Always a Fun Day – PARK(ing) Day is Tomorrow – Check Out a Map Where You’ll Find Them

From DDOT:

“PARK(ing) Day is returning to the District of Columbia on Friday, September 18, 2015, from 9 am to 4 pm. District residents and businesses put their creativity on display for last year’s event, building more than 20 pop-up parks in curbside parking spaces.”

Photo courtesy of Casey Trees

From a press release:

“A global tradition started in 2005, PARK(ing) Day is an annual event that brings community leaders, artists, and activists together to transform metered parking spaces into temporary parks. This year, spearheaded by the Maryland/DC Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, Washington Parks & People, and the DC Council, the event will convert all 13 Councilmember parking spots in front of the John A. Wilson Building (1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW) to temporary parks on Friday, September 18 from 9:00AM-3:00PM.

PARK(ing) Day began in San Francisco with a single parking spot and has evolved into a global movement that calls attention to the need for more urban green space and to improve the quality of urban human habitat … at least until the meter runs out! Ward 6 DC Councilmember Charles Allen, who organized this year’s involvement by the DC Council, said, “It’s exciting to see the growth of PARK(ing) Day in the District. While individual DC Councilmembers have participated in PARK(ing) Day for several years, this is the first time the entire DC Council has joined together to celebrate green space and sustainability.”

The DC Council will host The Nature Conservancy, Washington Parks & People, and other participating organizations, including DC UrbanGreens, Living Classrooms Foundation, the Anacostia Watershed Society, and the Washington Area Bicyclist Association for the District’s largest involvement in PARK(ing) Day. The asphalt parking spaces will be transformed into DC’s newest “park” featuring ample seating for congregating, native trees and plants, and spaces for healthy outdoor fun, including a bicycle safety and maintenance demonstration at 11 am and yoga at noon. Exhibits will include an urban farm, a demonstration on the urban heat island effect and green infrastructure, a station for purified drinking water from the Potomac River, a robot programmed to pick up trash, and a rowing machine with a backdrop of the Anacostia River. Of course, bicycle parking will be available.”