Brian Flahaven

On Oct. 14, Mayor Gray released a plan to close the temporary Emergency Family Homeless Shelter at DC General. The plan calls for replacing the units in the dilapidated, deteriorating old hospital building with 5-10 smaller scale shelters across the city. If new sites are identified and appropriate investments are made, DC General could be closed for good in the fall of 2015.

While the plan is certainly a step in the right direction (and something my ANC 6B colleagues and I have been asking for since 2011), I am concerned about some of the plan’s details (or lack thereof) including:

• Location of new shelters – the plan is vague on where the 5-10 smaller scale shelters would be located. I was hopeful that the Administration would identify at least one or two locations.
• No closing date identified – while the plan notes that the shelter could be closed for good in 2015, the Gray Administration avoids selecting a specific date for closure. Without a date, I’m concerned that the Mayor and Council will not make the investments necessary to see the plan implemented.
• Open-ended Solicitation for Offers – the plan notes that the DC Department of General Services has issued a SFO seeking privately owned facilities that could be used as shelters. But there is no deadline on the SFO, which means that there is no time pressure for developers/owners to respond to the SFO. If the city wants to close DC General by fall of 2015 and wants to consider multiple responses, shouldn’t there be an end of year deadline on the SFO?
• Recent increase in families being housed at DC General – If the goal is to reduce the number of families living at DC General, than the city’s recent decision to move more families into the shelter is perplexing at best. And with no funding in the FY15 budget to house families in hotel rooms, the city will have no choice but to continue operating DC General at capacity this winter.

Despite these concerns, Mayor Gray deserves credit for developing a plan to close DC General. Now it is time for the Mayor and Council to step up, identify shelter sites and fund the plan so it becomes a reality. I will certainly continue to push the city to close DC General and find better, more humane housing options for our homeless families.

The Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development’s Office will hold a property surplus meeting for parcels F1 & G1 of the Hill East Development (Reservation 13) on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 6-8 pm at St. Coletta of Greater Washington (1901 Independence Ave SE).

Currently, DMPED is negotiating a land disposition agreement with Donatelli/Blue Skye, the development team awarded the right to develop parcels F1 & G1 (phase I). Since the parcels are District property, the parcels must be declared surplus property – property not required for a future public (city) purpose. The Oct. 29 meeting is required by law and is an opportunity for DMPED to receive public feedback and comments on the District’s plans to surplus the parcels. All comments, including written comments received by Nov. 10, 2014, will be submitted to the Council for its consideration.

DMPED’s scheduling of a surplus meeting is a positive development and suggests that the city and development team are making progress in their negotiations. Hopefully, the land disposition agreement will be considered by the Council by the end of the year.

Curbside Cafe owners Kristi and Sam Whitfield plan to apply for a liquor license for the cafe in the near future. If you are interested in learning more, please stop by a community meeting tonight (Mon., Sept. 22) at 6 pm at Curbside Cafe (257 15th Street SE).

Note that ANC 6B will have an opportunity to weigh in on the liquor license request once an application is filed. If you can’t make tonight’s meeting, there will be a few more opportunities to weigh in on the request.

The DC Department of General Services (DGS) has issued a Request for Proposals (pdf) for the disposition and redevelopment of the Eastern Branch Building, the former Boys and Girls Club building located at 261 17th Street SE. Responses are due by Thurs., November 20 at 3:00 pm.

While the RFP does not include everything ANC 6B requested (pdf), it does reference the commission’s comments and encourages respondents to proactively reach out to the community if interested in the building. The RFP also references a community presentation for all development teams that submit complete proposals that DGS determines are responsive. 

If you are interested in learning more about the RFP, please plan to attend one or both of these upcoming meetings:

• Tues, Sept. 16 – DGS Eastern Branch Surplus Hearing, 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm, Payne Elementary School (1445 C Street SE) – Though titled a “hearing,” this meeting will be a much more informal discussion of the state of the building and the RFP process. 
• Wed., Sept. 17 – Pre-proposal Conference, 10:30 am, Reeves Center, 2000 14th Street NW, Second Floor – This will be another opportunity to learn about the building and RFP process. While the agenda will be geared towards parties interested in responding to the RFP, the meeting is open to the public.

DGS is also conducting tours of the building on Wed., Sept. 17 from 12-3 pm. These tours are designed for development teams interested in submitting a proposal, and all individuals touring the building will have to sign a waiver. I plan to ask DGS whether residents will be allowed to tour the building as well. 

I will post additional information as the RFP process unfolds.