The DC Boathouse on MacArthur Boulevard has been counting its seats with the city’s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, with a difference of 28. The ANC 3D got involved in July, stating in a letter to the agency that its order to reduce from 76 seats to 48 to comply with the certificate of occupancy would work a hardship on the restaurant and its 23 employees.

DC Boathouse, MacArthur and Cathedral. Photo Credit: Potomac Times

The letter states that the Commission takes “regulatory compliance very seriously”, but asks that the agency recognize the “good faith” and proactive effort by the restaurant to address the issues and allow it to operate with 76 seats without fear of penalty for 90 days.

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“It’s all downhill from Ward Circle,” ANC 3D Chairman Chuck Elkins said recently in a Commission discussion of stormwater control. The flow is taking a toll.

Repair of a Glover Archbold National Park sewer bulkhead wall damaged by stormwater has gotten more complicated. “Engineers determined additional internal structural lining is warranted for the remaining brick arch tunnel beneath Reservoir Road,” according to DC Water spokesman John Lisle. He said the work is needed “for a more comprehensive structural upgrade.”

It is a 4- to 5-week project that is expected to cost $200,000 to $250,000. The bulkhead damage was discovered in March.

BULWARK:  A stone and brick complex that supports the sewer system as it runs under Reservoir Road at Glover Archbold National Park undergoes repairs. Photo Credit: John A. Bray (See, July 2019: Stormwater Bores Into Glover Archbold National Park)

On another front, work is getting underway at the Palisades Recreation Center, where a “stormwater retrofit” calls for unclogging channels and installing greenery to help slow and filter runoff. The recreation center includes several acres of impervious surfaces as well as “highly compacted” playing fields, and runoff winds up standing in the parking lot, according to the D.C. Department of Energy and Environment.

A public meeting on project design is set for Wednesday, September 11, at 6:30 p.m. at the Center, located at 5200 Sherier Place, according to Cecilia Lane of DOEE’s Watershed Protection Division. The job is part of a 2-year, $986,529 contract involving four sites, the three others being Douglass Community Center, Fort Greble and Fort Stevens. The money comes from a grant to DOEE from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Lane said she also is checking out concerns voiced by residents about standing water and mosquitoes at the Palisades Park off W Street, near Foxhall Road.

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The Humane Rescue Alliance is using motion-activated cameras to survey D.C.’s free-roaming cats and wildlife, targeting the Palisades/Potomac Heights area this fall. Cat Count Field Technician Dan Herrera is looking for residents in the area who are  willing to allow a camera to be mounted on their property for two weeks during October or November. People can sign up to participate in the project, part of an effort to use data to improve animal welfare and cat population management.

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Georgetown University will open its front lawn for its Annual Georgetown Community Day, set for Saturday, September 14, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Organized by the Georgetown Community Partnership, the event offers  food, music, games, and tables for university departments, student groups and local businesses and associations.

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Final recommendations in the D.C. Department of Transportation Rock Creek Far West Livability Study are to be shared at a workshop Tuesday, August 27, with the purpose to obtain feedback from the public. The workshop is set for 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Horace Mann Elementary School, 4430 Newark Street NW. The study focuses on issues such as improving pedestrian crossings and sidewalks, bicycle networks, bus stops, signage and intersections. For more information, contact DDOT Transportation Planner Ted Van Houten, theodore.vanhouten@dc.gov, 202-671-4580.

Meanwhile, the agency is gathering data to see whether the livability of turning from MacArthur Boulevard onto Arizona Avenue might be improved with the addition of a left-turn signal.