Earlier this month, Councilmembers Mary Cheh and Tommy Wells introduced the “Bicycle Safety Amendment Act of 2013”. The bill increases penalties for drivers who fail to yield to cyclists or are at fault in crashes involving cyclists and increases education requirements for new DC drivers on how to share the road. It also establishes a requirement that public space permit holders blocking a sidewalk or bicycle lane provide a safe accommodation for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Also this month, DDOT released a report analyzing bicycle and pedestrian crash records for the last two years, which concluded that the intersections of 14th & U Streets NW and 16th Street & New Hampshire Ave NW are among the most dangerous for bicyclists in the city.

My colleague Kishan Putta and I led several public safety listening sessions in 2012 before we were elected as Commissioners. One of those, in September, was specifically on bicycle safety in the neighborhood. We heard about issues concerning bicycle lanes, signage, bicycling on sidewalks, and pedestrian safety.

At our March 13 ANC meeting, I will introduce a resolution in support of the bill and make several suggestions to clarify its intent and language. The bill, DDOT report and draft resolution are available below.

Here is the highlight from the resolution:

As I continue to work to increase safety for pedestrians and bicyclists in our neighborhood, please let me know what you think of the bill and proposed resolution. Reply here or click on Contact Me above and give me a call anytime. Thanks!

The proposed moratorium on alcohol licenses in the 14th and U area has been a popular topic of discussion in the neighborhood lately. The Dupont ANC briefly discussed it last night and decided to hold several public meetings of our ABRA Policy Committee to gather input. We’ve also decided to work closely with our partners at ANCs 2F, 1B and 6E to host a joint listening session in March for the community to get together and discuss the proposal.

Earlier this week, I encouraged folks to get educated and read the proposal. Now I’d like to start the conversation on how exactly we think the moratorium may impact our neighborhood over the next several years and the next generation. As we’ve seen with other moratoria in the city, once implemented they often stay in place for a decade or more.

Joan Sterling, the President of the Shaw Dupont Citizens Alliance who proposed the moratorium, was kind enough to send me a map of the potential moratorium zone for ANC2B:

As you can see, the zone covers several blocks of U St, Swann, S St, and 14th, but does not reach far into the Dupont Circle neighborhood. As I’ve said publicly before, though the intrusion of the moratorium zone may be minimal into ANC2B, the conversation about how this will impact residents and business owners is incredibly important to us.

Just as neighborhood issues do not start and stop at ANC or ward boundaries, the impact of the moratorium, both positive and negative, could be far reaching. I maintain that this discussion is important to have in a serious, focused, and public manner because it has the significant potential to shape the character of our community for the next decade or more.

I am certainly keeping an open mind and I hope to hear from as many of you as possible about how you think the moratorium will impact our neighborhood. Please reply here, send me an email or give me a call anytime. Thanks!

The Dupont Circle ANC will be meeting this Wednesday at 7:00pm at the Brookings Institution. The full agenda is below:

In addition to several public space and ABC applications, some items of note for 2B09 include:

• Announcement of a special election for the vacant 2B05 seat
• Update on the 14th and U "Louis" construction project by JBG
• Consideration of action on the 16th St bus routes
• Discussion on next steps in response to 14th and U ABC moratorium petition

Recently two neighborhood groups submitted a petition to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board requesting a moratorium, or temporary cease, on the issuance of liquor licenses in the 14th Street and U Street corridors. The petition, which discusses a number of critical issues like public safety and noise, asks for a five year halt on all new liquor licenses, for all classes of establishments, in an 1800 foot radius around 1211 U St NW.

I take this request very seriously and so do my colleagues on the Dupont Commission as well as those on neighboring ANCs. The four affected ANCs (1B, 2B, 2F and 6E) plan on working together over the next month or two to gather public input in a coordinated way and perhaps draft similar resolutions if we come to similar conclusions.

This will likely be in the form of a joint listening session in March for the whole affected community, an opportunity for folks from three different wards to voice their opinions together. Our ANC (2B) will also be holding meetings on the issue and I hope to chat with and meet with as many of you in 2B09 as I can. I'm always willing to find time to meet with you in person on this or any other issue. 

The most important thing you can do right now is to get educated and read the petition. Find out exactly what is proposed, in which neighborhoods, and why and then form your own opinion. The petition and four attachments, including a map, are available for download below. 

I’m going into this process with an open mind and very open ears. This is a great opportunity to talk about important quality of life issues in our neighborhood. Specifically on the petition, I want to hear from residents about:

1. Whether you think the neighborhood is ‘on the right path’ regarding development and nightlife;
2. What you think the impact of the moratorium as proposed would be on the neighborhood if approved;
3. What lessons can be learned from the experiences of similar moratoria in Dupont Circle; and 
4. If you support the petition in part, in total, or not at all. 
   

Of course I’m happy to chat with anyone about the petition and I would love to hear from as many residents of 2B09 as possible.

Please comment, email or call anytime to voice your opinion and check back here for announcements of future meetings and listening sessions that the ANC is planning. 

The Old Post Office on T Street just west of 14th has been under renovation for the past year and has made incredible progress. 

Bakehouse and Taqueria Nacional are moving in and their modern and colorful signs are finally up. 

No official word on an exact opening date for either, but I'm looking forward to welcoming both eateries to the neighborhood. I've been a fan of Taqueria's Capitol Hill location for several years. I'll keep you posted here as they get closer to opening.

UPDATE: Borderstan reports that Bakehouse is planning to soft open in March. They also note:

"The menu will feature breakfast, lunch and dessert items, including a wide array of muffins, breakfast sandwiches (on a homemade English muffin), scones, cakes, candies, cupcakes, paninis and salads. Bakehouse will also offer coffee and specialty drinks from Zeke’s Coffee, a small roaster based in Baltimore."