Maureen Andary of The Sweater Set
@ Fort Reno
Q:What's your song for summer?
A:"Our song about summer love. The lyrics are 'Oh, you're just for fun, don't you know. I only want you for summer months.'"
A Meridian Hill Transfer?
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Columbia Heights Dupont Circle U Street-Cardozo
MERIDIAN HILL PARK on 16th Street NW has seen better days — and is poised to see a brighter future as the National Park Service plans to finish the first phase of park renovations next month. But if you've ever ventured into some of the park's darker corners, you know full well that it can be a literal cesspool. It isn't uncommon to come across unpleasant odors and the occasional heroin needle or crack pipe discarded in the tunneled staircase off 16th Street and Crescent Place.
Crime in the park has decreased since the 1980s when Meridian Hill was dubbed the "most violent national park in the region," but it is still a concern, especially on the 15th Street NW side of the park, where a friend of this writer and her four companions were robbed at gunpoint by two teens last year. But during daylight — especially on a beautiful spring weekend, the park is a jewel, considering that the District has few formal, landscaped parks, just significant acreage of forest preserves under federal jurisdiction.
Might the park, also known informally as Malcolm X Park, do better under direct management from the District government? According to this week's Current newspaper, D.C. Council member Jim Graham has introduced a resolution meant to gauge the interest of his fellow council members of possibly proposing a formal transfer from the federal government.
Don't expect any swift action. As the Current quotes Graham: "We can't just take land away from the federal government."
» "Meridian Hill Park" [NPS]
» "Neighborhood Reclaims a Neglected Park" [Project for Public Space]
» "Legislator Proposes to Transfer Meridian Hill Park From Federal Hands" [The Current]
Photo by Lucian Perkins/The Washington Post
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Addison Road
while i would love to see meridian hill's broken bits fixed up, i don't know that the city government would do any worse or better than the feds if they had control. my feeling is that early attention paid to the park would tail off into long term neglect.
and another thing...why doesn't the current put their content online? i mean, they are a great news resource, but guys, get in the 21st century!
By IMGoph , Posted February 23, 2007 12:44 PMJim Graham is high if he thinks Meridian Hill park should come under the stewardship of DPR...he has been involved in enough meetings and emails about DPR's woefull lack of attention to the parks it currently has. How he thinks they will do any better than the Federales is beyond me.
By Adams Morgan , Posted February 23, 2007 2:39 PMAny idea on exactly where Camp Illinois was in 1862? 2 miles north of the White House, 1/2 mile east of the Zoological Park....Meridian Hill.
Thanks!
By RJ Samp , Posted September 23, 2007 1:23 PM