ANC 3B News: March 2012
A Vote to Extend and Amend the Glover Park Liquor License Moratorium
At our March meeting, ANC 3B voted 4-0 to remove the moratorium on Class B (retail beer and wine such as food stores) liquor licenses. The hope is that this vote will clear the path for new food options – Trader Joes anyone? – in the Glover Park commercial area. This was the second month in a row that the ANC voted to relax the moratorium, following February vote to raise the maximum available number of full-service (beer, wine and spirits) restaurant licenses from 12 to 14.
The goal of these moves was to fill some of the empty retail slots in Glover Park, while maintaining the diversity of the commercial district and retaining the “peace, order and quiet” of the neighborhood. If the ABC Board approves our petition to extend and amend the moratorium, nearly 50% of Glover Park’s retail spaces will be taken up by businesses with liquor licenses. The ANC also requested to extend the moratorium for only three years, instead of the typical five, which will allow for re-assessment on a faster time frame.
The Alcoholic Beverage Control Board will hear testimony on the Glover Park Liquor License Moratorium at a public hearing on March 21 at 11 a.m. and will rule on this matter before the mid-April expiration date of the moratorium.
New Zoning Rules on the Way – ANC 3B received an update from the Office of Planning on a proposed citywide re-write of the zoning code – which was last updated in 1958. Two key issues that may affect Glover Park: reducing the eight-foot minimum side yard requirement that has affected the size of some additions to Glover Park houses, and new rules that could allow additional retail uses – including corner stores – in residential sections of the city – including much of Glover Park west of Wisconsin Avenue. To learn more about this new proposal or to provide comments, please go to www.dczoningupdate.org.
Glover Park Streetscape Plan Moves Forward: DDOT is moving forward with plans for the Glover Park streetscape – and has already reacted to address neighborhood concerns that have been pushed by ANC3B for years. Tom Smith, the Mayor’s Ward 3 liaison, informed us at the ANC’s March meeting that DDOT has been advised by the Mayor that addressing concerns about the intersection of 37th and Tunlaw Sts. should be a “high priority.” Construction is expected to begin in April, and end by November 2012. There will be at least one public meeting to explain the construction phases and address citizen concerns. –The first meeting will be very soon – watch for notice of it at www.anc3b.org. Please attend if you have any questions about the project. For more information on this project, go to the Issues section at the ANC 3B website.
Transformation of Another Glover Park Gateway: Local artist Jarrett Ferrier – you probably know his work from the “Welcome to Glover Park” signs at the north and south entrances to Glover Park on Wisconsin Ave. – told us about his plans for a new project: the transformation of the ugly concrete stairs that connect 37th St. and W Place into a large painted mural that contains a tribute to Charles Carroll Glover – a great Washingtonian, and our neighborhood’s namesake. You can find more information on this project in this issue – please take a look and share your thoughts with Jarrett and the ANC.
Next Meeting – April 12, 7:00 p.m. at Stoddert Elementary and Rec Center. Please email info@anc3b.org if you have any questions or want to get an issue on the ANC 3B agenda, and check www.anc3b.org for agenda updates.