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Our River: The Anacostia Anacostia Parks and Community Collaboration Throughout Anacostia By Bill Matuszeski
I
t is fascinating how people on both sides of the Anacostia River have resolved to work toward the restoration of the waters and adjacent lands using two very different approaches. Even more interesting is how each approach fits so well with the landscape, the history, the land uses, and the assets of each side. On the Capitol Hill side of the River, the traditional neighborhoods turned their backs on the pollution, the old industrial buildings and all else going on east of the freeways and the stadium, golf course and Arboretum. But once the River’s recovery began, there was a renewed interest in what could be done to clean away the old industries, build new stadiums, develop the area south of the Navy Yard with expensive houses, condos, apartments, stores and restaurants along the water – even yacht clubs! And now the effort is even moving across South Capitol Street and into Buzzard’s Point, a place ignored for many decades. On the other side of the River, in Anacostia, the effort to support the recovered waters and parks has been more complex, but has resulted in a Coming Up with Ideas – July 2021. Photo: Brenda Richardson cooperative effort to bring the River into the lives and neighborhoods of all who live near it without creating costs and conditions that force folks to move out. There are many challenges to bring the citizens of Anacostia into embracing the parks and the River as new and wonderful parts of their environment. Some are structural; the Freeway separates many neighborhoods from the parklands and provides few places to cross under. Some are historic; the River has acted as a barrier to cross to get to the main part of the city. Some are social, such as fears of being alone without access to help. But now there is an effort to overcome all these and other reasons that have kept the citizens of Anacostia from enjoying the open spaces and river activities and views. This effort is being carried out by a coalition of 32 organizations, which have formed the Anacostia Park and Community Collaborative, or Sunset from Anacostia. Photo: Danielle Burs 24
EASTOFTHERIVERDCNEWS.COM
APACC. Some are local, others city-wide, regional or even national. Formed in the middle of the last decade by ex-Mayor Anthony Williams and his colleague Doug Siglin, APACC has grown to engage its members in a wide range of activities to work
Anacostia Park And Community Collaborative – Membership Ward 7 (5)
East River Family Strengthening Collaborative Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens Groundwork Anacostia River DC Ward 7 Business Partnership Zion Baptist Church of Eastland Gardens
Ward 8 (7)
Anacostia Business Improvement District Anacostia Coordinating Council Fairlawn Citizens’ Association Far Southeast Family Strengthening Collaborative Historic Anacostia Block Association Ward 8 Woods Friends of Oxon Run Park
Wards 7 and 8 (3)
Akiima Price Consulting Community Preservation and Development Corporation Progressive National Baptist Convention Comm,Dev.Corp.
DC Anacostia Watershed (2) Building Bridges Across the River (11th Street Bridge Project) Living Classrooms – Kingman Island Entire Watershed (2)
Anacostia Riverkeeper Anacostia Watershed Society
DC-Wide (9)
Alice Ferguson Foundation The Conservation Fund DC Appleseed Center for Law and Justice Institute for Public Health Innovation Nature Bridge Neighborhood Legal Services Program Policy Innov. Lab McCourt Sch.of Public Policy, Georgetown Sierra Club DC Washington Parks and People
Region-wide (3)
Casey Trees Groundswell Urban Institute
National (2)
Audubon Naturalist Society Clean Water Fund
