via google maps
“Dear PoPville,
I’m reaching out as a resident of the 15th Street NE corridor, bordering ANC 6A06 and 7D06, to raise urgent concerns about public safety conditions that are deteriorating rapidly in a neighborhood made up largely of young families. Many with children under the age of five.
Over the past several months, and especially in recent weeks, our community has experienced escalating gun violence, open drug activity, and other dangerous conditions that are now part of daily life. Just this week, there were seven separate shooting incidents in a single night, between 10 PM and 4 AM. That followed a recent morning shooting at 8:30 AM, while children were walking to nearby Miner preschool and elementary school. Some had to run for cover inside their school building.
In addition to the gun violence, we are regularly witnessing:
Open drug use and dealing, particularly around the 700 block of 15th Street NE, near the Pentacle Apartments, and Preventative Measures clinic
Residents followed home and verbally threatened by individuals under the influence
Public urination and defecation on sidewalks and near homes and businesses
Reckless driving, including driving the wrong way on one-way streets, running stop signs, and crashes into parked cars
Furthermore, traffic safety near the local preschool and elementary school continues to be a serious problem. For more than five years, residents have been requesting basic traffic calming measures, to include the addition of speed bumps, better signage, and visibility improvements, to protect children who walk or bike to school.
Despite consistent community advocacy, those requests have not been met.
These are not isolated incidents, they are patterns that many families in our neighborhood are living with on a weekly and even daily basis.
We have raised these issues with MPD, ANC Commissioners, and Councilmembers. While we recognize that systemic issues like addiction, housing instability, and mental health require long-term solutions, there is an immediate need for a more coordinated and transparent public response.
Not only does our neighborhood boarder two Wards, we sit directly on the border of two MPD police districts — District 1 (PSA 104) and District 5 (PSA 507) — which has led to persistent gaps in communication and coordination. This divide has resulted in inconsistent crime reporting, with critical alerts not being shared promptly with residents or nearby schools. As a result, community members and school staff are often left unaware or unprepared during active incidents, undermining public safety and delaying appropriate responses. A more unified, cross-district approach is urgently needed to ensure no one falls through the cracks.
Our community needs:
Consistent, coordinated public safety presence
Access to and investment in local violence interruption and addiction treatment programs
Accountability and oversight for service providers like Preventative Measures
A plan for how families and children in this neighborhood can safely live, learn, and play
We are reaching out to the media because this deserves broader attention. What’s happening here is not sustainable, and families are growing more concerned by the day. It should not take this level of effort to address these consistently vocalized concerns. I am seriously concerned that this will not get the attention that is needed until someone’s children are fatally harmed by the above ongoing activities.”