Shawington

Cary meets with the new principal and assistant principal of Shaw Middle School at Garnet Patterson, Brian Betts and Kimberly Douglas.

This is an exciting time for the DC schools and there is rightful optimism for the future of the District’s children. This week, I met with Brian Betts, the new principal of Shaw Middle School at Garnet Patterson, and Kimberly Douglas, the assistant principal. Tonight, Ms. Douglas will introduce the new leadership of the school and its aggressive plan for moving forward at the Mount Vernon Square Neighborhood Association’s monthly meeting. I’m encouraged by their outreach to the community.

I was impressed with the drive of the new leadership, who are on a mission to raise the quality of education at the school. They are in the process of hiring a team of highly qualified teachers from across the country, and a candidate arrived for an interview as our meeting concluded. The staffing at Shaw/Garnet Patterson will almost entirely change.

Mr. Betts knows the neighborhood well. A former resident of French Street just blocks from the school, Betts spent the last several years in the Montgomery County Public Schools. He certainly fits the “Army of Believers” hired as new principals by Chancellor Rhee. Last year, test score significantly increased at the school, but Principal Betts is on a mission to drive them up much more. When asked whether he is concerned with the rise of enrollment of DC’s charter schools, Mr. Betts predicted that the improved scores, new facilities, highly-qualified teachers, and neighborhood outreach would bring students back into neighborhood schools, reversing their declining enrollment.

How can the community help? Principal Betts notes that its school activity fund, which helps fund trips for Shaw Middle School’s famous marching band, is empty. A google search reveals this interesting tidbit about Principal Betts: As a teacher in Germantown, Maryland, Betts took two cream pies in the face and was dropped in a tank of water, all to raise money for the school’s Principal’s Discretionary Fund. Truly, this new principal is one who will get it done. We can help as well, by identifying potential corporate sponsors for school activities.

We’ve also got to keep pressure on the DC Council, as well as the school administration, to move forward. I am concerned that the DC Council has delayed $50 million in funds for school modernization, which will hurt Ward 2 schools such as Francis Junior High, which is being combined as a K-8 with Stevens Elementary. Francis must be redesigned to meet the needs of younger children. While the Council is right to demand that the school administration be more forthcoming in sharing information, there can be no speed bumps as the new school year quickly approaches. The Council must support the new principals and teachers by releasing the funds or our students will pay the price.

Likewise, while we’ve heard political pledges to rebuild Shaw Middle School, which has been combined with Garnet Patterson, my meeting with Principal Betts confirmed that there is no plan and no time line. I’m very concerned that if it takes over seven years to rebuild our libraries, how long will it take to construct a new, state of the art school to serve Ward 2 neighborhoods? Let’s start the design process, with community input, and set a firm schedule for moving forward. I’ll make sure we stay on track past the political promise season.

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This week, I attended the third community meeting on the proposed new Watha T. Daniels Library. The library will serve the Shaw, as well as Logan Circle, communities, will be located at 7th and Rhode Island Avenue.

A brief bit of background. The previous library, a concrete fortrees constructed in the 1970s, was closed in December 2004. The community had no library for three years before opening of an interim library. The frustration led to a protest reported in the Washington Post. The interim library, a trailer, is doing well, with circulation surpassing that of the permanent library before its closure. This demonstrates the need for a top-of-the-line library in Shaw and the great potential to make it a center piece of the community.

So why was I disappointed after the meeting? Our new libraries should welcome and draw in the community. They should recognize the new and different environment in which libraries operate today: where computers and printers are as important to literacy and as resources as paper books and newspapers; and where residents have the option of going to a private book store with comfortable seating, a cafe, a wifi. Libraries of the 21st Century can provide computer training, a literacy center, a cafe and sidewalk seating, a book or gift shop, neighborhood historic resources, a dedicated computer lab and a low-cost kinkos-type business center. The proposed Watha T. Daniels Library, while including a modern facade with a commendably environmentally-friendly building, looks much on the inside as any library today or a decade ago for that matter, with a few more computers and without the card catalogue. I’d like to see innovation and excitement in our future libraries.

At this week’s meeting, the discussion focused, unfortunately, on unanticipated construction costs for the new library that would raise the costs 20% above budget. These expenses primarily relate to the cost of remediating groundwater under the site, the location’s proximity to the underground metro line, the rising cost of steel, and extensive use of glass. The architects presented modifications to lower the cost, including slightly lowering the height of the second story, raising the basement level, and reducing coverage of the sun screen. There was little news to report — the lower level remains a work in progress; landscaping, streetscaping, and public art are still question marks; there is no dedicated computer lab; vending machines are anticipated in the basement, with the possibility of a coffee cart.

DC Public Library staff and the architects say that cost issues will not delay the project. Stay tuned for a fourth and final meeting in the near future.

The West End/Foggy Bottom/Dupont Circle community has the right idea. You can read what they have proposed for their new library, which they view as a central part of a vibrant neighborhood, here. More to come on that topic in a future blog post.

Resources:
Notes from the previous Watha T. Daniels public meetings and design plans
DC Library Dynamos Watha T. Daniels Survey Results
My letter providing feedback and recommendations on the proposed design

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On June 24, I joined the Foggy Bottom Association at their annual meeting. The featured speaker, Mayor Adrian Fenty, was well received. Congratulations and thanks to FBA President Joy Howell and all of the newly elected officers for their service to the community and city. Ms. Howell was elected to a second 3-year term.

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I’ve found time and time again that those who fight hardest for Ward 2 residents are often members of the Council from other parts of the city or elected at-large. Today, was another perfect example.

First, the Council gutted the noise bill. The original bill would have placed reasonable restrictions on the volume of daytime noncommercial speech (i.e. people shouting into loud speakers) that goes on for prolonged periods, intruding into people’s homes and places of work. DC has absolutely no limit, unlike any other major city, and what was originally proposed was still more lenient than places like New York City. An amendment proposed by Council Member Harry Thomas (D-Ward 5), which was essentially a rewrite of that proposed by Council Member Evans and defeated last month, passed 9-4 this time, after some unions ran radio ads threatening two members up for reelection, Kwame Brown (D-At Large) and Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7). It raises the decibel level limit from 70 to 80 dB, restricts the limit to R-1 through R-4 zones (i.e. there is no limit for areas in which there are large apartment buildings or downtown), and changes the place of measurement to inside the home rather than 50 feet from the noise.

Those fighting for Ward 2 on the noise bill included Council Members Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3), Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), David Catania (I-At-Large), and Carol Schwartz (R-At Large). While Ward 2 Council Member Jack Evans represented that he has never received a noise complaint from residents of his Ward that would be protected by the legislation, Catania and Cheh discussed a different reality. Catania, himself a Ward 2 resident, expressed outrage that the children of Stevens Elementary School (located in West End/Foggy Bottom) lost an entire semester of school because of a prolonged protest across the street by hired hands. Cheh suggested that Penn Quarter residents ask why they are being treated differently — why they get no protection in their community and in their homes, noting that, “just because [you] live in a mixed [residential / commercial] area, Penn Quarter residents will have to suffer from noise assaults.” Cheh noted that under the Evans’ supported amendment, the noise can go 7am-9pm every day, all day, no matter how long, how loud, how amplified — “you get no protection whatsoever, none.”
“Penn Quarter, I hope you are listening, you are being written off.”

–Council Member Mary Cheh (Ward 3), quoted in the Washington Post

Council Member Wells, who shares a portion of Penn Quarter with Ward 2, attempted to amend the Thomas amendment to restore some protection for downtown, but failed. In the end, Cheh and Wells, the primary sponsors of the bill, voted against the do-nothing legislation.

Lost in all the noise over the noise bill were two very other important quality of life proposals on the Council’s Tuesday agenda: single sales of alcoholic beverages and vacant property.

The Council passed a ban on the sale of single alcoholic beverages for Wards 4, 7, and 8, with Council Member Wells pledging to add the entirety of Ward 6, which already has a partial ban, at the next meeting. Council Member Evans, spurred by the action of his colleagues, has after 17 years of complaints from neighborhoods residents, committed to proposing a similar ban for Ward 2. But his proposed ban, yet to be introduced, will cover only two Advisory Neighborhood Commission areas, Logan Circle (ANC 2F) and Shaw/Mt. Vernon/Penn/Chinatown Quarter (ANC 2C). Residents of Dupont Circle, Foggy Bottom/West End, Georgetown, and downtown should prepare to see more public intoxication, public urination, aggressive panhandling and trash, as those who cannot get a cheap drink in more than half of the rest of the city (Ward 1 already has a partial ban) find your corner and liquor stores.

Finally, the Council took on long-delayed legislation designed to move owners of vacant property to put their property to productive use. The legislation increases the vacant property tax rate from about 5x the regular occupied rate for residential property to 10x, while eliminating many of the loopholes that allowed derelict owners and speculators to avoid the higher rate for decades. It was Council Member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) who sought to fight off a series of 11th hour amendments that would have placed some of those exemptions back in the law and created a few new ones. That included a complete exemption on properties within the central business district proposed by Council Member Evans. It was withdrawn when it came under fire from Graham and Council Member Barry (D-Ward 8). Council Member Evans also proposed an amendment to increase the period of time before the higher rate sets in from 1 year (existing law) to 2 years and for residential property to 1 year (same as existing law, but the bill would have reduce dit to 8 months). That proposal passed. Another Evans proposal, to restore a loophole providing a 24-month exemption for properties under a deed of trust, was removed after Graham objected.

Graham also attempted to fight off, with some success, amendments proposed to allow the Mayor to single handedly exempt properties (passed subject to renewal by Mayor every 24 months), to exempt newly constructed buildings (passed limited to 4 years), and to require government inspectors evaluating whether a property is indeed vacant to consider the owner’s alleged “intent” to return.

It’s time we had a Ward 2 Council Member who places his constituents before developers, unions, and other special interests. By the way, what happened to the idea of creating a livable downtown? With the carving out of downtown from the noise bill and an attempt to take the central business district out of the vacant property protections, residents should be very concerned.

What people are saying about the noise bill’s silencing (no one is happy):
Quest for Quiet blog
PQ Living blog
Greater Greater Washington blog
DCist
DC Wire blog
The Express
Washington Post

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Tonight, I testified before the Board of Trustees of the DC Library system. I encouraged the Board to consider the new environment in which libraries operate today, where they are in competition with private book stores, internet cafes, and 24-hour kinkos. While it is positive that the city is moving forward with plans for new and renovated libraries, the designs unfortunately appear to place the same old library in new exterior packaging. I suggested that the Board closely consider incorporating such elements as cafes, business service centers, computer labs, and career centers into new libraries so that they draw people in and retain their relevance.

I also echoed the concern of many of those testifying from across the city that there has been insufficient community input considered in the design process. For example, with respect to the Watha T. Daniels Library in Shaw, the community was presented with a near completed design in late January, with no alternatives, and had no more than 40 minutes to comment on the plan. Over the last five months, there has been very little dialogue between the community and library system/designers as to any changes made.

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Tonight, members of the Foggy Bottom Association, joined by Director John Thomas and Lead Urban Forester Robert Corletta of the District Department of Transportation’s Urban Forestry Administration, convened at St. Stephen’s Catholic Church to discuss upkeep of the tree canopy in their neighborhood. Recent concerns have included the need to replace trees that have died and the illegal nailing of signs to the trees. To report issues involving trees, call 311 or use the online service request center. Any request involving trees will be automatically directed to the Urban Forestry Administration for follow up and appropriate action. You can also contacted them directly here.

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“Oh, be fair.” That is the response I received from DDOT Director Emeka C. Moneme in a public meeting of the Downtown Neighborhood Association last week. A Penn Quarter resident had informed Director Moneme that he had noticed walk signs swinging to face the wrong direction around town. Just call 311 was the response and we’ll send someone out to fix it. Then I thought of the Ward 2 resident I met at Whole Foods, and ran into again in Foggy Bottom, who told me how he had three times called in the same problem at a very busy intersection in Georgetown where he lives and works. Each time, the DDOT contractor came out and it was broken again within days. I told Director Moneme that he should be aware that some of his contractors are doing a “shoddy job.” Ward 2 Transportation Planner Christopher Ziemann then chimed in with some helpful advice: residents can fix the crosswalk signs themselves. Perhaps with a broomstick, you may be able to swing the pedestrian walk signs back into place.

Brick sidewalks. They look nice, but why can’t DDOT maintain them? A few weeks ago, a Foggy Bottom resident suggested that residents with wheel chairs use the streets rather than the sidewalks, because of the hazardous missing bricks. Well folks, here’s your answer. According to Mr. Zeimann, DDOT only has a single brick masonry crew for the entire city. That means that you are lucky to get asphalt to cover those holes until the crew gets around to you.

Light timing. You can literally walk across some areas of the city faster than attempting to drive or take a cab. From red light to red light you go, for miles at a time. Why? Wasted gas, wasted money, wasted time, unnecessary congestion. Fix it.

Fixing What Isn’t Broken. There’s so many dangerous intersections to fix, sidewalks to mend, walk lights facing the wrong way, and crosswalks to paint that you might think DDOT has its hands full. There’s also unfulfilled plans that might actually do some good if implemented, such as the New York Avenue Corridor Study and the Mount Vernon Triangle Transportation and Public Realm Project. Those sit on a shelf or in a file cabinet. Instead, the agency seems to repeatedly undertake efforts that leave residents fighting to ensure that the District’s congestion and pedestrian safety don’t get worse. A few recent or ongoing cases in point:
This week, after vigorous discussion and opposition on the Georgetown Forum, DDOT decided against plans to reverse the traffic flow on 33rd Street NW. As a former resident of 33rd Street, I know this was an obvious bad idea.
About two months ago, DDOT proposed eliminating a portion of The Circulator route that serves those who live and work along Wisconsin Avenue. After strong opposition from the Georgetown Advisory Neighborhood Commission and Citizens Association of Georgetown, DDOT abandoned that plan.
In Logan Circle, residents are very concerned about a DDOT proposal to make 15th Street (which currently is one-way heading northbound) into a two-way street.
DDOT, with the support of my opponent, has repeatedly studied the feasibility of removing the Whitehurst Freeway, an expense The Georgetown Current called “ridiculous”, and has garnered strong opposition.

To be fair to DDOT, there are some positive initiatives underway. Finally, we are beginning to see less closed sidewalks as DDOT is beginning to require developers to use covered walkways and maintain pedestrian access during construction. It is about time. I’m also glad to see the smart bike program come online - it is a good environmentally-friendly and convenient idea.

Can we please get back to basics? As your Council Member, I will push DDOT to fulfill its core mission — that includes:
Doing whatever it takes to address the most dangerous intersections in the city;Ensuring that crosswalks are always highly visible and signage is immediately and properly fixed when broken;Moving forward with needed infrastructure improvements to address congestion and safety hazards;Installing traffic calming devices where needed and effective;Sidewalk and street repair; andEnhancing public transportation options.

In short, I want to see shovels and paint brushes, not paper, presentations, and unnecessary proposals.

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On May 13, Cary joined parents, teachers, students, and DC Preservation League officials at Stevens Elementary School (1050 21st Street NW) as it, along with other DC Public School Buildings, were placed on the list of most endangered places in the city. Stevens presents a particularly compelling example. The school, which is one of two being closed this year in Ward 2, was built in 1868 as the first school for freed slaves in the District and the only such operating school in the United States.

Parents, teachers, and neighborhood residents are concerned that Stevens is being treated differently than other schools because its location downtown makes it prime real estate. While the schools administration has held “reuse” hearings for just about every other school in the city, Stevens’ future has been placed with the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development, fueling speculation that its close was more about money than education, and raising concern about the future of the historic building.

The Foggy Bottom/West End Advisory Neighborhood Commission will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, May 21, at 6:30 at Stevens Elementary School to gather feedback from the community on the future use of the building. For more information, contact ANC 2A Chair Asher Corson or Commissioner Florence Harmon.

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On Saturday, May 10, Cary joined the West End Neighborhood Association for a presentation by a representative of the District’s Chief Financial Officer on the state of the District’s finances. Dr. Natwar Ghandi was scheduled to attend the presentation, but unfortunately cancelled just prior to the event. According to materials distributed at the meeting, the District’s bond rating has consistently improved over the past several years, moving out of junk bond status to a high grade. In addition, the District’s comprehensive audit, delayed for 60 days due to the tax scandal, was favorable. Nevertheless, in Cary’s opinion, the District’s quickly increasing debt stemming from the baseball stadium and school renovations, along with increasing evidence of corruption in government, may place the District in a precarious position for the future.

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Last week, I attended a packed meeting at Stevens Elementary School in Foggy Bottom where about 80 parents, teachers, and staff were joined by Chancellor Michelle Rhee as they sought answers to what would happen to their kids, their teachers, and their programming with the school year ending days away.

First, a little background on Stevens. It’s not your average school. Located a 21st and K Streets, it has operated as a school continuously since 1868, when it served freed slaves. It’s the oldest school in operation in DC. Stevens current students are primarily “out-of-boundary,” meaning they are not zoned for the school but have chosen to come to Stevens either for convenience (close to parents’ work) or because it is known for its small class sizes and cohesiveness as a family.

As I’ve said before, I believe that the city needs to take drastic action to address low performance and the crisis of confidence in our ailing school system. School closings are inevitably a painful process, imposing hardship on children, parents, teachers, and school staff who are forced to adapt. That said, it is particularly important to make decisions in a deliberative manner, involving the community, and always putting the children and their education first.

Yet, I’ve been shocked when watching firsthand the disorganization of the school-closing process. I saw it at the “hearing” on whether to close Shaw Middle School at which a few community leaders but nearly zero parents or teachers testified, where the mic barely worked, and where a participant literally fell out of his seat in the hot auditorium as it broke from under him. In that instance, the result was an 11th hour politically-motivated decision to rhetorically close Garnet Patterson instead of Shaw. I say “rhetorically” because Shaw will in fact close this year and there are no plans in place for whether the school building will be renovated or rebuilt, where the money will come from, or a time frame for completion. It’s had no community forum to discuss it’s closure as schools have had in other Wards and now it will likely sit vacant for a long time. Well, this week, I saw the disorganization unfold again at Stevens. So on to the topic at hand.

Stevens parents have received nothing but confusion over the past months since they learned their kids would have to go somewhere else to school next year, and, as the school year comes to a close, teachers and staff have no idea where they will work in the fall. Parents were particularly incensed that this meeting was the first time Chancellor Rhee had visited their school. That’s right — she never saw the inside of the school before making the decision to close it.

Chancellor Rhee was able to provide some answers:

Francis Junior High School at 2425 N Street NW will become your school of right. So if you received a letter from Francis stating that your child was not accepted, wait listed, or tentative accepted, it was a mistake. You should not need to apply as an out-of-boundary school. If you received such a letter, contact Chancellor Rhee at 202-442-5004.
Francis should be on target to have an appropriate facility to serve young children by August. The city has received bids for a contractor, who will work feverishly over the summer.
Stevens’ parents, teachers, and staff will, at some point, have an opportunity to communicate with the city and contractor re: the Francis renovation plans so that it best serves their teaching and programming needs. For more information, contact Anthony DeGuzman at 202-684-5051.
Ms. Wilkinson’s before and aftercare program will continue at the current rate and with the same service.

Some questions Chancellor Rhee was not able to answer:
Which Stevens’ teachers will move to Francis? Teachers will apparently need to reapply for vacancies at Francis. They can also accept a buy out or apply for new positions, such as literacy counselors. Chancellor Rhee stated that DCPS and the teacher’s union needs to worked out transfers to Francis and she committed to work with the union to move all Stevens teachers who would like to continue there. Odd, however, that Chancellor Rhee and the vice president of the union had apparently not communicated and addressed this key issue before and were literally debating the provisions of the teachers’ contract in the public meeting.
Which administrators and support staff will move?
How many Stevens students will actually move to Francis? Since parents do not know whether their students’ teachers, administrators, and programs will continue at Francis, some have already made alternative arrangements.
What will happen to the school building? Chancellor Rhee repeatedly avoided the issue and then referred such questions to Neil Albert, the Deputy Mayor for Economic Development. Parents, teachers, and residents expressed dismay that the historic school is being treated differently from other schools because it is prime downtown real estate. Some feared it would be sold off for condos. There are also rumors of a lease to the Corcoran. ANC Commissioner Florence Harmon, who has worked hard to fight for Stevens, has announced that there is a DC Preservation Board meeting at Stevens on May 13 at 12:30pm to discuss this issue. The Advisory Neighborhood Commission will also discuss the future of the school building on May 21 at 6:30pm.
What uniforms will the students wear? This is an issue to be addressed by a transition team over the summer. Chancellor Rhee did commit to there being some fund in place to assist parents in purchasing new uniforms.
Will safety measures be in place for students walking from the Foggy Bottom and Farragut West metro stations through busy downtown intersections? Many students at Stevens are “out-of-boundary,” making this a particular concern.
How will moving Stevens students into Francis, which is mandated to restructure due to low test scores, work? Is this fair to Stevens’ students?

Parents and teachers spoke passionately about the school as a family, about the personal attention provided to their children, and about how the closure will disrupt their childrens’ lives. They also expressed extreme skepticism about the motivation for the closure — suggesting that that school’s prime location and potential for profit explained why it is being treated differently than other schools. They pleaded for a one-year extension on the closure, both to have a more orderly transition as well as to make their case that the school should remain open.

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