As wave of projects begin to sprout, so do disputes
Cross-posted from theWashington Post Written by Jonathan O’Connell
New apartments and shops are spreading into neighborhoods across the Washington region, with developers looking to capitalize on a better-than-average economy and a massive influx of young adults.
Apartment hunters have wider options, more residents have grocery stores in their neighborhoods and, with dozens of new restaurants and bars, Washington has begun to change its reputation as a gray-suit government town.
Many residents are celebrating the changes. But others aren’t.
And as this new wave of development rises, a chasm between its champions and its skeptics is beginning to show.
In Northeast D.C., Ivy City residents have sued to try to prevent Mayor Vincent C. Gray (D) from relocating a bus depot for dozens of private buses into their neighborhood to make way for upgrades at Union Station.
In Washington Highlands, one of the poorest parts of the District, public housing residents sued the D.C. Housing Authority out of concern that they would be permanently displaced from their homes when their units at Highland Dwellings were refurbished.
It isn’t just the low income or disenfranchised who are fighting back. In Wheaton, residents turned away a mixed-use proposal pushed by Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D). Residents in Reston have formed an advocacy group, Rescue Reston, and say they have gathered 650 signatures opposing the possible redevelopment of Reston National Golf Course.
There have always been battles between residents and the developers, planners and city officials proposing alterations to neighborhoods. But with the economy gaining steam and apartment construction booming, disputes that faded during the recession are beginning to boil again.
“I think in many ways it’s the same, but now we have many more examples of how these communities are getting screwed over,” said Parisa Norouzi, director of the community organizing group Empower D.C.
‘No trust’
Empower D.C. battled former mayor Adrian M. Fenty’s attempts to close excess schools and lease the buildings to developers, projects that Norouzi said were driven by “gentrification or private profit.” She says those battles have better prepared residents and organizers for disputes such as the bus relocation, which Empower D.C. and residents are fighting in D.C. Superior Court. “At this point, there is really no trust in the process,” she said.
A hearing on the case is expected Tuesday. A Gray spokesman declined to comment.
In other instances, the opponents to zoning changes or development are the well-heeled. Neighborhoods in wealthier parts of Northwest D.C. are raising concerns about parking shortages under proposed changes to the District’s zoning code, while in Reston the concern is a lack of green space should the golf course’s owner try to build a project to capitalize on the construction of two Silver Line Metro stations nearby.
Some Wheaton residents rejected plans to create a mixed-use downtown project because it might resemble the redevelopment of Silver Spring — a success to some but not others. “We know how many small businesses struggled and went out of business in Silver Spring,” Bob Schilke, owner of the Little Bitts Shop of cake supplies, told the Montgomery County Council in February.
Sometimes even the terms used to describe development have have taken on widely different meanings. The D.C. Housing Authority became the envy of other cities in winning seven grants under the federal HOPE VI program, which enabled the District to overhaul blighted public housing projects into mixed-income neighborhoods.
The agency’s renovation of Highland Dwellings, east of Bolling Air Force Base, isn’t a HOPE VI program and no market rate units are even being built. But spokeswoman Dena Michaelson said the agency could have done a better job making that clear to avoid the lawsuit it faced (and since settled).
Say Ward 8 public housing tenants after winning a victory over the DC Housing Authority.
Judge calls the Groundbreaking Tenants’ Right Case HIGHLAND TOGETHER WE STAND VS. DC HOUSING AUTHORITY “Unchartered Territory”
Schyla Pondexter-Moore with kids from the neighborhood as they celebrate her daughter’s birthday.
Schyla Pondexter-Moore, a Ward 8 public housing resident and mother of four, became fearful for her community when the DC Housing Authority informed tenants back in 2010 that Highland Dwellings would be undergoing “complete, substantial, modernization” and everyone on the property would have to move very quickly. After researching Hope VI and finding out about the scope of displacement under the program, and encouraged by her ANC Commissioner K. Armstead, Schyla took action and founded the organization Highland Together We Stand, filing suit against the DC Housing Authority (DCHA) and fighting for over a year to achieve the victory of October 9th 2012 when DCHA settled with Highland Tenants. Now working as an Affordable Housing Organizer for the community based organization Empower DC, Schyla is taking her message to other public housing communities throughout the District.
“You can fight back. You can save your housing. You have rights. Look at what we did at Highland. You can do that too, and Empower DC is here to help.”
The number of public housing units in Washington DC has been drastically cut over the years. Where there used to be at least
Schyla Pondexter-Moore’s family is forced to move from Highland Dwellings while renovations are underway. At the time, Schyla was not certain they’d be able to return.
20,000 units of public housing (before formal recognition of HOPE VI legislation in 1998) there are now only about 8,000. Public housing complexes have been demolished and redeveloped WITHOUT providing the often-promised one-for-one replacement of public housing units on the properties. Properties such as Valley Green, Arthur Cappers, Frederick Douglass, Stanton Dwellings, Parkside, Temple Courts, Sheridan Terrace, Ellen Wilson and more, most of which are located in Wards 7 & 8, have been demolished and redeveloped for private use..
Highland Together We Stand Meeting attended by ANC Representative K. Armstead.
But the residents of the 208-unit Highland Dwellings community in Ward 8 decided to organize and fight back rather than risk displacement. On Tuesday, October 9, 2012, after a year and half of back and forth litigation, the DC Housing Authority agreed to a settlement which presiding Judge Zeldon called “unchartered territory,” and which secures two major victories in the fight to preserve public housing:
In accordance with settlement guidelines, Highland Dwelling “shall remain a public housing property for 40 years” even after extensive renovation and modernization of Highland Dwellings, which is being funded both publicly and privately, is complete. In addition, “All residents at Highland Dwellings shall be afforded the benefit of the terms and conditions applicable to all other public housing complexes in the District of Columbia as those terms and conditions are defined by federal and District of Columbia laws and regulation governing the public housing program.“
In other words, tenants will have the same rights as tenants in all other public housing complexes despite the involvement of private
developers. The 208 units at Highland Dwellings for all intents and purposes will remain for PUBLIC HOUSING after renovations for 40 years. There can be no new criteria set forth that is not applicable to public housing regulations–for example, tenants cannot be asked to pay utilities, pay more than 30% of their income, meet minimum income requirements, undergo credit checks, or other such provisions which have been common in other redevelopment projects and present clear barriers to public housing tenants returning after modernization.
Highland Together We Stand came up with a list of demands that became the basis of their lawsuit.
The settlement also states, “Current Residents and Former Residents shall have the right of first refusal to return to Highland Dwellings.” Residents sought and won this legally binding written agreement in order to ensure that all residents living on the property prior to the renovation will be able to return to the property after the renovation is complete.
“We fought a good fight. Housing knew what they did was unjust and a lot of wrong doing. Myself and other tenants in Highland Dwellings fought back and now I can say justice was served,” said Ms. Renee Patterson, another plaintiff in the case.
There have been at least ten DC Housing Authority public housing properties demolished in recent years. Seven were converted through Hope VI or similar programs and taken out of the public housing inventory. But the residents of Highland Dwellings have proven that public housing tenants do have the power to speak out and act to save their homes.
Highland Together We Stand member, Ms. Betsy, talks with pro-bono lawyer outside of the hearing room.
“Unfortunately, many residents do not know their rights and are intimidated by the Housing Authority,” said Schyla. “My organizing efforts concentrate on making sure people feel informed and empowered to advocate for themselves within public housing.” Highland Dwellings tenants worked alongside Neighborhood Legal Services and pro bono attorneys Weil Gotschal and Manges.
Despite this victory, the need for public housing remains a huge problem in DC. Recently DCHA stated they are considering closing their waiting list citing its unmanageable size. According to the Washington Post there are 61,000 households on the city’s waiting list and some wait as long as 20 years for an opening.
“With so many people in need of housing, why does the Mayor continue to allow public housing to be demolished and not be replaced? Where do the Mayor and Council expect people to live? There is a direct connection betweenthe demolitionofpublic housing and the rise of homelessness. Is the District Government deliberately exacerbating the loss of public housing and rise of homelessness? These are all questions we at Empower DC believe are worthy of investigation.”
Come Learn About the Threat to Public Housing and How We Can Fight To Preserve It!!
Empower DC’s Affordable Housing Campaign Will Be Hosting a
Public Housing Information Session Where: 1419 V Street NW When: Thursday, October 11, 2012 6:30 – 8:30 PM
For more information, contact Schyla Moore-Poindexter at 202-234-9119 ext.101 or housing@empowerdc.org.
ONE DC (Organizing Neighborhood Equity) is also putting the word out about a community meeting in Ward 8 this Saturday, October 13. The video below, shot by Judith Hawkins of It Is What It Is Mobile Talk Show, goes into the details.
Brian Anders in 2011. Photo by Daniel del Pielago.
HEALTH CARE AND HOUSING FOR ALL!
By Kirby, longtime friend of Brian Anders
Longtime DC activist, Brian Anders, passed away in the early morning hours of Tuesday August 28, 2012. (Look for announcements for a speak-out/ memorial for this Thursday, prior to his memorial at Joseph’s House at 4pm). Brian was a devoted advocate on behalf of people experiencing homelessness in Washington, DC. He was one of the core members of Community for Creative Non Violence, including when it was at its most active in the 80s. CCNV was a vibrant community of anti-war and social justice activists, who succeeded, through direct action, in forcing the federal government to hand over the massive building at 2nd and D st. NW, so that CCNV could turn it into a shelter and community center for people without housing. The group also held dramatic actions at churches in the city, to get them to share space and resources with those who needed them most. Their organizing gained national momentum, and spurred passage of the McKinney–Vento Homeless Assistance Act, an important Federal bill that provides funding to programs to meet the needs of people experiencing homelessness. CCNV coupled their work to end homelessness with anti-war actions, always making the connection between the need to end imperialist war and suffering abroad, and to redirect those resources to helping those economically marginalized at home. While lacking its former community and activist spirit, the CCNV shelter still stands today. Brian went on to advocate for justice for low-income and marginalized communities in DC for the next decades.
Prior to his work with CCNV, Brian suffered PTSD as a result of serving in the military during the Vietnam war. He worked on healing throughout his life, channeling his energy into compassionate service and fiery advocacy. He was part of veterans’ peace organizations, and told me once that he spent months in prison in Texas for taking part in an action to block a weapons shipment. Over the decades, he worked at various organizations, helping get people into housing and helping people access needed services. He believed strongly in serving others in any way he could, in living in community, and in treating all people with dignity and respect. He had a healthy dose of disgust for politicians who rest in the pockets of the wealthy, and for the nonprofit industrial complex, which he understood to be wearing away at the true spirit of community and resistance in which many service providing organizations began.
Brain closely mentored young advocates, including members of a series of local groups who conducted direct actions to end homelessness, such as housing occupations, since the early 2000s. He was a down-to-earth human being, and he touched many lives. Brian apparently wanted people to memorialize him by taking action, speaking out on, standing up for justice and compassion. I hope we can honor his memory in this way.
Two excerpts from the Journal of Brian Anders, which he started writing in July 2012.
Page 1
Living in joy. What exactly does that mean?
When do we ask the question what prevents us from living in joy?
Is it the need to blame others for our mistakes? Is it the inability to learn from our mistakes or forgive ourselves for any pain we caused to them or others? Could it be something as simple as being afraid to love ourselves?
Page. 5
Now is the time to be grateful and accepting of gifts I’m receiving from the divine.
What is self love? What is the key to seeing oneself as worthy of being loved and giving love? How- when can we learn self acceptance? With all of our weaknesses? How do we move past self hatred and learn to live in love?
Unconditional love? Begins within not from outside of us. Not looking for some religious answer, or even a scientific explanation or believe that it takes a form of trust. Giving in to your higher self. Ending the way within.
Don’t tell me you can’t fight city hall. Yesterday (May 15, 2012) advocates fighting to maintain and improve essential social services in the District of Columbia, packed the city council hearing room as they voted on this year’s fiscal budget. As a result, the city council passed the Budget Request Act with $25 million restored to affordable housing programs. A victory without question but more needs to be done. The final vote on the budget won’t happen until June 5, 2012. Between now and then, council members must be convinced to use fiscal reserves and/or raise more revenue to fully fund TANF (Temporary Aid to Needy Families), homeless services, the subsidized child care program and more. For more information on what programs still need support, which council members need to be lobbied, etc., go to the Fair Budget Coalition’s campaign website Make One City Possible.
For more on what’s at stake should the city continue to cut social services, check out the fabulous video below from the Day in the Strife protest, produced by Laura Gwizdak. I don’t know where the mainstream media was that day. The halls were packed with DC residents actively participating in the political process. Personally and professionally, I call that news.
