Press release from Tommy Wells:
Moratorium on Single Sales of Alcohol on H Street, NE Approved By Council
(Washington, DC) -
By a 9 to 2 vote, the Council of the District of Columbia approved the ABC Board proposal to implement an H Street, NE moratorium on single sales of alcohol at their July 10th meeting. This represents the final approval necessary to implement the moratorium.
In February, citing chronic problems with peace, order and quiet, specifically with respect to litter, loitering, public drunkenness, public urination and criminal activity persistent on H Street, NE, the ABC Board proposed a 3-year moratorium on the sale of single containers of beer and liquor sold in half-pint volume from the 700 to 1400 block of H Street, NE. Following this approval, the ABC Board will publish final rules in the DC Register and has indicated they will give the affected businesses a 30-day grace period before beginning enforcement.
“A moratorium will go a long way to address some of the chaos and crime afflicting H Street, NE,” commented Mr. Wells. “On top of that, the neighborhood is tired of people using the streets, alleys and treeboxes as public urinals and trashcans. To realize the promise of H Street, this is a necessary step to bring back order and stability and make it a thriving asset for the neighborhood.”
ANC 6A first asked the ABC Board to issue a ban on singles sales in September 2006 after years of trying to work one-on-one with liquor store owners and with voluntary agreements. After a public hearing with neighborhood residents in support of the ban, in addition to hearing support from Mayor Adrian Fenty, Councilmember Tommy Wells, the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, and the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), the ABC Board cited concerns about peace, order and pedestrian safety, and a negative impact on economic development, as additional reasons to impose the moratorium.
The Committee on Public Works and the Environment, chaired by Councilmember Jim Graham, held a public roundtable on June 28th to get further public input. ANC Commissioners from 6A, 6C and 5B all testified in support of the moratorium, as well as many residents who live along the H Street, NE corridor.
“For too long, we’ve had individuals using our curbsides and sidewalks as open-air bars. We’ve seen the effect a singles ban can have in other neighborhoods. I’m proud to support the ANC and residents to put the moratorium in effect and begin calming the chaos on H Street, NE,” added Mr. Wells.
34 comments:
This will in all likelihood increase the problems that ANC 6C has been experiencing with single sales along H Street and in the neighborhood North of H Street.
If you have not already done so, please let me know your views (pro or con) on requesting a similar moratorium for ANC 6C. We continue to consider this issue and are interested in comments regarding both H Street and the neighborhood North of H Street to Florida Ave NE.
Best,
Alan Kimber
ANC Commissioner, 6C05
Sorry--please let me know your thoughts on a possible moratorium by email:
alan@alankimber.org
Best,
Alan Kimber
ANC Commissioner, 6C05
Hi Alan,
This issue is of prime concern to me. I thought that ANC6C and the community already supported the moratorium and were headed in the direction of gaining the singles ban for blocks 2-6 of H.St.?
i'm with "3rd and H".
you've all heard me complain time and time again about our neck of the woods.
(original message got garbled)
3rd & H,
Based on the overwhelming support we've seen so far, ANC 6C's Alcohol Beverage Licensing Committee is drafting a proposed Moratorium request covering our part of H Street, and possibly the area North to Florida Avenue.
We will be having at least 1-2 more public meetings before any proposal is voted on by the Committee. The proposal would then be considered at the next full ANC meeting, probably in September or October.
Until we have completed the process and voted on a Moratorium, I am continually soliciting input so that we can document support and opposition for the record. We will also be doing further outreach via flyers, etc. to ensure we are reaching those who are not "online".
ANC 6A considered their moratorium request for nearly 2 years, and while they have shared lots of data (crime statistics, etc.), we don't want to rush this through without careful consideration.
Best,
Alan Kimber
ANC Commissioner, 6C05
I wonder if 5B is also considering a ban? we need one in Montello & Holbrook, Montello & MT. Oliver, etc.
I think the considerable majority of residents, myself included, strongly support a singles ban throughout our entire neighborhood. A small number of people may try to make this an emotional class or race issue, and that's a shame. Because an awful lot of longterm residents, including those that are quite poor, strongly support a ban. They want cleaner and safer streets just like everyone else. In fact, they have more at stake than many others do.
Let's pass this ban everywhere we can.
I doubt that Ward 5 will see a ban any time soon, since Thomas was of the two votes against the bill.
Alan,
Would 6C's moratorium extend further than the stretch between 2nd and 6th Streets? If not, it seems to me that this would really only affect one business, as the liquor store on the 400 block of H has closed. That only leaves the store at the corner of 3rd and H.
One of the key things about implementing a single sale moratorium is density - seven establishments with-in 1800 feet diameter. The ANC 6A moratorium did not include the store on the corner of 8th and F Street, NE – DC Supermarket. To the extent this store could be used to make the requirement, I would support its inclusion. DC Supermarket is in my Single Member District. We didn’t include it because we thought it was an outlier.
While I don't believe banning the sale of singles solves the underlying issue(then again, does anybody believe this?), living 2 blocks away from the liquor store on 3rd and H of course I am concerned that without a ban covering all of H St, the problems associated with single sales will simply shift westward down the street.
5B,
you will note that Thomas was one of the opposing votes. This ban may push buyers up a block or two to places in Trinidad/on Bladensburg. We'll have to see what happens.
Anyone know exactly when the Abdo condos are going to open?
I stopped by the Senate Square offices last week to "browse" and was told that the Abdo property is still in the process of getting its condo document approved, so they have not yet been able to sell the units.
That being said, the woman who spoke with me also said that there is a list of roughly 2,000 interested names for the roughly 45 units in the Abdo building. Chances are, they will sell out immediately upon release.
I don't know about a firm delivery date, though - that may be incumbent on the timing for sale, etc.
But I suspect it will be before the end of the year, as Senate Square is set to begin delivery of units in both of its buildings by late October. Apparently they have almost completely sold the smaller of the two buildings (the one that fronts on 3rd St.) and are about 30-40% sold in the larger building. If I had to guess, I would say that puts them at roughly 60% sold overall.
i heard from a real estate agent that senate square is 75% sold.
sorry to 'hijack' the thread, but the first hotel in our area (florida ave., by the infamous farmer's market) just broke ground yesterday.
from dcmud:
NoMa Gets Its First Hotel
On July 11, the usual DC official suspects (including Mayor Fenty) joined the ownership team headed by The Finvarb Group in breaking ground on the first new hotel squarely in the North of Massachusetts (NoMa) area in Northeast DC (usually delineated as being bounded by Massachusetts Avenue to the south, North Capitol Street to the west, Florida Avenue the north, and about 3rd Street NE to the east). The eight-story, 218-room Courtyard by Marriott will be located between the New York Avenue Metro station and the new US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) headquarters, and will feature 10,000 sf of ground-level retail, including at least one outdoor café. In addition, an elevator will provide direct access from the plaza between the hotel and the Metro station entrance to the elevated Metropolitan Branch bicycle and pedestrian trail running alongside the Metro track. The hotel will also be next to MRP Realty’s planned Washington Gateway project, and the Florida Avenue Market redevelopment.
What about New York Liqour on Maryland Ave.?
If that is the one just over by the Argonaut it is included in the ban (which actually bumps out a bit from H Street, but always stays within 6A).
What we really need is for the police to enforce the laws and actually arrest people for breaking the law. Drinking in public is illegal, so is public urination. Aggresive panhandling needs to be cracked down on. Police in DC are also very hesitant to arrest people for criminal acts, in part because of all the paperwork and bureaucratic hassles they have to go through here.
yeah, i kinda have to agree with tron. the ban is just going to push the drunks further west and east, which sucks for the rest of us.
but hey, it's a start.
i just hope it doesn't concentrate drunks on the border of the moratorium zone.
i have a feeling it will. these folks find new hangouts that work for them. it's not like they're going to leave, or like they'll stop their ill behaviour.
it's just pushing them into different places.
but, like i said, it's a start.
AND they've been at it for a couple of years.
i think singles should be banned across DC.
that would really screw things up though.
little by little, wee get the pee pee'ers out of the public domain.
dc is so piecemeal, it's kinda sickening. no wonder it's not a state.
speaking of which, i just went down to the liquour store on 3rd and H.
again, another line.
again, everyone buying singles.
there were a bunch of rambunctious (sp?) marines there all buying these large budweiser singles. apparently, that the shiznit with the folks that can afford more that those.. what are they called.. 40 ouncers?
anyway, a dastardly scene.
methinks that with the moratorium, it's not going to get any better on either side of the moratorium.
but kudos to the folks that pushed it through.
for my ANC, the moratorium would be from the western end of the current moratorium to 3rd and H. what's that? six blocks? maybe in three or four years....
until then, the folks at senate square are going to have to endure... IF they don't sell their places before then.
As previously written to Alan K:
I pass by the 3rd & H liquor store frequently on foot and there is always activity ranging from people just hanging out on the street drinking (starting @ 9:45AM on a Saturday morning) to outright drunks nearly passed out in front of nearby vacant buildings.
Outside the store, I have been harassed and have seen others being harassed several times by intoxicated store patrons. It can be a dangerous situation at times and I’m sure my experiences and observances are only scratching the surface. The public urination, bottles and cans outside my house are simply a given.
I can only imagine that similar intolerable activity will increase when the ANC6A moratorium goes into effect and we on the west end of H are left unprotected.
I completely support a singles moratorium for the west end of H St. I believe it would have an enormously positive impact on the quality of life in our neighborhood.
Does it have to take 2+ years? Please say no.
ditto, what 3rd and H said.
and... yeah. from past experience, it does take 2+ years to get anything through the system in this city, unless you're some kind of super-hero.
Sorry if I missed this, but when does the ban go into effect?
late august....
Tron
Totally agree. Laws need to be enforced.
But the fines need to be increased. I believe drinking in public is only $25.
They don't even arrect people for guns or knives because the AUSA (prosecutors) require "showing intent". And the courts let people go anyway. Then the cops get complaints against them for "harrassment".
It does the police no good to arrest someone if the attorneys refuse to prosecute and the courts refuse to punish. The whole system in DC is set up for the benefit of the criminal. The safety of the community seems to not matter.
The moratorium actually goes into effect five days after it is published in the record, at which point ABRA has indicated that it will give proprietors a 30-day grace period before they start cracking down.
So it's not definite that it will go into effect at the end of August, but it's pretty likely.
Tron's point about the need to enforce the existing laws is true, but the laws against public urination and public drinking are both VERY difficult for police to enforce because they actually require an officer to witness the act in question.
Case in point: Last week we watched someone walk into the alley behind Platinum Catering. He proceeded to drop his pants and squat - still visible from 7th Street. We called 311 and they dispatched Officer Williams, but the man was finished by the time Officer Williams arrived. There was nothing Officer Williams could do at that point because he did not witness the act in progress. All he could do was spend some time berating the man for what he had obviously done and strongly encourage him to move along.
wait a second, mike. that makes no sense. what about an eye witness' statement? if the officer's logic is correct, he wouldn't be able to arrest a guy you saw break into your car if the officer arrives after the crime is commited.
Brotha,
Mike is right in that an officer generally must witness a misdemeanor in order to arrest or ticket.
end of thread.
no new ideas/business, so.. NEXT.
does viewing a videotaping of the incident count towards an officer "witnessing" a misdemeanor?
sure, you can use a video tape to 'prove' an incident, but you need to get the perp's consent to shoot the film. ;o)
I think a video would defintely suffice.
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