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HOTEL From Page 1
gym and swimming pool, 174 underground valet parking spots, and space for a restaurant, retail and bars. The project would also renovate and preserve the century-old First Church of Christ, Scientist building, which would serve as the hotel’s lobby and special-events space. Developers, who hosted a series of community meetings this fall, have touted the project as “the first truly green hotel in the city,” and a boon for taxes and jobs. Their application — which seeks approval for a planned-unit development and map amendment — is available online at adamsmorganhistorichotel.com. The D.C. Office of Planning released a report on the project last week, supporting the general idea of “redevelopment of the site and preservation of the church,” but offering a slate of concerns about current plans. With zoning commissioners Monday, development review specialist Matt Jesick focused on the building’s height. “A lower height … would be more compatible with the neighborhood,” he said. Mostly three- and four-story buildings surround the site, Jesick said. And part of the project falls within an area protected by the Reed Cooke zoning overlay, which restricts building heights to 40 feet. In spite of the height concern, a lack of “unanimity of opinion on the project,” and other issues, Jesick recommended that the project move forward to hearings. Development partner Matt Wexler, in an interview yesterday, took issue with the suggestion that the project lacks community support. “We have well over 500 letters of support from Adams Morgan residents, property owners and business owners — in support of hotel, the planned-unit development and the height,” he said, on top of the backing of several neighborhood civic groups. But there is also vigorous opposition in the neighborhood as well, much of it focused on the upscale hotel’s potential impact on neighborhood character and rents, as well as the height. On the latter issue, developers have held firm at nine stories — and Wexler repeated that stance yesterday.
HELMETS From Page 1
“Advanced riders wouldn’t think of getting on a bike without a helmet,” Milzman said in a phone interview. “Capital Bikeshare has done an outstanding job [providing] decent bicycles at a reasonable price.” Members “love the availability, but they’re as bad as anyone in not putting on a helmet. We know helmets work,” he said. “They might mess up your hair, but there’s no other downside.” Yet even Milzman acknowledges that the obvious problem has no easy solution. Capital Bikeshare, started in 2008, now boasts 116 stations in the District and Arlington, over 1,100 bikes and more than 1 million rides. But as with other bike-share programs abroad and in the United States, officials can’t figure out how to dispense helmets at unmanned stations, especially when different sizes are needed and users are resistant to sharing headgear. John Lisle, spokesperson for the D.C. Department of Transportation, notes that his agency encourages helmet use, with promotional materials featuring helmeted cyclists on the sturdy red bikes. Cyclists must be over 16 to join, and there’s been “no evidence of significant safety issues — only 20 serious accidents out of 1 million rides so far,” he said. Like many jurisdictions, the District
“We have to,” he said. “The economic feasibility of the project is questionable without that height.” He pointed out that the developers already made several concessions recently — like setting back the top floor of the building and reducing its massing. But zoning commissioners Monday debated whether the project is in good enough shape for review. “I have an issue with the laundry list,” chair Anthony Hood said of the Office of Planning’s report. “The only positive element I got out of it for the applicant was preservation and restoration of the church,” said Turnbull. “From the tone of [the report], it sounds like it shouldn’t be set down” for hearings. Jesick responded that both planners and community members “have been working with [the developers] for a number of years,” he said. “It would be beneficial for the [Zoning] Commission to weigh in at this point.” Commissioner Peter May argued for a delay to allow time for a fundamental rethinking of the project. “It seems to me they need to be taking two or three floors off,” he said. “The best way for them to get the message would be for us not to set it down” for hearings. But others saw the benefits of starting now. “When there’s been very little movement after several years of negotiations, something should happen,” said commissioner Marcie Cohen. It’s not good for the neighborhood “just to have a vacant building, with no hope of it being restored,” she said. The commission ended up voting 3-2 to “set down” the development, with Hood, Cohen and Konrad Schlater supporting and Turnbull and May opposing. Before doing so, commissioners highlighted a number of issues for developers to consider. Several worried about the visual impact of the hotel’s proposed black brickwork. Commissioner Schlater said his first impression was: “Darth Vader building, lording over Adams Morgan.” Overall, commissioners agreed that they needed to see more detailed drawings and plans. Development partner Wexler said his team was pleased with the final vote. They expect to take plans before the city’s Historic Preservation Review Board in January, before any zoning hearings take place.
mandates helmet use only for cyclists under 16. The Transportation Department, which oversees the program, did launch a small pilot program last summer, providing complimentary 24-hour bike-share memberships to guests at four downtown hotels, complete with complimentary helmets to lend them. But, Lisle said, there’s no easy way to go much further. “We don’t have a way to distribute helmets,” he said, adding that “people don’t like to share helmets” due to size and hygiene issues. Meanwhile, requiring helmets has been shown to discourage bike-share use in cities like Melbourne, Australia. Shane Farthing, executive director of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, emphasized another angle of the dilemma. “Helmets make you safer, but the focus should be on proper driving and proper cycling skills that prevent accidents,” he said in an interview. Given the number of rides, Farthing added, Capital Bikeshare’s safety record is absolutely phenomenal. Capital Bikeshare’s website seems slightly conflicted on the issue. Under “Safety Tips,” it says, “Always wear a helmet.” But other areas on the site say the program “encourages,” or “recommends” that users wear a helmet. Milzman, who also works in emergency medicine at the Washington Hospital Center, said he’s treated too many head injuries
in cyclists — not just simple concussions, but “facial fractures, brain injuries.” Medical experts say twothirds of all deaths from bike injuries are head-related, and wearing helmets is a proven way to prevent death or disabling injury, he said. Milzman said he knows of no bike-share program in the United States that requires the use of helmets. A similar survey in Boston by one of his researchers found only 17 percent helmet use at the new “Hubway” bike-share system there, but a more robust 70 percent for cyclists riding their own bikes. But according to its website, Boston’s Hubway program, started in July, allows users to add a helmet to their purchase when they sign up for membership online, with the helmet delivered to the member’s home. Hubway also has staff or volunteers making helmets available at some of the busiest stations. “Helmets dramatically reduce the risk of head injury,” Hubway’s website says. At-large D.C. Council member Phil Mendelson, head of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, said he’s pondering the issue. “What is the best public policy: promoting bike use or reducing injury?” he asked. “We could require wearing of helmets, but with bike-share it’s easier said than done.” “It’s good they brought it up,” Mendelson said of the helmet survey, “but frustrating they didn’t have a solution.”