Anacostia Waterfront Corporation Announces Master Developer for SW Waterfront Project

On Wednesday night, I spent the evening at the Hine Junior High Education Facilities Master Plan review. My staff attended the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation monthly public board meeting in Southwest, DC. The highlight of the meeting was the announcement that the AWC has chosen Hoffman-Struever Waterfront LLC as the Master Developer for the Southwest Waterfront project. Hoffman-Struever was chosen in part due to their experience with waterfront communities and their commitment to green buildings.

The plan for the Southwest Waterfront community incorporates 1,036,000 square feet of residential space, 230,000 square feet of retail space, 157,000 square feet of office space, and 150,000 square feet of space designated for cultural use. In additional to the effort to revitalize the Southwest Waterfront, this plan has numerous commendable goals. The project will include 300 affordable housing units (30% of the total number of units). This development will also be the first mixed-use LEED-Silver certified project in the city. Finally, 51% of the new jobs created by the project will be filled by DC residents, with preference given to residents of Wards 6, 7 and 8. The construction will begin in 2009 and the projected completion date is 2014.

I commend the board of the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation for their thoughtful and conscientious decision. I look forward to seeing the development along the waterfront in the coming years.

For further info, please press here to see today's Washington Post front page story.

Right to Serve - Ending Don't Ask, Don't Tell

This morning, I had the opportunity to speak out publicly against our nation's discriminatory Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, which has resulted in the discharge of more than 10,000 gay service members since the policy's inception more than 10 years ago.

The event was organized by Right to Serve, a campaign led by Soulforce, which was founded by the Rev. Mel White. We gathered at 10 o'clock outside the U.S. Armed Forces Recruiting Station at 1099 14th Street, NW.

Across the U.S., the campaign is creating public awareness about the policy's damaging effects by joining with openly gay, lesbian and bisexual people who are qualified to serve our country and who are seeking to enlist.

I met the organizers, Adam Bink and Graham Murphy, and the two impressive local women who decided they would attempt to enlist today, Mandy Craig and Alexandra Douglas-Barrera. Ms. Craig's partner, Chance, told us of the numerous commendations and high honors she received before being discharged from duty. The event drew local NBC and Fox News, the Blade and MW. Even the crew for CNN's Paula Zahn Now was there.

For quite some time, I have been on record against the current Don't Ask Don't Tell policy. Today provided an excellent forum for relating my Coast Guard experiences at sea and the irrationality behind the discriminatory law currently enforced inconsistently across the Armed Forces.

I am proud of my military service and of the men and women with whom I served. In 1993, I graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, where I served as the highest ranking cadet in my class. For my service, I was awarded the Coast Guard Commendation Medal, the Coast Guard Achievement Medal, the Coast Guard Humanitarian Service Medal, and Letter of Commendation, and other honors.

Today, I recounted life-threatening circumstances from a nor'easter during my service. When people's lives are on the line, the last thing I cared about was whether my shipmate next to me was gay or straight. I cared about their patriotism and their performance. I cared about whether or not they were qualified to get the job done and help the unit get its mission accomplished safely.

Gay men and women across this country are doing great deeds of service in their communities everyday. How can we prevent them from serving in one of our most honored traditions, the call to arms, protecting our liberty, freedom, and our very way of life? How ironic that we have gay and lesbian Americans fighting to protect our liberties while being denied their own.

Israel integrates gays and lesbians in its armed forces, as do 23 other countries, including Great Britain. We're supposed to be the world's champion of freedom and liberty. We need every qualified sailor we can find to serve. We can't be concerning ourselves with people's sexual orientation. We should be focused on whether or not they're qualified to defend this country – period.

After we all spoke, Alexandra and Mandy went inside, attempting to enlist. The recruitment office was scheduled to be open. But as Right To Serve has experienced elsewhere, the office was shut down. The U.S. military placed a commitment to discrimination ahead of preparedness. If any straight American had come to the recruiting office this morning, they wouldn't have been able to enlist either. The Don't Ask Don't Tell policy is unacceptable and it does not advance our security interests.

Participating in today's event reminded me that freedom is not fully shared by DC residents in more ways than one. We are denied the right to be fully represented in Congress. Plus, if you're gay or lesbian, you can't openly serve your country in the military.

It was an honor to meet Alexandra and Mandy. It will be an even greater honor to meet them after they have enlisted.

Southwest Neighborhood Assembly - Waterside Mall Meeting

On Monday Night, attendees at the monthly meeting of the Southwest Neighborhood Assembly (SWNA) filled the sanctuary at St. Augustine’s on M Street, SW. The high attendance was due, in large part, to a presentation by Forrest City Developers on the proposed improvements to the Waterside Mall. The Mall has sat largely empty for over one year and residents are desperate to see some revitalization of the valuable metro-adjacent property.



The SWNA meeting represented the first opportunity for many residents to hear the full plan for the Waterside Mall site. This plan includes several substantial changes which were made after proposed tenant, Fannie Mae, decided against relocating to the site. As a result of Fannie Mae’s change of plans, the developers decided to triple the amount of residential space in the completed project. Four of the eight buildings that will inhabit the final site will be residential buildings. The two towers located on the far east and west edges of the current property will have their facades’ removed and will be re-faced as residential buildings. The new plans also reflect additional green space in between the buildings.

The developers have recognized the challenge of balancing the needs of the community with the expedient and efficient construction of the property. In order to meet the needs of the community, during construction, the CVS and the Bank of America will occupy temporary facilities that will be built on the southwest corner of the property (in the parking lot in front of the Bank of America). The Safeway will remain open through the entire construction process.

Demolition of the current structure will begin soon, starting with abatement procedures on the interior of the Mall. The north-south pathway through the mall will remain open in the coming months. Developers expect to deliver Phase 1 of the project (which includes two office buildings and two residential buildings) in 2012. Residents were dismayed to hear that the changes will not occur as quickly as many hoped; however, most Southwest residents are relieved that development is on track to begin on the underused site.

Concerns: I have great concerns on the financing behind the deal and whether or not the residents of SW, Ward 6, and the rest of DC are getting the best deal and functionality for this ideally situated property. I am also concerned about the small percentage of retail that is guaranteed with this development. We could feasibly end up with a mere 12,500 square feet of retail space (excluding 55,000 square feet for Safeway) which would severely limit the services available.

H Street - Coming of Age

Over the last week, H Street has passed a critical tipping point, marking the beginning of the return to the greatness of the late 50’s and early 60’s, when the corridor had more revenue per square foot than any other place in the District.



On Thursday, September 21, 2006, the Washington Area Community Investment Fund held the 2nd Annual Swing for the Green Jazz and Big Band Swing Gala. Most importantly, the event marked the grand arrival of the Atlas Performing Arts Center Theater, where many of the East Coast’s finest bands hit the stage. If I had not known better, I would have thought we were in one of New York’s finest theaters. As I left, I took a look at the presidential seal hanging from the balcony, marking the area reserved for former President Clinton, whose Secret Service agents were on hand for his arrival. Unfortunately, President Clinton was not able to make it. But, if he heard the word on the street, he will be sure to make next year’s event. A special thank you goes to Anwar Saleem, Jen DeMayo and WACIF. Your hospitality was exceptional and I know you are proud of the event – It was a smashing success!



On Saturday, September 23, 2006, merchants, vendors, performers and community members celebrated the renaissance of H Street at the annual H Street festival. The two block street festival boasted more than twice as many vendors as last year's festival, making this the most successful H Street festival yet. The intersections at H and 12th streets, and H and 14th streets each housed stages which hosted vibrant musical acts all day long. The event was very well attended by DC and Maryland residents alike. As usual, the Will Cobb for Ward 6 table was staffed by numerous energetic and enthusiastic volunteers, all of whom enjoyed the food, fun and friends. Everyone marveled at the changes that the H Street neighborhood has undergone.



A special thank you goes to Rafael Marshall, Anwar Saleem and Kwasi Frye. Like Thursday night’s event, this year’s H Street Festival was AWESOME! Congratulations!

A Typical Night In Ward 6

My supporters and I are working hard to attend as many meetings across Ward 6 as possible every night. I am always amazed by how many community groups, organizations and committees meet on any given evening. Here is just a summary of the meetings my supporters and I attended on Thursday, September 21.

PSA 104

Thursday night, I attended the PSA 104 meeting at the River Park complex. Many residents from across Southwest DC were in attendance to discuss their public safety concerns, including their concerns about increased juvenile crime.

The residents of Southwest are served by officers that are committed to protecting their community; however, based on the complaints voiced at the PSA meeting, it is evident that the resources dedicated to the safety of the Southwest communities are insufficient. I had a chance to speak to the residents in attendance about my vision for public safety in Southwest and across Ward 6. As the DC Councilmember for Ward 6, I will continue to take a hands on approach to public safety throughout our ward.

PSA 107

Community members from PSA 107 met on Kentucky Avenue to discuss crime in parts of the Hill East Neighborhood. Neighbors expressed concern about the ongoing flower thefts throughout the neighborhood. An officer from the Metropolitan Police Department reported that the number of crimes, especially thefts, has gone up in PSA 107. Arrests have also gone up recently.

Residents should be aware of the following:
- Community members can register their bicycles at the 1D station or 1D1 substation, so that in the event that their bicycle is stolen and recovered, it can be easily identified and returned.
- On October 28, DPW and DCRA will host “Operation Fight Back” between the 1500 block of East Capitol to C Street and from 14th Street to 17th Street. Participants will identify abandoned cars and buildings in the designated area.
- Orange hat patrols continue on Friday nights at 7:30 beginning at the intersection of Kentucky and D Street.

Residents of Hill East may have noticed a larger amount of homeless in the area. This increase is due to the opening of two shelters at DC General. These shelters have been open for approximately a year, but most residents were never notified. It is shocking that this could happen without any notice or comment from residents.



Washington Canal Park Stakeholders Meeting:

Washington Canal Park, located on the strip of land along 2nd Street, SE between M Street and I Street, will be the first public park built as a part of the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative. Thursday night, the Anacostia Waterfront Corporation gathered the community to discuss the current plans for the park and to receive feedback from the community.



The park, as planned, will be a model of rainwater recycling and storm water management that other parks and communities will be able to learn from and build upon. The aquatic gardens planned for the site will filter storm water collected from the park and potentially from nearby streets. The use of water throughout the site is not only an aesthetic asset, but it harkens back to the history of the site. This plot of land was once a canal used to transport produce downtown.

The park will consist of three blocks, divided by L Street and K Street. The northmost block, titled “Collect,” will contain a shallow, interactive water feature. The middle block, titled “Celebrate,” includes another interactive water feature, as well as an aquatic garden which will be used to filter rainwater. The final, southern-most block, titled “Convey” will contain an agricultural garden, an informal amphitheater and a plaza bordering along M Street, SE. A wide, tree-lined boardwalk will run along the western side of all three portions of the park.

The Anacostia Waterfront Corporation hopes to begin construction in Spring 2007 and open the site to pedestrians in Spring 2008. This will correspond to the opening of the new Nationals Ballpark. Ultimately, Canal Park will help link Capitol Hill with the new redeveloped ballpark community.

Visit the Gustafson Guthrie Nichol design page for more information: http://www.ggnltd.com/projects/Washington%20Canal%20Park/project%20sheet.htm

To follow this and other news in the Near Southeast Development visit “JD Land” - http://www.jdland.com/dc

Barracks Row Fest: Celebrating an Award Winning Community

Saturday afternoon we had a great turnout at the Barracks Row Fest. Barracks Row, the neighborhood along 8th Street, SE, from Pennsylvania Avenue to the Navy Yard, is an incredible example of a revitalized Main Street community. In 2005, this historic area won the Great American Main Street award, which is given to five communities each year. This award recognizes outstanding accomplishment in restoring America's historic and traditional downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts. Anyone who has enjoyed the great restaurants and unique local shops along 8th Street will agree that Barracks Row is a rejuvenated thoroughfare, providing services to local residents as well as attracting shoppers from outside Ward 6.







Despite occasional showers, residents and visitors browsed, ate, shopped and enjoyed the festivities. An enthusiastic group of Will Cobb volunteers attended the festival, spreading the word that the race to represent Ward 6 did not end on September 12. Many voters who visited our table were excited to hear Will Cobb’s plans to deliver the results that our community and the city deserve.



Thanks to everyone who attended the festival and congratulations to the folks at Barracks Row Fest for putting on a wonderful event.

September 8, 2006 - Failing Schools in Ward 6

Interacting with teachers, reading the newspapers, and working with Ward 6 children reveals something that most Ward 6 residents have come to expect - OUR SCHOOLS ARE FAILING!

1. As reflected in the most recent Voice of the Hill (Click here to view the story), 2006 DCPS standardized test performance dropped significantly across Ward 6 and across the District of Columbia. DCPS elementary school math proficiency dropped from 58% to 26% (32% drop). Reading proficiency dropped from 51% to 37% (14% drop). As the Washington Post said on September 8, 2006 (Click here for the full story), the "situation requires massive intervention efforts to reverse." We now have 118 of 146 (81%) schools failing to make adequate yearly progress under the federal No Child Left Behind law. The Washington Post addressed these failures in a September 11th editorial ( Click here to read the full story ).

2. I have spoken with countless numbers of current and former DCPS teachers and faculty members. The stories of waste, fraud and abuse should be of the utmost concern to all DC residents. If a fraction of the stories I have heard are true, it should come as no surprise why we spend more than $15,000 per student while obtaining performance results comparable to Mississippi, the state whom we battle annually for 'worst in the nation.'

SOLUTION:

A. It is time to take drastic action. Other cities continue to leave us behind as we push more and more children down the correction system pipeline, whereby our youth regulary leave DCPS without the skills or attributes required to compete in today's increasingly competitive workforce. I again voice my strong support for increased accountability in the hands of the mayor through a more powerful superintendent. We must streamline the system so that we do not have 17 individuals, boards, or agencies controlling various components of the school system.

B. Given the lack of transparency and accountability our DCPS financial management, which is currently ranked the worst in the nation according to the U.S. Department of Education, we must radically overhaul ALL finance and accounting systems, while installing an inspector general to ensure all contracts are being competitively sourced and aggressively managed. A culture of accountability, supported by frequent and random audits, must be instilled ASAP!

C. Use of Best Practices - New York, Boston and other cities continue to leave us behind while we continue with our day-to-day finger pointing. With only 57,000 students, we should have a responsive system that rapidly adjusts to the marketplace, providing the latest skills and tools to ensure our graduates are ready for the world's best universities, while also providing a steady flow of vocational workers. As such, we should be on the cutting edge considering new and innovative approaches (click here). We should be making the often talked about Eastern H.S. to Washington Latin transition happen as quickly as possible, recognizing that we must have a robust transition plan to increase the current skill levels of Eastern's current and future student body. Rather than discussing how to tweak a broken, overstaffed bureaucratic mess, we should be fundamentally changing how we operate.

September 3, 2006 - Buzzards Point

Over the years, I have spent extensive time in James Creek and Buzzards Point. It was nice to spend another Sunday afternoon along the streets close to Coast Guard Headquarters. The visit revealed disturbing incidents that I thought should be shared for fellow Ward 6 residents that have not had the opportunity to spend significant time in and around James Creek. However, it also illustrated that we can all be inspired by some of our Buzzards Point residents that have chosen to call James Creek home in an attempt to positively influence and help many of our residents that are most in need.

Antenna Madness - Many residents were upset about a September 2nd spat of juvenile violence, as more than 20 youth spent the hours after curfew beating on Canal Street vehicles with broken antennas. After what residents called a slow response, many of the youth were detained after significant damage had been caused to a number of cars. The source of this problem, which was not unusual for this neighborhood, remains a cultural divide where large numbers of our Ward 6 residents are being left behind, without hope for gainful employment, without hope for enjoying the resources many of us take for granted, and without the basic skills needed to help solve our biggest challenges.

Ms. Martin - I had the good fortune of talking for quite some time with Ms. Phyllis Martin and her son Phillip. Ms. Martin claims to be the oldest resident in James Creek and she can tell stories and tales with the best of them. She is extremely uspet with the continued lack of representation and the impending upheaval that is bound to push most of her neighbors out of the community. While we cannot prevent the massive development surrounding James Creek and Syphax, we can work extremely hard as a community to ensure these residents will have a place to go in the years ahead. Our vision of inclusive development can happen with aggressive, proactive planning. Maybe I am missing something, but, I have not seen it yet.

Entertainment with a Cause - Mr. and Mrs. Mays live on Canal Street. They are both concerned about the youth in their neighborhood, and want nothing more than for their children and those around them to have a chance. Mrs. Mays is a musician. She was kind enough to give me a copy of her latest CD. She and I are looking forward to hosting an event together to benefit our youth in the months ahead. Stand by for some serious fun geared towards benefiting some of our most needy children.

U.S. Marine Corps Service Translates to SW - Martin Cook spent ten years on active duty with the Marines, and was a veteran of Desert Storm I. He now manages a division in one of our national health care advocacy groups that is based in D.C. He could have lived anywhere in the District. But, he chose to live next to Syphax, where he could positively influence local children that need a chance. Several came up to chat with Mr. Cook several times during our conversation. It is clear that he is an integral part of the community and he aims to make a difference. With neighbors like Mr. Cook, it is clear that the future for SW can be very, very bright.