Morrison Clark Inn: Summary of Developer Presentation to Neighborhood Residents
April 30th: Special Meeting on Morrison Clark Inn Expansion.
The promised presentation on the construction/renovation/expansion of the Morrison Clark Inn took place yesterday evening, as planned. Attendance was high, dominated by local residents, many from neighboring Quincy Park condominiums, some bloggers (like myself) and an appearance by an NBC news crew. The presentation, for developer RB Properties, was given by Forrester Construction, the Project Architect Gene Weissman and several members of management from the Morrison Clark Inn.
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| A very good turn-out at the meeting by local residents |
The Project:
Most of the information has been out there for a while, but to recap. The Morrison Clark will add 6 stories over the Chinese Church and Parsonage giving the hotel an additional 42,000 Sq ft. of usable space to its existing structures, that's about double the size.
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| L Street view: RB Properties are still using the 2008 Conceptual Model |
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| 11th Street View: Current entrance/lobby will be closed and moved to L Street |
The Construction Schedule:
1. The demolition phase has started on the Parsonage and the Chinese Church.
This is expected to continue for 2 months plus, and will also include the below grade
'leveling out'.
2. By the Summer, framing and concrete pouring will begin followed by
3. Application of the buildings 'skin' that will take construction from the 3rd quarter
through Winter 2013.
4. Projected completion is early Summer 2014
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| Demolition has started on the interiors of the Chinese Church and Parsonage |
A few construction notes; The rear of the Parsonage had to be demolished. According to Forrester Construction, the building is/was unstable and deteriorated to a point where there was no other option.
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| The rear of the Parsonage had to be demolished due to deterioration |
The Carriage House, who's preservation caused such concern, has been stabilized following the 'pulling way' of the alley-side exterior wall. The Chinese Church side of the Carriage House will be restored back to its original, and the 60's addition removed.
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| The 1960's addition to the Carriage House will be removed and returned back to its original form |
The Issues:
There are multiple issues that still have to be discussed and there are some communications shortcomings that need to be addressed:
1. The abutment issues between RB Properties and the Quincy Park are probably something that will be talked about for some time, but the developer has not circumvented any legal or permit issues, it remains to be seen what, if anything, can be addressed past what already has been discussed or applied.
2.RB Properties really needs to put together a Traffic Management Plan. Moving the entrance to L Street may be fine architecturally, but the additional traffic and parking needs to be addressed. The Marriott Marquee will be opening around the same time, they have their Traffic Management Plan in place, and the increase in traffic, buses, taxi et.al. will certainly be felt on L Street and the surrounding neighborhood. Time for the ANC to step up.
3. Just plain communications. In my opinion (coming late to the party) RB Properties should have had this neighborhood meeting a few months ago, before they started an construction. By the number of people who made the meeting it is obvious that there is interest, and concerns, in the project. It was brought up a number of times that the developer had no single point of contact for neighborhood residents to take their concerns to. Something that RB Properties needs to address, with haste. There was an obvious lack of information about the project, even at the meeting, referrals back to the developer was often the answer. In fairness, the developer and construction company representatives did seem to 'get it' and I believe that they will address the communications issues pretty quickly (one hopes).
As for my takeaway from the meeting; We are in an age where the word transparency has more meaning and business' need to be sensitive to the surrounding neighborhoods, not only in this instance but as a general rule. As a neighborhood resident my message to RB Properties and the Morrison Clark Inn is to look past the legal and permit obligations, and shoot for "good neighbor" status.
RB Properties does not care about communication and transparency. They were dishonest about the effect their building would have on many units in the Quincy Park Condominium. To win zoning board approval, they called the main living room windows of many units they would block out the sun from "small ventilation windows" and then used loopholes and technicalities, bolstered by high-priced lawyers, to defeat a challenge by the residents of Quincy Park.
ReplyDeleteSo, instead of working something out, they decided that many residents of Quincy Park are just going to love having a big wall 3 feet away from their living room window blocking out the sun. Not a single move was made on their part to modify their plan to have a lesser effect on Quincy Park residents' quality of life or property values. Lawyering up was their solution.
The zoning board and board of Quincy Park are also somewhat at fault: The QP Board for failing to notify their residents of the impending construction and their chance to speak out for or against it. The zoning board for allowing high-priced lawyers with connections to trump what is best for the community. They gave a generous zoning variance to Morrison Clark, despite the negative consequences for many local DC residents.
Any gestures of community outreach made by Morrison Clark at this point in time are hollow and contradict every action they have taken up to this point in time. They had every opportunity to modify their plans to keep many units at Quincy Park light-filled and livable. They chose otherwise.
This narrative is lop-sided and wholly ignores many facts, including the fact that Morrison-Clark fully complied with all legal requirements, that many, possibly even a majority of Quincy Park residents strongly support the development, that Quincy Park had high-priced lawyers also despite the objections of many members of the Association, that there are absolutely no air and light rights in the District of Columbia and that the Quincy Park developer fully disclosed that the District does not recognize air, view or land rights and that new development could be built in extremely close proximity to the units in question, which were accordingly priced lower on a per square foot basis than other units in the building. This hostile diatribe also ignores the fact that Morrison Clark has been a fabulous neighbor and was a pioneering business in the neighborhood--the first legitimate business in a blighted neighborhood. We're it not for Morrison Clark, gentrification might never have occurred. This is America and we believe property owners have a right to utilize their property to its maximum economic potential. This is also a democracy. If you don't like the District's zoning laws, which don't recognize air, light or view rights, than organize to change the law. Do you have any idea how many DC condo owners have had next door buildings build right over their windows. Just because you failed to do your due diligence or ask the right questions, don't take it out on an honorable business that provides a fine product. If you haven't enjoyed Morrison Clark's Fine dining, give yourself a treat and enjoy a superb meal, some nice wine and a good port. I have many happy memories of blissful, relaxing evenings of this unique venue.
ReplyDeleteI understand the point of view of Morrison Clark. They have not broken the law. However, it's hard to believe that they couldn't have considered a building plan that would've been better for Quincy Park residents. Just because DC doesn't have light or air rights, does that make one a good neighbor who blocks out all of somebody's light and air?
ReplyDeleteIf simply complying with the law makes one a good neighbor, that's a very low bar to clear for being a good neighbor.