“Dear PoPville,
I wanted to share a concern about the park across the street, which many of us in the neighborhood love and use regularly. Renovation work started around July 2025 and then stopped pretty abruptly around August. For a while, there was no information about why the work paused, and eventually a rumor started circulating that human remains had been found. Later, the park’s newsletter confirmed that this was true.
Recently, on a day when the park was unexpectedly open and the construction barriers were down, my partner and I walked over to take a look. Near the areas where digging had been happening, we saw piles of dirt with visible human bone fragments mixed in.
These are the same piles that have been sitting there since the summer. They have been left exposed for months, through rain and snow, and I have even seen dogs running over them. There are no tarps or coverings on the piles at all.
This park used to be an important cemetery, and seeing human remains left out in the open like this feels deeply unsettling and disrespectful. Beyond that, many neighbors are uncomfortable with the idea of disturbed graves being left exposed for so long. And on a more everyday level, people also just miss having the park back as a cared-for community space.
1555 34th Street, NW
I don’t think most residents are aware of what the site actually looks like right now, and it feels important to share what’s going on. These were real people, and their remains deserve to be treated with care and dignity. I really hope the city steps in soon, either to properly secure the remains or to clearly communicate what the plan is, so this situation doesn’t continue indefinitely.
I’m sharing this to help raise awareness.
Some history on the park.”