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Crestwood Citizens Association Questionnaire

RENÉE BOWSER’S RESPONSES
WARD 4 QUESTIONS FOR CANDIDATES
CRESTWOOD CITIZENS ASSOCIATION

Crime

1.    I would approach this problem in several ways.  Prosecutions depend on evidence which prosecutors believe will satisfy the “beyond a reasonable doubt” standard of proof.  In order to obtain such evidence, the MPD must strengthen its investigations unit by hiring or redeploying more police for detective work and upgrading the training for detectives.  Equally important, as many of these crimes are drug related, DC must substantially increase funds and programs for substance abuse treatment.  Presently, funding is only about half of what it was in the 1990's.  Further, I would promote establishment of 24-hour public centers for youth with structured recreational, educational, and vocational programs with adult oversight.

Middle Class Exodus - Affordable Housing

2.    We must provide new units of affordable housing and preserve existing affordable housing for lower income to middle income residents.  The funding must cover subsidies and social services to individuals and families as well as capital funding to build and maintain affordable housing for individuals and families.  We must also strengthen enforcement of  laws and measures which are designed to create and maintain affordable housing and ensure that existing housing is safe and free of code violations.  DC residents are suffering an affordable housing crisis.  The area medium income for a family in DC is nearly $90,000 annually.

I will work for more coordination among the DC agencies which oversee, finance and fund affordable housing.  Presently, there are 3 or 4 DC agencies which provide acquisition and construction financing, rent supplements, and funding for social services to aid residents with issues which brought them to homelessness or other housing crises.  Best practices require consolidating capital needs, subsidy needs, and social services in a consolidated funding process.   I will work to establish a rental supplement program to assist very low income families.  Preserving existing affordable units and producing new units may require increasing the deed recordation and transfer tax and applying the increased funds to the Housing Production Trust Fund.

District law must be amended to require that housing built on land the District leases or sells must have 30% affordable housing.  This means 30% of rental or ownership housing.  I believe half of the affordable units should be for families with incomes below 30% of the AMI and half of the affordable units for families between 30% and 60% of the AMI.  Also, half of the affordable units should be rental units.

The tenant purchase and condominium conversion laws should be strengthened to require written notice to individual tenants and posted notice on the targeted building and require the owner to keep records available for government inspection of the notices given tenants.  The penalty for violating the law, including the notice provisions, should be to void the agreement of sale and/or the tenant’s agreement to vacate.  DC needs to strengthen and regulate workforce housing programs to assist families from 60% up to  a limit of 120% of the AMI.

Enhance transit-oriented development zoning to encourage building new businesses and housing, particularly affordable housing, in areas where public transportation can be added and sustained.  Adopt urban design standards to protect and enhance the quality of new development.

I support commercial linkage policies which raise revenue for production of affordable housing by assessing fees on new construction of retail, office, hotel, and other non-residential development as a condition of development approval.  The fee is based on the impact that the commercial development will have on the demand for affordable housing.

Water Quality

3.    DC needs a comprehensive watershed plan.  DC needs to coordinate with Maryland and the federal government because waterways such as the Potomac River, Anacostia River, and Rock Creek run through and are impacted by more than DC.  WASA handles combined sewer overflows and the DC Department of Health handles water quality standards; these agencies should coordinate their work.  A watershed management agency for each water way is a suggested solution with the required membership of all jurisdictions which impact or are impacted by the water way.  The decisions made will have cross jurisdictional support which will lead to coordinated action.  It is suggested that DC place more emphasis on source control to retain or slow storm water runoff.  It is suggested that DC place more emphasis on the relationship between land use decisions and water quality.  Specifically, other urban areas have emphasized projects that mimic natural processes of filtration and infiltration and containing storm water at its source.

Power Outages

4.    I would require PEPCO to provide a detailed study comparing the effectiveness of existing above ground lines to underground lines for maintaining safe and reliable service.  I would also require PEPCO to compare the cost of changing from above ground to underground lines, including the cost savings to consumers if they don’t suffer power outages and downed power lines from severe weather events and problems with trees.  DC needs to coordinate with its own agencies and businesses, such cable companies, PEPCO, and commercial construction to attempt to perform street and underground work in a coordinated fashion to save taxpayer and business expense.

Powell School

5.    I will work to keep Powell School open using some of the same methods I used in our campaign to keep open Truesdell Elementary School.  As ANC 4D Chair, I and my ANC joined with the parents of Truesdell and passed a resolution demanding DCPS  keep the school open and meet with the parents and community to discuss alternatives to closure.  I submitted the ANC resolution and the petition of community signatures gathered by the Truesdell parents to Dr. Janey.  We also demonstrated at the Dr. Janey’s State of the DC Schools address to publicize our concerns and demanded a meeting with Mayor Fenty.  In short, I would use my position as Council Member to make the community aware of the need for Powell ES and that it meets the criteria to remain open. I would then work to organize the community to pressure the Mayor, Council, and School Board to keep the school open.

Outdated Voter Registrations and Lack of Accountability for the Board of Elections

6.    I would correct the voter problems by a law requiring DC workers to go door to door throughout DC, much like U.S. census workers, to find out who lives in each residence and verify each resident’s age and year of first registration.  I would check this information against the information in the voter registration data base for that household.  I would also promote a law that would require mail notice to each household following the door to door canvas with notice that the person will be omitted from the voter roles if there is no response within 60 days.  Furthermore, I would require training and certification of poll workers inside the precincts in order to reduce the problem of issuing incorrect ballots.  I would amend the law to require that BOEE keep absentee ballots for at least 120 days.

Ward 4 Neighborhoods
7.    The Comprehensive Plan can be amended.  I would gather the neighborhoods to discuss their commonality and promote legislation to rearrange the clusters based on common interests.

Chanceries, Half-Way Houses, Churches and Non-Resident

8.    I will try to bring together the communities surrounding the group homes and the group home operator, whether the home is for seniors, disabled, runaway youth, or homeless persons, to address the issues and problems which the group homes may bring.  I would require the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs to provide stricter regulations on the managers and owners of group homes for fire, safety, and health hazards.

 I believe churches have great flexibility as to where they will locate because of the 1st amendment.  I would encourage dialogue between the church and community to resolve noise and parking issues.

Roads

9.    I agree with moving toward greater use of bike paths and street cars.  I believe that DC should build housing in areas which can support more public transportation, including in areas which are currently zoned as commercial land.  I believe that DC should enhance public transportation to and from the Metro to serve Crestwood neighborhoods.  I  believe that DC must do a better job of enhancing public transportation because more parking will generate more cars and worsen the pollution and congestion problems in our City.

Hazards

10.    I would launch studies in each of these hazard areas to define the scope of the hazards, the likely time frame for the coming of such events, and the best practices from jurisdictions which have successfully tackled the hazards.  I would then draft plans to address each hazard individually and in concert with related hazards which may occur at the same time and coordinate responses among DC agencies to combat them.

Planning Commission

11.    I believe a planning commission will be useful in making the planning process more transparent to the public and thereby garner more community interest and participation in how our City is developed.  A planning commission would aid the community in getting advance notice of project development proposals to ensure that they are consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.  The commission would oversee implementation of projects to ensure that the end results are consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.


Pathway to Rock Creek Park, along Blagden Avenue

12.    I would bring together Ward 4's ANC commissioners, community organizations, and interested residents to highlight the major transportation issues throughout the Ward, such as this sidewalk and access concern, to place organized pressure on DDOT to address these safety issues on a Ward-wide basis.

Newsletter - Communications

13.    Yes.  I will prepare a bi-monthly newsletter to constituents for detailed information on major issues in our Ward in addition to the weekly schedule of events which Council Member Fenty placed online.  I believe that the bi-monthly newsletter must be in hard copy as well as on line because many seniors and modest income residents do not have internet access.  I will make sure that my newsletter is distributed to the ANCs and recreation centers.  I will press ANC Commissioners to communicate with their constituents and fight for increased funding to ANCs for communication purposes.  I will hold quarterly meetings with ANC Commissioners and request detailed information on major issues within their single member districts.  I do believe that the ANCs, the PSAs, and the neighborhood clusters should be coterminous as much as possible.

New Construction

14.    I would require greater oversight by DCRA in issuing permits for new buildings to ensure that they comply with the zoning.  I also would amend the ANC law to increase notice to the ANCs of anticipated projects from 30 days under current law to at least 180 days.  In this way, through notice to ANCs, the communities will have time to organize to counter unwanted projects which violate land use laws.

Family Friendly, Senior Friendly, Neighborhoods

15.    I will endeavor to protect the stability of Ward 4 by helping seniors remain in their homes by championing legislation to provide in-home services for seniors (as well as persons with disabilities) who can live safely and with a decent quality of life.  I believe well trained and paid home health care workers will help seniors thrive.  I believe that well-provided community health centers are another measure to advance the quality of life of seniors of modest fixed incomes as well as other low income residents.  Targeted tax relief for most income seniors may be necessary to enable them to remain in their homes. Additionally, I believe that closed public school buildings in Ward 4 should be used for arts, learning, and training centers, particularly centers with structured and supervised programs for youth.  I also believe that increased affordable housing helps maintain the stability of the community.

Small Area Plans

16.    Yes. (I would be in favor of requiring more accountability for the city agencies and DC maps by mandating neighborhood plans.)