Testimony to the DC Council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment, Budget Oversight Hearing for the Department of Transportation
April 30, 2024
For over 50 years, the DC Preservation League (DCPL) has served as Washington’s citywide nonprofit advocacy organization dedicated to preserving and protecting our city’s historic resources. DCPL invests significant time, effort, and funds to work with local agencies and stakeholders on preservation-related
issues across the District of Columbia. The organization works diligently to ensure that all preservation projects encourage community development that is socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable. In 2008, the Foundry Branch Trolley Trestle was listed as one of Washington, DC’s Most Endangered Places. Built
in 1897, the Foundry Branch Trolley Trestle is one of the few remaining pieces of the old streetcar system that carried District residents around the city for a century…
Testimony to the DC Council’s Committee of the Whole, Budget Oversight Hearing for the Office of Planning
April 24, 2024
DCPL works closely with the Historic Preservation Office and its parent agency, the Office of Planning, in pursuit of its own mission and, in doing so, supports DC-led initiatives that utilize historic
preservation to further economic growth and vitality in the city. We thank the Council for expanding the Historic Homeowner Grant Program to all city neighborhoods and for increasing the maximum grant amount per household to $50,000. There is no need for a geographic restriction when program eligibility is limited by income. The increased maximum per grant will help low and moderate-income homeowners meet their rehabilitation goals in the face of ongoing inflation…
Testimony to the DC Council’s Committee of the Whole, Agency Performance Oversight Hearing for the Office of Planning
February 22, 2024
DCPL has had a longstanding partnership with HPO to tell the histories of our unique and diverse neighborhoods. Recently, we have been working collaboratively to develop a more complete story of Washington’s residents through context studies on Chinese and Korean American communities, Women’s Suffrage, and African American Civil Rights. Forthcoming studies include a context study associated with DC’s Latino history, as well as a survey of African American Affordable Housing. These studies, funded by the National Park Service, help identify priorities for historic protection in traditionally underserved communities, and provide a foundation for broader public education…
Testimony to the DC Council’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment, Agency Performance Oversight Hearing for the District Department of Transportation
February 9, 2024
Since 2008, the Foundry Branch Trolley Trestle has been listed as one of Washington, DC’s Most Endangered Places. Built in 1897, the Foundry Branch Trolley Trestle is one of the few remaining pieces of the old streetcar system that carried District residents around the city for a century. The trolley line it served ran from Georgetown into Glen Echo, Maryland, transporting thousands of Washingtonians to the Glen Echo Amusement Park, connecting and developing the communities in its path, and allowing its riders to enjoy the scenic views. The last trolley car crossed the Trestle in January of 1960, however, the bridge remained popular with pedestrians and
cyclists, who continued to cross over and under it. After years of neglect by WMATA, it is in significant disrepair. The deterioration has necessitated the closure of part of the southern area of Glover-Archbold Park…
Testimony to the DC Council’s Committee on Business and Economic Development, Agency Performance Oversight Hearing for the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development
January 31, 2024
For years, DCPL has appeared before Council to express its concerns over the deterioration of properties under the responsibility of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED). This ongoing failure to maintain properties resulted in the catastrophic loss of the last remaining historic barn in the District of Columbia, which burned down in a fire in December 2002. While you may think that it was just a barn, it was an
instrumental piece to an ensemble of buildings that tell the story of the agricultural history of the District of Columbia and, specifically, the St. Elizabeths campus, a National Historic Landmark. The DCFD incident investigators agreed that an open flame inside the building was the cause and that the site was a hangout spot for transient individuals who may have set the fire for warmth or cooking…
