Cynthia Reid, president of the Northeast Washington civic group, expressed her disgust at the neglect of these issues in Ward 5 during a community meeting Sept. 9 and emphasized the importance of activism and finding out what is going on in the neighborhood.

"I don’t know if you all know, but Ward 5 has the largest number of waste transfer stations in the city," Reid said. "It makes no sense at all."

Reid questioned the status of the three facilities in her ward, which have been inspected in response to residents’ complaints. The facilities are located on Lawrence Street, Queen’s Chapel Terrace and Ivy City. The Ivy City site has been closed.

Citizens have complained for the months about the stench from the stations, which they say are too close to their homes.

An official from the D.C. Department of Health said the first round of inspections have been completed at one of the transfer stations. Officials are awaiting results from the other two stations and will do more inspections soon.

Concerned residents at the meeting were told samples taken during the inspections so far turned up no hazardous materials. Some old batteries and oil were found on site and are now being properly disposed of, the city health official said.

ANC5A Commissioner John Frye, who has been active in the fight against the transfer stations, encouraged neighbors to testify in favor of increasing the required buffer zone for these facilities at a Sept. 26 public hearing scheduled before a D.C. City Council committee.

Proposed legislation would increase the buffer zone from 300 to 500 feet between residences and trash transfer stations in the city. The issue has sparked criticism of Council-man Harry Thomas, D-Ward 5, who chairs the council’s public works committee that will hold the hearing and has been accused by transfer station opponents of showing political favoritism toward operators of the facilities.

"We don’t know what could be in those stations," said Frye. "Most of that trash is coming from Philadelphia and New Jersey, not D.C."

Frye also questioned whether the District is receiving any revenue from the stations.

"The District receives no money from the stations," said Anthony Brown, who attended the meeting for the D.C. Department of Public Works.

Another concern expressed by residents was the weakened condition of water and sewer pipes. Health officials said there are several water pipes throughout the District that date to the 1800s.

A 10-year plan to repair and replace the pipes is being implemented, officials said. Health officials told residents they would further research the conditions of the water pipes in their section of the city.

Resident Carmen Scott discussed the issue of safety in the area.

Scott urged everyone to write the House Appropriations Committee to stop a $7.1 million expansion of Boys Town at 4801 Sargent Road NE that has yet to pass the Senate. The bill, introduced by Rep. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, R-Miss., calls for the construction of one emergency short-term residential center and four long-term residential homes on the site.

Scott, who describes the facility as a "jail for kids," said some neighbors have complained about boys jumping the fence. "No one notified the ANC," she said.

Reid and Scott distributed an outline for community action to address the issues discussed at the meeting. The outline suggested residents create a network, organize letter-writing campaigns, monitor legislation, inform the community, and testify before the ANC and city council.

Copyright 1998, The Common Denominator