Minutes provided by Michael J.

Henderson Recording Secretary McMillan Advisory Group

MAG (McMillan Advisory Group) Community Meeting All Nations Baptist Church February 21, 2013 7 pm Dianne Barnes started the meeting at 7 pm DC Water/McMillan Project, Jill McClanahan DC Water is working to stem the flooding. Projects Name is NE Boundary Neighborhood Protection Project. Theyre moving from concept to preliminary design. Storm water storage project and 1st street tunnel project are involved. Please go on the DC Water website to see details. There were 250 homes flooded last year. The NE Boundary trunk sewer is where all the water in this area flows. City is ordered to stop having combined overflows into the Anacostia. Interim solution involves storing water so that the pipes dont overflow. When the final project comes online, this neighborhood will be able to handle far larger volumes of water. Interim projects divert water using two sand filter cells so that it flows more slowly down stream. DC Water will have to get the sand out of the two cells first then test their integrity. This will take about a month. Residents will see some increase in truck traffic. Then from June February 2014, they will dig the diversion structures. Hope to hold about 3 million gallons in each of the two cells. Finish March 2014. Second piece is the First Street tunnel - will provide another 6 million gallons of storage. Combined system (sewage) flows into same pipes as storm water was ok many years ago but urban areas such as this have become too populated for the system to handle. There is a tunnel-boring machine that has an 18-foot diameter used to dig the tunnel. The option is to leave the Channing Street grade at the new level to save a lot of money rather than return it to its original grade. HPRB was talking about preserving the northern wall (and perhaps the eastern wall depending.) They have been told to preserve the courtyard. DC Water had big color boards/renderings for us to view. They stated showing the atgrade option and the bring it back the way it was grade option. Final solution will be completed in 2022. Going to HPRB on March 28 DC Water is conducting vigorous outreach program. Ms. Southerland asked what are they going to do with the sand. They are not sure yet hope to sell it. Presentation ended. They thanked us for allowing them to present. Applause!

Anne Corbett VMP, Project Director The storage of water at cells 14 and 15; they want to build tanks that could decommission the tanks that are scheduled to come off line 2022, perhaps sooner. Preserve a third of the tripartite. Park increased to 6.6 acres: Cant create the park at cell 14 until DC water vacates. Ms. Corbett handed out the 2012 plan she cannot execute that plan. It is a timing and financial impossibility given the enhanced infrastructure. But thats ok, because there is a new plan (handed out). New renderings are dubbed park south. Has more preservation of open space than previous iterations. 10% drop in building area. There will be more car connectivity; little less public plaza but widened sidewalks; cant shave any floors off the buildings need buildings to pay for large park, etc. She stated This is best and final offer. Urban grocers need housing nearby to come into the area. Height is now 75 feet 20 feet retail pad for grocery store and 5 floors of apartments above = 75 feet. Right on North Capitol St, 30 feet back from North Capitol St. Chris asked if the height could be gradually increased in the buildings so that the folks living across the street wont lose their evening sun or vision out to the west. A resident said he would lose his view of the fireworks on the Mall, etc. Housing above the grocer will be a range from 50% of median income to market rate; apartments not condos. Because of the location of the park, no one community owns the park. No new townhouses on Channing Street; more preservation of the elevated Olmstead walk. No dedicated senior housing building. This is a tradeoff for so much open space. Dedicated senior housing requires free land. Instead of one building holding the affordable housing, it will be integrated into several buildings. Initial sketch of the overall plan includes water features, community center w/green roof, sculpture and gathering plaza near a smaller park and spray jet fountain, re-established plinth with informal play lawn with an elevation of 170, an amphitheater w/stair near the storm water pond, preserved the corridor and the Olmsted walk, walls and threshold, etc. Retrofitting the silos for and kind of use is expensive. Silos may just remain there as art; can retrofit the regulator houses. Michael Henderson asked about the artistic appeal of the silos when its all done even if they are not functional. Anne said yes they would be very well taken care of and sustained. Ms. Southerland asked for a commitment from Anne to work directly with the MAG. Anne replied yes, there is also a lot of parking both surface and below grade. Commissioner Pinkney asked about the trade off for the senior building. There will be affordable housing throughout the project. Ms. Barnes closed the meeting at 8:32 pm.