.The January 24, 2000, “S.W. Summit” at St. Mathew’s Lutheran
Church – with 160 or so attending – was not organized by the city, but was
facilitated by Lafayette Barnes and Joe Goldman of the mayor’s staff..
Questionnaires ranked a dozen suggestions which had come out of the Mayor’s
summit. (The Southwester, March, 2000, stories and pictures on p. 1, 2, 4, 5).
III. The January 29, 2000, “Neighborhood Action Forum” at the
University of the District of Columbia was more a reporting session than a
workshop.
IV. In September, 2000, D.C. Planning Director Andrew Altman arranged for S.W. residents to be interviewed by graduate students from
M.I.T.,
who gave a preliminary report and later reported their suggested changes. (The
Southwester, October, 2000, p. 1; May, 2001, p. 4).
V. The June 14, 2001, workshop is described on page 1 of this issue.
PAGE
4, 5
(photos can be arranged in any order)
SCENES
FROM THE SOUTHWEST PARADE
PAGE
6
REPEAT THE Ralston and Pizza Amore ads from June
(caption)
SEU
President Dr. Charlene Drew Jarvis hosted an open house and luncheon at S.E.
University to kick off registration for the summer term.
In May Dr. Jarvis received a doctor of public service degree from
George Washington University. GWU
cited her years on the Council of the District of Columbia, where she
introduced legislation to build the MCI Center and the new Convention Center.
5K
Walk On Capitol Hill
A 5K Walk and Street Fair will start at 914 Massachusetts Ave. N.E. Sunday, July 8 at 8 am (registration at 7:30 am).
As a benefit for summer youth programs, the Walk is sponsored by the Capitol Hill Seventh-day Adventist Church. (202-543-1344)
HIV
Testing And Counseling At Shiloh Center
A new service has been added to the Day Care and other services at Shiloh Family Life Center, 9th & P St. N.W.
Confidential counseling and oral testing for the HIV virus is provided on a walk-in basis for no charge Wednesdays from 10am to 2 pm, at the lower level.
For information call (202) 232-4288, ext. 27.
Tiber Island Rated Units In S.W. Parade
Prizes
for the local schools in the S.W. Parade have been given out by Tiber Island
Cooperative Homes, the housing complex west and South of
4th and M St. S.W.
Jefferson Jr. and Bowen each received $125 for books in their
libraries. Amidon received $50.
From a judging booth at the coop, several residents scored the marchers
(captions)
Judges
for the Southwest Parade are: (Left to right) Dorothy Brown, Ruther Cuestas
and Bob Mansker.
At
the right are Col. and Mrs. Bud Turnbull, coop president. Not shown is Wm.
Blocker.
Dr.
Beryl C. Rice is shown announcing the winners after the parade.
S.W. Kiwanis Club Forming
Men and women who work, live or have an interest in Southwest D.C. can become charter members of a new chapter of the Kiwanis International service organization.
Organizing meetings are being held for an hour each Monday from 6:30pm
to 7:30 pm at Southeastern University, 6th and I (Eye) St. S.W.
Service
projects could include mentoring, scholarships or other service projects as
decided by the members. The Kiwanis motto is “Changing Tomorrows
Today—Serving The Children of The World.”
Contact
Willie G. Robinson, 1250 4th St. S.W. (W 808) – 488-3597, or
Linwood Watson 581-8767.
Repeat the Washington Cable and Tiber Island ads from June
Southwest’s
Bob Zigler received the Distinguised
Annuitant Award as the outstanding member of the local SW chapter of the
National Association of Retired Federal Employees (NARFE). He is treasurer of
the local S.W. chapter of NARFE.
The
award was presented by Jennifer Malazey of Blue Cross/Blue Shield.
(caption)
At
a recent meeting of NARFE Bob Zigler held up his new certificate for the
camera as singers from the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery looked
on. Left to right are Zigler, Karen Rice and Larr Baldine.
The
songs were from the World War II period.
Redistricting
Splits Southwest Along Freeway
By Andy Litsky
Southwest community leaders got a surprise when the DC Council passed the ward redistricting bill recently. They had been told that near Southwest (west of the Anacostia River) would remain intact and in one piece.
Instead, the largely unpopulated area between the Southwest Freeway and the National Mall was divided from the residential area south of the Freeway. The residential area of Southwest becomes part of Ward 6. The commercial area north of the Freeway remains in Ward 2.
Unless the Council also changes the ANC boundary lines, this change means that Southwest residents who will be immediately adjacent to the commercial zone will have no formal say in what happens there, while residents on the distant side of the Mall will have the power to review what goes on there and to benefit from any development while suffering none of the problems or inconveniences that may develop:
Here are some of the issues that will be affected by the boundary change:
BZA applications
Zoning Actions
New economic develoment: (Wax Museum site, the completion of the Portal Site; the old BP station at 4th & E SW, etc.)
ABC licenses
Outdoor Pay Phones
Public Art in Public Space project at 12t and the freeway
Traffic control questions
Public Space permits (ANC 2D reviewed an application for installation of a guard house just north of the freeway and showed the applicants a (better) way to site it so it helped residents as well as building security)
Bus routes and bus stops
Special events (race car promoters once wanted to set a race in the commercial zone.
General quality of life issues that you don’t know about unless you are in the area –
These issues are subject to ANC review. But which ANC will have jurisdiction? The near Southwest ANC (now called “ANC 2D) or the one centered north of Pennsylvania Ave. NW?
“When the Washington Design Center expanded they agreed to a community participation program that called for employment of ANC2D residents, educational programs at Jefferson Jr. High, and scholarships for SW residents. Capitol Gallery had a similar program. If these developments were to occur next year after redistricting would those benefits go to Mt. Vernon Square residents instead?
“Southwest, through ANC2D and the Wiley Branton CDC, currently have an agreement with the current Portal Site developers for funding of community projects; when the hotel and the remaining office buildings are developed at the Portal Site, will the future community funds stay in Southwest or will they be lost to northwest?
Why should residents of 7th and M NW have more say over what happens at the Portal Site (9th & E SW) or the Nassif Building (7th & E SW) than the residents of 7th and G SW? What sense does it make for the Shaw ANC to speak for the area instead of the Southwest ANC?
Ordinarily ANC boundaries do not cross ward boundaries. However, exceptions have been made in the past. The solution to this problem, therefore, would be for the Council to allow the near Southwest ANC to maintain its current northern boundary at the National Mall, instead of ending it at he new Ward 2/Ward 6 boundary at the Freeway.
PAGE
8
REPPEAT THE JENN’S AD FROM JUNE - USE COLOR FOR THE LOGO – GREEN THIS MONTH
THE ORDER OF THE PHOTOS IS NOT IMPORTANT
Contributors To Parade Thanked
By
Margaret Feldman
The Parade Committee wants to thank the sponsors whose contributions
made the parade possible:
East
Coast Development Co. Inc. (Office of Business and Community Development)
River
Park Friends, Inc., - donation of a sound system for use at
the stage after the parade and to be used for SWNA, ANC, and Police
Boys & Girls Club #4 events.
WMC
Management Company
Apartment
Showcase
A.R.M.C.
Winkler
Pools, Inc.
Arena
Stage Theatre
Safeway,
Channel Inn, Hogates, Spiorit Ships, and the D.C. Metropolitan Police Dept.
Special thanks to Alvin Hudgens of MPD Boys and Girls Club #4, my chief
operations manager. His coaches
cooked and bagged the 700 hot dog lunches enjoyed by the participants of the
parade and others. Blossom Athey supplied 350 popcicles. Thanks, too, to Dale
MacIver, chief for publicity and administration.
Tiber Island for judging the marchers from the schools and providing
prizes for the school libraries.
The Recreation Department and staff at King-Greenleaf for their
assistance and use of their facilities.
The wonderful entertainment at the Showmobile after the parade: Tae
Kwon Do demonstration, Circus acts by the Oak View Elementary Exhibition Club,
and great fun with the demonstration of hand dancing and bringing the crowd
into the Electric Slide – directed by Mr. Pope of Head To Toe.
S.W. Oral History At Millennium Art Center
By Margaret Feldman
Southwest neighbors enjoyed a heart-warming event Sunday afternoon, June 3. They heard the stories of S.W. residents who grew up in S.W.
Several people from the Jewish community told of their fond memories of
their childhood when their parents owned stores on Four-and-a-Half St. or
Seventh St.
African-Americans recounted their memories of those same stores and of
their schools and the movie houses they enjoyed.
All agreed that they had a wonderful childhood in a diverse
neighborhood where everyone felt part of the community.
Neal Peirce, who moved to Southwest after Urban Renewal, told how he
and Joseph Latimore got together in 1963 to organize the Southwest
Neighborhood Assembly as a civic association for the new and old, black and
white residents of the neighborhood.
To round out the presentations, Rebecca Rice of Arena Stage Theatre
gave a dramatic presentation of real life stories as told to her by local
residents as she gathered material for Arena’s Southwest Project.
An extensive display of photos of Old Southwest was displayed by the
Cavaliers.
A reception, donated by Hogate’s and Safeway, included music by the
Sons of Salvation Gospel Band.
Many thanks to Lisa Kay of Capitol Park Towers, who was producer,
director and organizer of the event.
(CAPTION)
A
few of the participants in recording an oral history of Southwest on June 3.