East of the River Magazine – September 2021 by Capital Community News

SEPTEMBER 2021

E AST OF THE R IVER M AGAZINE S EPTEMBER 2021 NEXT ISSUE: OCTOBER 9

Buzzard Point special 12

Buzzard Point: Development’s Focal Point Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Vision by John Falcicchio Buzzard Point Rises by Michael Stevens

The Peculiar History of Buzzard Point by William Zeisel

Our River: The Anacostia / The New Frederick Douglass Bridge: What It is Bringing Us

IN EVERY ISSUE 04 46 47

by Bill Matuszeski

Darren Be Scheming / A Home: The Only Place That’s Right For Me by Darren Thompson

NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS 26

What’s on Washington The Crossword The Classiﬁeds

Changing Hands compiled by Don Denton

Ward 8 Woods Conservancy: Doing More Than Cleaning Up Trash by Catherine Plume Bulletin Board by Kathleen Donner

KIDS & FAMILY 40

Notebook by Kathleen Donner

EAST WASHINGTON LIFE 34

Ft. Dupont Ice Arena Reopens: After Months of Only Virtual Activity, Enthusiasts Flock to the Ice by Anthony D. Diallo

Capital Community News, Inc. Publisher of: Capital Community News, Inc. PO Box 15477, Washington, DC 20003 202.543.8300 www.capitalcommunitynews.com www.hillrag.com

ON THE COVER:

Ward 8 Woods Conservancy staff pull out rope, machinery, plastic and glass bottles and other trash from Fort Stanton Park. Photo: Amanda Joy Photographics

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YOUR COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER

EXECUTIVE EDITOR: Melissa Ashabranner • melissa.ashabranner@gmail.com MANAGING EDITOR: Andrew Lightman • andrew@hillrag.com PUBLISHER: Jean-Keith Fagon • fagon@hillrag.com Copyright © 2021 by Capital Community News. All Rights Reserved.

We welcome suggestions for stories. Send queries to andrew@hillrag.com. We are also interested in your views on community issues which are published in the Last Word. Please limit your comments to 250 words. Letters may be edited for space. Please include your name, address and phone number. Send Last Word submissions to lastword@hillrag.com. For employment opportunities email jobs@hillrag.com.

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COME FROM AWAY: CONCERT AT THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL

WHAT’S ON W A S H I N G T O N

Ford’s Theatre Society presents a one-night concert version of the Tony-nominated musical Come From Away on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, Sept. 10, at 6 p.m. (rain or shine). Members of the Come From Away company will star in this free, 100-minute concert in honor of the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Come From Away tells the remarkable true story of 7,000 stranded airplane passengers on September 11, 2001, and the small town in Newfoundland that welcomed them. The concert at the Lincoln Memorial marks the return of live performance for Ford’s Theatre and the first time since March 2020 that music from the musical will be performed publicly for a live audience in the United States. Tickets are not required. Cast of Come From Away, 2017. Photo: Matthew Murphy

HIRSHHORN’S “DRAW THE CURTAIN” WRAP BY NICHOLAS PARTY The first new artwork coming to the reopened Hirshhorn is one that greets you at the door...and from a block away. On Sept. 18, the building’s exterior will be completely wrapped in Swiss-born artist Nicolas Party’s largest artwork yet. Painted in the tradition of “trompe l’oeil,” a term that translates to “deceive the eye,” Draw the Curtain addresses themes of dupery and illusion and will ask you to consider what lies behind the façades of the buildings on the National Mall. The Hirshhorn Museum, at Independence Ave. and Seventh St. SW, is open daily from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. hirshhorn.si.edu. Initial artist design for the installation “Draw the Curtain” (2021) by Nicolas Party, commissioned by the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Courtesy of the artist.

GEORGE WASHINGTON PATRIOT RUN On Sunday, Sept. 26, all day, join Mount Vernon and patriotic participants around the country for a 10-miler and a 5K. These races are live and in-person, with a virtual option. The racecourse has been extended to include both lanes of a five-mile stretch of the GW Parkway from GW Parkway Circle to W. Boulevard Drive. They are currently planning to produce an event that looks as much as possible as it did before the pandemic. However, there is a possibility that some restrictions on the format of the race may be necessary to allow social distancing. Registration is $50 to $60, depending on when you register. No kids race this year. gwpatriotrun.enmotive.com.

AMYTHYST KIAH ON STRATHMORE’S PATIO STAGE With an unforgettable voice that’s both unfettered and exquisitely controlled, singer-songwriter Amythyst Kiah expands on the uncompromising artistry she most recently revealed as part of Our Native Daughters, an all-women-of-color supergroup whose Kiah-penned standout “Black Myself” earned a Grammy nomination for Best American Roots Song and won Song of the Year at the 2019 Folk Alliance International Awards. She appears, outdoors, on Thursday, Sept. 30 at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. on The Patio Stage at Strathmore. Tickets are purchased by the table at $152 to $192 for up to four people. strathmore.org. Amythyst Kiah appears on Thursday, Sept. 30 at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. on The Patio Stage at Strathmore.

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WHAT’S ON WASHINGTON

DC’S FRIDAY JAZZ & MONDAY BLUES Jazz Night in DC is every Friday and Blue Monday Blues is every Monday, 6 to 9 p.m. at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 400 I St. SW. Here’s the September jazz lineup: Sept. 3, A Brad Collins Experience; Sept. 10, John Lamkin Quintet; Sept. 17, Homecoming Celebration; Sept. 24; Alison Crockett & Friends. Here’s the September blues lineup: Sept. 6, Bobby Felder’s Blues Brothers; Sept. 13, 15th Blue Monday Blues Anniversary Jam Session; Sept. 20, Shirleta Settles & Friends; Sept. 27, Swampdog Blues. $10 cover, cash or credit. Children are welcome and free under 16. Reasonably priced meals offered. westminsterdc.org. Westminster also invites you to their annual Jazz Preservation Festival on Saturday, Sept. 26, all day, featuring a different set of musicians every hour, art exhibits, vendor sales, health screenings and information. Food served all day. Free admission. No rain date; inclement weather takes all activities indoors.

MARYLAND SEAFOOD FESTIVAL The 53rd annual Maryland Seafood Festival at Sandy Spring State Park on Sept. 25 and 26, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. (both days), is a tasty and entertaining tradition, with music, great food, chef demonstrations, exhibits, arts and crafts, and the 30th annual Crab Soup Cook-off. The festival also features an interactive kids’ zone. This family-fun and feasting event draws visitors from across the mid-Atlantic region. A portion of the proceeds goes toward local non-profit organizations. General admission is $10 to $15 (kids free); parking, $10. Tickets are available online and at the gate. mdseafoodfestival.com.

ABOVE: Lyle Link of Homecoming Celebration performs on Sept. 17.

DOÑA ROSITA LA SOLTERA (DOÑA ROSITA THE SPINSTER) AT GALA

FALL FESTIVALS RETURN The H Street Festival, between Third and 14th Streets NE, returns on Sept. 18, noon to 7 p.m. The festival, which features 15 stages of international, national and local music, is one of the most anticipated and highly attended street festivals in town. hstreetfestival.org. ... DC’s Original Live Over-Night Arts Festival returns to Shaw on Saturday, Sept. 25, 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. Three-story video projections, a parade led by female drum troupe Batala Washington, DC, step dance performances by Step Afrika, do-it-yourself acrylic and watercolor painting, a fashion show, dance parties, cabaret performances, new mural unveilings, live painting by noted dc artists, and much more will fill the festival's eight hours. Art All Night DC in Shaw events are free and open to the public, and no reservations or tickets are required. The Art All Night DC Shaw welcome center, at Seventh and R Streets NW, includes an outdoor art market and live performance stage. Photo: Alexander M. Padro, courtesy Shaw Main Street.

DR. FAUCI AND THE NEW NORMAL From day one of the Covid pandemic, Anthony Fauci has been front and center in the fight to destroy the virus. After a brief respite, the virus, in a mutated form, has created a new crisis. Join the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases as he helps us understand—from a scientific viewpoint—where we have been and what we need to know going forward. For more than a year, we dealt with shutdowns, stay-at-home orders, and bans on public gatherings. Pandemic weariness set in just about the time several vaccines were introduced. But we are not the same as we were in early 2020. On Wednesday, Oct. 13, 6 to 6:45 p.m., in a wide-ranging conversation, he reminds us that it’s time we try and figure out what comes next. This is part of the Smithsonian Associates Streaming Series. $25. Tickets are at smithsonianassociates.org.

Dr. Anthony Fauci. Photo: Courtesy of Smithsonian Associates

When is an unwed woman considered a spinster and by whom? At first glance, Doña Rosita la soltera is a romantic drama, pitting romantic idealizations against possibilities, both celebrating and mourning the depth, breadth, and evolution of love. But it is also a frank and ruthless study of the treatment of Spanish women in three different parts of Spain’s history, each echoed in the snapshots of Doña Rosita’s life as she waits for her fiancé’s return. Now considered a classic piece of Spanish literature, Lorca’s scathing social commentary on the hypocrisy of gender inequality was revolutionary for his time, and GALA strives to capture the spirit of early Spanish feminism in this production exploring love, societal expectations, and betrayal. $48; $35 for military and seniors. On stage at GALA Hispanic Theatre, 333 14th St. NW, from Sept. 9 to Oct. 3, in Spanish with English surtitles. Full vaccination (or recent negative test) and mask required. galatheatre.org.

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WHAT’S ON WASHINGTON

ACM PRESENTS EXHIBITION ON DC REGION’S FOOD JUSTICE ISSUES A popular wellness maxim is “you are what you eat.” Yet across the nation and region, a staggering number of people struggle to find their next meal despite an overabundance of food—a reality that has only worsened with the COVID-19 pandemic. The Anacostia Community Museum’s powerful outdoor exhibition “Food for the People: Eating and Activism in Greater Washington” on view through Sept. 17, 2022, asks people to confront this reality by meaningfully considering where their food comes from: who produces, processes and prepares it; who has access to it; and what impact it has on the public’s collective health. Presented on the museum plaza at 1901 Fort Pl. SE, the exhibition has recently been joined by a companion indoor exhibition. anacostia.si.edu. Mitch Snyder (center) and members of the Community for Creative Non-Violence (CCNV) ran free health clinics, soup kitchens, and shelter housing in DC during the 70s and ‘80s, After dramatic protests, CCNV and Snyder became nationally known as advocates for ending homelessness and reducing food waste in the nation’s capital. Groups like CCNV were precursors to organizations such as DC Central Kitchen and DC Greens that are addressing food insecurity now worsened by the pandemic. Photo courtesy of the Special Collections Research Center, The George Washington University Library

JAZZ PRESERVATION FESTIVAL

BECOMING DR. RUTH AT THEATER J (AMERICA’S FAVORITE SEX THERAPIST RETURNS)

Westminster Presbyterian Church, 400 I St. SW, invites you to their annual Jazz Preservation Festival on Saturday, Sept. 26, all day, featuring a different set of musicians every hour, art exhibits, vendor sales, health screenings and information. Food served all day. Free admission. No rain date; inclement weather takes all activities indoors. westminsterdc.org.

Don’t miss this triumphant and life-affirming story of a woman who found her own unique place in the world. Before she became America’s favorite sex therapist, Dr. Ruth Westheimer had to flee Germany in the Kindertransport, become a sniper in Jerusalem, and survive as a single mother in America. Naomi Jacobson, who earned a Helen Hayes Award nomination for the role in 2018, returns to Theater J for an unforgettable, heart-warming evening of theater. At Theater J, 1529 16th St. NW, from Sept. 30 to Oct. 24. Mask and full vaccination required. theaterj.org.

SUNDAY YAPPY HOUR AT WUNDER GARTEN Sunday is a special day for pups and their humans at Wunder Garten where Yappy Hour takes place from noon to 3 p.m. Dog owners who bring their dogs will enjoy $5 select beers, Brewery Bones Treat Flights ($15) and complimentary Pupucinnos. The year-round Wunder Garten, inspired by the beer gardens of Germany, opened in 2015 as a pop-up beer garden that quickly became a cornerstone of the NoMa neighborhood. Wunder Garten, at 1101 First St. NE, has a carefully curated selection of German and craft beers and a well-regarded wine and liquor selection. wundergartendc.com. Photo: Courtesy of Koda The Lab (IG @ koda_thelab1014)

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Buzzard Point

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Buzzard Point: Development’s Focal Point Mayor Muriel Bowser’s Vision by John Falcicchio

ight at the convergence of the Potomac and Anacostia Rivers sits Buzzard Point. Mayor Bowser’s vision for Buzzard Point is a community filled with housing opportunities, dynamic parks, restaurants, retail options, small businesses, an improved multi-modal transportation system and more. As Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, my office is charged with making this vision a reality with District residents top of mind. We’ve already made progress. In 2018, we cut the ribbon on Audi Field, the home of DC United, bringing jobs for DC residents and delivering on our commitment to building pathways to the middle class in neighborhoods across all eight wards. We’re also proud to support entrepreneurs that step up to help us build a more inclusive and diverse economy. That’s why we awarded $340,000 to DC Central Kitchen through our Neighborhood Prosperity Fund. This will help them complete and open a retail café, production kitchen and office space so they can provide the healthy food and job training opportunities that our community needs right in Buzzard Point. There’s plenty more work to do. The opening of the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, a month ahead of schedule, is a huge step forward for our city. The $440 million project, which represents the largest construction project in the history of DC, will help us build an even more connected city where residents on both shores of the Anacostia are sharing in the economic prosperity the bridge will bring. The Office of Planning is currently developing a flood resilience strategy that would protect Buzzard Point and surrounding areas from flooding due to extreme rain events. We’re looking forward to making much needed infrastructure investments in flood resilience work to benefit the entire neighborhood. There’s also Mayor Bowser’s bold goal of creating 36,000 new housing units across the District by 2025, 12,000 of them affordable. This year, the May-

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or also invested $400 million in the Housing Production Trust Fund. With this investment and hard work by our housing partners, our ambitious goal to equitably distribute affordable housing across the city is getting closer to fruition than ever before. Without a doubt, Buzzard Point will help us get there, changing the trajectory for residents for years to come. With the homes of the Nationals and D.C. United, businesses of all types and an active shoreline that offers unparalleled attractions and amenities, this is where Washingtonians will continue to live, work and play. It’s where you’ll see me at my favorite restaurants: the Point and the Perch. We’ll continue working side-by-side with existing neighbors and stakeholders to ensure that the vision for the future of Buzzard Point doesn’t leave them behind, but adds to their ability to thrive right in their neighborhood. As we continue to implement policies and programs that create strong neighborhoods, expand and diversify the economy and provide residents with pathways to the middle class, Buzzard Point will always be a focal point. John Falcicchio serves as the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. He has also served as the Mayor’s Chief of Staff since the start of her Administration after volunteering as a campaign advisor and director of Mayor-elect Bowser’s transition. Falcicchio previously served as a Senior Vice President of DKC, a New York based public relations firm; as a Regional Political Director for the Democratic National Committee during the re-election of President Obama; and as a long-time aide to former Mayor Adrian Fenty. As Deputy Mayor, Falcicchio oversees the District’s portfolio of real estate development projects that drive economic development in communities and deliver affordable housing, jobs and amenities to residents. Those projects include the transformative developments at the St. Elizabeth’s East Campus, the Parks at Walter Reed and Hill East as well as dozens of other projects across all eight Wards. u

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Buzzard Point Rises by Michael Stevens

ike much of the Capitol Riverfront neighborhood, Buzzard Point is undergoing a substantial transformation from a former industrial backyard of DC to a growing mixed-use subarea of this riverfront community. Buzzard Point is yet another chapter in the “proof of concept” that residents want to live on or be proximate to the water if given the opportunity. Imagine 10 years from now driving across the Frederick Douglas Memorial Bridge towards Capitol Riverfront and seeing a new neighborhood to your left on the banks of the Anacostia. The bridge is actually bracketed by new buildings as the old Florida Rock concrete plant site to the right has been completed with an office building and either a new hotel or residential building. You will see the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail along the river’s edge pass under the bridge and connect the SE portion of Capi-

tol Riverfront to its SW companion – Buzzard Point. You will also be greeted by the Memorial Oval, a 4+ acre open space that offers active lawn space suitable for concerts, movies, and other activations, and will one day be home to a new national memorial or monument. The oval offers much needed “green relief ” and stunning views of the US Capitol for residents on both sides of South Capitol Street, and a premier business address for new offices that can front on the oval. Potomac Avenue, SW offers the best access into the Buzzard Point neighborhood and your view is immediately captured by Audi Field, home to the DC United soccer team. The stadium has also become the hub for a variety of programming and community activities for the surrounding neighborhood. Potomac Avenue is lined with residential and hotel buildings that offer ground level neighborhood support retail.

Watermark apartments which delivered in 2020. Photo: Courtesy of Capitol Riverfront BID

South of Potomac Avenue has become a high density, mixed use neighborhood as was envisioned in the Capitol Overlay Zoning District and the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative (AWI) Framework Plan. The DC Office of Planning also developed the Buzzard Point Urban Design Framework Plan that envisioned and planned for a new riverfront neighborhood. While residential is the dominant land use with approximately 6,000 units having been built, there are also hotels and office uses, with more restaurants, retail and a grocery store planned to serve Buzzard Point residents and the neighborhoods immediately to the north. It is a compact and walkable neighborhood that ties into the walking/biking paths of the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail network.

A panoramic view of Buzzard Point at complete build-out. Rendering courtesy of Capitol Riverfront BID

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bp destrian alleys. It also includes two levels of underground parking. As a peninsula, Buzzard Point overlooks the confluence of the Anacostia River, the Potomac River, and the Washington Channel. The National Park Service lands at the southern tip have been reimagined and will be constructed as a public park that allows residents and visitors unparalleled views of the water and access to it through a pier with canoe and kayak launches. The rivConstruction of The Verge, a 344-unit apartment building at erwalk trail will pass S and Half Sts. SW. through the park and encourages its usThe Stacks ers to stop and adBuzzard Point is currently anchored mire the park’s setting and views. It is by Audi Field, the old Pepco generathoped that at some point the riverwalk ing plant and its three smokestacks, and trail can be extended over the river adthree new residential buildings. But an jacent to Ft. McNair for a more direct exciting new mixed-use project approconnection to the Wharf and beyond. priately named “The Stacks” will soon What is the reality of all the develbreak ground and become an identifiopments described above? Very real and able destination in its own right. The a trip to today’s Buzzard Point will reStacks will be constructed in two phasveal a neighborhood that has already es, with Phase I starting in the 1st quarachieved a visible presence and footter of 2022. The project will contain print with more to come. Today Buzover 2.2 million SF of new construction zard Point is home to three new residen– similar to the 1st phase of the Wharf, tial buildings that contain over 1,000 with each phase having approximately residential units: 1.1 million SF. • Watermark (1900 Half Street, SW) Phase I Mix: This phase contains – an apartment building by Doug1,100 residential units, a 184-room holas Development has 453 units and tel, 40,000 SF of retail, 12,000SF of cothe Eagle Academy public charter working space, and a new park space on school. V Street (9,000 SF). • Peninsula 88 (88 V Street, SW) – Phase II Mix: This phase contains a 110-unit condominium building additional multi-family, a larger office by Capital City Real Estate. component, and a hotel. • RiverPoint (2121 1st Street, SW) – The Stacks was designed to be a a 480-unit apartment building by more pedestrian scale with tight urban Western Development and Akridge spaces and an inviting 1st Street and pethat is also home to The Point res16

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taurant and the future headquarters location for the DC Central Kitchen facilities. MRP is currently constructing the Verge, a 344-unit apartment building located at 1800 Half and S Street, SW. This side of Buzzard Point will see construction over several years after the concrete and rock crushing facilities are moved. Florida Rock, MRP and Steuart Investments have a combined 2+ million square feet of development rights for their sites with frontage on the river and the memorial oval. They envision a mix of uses – residential, retail and office – with an active engagement of the riverfront and S Street, SW serving as a major pedestrian entry from the riverwalk trail into those projects. The first phase of this large project will be SQ662 that will include residential and substantial ground floor retail. This development partnership realizes the importance of creating a vibrant engagement of the river frontage, creating a new public square that becomes a focus for community gathering, and enhancing the neighborhood support retail for the community. The new Cambria Hotel has opened at 69 Q Street, SW with 154 rooms, a full-service restaurant and a rooftop bar. The site directly south of

the Cambria that is bounded by Potomac Avenue, 1st Street, Q Street, and Half Street is owned by Toll Brothers and preliminary plans have the site being developed with a 400+ apartment units, a 150+ room hotel, and approximately 20,000 square feet of retail. PN Hoffman is developing the large parcel directly east of Audi Field (Parcel B) and it is now going through review with the city. They are proposing a two-building complex that will contain 110 affordable seniors units, another 352 apartment units of which 8% will be affordable, ground floor retail, and the new headquarters office for Volunteers of America, a nonprofit that will move to DC from Alexandria. The development of any new high density neighborhood like Buzzard Point always raises questions and opportunities. Some items that are still being discussed by the DC Office of Planning, ANC6D, the Capitol Riverfront BID, and DPMPED include the following: Transportation Infrastructure – being .8 miles from both the Waterfront and Navy Yard/Ballpark Metro stations, accessibility remains a concern. The BID is looking at shuttle strategies with DDOT and emphasizing micro-mobility tactics for the neighborhood. Several

Studio MB and Hoffman Development are working on the design of Parcel B next to Audi field.

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SIGN UP FOR YOUR FREE SMALL BUSINESS WORKSHOP TODAY For existing and aspiring District businesses - the Small Business Resource Center is here for you!

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partners are working to keep the Metro Bus Line #74 service in place. Community/Civic Facilities – Capitol Riverfront BID is working with DCOP to see what civic/community facilities are needed to serve the neighborhoods and how they can be achieved through public/private partnerships. Park Space – work is ongoing between NPS, the BID, Buzzard Point owners, and the city to achieve funding for the design and construction of the NPS Buzzard Point park. The BID is encouraging DPR and DDOT to properly maintain and program the new oval space, and the Steuart/FRP/ MRP projects offer opportunities for new access to the river, a continuation of the riverwalk trail, and the creation of a new public square. River Accessibility – access to the river is important through the riverwalk trail, new pier/dock facilities for the public, and the NPS park. Neighborhoods like Buzzard Point do not emerge overnight; they involve years of planning, public investment, and a private sector response. We are now beginning to see the initial projects and the opportunities for more living options and riverfront access. It involves public/private partnerships to achieve the many elements that make a “complete” neighborhood. But once again, a stadium anchored neighborhood with waterfront access is showing signs of being discovered and previous industrial lands are being put to productive use. Michael Stevens, AICP is President of the Capitol Riverfront BID. The Capitol Riverfront BID is a 501©(6) nonprofit that provides a range of place management services including a Clean Team presence, strategic planning and economic development activities, community building events, and marketing/PR services on behalf of a 500-acre new growth neighborhood located 5 blocks south of the US Capitol and with approximately 2 miles of riverfront. ◆

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The Peculiar History of Buzzard Point by William Zeisel

ABOVE: Buzzard Point and surroundings, 1901. This detail from a panorama published by John L. Trout shows Buzzard Point divided by the James Creek Canal into a western side, with the Arsenal (Fort McNair) and Southwest waterfront, and an eastern side, green and thinly populated south of P Street. Image: Library of Congress

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uzzard Point’s current status as Washington’s newest hot property belies its peculiar history. For nearly two centuries its main attraction was the US Arsenal, now Fort Lesley J. McNair, which manufactured arms and was the venue for the hanging of the Lincoln assassination conspirators. Next door was a factory that boiled animal carcasses for fertilizer. How Buzzard Point went from making weapons and cooking horses to kicking goals at Audi Field requires a walk along one of history’s less-traveled paths.

A Foreign Land A newspaper story from the Washington Evening Star in 1906 offers a good starting point. “Way down at the foot of 1st Street Southwest, in that part of the city known as Buzzards Point, lies a hideous desert of ashes and tin cans—the dump.” With that vivid prose, an intrepid Star reporter began his description of one of the city’s largest and least known public facilities. He assumed that his readers knew nothing about the Point, a large expanse bounded on the west by the broad Potomac River, on the east by the narrower Anacostia, and on the north by the area around P Street. A sluggish, marshy stream, James Creek, divided the terrain into a western side, dominated by the Arsenal, and an eastern side that was home to a scattered, racially mixed population. Like an explorer, he detailed astonishing

sights to his readers, who were perhaps a prosperous white couple perusing their Evening Star after a dinner prepared by their African American cook. “A fringe of ramshackle huts guards the northern approach,” he continues, “and at the foot of this barren, tomato-can cemetery the river ripples and smiles in the sunlight.” The denizens of this burned over land were poor African Americans, who scratched livings from the bits of metal, leather, and fabrics they gleaned from the piles of municipal trash dumped each morning. “Hovering around each vehicle as it is unloaded -- in all verity like winged scavengers for which the point is named—may be seen a score or more negroes, old and young, armed with hoes, rakes, sharp sticks, bags, boxes and push carts, ready to swoop down upon each load of debris.” Several hundred words later, the reporter closed his notebook and led his readers from this strange, outlandish place. While readers may have found the Evening Star’s article enlightening, the city’s police knew Buzzard Point all too well as one of the most dangerous parts of town. “Bloodfield,” which stretched from Virginia Avenue to the river and Buzzard Point, was notorious during the 1870s and 80s as “the scene of the fiercest fights, the foulest murders and the darkest crimes in the city’s history,” according to a later newspaper account. By the mid-1890s it had become peaceable and law-abiding, but in the rest of Buzzard

Point the officers of the Fourth Precinct who patrolled at night feared for their safety.

A Path to Nowhere Buzzard Point offered a more promising prospect decades earlier, however, when Washington formally opened as the nation’s capital in 1800. The fertile land and extensive shorefront, with beautiful views from high bluffs, begged for development as a town and harbor. In 1770, years before the national capital opened for business, Charles Carroll Jr. sold lots for his town of Carrollsburg, on the Anacostia shore of the point. Though the town never materialized, Washingtonians began to settle there. Ferry-boat operator Capt. Joseph Johnson bought one of the lots and ca. 1800 built a fine brick house on T Street, just to the east of Half Street, that survived until the 1940s. Not far from Johnson’s house Capt. James Barry constructed one of the city’s earliest Catholic churches, in 1806, at the northwest corner of Half and P streets. Buzzard Point’s sure-thing future did not pan out, however. As the century unfolded, the demographics favored other areas of the city, and with the population flow went wealth and economic development. To the north, Connecticut Avenue and nearby streets began pulling residents and businesses north of the Mall. To the east of Buzzard Point, another center of wealth and population arose around the Navy Yard, soon to become the city’s largest single industrial enterprise and employer. The railroad, when it reached the lands south of the Mall in 1872, passed close to the Navy Yard but skirted north of Buzzard Point and headed up Virginia Avenue toward the Mall. It would not enter Buzzard Point until many decades later. The unkindest cut of all came with the rise of the Southwest water-

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Buzzard Point’s semi-pro baseball team, 1926. The Oriental Tigers were champions of the city’s “colored” league in 1927-30. During the championship years their home ﬁeld was on the Point, at South Capitol and P streets, literally a long home run away from today’s Nationals Park. Photo: DC Public Library, Special Collections, Joseph Owen Curtis Photograph Collection

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front as the city’s main harbor. Buzzard Point’s shorefront on the Anacostia experienced constant silting-up, and the lucrative waterfront trade developed mainly on the Potomac side, today’s Southwest Waterfront, where roads like 13th Street, 12th Street, and 6th Street led to the growing, and affluent, neighborhoods south and north of the Mall. Buzzard Point became a Nowheresville. Lacking compelling assets except the cheap-

ness of its land, it drew low-rent enterprises like brickyards, orchards, celery farms, the animal recycling plant, and the dump.

The Canal The poster child of the point’s fate was the James Creek Canal, dug in the bed of marshy James Creek to provide better water transport for local businesses. Construction began in the 1860s and by the 1870s had created a

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Women culling peanuts at the Vegetarian Food and Nut Co. on Buzzard Point, 1921. At its plant on South Capitol Street, the company made Dr. Schindler’s peanut butter, sold as a health food in grocery stores throughout the city. Photo: Library of Congress

shallow, narrow, bulkheaded channel that reached north to G Street SW. It attracted businesses dealing in lumber, sand, and fertilizer, served by small sloops and barges moved by steam tugs. Bridges carried city thoroughfares across waters fouled with sewage and dead animals. The large girders framing the bridge at M Street SW made it a favorite ambush place for muggers. The canal soon gained fame as a danger to the unwary, who fell or stumbled into it with remarkable frequency. A newspaper story in 1902 estimated that in its brief history the canal’s waters had consumed some 300 human lives. Complaints by residents to clean up the ill-smelling canal and fence off its steep shores led to a gradual paving over, completed around 1930. Today the canal and the original creek are out of sight and mind.

Destiny Fulfilled? Buzzard Point’s odd historical path — almost-boom and then mostly bust— came full circle during the 21st century as intense real estate development at the Navy Yard and Southwest Waterfront raised land values and diminished the acreage available for more development. The Point’s underdeveloped spaces drew increasing attention, enhanced by the buzz of a baseball park and a soccer stadium. It also did not hurt that Washingtonians had rediscovered the joys of shorefront living. Today’s Buzzard Point has it all: shorefront, views, and proximity to the corridors of power. Once properly groomed and manicured, it may even gain cachet. It’s a sure thing ‒ again. Southwest resident William Zeisel is a partner in QED Associates LLC, a consulting firm that has conducted extensive research on the history of the DC area. He is co-author of the official history of the University of the District of Columbia. ◆

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bp / Our River: The Anacostia /

The New Frederick Douglass Bridge What It is Bringing Us by Bill Matuszeski

e have all for the past year or so watched as those impressive arches were built and extended to carry South Capitol Street over the Anacostia on a new Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge. Each time we have taken the old bridge and looked over something more has appeared – cables, struts, whathave-you. But now the effort is reaching a new point where the deck will be opening to the public this fall. What remains to be done? The basic deck elements – girders, floor beams, deck panels, etc. – have been delivered, installed and checked. The final phase involves lighting, painting and signage for navigation along six lanes of roadways, three in

each direction; active information systems for wireless communication and notification of emergencies; and markers and safety railings and overlooks for the two eighteen-foot-wide separated hiking and biking paths (eight and ten feet widths respectively on each side of the bridge). Also to be completed are the drainage and standpipe systems to handle precipitation, coatings and other repair to visual scars, final cable adjustments, concrete overlays, pavement markings, and bike and pedestrian lane lines. There is also considerable work relatFinal Beam #2 Going into Place. Photo: newfrederickdouged to access to the bridge, some of which lassbridge.com will probably take until winis essentially the kick-off of a nearly billion-dollar ter to complete. This investment in improvements by the DC Departincludes the traffic ment of Transportation along the lower Anacostia. ovals at each end of the The near-term plan has two phases with a total of bridge, pedestrian acfive segments. cess through connecPhase 1 is comprised of Segment 1, the Bridge tions to river walks and replacement and the construction of connecting trails and the riverfront roads and the two traffic ovals, one at each end; Segesplanade, and access ment 2 is a new Suitland Parkway interchange with lane layout approachI-295. Total estimated cost is $600 million. Phase ing the ovals at each 2 is made up of Segment 3, a new Suitland Parkway end of the bridge. Fiinterchange with MLK Avenue; Segment 4, a rebuild nally, there will need to of South Capitol Street from Independence Avenue be a plan and schedule to the Bridge; and Segment 5, a new streetscape for for the removal of the New Jersey Avenue. Total Phase 2 estimated cost is existing bridge once the $300 million. For helping to restore the Anacostia new one is in operation. River, the new Bridge is the key effort among all this. So where we need to put our attention now is Improvements on the emergence of this remarkable and stunningAlong the Lower ly beautiful new Douglass Bridge over Our River, Anacostia and how to maximize its contribution to the AnaPerhaps most surpriscostia restoration and beyond. This has been part Old and New Frederick Douglas Bridges. Photo: Bill Matuszeski ing is how this project

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Overview of the New Frederick Douglas Memorial Bridge. Photo: newfrederickdouglassbridge.com

of the thinking behind the new bridge and associated projects from the very beginning. As noted by Everett Lott, Interim Director of the District Department of Transportation in this spring’s issue of the quarterly Progress Report on the bridge project, “We recognize stories of success, partnership and persistence that brings to life our District’s commitment to building the bridge between cultures, communities and people – through it all, in every season.” A key part of this is the accommodation of the range of hikers and bikers who will want to use the new bridge to facilitate their routes to and from and along the riverfront. It will also provide impetus for the extension of trials along the River as redevelopment continues on Buzzard Point in Southwest. The bridge itself will provide the first split-use pathway for hikers and bikers in DC, both safely protected from motor vehicles and each other. And there will be four scenic overlooks for shared use. Start making plans now for some trips along the River that take advantage of all this! One of the most interesting and challenging elements of the plan is construction and public access to large ovals at each end of the bridge that will slow and split the traffic going on and off. A key part is access to the two areas by hikers and bikers, who will reach the

ovals by signal crossings that will stop traffic subject to a 20 miles per hour speed limit. The oval at the east end is designed with paths and benches and an amphitheater for performances. It will have bike racks and three access crosswalks. The one on the west side near the baseball stadium will have an open center plaza for events and gatherings, with up to five access crossings and a path to the Riverwalk and a threetiered boardwalk by the River. How much of all this will survive the challenges of design and location will be interesting to see. We should all be proud of DDOT and the teams of contractors and volunteer groups they have put together to make the new Frederick Douglass Bridge a remarkable addition to our Riverscape. It is beautiful, highly functional for hikers and bikers enjoying the Anacostia, and provides many improvements for motorists. It brings many benefits for all – especially those along the River who want to make it a part of their lives. Bill Matuszeski is a member of the Mayor’s Leadership Council for a Cleaner Anacostia River, and the retired Director of the Chesapeake Bay Program. He also serves on the board of Friends of the National Arboretum and on Citizen Advisory Committees for the Chesapeake and the Anacostia. ◆

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neighborhood news

Ward 8 Woods Conservancy Doing More Than Cleaning Up Trash

etting a job can be tough if you don’t have a high school diploma, but it can be even tougher if you’ve been incarcerated and convicted of a crime. Where do you look for work when you’re just out of prison? Chuck Jenkins is a 31-year-old park steward who has been working with Ward 8 Woods Conservancy for the past 10 months. He has a criminal record ‒ and a six-year-old son whom he loves dearly. His work with Ward 8 Woods includes any num-

by Catherine Plume

ber of tasks, from removing trash, invasive species and vines that are choking native vegetation to collecting water samples in the Anacostia River and its tributaries. “We haul away a lot of stuff,” he explains, “everything from AC units, refrigerators, dryers and tons of bottles, both plastic and glass. And I’ve removed about a thousand pounds of dog poop from the parks in Ward 8!” Ward 8 Woods Conservancy is providing “returning citizens” ‒ previously incarcerated residents ‒ with work opportunities and skills. The organi-

Ward 8 Woods Conservancy staff pull out rope, machinery, plastic and glass bottles and other trash from Fort Stanton Park. Photo: Amanda Joy Photographics

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zation is a grassroots nonprofit organization with a mission to “rejuvenate and enhance the beauty, ecological health and public enjoyment of the more than 500 acres of forest in the Ward 8 section of Washington, DC, for the benefit of all.” Funding comes from DC’s Department of Energy & Environment, the Chesapeake Bay Trust and a variety of individuals and other organizations. Ward 8 Woods Conservancy started its Park Stewards Program in 2018, hiring adults who have barriers to employment – including criminal records, bouts with addiction, mental health challenges and homelessness. Conservancy Executive Director Nathan Harrington, a native Washingtonian, notes that “a lot of employers see certain things in a person’s past and won’t give them a chance. Some of those people have come to Ward 8 Woods and done remarkable things.” According to Harrington, of the 20 or so people who have passed through the program, the majority have been returning citizens, and most of them men ranging in age from 20 to 50, though a few have been women. According to Harrington, the organization “focuses on undoing decades of neglect of the forested parklands in Ward 8. We’ve removed more than 250 tons of trash and cut invasive vines from more than 3,000 trees. We’re currently ramping up for a big antilittering campaign, with the park stewards being the ‘boots on the ground’ and the credible messengers of this campaign.” Jenkins is grateful for his work with Ward 8 Woods. “Once you have a record, people just don’t want to give you a job. They don’t

...And haul it away. It’s hard, hot work. Photo: Amanda Joy Photographics

care about the skills you have. All they see is that record, and that’s the end of the story.” Ward 8 Woods has given Jenkins a job, but also hope, better self-esteem and an entryway back into the workplace. Proud of the work he is doing, Jenkins explains that “while we don’t have the capacity to sort and recycle the trash we gather, the tires we find are ground up and used as a surface for playgrounds across the ward. I’m helping Ward 8 become a better place for families.” Harrington has been both boss and mentor. Jenkins is now learning networking skills, and he hopes to start an E-bike business in Ward 8. He’s very close to his son and is committed to being a positive role model for him. Harrington hopes that other organizations will adopt the Ward 8 Woods model. “To say we pick up trash is an understatement. We’re digging up tires, car parts and construction materials, haul-

ing furniture and appliances up steep hills. It’s strenuous, dirty, dangerous work. But you get to be in the woods, you stay in shape, and there’s a tremendous sense of accomplishment. Our motto is, ‘Healing the land, Empowering people.’ On our best days we live up to that ideal.” For more information about Ward 8 Woods Conservancy or to donate or get involved, visit the website at www.ward8woods.org. Catherine Plume is a lifelong environmentalist, an urban homesteader and a writer and blogger for the DC Recycler: www.DCRecycler.blogspot.com; Twitter: @DC_Recycler. She is also chair of the DC Chapter of the Sierra Club, but the perspectives expressed here are her own and do not necessarily represent the positions of that organization. u

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Anacostia Community Museum Reopens

The Anacostia Community Museum, 1901 Fort Pl. SE, has reopened to visitors, Tuesdays to Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visitors ages two and older are required to wear a mask while visiting the indoor space, regardless of vaccination status. Face coverings should fit properly, covering the nose, mouth and chin with no large gaps on the outside of the face, and they should have at least two layers. Free admission and parking. www.anacostia.si.edu

by Kathleen Donner

ture, photography and paper collage, Dittrich enables the viewer to look internally and externally simultaneously. She created her works through a photographic printing process where tree leaves and other foliage are exposed to the sun on chemically coated paper to create cyan-blue prints. By observing the cyclical nature of politics, land and body, “Keeping Pace” uses time as a through line for how we continually relate and adapt to the land, and vice versa. “Keeping Pace” runs through Oct. 2, in the Honfleur Gallery, 1227 Good Hope Rd. SE. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. and by appointment. www.honfleurgallery.com

“Three Women, Three Paths and a (Natural) Connection”

On Saturday, Sept. 25, 1 to 3 p.m., this WEL lecture showcases the journey of three women ‒ a cancer patient advocate, a community leader and a nature engager ‒ from their first meeting to an evolving collaboration for community wellness and environmental health. Their shared creative work, which taps into the healing potential of nature and the arts, addresses deep issues of social justice and wellbeing in the lives of our communities and people. Online and free. Register at the Anacostia Community Museum, www. anacostia.si.edu/events.

Take Time Thursdays (Online) from the ACM

On Thursday, Sept. 16, 2:30 to 3:00 p.m., join staff of the Anacostia Community Museum as they share stories about 28

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the meaning of home, followed by a participatory vocal performance led by Fa. On Thursday, Sept. 30, 2:30 to 3:30 p.m., join spoken word poet Dwayne Lawson-Brown for a guided writing exercise inviting you to explore your past and envision your future. Lawson-Brown, aka the Crochet Kingpin, is a DC native father, poet, educator and CEO of Crochet Kingpin LLC. He is one of the hosts of DC’s longest-running open mic series, Spit Dat DC, as well as host captain for Busboys and Poets at 450 K Street NW. Read more and register at www.anacostia.si.edu.

“Keeping Pace” by Sara Dittrich at Honfleur Gallery

“Keeping Pace,” a collection of recent works by multimedia artist Sara Dittrich, meditates on the interconnectivity of the body and the land it inhabits. Through sound sculp-

Canoe Tour and Pontoon Boat Tour at Kenilworth Park

On Friday, Sept. 17, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., learn about the natural and cultural history of the Anacostia River with the Anacostia Watershed Society’s free guided canoe tour. Explore the ecological and historical changes that have occurred in the river and surrounding communities and witness some of the restoration of river habitats and wildlife. Space is limited. To attend register at www.anacostiaws.org. On Saturday, Sept. 25, 10 a.m. to noon, take a free guided pontoon boat tour. Space is limited. You must be registered to attend this event at www.anacostiaws.org.

Help Clean Up Shepherd Parkway

Ward 8 Woods Conservancy volunteers hold their signature community clean-ups every second Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Volunteers meet at 555 Newcomb St. SE. Gloves, bags and water are provided. Wear things you can get dirty. Boots preferred. Documentation of community

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THEARC hopes Washingtonians will celebrate with them by signing up to host an AfterDark Watch Party. Hosts commit to gathering their family and friends ‒ eight to 10 people ‒ the night of September 10 to celebrate and watch the virtual event. Hosts will receive an AfterDark@Home gift box to share with their guests. Sign up at www.interland3. donorperfect.net/weblink/WebLink. aspx?name=E92754&id=20.

Fort Dupont Public Ice Skating in September

Fort Dupont Ice Arena, 3779 Ely Pl. SE, has reopened for public skating. September hours are Sunday, 9:00 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 2:00 p.m., 4:30 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.; Saturday, 1:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m., and 6:30 p.m. (except no 4:00 p.m. on Sept. 18 and 25); Monday through Thursday, 4:30 and 6:30 p.m.; and Friday, noon, 4:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Adult admission is $5; kids, $4. Skate rental is $3. www.fdia.org

Volunteers Needed at THEARC Farm Live Simulcast of Arena’s “Toni Stone” at Nats Park

There is a free, live simulcast of Arena Stage’s “Toni Stone” at Nats Park on Sunday, Sept. 26, at 7:30 p.m. Toni Stone was the first woman to play baseball in the Negro leagues and the first woman to play professionally in a men’s league. Based on Martha Ackmann’s book “Curveball: The Remarkable Story of Toni Stone,” award-winning playwright Lydia R. Diamond describes Stone’s journey of perseverance and resilience to do what she loved the most ‒ play baseball. www.arenastage.org service hours are provided upon request. At 197 acres, Ward 8’s largest wooded area, Shepherd Parkway, is not a road but a narrow greenway covering steep hillsides that separate the neighborhoods of Congress Heights and Bellevue from I-295 and Joint Base Anacostia Bolling. It is overseen by National Capital Parks-East, the National Park Service branch responsible for properties in Prince George’s County and the eastern half of DC. Rugged topography and hardwood forests hide stream beds, a wetland and a bald eagle’s nest. Biologists have identified rare plant and aquatic microorganisms within the park, parts of which have been largely undisturbed since the Civil War. Read more at www.ward8woods.org/shepherd-parkway. 30

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Volunteers are needed every Wednesday, any time between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., for general maintenance on THEARC Farm and to support community food distribution efforts. If interested, reach out to Manager of Corporate Giving Jamal Lamar Chevis at www.jchevis@ thearcdc.org.

Weed Wrangle Day at Langston Golf Course

On Saturday, Sept. 25, 9 a.m. to noon, volunteers can help the Anacostia Watershed Society control invasive plants in the Anacostia River as part of the Weed Wrangle Day, an event organized by the National Capital Region Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management. The event involves removing invasive plants from a riverside area of Kingman Island at Langston Golf Course. Volunteers will meet at the driving range parking lot on Benning Road. This effort is sponsored by National Links Trust. Registration is required at www.anacostiaws.org/event/337-new-event.

John Luther Adams’ “Sila: The Breath of the World”

On Sunday, Sept. 26, 5 p.m., co-commissioned by Washington Performing Arts and premiered locally in 2015, John Luther Adams’ “choose-your-own-adventure” outdoor work returns to Washington. Wander among the musicians as they disperse across the Kennedy Center’s REACH campus, and discover how the atmospheric piece challenges you to experience the connection among music, nature and the world. No tickets or advance registration are required. www. washingtonperformingarts.org

Mayor Bowser to Host DC’s National Maternal and Infant Health Summit

On Wednesday, Sept. 15, at 2 p.m., Mayor Bowser kicks off the Fourth Annual National Maternal & Infant Health Summit. The event will bring together residents, healthcare officials, healthcare professionals, service providers and others to strategize and share solutions to improve maternal and infant health outcomes in DC. This year’s summit, which will have both in-person and virtual options for attendees, will include an in-person kickoff event on Wednesday, Sept. 15, at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, followed by a series of virtual breakout sessions on Thursday, Sept. 16. Attendees will be able to engage with leaders in maternal and infant health, explore innovations and emerging issues in maternal, obstetrical and pediatric care, and connect with over 50 government and community-based programs and resources. The summit will discuss the meaning of respectful maternal care, highlight birthing options and pathways to parenting and demonstrate District investments in proven supports for birthers, babies and their families. To learn more and to RSVP, visit www.dcmaternalhealth.com.

Strathmore Expands COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements

Beginning Sept. 7, the Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, North Bethesda, Maryland, will require all attendees of indoor public performances to provide proof of full COVID-19 vaccination or negative test results. Artists have complied with this requirement since May. Guests have two options for entry. They may present a physical or electronic copy of their official vaccination card or a negative PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test taken within 72 hours before the start of the performance. Proof must be accompanied by a matching photo ID. This policy does not apply to outdoor events. www.strathmore.org

Luce Listening Party with “Hometown Sounds” and Night Train 357

The Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Luce Foundation Center has teamed up with Paul Vodra and Anthony Porecco of local music podcast “Hometown Sounds” to

Annual NSO Labor Day Concert Returns

A tradition since 1979, the National Symphony Orchestra’s free annual Labor Day weekend concert returns on Sunday, Sept. 5, at 8 p.m., relocated this year from the West Lawn of the Capitol to the Kennedy Center South Plaza. Conducted and hosted by Larry Loh, music director of the West Virginia Symphony, the concert features songwriter and NSO Artistic Advisor Ben Folds and saxophonist Charlie Young. Featuring music from Duke Ellington, Kennedy Center Composer-in-Residence Carlos Simon, Jessie Montgomery and Michael Abels, amid patriotic music like the “Star-Spangled Banner,” the program spans a wide spectrum of American composers. Free; no tickets required. First come, first served for seating. www.kennedy-center.org

Botanic Gardens Now Open

All outdoor gardens at the US Botanic Garden are now open. The conservatory and public restrooms remain closed due to the closure of the US Capitol campus buildings. The National Garden is open 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., daily, including weekends and holidays. This gated outdoor garden has extended its evening hours to 7:00 p.m. through Sept. 15. Bartholdi Park is open from dawn to dusk, daily, including weekends and holidays. It is located across Independence Avenue from the conservatory. www.usbg.gov

DC Shorts Film Festival

The annual DC Shorts Film Festival, Sept. 9 to 19, showcases the best short films from around the globe. This year’s festival offers 95 outstanding short films from 26 countries online. An all-access pass is $75. www.festival.dcshorts.com

Black Student Fund & Latino Student Fund Annual School Fair

The Black Student Fund & Latino Student Fund Annual School Fair is on Sunday, Oct. 17, 2 to 5 p.m., at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, 801 Mount Vernon Pl. NW. Admission is free. The fund’s commitment to bringing independent schools and black families together led to the creation of the annual fair in 1972. The event remains one of the largest school fairs of its kind in the region, providing a networking opportunity for thousands of families to meet with representatives from more than 60 independent schools. The fair also features interactive seminars focused on the admissions process, the financial aid process and personal/family financial management. Read more and register at www.blackstudentfund.org.

METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT WASHINGTON, DC

HOMICIDE VICTIM

Up to $25,000 Reward 05.28.15 HOMICIDES/2015/MILTON_CHARNICE.PDF

feature music and conversations from DC artists. On Friday, Sept. 24, all day, tune in for an episode featuring emcee Night Train 357. Winner of the 2021 Wammie award for Best Rap Album, Night Train combines wordplay, pop culture references and socially conscious topics with a touch of nerd rap. The museum is celebrating 10 years of “Luce Unplugged” and the local music community. Check out the anniversary page and enjoy performance recordings, interviews and special content highlighting the local musicians who have performed in the Luce Foundation Center as part of this beloved concert series. Free; no registration required. www.americanart.si.edu/events

VICTIM’S NAME

Charnice Milton LOCATION

2700 block of Good Hope Road, SE DATE/TIME

National Book Festival: Ten Days in Multiple Formats

The 2021 Library of Congress National Book Festival invites participants to create their own festival experiences from programs in a range of formats and an expanded schedule, from Sept. 17 to 26. The lineup includes authors, poets and illustrators from the United States and around the world. This year’s festival allows attendees to tailor their experience and interests to a preferred mode of participation. Content will be available online through videos on demand, author conversations in real time and live question-and-answer sessions, as well as a new podcast series, a national television special and in-person, ticketed events at the library. Local libraries, community centers and attendees are encouraged to host watch parties and other community events. www.loc.gov/ events/2021-national-book-festival

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

9:40 PM CONTACT

Detective Chanel Howard

(202) 437-0451

(cell)

Detective Robert Cephas

(202) 497-4734

(cell)

Homicide Branch

(202) 645-9600 (main)

DESCRIPTION OF INCIDENT

On Wednesday, May 27, 2015, at approximately 9:40 pm, Ms. Charnice Milton was shot and killed in the 2700 block of Good Hope Road, SE. The Metropolitan Police Department seeks the public’s assistance in gathering information regarding this homicide. H O W TO H E L P O U R I N V E S T I G AT I O N

This case is being investigated by the Department’s Homicide Branch. Anyone with information about this case is asked to call the detective(s) listed above or the Command Information Center (CIC) at (202) 727-9099. Anonymous information may also be forwarded to the department’s TEXT TIP LINE by text messaging 50411. TEXT TIPS 50411

COMMAND CENTER 202 727-9099 up to

$25,000

DO YOUR PART TO HELP PREVENT AND SOLVE CRIME. The Department currently offers a reward of up to $25,000 to anyone who provides information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for any homicide committed in the District of Columbia. Your assistance is appreciated by your community.

reward

Learn more about the MPD Rewards Program mpdc.dc.gov/rewards DCPolice

@DCPoliceDept

We care. Do you?

OfficialDCPolice

CATHY L. LANIER Chief of Police

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On Thursday, Sept. 16, and Oct. 21, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., downtown DC’s outdoor pop-up bookstore reappears on Wilson Plaza, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Shop thousands of gently used books, CDs and DVDs, for $6 or less. Books are provided by Carpe Librum, a local used bookstore benefitting nonprofit Turning the Page (www.turningthepage.org). Book sales are cancelled in case of inclement weather. www.downtowndc.org

Apply for #STAYDC Rent or Utilities Help

www.franktutoring.com 32

Remaining Postgame Fireworks Dates Announced

New postgame fireworks at Nats Park have been announced. The dates are Sept. 17, 7:05 p.m., vs. the Colorado Rockies; and Oct. 1, 7:05, vs. the Boston Red Sox. Games last about three hours.

Through STAY DC, renters and housing providers can apply for funding to cover past and future rental payments in addition to utilities like water, gas and electricity. For more information and to apply, visit www.stay.dc.gov or call 833-478-2932. Visit www.stay.dc.gov/events to find inperson STAY DC workshops near you.

Outstanding Tickets Amnesty Ends This Month

Through Sept. 30, 2021, an amnesty program gives DC and non-DC drivers the

opportunity to pay outstanding tickets without penalties. Eligible tickets are parking, photo enforcement (including speed, red-light and stop-sign cameras) and minor moving violations issued by law enforcement. During this time, the penalties incurred on tickets will be waived, but at the end of the amnesty period all penalties will be restored on the outstanding tickets. www.ticketamnesty.dc.gov

Find a Vaccination

Enter your Zip Code and find vaccination sites within one mile, five miles, 10 miles and farther from your home ‒ anywhere in the country. Also get information on incentives, childcare and free rides. Or call 800-232-0233. www.vaccines.gov

COVID-19 Hotline

DC residents who are homebound due to COVID-19 can request support from the District for food and other essential items. Call 888-349-8323 or visit www.coronavirus.dc.gov/gethelp. ◆

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Ft. Dupont Ice Arena Reopens After Months of Only Virtual Activity, Enthusiasts Flock to the Ice by Anthony D. Diallo

The ice-skating arena, located at 3779 Ely Place in the Fort Dupont area of Ward 7, reopened its doors on July 5, to the delight of its many ice skating fans. Starting September 11, the Saturday Kids On Ice (KOI) Program begins KOI provides subsidized figure skating, hockey and speed skating lessons to youth in DC Metropolitan area. This program programming to both boys and girls, and parents can choose from either a team sport or an individual sport.

History of FDIA and Introduction of DISC

efore the pandemic, the Fort Dupont Ice Arena (FDIA) in southeast was the center of action for Tomeka Gueory and her family. Three of her four daughters were practically raised on the ice, she says. “My family and I have been a part of Fort Dupont for years. When I first moved to DC and got married, I wanted my then youngest daughter to participate in a sport that was fun and different. What was important to me was to actually get to know my neighborhood,” said Gueory, a FDIA board member and a Cleveland transplant, who at the time—1997—lived on Ridge Road close to FDIA before the family purchased their northeast Deanwood home in 2015. 34

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ers can book time for themselves and students for the entire school year. Public skate sessions are always available, at a minimum, during Friday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoons. Admission rates are $5.00 for adults, $4.00 for children, and $3.00 for skate rentals. According to Karlins, FDIA’s mission to teach skating enthusiasts, inspired and motivated his 10-year-old daughter, Elsinore, who wanted to do more skating all year around. Her desire eventually spurred Karlins to join the DISC initiative and later become the club’s treasurer. “I have traveled to other rinks in the suburbs, and none had an advanced program,” said Karlins who lives in the Brightwood neighborhood of Ward 4 with his family.

In 1996, the National Park Service, which was in charge of the arena, decided to close it. A group of parents of skaters and friends organized as the Friends of Fort Dupont Ice Arena and took over management of the ice rink and reviFDIA: Closed During the Pandemic talized the facility. There are plans, with secured funding, As tough as it was for parents and children to lose their to extend and modernize the ice rink in the future. skating venue, it was perhaps a more severe loss to the staff. Figure skating continues to take up large amounts of “The staff have always enjoyed working with the comGueory’s time. Serving as both Vice-President and Secmunity and skating. We were open and accessible. Besides retary for the District Impact Skating Club (DISC), she, the loss of finances, we really missed that interaction. The along with Sheldonna Harris and Eric Karlins, cofounded the nonprofit club that is now prominently incorporated at FDIA. DISC, a minority-led, volunteer-run, skating club, was created for children as young as 5-years-old to learn and embrace the intricacies of figure skating. DISC’s website is https://districtimpactskatingclub.org. FDIA is the only program within an approximate 50-mile radius that offers ice hockey, speed skating, and figure skating, all sports that are performed in the Olympics and is the only public indoor ice arena located in the District. People seeking further information about FDIA programs can use the link programming@fdia.org. Beginning this September, FDIA is offering a free program for all DC public and charter school students called Schools Skate For Fitness from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. each weekday. TeachPhoto of Coach Tenaj (Tomeka Gueory's daughter) with one of her skating pupils.

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WE TREAT YOUR PETS LIKE FAMILY! overall morale of everybody, including myself, was down. Although we held virtual classes and activities, it was not the same,” said Ty Newberry, the executive director and general manager at FDIA. Despite the 15-month closure, FDIA was able to stay solvent thanks to the hundreds of individuals, families, and foundations that made generous donations, many increasing their annual giving to keep the staff afloat during the pandemic.

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EASTOFTHERIVERDCNEWS.COM

Bettie Graham

Skating is Not Just a Hobby but a Commitment

The ice-skating rink is open every day of the week. Adults whose work schedule allows can skate at FDIA during the Sheldonna Harris day on weekdays. Around 3 p.m., organized activities ensue. Multiple hockey teams practice and play games there during the afternoon and evenings. On the weekends, the programs and activities start as Coach Jennifer early as 5:30 a.m. Harris, the elected president of DISC and the mother of Jaiden HarrisThomas,14, and twin nineyear-old boys, Jonathan and Jordan, are regulars at FDIA. The twins are not as experiTomeka Gueory enced as their big sister who has been skating for eight seasons, but they are spirited. Jordan and Jonathan participate in speed skating on Saturdays at 6:00 a.m. Approximately two dozen pupils are in Coach Tenaj that class, Harris said. Advanced skating lessons are held on Saturdays as well from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. As the name would suggest, the advanced class are for those skaters, like Jaiden, Wanda Gregory who have completed levels one through six. Like Gueory, Karlins, and numerous other parents, Harris has made many sacrifices to support her childrens’skating interests, including losing sleep to ensure their timely arrival at practice. Since the family resides in Hillcrest Heights, Harris commutes from there on Sundays for Jaiden’s 5:30 a.m. synchronized skating class that Eric Karlins lasts until 7:30 a.m. Like the classic“soccer moms,” these working parents ferry their children from school to ice rink to home on what sometimes seems like a never-ending cycle but never complain because of the joy, teamwork, and lessons learnt at FDIA and on the ice. ◆

GET YOUR

E ast Location

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Address

Capitol View Market

4920 Central Avenue, NE

CVS - East River Park

320 40th St , NE

Safeway – NE

322 40th St , NE

Unity East of the River Health Center

123 45th ST NE

Capitol Gateway Senior Apts

201 58th St , NE

Dennys

4445 Benning Rd NE

7-Eleven

950 Eastern AVE NE

Riverside Center

5200 Foote St , NE

Mayfair Mansions - Gate Locked

3744 ½ Hayes St NE

Trusted HP Health & Wellness Center

3732 Minnesota Avenue, NE

Citibank: East River Park

3917 Minnesota Ave , NE

Chartered Health Center NE

3924 Minnesota Ave , NE

Apex Care Pharmacy - Tomi DC Department of Employment Services Vending Machines – Deanwood Metro Lederer Gardens

Park Southern/Robert Yelldell Towers

800 Southern Avenue

4047 Minnesota Avenue, NE

Senior Living at Wayne Place

114 Wayne Place SE

4058 Minnesota Avenue, NE

Bald Eagle At Fort Greble

4720 Minnesota Ave , NE 4800 Nannie Helen Burroughs Ave NE

Secrets of Nature Tony’s Market

100 Joliet St SW 3923 South Capitol Street, SW 5319 53rd Street, SE

Deanwood Heights Main Streets - Deb Jones 4925 Nannie Helen Burroughs Ave, NE

Industrial Bank Lobby

1800 MLK Jr Avenue, SE

Dana Gill

5046 Sherrrif Rd NE

DHCD - Put in MAIN LOBBY RACK

1800 MLK Jr Avenue, SE

DC Holistic Wellness

4721 Sheriff Road NE

Older Adults at the Overlook Apartments

Raymond Tolson Residence - Gate Locked 24/7

27 46th St NE

Henson Ridge Town Homes Office

3700 9th Street, SE 1804 Stanton Terrace, SE

4940 A Street, SE

IHOP Restauarant

1523 Alabama Ave, SE

Benco Cleaners

4516 Benning Road, SE

Giant Food Store

1535 Alabama Ave , SE

Mama’s Laudromat

5528 Benning Road, SE

Saint Elizabeth Hospital

1100 Alabama Ave, SE

Dollar Plus Supermarket

1453 Howard Rd , SE

Manor Village Apartments Leasing Office

1717 Alabama Ave , SE

Ascensions Psychological & Community Serv

1526 Howard Rd SE

7th District Station

2455 Alabama Ave , SE

Harris Teeter

1350 Pennsylvania Ave SE

Service Cleaners

2841 Alabama Ave , SE

Thai Orchid Kitchen

2314 Pennsylvania Ave SE

Safeway – SE

2845 Alabama Ave SE

M&T Bank

2865 Alabama Ave , SE

Washington Senior Wellness Center

3001 Alabama Ave , SE

Roundtree Residence

2515 Alabama Ave , SE

CVS – Penn Branch * Congress Heights Recreation Center Benning Heights Apartments

3240 Pennsylvania Ave , SE 100 Randle Pl , SE 4806 Alabama Ave , SE

PNC Bank

4100 South Capitol St , SE

Street Box - Next to Tree

1231 Good Hope Rd , SE

Rite Aid

4635 South Capitol St , SE

Anacostia Arts Center - Inside

1232 Good Hope Rd , SE

SunTrust Bank

1340 Good Hope Rd , SE

Unity Health Care Inc

1638 Good Hope Rd , SE

Bread for the City

1640 Good Hope Rd , SE

Marbury Plaza Tenants Assoc

2300 Good Hope Rd , SE

Marbury Plaza - 2nd Location - 2330 Building

2300 Good Hope Rd , SE

Park Naylor Apartments - Leasing Office

2562 Naylor Road, SE

Grubbs Pharmacy

1800 MLK Jr Avenue, SE

We Act Radio

1918 MLK Jr Avenue, SE

Neighborhood Pharmacy

1932 Martin Luther King Jr , SE

Bank of America

2100 Martin Luther King Jr Ave , SE

Animal Clinic of Anacostia

2210 Martin Luther King Jr Ave , SE

Max Robinson Center of Whitman-Walker Clinic 2301 Martin Luther King Jr Ave , SE Capital City Creamery

3023 Marin Luther King Jr Ave , SE

Congress Heights Senior Wellness Center 3500 Martin Luther King Jr Ave , SE Rosetta G Williams - PUT ON PORCH Congress Heights Health Center

3615 Martin Luther King Jr Ave 3720 Martin Luther King Jr Ave , SE

The ARC - Ms Whitfield & Curtis

1901 Mississippi Ave , SE

Conway Health & Resource Ctr - Beth Beck Ridgecrest/Grandview Village

4 Atlantic Street, SW 2000 Ridgecrest Court, SE

CCN office

224 7th ST SE

Eastern Market

225 7th St SE

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east washington life

Darren Be Scheming

A Home

The Only Place That’s Right For Me

id you know that this global panorama (CoVid-19) has led to a seller’s market in the US? If you are thinking about selling your home, now is the time. With the increase in telework flexibilities, many people are opting to move further outside of the city for more land, a slower pace of life, or even to the beach. As for me and mine, I love the city and I ain’t going nowhere. As the amazing BackYard Band, so eloquently stated, “Ain’t no place I’d rather be, the only place that’s right for me” … is the southside. “Darren, I can’t sell a home because I don’t own a home, how do I get one?” There’s lots of ways to purchase in DC. None of them are easy, all of them are doable. One of my favorites is to attend the DC Tax Lien Sale. Houses that fall behind on taxes and fees to the District go up for auction. This is a complicated process which could involve the courts. It’s one of the best ways to purchase because if DC residents don’t do it, developers and banks will. The person is going to lose their home: should it go to a native or to a developer? I don’t judge morality here (I be scheming), but I’m fairly certain the new buyer won’t be someone I defeated during my epic run at the Kimball Elementary School 1993 spelling bee (I will not let y’all forget). You need cash-in-hand to make this work, as the District requires 20% upfront, plus you may need lawyers if the house is not already vacated. Some of these homes may require repair work. This is the lowest total cost option. “Darren, that’s a lot of moving parts, I just want to buy a house the old-fashioned way. I just need help.” That’s easy! There are multiple home buying programs to help people get their first home. Programs vary

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by Darren Thompson

depending on where you live and want to move. Virginia has a program that will help you save for a down payment and Maryland will let you write off part of your student loan. DC has the most options of the three. If you check out the DC Housing Finance Authority (DCHFA.org, they usually have an advertisement in this paper), there are multiple programs for almost every first-time home buyer. Most of these require you to complete a First Time Home Buyer class, but they help with down payments and closing costs, depending on the program. Income limits are likely higher than you would think. Also, they usually base that income on your previous year tax return, meaning that the best time to purchase is in the same year that you get a raise at work. Even if you don’t get the max ($80k), free money is never bad. “Darren, I looked into these programs and I’m afraid of becoming a homeowner.” Of all the philosophical, made up questions I’ve asked myself, this is the realest one. Home ownership can be scary. We all know the selling points: build wealth and equity, control your payments against inflation, and establishing generational wealth. There is a comfort in knowing that when something breaks, you just call your landlord. Here’s what you need to consider: average rent for 20019 (Ward 7) is just under $1,300, the median home sold in 20019 last year was $400k. The general (completely unprofessional) rule of thumb at the current fed rate of .5% is that you are going to pay ~$500 for each $100k you borrow. If you qualify for the max program payments you would only borrow $300k, so your mortgage would be just around $1,500. If you find a home at $300k, you would actually save money, which a wise schemer would put aside for emergency repairs.

“But Darren, what if I mess up after I purchase a home? I’ll lose everything.” The bank don’t want that house back, they don’t want to deal with the process. Most of them are understanding and when they aren’t, DC has programs to help when you hit hard times. Reach out to DCHFA as soon as you realize things aren’t looking good. Most people lose their homes because they try to wait the problem out, but real schemers know to attack uncomfortable situations head on. The Federal Reserve has signaled that these low interest rates are going to be here for a while. If home ownership is something you’ve thought about, be ready to jump on this opportunity as soon as this seller’s market dies down. And if you happen to buy in my neighborhood, please say Hi to my dog, Barrow, if you see us on our walk. He legit whines for two blocks every time someone crosses the street to avoid us. Note: Some of these schemes might feel illegal, but if followed according to the steps listed, they are not. Always consult with appropriate legal council if there is any concern. Note 2: Schemes are not scams. I am not trying to make money off you. In fact, I’m legit trying to save you money, maybe, if you ain’t scared. If you see me out in these streets, I will always accept an order of Crispy Chicken Basil from Thai Orchid Note 3: Darren Thompson is a lifelong border hopper of Ward 7 and PG County, MD. His highest academic achievement to date is winning the Kimball Elementary School 1993 Spelling Bee and has been chasing that high ever since. You can watch his comedic pursuits with The Cookout Collective Presents: “Enigma” and Washington Improv Theater’s “Hold Up, Book Club”. u

Changing Hands Changing hands is a list of most residential sales in the District of Columbia from the previous month. A feature of every issue, this list,based on the MRIs, is provided courtesy of Don Denton, manager of the Coldwell Banker office on Capitol Hill. The list includes address, sales price and number of bedrooms.

NEIGHBORHOOD

PRICE BR

FEE SIMPLE

3370 Highwood Dr SE 737 32nd St SE 3004 Alabama Ave SE 2422 33rd St SE 3114 G St SE

$620,000 $500,000 $499,990 $480,000 $380,000

4 3 3 3 3

ANACOSTIA KINGMAN PARK 1906 Q St SE $790,000 5 1428 W St SE 1613 Fairlawn Ave SE 2215 Chester St SE 1482 Bangor St SE 1522 U St SE 3415 Baker St NE

$690,000 $550,000 $425,000 $350,000 $305,000 $200,000

CONGRESS HEIGHTS

4 3 2 3 2 2

1654 Gales St NE 2032 E St NE 1650 Kramer St NE

LILY PONDS 3318 Blaine St NE

$475,000 $440,000 $370,000 $310,000

3 3 3 4

5007 Ames St NE 3944 Benning Rd NE 144 57th St SE 212 NE 62nd St NE 404 49th St NE 220 56th Pl NE 836 50th Pl NE 845 52nd St NE 42 55th St SE 5016 E Capitol St NE 228 63rd St NE 5201 Banks Pl NE 4240 Eads St NE 4627 Gault Pl NE 5245 Banks Pl NE 612 44th St NE

$540,000 $525,000 $520,000 $459,000 $456,000 $445,000 $440,000 $400,000 $399,000 $380,000 $380,000 $365,000 $355,000 $340,000 $328,000 $275,000

4 4 3 3 4 3 2 2 2 3 3 5 4 3 2 2

5231 D St SE 116 SE 53 Rd St SE

$587,500 $515,000 $505,000 $429,000 $398,500 $361,000 $360,000

HILL CREST 3201 O St SE 3167 Westover Dr SE 3441 Massachusetts Ave SE

4 5 4 3 3 3 3

$1,125,000 6 $745,000 3 $720,000 4

$560,000 4 $452,500 4

RANDLE HEIGHTS

2200 T Pl SE 1913 Savannah Pl SE DEANWOOD 2012 Trenton Pl SE 4434 Hunt Pl NE $657,000 5

829 Hilltop Ter SE 4413 A St SE 1309 46th St SE 3924 R St SE 3917 Burns Ct SE 609 Burns St SE 1704 40th St SE

$510,000 2

MARSHALL HEIGHTS

721 Congress St SE 1301 Barnaby Ter SE 420 Orange St SE 530 Oakwood St SE

FORT DUPONT PARK

$800,000 2 $585,000 2 $499,000 2

$615,000 3 $450,000 3 $416,000 2

CONDO CONGRESS HEIGHTS 717 Brandywine St SE #301 44 Galveston Pl SW #D

$150,000 2 $132,000 2

DEANWOOD 4810 Quarles St NE #304 4212 Benning Rd NE #1 4208 Benning Rd NE #6

$231,000 2 $189,998 2 $165,000 1

FAIRFAX VILLAGE 2025 38th St SE #A 2135 Suitland Ter SE #101 2055 38th St SE #102 3922 Southern Ave SE #101

$230,000 $160,000 $101,000 $76,000

2 1 2 1

HILL CREST 1614 26th Pl SE #2 2002 38th St SE #A

$585,000 4 $205,000 2

KINGMAN PARK 1605 E St NE #3 423 18th St NE #8 326 14th Pl NE #3

$653,000 2 $633,000 2 $366,000 1

MARSHALL HEIGHTS 4442 B St SE #8 4442 B St SE #7 4442 B St SE #5 4442 B St SE #6 5206 F St SE #3 4508 B St SE #5 u

$385,000 $384,999 $365,000 $364,999 $230,000 $127,400

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by Kathleen Donner

National Children’s Museum Reopens

Following an 18-month closure due to the pandemic and continued space development, the National Children’s Museum, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, celebrates its grand opening and reveals its new Entry Hall on Sept. 2. The Museum opens with limited capacity and operating policies that help to ensure a safe and fun experience for all visitors. The Museum has two timed sessions from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays through Sundays. Reservations are required for all visitors and are available via online, advanced purchase only. Masks are required for all guests ages two and up, regardless of vaccination status. All National Children’s Museum staff members are vaccinated. Tickets are $15.95 Photo: Courtesy of Mount Vernon for all guests ages one and older. nationalchildrensmuseum. org.

Atlas Arts for Young Audiences

Archaeology Family Day at Mount Vernon

On Saturday, Oct. 2, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., visit Mount Vernon’s 12-Acre Field to learn about what role archaeology plays at Mount Vernon. Enjoy activities such as take-home crafts and a field guide to explore the estate. Between 9 and 11 a.m., Mount Vernon will welcome guests who desire a quieter visit, including individuals on the autism spectrum and those with other sensory processing disorders. To create a more sensory-friendly experience during this time, lights and audio in exhibit spaces will be turned down and select interactives will be turned off. Fully vaccinated individuals are not required to wear a face covering. Archaeology Family Day activities are included in the admission price; $28 for ages twelve, up; $15 for six to eleven; five and under, free. mountvernon.org.

Arts for Young Audiences is an important part of family programming at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, 1333 H St. NE. Each season, Atlas features programming for young people including theater, music, puppetry, and dance. Generally, performances are designed for children ages two to ten and are specified for each show. All patrons age one and older require a ticket. Family Fun Days are special programs offered during their annual Intersections Festival. Sign up for show announcements at atlasarts.org/family.

Large Selection of Children’s Books at SE Library Monthly Book Sales

The Friends of Southeast Library, 403 Seventh St. SE, book sales are back on the second Saturday of every month on the lower level of the library. This month the sale is on Saturday, Sept. 11, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Most books are $1. Proceeds supplement library programs. Donations are accepted from Tuesday, Sept. 7 through Friday, Sept. 10. Please limit donations to what can fit in the blue donation bin which is at the D Street entrance to the library during the donation period. dclibrary.org/southeast. 40

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King Bullfrog Concert and Family Happy Hour at Hill Center

On Friday, Sept. 10 at 5 p.m., join fellow parents on the Hill Center West Plaza for a casual outdoor happy hour for grown-ups and tots. King Bullfrog will hit the stage with high-energy original, folk and blues songs carefully tailored to get children dancing and delight parents. $10 per child; $5 per adult; under two, free. The Hill Center is at 921 Pennsylvania Ave. SE. hillcenterdc.org.

Shaw Teen Book Club

Shaw Library invites teens ages 13 to 19 to join the Shaw Teen Book Club. Teens will be able to meet and discuss the latest in YA Fiction and Non-Fiction. Book club meets at noon on the second Saturday of the month at 4:15 p.m. Meetings are held virtually. Registration is required. For more information and to register, email wathashawlibrary@dc.gov.

Kids Ride Free SmarTrip Cards for the 2021-2022 School Year

Kids Ride Free SmarTrip cards for the 2021-2022 School Year will be available for pickup by students by the first week of school. New students will be given first priority at their schools to pick up new cards. School year 2020-2021 Kids Ride Free SmarTrip cards (blue cards) will remain valid through Sept. 30, 2021. Students who have lost or misplaced the 2020-2021 card can request a replacement card from their School ID Administrator. New cards will be sent directly to all DC Public Schools and DC public charter schools for distribution. To be eligible for participation in this program, each student must be: a DC resident; age five through 21; and enrolled in an elementary or secondary public, public charter, private, or parochial school located within the District, or youth in the care of the District. kidsridefree.dc.gov.

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Prince Georges County Fair Family Fun

The 2021 Prince Georges County Fair is Sept. 9 to 12, at the Show Place Arena, 14900 Pennsylvania Ave., Upper Marlboro, MD. Kids will enjoy the petting zoo (with a camel); carnival rides, games and food; pony rides; and miniature stock car racing. The fair is open 5 to 10 p.m. on Thursday and Friday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Fair admission is $5 for kids up to 13 and 55 and over; $6 for age 13, up. Thursday night is free for ages 55, up and Sunday is free for military personnel and immediate family. Shows and rides are ticketed. countyfair.org.

Incentives for DC Youth Who Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19

Through Sept. 30, on-site prizes will be available to teens and their parents at three DC Public Schools: Brookland Middle School, Sousa Middle School, and Johnson Middle School. All DC youth can claim their free COVID-19 vaccine at these sites regardless of which school they attend. At these three schools, youth who receive their first dose can receive a $51 VISA gift card. Additionally, the first 400 to get vaccinated at each site will have the option to forgo their gift card and instead receive a pair of AirPods. Currently, approximately 25% of all eligible DC youth, or about 8,100 young people, are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. vaccinate.dc.gov.

Kids Run the Bases at Nat’s Park

Kids ages four to twelve can run the bases after every Sunday day game. Remaining dates are Sept. 5 and 19; and Oct. 3. An adult must accompany runners to the field. Starting at first base, kids will be directed to run around the bases as the 42

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adults continue along the warning track and meet the runners near home plate. Once the baseball game has ended, kids and parents/guardians can line-up at the end of the seventh inning, however fans who would like to stay and watch the entire game will be able to line-up once the game has ended. Participants must exit the ballpark through the Right Field Gate. The line forms outside of the park on the sidewalk along First St. washington.nationals.mlb.com. The PenFed Kids Zone, the playground located just inside the Right Field Gate, is now open for every game, weather permitting.

Black Student Fund & Latino Student Fund Annual School Fair

The Black Student Fund & Latino Student Fund Annual School Fair is on Sunday, Oct. 17, 2 to 5 p.m., at the Washington Convention Center, 801 Mt Vernon Pl. NW. Tickets are free. The Fair continues to be one of the largest school fairs of its kind in the region. The BSF/ LSF School Fair provides a networking opportunity for thousands of families in the metropolitan area to meet with repre-

EARLY CARE AND EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM Ages 6 weeks to 12 Years Old Monday - Friday | 6:30 AM - 6:00 PM

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Developmentally Appropriate Programs Toilet Training Certified Educators Education Field Trips LOCATIONS: Income-Based Tuition MINNESOTA Summer Camp 4021 Minnesota Ave., NE

202.397.1170 ANTIOCH 1105 50th St., NE 202.397.8754 GOOD HOPE ROAD 2503 Good Hope Rd., SE 202.582.0323

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Fort Dupont Public Ice Skating in September

Fort Dupont Ice Arena, 3779 Ely Pl. SE, has reopened for public skating. September hours are Sunday, 9 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 2 p.m., 4:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Saturday, 1 p.m., 4 p.m., and 6:30 p.m. (except no 4 p.m. on Sept. 18 and 25); Monday through Thursday, 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.; and Friday, noon, 4 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Adult admission is $5; kids, $4. Skate rental is $3. fdia.org.

sentatives from more than sixty independent schools. Parents and prospective students get first-hand knowledge about each school’s programs, community, admission requirements and financial aid process. In addition, the fair features interactive seminars focused on the admissions process, the financial aid process and personal/ family financial management. Read more and register at blackstudentfund.org.

Donate Your Old Golf Clubs

Have an old set of golf clubs packed in the corner of your garage? Donating equipment is another way to help support the DC area’s The First Tee. With the 2nd Swing Club Donation Program you can put your old equipment to great use and make a huge impact. The value of your used clubs and equipment is sent to The First Tee DC as a cash donation. The First Tee’s mission is to impact the lives of young people by providing educational programs that build character and instill life-enhancing values through the game of golf. Read more at firstteedc.org/ways-togive/donate-equipment.

A Wind in the Door at the KC

One of literature’s favorite heroines, Meg Murry, is back to join forces with her brother Charles Wallace and friend Calvin O’Keefe for a fantastical adventure. Playwright Jacqueline Goldfinger and director Nicole A. Watson bring the sequel 44

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to Madeleine L’Engle’s beloved book A Wrinkle in Time to the stage. When an extraterrestrial being recruits the trio to fight an evil force, they’ll travel across a galaxy—and through the cells of a human body—to stop it. This thrilling sci-fi story reveals that love and kindness are the best antidotes to evil. On stage at the Kennedy Center from Sept. 2 to 11, it is most appropriate for ages nine, up. $20. Proof of full vaccination required. Children under 12 must provide recent negative COVID test. All must be masked. kennedy-center.org.

La llamada de Sylvia Méndez: Separate Is Never Equal at GALA

La llamada de Sylvia Méndez: Separate Is Never Equal is a joyful, bilingual play that embraces diversity and tolerance through the story of elementary school teacher Sylvia Mendez who fought to end segregation in education in California, paving the way for the national ban on segregated schools. For her legacy and courage, in 2011 she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama for her advocacy for educational opportunity for children of all backgrounds and all walks of life. La llamada de Sylvia Méndez: Separate Is Never Equal is at GALA Hispanic Theatre, 3333 14th St. NW, on Oct. 16, 17, 23 and 24 at 3 p.m. It returns in spring on Saturdays at 3 p.m., March 12 to 26. $12 for adults; $10 for kids, two to twelve. galatheatre.org. u

100 Gallatin St. NE Washington, DC 20011

Pre-K 3 through 5th grade Building a strong foundation for learning

COME LEARN WITH US!

PRE-K 3 – 5TH GRADE SPOTS AVAILABLE FOR THE 2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR We will be open for in-person learning five days a week.

ADDITIONAL SLOTS FOR STUDENTS WITH HIGH-LEVEL SPECIAL NEEDS

DC Prep campuses now accepting applications for the 21-22 school year in ward 5, 7 & 8. We’re the highest performing public charter schools serving PK3 – 8th grade.

Apply for admissions at:

www.myschooldc.org or call (202) 888-6336 APPLICATIONS ACCEPTED ON A CONTINUING BASIS

To reach the school please email info@bridgespcs.org or call (202) 545-0515. w w w. br i d g e sp c s . org I 2 0 2 . 5 4 5 . 0 5 1 5 Accredited by Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools.

Call 202-780-5126 for more information or visit:

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XWORD “Trees”

by Myles Mellor Across: 1. Al ___ (firm, as pasta) 6. Bigwig 12. Golf tour 15. Beethoven symphony 17. Less conspicuous 20. Surprise at blunder 22. It enabled an understanding of good and evil 24. Furniture wood 26. Harry Potter pal 27. Give up 28. Candidate’s goal 29. Milk source 30. Respected one 33. Italian food 36. Lead role in “The Piano” 37. Spin 38. Palace protectors 40. Mixture components 43. Ordinary 46. Bridle 47. Tiny insect 48. Two trees 55. Dummy 56. Rates of return 57. Willy who wrote “The Conquest of Space” 58. Pianist’s challenge 61. Sonorous 62. Got a good look at 64. Have a ___ of humor 65. Retired professionals 70. “Gladiator” start first name 72. Nobleman 73. Of the flock 77. Issue 80. Train’s sleeping space 81. Baseball bat wood 82. Mellifluous 84. Law and Order ___ 87. Two firs 92. Emirates, for short

93. Café additive 94. Furniture wood 95. Flaw in a communications system? 100. Often-pulled muscle 102. Spear 103. Freelancer’s enclosure 104. Divvy up 106. Massenet opera 110. Norway’s capital 111. Blackhearted 113. End of a Caesar quote 115. “Walking on Thin Ice” singer 116. Takes to the sea 118. Two trees 123. Prefix with European 124. Hill gliding 125. Pump grade 126. N.Y.C. zone 127. Must 128. Collectible flop

Down: 1. Raison ___ 2. “The Thin Blue Line” director Morris 3. “... with ___ in sight” 4. Place for a clasp 5. “The Name of the Rose” writer 6. Civics, e.g. 7. Double reeded instruments 8. Sydney is its cap. 9. Half of D 10. Rose and burgundy, e.g. 11. Test of character 12. Little dog, for short 13. Beard type 14. Materialize 16. Patriots’ grp. 18. “My stars!” 19. Commissions 21. Eastern Europeans 23. Immaculate

Look for this months answers at labyrinthgameshop.com 25. Berlioz’s “Les nuits d’___” 31. Watson who plays Hermione in the Harry Potter films 32. Ample 34. Wee 35. Throughout 37. Prosecution’s need 39. Designate 41. Verbal white flag 42. Qualified 43. Jefferson Davis’ domain, abbr. 44. Sounds of woe 45. Game show V.I.P.’s 46. X-ray units 49. Lubricate once more... 50. The NY Manning 51. “Yo!”

52. “Red ___” thriller, starring Rachel McAdams 53. Salt Lake City collegians 54. Melody 59. High-speed Internet inits. 60. Conger is one 63. Sci-fi extra 65. Subside 66. Financier’s Fannie ___ 67. Makes a blunder 68. Weekend warrior’s org. 69. Done by company staff, not external personnel 71. Org. that designates World Heritage Sites 74. Response during a medical checkup 75. It makes surfing possible

FALL in love with a new game or puzzle! • Educational, board and party games • LEGO and other building toys • Chess & other strategy game • Jigsaw puzzles • Brainteasers • Marble mazes • Corporate gifts; and Much, much more! Tuesday, Thursday & Friday – 11am to 10pm. Wednesday – 11am to 8pm. Saturday & Sunday – 10am to 7pm.

645 Pennsylvania Ave SE (Steps from Eastern Market Metro)

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202-544-1059 • labyrinthdc.com

76. Subject of cooking competitions 77. Mid-east chief 78. Jacket 79. B & B 83. Oxford doctorate, briefly 84. It’s big in California 85. DVD forerunner 86. 180° turn, slangily 88. Martial art word 89. Incense burners 90. Indian breads 91. Belgian 20th century painter, Margritte 95. Kenyan tribe 96. Behind the next person 97. Tells off 98. Judges mallet 99. Netherlands city 100. American in Mexico 101. Invoice abbr. 102. Gatos or Angeles 105. Opposite of après 107. Diet-Rites e.g. 108. “___ ear and out ...” 109. Wooden pin 112. Vein 114. ‘’Sands of ___ Jima’’ 117. Souse 119. Drink served at a stand 120. Billy the ___ 121. Cooler contents 122. Company in the UK

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East of the River Magazine – September 2021

Articles inside

The Peculiar History of

Buzzard Point Rises