The Cleveland Park 3C05 Newsletter from Sauleh Siddiqui [September 3]
Welcome to my thirteenth Newsletter!
Keeping you updated on what’s happening in the neighborhood
I hope to use this email newsletter as a way to keep everyone updated on what’s happening in the neighborhood. I promise not to spam you all and would love feedback on what to include!
Diversifying Parking on Connecticut Ave NW
Our ANC has been asking DDOT to diversify parking options on Connecticut Avenue for a while now. We re-iterated this ask in our most recent resolution. The data we have shows from two different studies that 80% of all customers to the Cleveland Park business district arrive by walking, biking, or taking the metro/bus [(page 17 here; slide 5 here)]. One of these was done pre-pandemic, and post pandemic, a bunch of the 20% is actually carshare. A study from 2020 highlighted that only 20% of all the people who go to our businesses [page 7 here] are commuters/non-DC visitors who are driving through. From DDOT's study in 2013, there's evidence people were parking and walking to the Zoo or were just using the parking spot as longer-term parking. The report, and every other transportation planning study, state that reducing the maximum amount of parking time will benefit the people who shop here through high turnover.
The pandemic has shifted parking requirements for businesses. More and more people are using delivery services and carshare. These require spots be available for pickup/dropoff more than long-term parking. Cracked Eggery had to go through a very long process to request a pickup point in front of their business (see photo below). More than 40% of all their business is pickup, thus having a spot free in front of their store is essential. The same is true for other restaurants, dry-cleaners, and service stores on the strip.
In response to these community requests, DDOT has a new Notice of Intent for parking changes on Connecticut Ave NW. Some of the stops in our business district are being converted to 30-minute limits as shown in the figure below.
Not all parking in the business district is going to be 30 minutes. The parking on and between Porter St. NW and Ordway St. NW is going to remain metered 2-hr parking. Note that DDOT cannot install metered parking in front of residences.
We will be discussing this plan at our next Safe, Sustainable, and Equitable Transportation Committee meeting Wednesday, September 13, at 7:00pm. Please join us and/or email us at all@anc3c.org with your thoughts. From my personal perspective, I think there is an opportunity to add more accessible/handicapped parking spots and retain some 2hr metered spots. I also think educating our businesses of the parking spots available in the neighborhood can help, plus utilizing the Park and Shop lot by buying a small item from Target provides free hour-long parking as well.
ANC 3C Committee Meetings and Community Events
Our neighborhood is very active over the next couple of weeks! Check out all these meetings and events:
The Cleveland Park Community Association is hosting its first meeting of the year, open to CPCA members and all interested non-members alike on Wednesday, September 6th 6:00-7:30 PM at the Cleveland Park Public Library.
There will be an update and overview of the current status of crime and institutional responses in Cleveland Park from our District 2 Commander John Branch and our Ward 3 City Council Member, Matt Frumin.
WABA has organized a campaign called, “I bike, I buy stuff” to demonstrate to local merchants that people who bike are part of the community too. After all, plenty of studies have shown that adding bike lanes don’t hurt businesses, and sometimes help them! Come to the kickoff meeting for this campaign at the Cleveland Park library, this Wednesday at 6 PM. Register here.
On Thursday, September 7 at 2:00pm, DDOT will hold a community walkthrough of the redesigned Connecticut Ave. and Porter St. intersection organized by Commissioner McCorristin. He requested this from DDOT after concerns about the signals and signage at the intersection. The public is invited to participate in the walkthrough and give feedback directly to DDOT. We will meet at the Cleveland Park metro entrance and make our way to the intersection and then down Connecticut Ave. Please email Commissioner McCorristin (3C04@anc.dc.gov) for more information.
The September public meeting for the Planning, Zoning, Housing & Economic Development (PZHED) Committee for ANC3C will be held on Monday, September 11th, beginning at 6:30pm online. There will be a Presentation & Discussion of the updated Connecticut Avenue Development Guidelines, Discussion of the Cleveland Park Promenade Grand Opening & Project Team Thank You Celebration planning sub-committee formation, and Discussion of DDOT NOI – Conversion of 2-hour Metered Parking Zone to 30-minute Metered Parking Zine along the 3300-3400 block of Connecticut Avenue.
The September public meeting for the Residential Historic Preservation Review Committee for ANC 3C will be held on 9/11/2023, beginning at 7:30 PM online. The agenda has one application for 2964 Newark renovation/addition.
The September public meeting for the Environmental Justice Committee for ANC 3C will be held on 9/12/2023, beginning at 6:30 PM online. There will be a DOEE presentation on the Clean Energy 2.0 plan.
The September public meeting for the Safe, Sustainable, and Equitable Transportation Committee will be Wednesday, September 13, at 7:00pm online. Topics include Discussion of DDOT Notice of Intent for parking changes on Connecticut Ave NW, Discussion about road safety and traffic calming on 34th St. NW/Reno Rd. NW, and Discussion of Porter and Connecticut Intersection Safety.
Cleveland Park Art All Night Saturday, September 30th
Mark your calendar for Saturday, September 30 from 5-10PM, for an evening to celebrate the vibrant local art & businesses in our quaint corner of the city. Sign up here.
Resources Page on ANC 3C Website
We have added a resources page on our ANC 3C website. You can find answers about tenants’ advocacy, reporting issues to the DC government, support for mental health services, and many more answers about how to engage with the ANC. If you have more resources you would like added, please email them to me!
Thanking a government employee!
A lot of the work I do cannot happen without dedicated government employees. DDOT is an agency I am personally always frustrated with because their unrestricted focus on cars and not enough on people. But DDOT just represents our current culture, and there are some great people working there who really do care about people. I especially want to thank Christian Piñeiro, he has helped me with so many DDOT issues that I have lost count. It is especially impressive how he navigates such a hard to navigate agency. If you do have a minute, please do drop Christian (christian.pineiro@dc.gov ) an email of thanks for all the work he does!
Sauleh Siddiqui, Commissioner, ANC 3C05
Email: 3C05@anc.dc.gov
Twitter: @saulehforanc