Galactic Panther Art Gallery has hosted live music and paid events since opening in 2021, and now its owners are asking the city for approval to host them.

Galactic Panther’s 1,900-square-foot art gallery has hosted comedy, improv, sound baths, yoga, open mic nights and live music for more than a year, and their proposal to continue with the events goes to the Planning Commission on October 3 and City Council on October 14.

“We plan to host paid events at the art gallery,” owners Eli Pollard and Erik Muendel asked in the application. “These events include art workshops, comedy, live music, yoga, sound baths and receptions.”

The owners said in their special use permit application that they expect the events to attract 20-to-30 people, although photos of events shared on the gallery’s Facebook page show events with more than 30 people in attendance.

“I started the gallery during Covid and (the city was) pretty relaxed about it, and it was this process of maturing and knowing the city,” Muendel said. “I’ve never been in retail and am new to these experiences, and we’re getting all our paperwork in place.”

Muendel continued, “We’re going to upgrade with a booking agent to bring in more touring musical artists. It’s a maturation of our programming.”

Galactic Panther (currently open Thursday to Sunday), already hosts the following events every week:

• Comedy every Wednesday & Friday
• Live Music by Jah Messenger Sound every Thursday
• Live Music 1st Saturdays
• Improv 2nd Saturdays
• Glow night Paint & Sip 3rd Saturdays
• Sound Bath & Yoga every other Sunday
• Open Mic every Sunday

Muendel is also the owner of ESP Tea and Coffee at 1012 King Street.

According to the city staff report:

• The applicant is proposing using the space for comedy and live music events which constitute the live entertainment use. They are also proposing art workshops, yoga and other classes that are the commercial private school use. All of these activities would take place in the existing gallery, which has an area to the rear of the space, which is currently equipped with a microphone and an amplifier
• Noise from live entertainment and activities, such as music, performances, and trivia, shall end no later than 11 p.m.
• Noise levels are anticipated to reach 80 decibels

After complaints of inescapable barking creeping into the neighborhood, Brewski’s Barkhaus might not go ahead with its special use permit (SUP) request to expand outdoor seating.

Barkhaus (529 E. Howell Avenue), the D.C. Metro area’s first-ever dog-friendly bar and restaurant with an off-leash indoor and outdoor dog park, opened two years ago. The business wants to add 20 seats to the outdoor seating area, which already has 20 outdoor seats.

The SUP states that the daily number of guests (around 150 people) won’t change because of the new seats, although business owners are wary of what they see as potentially restrictive restrictions by city staff.

Barkhaus co-founder Alex Benbassat said that the company is closing an hour earlier throughout the week and opening later due to neighbor complaints. He also says that the business has not received a single noise citation from the city.

“We reduced our operations by eight hours a week,” Benbassat said. “All we want is 20 seats. Retracting the SUP would just take away from the customer’s experience. Customers just be wouldn’t be hanging out as long, it wouldn’t be as comfortable.”

Barkhaus is located at the busy corner of E. Howell Avenue and Richmond Highway, and across the street from the full-service dog daycare Your Dog’s Best Friends.

John Kit Wannen lives across the street from the business, and says that his family can’t escape the noise of dogs barking at all hours of the day. Warren has sent letters to city staff, and testified before City Council at last Saturday’s (October 15) meeting.

“It penetrates our home, with all the doors and windows closed,” Wannen said. “They have a right to operate their property as they see fit, but that right ends when they penetrate our homes, and we can not escape that noise.”

Via Barkhaus/Facebook

Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) is addressing a key constituent concern — airplane noise — through the just-signed CHIPS Act.

The $280 billion bill is primarily focused on boosting domestic semiconductor manufacturing, but contains other scientific research provisions. Among them is wording from Beyer to “bolster NASA’s efforts to reduce emissions from the aviation industry while also reducing the impact of airplane noise in airport-adjacent communities.”

“Climate change and aircraft noise have always been two of the most consistent constituent concerns in my district,” Beyer said in a statement yesterday. “I wrote a bill to address both problems – the Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act – which President Biden just signed into law.”

The legislation “authorizes NASA to accelerate its work on electrified propulsion systems and the integration of multiple technologies and airframe concepts to achieve noise and emissions reductions,” Beyer’s office said in a press release.

The roar of jet engines from airliners arriving at and departing from National Airport has long been a concern of Arlington and Alexandria residents, particularly those who live along the flight paths near the Potomac River. Beyer has frequently pledged to address the noise issue from commercial airliners and military helicopters, writing letters to top federal officials about flight paths and attaching legislation to larger bills.

The full press release is below.

President Joe Biden yesterday signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law, which included the first NASA authorization passed by Congress in over five years. That section of the Act, Title VII of the science division, included the full text of Rep. Don Beyer’s Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act. Beyer chairs the House Science Committee’s Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics; he introduced the Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act to bolster NASA’s efforts to create the next generation of climate-friendly aviation while also reducing the impact of airplane noise in airport-adjacent communities.

“Climate change and aircraft noise have always been two of the most consistent constituent concerns in my district. I wrote a bill to address both problems – the Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act – which President Biden just signed into law,” said Beyer. “As the climate crisis continues to harm American communities, ensuring we are also tackling aviation emissions is vital. This piece of legislation does just that by making the necessary investments to develop the technology to make cleaner flight a reality in addition to driving innovation that would reduce aircraft noise pollution.” 

This legislation sets a goal for cleaner, quieter airplanes, accelerating NASA’s aeronautics work on reducing greenhouse gas and noise emissions. Specifically, this bill:

• Establishes the ambitious goal of commercial airplanes emitting 50 percent less greenhouse gas compared to the highest performing aircraft in 2021 as well as being net-zero by 2050.
• Challenges NASA to work with industry partners to carry out flight tests by 2025 that will enable industry to bring a new generation of more sustainable airplanes into service between 2030 and 2040.
• Authorizes NASA to accelerate its work on electrified propulsion systems and the integration of multiple technologies and airframe concepts to achieve noise and emissions reductions.
• Requires NASA to provide data and insight on new technologies to help the FAA’s work to ensure the safe and effective deployment of these technologies.

Text of the Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act is available here.

Should Alexandrians have the right to use gas-powered leafblowers to clear away their yards or are they a noisy nuisance that should be blown away?

Well, right now the city can’t ban them even if they wanted to, but the city’s legislative package includes a request for localities to get permission to prohibit the use of gas-powered leafblowers as both an environmental hazard and a nuisance for neighbors.

In a Waterfront Commission meeting last week, William Skrabak, deputy director for infrastructure and environmental quality, said it was probably unlikely that the city would even obtain that permission this year. But Skrabak said the goal is to start a conversation about the issue that could bear fruit down the road.

Photo via Philip Myrtorp/Unsplash

Alexandria is hoping to cut back on the noise nuisance from leafblowers and street buskers.

At a Waterfront Commission meeting last week, city staff discussed changes made to the noise code in December.

“[For busking] the only change is the same provisions in the business district are now city-wide,” said William Skrabak, deputy director for infrastructure and environmental quality.

Skrabak said the decibel standard actually loosened slightly for commercial properties, from 60 decibels to 65 at the property line until 11 p.m., but the main issue with noise in the city is lack of resources for enforcement.

“Our office is the only one with noise meters,” Skrabak said. “We do occasionally schedule measurements at night, but the one position that’s primary inspector position is currently vacant, so we’ve been struggling to fill that gap. We are hoping additional resources come out of the manager’s [budget]. I think that would have more of an impact than code changes if we have additional resources.”

Skrabak also said there’s been complaints to the city about noise levels from leafblowers.

“There is a lot of interest in our community about controlling leafblowers,” Skrabak said. “Leafblowers are inherently louder and more obnoxious than other equipment. Because of the Dillon Rule, we don’t currently have the legal authority to prohibit leaf blowers, but [the city] did include that in our legislative package — to start the process to get enabling legislation down in Richmond so localities could potentially [either] prohibit entirely or [require] an electric one, which is a little quieter.”

Skrabak said it was unlikely to be approved this year, but it at least gets the conversation started.

“We’re not optimistic we’re going to get it on the first try,” Skrabak said. “Sometimes these things take a couple of years and multiple localities to start pushing.”

Some on the Waterfront Commission said pushing for change on leafblower policy is long overdue.

“Electric leafblowers area no-brainer,” said Waterfront Commission member Patricia Webb. “We have to do that for the environment as well as noise and it should have been done years ago, but we also need to have quiet hours like most cities have, especially on Sundays and holidays. I don’t know how many times I’ve planned to have people out on the deck and we’ve had to go inside or elsewhere because someone is doing their self-help project… People just have no sense of decency anymore and we have to impose quiet hours for the well-being of people’s lives at home.”

Stephen Thayer said consternation around noise levels for street musicians comes in large part from “competing buskers” at the 100 block of King Street who perform until 11 p.m. and later.

But others argued that pushing for more resources to tackle busking and other noise issues was a heavy-handed approach to an overblown issue.

“Noise ordinance doesn’t take into account true noise or nuisance, like the quality of noise,” said Waterfront Commisioner Nate Macek. “It’s a flatfooted way of addressing this need. I would not personally support further resources in this area. I think it’s a fool’s errand and a waste of city resources and it’s the opposite of where we need to be headed as a city.”

The Waterfront Commission approved a recommendation that the city invests more heavily in enforcing noise ordinances, noting Macek’s objection.

It’s another beautiful, sunny day in Old Town where you occasionally can’t hear the person standing next to you speaking because an airplane from National Airport is flying directly overhead.

Sound familiar?

Airplane noise has been constant source of frustration in recent years for residents of Alexandria and neighborhoods in Fairfax just to the south. If you’ve complained that it seems like it’s gotten worse lately, the city confirmed that suspicion in a presentation for a meeting planned next Tuesday (Oct. 26).

“Aircraft take-offs (are) no longer staying over the Potomac River,” the report noted. “NextGen technology allows earlier turns, closer to the airport. FAA noise screening analysis showed an increase in noise for a few blocks in Alexandria. Fairfax County and Prince George’s County have similar noise issues.”

The city’s aim, according to the presentation, is to push that overhead airplane traffic toward the center of the river and further south.

“[The city objective is] to push the flight path to the east toward the center of the Potomac River, further away from the City,” the presentation said, “[and] reduce the number of early east and west turning movements before the Woodrow Wilson bridge.”

The presentation noted that City Manager Mark Jinks has been working with affected jurisdictions nearby — Prince George’s County and Fairfax County — to hire a consultant to study possible noise mitigation measures. The Study is $250,000 being split between the three jurisdictions.

Even so, the presentation warned that any potential fixes are still years way.

“Due to the long process, many stakeholders, and the backlog of flight path modifications under consideration by the FAA, it is expected that any proposed flight path modifications will not be reviewed and potentially changed for another two to three years,” the city said.

What a week in Alexandria. Here are some of the highlights.

The Alexandria City Council on Wednesday approved its Fiscal Year 2022 $770.7 million budget on Wednesday, and it includes a 2 cent real estate tax reduction. It’s the first time that’s happened in 15 years, and the budget also fully funds Alexandria City Public Schools’ request and includes a 1% raise for city and state employees.

But perhaps the biggest news of the week came with City Councilman Mo Seifeldein’s proposal to eliminate School Resource Officer funding from the budget. The effort was supported along by Vice Mayor Elizabeth Bennett-Parker, Councilman Canek Aguirre and Councilman John Taylor Chapman, who voted along with the group after failing to save the program in a last-minute effort.

Crime stories dominated many headlines, and Police Chief Michael Brown spoke with us this week about his department’s efforts to reduce destructive elements throughout the city. More from that interview will be published next week.

In this week’s poll, we asked about the importance of political endorsements for local candidates. Out of 222 responses, 48% (107 votes) don’t consider endorsements while voting; 39% (86 votes) said endorsements influence their decision; and 14% (29 votes) feel that endorsements hold a lot of sway.

Election stories

• City Council candidates clash on critical local issues, Part 1
• City Council candidates clash on critical local issues, Part 2
• NEW: Alexandria School Board shakeup looms as few incumbents have filed to run for reelection
• Election: Northam endorses Wilson for reelection
• Here’s which City Council candidates signed the new ‘Alexandria Constituents’ Bill of Rights’ pledge

Important stories

• COVID-19 update: 40% of residents got first vaccine shot, 29% got second shot
• Old Town dominated the city in 2020 business grant funding
• NEW: Man sentenced 41 months for targeting Alfred Street Baptist Church, journalists and others in ‘swatting’ conspiracy
• Developer JBG Smith joins J.P. Morgan Global Alternatives to own and manage 2 million square feet of Potomac Yard
• ACPS could adjust grades in recognition of COVID challenges
• West End man with history of violent behavior taken into custody
• Appeal to save North Ridge home takes fight to City Council
• Girlfriend of murder suspect arrested for breaking into home and beating up witness

Top stories

1. Parking issues plague Potomac Yard, city looks to create residential parking district
2. Knife pulled on woman who chases would-be thieves in Old Town
3. D.C. man arrested after 130 mph chase leads to crash on Interstate 495
4. Police: Armed robberies occur minutes apart in Del Ray and Arlandria
5. Two injured in hit-and-run in Old Town, driver leaves car and flees on foot
6. Too noisy? City Council is considering revising Alexandria’s noise ordinance
7. Alexandria City Council to end School Resource Officer program at Alexandria City Public Schools
8. Alexandria man arrested for firing gun at 7-Eleven door near Braddock Road Metro station
9. Here’s the order that City Council candidates will appear on the ballot for the June 8 democratic primary
10. JUST IN: Power outages across Alexandria as strong winds hit the city
11. What’s next for GenOn and the rest of Old Town North?

Have a safe weekend!

With noise complaints on the rise from residents throughout the city, the Alexandria City Council will consider an updated noise ordinance next month.

Following its adoption, the ordinance will then go out for public review throughout the summer.

“Excessive noise is one of the most prevalent causes of civic disputes,” Mayor Justin Wilson said in his May newsletter.

Council will make additional changes and vote on the matter in next year’s budget.

The creation of a new noise ordinance started in the fall of 2019, but was shelved by the pandemic. Last year, Police reported a total of 2,451 noise complaints, and the city’s Department of Transportation and Environmental Services reported a 55% increase in 2020, with 366 complaints.

“Following that adoption there will be new community engagement to prepare additional adjustments to the ordinance, as we attempt to balance the vibrancy of our business districts with protecting quality of life for our residents,” Wilson said.

Council will look at options on limiting noise in public places to 60 decibels (about the volume of a normal conversation) within 10 feet of a structure, and nothing louder than 65 decibels (about the volume of an average dishwasher) in a public place within 50 feet of a structure.

Additionally, the city is considering increasing fines to $50 to $100 for a first violation, $100 to $250 for a second violation, and $500 for all subsequent violations. Other proposed limitations include prohibiting “plainly audible” noise from residential areas from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. and increasing the allowable decibels in commercial areas from 60 dB to 65 dB.

The city will also consider hiring a “multi-tasked noise inspector” who would solely focus on noise complaints.

Chart via City of Alexandria

 

A local addition to the National Defense Authorization Act — a $740 billion bill approved through the House and Senate and headed to the White House — would require the Pentagon to establish a helicopter noise abatement group for the region.

Helicopter noise has long been a local complaint in Alexandria, perhaps second only in overhead noise controversy to sound coming from National Airport.

The amendment was sponsored by Rep. Don Beyer (D) would also require the Pentagon to establish a noise inquiry website based on the DCA’s complaint website.

“Since I took office, complaints about aircraft noise have been one of the most consistent sources of calls to my office,” Beyer said in an email. “We get calls about airplanes on approach and departure to and from DCA, and increasingly about military helicopters across the region, many of which fly in and out of Fort Belvoir. I had a town hall on the issue a few years ago in Fairlington, which has been particularly affected, and it was clear that people wanted ways to track and report noise complaints, and to have a forum for ongoing discussion about ways to mitigate that noise which would include input from the local community.”

While the bill has been approved by both chambers, a threatened veto over changing the names of bases named after Confederate leaders could still keep the helicopter noise solution from moving forward.

“With its adoption in the House we are now on track to get this enacted,” Beyer said. “Given the work that MWAA has already done in some of these areas it just makes sense for the Pentagon to look at what they have done, take what worked well, and make changes in areas that they could improve.”

A new noise ordinance could impose Old Town’s decibel limits citywide, but one local restaurant isn’t taking the news lying down.

Lost Dog Cafe, a popular restaurant at 808 N. Henry Street near the Braddock Metro station and part of a regional franchise, expressed frustration at the proposed limits on Twitter.

How about people who don’t like common City related noises stop living in a City? The current ordinance is the height of NIMBY and Anti-business. A handful of complainers ruining things for thousands of other residents and businesses @justindotnet @j_chapman99 @AlexandriaEcon https://t.co/8zFoO1kveu

— Lost Dog Alexandria (@LostDogCafeAlex) October 29, 2019

The ordinance would limit noise in public places citywide to 65 decibels (about the volume of a normal conversation) in a public place within 10 feet of a structure, and nothing louder than 75 decibels (about the volume of an average dishwasher) in a public place within 50 feet of a structure.

Other proposed limitations include new nighttime measures from 11 p.m.-7 a.m. that would prohibit audible noise from one residence that reaches another and commercial loading or unloading.

Lost Dog Alexandria owner Matthew Sisk told ALXnow that his main frustration was that many of the plans seem already predetermined by the time they reach public input.

“I think, in general, a lot of what the city puts out for changes to regulations… they don’t do a very good job of circulating that through the business community,” owner Matthew Sisk told ALXnow. “We get caught off guard by these changes with very little time to respond or [offer a] rebuttal.”

The city is currently collecting input on the changes, which are scheduled to go to the City Council for a vote early next year.

Sisk said he appreciated the need for noise ordinances, but said excessive noise complaints can sometimes lead to frustrations for businesses with any nighttime or outdoor activity. Noise was cited as one of the reasons for an outdoor dining ban in Old Town that lasted until 2000, according to the Alexandria Times. In Vienna, hookah bar Bey Lounge has been in a long legal struggle with nearby residents over noise complaints.

“I think the base reason for a noise complaint is good,” Sisk said. “Nobody wants people next door blasting music. But at decibel they’re putting out as the threshold it becomes a weapon for disgruntled residents to use against the city as a whole or specific businesses.”

If the new noise ordinance moves forward, Sisk said the city needs to work to balance managing legitimate noise complaints with the nuisance caused by frivolous noise complaints.

A few years ago, Sisk said he might not have been hopeful of that happening, but recently there have been signs of change.

“I’m happy to own a business in Alexandria, but Alexandria isn’t business-friendly,” Sisk said. “But I will give [City Council] credit, that’s changing slowly.”

Sisk praised responsiveness from city leaders like Mayor Justin Wilson, who responded to his complaints on Twitter.

You referring to the current ordinance, or the draft ordinance? If the draft ordinance, what portion has you concerned?

— Justin Wilson (@justindotnet) October 29, 2019

Sisk said he is still worried that too much work has gone into putting the noise ordinance together for the city to be willing to make changes, but that the direction the city government has been moving gives him hope for some responsiveness.

“You have people who still see it as a quiet town, but it’s an urban environment,” Sisk said. “The city is making advances and it’s getting better by the year. It’s better than it used to be.”

Photo via Lost Dog Cafe/Facebook