McMillan Sand Filtration Site Mayor's Agent Transcript 2014 10 06

8/10/2019 McMillan Sand Filtration Site Mayor's Agent Transcript 2014 10 06

1/370

McMillan Sand Filtration Site 10/6/2014

Washington, D.C. Baltimore, MD FloridaOlender Reporting, Inc. (888) 445-3376 WORLDWIDE

1

1 GOVERNMENT OF THE DI STRI CT OF COLUMBI A

2 Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on Revi ew Boar d

3

4

5

6 Hi st or i c Pr eservat i on Revi ew Boar d Hear i ng

7 Mayor ' s Agent

8

9 Pr oper t y Addr ess:

10 McMi l l an Sand Fi l t r at i on Si t e

11 Case Number : H. P. A. 14- 393

12

13 9: 39 a. m. t o 5: 05 p. m.

14 Monday, Oct ober 6, 201415

16 D. C. Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on Of f i ce

17 Of f i ce of Pl anni ng

18 1100 4t h St r eet , S. W. , Room 4302

19 Washi ngt on, D. C. 20024

20

21

22


2/370



2

1 APPEARANCES:

2 J UDGE:

3 J . Pet er Byr ne

4

5 For Opponent s:

6 Andr ea C. Fer st er , Esq.

7 2121 War d Cour t , N. W.

8 Fi f t h Fl oor


10 202- 974- 5142

11 af er st er @r ai l stot r ai l s. or g

12

13 El i zabet h S. Mer r i t t , Esq.

14 Deput y General Counsel15 Nat i onal Tr ust f or Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on

16 2600 Vi r gi ni a Avenue, N. W.

17 Sui t e 1000


19 202- 588- 6026

20 emer r i t t @savi ngpl aces. or g

21

22


3/370



3

1 For Appl i cant s:

2 Mary Carol yn Br own, Esq.

3 Hol l and & Kni ght

4 800- 17t h St r eet , N. W.

5 Sui t e 1100

6 Washi ngton, D. C. 20006

7 202- 862- 5990

8 carol yn. br own@hkl aw. com

9 - - -

10 W I T N E S S E S

11 Di r ect Cr oss Redi r ect Recr oss

12 Mar t i ne Combal 14 24 46 -

13 Ronan Gul st one 48 55 - -

14 Anne Corbet t 63 70 - -15 Emi l y Hot al i ng Ei g 81 108 - -

16 149 154 - -

17 Ki r k Met t am 121 139 - -

18 Br uce Leonard 174 189 - -

19 Mat t hew J . Bel l 198 242 - -

20 Adam C. Weer s 262 276 - -

21 J ai r Lynch 285 291 - -

22


4/370



4

1 W I T N E S S E S ( cont . )

2 Di r ect Cr oss Redi r ect Recr oss

3 Aakash Thakkar 316 336 - -

4 Li ndsl ey Wi l l i ams 349 358 - -

5 Cel i a Di ane Barnes 364 369 - -

6 - - -

7 E X H I B I T S

8 Page

9 No. 1 - Emi l y Hot al i ng Ei g Cur r i cul um Vi t ae 81

10 No. 2 - Ki r k Met t am Cur r i cul um Vi t ae 120

11 No. 3 - Br uce Leonar d Cur r i cul um Vi t ae 171

12 No. 4 - Mat t hew J . Bel l Cur r i cul um Vi t ae 197

13 No. 5 - Li ndsl ey Wi l l i ams Cur r i cul um Vi t ae 349

14 15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22


5/370



5

1 P R O C E E D I N G S

2 J UDGE BYRNE: Al l r i ght , l adi es and

3 gent l emen, l et ' s pr oceed, pl ease. Wel l , good

4 mor ni ng, ever ybody. I ' m Pet er Byrne and I ' m t he

5 desi gnat ed Mayor ' s Agent f or t hi s mat t er , whi ch

6 i nvol ves a per mi t appl i cat i on t o r aze 15 of t he

7 r emai ni ng 18 f i l t r at i on cel l s i n t he McMi l l an Par k

8 Reser voi r at 2501 Fi r st St r eet , Nor t hwest . And t he

9 appl i cat i on i s assi gned Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on Act

10 Number 14- 393.

11 The case i s bei ng heard under t he aut hor i t y

12 of D. C. Law 2- 144, t he Hi st or i c Landmar k and Hi st or i c

13 Di st r i ct Prot ect i on Act of 1978. The l aw r equi r es

14 t he Mayor or hi s agent t o r evi ew per mi t appl i cat i ons15 f or demol i t i on, al t er at i on, subdi vi si on, new

16 const r uct i on on t he si t e of hi st or i c l andmar ks wi t hi n

17 hi stor i c di st r i ct s .

18 Pr i or t o consi der at i on by t he Mayor ' s

19 Agent , t he l aw r equi r es t hat appl i cat i ons be r ef er r ed

20 t o t he Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on Revi ew Boar d f or i t s

21 r ecommendat i on.

22 We' ve had many hear i ngs here, but on May


6/370



6

1 22d, 2014, HPRB r ecommended agai nst t he i ssuance of a

2 r aze per mi t on t he gr ounds t hat i t woul d not be

3 consi st ent wi t h t he pur poses of t he Hi st or i c Landmar k

4 and Hi st or i c Di st r i ct Pr ot ecti on Act. Af t er t he

5 Boar d made i t s r ecommendat i on, t he appl i cant

6 r equest ed t hi s publ i c hear i ng, as pr ovi ded by l aw.

7 The hear i ng wi l l be conduct ed i n

8 conf ormance wi t h t he D. C. Admi ni st r at i ve Procedur e

9 Act and Ti t l e 10C, Di st r i ct of Col umbi a Muni ci pal

10 Regul at i ons, whi ch cont ai n t he r ul es of pr ocedur e f or

11 t he Mayor ' s Agent , pur suant t o t he Preser vat i on Law.

12 The pr ocedur e t hi s morni ng wi l l be as

13 f ol l ows. Fi r st , we' l l have a consi der at i on of

14 pendi ng mot i ons and pr ocedur al mat t ers, t hen15 pr esent at i on of t he Appl i cant s' case, r epor t s or

16 st at ement s by publ i c agency repr esent at i ves,

17 st at ement s by af f ect ed Advi sor y Nei ghborhood

18 Commi ssi ons, par t i es and ot her per sons i n suppor t of

19 t he appl i cat i on, t hen par t i es and ot her per sons i n

20 opposi t i on t o t he appl i cat i on.

21 Then we' l l have r ebut t al by t he Appl i cant ,

22 r ebut t al by par t i es i n suppor t of t he appl i cat i on,


7/370



7

1 and sur r ebut t al by par t i es i n opposi t i on t o t he

2 appl i cat i on.

3 And t hi s mor ni ng, we' r e goi ng t o use t he

4 second chai r her e as a wi t ness chai r f or wi t nesses

5 who ar e si mpl y goi ng t o t est i f y and t he f i r st chai r

6 at t he comput er wi l l be f or wi t nesses who ar e doi ng a

7 comput er pr esent at i on, okay?

8 One of t he aspect s of t he r egul at i ons i s

9 t hat al l t he wi t nesses who ar e goi ng t o pr esent

10 t est i mony need to be sworn and i t ' s somet i mes most

11 conveni ent i f we j ust do t hat al l at once.

12 You' ve al l si gned i n t o one of t he f or ms i f

13 you' r e goi ng t o be a wi t ness and t hose who' ve si gned

14 i n and ar e goi ng t o be wi t nesses, I ' d ask you pl ease15 j ust r ai se your r i ght hand. A sea of hands, okay.

16 ( The wi t nesses are dul y sworn by J udge

17 Byr ne. )

18 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you ver y much. We' l l

19 begi n, t hen, wi t h some pr ocedur al mat t er s. Ther e are

20 t wo appl i cat i ons pendi ng f or par t y st at us i n t he

21 case, one by t he Fr i ends of McMi l l an Par k and one by

22 t he Nat i onal Tr ust f or Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on. And i s


8/370



8

1 t her e any obj ect i on t o t hose?

2 MS. BROWN: I have no obj ect i on t o Fr i ends

3 of McMi l l an Par k. I do have a quest i on about t he

4 Nat i onal Tr ust , i f t hey have wi t nesses or i f t her e' s

5 j ust - - ar e you appear i ng as t he at t or ney or as t he

6 - - as you sai d i n your r equest f or par t y st at us, or

7 are you goi ng t o be a wi t ness?

8 MS. MERRI TT: Wel l , our pl an i s t hat I

9 woul d t est i f y not as an exper t , but on behal f of t he

10 Nat i onal Tr ust , and we' r e al so expect i ng t he di r ect or

11 of Pr esi dent Li ncol n' s Cot t age t o come and t est i f y.

12 She won' t be her e f or a coupl e of hour s.

13 MS. BROWN: I guess what I ' m aski ng i s,

14 t hen, I wi l l be abl e t o cr oss exami ne you and t hat15 you are pr ecl uded f r om cr oss exami ni ng our wi t nesses

16 i f you' r e a wi t ness.

17 MS. MERRI TT: I t ' s my expect at i on t hat my

18 t est i mony woul d be subj ect t o cr oss exami nat i on, but

19 i t was al so my expect at i on, because I am a l awyer f or

20 t he Nat i onal Tr ust , essent i al l y, I ' m ki nd of l i ke a

21 pr o se par t y, t hat I woul d be abl e to cr oss exami ne

22 wi t nesses, as wel l .


9/370


10/370



10

1 because she cl ear l y sai d t hat she was goi ng t o be

2 appear i ng as counsel f or t he Nat i onal Tr ust . So I

3 j ust want t o make sur e we know what t he r ul es ar e

4 because I don' t want her cr oss exami ni ng my wi t nesses

5 i f she' s a wi t ness her sel f .

6 J UDGE BYRNE: And how do you t hi nk your

7 cl i ent woul d be pr ej udi ced by t hat , your wi t nesses

8 woul d be pr ej udi ced by t hat?

9 MS. BROWN: Wel l , number one, i t ' s agai nst

10 t he Rul es of Pr of essi onal Conduct .

11 J UDGE BYRNE: But t hat woul d be somet hi ng

12 t hat you coul d t ake up wi t h t he bar , r at her t han wi t h

13 me, I t hi nk.

14 MS. BROWN: Wel l , secondl y, I t hi nk i t ' s15 j ust t hat t hi s pr ocdeedi ng shoul d be conduct ed i n

16 accor dance wi t h t he Rul es of Pr of essi onal Conduct .

17 And I t hi nk t hat i t does pr ej udi ce our wi t nesses

18 because we have her act i ng as an advocat e and a

19 wi t ness and we need t o pi ck one.

20 J UDGE BYRNE: So are you goi ng t o t est i f y

21 as t o f act s or ar e you goi ng t o j ust pr esent t he

22 posi t i on of t he Nat i onal Tr ust ?


11/370



11

1 MS. MERRI TT: Wel l , i t ' s a mi xtur e of bot h,

2 because some of t he f act s i nvol ve aspect s of t hi s

3 cont r over sy t hat we' ve been i nvol ved wi t h i n t he

4 past , so t her e' s a bl end of f act s i n t her e. I mean

5 i f I have t o choose between one or t he ot her , my

6 pr ef er ence i s goi ng t o be t o t est i f y and t o f or ego

7 t he r i ght t o cr oss exami ne.

8 MS. BROWN: And t hat woul d be f i ne by me.

9 MS. MERRI TT: I ' m not goi ng t o f or ego t he

10 r i ght t o t est i f y i n or der t o - -

11 J UDGE BYRNE: Ri ght .

12 MS. MERRI TT: - - cr oss exami ne.

13 J UDGE BYRNE: Let me l ook at t hi s agai n. I

14 guess what st r i kes me i s t hat t he r ul es pr ovi de by15 t hei r t er ms t wo t r i al s, and a Mayor ' s Agent hear i ng

16 i s a pecul i ar bl end of an adver sar i al hear i ng and a

17 publ i c hear i ng i n whi ch peopl e gi ve opi ni ons on

18 mat t er s. And whi l e ever yone i s sworn, i f we have

19 cr oss exami nat i on, I t hi nk t hat i t seems t o me that

20 i t ' s accept abl e i n t hi s cont ext f or Ms. Mer r i t t t o

21 act i n bot h capaci t i es.

22 MS. BROWN: And I woul d cont i nue t o note my


12/370



12

1 obj ect i on f or t he r ecor d.

2 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, f ai r enough. Now I do

3 have anot her mat t er t hat r el at es t o t he pr esence - -

4 pr eser vat i on l awyer s ar e a smal l communi t y and I am

5 cur r ent l y pl anni ng a nat i onal pr eser vat i on l aw

6 conf er ence wi t h t he Nat i onal Tr ust . I have no

7 pecuni ary i nt erest i n i t , i t ' s st r i ct l y an

8 educat i onal mat t er , i t has not hi ng t o do wi t h

9 advocacy. But I want ed t o put t hat out her e t o gi ve

10 anyone a chance t o quest i on whet her I have a conf l i ct

11 of i nt erest .

12 I n my own vi ew, I have no concer n about my

13 abi l i t y t o deci de t he case on t he f act s and t he l aw,

14 but I t hought i t was appr opr i at e t o di scl ose t hat on15 t he r ecor d at t he begi nni ng. Do you have any

16 concerns?

17 MS. BROWN: No, I have no concerns.

18 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, t hank you, no concerns.

19 Al l r i ght , good. So l et ' s t hen pr oceed wi t h t he

20 pr esent at i on by t he Appl i cant .

21 MS. BROWN: We qual i f i ed t hat t hese t wo

22 wi l l be par t i es, yes?


13/370



13

1 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes.

2 MS. BROWN: We accept ed - -

3 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes, I ' m sor r y, yes, yes,

4 t hank you.

5 MS. BROWN: And t hen I ' d l i ke t o qual i f y

6 our wi t nesses as exper t s i n cer t ai n ar eas - -

7 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, yes.

8 MS. BROWN: Let me get t hei r r esums.

9 J UDGE BYRNE: Do you want t o do t hat

10 i ndi vi dual l y as t hey t est i f y?

11 MS. BROWN: What ever i s - -

12 J UDGE BYRNE: I t hi nk t hat ' s pr obabl y best .

13 MS. BROWN: Then we can go di r ect l y i nto

14 our openi ng st atement .15 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, t hank you.

16 MS. BROWN: Act ual l y, I do have one

17 r equest . The Co- Appl i cant i s t he Di st r i ct of

18 Col umbi a, t he Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce.


20 MS. BROWN: And we have t wo r epresent at i ves

21 f r om t he Di st r i ct her e. One i s Mar t i ne Combal f r om

22 t he Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce and t he ot her i s Ronan


14/370



14

1 Gul st one f r om Kenyan McDuf f i e' s of f i ce and I was

2 wonder i ng i f i t ' s appr opr i at e f or t hem t o speak

3 f i r st .

4 J UDGE BYRNE: That woul d be f i ne. Pl ease,

5 come her e. Act ual l y, t he second chai r i s what we' l l

6 t r y t o do her e. Good morni ng. Pl ease st ate your

7 name f or t he r ecord.

8 MS. COMBAL: Good mor ni ng, my name i s

9 Mar t i ne Combal , I am t he I nt er i m Deput y Di r ect or of

10 Real Est at e i n t he Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce f or Pl anni ng

11 and Economi c Devel opment .

12 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you.

13 Whereupon,

14 MARTI NE COMBAL15 havi ng been pr evi ousl y dul y swor n, t est i f i ed as

16 f ol l ows:

17 DI RECT EXAMI NATI ON

18 THE WI TNESS: Good mor ni ng. I am one of

19 t he Di st r i ct ' s pr oj ect execut i ves over seei ng t he

20 devel opment of t he McMi l l an Sand Fi l t r at i on Si t e.

21 And unf or t unat el y, Deput y Mayor Mi l l er i s unabl e t o

22 at t end t hi s mor ni ng, so I am her e t o speak.


15/370



15

1 On behal f of t he Deput y Mayor and t he Gr ay

2 Admi ni st r at i on, I am del i ght ed t o be her e t oday to

3 voi ce our st r ong suppor t f or t he par t i al demol i t i on

4 and overal l r edevel opment at t he f ormer McMi l l an Sand

5 Fi l t r at i on Si t e. I n f act , t he pr oj ect has had

6 unwaver i ng endorsement of not onl y t hi s

7 Admi ni st r at i on, but sever al pr evi ous admi ni st r at i ons,

8 as wel l .

9 The Ci t y pur chased t he pr oper t y i n 1987,

10 expl i ci t l y f or mi xed use redevel opment t o benef i t t he

11 communi t y, t o devel op not j ust a good pr oj ect or a

12 gr eat pr oj ect , but an exempl ar y pr oj ect of speci al

13 mer i t t hat woul d benef i t t he communi t y- at - l ar ge.

14 The Ci t y has devel oped det ai l ed,15 Compr ehensi ve Pl an l anguage f or t he McMi l l an si t e

16 cal l i ng f or a mi xed use redevel opment wi t h

17 si gni f i cant communi t y benef i t , agai n, a pr oj ect of

18 speci al mer i t .

19 The Ci t y sel ect ed a mi xed use devel opment

20 t eam, Vi si on McMi l l an Par t ner s, VMP, i n 2007 wi t h t he

21 expl i ci t i nt ent of devel opi ng a mi xed use pr oj ect .

22 The VMP pl an has r ecei ved unani mous suppor t and


16/370



16

1 appr oval of al l gover nment al bodi es because of i t s

2 consi st ency wi t h t he Compr ehensi ve Pl an and i t s

3 si gni f i cant communi t y benef i t s.

4 Thi s si t e has i ncr edi bl e hi stor i cal

5 si gni f i cance and nat ur al beaut y, t hough i t has been

6 i naccessi bl e t o t he publ i c. I t was bui l t as an

7 i ndustr i al s i t e, a wat er f i l t rat i on pl ant , s i nce i t s

8 openi ng t he ear l y 1900s.

9 The Di st r i ct , t oget her wi t h our devel opment

10 t eam, has devel oped a pl an t hat cel ebr ates and

11 pr eser ves t he hi st or y of t he si t e, t r ul y opens t he

12 f or mer f aci l i t y up t o t he publ i c and of f er s a br oad

13 and deep ar r ay of communi t y benef i t s t o Di st r i ct

14 r esi dent s of al l ages and mor e i mpor t ant , al l i ncome15 l evel s .

16 The Di st r i ct ' s i nvol vement wi t h t he si t e

17 dat es back t o 1986, when t he Ar my Corps of Engi neers,

18 t he owner s of t he si t e, decl ar ed i t sur pl us and asked

19 t he Gener al Ser vi ces Admi ni st r at i on t o di spose of i t .

20 GSA sear ched f or pr ospect i ve buyer s,

21 i nsi st i ng on sel l i ng t he pr oper t y f or mi xed

22 commer ci al devel opment and t he Di st r i ct acqui r ed the


17/370



17

1 pr oper t y f or t hi s i nt ent .

2 The Di st r i ct conduct ed pl anni ng workshops

3 f or t he si t e i n 2000 f or pot ent i al new uses f or t he

4 si t e and sever al opt i ons wer e consi der ed, i ncl udi ng a

5 mi xed use r esi dent i al / r et ai l scenar i o wi t h a

6 si gni f i cant park and open space component , as wel l as

7 hi st or i c pr eser vat i on el ement s.

8 The si t e cur r ent l y appears as an open ar ea

9 of gr ass and t r ees, anchor ed by t wo ser vi ce cour t s

10 wi t h st r i ki ngl y di st i nct above- gr ound f eat ur es.

11 However , beneat h t he sur f ace are 20 unr ei nf orced

12 concrete f i l t er cel l s, each one acre i n si ze and i n

13 var yi ng condi t i ons, some sever el y det er i or at ed.

14 MS. FERSTER: Obj ect i on. Do you have15 qual i f i cat i ons t o eval uat e t he condi t i on of t he

16 under gr ound cel l s?

17 THE WI TNESS: I have been i nf or med by t he

18 devel opment communi t y, as wel l as our cont r actors.

19 MS. FERSTER: I mean I under st and t hat you

20 wi l l have a st r uct ur al engi neer pr esent i ng t hat

21 i ssue, so I woul d obj ect t hat an unqual i f i ed wi t ness

22 t al k about t he st r uctur al condi t i ons.


18/370



18

1 MS. BROWN: She' s been seei ng t he r epor t s

2 of st r uct ur al engi neer s f or year s. She' s qual i f i ed

3 t o r epor t on what she has r ead f or t he Di st r i ct of

4 Col umbi a.

5 J UDGE BYRNE: Over r ul ed. Go ahead.

6 THE WI TNESS: Thank you. The McMi l l an si t e

7 has been t he subj ect of communi t y di scussi ons f or

8 near l y 30 years and some resi dent s have advocat ed f or

9 onl y a par k on t he si t e. Today, t he si t e i s i n

10 di sr epai r , unsaf e and wai t i ng f or a new l i f e, wai t i ng

11 t o be opened up t o t he communi t y.

12 For t he Di st r i ct, her e i s a sever el y

13 under ut i l i zed pi ece of pr oper t y t hat i f pr oper l y

14 l ever aged, coul d yi el d a wor l d cl ass communi t y15 st eeped i n hi st or y and compr i sed of si gni f i cant

16 pr eservat i on, new mi xed i ncome housi ng, t he creat i on

17 of a medi cal di st r i ct t o creat e j obs at al l i ncome

18 l evel s i n a war d t hat has per eni al l y suf f er ed f r om

19 hi gh unempl oyment , whi l e cr eat i ng a mi x of r et ai l

20 uses and a gr ocer y st ore i n an underser ved communi t y,

21 al ong wi t h si gni f i cant par ks and open spaces

22 t hr oughout , a devel opment of t r ue exempl ary publ i c


19/370


20/370



20

1 broader , mor e i mpact f ul way, we ar e l ooki ng to use

2 t he si t e t o st r engt hen t he Di st r i ct and t he

3 communi t y.

4 I woul d l i ke t o br i ef l y f ocus on some of

5 t he communi t y benef i t s t he pr oj ect of f er s. Fi r st ,

6 t he mul t i f ami l y par cel s, whi ch compr i se appr oxi mat el y

7 25 per cent of t he devel opment pr ogr am, wi l l be f ul l y

8 devel oped by J ai r Lynch Devel opment Par t ners, whi ch

9 i s a Cer t i f i ed Busi ness Ent er pr i se devel oper , a CBE.

10 Second, our f i scal anal ysi s est i mat es t hat

11 3, 200 permanent j obs and 3, 000 temporary const r uct i on

12 j obs wi l l be cr eated by t he PUD i n over a 30- year

13 per i od. The pr oj ect wi l l gener at e 1. 2 bi l l i on i n new

14 t ax r evenues.15 The si t e i s not downt own and i t i s i n a

16 l ocat i on wher e j obs across t he i ncome spect r um ar e

17 vi t al oppor t uni t i es f or l ocal r esi dent s. The

18 Di st r i ct needs t hese j obs.

19 Thi r d, we see an expansi on of much needed

20 af f or dabl e housi ng. The si t e wi l l have af f or dabl e

21 uni t s of appr oxi mat el y 20 per cent of t he t ot al

22 devel opment , t ot al devel oped uni t s, as wel l as


21/370



21

1 af f or dabl e, pl us wor kf or ce housi ng wi l l be

2 appr oxi mat el y 60 per cent of t he t ot al uni t s,

3 i ncl udi ng nei ghbor hood- ser vi ng r et ai l f or an ar ea

4 t hat has been deemed a f ood deser t , as wel l as other

5 communi t y ameni t i es.

6 Four t h, most of t he si t e' s most i mpor t ant

7 hi s tor i c at t r i but es , al l 20 s i l os , al l f our regul at or

8 houses, t he pl ane- l i ke pl i nt hs, t he ser vi ce cour t s

9 and t wo cel l s wi l l be not onl y pr eser ved, but

10 r ei nvi gor at ed.

11 Fi f t h, we see what wi l l unquest i onabl y be,

12 at 12 acr es, t he ci t y' s l ar gest new par k syst em. And

13 t hi s par k syst em wi l l be seaml essl y woven i nt o t he

14 pr eser vat i on and devel opment pr ogr am, demonst r at i ng15 exempl ary l and pl anni ng t o go al ong wi t h t he vast

16 publ i c benef i t s.

17 I n concl usi on, t hi s i s not an easy si t e t o

18 devel op; i t i s compl ex, t o say t he ver y l east . As

19 st af f not ed dur i ng t he Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on Revi ew

20 Boar d pr ocess, quot e, "The McMi l l an si t e r epr esent s

21 one of t he most chal l engi ng si t es i magi nabl e t o bot h

22 pr eserve and adapt f or cur r ent use. The det er i or at ed


22/370



22

1 st r uct ur al condi t i on, t he pauci t y of vi abl e r euse

2 opt i ons f or t he bel ow gr ade cel l s, t he enor mi t y of

3 i nf r ast r uctur e and si t e al t er at i on necessar y t o

4 st abi l i ze t he si t e have made pl anni ng f or t he

5 pr eser vat i on adapt at i on of t he si t e unusual l y

6 di f f i cul t , " end quot e. Thi s i s f r om t he Hi stor i c

7 Pr eservat i on Revi ew Boar d r epor t i n 2012.

8 HPRB not ed i n i t s appr oval of t he pr oj ect

9 t hat t he pr oj ect r et ai ns, quot e, ". . . i mpor t ant

10 char acter - def i ni ng f eat ur es of t he si t e, suf f i ci ent

11 t o convey i t s hi st or i c char acter i st i cs and

12 r epr esent s an ar chi t ect ur al l y coor di nat ed and

13 cohesi ve appr oach. "

14 The Di st r i ct concur s wi t h t he HPRB and15 bel i eves t hat t he devel opment t eam has st r uck a

16 symbi ot i c bal ance of economi c devel opment and

17 pr eser vat i on of open space and hi st or i c st r uct ur es,

18 of f i scal i mpact and communi t y ameni t i es and

19 r eweavi ng t he ur ban f abr i c, whi l e di st i ngui shi ng a

20 ver y i mpor t ant hi st or i c l andmar k. Col l ect i vel y, t hey

21 have maxi mi zed t he over al l benef i t s t o both t he

22 sur r oundi ng communi t i es and the Di st r i ct as a whol e.


23/370



23

1 Thi s pr oj ect has gone t hr ough a l engt hy

2 ent i t l ement pr ocess, get t i ng bet t er each st ep of t he

3 way. The HPRB has appr oved t hi s pr oj ect , al l

4 appr opr i at e Di st r i ct agenci es have appr oved t he

5 pr oj ect . Last Monday eveni ng, t he Zoni ng Commi ssi on

6 t ook proposed act i on and approved t he PUD. Each of

7 t hese bodi es i n t hei r own way wer e l ooki ng f or st r ong

8 speci al mer i t t o appr ove t he pr oj ect . Each of t hem

9 ul t i mat el y f ound j ust t hat and pr ovi ded a st r ong

10 endorsement of t he pl an and t he communi t y benef i t s.

11 As such, t he Di st r i ct bel i eves

12 unequi vocal l y t hat t he exempl ar y l and pl anni ng, t he

13 st r ong pr eser vat i on pr ogr am and t he communi t ywi de

14 benef i t s of t hi s pr oj ect gr eat l y out wei gh t he l oss15 of t he 16 cel l s t hat need t o be demol i shed f or t he

16 pr oj ect t o pr oceed.

17 We bel i eve t hat t hi s pr oj ect i s exact l y t he

18 t ype of pr oj ect f or whi ch speci al mer i t shoul d be

19 gr ant ed. The Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce r espect f ul l y

20 r equest s t hat t he Mayor ' s Agent appr ove t hi s

21 appl i cat i on so we may move f orward wi t h t hi s

22 except i onal pr oj ect . Thank you.


24/370



24

1 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you. Ms. Br own, do you

2 have any f ur t her quest i ons?

3 MS. BROWN: No quest i ons.

4 J UDGE BYRNE: Cr oss exami nat i on?

5 MS. FERSTER: A coupl e of quest i ons, t hank

6 you.

7 CROSS EXAMI NATI ON

8 BY MS. FERSTER:

9 Q So you indicated that D.C. purchased the

10 property in 1986. Do you know what the purchase

11 price you paid for the property was?

12 A I do not have t hat i nf or mat i on of f hand, but

13 I can def er t o our par t ner s at BMP.

14 Q Approximately, does $9.3 million ring a

15 bell to you?

16 MS. BROWN: Asked and answer ed.

17 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes, sust ai ned.

18 BY MS. FERSTER: ( Resumi ng)

19 Q Well, I'd be happy to show you a document.

20 MS. BROWN: That was not par t of her

21 di r ect, t he pr i ce of t he pr oper t y.

22 MS. FERSTER: I t ' s wi t hi n t he scope of her


25/370



25

1 di r ect , t hat D. C. pur chased t he pr oper t y.


3 Q I'm going to show you -- you represent the

4 District of Columbia -- I'm going to show you a cash

5 sale document from 1990 showing a recorded deed. And

6 if you could read that, in Paragraph 2, what that

7 indicates the price paid for this property was.

8 MS. BROWN: Agai n, she di dn' t t est i f y t o

9 t he pr i ce.

10 J UDGE BYRNE: I t hi nk t hi s i s sor t of

11 pushi ng t he wi t ness i n a pl ace t hat ' s i nappr opr i at e.

12 I t hi nk i f you want t o pr esent t est i mony l at er on

13 about t he pr i ce pai d, t hat wi l l be f i ne, but I t hi nk

14 not now.15 BY MS. FERSTER: ( Resumi ng)

16 Q So you work for the Deputy Mayor in

17 Economic Development, so how long have you worked

18 there?

19 A I have worked f or t he Di st r i ct gover nment

20 f or ni ne year s.

21 Q And specifically for the Deputy Mayor of

22 Economic Development?


26/370



26

1 A I wor ked f or t he Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce f r om

2 2005 t o I bel i eve August 2008, at whi ch poi nt , I went

3 t o t he Depar t ment of Housi ng and Communi t y

4 Devel opment and worked t here f or t hr ee and a hal f

5 year s, and t hen came back al most t hr ee years ago.

6 Q And what would you say your involvement is

7 in public-private partnership projects similar to the

8 McMillan project?

9 MS. BROWN: And I ' m goi ng t o obj ect agai n

10 because t hat wasn' t par t of her di r ect t est i mony.

11 She' s her e as a wi t ness and she pr esent ed her

12 t est i mony.

13 J UDGE BYRNE: I ' m goi ng t o l et t hat

14 quest i on go.15 THE WI TNESS: I have wor ked on publ i c-

16 pr i vat e par t ner shi ps f or t he l ast ni ne year s. I

17 st ar t ed worki ng on a pr ogr am cal l ed t he Home Agai n

18 I ni t i at i ve and have worked on nei ghborhood

19 st abi l i zat i on pr oj ect s f or t he l ast ni ne year s.


21 Q And those are in the District of Columbia.

22 A Al l of t hem ar e i n t he Di st r i ct of Col umbi a


27/370



27

1 because I ' ve onl y wor ked f or t he Di st r i ct of Col umbi a

2 Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce f or Pl anni ng and Economi c

3 Devel opment .

4 Q Good point. And can you name a couple of

5 those public-private partnership projects that you

6 worked on?

7 A Do you want me t o go t hrough al l of t hem?

8 Q Well, I can ask you --

9 J UDGE BYRNE: Can you gi ve us a sense of

10 wher e you' r e goi ng wi t h t hi s?

11 MS. FERSTER: I woul d l i ke t he wi t ness t o

12 pr ovi de - - my next quest i on wi l l be t o pr ovi de an

13 assessment of t he l evel of benef i t s of f er ed by t hi s

14 pr oj ect , compar ed t o ot her publ i c- pr i vat e15 par t ner shi ps t hat you' ve wor ked on. So t hat ' s not my

16 quest i on, but t hat ' s wher e I ' m goi ng.

17 J UDGE BYRNE: I t hi nk i t woul d onl y be

18 r el evant f or hi st or i c pr eser vat i on cases.

19 MS. FERSTER: Hmm?

20 J UDGE BYRNE: Woul dn' t i t onl y be r el evant

21 f or hi st or i c pr eser vat i on cases?

22 MS. FERSTER: Wel l , exact l y, exact l y, and I


28/370



28

1 t hi nk t he poi nt I woul d l i ke t o make i s t hat t he

2 l evel of benef i t s of f er ed her e i s pr obabl y si mi l ar t o

3 ot her publ i c- pr i vat e par t ner shi ps.

4 MS. BROWN: And you know, she' s t est i f yi ng

5 now.

6 MS. FERSTER: I ' m j ust answer i ng - -

7 J UDGE BYRNE: That ' s not evi dence, she' s

8 suggest i ng what she woul d l i ke t o br i ng out .

9 MS. FERSTER: Yes. And so one woul d assume

10 t hat , you know, t hi s pr oj ect shoul d have a hi gher

11 l evel of publ i c benef i t because i t does i nvol ve a

12 speci al mer i t pr oj ect , as opposed t o t he ot her

13 par t ner shi ps.

14 J UDGE BYRNE: I don' t t hi nk so, I don' t15 t hi nk t hat ' s actual l y a r el evant poi nt . I t hi nk t he

16 quest i on i s whet her i t ' s speci al mer i t f or hi st or i c

17 pr eser vat i on, and what t he publ i c benef i t s wer e i n

18 non- hi st or i c pr eser vat i on cases t hat di dn' t get

19 eval uat ed f or speci al mer i t s, i t doesn' t seem r eal l y

20 r el evant t o me.

21 MS. FERSTER: Wel l , i f I mi ght j ust

22 el abor at e on t hat poi nt , I t hi nk what t he deci si ons


29/370



29

1 of t he cour t and t he Mayor ' s Agent have made cl ear i s

2 t hat aspect s of t he pr oj ect t hat are common t o other

3 devel opment pr oj ect s t hat ar e non- hi st or i c

4 pr eser vat i on pr oj ect s don' t qual i f y f or speci al mer i t

5 consi der at i on. So i n t hi s case - -

6 MS. BROWN: And I t hi nk her

7 r epr esent at i onal - -

8 J UDGE BYRNE: Hol d on.

9 MS. FERSTER: So i n t hi s case, I do t hi nk

10 i t ' s r el evant t hat t he benef i t s t hat ar e of f er ed i n

11 t hi s case ar e pr obabl y si mi l ar t o or pr obabl y even

12 l ess t han t he benef i t s t hat ar e of f er ed i n non-

13 hi st or i c pr eser vat i on cases.

14 J UDGE BYRNE: I don' t t hi nk I want t o go15 t her e, I t hi nk t hat ' s a ver y - - t her e' s a l ot of

16 f act or s t her e t hat ar e ver y har d t o eval uat e and I

17 honest l y don' t - - I mean I under st and t he poi nt

18 you' r e maki ng, but I t hi nk t he f act t hat t her e may be

19 other publ i c- pr i vat e pr oj ect s t hat have what I or you

20 may consi der t o be gr eat er publ i c benef i t s r eal l y

21 doesn' t go t o t he l egal quest i on her e. So I ' m not

22 goi ng t o al l ow i t .


30/370



30


2 Q So let me ask you just a couple of

3 questions about your testimony about the benefits

4 that you believe outweigh the destruction of the

5 historic resources in this case. You talked

6 specifically about tax benefit.

7 A Mm- hmm ( nods i n t he af f i r mat i ve) .

8 Q Are you aware of the fact that the District

9 of Columbia is assuming that there will be

10 significant tax abatements provided to the developer,

11 the ultimate developer of this project?

12 MS. BROWN: And I ' l l obj ect t o t hat because

13 I don' t t hi nk t her e' s been any t est i mony about t ax

14 abat ement s.15 MS. FERSTER: I mean, you know, t hi s i s t he

16 Di st r i ct of Col umbi a' s wi t ness and she cl ai ms t o be

17 knowl edgeabl e about t hi s par t i cul ar pr oj ect , so I

18 t hi nk she coul d t est i f y t o t he benef i t s t hat ar e

19 bei ng of f er ed. I f she i s not knowl edgeabl e about

20 t hat , t hen her t est i mony i s not - -

21 MS. BROWN: No, i t wasn' t on di r ect .

22 MS. FERSTER: She di d t est i f y about t he t ax


31/370



31

1 benef i t s.

2 J UDGE BYRNE: She t est i f i ed t hat t her e' d be

3 t ax benef i t s.

4 MS. FERSTER: Yes.

5 J UDGE BYRNE: So I t hi nk a l i t t l e bi t of

6 quest i oni ng about t he di mensi ons of t he t ax benef i t s

7 woul d be appr opr i at e.


9 Q Well, my specific question, and I

10 understand there's been a Green Door Advisors report.

11 Are you familiar with that report that's been

12 prepared that describes I think the tax benefits that

13 you summarized? And so one of those tax benefits

14 that you're assuming is a property tax benefit, is

15 that correct?

16 A My under st andi ng of t he t ax benef i t s are

17 i ncome, sal es and pr opert y t ax r evenue t hat woul d be

18 comi ng t o the ci t y t hat make up t hat over al l t ax

19 benef i t .

20 Q Mm-hmm. And are you aware of the fact that

21 under the exclusive rights agreement with the Vision

22 McMillan Partners, that you have assured Vision


32/370



32

1 McMillan Partners that you will pursue property tax

2 abatement, you, the District of Columbia?

3 MS. BROWN: And I ' m j ust cur i ous, agai n, we

4 di dn' t hear any t est i mony about t he excl usi ve r i ght s

5 agr eement .

6 J UDGE BYRNE: Ri ght , so I guess I woul d

7 j ust ask i s i t cont empl at ed t hat t her e' l l be t ax

8 abatement , pr oper t y t ax abatement f or t he devel oper s

9 as par t of t hi s?

10 THE WI TNESS: Not at t hi s t i me. We haven' t

11 di scussed t hat .

12 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, t hank you.


14 Q So let's talk a little bit about affordable

15 housing. Is this project going to be subject to an

16 affordable dwelling unit agreement with the District

17 of Columbia?

18 A Yes.

19 Q And are you familiar with affordable

20 dwelling unit agreements that the District of

21 Columbia has been --

22 A Yes.


33/370



33

1 Q -- entered into in the past? And isn't it

2 correct that every agreement that the District of

3 Columbia government has been a party to involving

4 affordable dwelling unit programs, both condo and

5 rental, have included the requirement of a maximum 20

6 percent of the units to be affordable?

7 A Sor r y, you' r e sayi ng t hat ever y pr oj ect t he

8 Di st r i ct has ever - -

9 Q Every project involving affordable dwelling

10 unit agreements.

11 A I t ' s on a case- by- case basi s and i t depends

12 on t he pr oj ect .

13 Q Are you aware of any affordable dwelling

14 unit agreements that do not require 20 percent of the

15 units to be affordable?

16 MS. BROWN: I ' m st ar t i ng t o t hi nk we' r e

17 wander i ng beyond her di r ect t est i mony her e.

18 J UDGE BYRNE: Wel l , I ' m goi ng t o l et i t go

19 a l i t t l e bi t l onger . Pl ease answer t he quest i on.

20 THE WI TNESS: I bel i eve t her e are other

21 pr oj ect s; however , I do not have t hat i nf or mat i on i n

22 f r ont of me, I don' t have a l i st of pr oj ect s i n ever y


34/370



34

1 ADU covenant t hat was entered wi t h me today.


3 Q And do you believe that it's typical for

4 ADU agreements to have a requirement that the

5 affordable units be spread across different

6 categories of area median income, for example, you

7 know, percentages for 30 percent area median income,

8 percentages for 50 percent area median income and

9 percentages for 80 percent area median income?

10 A Agai n, t hat ' s t he pol i cy of t he Di st r i ct

11 and i t depends on t he capaci t y of t he pr oj ect , t he

12 economi c capaci t y, and t hat ' s somet hi ng t hat ' s

13 gener al l y negot i at ed wi t h our devel opment par t ner s.

14 Q Are you familiar with the Justice Park

15 public-private partnership development?

16 A On t he edges, but I do not wor k di r ect l y on

17 J ust i ce Par k.

18 MS. BROWN: I ' d have t o ask what ' s t he

19 r el evance, I mean I t hi nk we have got t en past her

20 di r ect t est i mony.

21 MS. FERSTER: I mean t he wi t ness di d

22 t est i f y that she bel i eves t hese af f or dabl e housi ng


35/370



35

1 benef i t s ar e of a speci al mer i t qual i t y. And so I

2 t hi nk i t i s r el evant t o pr obe t he wi t ness about ot her

3 af f or dabl e housi ng pr oj ect s t hat t he Di st r i ct of

4 Col umbi a has been i nvol ved wi t h.

5 MS. BROWN: But agai n, as t he Mayor ' s Agent

6 di r ect or her e, we' r e wor r i ed about speci al mer i t

7 pr oj ects wi t h hi st or i c pr eser vat i on.

8 J UDGE BYRNE: Do you have mor e on t hi s

9 af f or dabl e housi ng par t ?

10 MS. FERSTER: Wel l , I di d want t o have a

11 f ol l ow- up quest i on about t he J ust i ce Par k pr oj ect .

12 J UDGE BYRNE: Wel l , she sai d she doesn' t

13 know t hat much about i t .

14 BY MS. FERSTER: ( Resumi ng)15 Q Do you know something about it or do you

16 know whether or not it has a hundred percent

17 affordable housing in it?

18 J UDGE BYRNE: There ar e ot her cases wher e

19 t her e ar e 100 per cent af f or dabl e housi ng pr oj ect s. I

20 have a case pendi ng wi t h me, so t hat does exi st .

21 MS. FERSTER: Mm- hmm, t hank you.



36/370



36

1 Q So you would agree that there are public-

2 private partnerships that the District of Columbia

3 entered into that are a hundred percent or more than

4 30 percent affordable housing.

5 A Of cour se, t he Depar t ment of Housi ng and

6 Communi t y Devel opment provi des l oans and grant s t o

7 devel oper s and I woul d consi der t hat a publ i c- pr i vat e

8 par t ner shi p. I t ' s not excl usi ve t o pr oj ects that

9 i ncl ude Di st r i ct l and t o be consi der ed a publ i c-

10 pr i vat e par t ner shi p.

11 Q You did testify that you had ensured that

12 the entities that were part of VMP are certified

13 business enterprises?

14 A Yes.15 Q JL Development Partners, is that a

16 certified business enterprise?

17 MS. BROWN: Obj ect i on, I don' t t hi nk she

18 sai d - -

19 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes, she j ust ment i oned J ai r

20 Lynch bei ng cer t i f i ed.


22 Q Okay, so only one, then, only one of the


37/370



37

1 partners.

2 A Yes.

3 MS. BROWN: Wel l , she ment i oned - -


5 Q Okay, now you testified that the affordable

6 housing for this project would be 20 percent

7 affordable housing. And how much of that 20 percent

8 is for persons earning 30 percent or less of area

9 median income?

10 A My under st andi ng i s t hat none of t he uni t s

11 are cur r ent l y cat egor i zed at 30 per cent AMI , t her e

12 ar e bet ween 50 and 80 per cent AMI . And some of t hat

13 I t hi nk i s goi ng t o shi f t on t he number of t he

14 over al l uni t s as t o what t hat exact per cent age i s15 goi ng t o be.

16 Q And how many of these units are going to be

17 available to persons earning in excess of 80 percent

18 AMI?

19 A I n excess, I bel i eve i n my t est i mony, I

20 sai d t hat 60 per cent of t he af f or dabl e and t he

21 wor kf or ce, so t hat woul d be 40 per cent of t he t ot al

22 uni t s .


38/370



38

1 Q 40 percent of the units are available to

2 people in excess of 80 percent.

3 A 80 t o 120 per cent AMI i s gener al l y what ' s

4 consi der ed wor kf or ce.

5 Q Can you just clarify, 40 to 80 percent AM

6 -- how many units are available to people who make

7 between, you know, what you call workforce housing,

8 how many of those units, and what is the area median

9 income for workforce housing?

10 A I t hi nk I j ust answer ed t hat quest i on.

11 Q Yeah, I'm sorry.

12 A Can you r epeat t he quest i on?

13 Q I did not get exactly the number of units

14 that you specified would be available to persons who

15 make I guess what you would consider workforce

16 housing units.

17 MS. BROWN: I t hi nk she gave a per cent age.

18 J UDGE BYRNE: She gave a percent age.


20 Q That was the 40 percent number, so that 40

21 percent number. What is the range of the income that

22 40 percent will earn?


39/370



39

1 A I t ' s bet ween 80 per cent and 120 per cent AMI

2 and t he AMI changes ever y year, based on HUD' s

3 desi gnat i on, so i t wi l l change as HUD updat es t hat

4 number .

5 Q Okay, thanks. So the 40 percent -- let me

6 just get this correct. You're saying that 40 percent

7 of the units will be made available to persons

8 earning between 80 to 120 percent AMI.

9 A Yes, and I woul d def er t o t he VMP t eamt o

10 answer more speci f i c quest i ons on t he t otal number of

11 uni t s .

12 Q And do you know currently, what the AMI is

13 for a family of four for this area?

14 A I haven' t l ooked at t he AMI number t hi s15 year . I bel i eve i t was ar ound 106, $107, 000. 00.

16 I t ' s act ual l y st abl e over t he l ast f ew year s and i t

17 had gone down I t hi nk at one poi nt .

18 MS. FERSTER: I s t her e a wi t ness who' s

19 goi ng t o be speaki ng mor e di r ect l y t o the t ax

20 abat ement s t hat ar e bei ng pr ovi ded or i s t hi s t he

21 Di st r i ct of Col umbi a' s - -

22 MS. BROWN: You' l l f i nd out .


40/370



40

1 MS. FERSTER: Because I di d want t o go a

2 l i t t l e bi t mor e, I j ust want t o under st and at what

3 poi nt t he tax abat ement i s goi ng t o be pr ovi ded i n

4 t hi s pr oceedi ng.


6 Q Is that you, are you the person who's

7 testifying --

8 MS. BROWN: She can' t answer t hat .

9 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes, she t est i f i ed.

10 MS. FERSTER: Okay, I t hi nk t hat ' s i t .

11 MS. MERRI TT: I have a coupl e of quest i ons.

12 BY MS. MERRI TT:

13 Q Do you know how much the city will be

14 spending to build the community center?

15 A I do not have t hat i nf or mat i on, of f hand,

16 and VMP has some more pr oj ect budget i nf ormat i on t hat

17 t hey shoul d be abl e t o shar e.

18 Q Okay, just one more related question. Do

19 you know how much the city will be spending to build

20 the roads?

21 A Agai n, I woul d def er t o VMP, but my

22 under st andi ng i s t hat t hose r oads wi l l be pr i vat e


41/370



41

1 r oads.

2 Q Yeah, we heard that they're going to be

3 constructed by the city, but if you don't know, we'll

4 ask someone else.

5 Do you know what the total amount of the

6 city's subsidy is for the project in kind of

7 characterizing the big picture of the public-private

8 partnership? What's the total amount that the

9 city --

10 MS. BROWN: Can we get a cl ar i f i cat i on on

11 t hat of what you mean by subsi dy?

12 BY MS. MERRI TT: ( Resumi ng)

13 Q Well, my questions were related to the

14 claims about number of jobs and creation of a new

15 park. And so the question, and I realize you don't

16 know the answers to most of my questions, was

17 designed to explore the relationship between the

18 question of whether this level of construction is

19 necessary in order to achieve those benefits and the

20 city's own funding of elements of the project, in our

21 view, makes the demolition work necessary. So that's

22 why I'm trying to pin down the --


42/370


43/370



43

1 achi evi ng economi c devel opment , communi t y benef i t s

2 and r evi t al i zi ng t hat por t i on of t he ci t y.

3 Q Did the City consider any other developers,

4 did they talk to other developers in the process of

5 coming to this public-private partnership

6 arrangement?

7 A I have some hi st or y on t he pr oj ect pr i or t o

8 my i nvol vement . Even bef or e I st ar t ed wi t h t he ci t y,

9 t her e was an RFP t hat was i ssued. At t he t i me, i t

10 was t he Nat i onal Capi t al Revi t al i zat i on Cor por at i on

11 t hat went out wi t h an RFP and t here were several

12 ot her appl i cant s.

13 Q Do you know how many applicants there were

14 in response to that RFP?

15 A No.

16 J UDGE BYRNE: She wasn' t t her e.

17 MS. MERRI TT: I have no f ur t her quest i ons.

18 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, so I have a coupl e of

19 quest i ons. So t el l me about - - f i r st of al l , a

20 si mpl e quest i on. A cer t i f i ed busi ness devel oper , can

21 you t el l me what t hat i s?

22 THE WI TNESS: A cer t i f i ed busi ness


44/370



44

1 ent er pr i se - -


3 THE WI TNESS: - - i s a desi gnat i on t hat i s

4 al l ocat ed by t he Depar t ment of Smal l and Local

5 Busi ness Devel opment , DSLBD. The def i ni t i on has

6 changed over r ecent year s, but i t ' s essent i al l y a

7 l ocal busi ness t hat oper at es out of t he Di st r i ct of

8 Col umbi a.

9 J UDGE BYRNE: I see, a l ocal busi ness.

10 THE WI TNESS: There are di f f er ent

11 cat egor i es of t hat t hat you can appl y f or . I ' m not

12 an exper t i n t hat par t i cul ar f i el d, i n t hat

13 desi gnat i on, but - -

14 J UDGE BYRNE: Okay, so you of f ered t hat as15 sor t of one of t he benef i t s of t hi s.

16 THE WI TNESS: Yes.

17 J UDGE BYRNE: Maybe we can hear l at er on

18 about why t hat ' s si gni f i cant . The ot her quest i on was

19 j ust i n your exper i ence i n t he Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce

20 and I guess DHCD, as wel l , about t he use of ent er i ng

21 i nt o excl usi ve agr eement s wi t h par t i cul ar devel opment

22 t eams, as opposed t o havi ng sor t of a di f f er ent - - as


45/370



45

1 t o havi ng, f or exampl e, sor t of a pr oposal f or a

2 cont est , desi gn cont est , t hat sor t of t hi ng.

3 J ust t el l me a l i t t l e bi t about t he

4 pr act i ce of wor ki ng wi t h sor t of a sel ect ed

5 devel opment t eam bef or e t he pr oj ect i s pl anned.

6 THE WI TNESS: Wel l , i f I coul d answer

7 gener al l y, an excl usi ve r i ght s agr eement f or t he most

8 par t i s an agr eement t o negot i at e i n good f ai t h and

9 t o sor t of wor k t hr ough cer t ai n i ssues t hat ar e known

10 at t hat poi nt i n t i me wi t h t he pr oj ect , but

11 acknowl edgi ng t hat t her e ar e ot her I guess pi eces of

12 i nf or mat i on, i nvest i gat i ons t hat woul d need t o be

13 done t hat need t o be put i n pl ace pr i or t o ent er i ng

14 i nt o what we cal l a l and di sposi t i on agr eement . So15 t hat ' s gener al l y the pur pose t her e.

16 Our of f i ce has done t hat on a coupl e of

17 pr oj ects and f or a pr oj ect of t hi s si ze, agai n, I

18 woul d say t her e ar e a l ot of compl exi t i es t o i t - -


20 THE WI TNESS: - - t hat we don' t necessar i l y

21 know t oday and t hat we need t o have t hat document i n

22 pl ace t o gi ve t he devel opment t eam and t he Ci t y


46/370



46

1 assur ance that we ar e wor ki ng i n a par t ner shi p

2 t owar ds t he ul t i mat e di sposi t i on.

3 J UDGE BYRNE: So woul d you say t hat t he

4 compl exi t y of t he pr oj ect i s an i mpor t ant f act or i n

5 ent er i ng i nt o one of t hese excl usi ve agr eement s

6 bef or e t her e' s a desi gn devel oped f or t he si t e or

7 some sor t of ot her pr ocedur e t o get t o a desi r abl e

8 out come?

9 THE WI TNESS: I woul d say yes, t he

10 compl exi t y of a pr oj ect does somet i mes beg you t o

11 devi at e f r om your pr ocesses. We have di f f er ent

12 t ool s, di f f er ent l egal i nst r ument s i n our of f i ce and

13 an excl usi ve r i ght s agr eement i s one of t hose t ool s.

14 J UDGE BYRNE: Al l r i ght , t hank you. I15 don' t have anyt hi ng el se. Do you have anyt hi ng?

16 MS. BROWN: I do have one qui ck quest i on.

17 REDI RECT EXAMI NATI ON

18 BY MS. BROWN:

19 Q Are you familiar with the Randall School

20 Project?

21 A Agai n, j ust sor t of gener al l y, yeah.

22 Q Thank you, that's all.


47/370



47

1 MS. BROWN: Thank you.

2 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you ver y much.

3 MS. BROWN: And I j ust want ed t o cl ar i f y

4 f or t he r ecor d, I am r epr esent i ng Vi si on McMi l l an

5 Par t ner s and t he Di st r i ct i s a Co- Appl i cant , so I

6 j ust want ed t o make sur e that I am not necessar i l y

7 t he counsel f or t he Di st r i ct of Col umbi a i n t hi s

8 mat t er . I ' m not sur e i f t hat was cl ear on t he

9 r ecor d.

10 J UDGE BYRNE: So t hat t hey are part ners t o

11 t he pr oj ect .

12 MS. BROWN: Yes, t hey are.

13 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes, I underst and t he

14 di f f er ence.15 MS. BROWN: Thank you. And I underst and

16 t hat Ronan Gul st one f r om Kenyan McDuf f i e i s her e f or

17 a st atement .

18 J UDGE BYRNE: Second chai r , pl ease. Good

19 mor ni ng.

20 THE WI TNESS: Good mor ni ng. How ar e you?

21 J UDGE BYRNE: Pl ease st at e your name f or

22 t he r ecor d.


48/370



48

1 THE WI TNESS: Thank you, Ronan Gul st one.

2 Whereupon,

3 RONAN GULSTONE

4 havi ng pr evi ousl y been dul y swor n, t est i f i ed as

5 f ol l ows:


7 THE WI TNESS: Good mor ni ng, my name i s

8 Ronan Gul st one, I ' m t he Deput y Chi ef of St af f f or

9 Kenyan McDuf f i e, counci l member f or Ward 5, t he

10 counci l member whose war d i n whi ch t he McMi l l an Sand

11 Fi l t rat i on Si t e i s l ocat ed.

12 On behal f of Counci l member McDuf f i e, i t i s

13 my honor and pr i vi l ege t o pr esent t hi s t est i mony i n

14 st r ong suppor t of Vi si on McMi l l an Par t ner s, LLC, and15 t he Deputy Mayor f or Pl anni ng and Economi c

16 Devel opment ' s appl i cat i on f or par t i al demol i t i on at

17 t he McMi l l an Sand Fi l t r at i on Si t e.

18 Pur suant t o D. C. Of f i ci al Code, Sect i on

19 6- 1101 and what f ol l ows, t hi s body may aut hor i ze t he

20 i ssuance of a per mi t t o par t i al l y demol i sh a hi st or i c

21 l andmar k wher e i t f i nds i t necessary t o al l ow t he

22 const r uct i on of a pr oj ect of speci al mer i t . For t he


49/370



49

1 r easons I wi l l t est i f y t o, Counci l member McDuf f i e

2 hopes t hat t he Mayor ' s Agent wi l l appr ove

3 appl i cat i on.

4 As way of backgr ound and t o put some of t he

5 comment s i n t hi s t est i mony i n cont ext , I ' l l speak

6 br i ef l y about Counci l member McDuf f i e' s r el at i on t o

7 t hi s pr oj ect . Counci l member McDuf f i e i s a t hi r d

8 gener at i on, l i f el ong r esi dent of t he Di st r i ct of

9 Col umbi a.

10 J UDGE BYRNE: Si r , coul d you speak up a

11 l i t t l e bi t , some of t he peopl e i n t he back can' t hear

12 you ver y wel l .

13 THE WI TNESS: Sor r y. I n f act , he cur r ent l y

14 r esi des i n a home on Nor t h Capi t ol St r eet , whi ch i s15 di r ect l y adj acent t o t he McMi l l an Sand Fi l t r at i on

16 Si t e. The home i s t he same home he was r ai sed i n and

17 was pur chased by hi s gr andparent s i n 1951.

18 Counci l member McDuf f i e was el ect ed t o t he

19 Counci l i n 2012. However , hi s communi t y i nvol vement

20 and l eadershi p sur r oundi ng t he McMi l l an Redevel opment

21 Pl an di d not st ar t t her e. Counci l member McDuf f i e was

22 a member of t he McMi l l an Advi sor y Gr oup, al so known


50/370



50

1 as MAG, f r om approxi mat el y 2008 t o 2010, when he

2 r esi gned t o r un f or Counci l .

3 Addi t i onal l y, i n about 2002 and agai n i n

4 about 2009 t o 2010, Counci l member McDuf f i e ser ved as

5 t he St r onghol d Ci vi c Associ at i on pr esi dent , whi ch as

6 you wel l know i s di r ect l y adj acent t o t he McMi l l an

7 si t e. I n bot h of t hose capaci t i es and i n hi s cur r ent

8 capaci t y, Counci l member McDuf f i e has par t i ci pat ed i n

9 count l ess open communi t y meet i ngs r egardi ng t he

10 pr oposal t o adapt i vel y r euse t he McMi l l an Sand

11 Fi l t r at i on Si te.

12 The r esul t of t he years of communi t y

13 meet i ngs and pl anni ng by VMP and t he Di st r i ct i s what

14 wi l l unquest i onabl y be a wor l d cl ass pr oj ect t hat15 achi eves al l of t he obj ecti ves of t he Di st r i ct, t he

16 Comprehensi ve Pl an and t he communi t y, i ncl udi ng open

17 space, hi st or i cal pr eser vat i on, mi xed i ncome housi ng,

18 j obs, a new t ax base, and t he openi ng of t he

19 wonder f ul hi st or i c asset t o t he ci t y and i t s

20 resi dent s.

21 The pl an bef or e you i s a bal anced pl an,

22 wor ked on f or seven years by VMP, t he Di st r i ct and


51/370



51

1 t he communi t y. Most i mpor t ant l y and what

2 Counci l member McDuf f i e has f ought t o ensur e si nce at

3 l east 2000, and why he i s such an ardent support er ,

4 t hi s pr oj ect wi l l have si gni f i cant communi t ywi de

5 benef i t s f or War d 5 and t he Di st r i ct .

6 As has been known t o Counci l member

7 McDuf f i e. hi s par ent s and gr andpar ent s, t he McMi l l an

8 Sand Fi l t r at i on Si t e has al ways been an i ndust r i al

9 si t e. I t was cr eat ed t o pr ovi de and t o cl ean t he

10 ci t y' s wat er suppl y. I t has been f enced of f and

11 i naccessi bl e t o t he publ i c f or decades. Thus,

12 Counci l member McDuf f i e, hi s f ami l y, nei ghbors and t he

13 r est of t he Di st r i ct have not been abl e t o enj oy t he

14 use of t he McMi l l an si t e f or at l east t he l ast 6015 year s.

16 The si t e was not cr eat ed f or human

17 occupancy and use and i s onl y known as a park i n

18 name, due to i t s r enami ng f r omt he Washi ngt on Ci t y

19 Reser voi r t o McMi l l an Par k Reser voi r as a t r i but e t o

20 Senat or J ames McMi l l an i n 1911.

21 Today, t he Di st r i ct has t he oppor t uni t y t o

22 adapt i vel y r euse t hi s l ong vacant pr oper t y, but wi t h


52/370



52

1 an appr opr i at e, i n f act si gni f i cant pr eser vat i on of

2 t he s i t e' s hi stor i c cont ext .

3 The pr oposal pr esent s a uni que opport uni t y

4 f or Ward 5 and t he Di st r i ct as a whol e t o r edevel op

5 a l ar ge par cel wi t h no di spl acement . Mor eover , t he

6 pr oj ect wi l l i ncl ude t he f ol l owi ng cri t i cal communi t y

7 benef i t s:

8 A f i r st cl ass communi t y cent er ;

9 Mi xed i ncome housi ng, i ncl udi ng af f or dabl e

10 seni or housi ng, whi ch i s ext r emel y i mpor t ant t o Ward

11 5, gi ven t hat i t i s home t o one of t he l ar gest

12 popul at i ons of seni or r esi dent s i n t he ci t y;

13 The ci t y' s l ar gest new par k at

14 appr oxi mat el y 6. 2 cont i guous acr es, i n addi t i on t o15 t wo smal l er pocket par ks;

16 Pr eser vat i on of hi st or i cal aspect s of t he

17 si t e, i ncl udi ng t he r ehabi l i t at i on and r est or at i on of

18 al l of t he sand st or age bi ns and r egul at or houses,

19 one compl et e under gr ound cel l and a port i on of

20 another cel l and a wal ki ng museum, whi ch wi l l

21 pr eser ve t he hi st or y of t he McMi l l an si t e and f or t he

22 f i r st t i me, al l ow our chi l dr en t o i nt er act i vel y l ear n


53/370



53

1 about and shar e i n t hat hi st or y;

2 Wor kf or ce devel opment and empl oyment

3 oppor t uni t i es; and

4 A new t ax base der i ved f r om pr evi ousl y

5 nont axed l and.

6 The pr oj ect has r ecei ved suppor t f r om

7 Advi sor y Nei ghbor hood Commi ssi oner s and has been

8 appr oved by the Hi st or i c Preservat i on Revi ew Boar d

9 and now t he Zoni ng Commi ssi on.

10 Addi t i onal l y, i t i s Counci l member

11 McDuf f i e' s under st andi ng t hat on Sept ember 15t h, t he

12 Nat i onal Capi t al Pl anni ng Commi ssi on i ndi cat ed t hat

13 t hey have no obj ect i on t o t he pr oj ect .

14 I t shoul d al so be not ed t hat gi ven t he15 cur r ent condi t i on of t he si t e and i t s onl y pr i or use,

16 i t i s Counci l member McDuf f i e' s opi ni on t hat any new

17 use of t he pr oper t y, shor t of denyi ng publ i c access

18 and r et ai ni ng t he chai n l i nk f ence whi ch bor der s t he

19 pr oper t y wi l l r equi r e par t i al demol i t i on of t he

20 str uct ur e.

21 I n concl usi on, Counci l member McDuf f i e hopes

22 t hat t he Mayor ' s Agent wi l l appr ove t hi s appl i cat i on.


54/370



54

1 As st at ed pr evi ousl y, t he pr oj ect wi l l pr ovi de War d 5

2 and t he Di str i ct wi t h si gni f i cant benef i t s f or i t s

3 r esi dent s, wi l l al l ow a decades ol d, shut t er ed

4 pr oper t y t o be opened t o the communi t y, wi l l pr ovi de

5 sorel y needed mi xed i ncome housi ng and af f ordabl e

6 seni or housi ng and addi t i onal commi t t ee ameni t i es.

7 Counci l member McDuf f i e woul d al so l i ke t o

8 not e the oppor t uni t y f or t he expansi on of heal t h car e

9 ser vi ces t hr ough t he addi t i onal medi cal of f i ce par k

10 bui l di ngs and t he oppor t uni t y t o secur e a l ar ge

11 gr ocer t o ser ve t he communi t y.

12 Counci l member McDuf f i e expect s t hat t he

13 Counci l wi l l soon be r evi ewi ng and appr ovi ng t he

14 sur pl us and di sposi t i on r esol ut i ons f or t he si t e as15 t he McMi l l an pr oj ect i s becomi ng cl oser t o r eal i t y

16 each day.

17 I n shor t , we need t he j obs, we need t he

18 r et ai l , we need the housi ng and we need t he park

19 space f or our f ami l i es and chi l dr en. Counci l member

20 McDuf f i e i s pr oud, as t he Ward 5 counci l member , t o be

21 a par t of what wi l l be one of t he most t r ansf or mat i ve

22 and communi t y f r i endl y pr oj ect s i n t he Di st r i ct .


55/370



55

1 Thank you f or al l owi ng me t o t est i f y on

2 behal f of Counci l member McDuf f i e t oday.

3 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you. Quest i ons?

4 CROSS EXAMI NATI ON

5 BY MS. FERSTER:

6 Q Yes, I have a couple of questions, going

7 particularly to your testimony about Councilmember

8 McDuffie's strong support for the affordable housing

9 element of this project.

10 So you are Deputy Chief of Staff for the

11 councilmember, so you're familiar with legislation

12 that the councilmember proposes.

13 A Some, t hat ' s cor r ect .

14 Q Are you aware that Councilmember McDuffie

15 has proposed legislation called the Disposition of

16 District Land for Affordable Housing Amendment Act of

17 2013?

18 MS. BROWN: Rel evance?

19 MS. FERSTER: Fi r st , I t hi nk i t ' s r el evant

20 i n t hat t he bi l l t hat Counci l member McDuf f i e has

21 i nt r oduced woul d r equi r e Di st r i ct of Col umbi a l and

22 devel opment pr oj ect s t o pr ovi de a much hi gher l evel


56/370


57/370



57

1 on a wi t ness- by- wi t ness basi s.

2 J UDGE BYRNE: How many wi t nesses ar e you - -

3 MS. BROWN: We have ei ght wi t nesses.

4 J UDGE BYRNE: Ei ght wi t nesses.

5 MS. FERSTER: I f I coul d wei gh i n her e, we

6 woul d st r ongl y pr ef er t hat we do i ndi vi dual cr oss

7 exami nat i on, you know, because t here ar e j ust so many

8 wi t nesses, i t ' s goi ng t o be i mpossi bl e f or us t o keep

9 t r ack of t hat .

10 J UDGE BYRNE: Yes, I can under st and t hat ,

11 but on t he ot her hand, I t hi nk t he ot her aspect of i t

12 i s I t hi nk that i t woul d be good t o be aski ng t he

13 wi t nesses who act ual l y know somet hi ng about t he

14 t hi ngs you want t o l ook i nt o.15 So maybe as we go t hrough, you can hel p us,

16 t el l i ng us, you know, i nsof ar - - you know, whi ch

17 wi t nesses have knowl edge about whi ch of t he i ssues

18 t hat Opponent s ar e i nt er est ed i n, so we can t r y t o do

19 t hi s as ef f i ci ent l y as possi bl e.

20 MS. BROWN: Okay, gr eat , t hen I ' l l pr oceed

21 t o my openi ng st at ement .

22 Openi ng St atement on Behal f of Appl i cant s


58/370



58

1 MS. BROWN: Agai n, f or t he r ecor d, I ' m

2 Car ol yn Br own, wi t h t he l aw f i r m of Hol l and and

3 Kni ght , on behal f of Vi si on McMi l l an Par t ner s. And

4 we' r e so t hr i l l ed t o be her e t oday because i n al l t he

5 wor k t hat I have done on hi st or i c pr eser vat i on cases

6 and Mayor ' s Agent cases, t hi s i s one of t r ul y

7 except i onal speci al mer i t . I t i s al most I woul d say

8 of epi c pr opor t i ons, compar ed t o any ot her Mayor ' s

9 Agent case bef or e t he Mayor ' s Agent i n t hi s hi st or y.

10 We have t hree new wor l d cl ass heal t h car e

11 f aci l i t i es, t wo mi xed use, mul t i f ami l y r esi dent i al

12 bui l di ngs wi t h appr oxi mat el y 500 uni t s, 80, 000 squar e

13 f eet of much needed nei ghborhood f ocused r et ai l ,

14 anchor ed by a f ul l ser vi ce gr ocer y st or e,15 appr oxi matel y 146 i ndi vi dual r owhouses, a 17, 500

16 square f oot communi t y cent er wi t h a swi mmi ng pool ,

17 appr oxi mat el y ten acr es of open space - - act ual l y, 12

18 acres of open space.

19 We have pr eservat i on of al most al l above

20 gr ade hi st or i c st r uct ur es and t wo under gr ound cel l s,

21 ext ensi ve ar t wor k t hr oughout t he si t e i n

22 coor di nat i on wi t h Cul t ur al D. C.


59/370



59

1 We have wor kf or ce devel opment programs,

2 schol ar shi ps, nei ghbor hood beaut i f i cat i on and suppor t

3 f or publ i c school STEM pr ogr ams, j ob creat i on t hat

4 you heard t he Deput y Mayor ' s Of f i ce r epr esent at i ve

5 t est i f y about .

6 We have af f ordabl e housi ng t hat she

7 t est i f i ed about , wel l beyond t he ei ght per cent t hat

8 i s r equi r ed under zoni ng. Her e, i t ' s al most 20

9 per cent , wi t h deeper l evel s of af f or dabi l i t y,

10 par t i cul ar l y t hose wi t h t ownhouses.

11 These ar e except i onal benef i t s and f eat ur es

12 of t he pr oj ect and t hey wi l l accr ue t he communi t y- at -

13 l ar ge, not a subset of pr i vi l eged per sons, not l uxur y

14 condomi ni ums; i t ' s f or t he gr eat er good of t hi s ci t y.15 Al l t hese benef i t s ar e f ul l y suppor t ed by

16 t he Compr ehensi ve Pl an and t he ci t y' s goal s f or a

17 wor l d cl ass medi cal di st r i ct at Mi chi gan and I r vi ng

18 St r eet s, i n conj unct i on wi t h t he Washi ngt on Hospi t al

19 Cent er , Chi l dr en' s and t he VA Hospi t al s.

20 The demol i t i on and subdi vi si on ar e

21 necessar y t o al l ow a pr oj ect of speci al mer i t . As

22 you wi l l hear f r om our exper t st r uct ur al engi neer ,


60/370



60

1 t he under gr ound cel l s are not st r uct ur al l y sound and

2 cannot suppor t any si gni f i cant above gr ade

3 devel opment .

4 We expl or ed al t er nat i ves t o demol i t i on and

5 you wi l l hear f r om our exper t s any pl an f or r euse of

6 t he under gr ound cel l s or r edevel opment of t he si t e

7 r equi r es such ext ensi ve st r uct ur al i nt er vent i on t hat

8 t he i nt egr i t y of t he under gr ound cel l s wi l l be

9 compr omi sed, no mat t er how t hey' r e used. And you' l l

10 hear t hat f r om our exper t s i n st r uct ur al engi neer i ng

11 and hi st or i c pr eser vat i on.

12 The pr oj ect bef or e you t oday i s al so t he

13 r esul t of ext ensi ve negot i at i on, compr omi se and

14 r est udy of numer ous al t er nat i ves, i ncl udi ng15 r el ocat i on of t he par k f r om t he cent r al l ocat i on t o

16 i t s cur r ent l ocat i on t o t he sout h.

17 Each component has been caref ul l y st udi ed,

18 chal l enged, r ef or mul at ed i n l i ght of t he si t e' s

19 hi stor i cal si gni f i cance, i t s physi cal constr ai nt s to

20 make i t t r ul y speci al and mer i t or i ous.

21 I al so want t o emphasi ze what t hi s case i s

22 not about . I t ' s not about compl i ance wi t h Sect i on


61/370



61

1 106 of t he Nat i onal Hi st or i c Pr eser vat i on Act , i t ' s

2 not about compl i ance wi t h hi st or i c pr eser vat i on deed

3 r est r i ct i ons or t he 1990 Compr ehensi ve Pl an or any

4 ot her document t hat ' s out dated.

5 I ' d l i ke t o t al k a l i t t l e bi t about our

6 ent i t l ement pr ocess. You heard t he Deput y Mayor ' s

7 r epr esent at i ve quot e ext ensi vel y f r om t he Hi st or i c

8 Pr eser vat i on Revi ew Boar d suppor t f or t hi s pr oj ect .

9 We al so have had Zoni ng Commi ssi on approval f or t he

10 PUD, who revi ewed ext ensi vel y t he compl i ance wi t h t he

11 Comprehensi ve Pl an.

12 The Of f i ce of Pl anni ng, we have t hei r

13 suppor t sayi ng t hat t hi s pr oj ect f ul l y compl i es wi t h

14 t he Compr ehensi ve Pl an. We' ve had our t est i mony f r om15 t he r epr esent at i ve f r om Counci l member McDuf f i e' s

16 of f i ce. We' ve r esol ved usage i ssues wi t h NCPC st af f

17 f or t he PUD pr ocess. And t he Land Di sposi t i on

18 Agr eement pr ocess has been compl eted and i t ' s on i t s

19 way t o t he Counci l now.

20 So t hi s t r ul y has been an ext r aor di nar y

21 pr oj ect vet t ed by al l sor t s of gover nment agenci es,

22 and we have an except i onal amount of speci al mer i t t o


62/370



62

1 t hi s pr oj ect and t he demol i t i on i s necessar y i n or der

2 t o const r uct t hat pr oj ect of speci al mer i t .

3 So now I ' d l i ke t o pr oceed t o our f i r st

4 wi t ness, Anne Cor bet t , t he pr oj ect di r ect or f r om

5 Vi si on McMi l l an Par t ner s.

6 J UDGE BYRNE: You had sai d several t i mes

7 t he Zoni ng Commi ssi on approved the PUD on

8 t hi s week or al l egedl y - -

9 MS. BROWN: I t was l ast Monday, t hey

10 pr oposed act i on. I t wi l l be r ef er r ed t o t he Nat i onal

11 Capi t al Pl anni ng Commi ss i on f or comment on t he

12 i mpact s t o t he f ederal el ement s of t he Compr ehensi ve

13 Pl an, t he Ci t y l ooks at t he Di st r i ct el ement s of t he

14 Compr ehensi ve Pl an, and t hen i t wi l l r et ur n t o the15 Zoni ng Commi ssi on f or f i nal act i on and a wr i t t en

16 or der t her eaf t er .

17 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you. Al l r i ght , good

18 morni ng.

19 THE WI TNESS: Good mor ni ng.

20 J UDGE BYRNE: Pl ease st at e your name f or

21 t he r ecor d. We' l l t ake a f i ve- mi nut e r ecess.

22 ( Wher eupon, a br i ef r ecess i s t aken. )


63/370



63

1 J UDGE BYRNE: We' r e goi ng t o begi n agai n,

2 pl ease.

3 THE WI TNESS: For t he r ecor d, my name i s

4 Anne Cor bet t and I ' m pr oj ect di r ect or f or Vi si on

5 McMi l l an Par t ner s.

6 J UDGE BYRNE: Thank you.

7 Whereupon,

8 ANNE CORBETT

9 havi ng pr evi ousl y been dul y swor n, t est i f i ed as

10 f ol l ows:


12 THE WI TNESS: So agai n, good mor ni ng, and

13 l i ke I sai d, my name i s Anne Cor bet t . I l ead t hi s

14 publ i c- pr i vat e par t ner shi p t hat i nvol ves sever al15 pr i vat e devel oper s, i ncl udi ng EYA, our t ownhouse

16 devel oper . You' l l hear mor e about t hei r - - f r om

17 Aakash Thakkar , J ai r Lynch Devel opment Par t ner s, t he

18 mul t i f ami l y and gr ocer y- r et ai l devel oper , and Tr ammel

19 Cr ow Company, our heal t h car e f aci l i t y devel oper ,

20 al so our r et ai l commer ci al component .

21 And agai n, our f our t h par t ner i s t he

22 Di st r i ct of Col umbi a, t he owner of t he pr oper t y, who


64/370



64

1 i n 2007 sel ect ed t hi s t eam af t er a compet i t i ve

2 process and gave us an unpr ecedent ed oppor t uni t y t o

3 par t ner wi t h them.

4 I t ' s our r esponsi bi l i t y t o bal ance hi stor i c

5 preser vat i on wi t h economi c devel opment . We have been

6 ent r ust ed wi t h a t r ul y uni que si t e t hat r equi r es t he

7 most speci al care, never mi nd t hat i t ' s been dormant

8 f or so l ong as i t awai t s r ebi r t h. So i t commanded a

9 ver y speci al dynami c vi si on, honor i ng i t s l egacy out

10 f r ont , whi l e r emaki ng i t i nt o a t r ul y remar kabl e new

11 pl ace i n our ci t y.

12 That bal ance agai n: hi st or i c l egacy, woul d

13 hel p sust ai nabi l i t y, j ob oppor t uni t i es, and a dynami c

14 new pl ace t o l i ve, wor k, shop, pl ay.15 Agai n, even dormant and negl ect ed, i t s

16 beaut y cal l s out t o you, so i t s new l i f e must be

17 si mi l ar l y amazi ng and i nspi r i ng.

18 Thi s vi si on t r ansl at es i nt o ver y t hought f ul

19 goal s. We di d not compr omi se. I n f act , we l ever aged

20 t he publ i c- pr i vat e par t ner shi p t o ensur e t he br eadt h

21 and dept h of t hese obj ect i ves, agai n, ver y meani ngf ul

22 pr eser vat i on, l ar ge, i nvi t i ng open spaces, dynami c

8/10/2019 McMillan Sand Filtration Site Mayor's

Date post:	02-Jun-2018
Category:	Documents
Upload:	scott-roberts
View:	216 times
Download:	0 times

McMillan Sand Filtration Site Mayor's Agent Transcript 2014 10 06

Documents