Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 8F met on Nov. 19. Commissioners Rick Murphree (8F02, vice chair), Brian Strege (8F03, secretary) and Edward Daniels (8F04, chair were in attendance. Nic Wilson (8F01, treasurer) was absent. SMD 8F05) is vacant.
Muphree apologized for public comments made during the commission’s proceedings regarding At-Large Councilmember Anita Bonds (D) and At-Large Councilmember Robert White. “These meetings are not a place to air personal grievances…The point of this forum is to get the work done for the people of the Navy Yard,” he said.
Chair Daniels recalled being “skeptical” of former Commissioner Clayton Rosenberg (6/8F05) from day one. In August, Rosenberg pled guilty in the Eastern District of US Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to one count of wire fraud after being accused of stealing from multiple coronavirus business relief programs. Rosenberg has been sentenced to prison for five years and three months by the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Other Matters
Secretary Strege extoled the passage of the recent I-83 Initiative as a positive. In future elections victors will garner the majority of the votes, he said. The initiative is not a done deal, because the Council must still fund it, he observed. “When the voters tell you they want a change in their electoral systems, elected officials should listen to them,” said Strege, stating his support for funding the I-83.
The commission voted to support The DC Office of Planning’s (OP) text and related map amendments to accommodate Navy Yard East development. The support would be subject to community input. Commissioners plan to solicit public input at a Dec. 2 Zoom meeting and then testify at the DC Zoning Commission hearing on the matter on Dec. 12. The commission also plans to invite stakeholders to attend the Dec. 2 meeting.
Commission voted to approve the 2025 budget and Quarterly Financial Reports for the third and fourth quarters of FY24.
Also…
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Lieutenant Kenneth Taylor and Captain Adam Crist briefed the commission on public safety. Crime is down with the exception of theft from autos up eight percent and six percent increase in general thefts, Taylor said. Police are focusing on Half Street SE from I to L Streets as a hotspot, particularly on Sundays, stated Taylor.
Is the youth curfew year round? asked Chair Daniels. Yes, said Taylor. The only difference from summer is that truancy officers are involved during the daytime, he said.
Drug free zones still being enforced and the First District usually gets one per month, Taylor said. “Things are moving in the right direction citywide,” he added, citing a 39 percent year-to-date decline in robberies citywide.
ANC 8F’ s next meeting is scheduled for Dec. 17 at DDOT headquarters, 250 M St. SE, at 7 p.m.
