President’s Message
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By Eric Langenbacher, president@burleith.org
I hope everyone is enjoying the onset of summer and graduation season. I am especially proud this year because my youngest son just graduated from Georgetown University on May 18. I am grateful that the class of 2024 had an amazing experience because everything was cancelled back in 2020 in the midst of the pandemic.
First and foremost, the Burleith Summer Picnic is scheduled for Saturday, June 15, 4–7 pm at the Green Lot (Whitehaven and 37th). There will be live music, Rocklands BBQ, a raffle, activities for children, and much more. Dignitaries such as Councilmember Brooke Pinto will attend. We do not have an alternate date, so let’s hope we will not be rained or smoked out! The BCA’s beautification committee hopes to have the first neighborhood welcome sign for display, and with luck, even installed by then. We will most certainly be fundraising for this initiative at the picnic.
Big thanks go to our two co-organizers, Lenore Rubino and Melanie Gisler, as well as to all volunteers from the BCA Board and the neighborhood. On that note, we are in need of some additional volunteers for various tasks:
Electricity—gathering cords and liaising with the neighbor who will allow a hook-up;
Posters announcing the picnic—putting up and taking down around the neighborhood;
Set-up (from 2/2:30 onwards); taking down/trash and recycling (from 6:30ish).
If you are able to take on one of these tasks, please email Melanie at m.gisler@ comcast.net.
The Georgetown Transportation and Circulation Study, for which I was the Burleith representative, has concluded and DDOT has issued recommendations. Rather surprisingly, they eliminated the vast majority of their draft recommendations. I am happy that they are not going to eliminate left-turns (for now) from M Street into Bank Alley. But I am quite dissatisfied that they are doing little to the intersection at 35th and T (no crosswalk on the south side), but are eliminating three parking spaces to make a longer bus stop just north of that intersection on 35th Street. Moreover, they are not moving forward with any one-way streets at this time. This was mainly due to opposition in Georgetown to plans for 28th and 29th Streets. DDOT actually met with residents there. I pointed out that we in Burleith also need such a meeting where experts can weigh in on the disadvantages or benefits of one-ways on specific streets. For instance, do speeds actually increase if lanes are painted narrowly and include an unprotected bike lane and raised crosswalks? Before we come to a collective decision, we need actual expert information.
DDOT has agreed to a meeting about one-ways in Burleith, and I will try to schedule that for mid- or late June, likely online. In any case, the situation with the bus route on T Street is dangerous and untenable. I sent video and pics to the listserv last week that showed the substantial damage to a neighbor’s vehicle after being hit by a Metrobus. Please note that under the new plan, the D2 Metrobus will be renumbered, but the route will remain the same.
It is imperative to mention the trash and related rat situation. I have never seen the state of the green trash bins this abysmal. Every other bin has broken or missing lids and/or holes that rats have gnawed. This is a veritable smorgasbord for them. Yes, we can try to get the city to treat infestations, and, yes, we should try to coordinate by block. I have also been lobbying for years for the city to simply replace all the green bins in the city. Mayor Gray did this about a decade ago. Unfortunately, this has gone nowhere (despite Mayor Bowser’s support) and the budget situation is bad. Therefore, I urge all homeowners to request a new lid through 311 or, if the bin itself has holes, to procure a new one. Information is here: https://dpw.dc.gov/service/trash-container-repair-and-purchase. There are several circumstances where the city will provide a new bin (e.g., for new homeowners). Otherwise, they will need to be purchased. For renters, please be in contact with your landlord. It might take a while for the city to respond, but we need to take action.
Under various and sundries, the authorities recently presented updated plans for the Jelleff Community Center. Information is available here: https://dgs.dc.gov/page/jelleff-recreation-center-0. There will be additional opportunities for the community to weigh in, but final decisions will be made by city agencies and the Old Georgetown Board.
I have heard nothing recently about plans for the Ellington Field and fear that city agencies feel that they have done all the community outreach they need to and will just start renovations at one point. There are still many outstanding issues including lights, parking, traffic patterns, hours of usage, maintenance, etc.
I hope to see you all at the picnic on June 15th. Congratulations to the class of 2024!