Dear friends and neighbors,
It’s been a while since I sent out a newsletter—apologies. Like many of you, I’ve been distracted and a little discouraged by the state of things.
But, life goes on and the work continues to make our city and our neighborhood better. And to protect ourselves from the challenges and threats that loom. Here’s what’s below:
Changes to Rock Creek Parkway
Looming budget disaster
Parties and events
ANC stuff and my roles
Other stuff
A roundabout for Rock Creek?
I posted about this in a previous newsletter, but the National Park Service is proposing changes for Rock Creek Parkway. This could have some significant impacts (improvements?) for our neighborhood. A few of the key ideas, roughly in order of their importance for our neighborhood (in my opinion):
Reorganizing the park entrance at Shoreham Road. If you’ve driven through or spent time at the intersection of Shoreham Drive, Beach Drive and Rock Creek Parkway, you’ll know that it’s a dangerous intersection. Especially left-turn from Beach Drive south onto Rock Creek Parkway. I’ve seen several crashes there over the years. The proposal would put a rotary in the intersection which the traffic engineers believe would smooth the traffic and reduce waits.
Proposed changes for Rock Creek Parkway. End rush-hour lane reversals. The proposal would end the weekday traffic reversals which require Park Police to put up barriers and remove them twice a day, including changes at multiple intersections and onramps. It’s a danger to the Park Police and incurs significant staff time and costs, estimated at $600,000 a year. Keeping Rock Creek Parkway two-way throughout the day would save money and make things less chaotic. The traffic impact is mediated a bit because there is a significant number of people who reverse-commute that would be able to use the parkway in the future.
Expand the walking/biking trail, which is very narrow in some sections.
Add many traffic safety improvements, including a traffic median or barrier in some places.
You can read more here. Here’s a good summary. I’m very interested to hear from you about what you think of these plans. More importantly, the Park Service would be interested and you can offer comments until May 2.
The looming budget disaster
Like many of you, I’ve been horrified and astonished by the threat of $1.1 billion in budget cuts this year imposed on DC by Congress. It’s not even federal money that would be cut, but spending of city revenues. I’m still hopeful that there will be a positive resolution, but Congressional incompetence means the Mayor is now forced to make cuts.
DC is facing a number of budget challenges for the coming year as well and we will need to engage actively to make sure unnecessary cuts are not imposed on services, the schools, and our community.
If there’s any bright side to this mess, it’s that DC residents mobilized admirably to respond to the challenge, lobbying Congress and putting pressure on leaders. My wife, Lynn, and I were very happy to join the crowd of citizen-lobbyists in the Senate in March. We plan to keep it up and I hope you will join as well. I’ve been impressed with FreeDC helping to organize and mobilize in this moment of peril.
The Comprehensive Plan
DC’s Office of Planning has produced a new “Comprehensive Plan” which guides development across the city: where to build new housing, businesses and employment, and invest for services and amenities. Part of this plan is to upgrade Connecticut Avenue to allow more housing density, including higher buildings. The Office of Planning did a lot of meetings and consultations on these ideas in recent years and our ANC has weighed in favorably on the proposed changes. The Office of Planning is now moving to make the zoning changes according to their proposals. You can learn more and give your own opinion as well. Take the survey at DC2050.com. There are also a bunch of community events planned.
Parties and events
Cleveland Park Night Market: Artisans and local crafts. April 24, 5-9pm.
Touch Truck 2025! The Department of Public Works will host an annual chance for kids to climb aboard fire trucks, honk the horn on a snowplow, and get up close with the vehicles that keep DC moving. With games, activities, and food and drink for kids. Saturday, May 3, 2025, 8:00 am - 2:00 pm Location: RFK Stadium, Lot 8, 2400 East Capitol Street, SE. Get Free Tickets!
Tregaron Meadow Concert! May 4, 3pm at the Tregaron Conservancy. Todd Marcus Trio and jazz vocalist Imani-Grace Cooper.
Environmental Justice in DC. The ANC Committee will host a meeting to discuss the concepts of environmental justice and reflect how we, as a community, can take action. Speakers: Sarah Dorman, Georgetown University Law Center and
Lauren Johnson, Environmental Defense Fund. May 6, 7pm via Zoom (details forthcoming).
Update on ANC activity
In general, things with our Advisory Neighborhood Commission have been pretty quiet. We’ve met regularly, once per month, and moved resolutions along. Very orderly and not much arguing or controversy. This term, in addition to normal commissioner duties, I will serve the ANC as:
Treasurer: keeping books, filling out annoying forms.
Chair of the Environmental Justice Committee: we have a small, but great committee and have plans for interesting and cool activities.
Co-chair of the Community Engagement and Grants Committee: the ANC has an annual budget of $12,000 for grants to local non-profits for projects that benefit the community.
The next meeting of ANC3C will be May 19, 7pm. Agenda and registration posted here.
Mayor Bowser may reduce funding for Pre-K education, which is particularly important for families in Ward 3. At the most recent meeting, April 21, I proposed a resolution to support the PKEEP program, especially the community-based provider, but the commission voted to table the resolution. Hopefully we’ll approve it in May.
I want to mention the ANC Committees. These usually meet monthly and take up issues of concern to the neighborhood, including new developments, traffic, etc. Residents are encouraged to join and help lead the committees. If you have interest and any extra time, I’d really encourage you to get involved. Let me know. Here they are:
Safe, Sustainable, and Equitable Transportation
Transparency & Public Process
Community Engagement & Grants
Planning, Zoning, Housing, and Economic Development
Residential Historic Preservation
Environmental Justice
Public Safety
As always, I’d love your feedback. Even negative feedback is helpful to improve what we’re doing.
Other items of interest
We have a new neighbor, Mark Zuckerberg! After a lot of whispering and rumors, it finally came clear that the Facebook founder was the mysterious buyer of a home in the Woodland Normanstone neighborhood. He paid a tidy $23 million, third-most expensive house purchase in city history. Welcome new neighbors!
Woodley Park business comings and goings. Sadly, Elsa seems to have closed. But Aisles of Abundance has opened. Coming soon is Tavern 18.
DC Department of Transportation reports that they will be improving and restoring local sidewalks in the next two weeks:
27th Street NW between Garfield Street NW and Cathedral Avenue NW
Connecticut Avenue NW between Calvert Street NW and 24th Street NW
Cortland Place NW between Devonshire Place NW and Klingle Road NW
Klingle Road NW between Cortland Place NW and Dead End
Thanks for reading! I hope you’ll stay involved, reach out, and share this newsletter with neighbors. If you have questions or concerns—or want to join a committee—just reply to this email.
Are there any plans in discussion on any traffic adjustments farther north on Beach Drive? The amount of backup that happens at the point of Shoreham/Beach Drive can surely be improved.