Pepco Upgrades in the Area

From ANC 3F:

Pepco is working hard to provide safe and reliable electrical service to our valued customers and to support the needs of our region. As a part of this commitment, we will be upgrading existing infrastructure in areas near Friendship Heights.

Pepco has a three-phase project scheduled to start in your community in the next few weeks (Phase 1). This project involves:

Upgrading three primary lines (higher-voltage feeder lines that carry power to about 1,100 customers in a specific area) to more than triple their capacity, from 4 kilovolt (kV) to 13 kV

Alleviating load from the Harrison Substation by transferring three 4 kV feeders to the Oliver Substation. This work is similar to other 4 kV conversion projects completed throughout the District of Columbia.

We have enclosed a map that outlines the areas in your community that will be affected by this work. Portions of Phase 1 will occur in ANC 3F, Phase 2 and 3 are not in ANC 3F.

Phase 1

In the first phase of this project, we will construct a new 13 kV feeder to allow the transfer of the three 4 kV Harrison Substation feeders to the Van Ness Substation. On the attached map, the pink line shows the location of this new feeder. Pepco will use an existing underground conduit to install about 7,000 feet of new cable. By using an existing conduit, we’ll minimize the area we have to excavate. We also will install one new cable pole on 41st St. N.W., just north of Fesseden Street. This pole will be the transition point between the underground cable installed in phase 1 and the overhead 13 kV feeders discussed in phase 2. Finally, we will construct a new manhole to house equipment near the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and Fesseden Street N.W. We expect to start this phase in two weeks and take about six to eight weeks.

Phase 2

In the second phase, we will convert three 4 kV feeders to 13 kV and remove the 4kV infrastructure. On the map, the green line outlines this work. To convert the feeders, we will set a new 13kV pole line next to the existing 4 kV pole line. Once the new poles are in place and the pole hardware is mounted, we will install the overhead 13 kV lines and connect them to the 13 kV underground feeder that was extended from the Van Ness Substation. After we energize the new lines, we will remove the existing 4 kV infrastructure. We will need to trim trees to be able to install the new lines. Our arborist is meeting with the District Department of Transportation’s Urban Forestry Administration to identify which trees might need to be pruned or removed, and we will share a list of those trees with the Advisory Neighborhood Commission. We expect to start work in April on this phase, which is expected to take about six to nine months to complete. Field inspections may require changes to work locations. We will provide an update should this occur.

Phase 3

The last phase will be to transfer three 4 kV feeder lines from the Harrison Substation to the Oliver Substation. This work is shown on the map with the light blue line. We will construct new conduits and manholes to house the new cables between these two substations. We expect to start work on this phase in June, and it will take six to nine months.

We at Pepco are committed to keep you updated throughout this project. We’ll dedicate a page on our pepco.com website to provide project details, including work locations, hours, and impacts on parking and traffic. We’ll perform the work as efficiently as possible. Please note that we’ll have to finish work on specific cable sections before moving to a new section, so residents should not expect to see our crews in one location for the entire phase. We would be happy to present these plans to you at an ANC meeting. If you have any questions or concerns in the meantime, please contact us. This information will also be provided to other impacted Advisory Neighborhood Commissions.

Yikes in AU Park

Word of a horrific fire near AU early this morning.

Hopefully, everyone was able to get out safely.

Rethinking Ward Circle

GreaterGreater Washington has an interesting blog entry that analyzes Ward Circle in its current condition and suggests alternatives.

New AU Campus Plans

From a posting on the Tenleytown Listserv. This will no doubt garner much discussion about the future shape and form of both the Spring Valley and Wisconsin Avenue corridors. There is a real opportunity to work with American University to catalyze these areas, while at the same time addressing the issue of student group homes throughout the communities. However, stark opposition will simply, at best, maintain the status quo and push the discussion into future campus plans. The community should consider how colleges and universities nationwide have been economic growth engines for their communities and think creatively about how American University can be a community asset and focal point.



Dear Tenleytown and AU Park Neighbors:



We are writing to let you know that American University has proposed to move its law school to the Tenley campus, which is located Nebraska Avenue and Yuma Street. Under the proposed 2011 Campus Plan, available on AU's website, the law school would also expand from 1,700 to 2,000 students, plus an estimated 500 faculty and staff. The property is the current home of the University's Washington Semester program, with a small resident
population estimated at 300 students.

Unlike the location of the current law school, the Tenley site is zoned for residential use. AU purchased the Tenley property in 1986 and proposed to build a new law school there, but zoning problems and fierce opposition by the neighborhood forced AU to abandon the project and sign an agreement to limit future expansion.

When we first heard of the latest proposal last spring, the neighbors adjacent to the property re-formed the Tenley Campus Neighbors Association (TCNA). Our starting proposition is simple--what was a bad idea for the neighborhood in 1986 is probably still a bad idea today.

Despite serious reservations about the entire project, our group has diligently attempted to engage AU in constructive dialogue over the last year. Although we have been successful in getting AU to consider our input on the design aspects, the statements in the draft Plan suggesting neighborhood "buy-in" are misleading. The fundamental issues with developing the Tenley site in 1986—traffic, parking, density, historic preservation concerns etc. have still not been addressed by AU, nor are they adequately addressed in the current draft campus plan.

TCNA has the following specific objections to the draft plan:

Traffic and Parking—AU now plans to more than quintuple the number of students and personnel using the site to 2,500 people. The most obvious consequence is that there is simply no way to accommodate the additional traffic and parking pressures in our neighborhood. The current students on the site do not drive.

With regard to parking, AU proposes an underground parking lot with 400 to 500 places, but many of these spots would be used by faculty and staff. Even if half the campus population used Metro (a very optimistic scenario given that, according to AU, only 10% use Metro now), where will the extra 1,250 or so additional cars park? And since the law school is will be a 24/7 operation, many students will be parking after
the Zone 3 parking restrictions lapse.

If even more parking is built, where will all that extra traffic go? The proposed law school will contribute to further gridlock on Wisconsin and Nebraska, forcing even more commuter traffic to cut through our neighborhood.

Future Development. The AU campus plan indicates that new buildings will only be erected on the east side of the property near Nebraska Avenue. But AU has also announced plans to raze certain historically sensitive properties on the west side of the property. This suggests that AU's ultimate intention is to develop the important green space on the western part of the property, which intrudes deeply into our
neighborhood. AU should commit to a plan now for the west side of the property that minimizes its impact on the neighborhood. Some community uses, such as a tennis court or park, are a possibility.

Other Neighborhood Impacts. Any benefit of moving the law school must be weighed carefully against the costs to the neighborhood. AU claims that moving the law school will lead to the "re-vitalization" of the Tenley corridor. There is ZERO evidence that this will be the case. Many AU students, including law students, already visit this area. In fact, more gridlock and parking problems may actually have a negative economic
impact on local merchants. And more "group houses" and a massive new construction project will certainly diminish our property values.

To be sure, AU's proposal will impact Tenleytown and your quality of life. We suggest you take the following actions:

1. Please write or e-mail your ANC representative and City Councilmember Mary Cheh to express your views.

AU intends to submit their plan to the DC Zoning Commission in March. Your elected ANC representatives have an important voice in the DC zoning process. Please write them now, highlighting the following likely issues:

* Too many students and faculty (increased from under 500 to 2000 students, plus 500 additional faculty and staff)
* Noise (including group houses)
* Traffic
* Parking
* Historic preservation concerns
* Other objectionable conditions

American University: Long Range Plan

Neil Flanagan covers the long range plans for The American University. Preliminary drawing show development to the south of Nebraska Avenue between Ward Circle and New Mexico Avenue, and the relocation of the Law School from the Spring Valley commercial strip to the former Immaculata Campus on Tenley Circle.

Will this be another case of the infamous "Tenleytown NIMBYs" fighting in-whole another opportunity to remake the community, or will cooler heads prevail to reshape the University and the entire stretch of Wisconsin Avenue from Van Ness to Tenleytown?

Obama Rocks Ward 3

12,000 people tried to cram into Bender Arena at American University this morning to catch first hand the endorsement of Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) by the Kennedy clan. Some of the sites and sounds were eloquently captured by MetroBlogger Tom Bridge. The local angle was also captured by Washington Post metro reporters.

Beautiful Day in AU Park

The afore mentioned Barbeque sponsored by Councilmember Mary Cheh and the DCFD was a great way to spend a stunning autumn day in the District. The Councilmember was joined by scores of residents from around the Ward and city to celebrate the beginning of fall as children explored the DCFD appartatus present, played on the Moonbouce, enjoyed Screetch (the Nationals mascot), and the ice cream, popcorn, sno-cones and cotton candy.

The event was attended by hundreds of city residents, who sampled some fine BBQ, great music and an overall festive day.

Hopefully this will become an annual event to bring residents of the Ward together.