A Place to Play: Playground Initiative Grows in Brookland

We won't know for sure until the 2010 census, but it sure feels like there's been a baby-boom in Brookland/Michigan Park/Woodridge. A quick survey of local playgrounds turns up a number of dilapidated and sometimes vandalized play areas which don't do much to inspire parents to bring their children out. Healthy and accessible open space and play areas are no small asset for parents raising children in the city. Getting outside, getting exercise, and connecting with the community are only a few of the perks of well attended playgrounds.

A number of local neighbors have begun organizing to do something about the neighborhoods' lack and we invite you to get involved. You don't have to be a parent to care about playgrounds. It's a benefit to us all when children of all ages have safe and healthy places to play.

Three ways to get involved:

Dream a Little Dream: We are soliciting ideas for the ideal park and playground. We are looking to the neighbors to tell us what you want to see in a new playground. The group intends to target a particular site to put our efforts behind, so gathering together the vision of the neighborhood helps. What are your favorite parks and why? What is your child's/nephew's/grandchild's favorite activity? Send your comments to brooklandjess@earthlink.net by Thursday March 6th.

Make Some Noise for Noyes: The group quickly uncovered that the Noyes Park (map) is mired in budget politicking. Two years ago, the Department of Parks and Recreation completed a fantastic set of plans for development of the empty parcel bordered by 10th Street NE and Franklin Street NE. The park includes landscaped area and would be a benefit to all residents, not just families with children. Each year, during the usual round of cuts, this park is waylaid. The 2009 budget is presented in March and finalized in June, so this is our window of opportunity to lobby to keep this park in the budget!

It's valid to note that Ward 5's own Councilmember Tommy Thomas is the chair of the Committee on Libraries, Parks, and Recreation. Other councilmembers include Carol Schwartz, At-Large, David A. Catania, At-Large, Phil Mendelson, At-Large, and Yvette Alexander, Ward 7.

Here is a sample letter. Please tailor it to reflect your concerns.

I am writing to ask for a moment of your time to email our council
member and mayor to include the funding for Noyes Park (the field at
10th & Franklin) in the 2009 budget.

Detailed plans for this site were drawn up over a year ago. The 2009 budget is being finalized over the next couple of months so it is a good time to support the addition of a beautiful landscaped park and playground to the neighborhood.

Join us for a Cuppa: Join the Brookland Playground Group at the next open meeting, March 8, 11 am, at Cardinals Nest for coffee and planning, 3748 10th Street, NE. The group is new and we are eager to invite input from the neighborhood.

Photo by elfrenetico

Franklin Street Bridge Clean-Up - Saturday, April 28th

What: Councilmember Harry "Tommy" Thomas, Jr. is sponsoring a neighborhood clean-up under and around the Franklin Street bridge

When: Saturday, April 28th, 2007 at 10am

Where: Meet at the corner of 7th and Franklin Streets, NE

Etc.: Refreshments will be provided by local businesses. For more information or to volunteer, please contact Councilmember Thomas' office at 202.724.8028.

Additional Sponsors: DPW, DC Prep Charter School, DCPS, CSOSA, DC Bridge Maintenance, and Local businesses

Eckington/Edgewood Community Spring Clean-Up - Saturday, April 28th

Please join Eckington Civic Association, Emery Elementary School, City Year Young Heroes, Hands on DC, McKinley Technical High School, Edgewood Civic Association, North Capitol Main Street, XM Satellite Radio, and the DPW Helping Hands Program for the largest community improvement project we have ever held.

Where do we meet?
The event will start and finish at Emery Elementary School, 1720 First Street NE. Our day will run from 10am until 4pm with a break at 12:30 at Emery where lunch will be provided. We will break up into teams and head out into the community to work. Tools will be provided by City Year, DPW Helping Hands, and Hands On DC.

What will we be doing?
There are a wide range of project you may work on, painting murals, gardening and weeding in pocket parks, cleaning streets and alleys, painting inside Emery, painting parking lot lines, and creating a large tree box at the school. Our goal is to clean from North Capitol Street east to 4th Street NE and from Rhode Island Avenue NE south to Florida Ave NE. Collection points for the trash will be at First and R Streets NE, R Street and Eckington Place NE, and 4th and V Streets NE. We will be adding two more pick up sites between T Street and Rhode Island Avenue NE.

Why should I take part in this project?
We need your support to make this happen. 100 of our high school and middle school young people will be taking part in the clean up. Your time and effort will make you a true agent of change for a better DC!

Community Computer Sale & Recycling - Saturday and Sunday

Community Computer Sale
Join us at our upcoming Community Computer Sale on Saturday, April 21st, 2007, 10-2pm at Kennedy Rec Center (1401 7th Street NW, 202.671.4794). Hosted by United Planning Organization Head Start Program and Per Scholas.

Computers will be available for $230 & $330!

Per Scholas is a non-profit organization with a rich 12-year history of offering affordable technology to low-income families and financially challenged schools and community-based organizations. We are headquartered in Bronx, NY with offices in Miami and Baltimore. For the past two years, Per Scholas has partnered with the Head Start Program in various cities to reach out to families without home computers and technology-deprived schools, day care centers and after school programs.

Beyond the New York City area, we have co-hosted outreach events in Baltimore, Miami, Pittsburgh, Toledo, Wilmington, & Washington, DC. This is our third time in DC. Learn more about our threefold technology programs at www.perscholas.org.

Please spread the word about this event. We do not require proof of income nor applications. Instead, we ask community organizations serving financially challenged populations to share the information with their staff and the families they serve. These computers also ideal for organizations setting up classrooms and tech labs. We highly recommend placing advance orders at 866.907.1758 - although walk-ins are welcome.

Should there be any questions, please contact me (Angela Tyler) at 410.230.1819.

Angela Tyler
Marketing Director/Consultant
Per Scholas - Affordable computers year-round!
410.230.1819 / 866.907.1758

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Household Hazardous Waste, E-Cycling Collection
The DC Department of Public Works will hold its annual spring Household Hazardous Waste and E-Cycling collection event Saturday, April 21, 2007, 9am-3pm at the Carter Barron Amphitheatre parking lot at 16th and Kennedy Streets, NW. This drop-off service is free and open to all District residents.

DC residents can bring items including leftover cleaning and gardening chemicals, small quantities of gasoline, pesticides and poisons, mercury thermometers, varnish, solvents, spent batteries of all kinds, roofing tar, chemistry sets, automotive fluids, even asbestos floor tiles to the collection site for environmentally safe disposal.

Additionally, an electronics recycler will be onsite to take end-of-life consumer electronics including computers, computer monitors and other accessories, televisions, and office equipment. These machines will be broken down into their component parts (plastic, glass, toxic/heavy metals) and recycled or disposed of safely.

Items that will not be accepted during the Household Hazardous Waste and Electronics Recycling Collection include ammunition, bulk trash, wooden TV consoles, propane tanks, microwave ovens, air conditioners and other appliances, as well as radioactive or medical wastes.

For more information on household hazardous waste, visit the DPW site.

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Computer Recycling
Bring your old and unwanted computers and computer-related equipment to Freedom Plaza (13th and E Streets, NW) on Sunday, April 22nd, 2007, 11am-3pm, and the Environmental Protection Agency will recycle them for free in a manner that is safe for the environment.

Safely recycling and reusing computer equipment helps keep substances like lead and mercury from harming people or the environment.

Encourage your family, friends, schools, religious institutions, and other community organizations to do the same. We will take donations of computers, laptops, monitors, keyboards, scanners, mice, and other related computer equipment.

More information is available at www.epa.gov/oei/recycling.

DC Likely to Reimburse Feds $3.36M Over Closed DMV Inspection Station

From today's Examiner:

The District anticipates having to repay more than $3 million to the federal government now that the Department of Motor Vehicles has decided not to reopen its Northeast Inspection Station.

Outdated, in disrepair and poorly equipped, the station, located at 1827 West Virginia Ave. NE closed in 1999 for reconstruction. Today, despite having spent nearly $8 million to rebuild it, the facility remains shuttered, and the decision has been made to keep the bays locked permanently.

DMV Interim Director Lucinda Babers recently told a D.C. Council committee that the agency’s lone inspection station, at 1001 Half St. SW., experiences "little to no lines" except on Mondays, at lunchtime and after holidays. Waits were reduced through improved staffing and new equipment that streamlined the process, she said.

"We realize that it may be more inconvenient for customers who have to still come to Southwest," Babers said. "But the cost effectiveness isn’t there."

The District spent $7.9 million, including $3.36 million in federal highway funds, to rebuild the Northeast facility.

D.C. officials say the feds likely will have to be reimbursed, though the government has yet to ask for its money back.

Just in case, D.C. is working "to identify the appropriate source of funding," mayoral spokesman Mafara Hobson said.

"Nothing’s concrete in terms of how we’re going to pay them back, but we’re sure we’re going to come up with something so we can proceed," Babers told the council committee.

The building, now 90 percent complete, likely will be turned over to the Department of Public Works for use in fleet maintenance.

The city stopped work on the station in 2003 out of frustration with delays it blamed on the contractor. The District ended up paying D.C.-based HRGM Corp. nearly $3.7 million in two installments to settle the matter.

Ward 1 Council Member Jim Graham, who has oversight of the DMV, said the federal reimbursement is an important but unanswered question. But not operating the Northeast station, he said, should save the District money in the long run.

"It certainly makes sense to pause and not do it if we don’t need it," Graham said.

Trash Collection Day Changes for Some Residents Starting May 1st

In an effort to normalize a dozen overburdened trash routes, approximately 7,300 households will have their trash and recyclables collection day switched to Wednesdays. All other elements of the service will remain the same (i.e. residents should continue to put out containerized trash at the point of collection no earlier than 6:30 pm the day before collection and no later than 6 am on the day of collection). The change goes into effect today, and affects only those homes with once-weekly collection service in small areas of Wards 1, 5, 6, and 7. The households should have been notified of the change via printed door hangers that were distributed last Wednesday. View a PDF map detailing which blocks will have trash and recyclables collection switched to Wednesdays here.