Pleasant Plains

Final Community Meeting for 11th and Monroe Streets, NW Park and Bruce Monroe Interim Use Meeting Tonight

By Prince Of Petworth

From an email:

“Our third community meeting to discuss the improvements for the park at 11th and Monroe Streets park is a week away. Please mark your calendars for Wednesday, March 31, 7:00 pm, Mount Rona Church. We hope to use the feedback from this meeting to refine our design before putting the project out to bid.

Visit DPR’s website here for this project for information about prior meetings.”

The former school is located at Georgia Ave between Columbia Rd. and Irving Street, NW. We learned there would not be a parking lot on the site here. From an email:

“The Bruce Monroe Site Interim Use Subcommittee of the Georgia Avenue Community Development Task Force will meet with Councilman Graham, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, and the DC Office of Planning to disclose and discuss the community’s suggestions for use of the Bruce Monroe site. Please see the information below for the time, location and date of the meeting. Bring your neighbors with you.

What: Bruce Monroe Interim Use Plans
Where: Emergence Community Arts Collective, 733 Euclid Street, NW
When: Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Time: 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Who Should be There: Community Members, Businesses, Parents and Youth”

No Parking Lot For Old Bruce Monroe School on Georgia

By Prince Of Petworth

Last week a reader sent in word about a group, Stop the Lot, opposing a parking lot for the area bounded by Georgia Avenue, Irving Street and Columbia Road.

A reader sends an update from Council Member Jim Graham:

“The Deputy Mayor’s office has informed me that they will not recommend parking as part of the interim use for the former Bruce Monroe School site at Ga and Irving.

Therefore that idea is off the table.

We can now proceed to work with the Mayor and his people on an contributing design for interim uses for this location.”

So what do you think realistically could work in this location? I like the idea of what the Stop the Lot folks mentioned about a garden/park area like is being done at the old Gage School in LeDroit Park.

Good Deal or Not? “the value is here in the size and location” Edition

By Prince Of Petworth

This condo is located at 907 Euclid Street, NW:


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The flier says:

“WOW!Finally 1 bed units just off U St. for under $300K that has all the space your buyers are looking for. Stone, SS & all that jazz- the value is here in the size and location. A few blocks from the 11th St. party zone & all the new developments in Columbia Heights. Smart location for the saavy purchaser. other units avail. FHA coming.”

You can see more info and photos here.

I’m not sure this location is “just off U St.” but I don’t think the location is too bad. Do you think $279,450 sounds reasonable for this 1 bedroom/1 bath?

Dear PoP – More info on Bruce Monroe School Demolition

By Prince Of Petworth

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the current Bruce Monroe School Demolition schedule and proposed plans. A group has emerged opposing a parking lot. They write:

Dear PoP,

Demolition at the Bruce Monroe Elementary School (bounded by Georgia Avenue, Irving Street and Columbia Road) is now scheduled to be complete in late April. At a community meeting this week, the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development announced a proposal to convert the majority of the parcel into a surface parking lot for commuters, who are likely to be employees of one of the large employers on this side of town. The parking lot is to be an interim use, which the District says could last 3-5 years.

Many neighbors of the site think a surface parking lot, for however long, is a very bad idea. This will do nothing to benefit the community, will be harmful to the environment, and the revenue it raises — which the District would share — will not be targeted to any particular use in the neighborhood. By contrast, the Gage-Eckington School in LeDroit Park was nearly the same size as the Bruce Monroe parcel, demolition was begun at about the same time, and yet the residents of that community are about to enjoy a permanent 3-acre park with an urban vegetable farm.

The next community meeting on this topic is March 8. In the meantime, please help strengthen the opposition by visiting http://www.stopthelot.com to learn more and sign an online petition.

Pleasant Plains and Park View deserve better.

— The Stop the Lot Coalition

Does anyone actually support the idea of a parking lot here?

Update on Demolition of Old Bruce Monroe School on Georgia Ave

By Prince Of Petworth

You can see some photos of the school here. Darren Jones sent a great update on the Columbia Heights Listserv:

Councilman Jim Graham held a meeting about the Bruce Monroe School property on Tuesday, February 16, 2010. The meeting was well attended. Here is some of what we heard from the people from the Deputy Mayor’s Office.
Why hasn’t the school been torn down?
-Demolition was delayed because of asbestos problems.
-The Request for Proposal to build a new school closed on November 16, 2009 with no respondents.
What happens next?
-Demolition of the school should start within the next couple of weeks.
-Demolition will be complete by April 30, 2010.
-The site will be leveled and a new school may not be built for 3-5 years.
-Short-term uses for the property were discussed.
-A basketball court and a tennis court may be built of the front of the property (Georgia Avenue side).
-A parking lot may be built on the Irving Street side of the property. The parking lot will be used by industrial organizations (hospitals, etc.).
What was the community’s reaction?
-The community seemed to like the idea of a temporary tennis court and basketball court. -The community would also like to see a staffed, temporary structure on the property to provide supervision to kids using the site.
-The community was not in favor of a parking lot because of the congestion it would cause on Irving Street, the pollution and hassle it would create in the neighborhood.
When is the next meeting?
-The next meeting is on Monday, March 8. It will start at 7:00 PM. The meeting place will be announced soon and will be held at a location on/or near Georgia Avenue. It will be hosted by Councilman Graham and the Georgia Avenue Community Development Taskforce. Everyone is welcome to participate to try to finalize the short-term plans for the property and to give your ideas and voice your opinions. The Councilman and Deputy Mayor’s Office would also like to hear what you would like to see in a new Bruce Monroe Elementary School.

Darren Jones, President
Pleasant Plains Civic Association

More Cool New Street Lamps Going Up Around Town

By Prince Of Petworth

The one above is from H Street, NE and they’re actually tons of them. I think they look fantastic. I haven’t seen any of this style elsewhere in the city. I did see some more of the larger new ones going up on Georgia Ave near Howard though:

Dear PoP – Is This A Good Spot To Have a Family Vacation?

By Prince Of Petworth


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“Dear PoP,

My family and I are planning a visit to DC for the Cherry Blossom festival (my elderly parents, husband and 7 yr old daughter and myself). We found a great vacation rental at 619 Kenyon St, but are trying to figure out it is a reasonably safe neighborhood. The idea is to take the Metro in to all the museums and sights, but at the end of the day, have a spacious family hangout to come back to. All of the reading I’ve done so far suggests that it has not been a very safe neighborhood but is in the process of gentrifying. I know that in these cases (having lived in many “transitional” neighborhoods in my life), the specific location can make a big difference as to safety.”

This is a tough question. I do think the neighborhood of Pleasant Plains is safe. However, personally I don’t think it is ideal for a home base for elderly parents. I say that because while it is not impossible, it is not ideal to catch taxi cabs from this location. It is not terribly far from the Columbia Heights Metro Station at 14th and Irving but it is a bit of a walk. That is my only hesitation. But I’d like to throw it out to the others – what do you guys think – is this a good location for a vacation rental with elderly parents?

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