Happy Saturday, Ward 6! Today is the H Street Festival – you never quite know what you'll find on H Street's busiest and biggest day! As you stroll the corridor and take in live music and performances, don’t forget to stop by my tent and say hello to my team. 

The Council resumed full legislative work this week. The next few months mark the end of the current two-year Council Period, meaning that any bill that has been introduced needs to pass before the end of the year or else it dies. So it’s going to be a heavy legislating season, and you’ll see a lot of big bills advance. I wrote about a preview of the Committee on Transportation and the Environment's calendar last newsletter. Outside of the committee I chair, I'll note there’s a big public hearing on several measures to consider new revenue sources on Friday, October 16. If you feel strongly about the budget, this is a hearing you should track. I've shared in previous updates that with the massive impacts of the Trump administration's job losses in DC and our region, paired with his tariffs and inflation increases, the overall economic outlook has been stark, with a large gap between revenue and expenditures this year and into next. This hearing is a chance to debate different ideas to close that gap with new taxes and fees or areas of reduced spending (the reality is that both will have to happen) and to have that conversation outside of the deadlines and pressures of a condensed annual budget process.

Let's get into it. 

QUICK LINKS: Southeast Library | Capitol Vista | Storm Recovery | Mail-In Ballots | Rumsey Meeting | Eric's ID | Improving E-Scooter Safety | Trash Tracker | Community Connections | Constituent Services | Lenora Baker Way | Upcoming Events | Tickets

Miss the last newsletter? I shared updates on Dolly Parton and Books from Birth, the future of transit on H Street NE with the Gold Line, a big anniversary for Mr. Henry's, and a new stop sign to improve safety! Read it here.

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The Southeast Library is Back!

The Southeast Library is back, and I can say with full confidence that it was worth the wait -- check out more photos from opening day here, and if you can't get over to the library soon, here's a sneak peak video where I give a tour floor by floor. I was thrilled to join hundreds of neighbors to cut the ribbon and re-open the library, which has been closed for more than two years for a major modernization. The new library incorporates the original and historic Carnegie building while creatively offering far more natural light, a dedicated ground-level entrance, an absolutely huge children’s section, and wonderful spaces to simply sit and read or work. Given the Southeast Library was one of the busiest libraries prior to the start of construction, I am 100% confident it's going to serve even more library fans now. Please go see it in real life as soon as you can. News coverage from Hill Rag and Axios.

Standing Up for Ward 6 Residents Against a Neglectful Landlord

This week, I joined my colleague Councilmember Robert White and residents involved with EmpowerDC and DC Jobs with Justice to push for major reforms to how the District protects renters, especially low-income renters, from unsafe, dirty, and disrespectful housing conditions like what I recently saw at Capitol Vista in Mount Vernon Triangle and my colleague Councilmember Parker highlighted from a building managed by the same company in Ward 5. 

I won’t repeat all of the details from my visit earlier this month, but I want to be sure this point is clear: Faria Management is making money running a building DC taxpayers already put $18 million into building to ensure it could be affordable. Faira's one of many companies owned by Buwa Binitie, and there’s a clear pattern emerging in the buildings his company runs, often where the District subsidizes the monthly rent for many of the residents on top of its substantial investment in construction of the building itself. 

When I toured Capitol Vista, I saw the residents and the District were getting shorted big time. Capitol Vista was opened in 2020, and already it's getting run into the ground through active neglect. I met multiple residents who told me they went months without hot water, I saw many units where the HVAC unit doesn't work or had a steady leak flowing onto the flooring, and lots of mold and bugs. When my team visited in July, there was a gnat infestation that had taken over the entire building, and residents told them they couldn’t eat in their own homes – many apartment doors had put up mosquito nets to the hallways just to try and keep the gnats out. 

I joined the press conference because 1) at the very least, we shouldn’t award any additional taxpayer dollars to any of Mr. Binitie’s companies until he’s resolved the poor conditions and the lawsuit alleging neglect at the properties currently in his portfolio, and 2) we need to close the gap between the Department of Buildings' ongoing enforcement efforts there and ensuring the landlord quickly comes into compliance.

Recapping the Storm Recovery

Two weeks later, the full scope of the massive overnight storm has come into focus. Our trusty Capital Weather (Gang) called it a mesoscale convective system. Whatever it's called, I just know it did a lot of damage. 

When I sent my last newsletter, the storm had just hit, and we were focused on immediate safety concerns and clean up (here's my Instagram post from the morning after). Most of that is complete now, but the damage will still take time to recover. Many thanks to so many of our ANC Commissioners, neighbors, and community leaders that helped people navigate fallen trees and branches. And of course, I want to thank the DDOT crews that were out non-stop through a holiday weekend working. With very few exceptions, I heard strong and loud appreciation for their work, and I've added my own.

Our trees were especially hard hit. DDOT has now shared that they had to fully remove 485 trees, significantly pruned 796 trees, and collected 1,011 piles of limbs and branches. On many of our blocks, the sky looks different, and tree canopy and shade is gone. DDOT will plant 100% of the lost trees during the planting season this fall and winter, but for some areas, restoring the loss will take decades.

The impact of this storm, fueled and super-charged with the heat and humidity of a changing climate, will leave its mark for a very long time. It also drives home for me the work we do at the Council - everything from protecting heritage trees and growing a healthy tree canopy, to the way we fight to build better infrastructure to protect from stormwater and flooding, or the way we push to change where our energy comes from to lower costs, lower emissions, and focus on renewable sources like solar. This storm cost taxpayers millions of dollars in an already tight budget and led to hundreds (if not thousands) of insurance claims and lost deductibles. And storms like this are becoming more common and more costly. Leading on smart solutions in our city and region to be more resilient and sustainable isn't abstract - it's directly related to the types of storms we experience, the damage caused in our communities, and the costs we shoulder.

Heads Up: Mail-In Ballots Arriving in the Next Few Weeks

Be on the lookout - the Board of Elections is putting general election ballots in the mail to all registered voters starting around September 28th. By the end of the month, or the first few days of October, your official ballot should be arriving in your mailbox. And now that the Supreme Court has struck down any restrictions on mail-in ballots by President Trump, you should have confidence in voting that way if it's your preference. Lots of people like to take their completed ballots and drop them off in any of DC's numerous secure dropboxes. Those will be unlocked and available for you to use beginning on October 9th. Check your registration here and the full calendar for the General Election here.

Rumsey Modernization Update & Closure

In exciting news, while we only just cut the ribbon on the beautiful, renovated Southeast Library, we're now turning around and kicking off construction to modernize Rumsey Aquatic Center and transform it into a brand new pool and community center. However, this week DPR announced rather suddenly that Rumsey's last day for swim programming is September 30, and the facility will close for the modernization October 1. While I'm so excited to see this long-awaited project get underway, I'm also frustrated that regular Rumsey users haven't been given more time to prepare for the closure. I suspect most regular swimmers know this already, but so everyone's aware, there are indoor pool facilities run by DPR at Deanwood, Turkey Thicket, and Reservoir Park -- you can find a full list and map here of all facilities. 

There will be a final community meeting / construction kick-off this coming Tuesday, September 22, at 6:30 p.m. in the North Hall of Eastern Market to review final designs and discuss the transition for programming during the construction. You can find all of the previous meeting presentations and other details about the project here.

The Butterfly Effect: Helping People with Non-Apparent Disabilities Have Better Interactions with Police

This week, my Transportation Committee got straight to work, now that we're back in session, approving a bill that will allow people to include a symbol on their DMV-issued ID that notes if they have a nonapparent disability, like Autism Spectrum Disorder, Dementia, or Bipolar Disorder, among others. The bill is named “Eric’s ID” after Eric Carpenter-Grantham, a young man who shared his own experiences as someone with Autism and successfully championed the idea last year in Maryland's state legislature. He also testified to the importance of the bill for DC during our hearing on June 4.

DC will join several other states in allowing residents to choose a symbol - in this case, a butterfly - to include on their license. It will signal to law enforcement or a first responder that the individual has a non-apparent disability that may contextualize their actions. The bill also requires and supports training for law enforcement officers to better understand how various nonvisible disabilities may impact how someone responds to commands or questions in a heightened interaction. I was thrilled that Eric and his family were on hand this week to watch the committee unanimously approve the bill, and it now moves to the full Council for consideration at this coming Tuesday’s Legislative Meeting. I shared more on Instagram, if you'd like to spread the word on this important change.

Now's the Time to Weigh in on E-Scooters and E-Bike Rentals

Our office gets a lot of calls about the dangerous use of e-scooters and e-bikes on our streets, and I want to be sure everyone knows that right now, there's an opportunity to comment on DDOT's proposed contract for who and how these dockless micromobility devices operate. These devices are enormously popular, but they've also led to plenty of people feeling unsafe or even getting involved in a crash. DDOT is proposing a number of changes in the next contract, which once out to bid, can be awarded to up to four different companies. It doesn't include or impact Capital Bikeshare, which is run separately through DDOT. 

You can review the proposed rules here (click "View Text" for the top item, Notice N146433): Search - DCRegs

You can comment as a member of the public following DDOT's instructions, which again, aren't obvious to most people: "All persons interested in commenting on the subject matter in this proposed rulemaking may file comments in writing, not later than thirty (30) days after the publication of this notice in the District of Columbia Register, with Jason Rubinstein, Policy Analyst, Policy and Legislative Affairs Division, Office of the Director, District Department of Transportation, 250 M Street, S.E., 8th Floor, Washington D.C. 20003. An interested person may also send comments electronically to [email protected]. Copies of this proposed rulemaking are available, at cost, by writing to the above address, and are also available electronically, at no cost, on the District Department of Transportation’s website at www.ddot.dc.gov."

It's not as hard as it seems - just send them an email. I'll be weighing in, too, in my role as Chair of the Committee on Transportation and the Environment, and I welcome your ideas to incorporate into my own submission for the record.

DPW Launches Live Trash and Recycling Tracker

File this one under “cautiously optimistic" for me. DPW has launched a live tracker with status updates for trash and recycling collection. It's a great idea - don’t get me wrong - but our office fields missed collection calls (despite closed 311s) and works with DPW to improve almost daily. So while a tracker's a step in the right direction, it’s just, well, I’ve been here long enough (cough leaf collection cough) to know these things don’t always execute as well as we hope. Still, you should bookmark the tracker and the status map (FAQ here), and if you have a missed collection, still let us know! And if it's working well, let us know that, too!

Community Connections for Recovery & Wellness Center Ribbon Cutting

On Tuesday, I joined the team and clients at Community Connections at Eastern Market to cut the ribbon on a brand new Recovery and Wellness Center that will improve their ability to work with residents living with a behavioral health challenge. There's no family or neighborhood that doesn’t experience some form of behavioral health issue or substance abuse. Nor is there a neighborhood or family that couldn’t use the expertise of a nonprofit like Community Connections. I'm proud to have them as part of our Ward 6 family. Many folks don’t realize it, but Community Connections also has a sub-grant through the funding I’ve secured in the budget to program Eastern Market Metro Park that allows them to go out into the park daily and connect with anyone experiencing a behavioral health or substance use issue and get them the support they need to recover and move forward. Congratulations to everyone at Community Connections on this great new space. 

Making DC Government Work Better For You,
One Case at a Time

As always, I want to take a moment to highlight some of the great work by my constituent services team to help make DC government work better for residents, especially in those "sticky" cases. If you're experiencing a challenge with a DC government agency, feel free to reach out to my team to get assistance. Since my last newsletter, they:

• Helped a resident update his address after an error with the Department of Human Services' database caused a disruption in his monthly SNAP benefits to buy groceries. 
  
  
• Worked with the DC Healthcare Ombuds' office to get a resident's Medicaid benefits in time for upcoming medical appointments.
  
  
• Got an illegally dumped mattress and box spring removed after DPW initially said it was on private property (it wasn't).
  
  
• Troubleshot with a resident trying to file a 311 to get a sidewalk repaired on a bridge. 311 didn't recognize the address, so our team confirmed with the Office of Unified Communications that it was accurate on their end. Now you know you can file a 311 for the middle of a bridge!

Take a Walk On Lenora Baker Way and Remember a Beloved SW Resident

Last week, we had a huge turnout from the Southwest community to unveil a ceremonial street sign at 3rd and I Streets, SW to remember and celebrate Lenora Baker -- including her children, her friends, her neighbors, and her faith community at Westminster Presbyterian Church.

Known for her hospitality as a server at Friday Night Jazz and Monday Blues, Lenora was also affectionately known as ‘Bell-Bell’ and served the community in a multitude of ways. She volunteered at Amidon-Bowen Elementary School, Jefferson Middle School Academy, and Richard Wright Public Charter School, in addition to serving as a deaconess and cook at Westminster. She was also an advocate for fair housing in Greenleaf Gardens and the surrounding public housing communities. 

After ANC 6D voted unanimously in support of a symbolic street designation for her, I introduced legislation for the renaming, and it passed the Council unanimously. It's always a special moment to gather at an event like this, and the huge turnout is a nice reminder that Lenora made a big impact with so many.

Upcoming Community Events

• Hill Family Biking: Kingman Island Ride - Saturday, September 26, 4-6 p.m.
  Hill Family Biking is headed to Kingman Island! Join their fun, slow 4-mile ride celebrating the new “Hill East Loop” protected bike lanes along 17th/Potomac/19th St. Then enjoy nature, live music from The Grandsons, Jr., and a picnic—bring your own if you’d like! Meet at Stanton Park (226 4th St. NE).

• First Ever Southwest Neighbors Night - Sunday, September 27, 6-8 p.m.
  Join me, ANC 6D, and MPD First District Commander Colin Hall to mingle and come together. You'll find us at the Canopy by Hilton Hotel at the Wharf (975 7th St. SW).

• ANC 6D September Meeting - ANC 6D will meet on Tuesday, September 22, at 7 p.m. in-person at 1100 4th Street, SW in the second floor conference room.

• ANC 6/8F September Meeting - ANC 6/8F will also meet on Tuesday, September 22 at 7 p.m. The meeting is hybrid, available on Zoom or at 250 M Street, SE. 

See you around the neighborhood, Charles Allen