COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

THE JOHN A. WILSON BUILDING

1350 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, NW
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20004

VINCENT C. GRAY Committee Member:

Ward 7 Councilmember Business and Economic Development
Chair, Committee on H o s p i t a l a n d Health Equity Judiciary and Public Safety

March 2, 2023

The Honorable Muriel E. Bowser

Mayor of the District of Columbia
1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20004

VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL

Dear Mayor Bowser:

I applaud the efforts you have made to increase health care access and address health equity in the
District, especially on the East End. Today, I am writing to request that a series of citywide
initiatives and important Ward 7 investments be included in your proposed Fiscal Year 2024
budget.

You and your team are to be commended for the investments made in last year’s budget for projects
addressing health specifically for the Ward 7 community. These investments include two grocery
stores, an urgent care center, and especially the on-going construction of the Cedar Hill Regional
Medical Center. Despite your hard work and the work of others, the disparity in Wards 7 and 8
are still keenly felt and more must still be done to not only reverse generations of inequity, but to
build the workforce necessary to create safer, healthier communities and produce good jobs for
District residents especially in healthcare.

Despite the threat of declining tax revenues for urban centers across the country and here in the
District, we must continue to prioritize the things that address the wealth gap between Black and
White residents; make the District an attractive place to live, raise a family and start a business;
and make sure the District is a safe place for residents and visitors of all ages.

I know we share this vision for our city. We can have safer, healthier, stronger communities and
more jobs that allow for higher and livable wages. I know we can improve our schools so that all
children, regardless of where they go to school, are getting a high-quality education and have the
mental health support they need to thrive. I strongly urge you to consider each of the following
Ward 7 and citywide initiatives for funding. This is our opportunity to improve public safety,
address generational health inequity, systemic wealth gaps, and improve educational outcomes for
children and families who experience trauma, so the District is stronger than ever before.
I. Continue Efforts to Address Health Equity

I have identified several initiatives that will improve not only the health of our residents but will
provide additional support for public safety.

A. Continue investments to end food deserts in Wards 7 and 8, and Invest in Feeding
District Residents

As you know, one of my priorities has been to improve health outcomes for people in Wards 7 and
8 by increasing the number of grocery stores in these communities. This impacts residents access
to food, brings good jobs to neighborhoods and increases wealth for communities in need. I am
thrilled that we now have additional grocery stores that have opened in Wards 7 and 8 since this
time last year; however, it is still crucial that we continue investments to attract additional grocery
stores in these areas.

We know that healthy lifestyles, including healthy diets have a major impact on health outcomes
for African Americans who make up the majority of residents east of the Anacostia River. The
capital funding allocated through Bill 22-207, the “East End Grocery Incentive Act of 2018,”
which I introduced, funds six more grocery store projects that have been identified, will help create
healthier communities, spur economic growth, and end food deserts in Wards 7 and 8. One of the
food retail locations in Ward 8 has closed within a year of opening. I urge you to work with us to
bring healthy, full-service food markets to neighbors east of the Anacostia River.

Additionally, I ask that you continue investments in improving access to healthy food by including
the following in your proposed budget: $500,000 in FY24 for a grant to continue growth and
expand outreach for Produce Rx; $26.1 million to fund Bill 24-419, the “No Senior Hungry Act
of 2022”; $677,000 to provide an FTE at DC Public Schools to resume and expand the Good
Food Purchasing Program; and $51,190,000 for FY24 to fund Bill 24-600, the “Give SNAP a
Raise Amendment Act of 2022”.

B. Further investment for Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center

I have a tremendous sense of civic pride when I look at the rising construction of the Cedar Hill
Regional Medical Center, GW Health at the St. Elizabeths campus. I truly appreciate partnering
with you to create a true comprehensive healthcare system to provide high-quality healthcare to
residents on the East End. I am also thrilled that the new hospital will have the ability to serve
more people as the addition of the 4th floor will increase the original capacity from 136 beds to
186 and include voluntary and involuntary beds for those needing intensive mental health services.
I understand that since the initial budget, the cost to build the new hospital has increased. I urge
you to continue the necessary capital funding for this vital project. Finally, I ask that you
continue your efforts to locate a permanent site for the Ward 7 Urgent Care Center as
expeditiously as possible since it is an essential part in the healthcare system that will support
the new hospital.
 C. Increase critical healthcare workforce training

We know that to improve our health outcomes we need more healthcare workers throughout the
continuum because we do not have enough healthcare workers to address the needs in the
community. Fully funding Bill 24-943, the “High Need Healthcare Career Scholarship and Health
Professional Loan Repayment Program Amendment Act of 2022” which I introduced, will help
remove the barriers that District residents face by allowing them to train in these high-demand jobs
and begin a career in healthcare. This will not only improve community wealth in the form of jobs,
but it could put many African Americans on a career path to build wealth, while improving health
outcomes for District residents especially in high-need areas like the East End. I strongly urge
you invest $1.7 million recurring to fully fund Bill 24-943.

D. Additional support for the School-Based Behavioral Health (SBBH) program

Filling positions for behavioral health Community Based-Organizations (CBOs) has proven
challenging as the District’s cost of living continues to rise, coupled with a shortage of behavioral
health care professionals in the District and nationwide. Meeting the salary demands of this highly
skilled workforce and ensuring that CBOs can effectively recruit and retain clinicians at a time
when many clinicians are experiencing burnout and receiving competing offers with higher pay
and better benefits is critical. Currently, the Department of Behavioral Health reports that only
61% of District schools have a behavioral health clinician on staff – therefore, providing stable
compensation for partnering behavioral health CBOs is essential to the current and future success
of the School Based Behavioral Health program. I ask that you invest at least $5.7 million into
the SBBH program to ensure stable compensation for partnering community-based
organizations in Fiscal Year 2024. This will help to stabilize the community-based organization
grant at the FY 2023 level plus inflation, which is an average of $103,000 per clinician, and aid in
reaching the District’s ultimate goal of placing a behavioral health clinician in every school.

E. Early Childhood Development

Significant investments in HealthySteps and Healthy Futures in the last several years have allowed
countless DC infants, toddlers, and their caregivers to connect more quickly with the support,
services, and resources they need to have a strong beginning to life. HealthySteps continues to
produce positive outcomes for child and family health, and plays a critical role in ensuring young
children and families have access to a variety of physical and behavioral health supports and
services – particularly for residents on the East End in Wards 7 and 8. Similarly, Healthy Futures
services thousands of children aged birth to five, and ensures they have access to both prevention
services and early intervention services, which helps eliminate the need for acute clinical care later
in the child’s life. Both HealthySteps and Healthy Futures have worked to ensure the quality of
their programs while maintaining constant expansion, even through the numerous challenges
presented by the COVID-19 public health emergency and continuing workforce shortages. I
ask that you maintain the funding allotted to these two critical programs, so that they can
stabilize and continue to serve DC’s infants, toddlers, and their families.
 F. Youth Mobile Mental Health Unit

Another way we can support mental health is through a youth mobile mental health unit. The new
mobile health unit would serve approximately 188 youth in particularly high-risk groups,
specifically those in extended transitional housing and those who seek services at drop-in centers
but do not enter emergency shelter or transitional housing. I ask that you include in your budget
$1.5 million for a new mobile mental health unit, specifically focused on meeting the needs of
unaccompanied homeless youth. The funds would cover salary costs for approximately 10
provisionally licensed clinicians, with the addition of two independently licensed social workers
to supervise these clinicians.

G. Mental Health Community Residence Facilities (MHCRFs)

In the last several months, the District has seen an increase in proposed evictions of residents of
DBH licensed community residence facilities (MHCRF) because of substance abuse. Currently,
these vulnerable residents are being discharged to homeless shelters due to a lack of beds in many
of the District’s in-patient rehabilitation centers. Thus, more investment is needed regarding in-
patient and outpatient substance abuse treatment services. I ask that you include in your proposed
budget funding in DBH for mandatory specialized training to MHCRF providers surrounding
de-escalation, person-centered planning, and crisis intervention. Lastly, I urge you to invest
$3.3 million to support inflationary increases to contract amounts for MHCRF housing
operators, reflecting an increase of 18.14% in the Consumer Price Index over the December
2018 cost basis for current contracts.

H. Medicaid buy-in program for residents with disabilities

To improve economic outcomes for District residents on Medicaid, I urge you to create a Medicaid
Buy-In Program. Currently, District residents with significant physical disabilities who are
eligible for Medicaid must artificially limit their salary and reject viable economic opportunities
just to keep their Medicaid eligibility because they cannot afford to lose their Medicaid
coverage. We should encourage the success of our residents, rather than have them limit
themselves out of fear of losing their benefits. Without a Medicaid Buy-In Program, people who
could earn more are forced into a life of near poverty wages to stay on Medicaid to ensure they
have access to the healthcare they desperately need. A Medicaid Buy-In Program would
allow these residents to earn more income, of which a portion would help pay for their Medicaid
services on a sliding scale as their income increases. There could be a small cost for establishing
the program, however it could increase tax revenue for the District without increasing healthcare
costs while improving the lives of many District residents. I ask that you include a Medicaid Buy-
In program in the budget of the Department of Health Care Finance.
II. Funding Programs to Support Safe Neighborhoods

A. “Police Officer Recruitment and Retention Act of 2023”

We cannot remove police presence from our neighborhoods while District residents live in fear
under the shadow of rising gun violence. In light of great concern for resident safety and an
historically low complement of sworn officers, I strongly ask you to include in your budget the
necessary recurring funds to strengthen provider and Metropolitan Police Department training,
workforce development, and worker recruiting and retention. Specifically, I ask that you support
and fund the “Police Officer Recruitment and Retention Act of 2023,” a bill that I introduced,
aimed at rebuilding the Metropolitan Police Department back to a healthy and functional size, and
to better protect the residents of our city during this recent wave of gun violence. The bill would
authorize you to provide bonuses equal to one year of salary to police officers who are eligible for
retirement, provided those officers delay retirement by 5 years, as an incentive for veteran officers
with valuable experience to continue to serve our communities; and it focuses efforts to retain
experienced officers and attract new recruits at a time when MPD ranks are being reduced by
nearly 100 officers per year. It also authorizes you to fund any other negotiated recruitment and
retention incentives for sworn officers. Additional officers will not only help to solve crimes but
will also provide more robust opportunities for community policing to bridge the trust gap and
build a healthier relationship between the police and the communities they are sworn to serve.

B. Additional Funding for the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement

Traditional law enforcement is but one tool that we must use. We cannot depend on our police
force to fix systemic issues for us, nor can we continue to criminalize activities and crimes heavily
associated with poverty and our communities being under resourced. The District has and must
continue to take a broader, integrated strategy to public safety that includes a public health
approach, and to support community-based violence intervention programming and services for
Ward 7 and District neighborhoods, aimed at ending the cycle of violence in our city. To that end,
I ask that you increase funding for the Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement (ONSE)
to increase full time employee staffing and to train and hire more violence interrupters in Ward
7, with a specific request from the Rosedale community to hire and train an additional violence
interrupter for that community.

C. Overdose Harm Reduction Programs

I believe that efforts to bridge the income, education, and health gaps in the District are crucial in
dismantling these existing systemic issues, and ending the cycle of trauma, violence, and crime
that blight our city. As an additional tool to improve the health and safety in our communities, I
ask that you invest in overdose harm reduction programs within the District, in addition to the
wide distribution of Narcan and drug testing strips throughout the District.
 D. Expanded Private Security Program

I ask that you continue funding the private security camera rebate program for District residents
and consider expanding efforts to target more vulnerable populations such as seniors. Per
community request, I ask you to specifically provide government security cameras in the 2300
block of Pennsylvania Avenue, SE.

E. Transforming Blighted and Vacant Properties

I urge you to fully fund the Vacant to Vibrant DC initiative and other efforts to minimize blight
in communities and transform vacant District properties and lots into meaningful community
spaces that will create opportunities for residents to connect with their local communities, as well
as to create workforce housing, creative green spaces, and to cultivate economic development
within Ward 7 and across the District.

III. Education Funding and Expansion

Educational opportunities and equity are a particular point of concern for me and for many of the
advocates who reached out to my office. Ensuring full funding for our education initiatives as they
exist now is vital.

A. Ensure Adequate Funding for Existing Schools and Programs

In keeping with my previous requests, I urge you to increase the Uniform Per Student Funding Formula
(UPSFF) to not just be commensurate with inflation but also adjusted to enable LEAs to tackle new
challenges due to the lingering impact of the pandemic, and to expand teacher and staff training so they
can provide and manage expanding supports based on their school community needs.

Unfortunately, the preliminary budgets of several Ward 7 neighborhood schools, such as Beers ES,
Kelly Miller MS, Plummer ES, Ron Brown HS, Smothers ES, and Whitlock ES, and other schools that
serve Ward 7 families include reductions significant enough to cause staff shrinkage if they are not
rectified. I urge you to reverse these reductions to school budgets.

B. Advance and Fund the Modernization of Ward 7 Schools

I also ask that you allocate additional funding to desperately needed capital improvements and repairs
of Ward 7 schools. Currently, parents in Ward 7 are forced to look to other wards to address their
children’s educational needs. Ward 7 residents have a right to receive suitable education for their
children in their own neighborhoods. Our schools have the largest concentrations of low-income
students of color in the city, and it is crucial that we equip these schools and their children with the
facilities and academics that will inspire success.

Part of that success means having safe, attractive modernized school facilities to facilitate excellent
education and development. Ward 7 has a disproportionate share of school buildings that have yet to
be modernized, in addition to schools that seem to have lost their place in line after receiving
incomplete (Phase 1) modernizations. Many of these communities have some of the highest number
of at-risk students. I ask that you fund the full modernization of Beers ES, and accelerate the
modernizations for Burrville ES, Drew ES, JC Nalle ES and Neval Thomas ES.
In terms of other capital needs, I also ask that $7 million is allocated for the replacement of Eastern
High School’s HVAC system, which currently requires the replacement of 80 heat pumps, and the
resolution of related work orders and service tickets. I ask that you allocate funding to replace the
Eastern High School Football Field to ensure that games played there are on a state-of-the art, dignified
field, as well as lighting improvements at Burrville Elementary School and Eliot-Hine Middle School.

I have personally seen deficiencies at the Kenilworth ES swing space site, and I have heard a variety
of concerns from the community. I urge you to find funding to renovate Kenilworth Elementary School
and to accommodate its needs as a swing space. I also ask that you fund additional traffic calming
measures and speed cameras for Anacostia Avenue NE, Kenilworth Elementary School, and Nash
Street.

C. Supporting our Teachers and Students

One of our most precious resources in education is our teachers. We are facing a shortage of
teachers in the District, which also reflects a nationwide crisis. I urge you to increase funding for
DC’s Grow Your Own Investment program by $1.6 million through OSSE, to cover the costs of
hiring and training additional teachers.

In order for staff to respond to the needs of all District children, I also ask that your budget fund
improved school staff supports and invest in our educators through expanded teacher and staff
training as well as improved teacher retention efforts. I also request that you invest in additional
personnel in schools to keep our students safe from violence and to respond knowledgeably to
issues, funding to support non-uniformed School Resource Officers or civilian public safety
personnel, and also funding for training safety advocates to partner with school counselors and
other mental health professionals and community-based organizations.

It is also imperative that we continue to seek effective ways to invest in our students. One way is
to make sure that they arrive safely to a safe school and, again, safely return home. I ask that you
increase funding by $18 million for the Safe Passage Safe Block Initiative, and that you invest
$3.6 million into the improvement of DDOT safety infrastructure around District schools via
the Safe Routes to School Team, by expanding the number of action plans produced annually; the
rapid installation of signage around schools, the modification of roads with high usage rates for
students to be safer, the upgrading and improvement of crosswalks, improving visibility for drivers
and pedestrians through smarter road design, and new designs for school pickup and drop-off
zones. I request increased budgeting for afterschool and tutoring programs in Ward 7 schools.
An investment in education today is an investment in a more equitable future for Ward 7 children.
This increased investment should include targeted resources to fund additional out of school
time programs closer to where District families already live. This also includes wraparound
support and social services at schools to help ensure student success, as well as more school level
literacy supports.
To further support our youth, I ask that you supply funding for vocational training classes and
academies within Ward 7 middle and high schools. I also ask you to fund the expansion of
scholarships, vouchers, and financial aid for District residents so that more opportunities can be
made available to residents who seek an education but may otherwise be unable to afford tuition,
textbooks, and housing; and to fund the provision of free meals to ensure that no District school
child goes hungry at school. Even with these resources and supports, no matter how helpful they
could be, our families must be aware that they exist and are available for their use. For this reason,
I also ask that you help fund improvements for information sharing about key programs and cost-
saving options. This could be accomplished through the Deputy Mayor of Education’s office,
which could create and convene an OST Community Advisory Group. It is crucial that District
residents are made aware of the potentially life changing tools which are already available to them.

IV. Economic Development, Planning and Housing

Ward 7 residents have long been advocating for additional investments that will be incentivize and
attract the economic development and amenities more prevalent in other areas of the District. The
following investments are needed to support the long-term development and housing needs of Ward 7.

A. Bring a full-service grocery store and a completed development to East Capitol

Gateway

Ward 7 residents gave me the charge upon my return to office to bring more full-service grocery stores
to the ward. My efforts have included conversations about bringing full-service grocery stores and
restaurants and retail amenities to the East End of the District. My East End economic development
bills, chiefly the Grocery Incentive Act, have been catalysts to the progress we are now seeing. Last
year, I was happy to partner with you and DMPED to pass eminent domain emergency legislation for
Capitol Gateway to give the District site control and the ability to bring a new grocery store to the site.
I request that you make the financial, collaborative, and innovative investments to actualize the full
and complete development of Capitol Gateway.

B. Funding for the redevelopment of Fletcher-Johnson School

I ask that you fund the required cost assessments for, and the building of, the mixed-used
development of the old Fletcher-Johnson School in Marshall Heights, which would lead to the
creation of 700+ residential units of rental and for sale housing, green space for outside community
engagement activities and recreation as well as other amenities. We also hope that this new
development will bring another grocery store to the area, which is currently in short supply within
Ward 7.

C. Business Support and Workforce Development

I urge you to increase the funding to support the DC Main Streets program. This program is meant
to revitalize and grow businesses along major corridors in the District and has already created over
7,500 jobs and 600 new businesses within the District. Our Main Streets organizations provide
financial support to small businesses for facade improvements, operational assistance, capacity
building and other needed undertakings.
The Main Streets program is a crucial asset for addressing income inequality within the District. 1
I specifically highlight a request for additional funding for the newest Ward 7 Main Street, the
Pennsylvania Avenue East Main Street. This program has already begun to revitalize the
Pennsylvania Avenue East Corridor by helping businesses to sustainably grow and incentivize
more jobs to come to Ward 7, along with grocery stores, minority owned businesses, and other
goods and services. 2 Similarly, I also fully support the full-time time hiring of cleaning
“ambassadors” for Pennsylvania Avenue East. Ward 7 residents deserve clean streets, clean
sidewalks, sanitized street furniture, manicured medians, and graffiti-less buildings.

I urge you to invest at least an additional $10 million to expand the DC Food Access Grant
Fund to incentivize and facilitate the opening and expansion of local businesses in Wards 7 and
8. Funding is also used to increase access to healthy food options by securing grocery stores,
restaurants, and other food access points in areas commonly referred to as food deserts.

V. Invest in Libraries, Recreational Facilities, Transportation, and Parks

Healthy, thriving communities in Ward 7 need vibrant and robust community facilities where
neighbors can come together for enrichment, recreational and community-building activities. To
that end, I ask that you fund and support our libraries, parks and recreational facilities, as well as
our public ways and transit.

A. Funding for Recreational Facilities and Parks

I am thrilled to have worked with the community and my Council colleagues to secure funding for
important projects like the Kingman Park-Rosedale Community Garden water connection, which
not only allows residents to grow fresh food, but the garden also acts as a community gathering
and cookout spot for residents of all ages. I was also pleased to work with you to fund a new River
Terrace Recreation Center in Ward 7, which will provide the community with two new outdoor
basketball courts, an indoor basketball gym, two new outdoor tennis courts, and a playground for
children.

Our recreation spaces contribute greatly to the quality of life for Ward 7 residents. I urge you to
allocate funding to expand programming options and hours at all recreation centers. I also ask
that you improve the physical facilities and enhance staffing, programming and services offered
at our Ward 7 recreation and community centers, commensurate with the respective community’s
desire. To highlight a few specific requests:

I ask that you fully fund the improvement and maintenance of the Woody Ward
Community Center baseball field, at an estimated cost of $250,000, and $150,000 for the
maintenance and improvement the Woody Ward Community Center’s Garden.

I ask that you invest in the improvement and maintenance of the Ridge Road Recreation
Center.
 I ask that you invest $7 million to fund the expansion of the Benning Stoddert Recreation
Center and its parking lot, in keeping with the completed feasibility study and community
input.

I ask that you invest additional funding for the Fort Davis Recreation Center.

I ask that you maintain the $9 million in capital funding for the Rosedale Pool and the $15
million authorized for the Hillcrest Indoor Aquatic Center.

I request that you increase the funding of educational programs on Kingman and Heritage
Islands through the Living classrooms and Anacostia Riverkeepers programs.

I ask that you maintain the $60 million capital investment in a new sportsplex at Robert F.
Kennedy Memorial Stadium, which would convert RFK’s northern lots into sports fields.

I request that you fund improvements to the Marvin Gaye trail, including the upgrading of
the lights and playground, the repaving of its hiking trail, increasing security with
additional cameras, and regular landscaping and ground maintenance.

B. Funding for Libraries

Similarly, our libraries also contribute greatly to the quality of life for Ward 7 residents. Our
libraries are literacy hubs and can be utilized to help with adult literacy efforts, and many adults
who struggle with literacy live in Ward 7. As such, I ask you to provide partnerships and programs
within DC Public Library to develop an adult literacy program. Additionally, I urge you to allocate
funding to expand programming options and hours at library facilities in Ward 7, like the recently
remodeled Capitol View Library.

In keeping with community desires, I ask specifically that you maintain the $4.2 million in
funding to the already approved replacement for Rosedale’s Library with a new larger library,
as well as the identification and acquisition of a new site for the new library.

C. Funding for Transportation and Environmental Improvements

Currently, the majority of Ward 7 is separated from the heart of the city by the Anacostia River,
the Anacostia Freeway (DC 295), and few public transportation options across the River; these
barriers segregate Ward 7 residents from the rest of the city. 3 These same barriers also limit Ward
7 residents’ access to socioeconomic opportunities. 4 As such, I ask that you allocate $2 million
in capital funding to begin the process of building a connecting road to provide an alternative
route to enter and exit the isolated communities of Kenilworth, Eastland Gardens, Mayfair,
Paradise and Parkside, that would connect with Benning Road and utilize non-highway surface
streets.
I also ask that you fully fund the East Capitol Safety and Mobility Project, which would redesign
and add infrastructure improvements to the roads along the East Capitol Street Corridor in
Ward 7.

Similarly, I ask that you fund the expedited redesigns of known high-injury network corridors such
as: East Capitol Street, Southern Avenue, Pennsylvania Avenue, Minnesota Avenue, and Alabama
Avenue. I also ask that you fund Ward 7 streetscape improvements along with, new signage, street
greening, and updating roads to make them safe for pedestrians and multi-modal use.

Ward 7 residents deserve clean, beautiful, and safe public spaces and public ways free of litter and
flooding, that facilitate the ease of access, entrance, egress, and transit. Through this budget, I ask
that special attention be paid to corridors and intersections such as the Minnesota, Nannie Helen
Boroughs/Lee Street, NE and Branch Avenue/Alabama Avenue corridors, which require regular
maintenance to keep the areas clean. To that end, I ask that you also continue to financially
support existing clean teams, particularly those in Ward 7. I also request that you fund a
dedicated Clean Team along the Eastern Avenue/Southern Avenue Corridor to address the
overwhelming amount of trash, debris, and illegal dumping in the surrounding area. Further, I
ask that you allocate $500,000 in funding for the Litter Prevention Grant Program, which provides
grants to community-based organizations to clean up high littering corridors in Ward 7.

The O Street Wall, which is a District asset in Square S-5542, S.E. in Ward 7, has been enhanced,
repaired and re-stabilized, requiring millions of dollars. This retaining wall was built in the late 1970s
to control soil erosion and sedimentation between the 3200-3300 block of Highwood Drive, S.E., and
the 3200 block of O Street, S.E. Since then, the wall has been subject to soil erosion and poor drainage
that caused the wall to crack and shift and caused a portion of the wall to fail in the 1990s. The wall
deteriorated to a point that residents whose homes on Highwood Drive, S.E. that abutted the wall were
in severe jeopardy of foundation failure, mudslide, condemnation and losing their property. There were
continuing street and sewer maintenance problems and the increasing possibility of rupturing gas lines.
It has been communicated numerous times by the residents living in Square S-5542, S.E. that protecting
and enhancing the stability of the O Street Wall is of great concern to them.

Previously, the District purchased several unimproved lots on O Street, S.E. next to the wall to prevent
any further damage. Unfortunately, more than half of the unimproved lots remain unacquired by the
District, and thus threats to the integrity of the wall, including its drainage systems, persist. To preserve
the O Street Wall’s integrity, I urge you to invest in a much-needed structural engineering study
of the O Street Wall, and to secure the O Street Wall structure and affiliated drainage systems.
Further, I ask that the District fund the acquisition by purchase or condemnation the remaining
unimproved lots adjacent to O Street, S.E. between Branch Avenue, S.E. and Carpenter Street, S.E.

VI. Fund outstanding legislation for tax relief

Finally, I ask that you fund the following measures that have either been approved by the
Council prior to Council Period 25 or are currently pending before the Council:

L22-0179 - Birth to Three for All DC Act of 2018

L24-0313 - High Need Healthcare Career Scholarship and Health Professional Loan
Repayment Program Amendment Act of 2022
 L24-0260 - Whitman-Walker Entities at St. Elizabeths Tax Rebate Amendment Act of
2022
B25-0142 - Police Officer Recruitment and Retention Act of 2023
B25-0184 - Pension Exclusion Restoration and Expansion Act of 2023
B25-0185 - Senior Citizen Tax Cap Transfer Act of 2023
B25-0186 - Senior Citizen Real Property Tax Relief Amendment Act of 2023
B25-0187 - First Responder Income Tax Exclusion Amendment Act of 2023

While several specific projects and initiatives have been previously mentioned in this letter, I ask
that you do not cut or delay any Ward 7 projects funded in the CIP or already receiving funding
(recurring or one-time).

As you continue the important task of formulating and finalizing the proposed Fiscal Year 2024
budget, thank you for considering these requests submitted on behalf of Ward 7 residents,
communities and stakeholders.

Sincerely,

Vincent C. Gray

Cc: Glen Lee, Chief Financial Officer

Kevin Donahue, City Administrator
Council of the District of Columbia