Brianne K Nadeau's Official Website

voting at the Ward One Dems Convention

Thanks to all who came out to vote at today’s Ward One Dems Convention. I am honored to have been elected as Vice Chairperson and look forward to working with the other officers and all those involved with our ward-level Democratic efforts. Even more than that I look forward to engaging new voters, and tapping into the leadership and energy all our Ward One residents have to offer. If you’re not yet involved – be warned. I’m coming to find you!

In a late-breaking turn of events I find myself a candidate for Vice Chairperson of the Ward One Democrats, on the ballot tomorrow at the Ward One Dems Convention, from 10 – 12 on the first floor of the Reeves Center at 14th/U. Actually, the U Street Farmers Market will be outside so you can do your shopping and cast your vote all in one place. If you can’t make it, I hope you’ll share this post with other Ward One voters who might.

For Immediate Release

On Saturday, March 3rd* from 10 am – 2 pm, DC Democrats from every ward will gather at UDC to caucus and select their delegates to the Democratic National Convention. In a year when the Democratic nominee for president will obviously be President Obama, many may not see the point in participating. Ward 1 Dems, however, have one good reason to show up, and his name is Jim Graham.

We talk a lot in this city about not having proper representation: no vote in Congress, no budget autonomy, and pay-to-play politics. There are many levels of disenfranchisement in DC, starting from the bottom at mismanaged ANCs, corruption on the Council, all the way up to lack of representation in Congress. But without full participation in the electoral process, we will never have full representation. Unless we stand up to bullies like Jim Graham – who is meddling with lottery contracts, pitting our Ward 1 neighborhoods against each other, and whose leadership is defined by quid pro quo politics – we cannot expect better.

Of course, this is not an election for Council. We have to wait two more years for that. But in the meantime, let’s get organized, stand together and make it clear that we want better for Ward 1 and for the District.

I’ve put my name on the ballot for delegate to the Democratic National Convention. I’d be honored to have your vote on March 3. Here’s what I can promise:
•   I will work hard for our community, just as I did as a 1B commissioner for four years and every day before and since then.
•   I will listen to you and give voice to your concerns and ideas, even if we disagree.
•   I will be upstanding and, most importantly, honest.

To learn more about me and the work I’ve done in our community, please spend some time here on my web site. I am always available to answer your questions at Brianne@BrianneKN.com.

The caucus will be held on March 3 from 10-2 at UDC’s Theatre Arts Auditorium, which is located at Connecticut Avenue and Windom Place, NW. You must be a democrat registered in DC to participate. Wards 1,2,6 & 8 caucus together, so if you vote in one of those wards, you are eligible to vote for me.

Updated information about early voting:

*Democratic voters who cannot vote at the Pre-Primary Caucus on Saturday, March 3, because of religious reasons for observing the Sabbath or who will be on out-of-town travel may vote early on Thursday, March 1, between the hours of 10:30 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 and 6:00 p.m.  Voting will be conducted at 1050 – 17th Street, N.W., Suite 1000 (10th floor).  To make an appointment to vote, please call202.714.3368 or E-mail the DC Democratic State Committee at dcdemocraticparty@gmail.com.

Tuesday night Jair Lynch Development Partners convened a community meeting to provide an update on their project at V and 15th Street. This new, 95-unit development is tied to a renovation already underway at Paul Laurence Dunbar Apartments (formerly Campbell Heights), a senior community on the same lot as the new building site.

Last time we heard from Jair Lynch, they had gone before the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) and some changes were pending. Tuesday night we got to see a side-by-side comparison of the old and new design. Click here for the full presentation. Here are some of the updates:

• changing the glass to brick ratio to reduce the amount of glass. This is accomplished by taking four feet off the width and removing a section of the windows, as well as adding more masonry (brick)
• on the ground level, adding punch windows, which are windows that have a row of masonry between them, rather then a window wall all the way across.

With these changes, the project has received conceptual approval from HPRB, which allows Jair Lynch to move ahead with the rest of its applications.

Schedule for 2012

• In February they will go through another design review with HPRB and they will then convene a community meeting to report back.
• At the end of April/beginning of May they will submit the application for building permits. If that goes as planned permits would likely be received in September.
• Over the summer they will begin their general contractor procurement efforts.
• Construction would begin in October and take 16-18 months.
• October – December would be the loudest part of construction because it will involve excavation for the two levels of underground parking. Jair Lynch has elected to use a drilling mechanism rather than the (excruciatingly loud) option of driving the steel piles into the ground. They mentioned that drilling will cost up to $100,000 more than pile driving, but taking into consideration the proximity of neighbors on all sides, including the church, they felt this was a reasonable cost to incur.
• The excavation, sheeting and shoring will take about 1.5 months and then a crane will be erected.
• The concrete structure will take about 1.5 – 2 months to build.
• Outside and inside work will take place simultaneously after that.

Once a contractor is selected we will know more about things like traffic. It is up to the contractor to provide a traffic control plan, and to determine where loading and unloading will take place. There will be community meetings about these issues, and there will be a superintendent on site whose contact info will be available to the community.

Some more info on the project:

This project does not use any District or Federal funds.

Jair Lynch Development Partners says they make an effort to require as much DC-based and union hiring as possible, and that they have a responsible contracting policy with their equity partner. They will advise the contractor that workers should not plan to park on the street or on site.

The subdivision of lots has already taken place, but they do not yet know what the address of the new building will be. The entrance will be on 15th street and the address could range from 2003-2099. There is a covered walkway between the two buildings, which fulfills a zoning requirement allowing the new building to occupy maximum floor area ratio, but there will not be shared access between the two buildings.

There is no retail planned for the site, which is zoned R-5-D.

They do not anticipate any zoning variance requests.

The height of the new building, which is 90 feet, is by right.

The driveway for both buildings will have its entrance on V Street between the new building and Portner Place. Parking for the new property will be underground and right now there are 48 spaces in the plan (32 spaces are required), but that could change after the structural engineering review. They intend to maximize the number of bicycle parking spots available as well. Right now there is one bicycle spot each for half the units, but they hope to add more after the engineering review. Parking for Dunbar residents will be on a surface lot behind the building. Before a decision is made about where and how the driveway goes in there will be meetings with DDOT office of public space.

Jair Lynch expects to hold community meetings every couple of months throughout the process, or more often as needed.

Hearing on ANC Boundaries to be held on Tuesday, November 29 at 10 am in the Council Chamber. To read the full announcement click here.

Those who wish to testify should contact Carol Sadler at 202-724-8198 or csadler@dccouncil.us by Monday, November 28 at 5pm.

ANC1B has announced the date of the special election for the seat vacated by Aaron Spencer this summer. Spencer purchased a home and moved outside the boundaries of his district, making him ineligible to continue serving. There are two candidates running for the seat, Alexandra Lewin-Zwerdling, who I have endorsed, and Stanley Mayes.

The Board of Elections and Ethics has practically (or actually) no budget for ANC special elections, so they take place at a location and time determined by the ANC to be convenient for voters in the SMD. We’ve had only one in the time since I first served in the ANC and that involved slips of paper and a box.

However, while an ANC special election is executed with about as much fanfare as a student council election – or perhaps less in some cases – the results will have an impact on the community for years to come.

If you live in 1B02, please come out and vote: