We are residents of the Bloomingdale neighborhood in Ward 5. Many of us live on blocks that are expected to experience extreme disruption during the “First Street Tunnel” project planned by the City, which will begin in October 2013 and run through 2016. We are writing to solicit your support to help mitigate the construction impacts on homeowners, and to assist in developing a path forward that will ensure that our entire community will thrive.
The First Street Tunnel is a 100-Year Construction Project Adopted by the Mayor’s Task Force and Merits a Serious Mitigation Effort.
A Task Force created by the Mayor last year adopted the First Street Tunnel plan, so we believe that the City shares responsibility for this project with DC Water, and the Council must assist in mitigating disproportionate impacts to relatively small groups of homeowners. If the First Street Tunnel is the solution to a 100-year old problem, and it’s a once in a 100-year construction project, then proportionate mitigation efforts must be taken so that individual residents do not suffer this 100-year burden.
To create the First Street Tunnel, DC Water will build several “drop shafts” and “diversion chambers” in our neighborhood. This is industrial-scale construction in a residential neighborhood with little precedent. Some of these are directly in front of people’s homes (particularly at Flagler Place and Adams Street NW), and the construction will last for years. With a rush toward construction, which is slated to begin in just a couple months, we ask the Council to focus on mitigation efforts for residents disproportionately impacted by DC Water’s construction.
We understand that large-scale infrastructure projects, such as the First Street Tunnel Project, inevitably require disruption to residents when undertaken in such a dense urban area. Although we continue to have concerns about the speed with which this project has been designed, the lack of DC Water’s engagement with community, and the short, medium, and long-terms effects that it may have on our small neighborhood, we are trying to look forward with the proactive steps we have outlined below. We ask for your support.
We Request Your Support For Nine Reasonable Mitigation Measures.
We ask for your support on the following nine mitigation measures for the short and long-term.
1) Improve Communications with Community: We request your support in requiring DC Water and the contractor selected for the project to hold regular, transparent meetings with residents before, during, and after this project. As detailed in the many comments that residents of our streets submitted to DC Water in response to the Environmental Assessment (“EA”) for this project, DC Water’s communication with affected residents has been exceptionally inadequate. We, like other residents of Bloomingdale, support a solution to the flooding issues that have plagued the community, including some of the undersigned residents. However, we think that frequent and meaningful community engagement is essential to ensuring that this project is successful. There undoubtedly will be other issues that arise as this construction proceeds, and we must have an effective route to address our concerns.
2) Create Compensation Fund with Independent Administrator for Lost Rental Income and Property Damages: We ask that the City create, or work with DC Water to create, a compensation fund for homeowners with an independent third-party administrator. The fund should cover both lost or reduced rental income, as well as property damages, reasonably attributable to the massive construction. While the total amount of damages may, or may not, be that great in aggregate, the damages to any particular individual could be devastating. A similar fund set up during the Convention Center construction project provides a precedent for such relief.
DC Water has already represented that it will compensate homeowners for property damages, including structural damages, for homes. Yet no process has been set up, or funds set aside. This fund, and the procedures for it, should be established before the construction begins in October 2013.
3) Freeze Property Taxes: We ask that the Council freeze property taxes for all residents on the affected blocks during the life of the project. It is extremely likely that property prices will be depressed on streets that will be construction sites for up to three years. Any property tax increases would be an unfair burden for homeowners who may have difficulty selling their homes, may have to sell at a reduced rate, or who are disproportionately burdened by this project.
4) Suspend Water Bills: Similarly, we ask that you urge DC Water for a suspension in the payment of water bills for all residents of affected blocks during the period of construction on each block. Because DC Water chose to shift the burden of construction to our streets instead of pursuing other options, such situating the construction in less residential areas of the neighborhood, a suspension of our water bills would appropriately acknowledge the severe disruption that a small number of residents are being asked to accept in order to avoid more costly alternatives. While the Council may not have authority to set DC Water’s rates, it could certainly work with DC Water to suspend water bills as a reasonable mitigation effort during this construction period.
5) Follow Best Construction Practices and Coordinate with Other Infrastructure Projects: The Council should ensure that DC Water and all other utilities conduct any necessary infrastructure work during this project, while the streets are excavated. We should not learn of yet another major infrastructure project that will close down our blocks after the First Street Tunnel project is completed in 2016. This planning should begin now, and the community should be kept informed.
6) Coordinate Immediate Meetings with DDOT to Develop Adequate Plan to Replace Large Flagler/Adams Trees: DC Water expects to remove several large shade trees at the Adams-Flagler construction site, which cannot be replaced by trees of a similar size. This is one of the most severe long-term environmental impacts of the project. We ask that the Council assist in coordinating meetings with DC Water and DDOT so residents can work with the City toward an acceptable solution. Could any of the trees be saved? Could 10-year old trees be planted? Could other trees be planted in the community in the meantime, so that they can start growing now? These meetings should take place before these large trees are cut down, not after, so that residents know there is an acceptable plan in place.
7) Commit to Full Reconstruction of Streets and Sidewalks: At the several construction sites, the streets and sidewalks will be excavated for enormous holes in the ground. The construction sites should be left in better condition than DC Water finds them, not worse. The City should commit, in advance, to completely reconstructing the street and sidewalks so they are not left scarred and unattractive.
8) Install Green Infrastructure on 2200 Block of Flagler NW and 100 Block of Adams NW: The 2200 Block of Flagler Place NW and the 100 Block of Adams Street NW request to be a testing site for “green technology” that DC Water is already considering for other areas of the city. The green infrastructure would include, among other things, installation of pervious pavements and rain gardens. DC Water should designate funds specifically for Flagler/Adams to test its green infrastructure as part of its ongoing efforts to move from “gray” pipe technology toward “green.” This would be a win-win situation for DC Water and residents.
There are several residents willing to help work on a design for the green infrastructure, who would like to be involved in an advisory committee for this project. Knowing that such improvements are planned may help with our ability to tolerate the construction noise, dust, and long-term road closures.
9) After Project Ends, Convert Future Parking Lot at 2nd St NW and Adams St NW into a Community Park: We request that the DC Water storage area located between W and Adams Street on 2nd Street NW, which is intended to be a parking lot during the construction period, be replaced at the end of construction with a park for the benefit of the community, designed in consultation with the community. The current storage yard, which is located in Ward 1 (directly adjacent to Ward 5), contains rusting and unused equipment, is overgrown with weeds, houses feral cats, and is extremely unsightly. It is located directly across the street from residential homes. Post-construction, we believe that finding a green-friendly, neighborhood use for the park would be far preferable to returning the block to its current state. In short, such green projects may be a small way to offset the construction noise, damage, and pollution that we will endure in the coming years. As with the green infrastructure, residents are ready and willing to participate in the design of this park for the benefit of our entire community.
Your support for these measures would be greatly appreciated. If you have any questions or would like to discuss, please contact Joe Gersen at [to be filled in].
Sincerely,
[to be filled in]
cc by email:
Executive Office of the Mayor
Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development
Office of the City Administrator
DC Office of Planning
Mid City East Initiative
District Department of Transportation
District Department of the Environment
DC Water and Sewer Authority
Bloomingdale Civic Association
Mark Mueller, ANC Representative 5E08
Miller Development (McGill Row, 143 W St)
Envision McMillan Partners
Friends of McMillan
Casey Trees
