The District is narrowing down the choices for the company to develop Poplar Point and could make a decision this week (according to Ballpark and Beyond). And Now Anacostia has a good break down of the various proposals. Clark Realty's includes a 2-block wide deck over 295 that is wicked cool. Regardless of which company they go with, they should include that deck. It's important that this new part of the city tie in well with the street grid and the Shepherd Industrial Spur Trail (I know, but i hold out hope for this until it's completely dead).
this will never work, eg, the many examples of the decades from the late 60s onward...
the problem: economically and culturally viable citizens will not travel to areas populated by disenfranchised, marginalized consumers, who are poor, prone to violence, undereducated and are in the midst of UGLY and crumbling and trash strewn infrastructure. any alien arriving in a spaceship and surveying the territory in Anacostia and its surrounds (including the people) would conclude as much, and that *in general* (there are of course exceptions, many tragic) the area could be characterised as "economic apartheid."
need i add that it has NOTHING to do with any inherent qualities of the population, or any character faults. the situation has everything to do with history, and social struture. but wait, I forgot, americans delude themselves in thinking theyre unhistorical and unbounded by context...since their "souls" are free, and they have full civil and juridical "rights," any worthless area must simply be a manifestation of the worthless people in the area...
unless the social problems over "there" are (re)solved or (dis)solved, ALL projects will be a disaster (it remains to be seen if the SINGLE GIANT grocery store works out; and if the a SINGLE movie theater opens over there...consider the battle and present support over the ARC).
bear in mind that the idiot POLICE dont figure here: it's a social problem stupid, not a policing, punishing problem (as much as well all know the ongoing punitive legacy beqeathed us by the Puritans...).
Posted by: mike | January 22, 2008 at 03:33 PM