|
|
As summer continues, OP has been engaging with residents about design and planning in their neighborhoods. We’re excited to bring design options for new memorials in Wards 5 and 8 to you for your feedback. Learn more about our Commemorate DC program and how you can participate in shaping these plans below.
Sincerely,
Anita Cozart
Director, DC Office of Planning
|
|
Commemorate DC, OP’s initiative to honor local DC heroes with commemorative works in the neighborhoods they served, kicked off a series of design workshops at Bryant St Market in Ward 5 on July 24. A second will follow on August 1, from 4 to 7pm, at Sycamore & Oak in Ward 8.
We, along with the artists we’ve selected to design new memorials, want your input. In Ward 5, we’re honoring Sterling A. Brown – professor, poet, and champion of Black art and music. This work will be designed by Nessar Jahanbin and Eddie Harris of Treehouse DC. In Ward 8, we’re honoring Calvin and Wilhelmina Rolark – civil rights activists, journalist and lawyer. A work commemorating the Rolarks will be designed by Candice Taylor and Nabeeh Bilal of the Creative JunkFood studio.
Visit publicinput.com/commemoratedc to review design concepts, learn more about the artists and subjects, and to share your input.
|
Ward 5 Design Workshop at Bryant St. Market on July 24
Check out our Instagram post and this WUSA9 story for more scenes from the Ward 5 Commemorate DC design workshop.
|
|
|
OP, historic preservation organizations, residents, and elected officials have sought to collect and analyze data on DC’s historic districts, which cover more than a quarter of the District’s land area and nearly one in five DC residents. To accomplish this, we are conducting a study on the economic, social, and equity impacts historic districts have on our city. This project was designed and is being led by OP with funding and contract management support from the DC Preservation League. Research firm PlaceEconomics has been contracted to conduct data analysis and engagement with diverse stakeholders. The study will compare historically designated districts to non-designated portions of their respective wards and to the District as a whole. It will provide much needed insight into historic preservation and support public discussion about historic preservation’s role in DC 2050, the District’s next comprehensive plan. The study will be completed at the end of 2025, but we are reviewing and sharing preliminary findings throughout the course of the study.
Initial analysis has focused on establishing a data-driven baseline of DC’s historic districts.
- While 25.5% of DC’s land area is covered by historic designation, that area includes park/parkway districts and government and institutional districts (such as medical, school, and religious campuses), which can’t be developed. Residential historic districts make up 7.7% of DC’s land.
- These residential historic districts are home to 120,500 people and are both denser on average and less racially diverse than the city as a whole.
- Density of many residential historic districts mirrors the density found elsewhere in the ward, for example (as seen in the graph below), Ward 2 has 31 people per acre in historic districts and 30 people per acre on average in the rest of the ward. On the other hand, Ward 7’s Kingman Park has 31 people per acre, compared to 21 for the non-designated parts of the Ward.
- Just over one in three residents of historic districts are non-white, compared to two in three for non-historic districts. Even within majority-Black wards, some residential historic districts have a higher share of white residents. For example, Bloomingdale, Kingman Park, and Mount Vernon Square historic districts in Ward 5 are 45.5% white on average, while the undesignated parts of the Ward are only 25% white.
 Future components of the study will analyze topics including population change over time in historic districts, changes in economic growth and property value, and racial equity approaches in historic preservation across the country. Look out for more key findings in future OP newsletters and contact historic.preservation@dc.gov with questions about this work.
|
|
 |
|
Ka'Niya Cole is one of our Marrion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program interns, splitting her time between OP and the Department of Small and Local Business Development's Youth Entrepreneurship Program. She is doing much-needed data entry for our DC 2050 engagement and helping with creative work for the project like graphic design. |
 |
|
Zoe Goodwin, an archaeology grad student, is working with our archaeologists in the Historic Preservation Office. Zoe is especially interested in pre-contact archaeology, and her focus this summer is research into cultural and heritage resource management. |
 |
|
Calvin Macatantan is working with our Data Analysis and Visualization team. As a computer science/engineering and urban planning student, he's putting his skills to use on census data exploration and creating visualizations in Python. |
 |
|
Andrea Rodriguez is a Marrion Barry Summer Youth Employment Program intern, also part of the Department of Small and Local Business Development's Youth Entrepreneurship Program, and supporting Food Policy at OP. Andrea is conducting research for the central food processing project, helping to create a food jobs database, and updating workforce development resources. |
|
|
 Complete OP’s Designing Queer Futures Survey to share your ideas on inclusive, safe, and joyful spaces for queer people. As part of our work in developing the District’s next comprehensive plan, DC 2050, we are exploring how DC can support LGBTQ+ communities through inclusive public spaces, public art, housing, and more.
Learn more and get involved in our community planning projects:
|
|
|
Join us at the following events where OP staff will be available to answer questions and share information about OP’s work:
-
August 1 | Commemorate DC Ward 8 Design Workshop | 4 -7 PM | Sycamore & Oak, 1110 Oak Dr SE
-
August 9 | Anacostia Park Community Clean Up and Poplar Point Plan Pop Up | 10 AM – 12 PM | Marion Barry Jr Ave SE & Anacostia Dr SE
DC 2050 team facilitating interactive activities at DOEE’s Green Zone Environmental Program for young people participating in the Summer Youth Employment Program on July 25
Poplar Point Plan team tabling at the Anacostia Farmers Market on July 26th
|
|
|
|
|
