The design of the multi-sport field at ECC proposed by Maret would extend activity to the property lines, with minimal to no buffers for sight, sound or privacy. There is NO FIELD in the city as tightly wedged into a residential neighborhood as this proposal. As stated in the zoning code, “The private school shall be located so that it is not likely to become objectionable to adjoining and nearby property because of noise, traffic, number of students, or otherwise objectionable conditions.” Here we illustrate some of the objectionable conditions that Maret’s plan would impose on the neighborhood.
The density of the footprint and the intensity of use has boiled down to our saying: “You may attend a game or practice, but we, the neighbors, will be required to attend all games and practices.”
We were told at the outset by Maret that they would not negotiate the footprint except for the rearrangement of some minor elements and little nips and tucks around the edges such as 20’ netting on the Rittenhouse alley. (The gray is the field area of plastic turf and the parking of impervious pavers. The walls are shown in heavy black and the purple is the extensive netting. The white is the left-over space.)
This hillside, which slopes 35 feet from west to east, will be FLATTENED with high stepped walls to hold the earth. The walls on the east side would total 12’ high and begin just 4’ from the residential property line. Permanent fencing and 30’ netting would top these walls. (This is a diagrammatic rendering from the backyard of 6004 28th Street showing the proposed stepped wall.)
The combination of grade, walls, fences and netting exceeds the heights of many of the homes around the site. The field sends a message of an Island of enclosure and NOT of community. (This is a view from 5860 Nebraska towards 6004 28th Street.)
This is a view from 5939 Utah Ave. again showing the enclosure of the site and, of course, bereft of trees.
The front yard parking lot, a requested zoning exception, projects beyond the homes on the same block. The length of the parking lot, equivalent to seven residential lots, would essentially be a strip mall for 47 cars. Ordinary-sized cars parked on the lot will rise higher than the adjacent home. (This is a view from Nebraska Ave. showing the adjacent home, 5860, as reference.)
Maret plans to remove 14 heritage trees and over 40 special trees per their documentation and sweep clean a 3.7 acre portion of the fields and replace it with plastic turf. That undoubtedly will increase the heat island effect with this loss of vegetation. This directly contradicts Climate Ready DC. and is not in keeping with DOEE’s goal to achieve forty percent healthy tree canopy in the District by 2033. (Note the substantial impact on the landscape and the tree coverage.)
