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May 22nd, 2012
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To:?? ?? Subcommitee on Hine Redevelopment
??????????? Interested Parties
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From: Commissioners Frishberg and Pate
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Outline of proposed agreement with Stanton Eastbanc
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Attached to this memo is the proposed Memorandum of Agreement and exhibits negotiated with representatives from Stanton Eastbanc (SEB).? The proposal represents an agreement in principle that is worthy of bringing back to the community and the ANC for support.? As it stands, it is a draft agreement in principle, as there are several elements of new information yet to be provided by the developers and by DDOT, and which are required for final consideration and approval.
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Summary Description
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Below we have summarized some of the key elements of the proposed agreement with SEB.? Most notable on this list are the proposed resolution of issues surrounding the management of a private street as a public space and the reduction in height of the 7th street building. ??
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There are numerous items, large and small, that deal with the mitigation of traffic and increased demand on parking, but we have proposed this agreement with the caveat that we cannot execute it until there has been review of the DDOT evaluation of the transportation impact study provided by the developers, including new information requested on the feasibility of their loading and delivery plan.?? Similarly, until finalization of the details of the construction management plan (proposed as an Exhibit of the MOA), this agreement cannot be fully executed.? We anticipate having all of this information in hand by the June 5th Planning and Zoning Committee meeting.
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As with any negotiation, there are objectives that we did not accomplish. ?We did, however, secure several meaningful changes to the project that will be to the benefit of the community, and will to a certain degree mitigate or prevent some of the impacts of the initially proposed development.? Members of the Capitol Hill community who have spoken out at meetings, in memos and letters, who have contributed ideas, applause and critiques - have amassed a series of significant changes through each step in the process.? And while the project may not be perfect, we believe the negotiations have yielded benefits, amenities and mitigations that ensure that the development compliments and enables the viability of Eastern Market, while respecting the surrounding neighborhood.
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Principal Elements of the Agreement
(for the full list of agreements refer to the attached MOA)
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1)? SEB has agreed to remove the top floor of the the 7th and Pennsylvania Ave building and the penthouse elements of that building, to include the top floor of of the 7th street component of the same building (see attached design). The changes address the massing and height along 7th street and reduce the overall mass of the 7th and Pennsylvania building.? For the 7th and PA Ave. building, the changes are not as significant from views closer up (such as the street below), but from broader views East, North and West the reduction in massing is clear.
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2)? SEB has agreed to provide space for a child development center for children 0-3 years old that is not less than 2400 square feet in size.? There are terms for the provision of Tenant Improvement Funds (TIF) which are less costly to the developer with increased size beyond 3400 square feet.?
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3) SEB has agreed to provide $50,000 for improvements to the Eastern Market Metro Plaza.
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4)? SEB has agreed to support, with ANC6B, exclusion of the South residential building from the RPP and VPP programs as a measure to reduce already strained demands on parking in the neighborhood.? SEB will remain silent on the North building, which ANC6B will seek to also exclude from the RPP and VPP programs
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5)? SEB has agreed to support language in all commercial leases that strongly encourages various types of trip reduction and mass transit incentive programs.
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6)? SEB has agreed to provide two car sharing spots at no cost and to consider further spots based on demand.
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7)? SEB has agreed to provide the newly reopened C Street and plaza elements for use by the weekend market with some cost recovery allowed for only repair and maintenance.
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8)? SEB has agreed to support relocation of a temporary flea market, during construction, to the 300 block of 7th St, and to configure elements of the construction site, such as the construction wall, to support this arrangement.? This agreement will be reflected in the final Construction Management Plan.?
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9)? SEB has agreed to support incorporation of the 700 block of C Street (specifically the area in Exhibit C of the MOA package) into the Eastern Market Historic Special Use District (EMHSUD), pending passage of the 2012 Eastern Market Preservation and Development Act.
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10)? SEB has agreed to a three member group, including SEB, the newly created market trust or other market management and the ANC, for the setting of policy and guidelines on the use of C Street when it is not a street or a market.? They have also agreed to language that clarifies the mission for that space and any programming on it.
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11)? SEB has agreed to a process by which either side can pursue changing C Street back to a public street if there are consistent problems created by the private nature and control of the street.
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12)? SEB has agreed to no commercial uses on 8th Street.
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13)? SEB has agreed to limit restaurant uses to the West half of the South Building.? For the North Building restaurant use is restricted only on a small portion of the Eastern end of the retail area.
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14)? SEB has agreed, consistent with its original filing, to provide a minimum of 20% of their retail space for locally owned small businesses and a further 1000 square feet of space that is below market incubator space.
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15) SEB has agreed to use commercially reasonable best efforts to attract a number of retail uses desired by the community, to include:? a) an urgent care facility b) theater/arts uses and c) a grocery store that compliments Eastern Market.
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16)? SEB has agreed to allow some use of conference facilities for community meetings (held by ANC6B and other community organizations) with advance notice and defrayment of janitorial and/or security costs.
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17) SEB has agreed to provide the Weekend Market with vendor parking that inlcudes 8 loading bay spaces at no cost to the market and 50 underground parking spaces and at 50% of market rate.
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18) SEB has agreed to a pricing scheme for garage parking spaces that encourages short duration parking and turnover of spaces.
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19) SEB has agreed to a variety of safety and coordination measures to improve pedestrian safety and traffic flow around the development.?
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Process From Here
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This proposal and memo should be circulated far and wide so that the community can understand what the proposed agreement is and voice their opinion before it is approved or rejected by the ANC and ultimately before the ANC takes it position to the Zoning Commission on June 14th.
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There are two main elements to the process from here: i) the sequence of dates and meetings that lead up to the Zoning Commission hearing and ii) the process by which the actual document is reviewed.? Here is what we think the next steps ought to be on each of those elements.
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Dates:
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May 24th???????? ANC6B Subcommittee on Hine School Redevelopment reviews the proposed MOA and makes a recommendation to the ANC Planning and Zoning Committee.? (note this meeting will be chaired by Subcomittee Vice-Chair Brian Pate).
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June 4th??????????? DDOT publishes its evaluation of the project and its potential impact on parking and transportation.
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June 5th??????????? ANC6B Planning and Zoning Committee reviews the proposed MOA, along with the new information from DDOT and SEB, and passes any recommendation on to the full ANC.
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June 12th????????? ANC6B meets at its regularly scheduled meeting to consider the MOA and take a final position for the Zoning Commission hearing
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June 14th ???????? Zoning Commission Hearing on Hine School PUD (overtime scheduled for June 21sst as needed)
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Approval or Disapproval:
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This proposal is presented as a document that is not intended to be amended or changed, but merely to be ratified or rejected.? As such, our proposal is that at the various ANC meetings where the proposal is reviewed for recommendation there be a process where there is a presentation of the proposed agreement with ample opportunity for Q&A and statements pro, con or other.? At the conclusion of that discussion, there will be a motion to approve the proposed agreement.? Once laid on the table, there will be an opportunity for motions which we suggest be limited to motions to recommit with specific instructions.??
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The point is that this is a proposed agreement and that changes cannot be made without reentering the negotiation with SEB.? If there is a vote to essentially reject the proposed agreement and send us back to the negotiating table, we believe it should be done with specific and focused suggestions that have majority support.? If no such motion to recommit ultimately gets a majority from the ANC, then the vote will be on approval of the motion to support the agreement.
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Ivan Frishberg
