2008 Woodie Awards
Vote Absentee
An active Foggy Bottom community member is suing the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment to block the construction of a Marriott hotel adjacent to the 1959 E Street residence hall.
The BZA and the developer's contractor, Tyler and Associates, are defending the proposal. In February, Tyler and Associates applied to build a Courtyard Marriott Hotel in place of the Colonial Parking garage at 515 20th St. N.W.
The BZA gave its final approval for the construction in August, and Foggy Bottom resident Dorothy Miller quickly filed her lawsuit to block construction in September. Miller is also an elected member of the Foggy Bottom/West End Advisory Neighborhood Commission, which makes recommendations to the District government on development issues.
Miller filed a brief in the D.C. Court of Appeals last week which outlined her reasons for opposing the hotel construction. According to the brief, the hotel would detrimentally affect nearby residents and create an unbalanced amount of commercial property on the block, which includes Thurston and Mitchell halls.
"The BZA ignored the ... evidence in the record as to the overwhelming number of institutional and non-residential uses in close proximity to the site, and the imbalance of residential uses and non-residential uses," the brief stated.
Miller told The Hatchet that the construction of a new hotel will bring more noise and traffic to an already crowded area. "The street cannot take anymore traffic," Miller said, adding that there already is too much congestion on 20th Street.
"I, as a citizen, resent the fact that they are ruining another section of our neighborhood," she said.
Miller, elected to the ANC for her 16th year, is filing her suit independently of the commission. Despite this, her brief relies heavily on the ANC's protest of the developer, the Allstate Hotel Partnership.
The Hatchet previously reported that when the plan was first proposed at the ANC meeting back in February 2006, residents faulted the plan for building right up to the sidewalk, not having a driveway for cabs and for being too tall. The commission then unanimously voted against the construction.
The BZA and the developer's contractor, Tyler and Associates, are defending the proposal. In February, Tyler and Associates applied to build a Courtyard Marriott Hotel in place of the Colonial Parking garage at 515 20th St. N.W.
The BZA gave its final approval for the construction in August, and Foggy Bottom resident Dorothy Miller quickly filed her lawsuit to block construction in September. Miller is also an elected member of the Foggy Bottom/West End Advisory Neighborhood Commission, which makes recommendations to the District government on development issues.
Miller filed a brief in the D.C. Court of Appeals last week which outlined her reasons for opposing the hotel construction. According to the brief, the hotel would detrimentally affect nearby residents and create an unbalanced amount of commercial property on the block, which includes Thurston and Mitchell halls.
"The BZA ignored the ... evidence in the record as to the overwhelming number of institutional and non-residential uses in close proximity to the site, and the imbalance of residential uses and non-residential uses," the brief stated.
Miller told The Hatchet that the construction of a new hotel will bring more noise and traffic to an already crowded area. "The street cannot take anymore traffic," Miller said, adding that there already is too much congestion on 20th Street.
"I, as a citizen, resent the fact that they are ruining another section of our neighborhood," she said.
Miller, elected to the ANC for her 16th year, is filing her suit independently of the commission. Despite this, her brief relies heavily on the ANC's protest of the developer, the Allstate Hotel Partnership.
The Hatchet previously reported that when the plan was first proposed at the ANC meeting back in February 2006, residents faulted the plan for building right up to the sidewalk, not having a driveway for cabs and for being too tall. The commission then unanimously voted against the construction.
