The NorThwesT CurreNT
Wednesday, May 31, 2017
Vol. L, No. 22
Serving Chevy Chase, Colonial Village, Shepherd Park, Brightwood, Crestwood, Petworth & 16th Street Heights
Agency weighs streetscape options
STAR-STRUCK
■ Cleveland Park: Project
aims to boost safety, drainage By BRADY HOLT Current Staff Writer
The Cleveland Park commercial district is on tap for a host of safety, aesthetic and environmental upgrades, as the D.C. Department of Transportation works to redesign potentially dangerous
intersections — including the local service lane — and improve drainage. The Transportation Department has previously weighed potential upgrades for the neighborhood’s stretch of Connecticut Avenue NW, but the project took on greater urgency after videos of water cascading down the Cleveland Park Metro station’s escalators went viral last summer. To address the water issue, the
agency has proposed a series of “bioretention planters” — essentially, vegetated areas along the road and sidewalk that are specifically designed to capture and absorb stormwater. Some areas of sidewalk would also become porous rubber. But the Transportation Department is also taking the opportunity to carry out broader streetscape improvements, which would extend from Porter Street See Streetscape/Page 13
Group seeks input on Belmont Road park By GRACE BIRD
Current Correspondent
Brian Kapur/The Current
Various Washington Nationals stars, including outfielder Bryce Harper, visited young players across the D.C. area on Saturday. The former MVP spent time with members of the Northwest Little League on the ballfields behind the underconstruction Friendship Recreation Center.
For years, a band of Sheridan-Kalorama activists has lobbied to transform an unbuilt “paper road” into a park for residents to enjoy — a project that backers hope to see come to fruition soon. After the never-constructed stretch of Belmont Road NW between Kalorama Circle and Connecticut Avenue became part of the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation in 2014, residents formed a nonprofit to care for and enliven the narrow space along the edge of Rock Creek Park. That group, the Friends of Belmont Road Park, is now on its way toward becoming the city’s official partner for the park — winning approval this month from Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2D (Sheridan-Kalorama), a key step toward securing a publicprivate partnership with the parks department. Now, See Belmont/Page 13
Brian Kapur/The Current
A group of residents is seeking thoughts on the best uses for the narrow park that runs between Kalorama Circle and Connecticut Avenue.
Tenley first-grader wins nationwide art contest
D.C.’s sleepy summer season stirred up amid local growth
By MARK LIEBERMAN
By MARK LIEBERMAN
Current Staff Writer
Current Staff Writer
Sanah Hutchins, 7, clutched her new plaque to her chest. Her father knelt down to her level and extended his hand, hoping to read the inscription on the front. But Hutchins held firm. “Mine!” she said. It’s easy to see why Hutchins, a first-grader at Janney Elementary in Tenleytown, was feeling possessive. She’s the first champion of the Endangered Species Coalition’s annual youth art competition to hail from D.C., and one of the youngest winners in the prize’s 12-year history — the previous two winners were in 10th grade and sixth grade. Her watercolor painting of the rusty patched bumblebee, currently on the coalition’s list of species in danger of extinction, topped more than 1,400
There’s an ambient sense in D.C. that summer in the city isn’t as sleepy as it once was. As with most such inklings, though, the story is a bit more complicated. The D.C. Council takes recess each year from July until September. Most advisory neighborhood commissions skip meeting in August, and some bypass July as well. And getting hold of anyone in the city is difficult during the summer, as many residents travel the country and the world for
Photo courtesy of Nabeeha Kazi
Janney Elementary first-grader Sanah Hutchins, shown with teacher Molly Kraybill, won a contest with her painting of endangered bumblebees.
entries nationwide from students in kindergarten through 12th grade. At a reception in the U.S. House of Representatives’ Rayburn Office Building cafeteria last Wednesday, the adults sang Hutchins’ praises while she bounced around the room, full of energy yet slightly overwhelmed by all the attention. See Award/Page 5
weeks or months at a time. Even as government action slows down, though, those who choose not to vacation during the year’s hottest months have experienced more events in D.C. in recent years, including outdoor movies, food festivals, sporting events and concerts, to name a few staples. Recreation options for children and adults alike have never been more diverse. In general, residents describe an atmosphere that’s become more cosmopolitan and less fragmented. The surge in activity can be attributed in part to shifting demoSee Summertime/Page 14
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Calendar/16 Classifieds/23 District Digest/4 In Your Neighborhood/12 Opinion/6
Agency moving forward with controversial Chevy Chase traffic safety overhaul / Page 3
Wilson’s boys and girls track and field teams sprint to school’s first pair of DCSAA titles / Page 9
Police Report/8 Real Estate/11 School Dispatches/10 Service Directory/21 Sports/9
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