The building permit for 605 P ST NW indicates it is for renovation work on an R-3 single family dwelling, which is inconsistent with the new construction of a rooming house that is going on at the site. On the application form, the applicants repeatedly lied about and misrepresented the construction, failing to check boxes indicating that significant razing would occur and stating that total construction costs were estimated at $36K rather than the owner's estimation of "more than $1 Million" at a recent Convention Center Community Association meeting.
As a result, it appears that the city was misled to believe the project was a renovation of an existing rooming house rather than a ground-up new construction which might require additional reviews for parking, disability impact etc. and additional permits for razing and foundation work.
A copy of this "Renovation & Repair" permit which doesn't seem to cover the scope of actual work, as well as the...
More»
Electronic copies of the architectural drawings submitted to the city for 605 P ST NW can be accessed below. The applicants submitted two rolls' worth of drawings. It appears the earlier drawings were by a professional architectural firm and are for apartments which were not approved. Later drawings are of poor quality and conflicting, but some reflect a rooming house with most rooms, including closet/bathroom around 200 square feet. Some indicate the rear wall is to remain intact (consistent with building permit application but not the actual construction going on at the site) whereas others indicate the rear of the house is to be razed completely (consistent with actual construction activity but not the permit application nor the permits granted by the city).
Roll 1: http://www.box.net/shared/x3sm9thlfx
Roll 2: http://www.box.net/shared/xsn8eufdz0
These drawings were supplied to us by DCRA's printing company, Blueboy Printing. Anyone can...
More»
Because we believe it is important to back up claims with direct evidence, below is a more detailed account of the violations of law and other nuisances neighbors have complained about arising out of the construction taking place at 605 P ST NW. Copies of the building permit and architectural plans submitted to the District are available from DCRA.
Offenses, Violations and Nuisances in Connection with 605 P ST Construction:
Owners are RAZING when their permits permit ONLY renovation: The records for the “Alternation & Repair” permit (# B0903445) show DC Review Engineer Thomas Guglielmo noted on 5/27/2009 that “a raze permit must be obtained before an application for construction can be granted.” Indeed, the owners have completely razed and gutted all but the front facade of 605 P ST NW, put down new foundation, and are erecting shoddy new construction at the site from the ground up. The building plans on record with the city are of poor quality, misleading and...
More»
Thanks for taking the time to learn about ongoing new construction at 605 P ST NW and sharing your concern about how it affects us in Shaw. This petition and blog are organized by neighbors who are alarmed by what we have heard from other concerned residents as well as the owners and contractor about their project. Our goal is to share what we learn with our neighborhood and gather support for communicating these concerns to our city government. You can contact us at shawresidents@gmail.com.
More»