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Resolution supporting closure of the 300 block of 7th St during Hine construction

Brian Pate
 

Neighbors,

Attached please find a draft resolution ANC6B will consider this month (first at tomorrow night Planning and Zoning meeting, then at its full meeting on September 11th).

The resolution supports closing the 300 block of 7th St on the weekends during Hine construction in order to preserve market capacity. ?

This is a complicated issue, with many stakeholders, interests and leverage points; and an abundance of rhetoric and propaganda. ?My focus has been and will continue to be supporting the long-term, institutional sustainability of Eastern Market. ?This resolution is a small, but important component of that effort. ?

More to follow in the coming days.

Regards,

Brian
Brian Pate
 

Steve,

I'll try to be succinct in my replies, and suggest if we're going to debate before the election, we do so in person, rather than using inbox clogging e-mail. ?I'm happy to do so at your convenience, and would even go so far as to suggest Lincoln Park as a location. ?Nothing like a rousing debate in front of Abe Lincoln to stoke the general civic discourse!

On to answers:

1. ?Reference to our previous position is simply intended to establish a historic record for ANC support of using the 300 block of 7th St for vending activities. ?The legislation may be dead (for all intents and purposes), but the ANC position dating back to last year is a matter of public record.

2. ?I have no beef with the current Hine flea market operators. ?They have contributed significantly to the overall Market experience. ?Few, however, realize that historically their payments to the City have done nothing to contribute to the financial well-being of the Market, despite the fact that they benefit equally from the Market brand and use of the common areas (i.e. bathrooms). ?This is not necessarily their fault, but it does need to be corrected. ?As you witnessed tonight, our final resolution included specific reference to them and provided appropriate conditions under which they might continue to operate their markets. ?The conditions included: ?a) that future contracting actions be transparent, open and legal b) that any future contract be with and through the DC Department of General Services (the agency that currently operates the market) c) that all revenues from contracting go directly into the Eastern Market revenue stream and d) that any future independent operator be required to coordinate with the Eastern Market market manager. ?The resolution failed to pass Committee, but I will revise it and take it forward next week.

?? ?Last point on this topic--my strong belief is that a small group's obsessive focus on protecting two private businesses (both of whom have great PR machines, by the way), has unfortunately detracted us from talking about and solving the real problems facing the institution that is Eastern Market. ?Few in the community realize that the Market's finances are dysfunctional. ?This year was the first year in a decade that the Market has run in the black. ?Annual budgeting and financial management procedures are opaque, and fall far short of accepted and customary accounting practices. ? Most importantly, no one is building a capital reserve budget to address the Market's life-cycle replacement costs and guarantee the future viability of the market infrastructure. ?These problems hobble the market, and impede our ability make investments that improve the market for all of us (a sump pump to prevent flooding in the basement, better acoustics in the North Hall, and the list goes on). ?This is unacceptable and creates significant risk for the Market moving forward. ?Those who would avoid or obfuscate this issue with secondary and tertiary concerns are short-sighted at best and irresponsible at worst. ?

?3. ?Differing schools of thought on the duration. ?I personally believe the block should be available for use after Hine is open. ?Others prefer to limit it to the duration of construction. ?I'm fine with a time defined approach to address immediate needs. ?I don't think it's a significant point either way.

?4. ?During construction there will be significant logistical burdens that require close coordination between Eastern Market, developers, businesses, residents and any independent operators. ?The level of coordination required will dwarf the planning challenge encountered after the fire. ?Creating leverage to make this happen is a good idea, perhaps a necessity given the historic tensions between the various stakeholders. ?Further, if the various parties work together, it's entirely possible that they can configure vending spaces in a way that optimizes the available space, yielding more tents for all of us. ?I think you agree that's a good thing. ?As for revenues, should the City opt to renew the independent operators' contracts, the resolution seeks to ensure that contract fees go the Market's bottom line (approximately $100K currently).

5. ?You're right!! ?Commissioner Frishberg, my colleague, is conducting outreach with impacted merchants on the 300 block of 7th St. ?I have shared the idea at Eastern Market Community Advisory Committee meetings, which includes current Eastern Market merchants. ?Our P&Z meeting tonight was the first opportunity for the community to speak out on the issue, next Tuesday will be the second. ?As for waiting 10 months, that's impractical. ?We need to get the City to resolve this in the near term (2-4 months in City time) so that we can get the stakeholders together and begin planning for the future. ?Otherwise we'll find ourselves scrambling and fumbling when shovels hit the dirt some time next year. ?

6. ?Steve, I have to call you out on this one. ?You agreed with the overall logic of the legislation, yet you testified before Council against it....that does not compute. ?I know you disagreed with the composition of the 501c3 Trust Board that would have governed the Market. ?I shared some of your concerns and successfully inserted several provisions in the final legislation to improve the Board structure. ?Call me an optimistic believer in the ability our neighbors to act altruistically, but ultimately, I felt that there were ample controls to ensure accountability and transparency (so much so that I felt it would be an improvement in terms of transparency and accountability). Some put forward that the Trust Board was a ploy intended to set the market up for sale to a private developer, which is complete, cynical poppy cock, and totally ignores the fact that the 501c3 would have LEASED the Market from the City. ?The City would have maintained control over future disposition of the Market. ?What's more, I never once, in numerous hearings, heard anyone offer a better or more practical idea. ?In the end though, this issue was small potatoes compared to the larger objectives achieved by the legislation (see para 2, item 2). ?

Sorry for violating my promise to be succinct, but these are indeed nuanced issues that deserve our attention. ?The truth needs to be told, and we need to refocus on the things that will, in fact, "Save the Market".

Looking forward to that (friendly) debate.

Regards,

Brian

On Tue, Sep 4, 2012 at 2:23 PM, Steve Holtzman <sbholtzman@...> wrote:
Brian,
?? Thanks for sharing this. Given that Stanton Eastbanc has been unwilling to phase construction to allow space for part of the flea market on site during the construction period,?I agree that the issue of what happens to the flea markets?during construction?is critical.?As you know,?the two flea market operators, Mike Berman and Carole Wright, have signed an agreement with Stanton Eastbanc for right of first refusal to use the space on the new C Street after construction. But,?If they have nowhere to go in the interim, those markets are likely to shrivel up and die, making the later commitment from Stanton academic. And the only option on the table that I know about is closure of the 300 block of 7th on weekends which you address in your resolution.??
? I have six comments/suggestions:
1. Treatment of the draft 2012 Eastern Market Act? Your proposed?resolution says:
"Whereas in December, 2011, ANC6B, by a vote of X-X, supported language in the 2012 Eastern Market Preservation and Development Act that incorporated the 300 block of 7th Street SE into a proposed Eastern Market Historic Special Use District,"
But, since the Act you referred to is stalled due to the Mayor's objections?and doesn't seem likely to be?taken up for review by the full?City Council in the near future, shouldn't you at least say "draft act"??And, while the 2012 draft Act proposes to bring the 300 block of 7th as well as the reopened 700 block of C under the authority of the Trust which would be created, the Act is not even on the City Council agenda right now. The 1997 Eastern Market Act, which is the current law, does not give any direct or implied authority to Eastern Market over the 300 block of 7th St.
2. Explicit Reference to the current flea market operators? Why can't the two flea market operators?be explicitly named in the resolution??Not doing so,?gives them a level of uncertainty.?Who else would manage their flea markets, if not them? Their operations are the ones being displaced by the Hine construction.?I'm aware that their contracts only go up to the ground-breaking date, but these are not fly-by-night entities that set up shop last week. They have been in operation for 20-30 years. And?during that period they have built?vibrant?flea markets from very humble beginnings. John Rall started with a half dozen vendors in the early 80s and that company, with Mike Berman managing,?now has well over 100 vendors.?The Hine flea markets bring thousands more people to the Eastern Market area every weekend and that has a positive economic impact on the inside Market as well. The draft Eastern Market Act of 2012 you refer to also has language which explicitly recognizes the Hine flea market operators by name and gives them right of first refusal to continue to manage their flea markets if the Act comes into law. The names of the saturday and sunday operators could be injected into your para 2 or para 4 or elsewhere.
?
3. The duration of the closure? Your proposed resolution says:
"Further, ANC6B requests the Office of the Mayor use its authority under 19 DCMR 1301.8 to designate this street as a special events area to be used as a market place for vending between the hours of 6:00AM and 6:00PM on each Saturday and Sunday, commensurate with the initiation of construction related to the Hine development, and continuing on each Saturday and Sunday thereafter until the Mayor¡¯s order is amended or ended. "
?If the spirit of this resolution is to support the use of the 300 block of 7th St to find a place for the Hine flea markets, for a limited period?and purpose, during the 2-3 years of construction, why not just say that? The way it is written, you could appear to be urging the permanent weekend?closure of the block.
4. Links between the displaced Hine flea markets and Eastern Market? Your proposed resolution says:
"?Further, such market activities should be coordinated with the management of Eastern Market and should contribute to the financial security of the market."
I fully agree that it is a positive thing for the two Hine flea markets to coordinate with the management of Eastern Market. But, they have been managing their markets 50 feet from Eastern Market for a long time already and it seems to be working. I can see some coordination issues regarding placement of a fire lane but am not sure what else changes if they temporarily move over from the Hine site to the 300 block of 7th St. But, it is the second part of this sentence that I'm really?a little unsure about. If you mean, for example, that the fees paid to the city by the flea market operators should go to Eastern Market, that sounds reasonable. But, if you are suggesting some kind of profit sharing arrangement between the different entities, I think it would be important to understand, in more exact terms, what you are suggesting.
?
5. Public Hearings and Impact Assessment of Closure While I am in strong agreement with the principle of closing 7th Street,? (what other choice do we have?) I do think that there should be some steps to the process. We have at least 10 months til construction starts. I thought you had proposed a while back that there be some kind of a public hearing to take in the views of various stakeholders? Relatedly, to my knowledge, there has been no review of the impacts of closing that block in re the brick and mortar businesses, the traffic flow, weekend loss of parking spaces,etc. Could we request that the city undertake such a review so that the closure is done with all relevant information at hand?
?
6.The Long Term View?? I do understand your position on the financial sustainability of Eastern Market, particularly, if the legislation is ever passed and it becomes, more or less, a free-standing Foundation. I sincerely agree with that. I also agree with the basic principles of the 2012 Eastern Market legislation. I didn't agree with its timing nor with some elements of the structure it proposed putting in place. But, I agreed with the overall logic of it and still do, including the goal of bringing the flea markets in under a wider umbrella with a formula that provides funds to Eastern Market.
?
We have all been under a long period of stress with the Hine project. But, after Sept 10 when the Zoning Commission makes their ruling, the community can work its way through it. ?I do agree that there has to be a serious stock-taking of the relationship between Eastern Market, the various flea markets and the issues of concern of all the other key stakeholders. The multi-year construction period at Hine, and the temporary arrangement for the flea markets on the 300 block of 7th, (which the ANC resolution hopefully influences the District government to address), will give the space for everyone to sit down and work all this out in an inclusive consensus.
?
best,
?
? Steve
-----Original Message-----
From: Brian Pate <patebc@...>
To: Gessford Court <gessfordcourt@...>; 11thSEblock <11thSEblock@...>; yellowbrickalley <yellowbrickalley@...>
Sent: Mon, Sep 3, 2012 1:45 pm
Subject: Fwd: Resolution supporting closure of the 300 block of 7th St during Hine construction

Neighbors,

Attached please find a draft resolution ANC6B will consider this month (first at tomorrow night Planning and Zoning meeting, then at its full meeting on September 11th).

The resolution supports closing the 300 block of 7th St on the weekends during Hine construction in order to preserve market capacity. ?

This is a complicated issue, with many stakeholders, interests and leverage points; and an abundance of rhetoric and propaganda. ?My focus has been and will continue to be supporting the long-term, institutional sustainability of Eastern Market. ?This resolution is a small, but important component of that effort. ?

More to follow in the coming days.

Regards,

Brian

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