ANC 6C03 Update

by Scott Price, Commissioner ANC6C03

Traffic Calming Study for 7th and C Streets, NE.  The results of the DC Department of Transportation (DDOT) study are attached (ANC6C03 notes from July 20 meeting about MD Ave reconfiguration (July 22, 2016) and are disappointing: The only changes DDOT planners are recommending are those to improve pedestrian safety, but not to install a 3-way STOP.  Bjorn Jernudd, Gary Barbour and I are drafting a letter to seek clarification, e.g., were the traffic counts seasonally adjusted; did the counts include projections from the 144 apartments at 700 Constitution Ave, and 42 condos at 300 8th St; etc.: CM Allen has been informed of our intent to send such a letter.  The timing of the DDOT report is remarkable — dated July 19, just a few days before the horrible crash on July 22 ala http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8lIU34R30I.  (Thanks to everybody who sent emails about this accident.)  Clearly metrics are important, and y’all might have metrics to contribute.  We’re not sure yet about the source of the accident data the DDOT planners used, but a common database might be the crashes that were reported to the police department (for insurance and other purposes).  However people in the immediate area might have suffered property damage from a reckless driver but never reported it to a DC government agency: if this description fits you, and you have evidence of the crash (e.g., receipt to repair the property damage), please share your information with me at your earliest convenience.

Bizarre driving.  In addition to the crash at 7th and C, I’ve been informed about a near-miss this week involving a pedestrian at 7th and Maryland Ave.  I’m not sure what is going on, but please everybody be careful.

Maryland Avenue reconfiguration.  Notes from the meeting on July 20 with the Mayor and DDOT Director Dormsjo are attached.  The two next important dates are,
July 29: the 30% design is scheduled to be released;
Aug 10: DDOT will meet with us in the NE Library to discuss the design.

In between these two dates, please consider a third: Saturday, Aug 6 — to meet with me at 1pm in the NE Library for two purposes.
– Contribute your ideas to my input to the meeting on Aug 10.  The meeting with DDOT on Aug 10 will likely last a few hours with insufficient time for everybody’s comments.  I don’t want to consume a lot of time at the meeting, so before the meeting I will send an email to DDOT with a list of my questions and concerns.
– Help you learn more about the logic for this project.  This project has never been without controversy, and in the attached notes you will notice that some people continue to raise serious objections — not only to individual design elements, but to the project in its entirety.  Some people are new to the discussion: they have not been involved in the discussion over the last 5 years and have not had access to the data which others have studied.   I am working with others to try to re-post the original technical data for everybody’s perusal.  At the meeting on Aug 6 for people with concerns about the requirement and means to tame traffic on MD Ave, I will try my best to explain the progression of thought and how we arrived at the space we are in.   If you are not one of my constituents, then likely you will be better served by speaking with your own ANC Commissioner: the jurisdiction I represent begins on the east side of 8th Street, and proceeds westward.

I need help to distribute flyers to each home in the affected area west of 8th Street.   The construction management issues alone will have significant impact, and we need to ensure our neighbors are informed.  The distribution zones we used several years ago follow: