The Ward 5 Report: Office of Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie

 

The Ward 5 Report:
Office of Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie
August 23, 2013

 

Ward 5 Highlights:

 

 

   

Councilmember McDuffie and Mayor Gray joined the family of the late “Godfather of Go-Go,” Chuck Brown, and other government officials break ground for the new Chuck Brown Memorial Park in Langdon Park. Additional pictures can be found here.

 

The Opening of the New Dunbar High School

 

This week, Councilmember McDuffie, along with Mayor Vincent Gray and other D.C. officials, cut the ribbon on a new state-of-the-art building that will serve as Dunbar High School. The new high school will support the students’ educational needs and foster a professional teaching community. The building houses four distinct learning academies, featuring technology-rich laboratories, classrooms and collaborative faculty workspaces.

Additionally, the new Dunbar High School will have a centrally-located media center with great views of Ward 5 and includes a performance theater, pool and a competition gym to provide enhanced programing. To see pictures of the new Dunbar High School, click here.

 

DDOT to Start Construction on the Rhode Island Avenue Pedestrian Bridge Project

 

Working with District Department of Transportation (DDOT), Councilmember McDuffie is proud to announce that construction has begun on the Rhode Island Avenue Pedestrian Bridge Project. The bridge will take approximately 16 to 18 months to complete and was designed with input from the community to provide a safe connection over the CSX railroad tracks from the nearby neighborhoods to the Rhode Island Avenue Metro Station and the Metropolitan Branch Trail (MBT).

The bridge design includes wheelchair and bicycle accessible ramps to enhance safety for all users and lighting features to allow for greater visibility. As part of the design, a stairway will be placed on the west side of the bridge to provide direct access to the Rhode Island Avenue Metro Station.

For more information and to follow the project's progress, please visit www.ddot.dc.gov.

 

Announcements

 

Join Councilmember McDuffie and other D.C Officials for the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington: DC Statehood March and Rally

On Saturday, August 24^th, citizens from across the country will converge upon the nation's capital to commemorate and celebrate the historic March on Washington, which occurred 50 years ago on August 28, 1963. In addition, Mayor Vincent Gray and partners will host a DC Rally for Statehood and Self-determination at 8:30 a.m. at the DC War Memorial. Immediately following the event, participants will march from the DC War Memorial to the Lincoln Memorial to join the main march. For more information, visit http://marchondc50.dc.gov/.

 

Time: Saturday, August 24th 2013| 08:00 a.m.

 

Location: D.C. World War I Memorial across Independence Avenue from MLK Memorial

 

Mistress of Ceremonies:

• Angela Rye - Principal, IMPACT Strategies (featured on MSNBC)

 

Guest Speakers Include:

• Roland Martin - Host and Managing Editor - Washington Watch with Roland Martin
• Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton
• Chairman Phil Mendelson – Council of the District of Columbia
• Carmen Berkley - Executive Director - Generational Alliance
• Melanie L. Campbell - President and CEO - National Coalition on Black Civic Participation
• Kimberly Perry - Executive Director - DC Vote
• Rashad Robinson - Executive Director - ColorOfChange.org
• Frank Smith - Former Councilmember - 50th Anniversary MOW, Committee

 

LGBT DC Health Link Summit

The DC Health Link (Health Exchange) and the Mayor’s Office of GLBT Affairs will host a LGBT Leadership Summit on Thursday, September 5th, at 6:30 PM, in Busboys & Poets, 2021 14th St., N.W., Washington, DC 20009. During the summit, LGBTQ community leaders and business owners will meet with experts to learn first-hand about the new health law. The summit will prepare residents, small business owners, and employees to navigate the new online marketplace in order to get facts about their rights and responsibilities, shop for coverage, and compare options side-by-side before choosing the plan that best meets their needs and budgets. After the summit, the leaders will be asked to share the information with their network of constituents.

 

Reminder: DCPS Beautification Day 2013

Beautification Day will be held this year on Saturday, August 24, 2013, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) event was established in 2005 as a citywide “spruce up” of all D.C. public school buildings in preparation for the first day of school. Beautification efforts will include landscaping, trash pick-up, light painting, planting flowers, and other external beautification efforts. Volunteers and supplies are needed at over 100 schools. To volunteer or donate supplies, visit www.dcps.dc.gov/DCPS/beautificationday.

 

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For more information, please visit www.kenyanmcduffie.com or contact our office at (202) 724-8028. Follow Councilmember McDuffie at twitter.com/CM_McDuffie and/or facebook.com/KenyanRMcDuffie.