One Big Question: As Construction In East End Continues, Is There Room For Open Space?
In April, the Mount Vernon Triangle Community Improvement District announced plans to build a new park. This public area would serve a dire neighborhood need for more green space.
Since the early 2000s, the Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood has seen a construction and development boom. The submarket went from 435 housing units and 750K SF of combined office and retail in 2000 to 4,000 housing units, 1.8M SF of office and 290K SF of retail in 2018, UrbanTurf reported.
Construction in the MVT neighborhood has attracted an increasing population. The area’s central location makes it a submarket where people want to work, shop and live. But as the area grows more crowded, people want a place where they can escape the hustle and bustle.
In a survey from the MVT CID, 75% of residents said the neighborhood’s shortage of parks was a reason they would consider moving out of the area.
Mount Vernon and the greater East End area has grown more dense than other areas in D.C. Even business districts and nonresidential areas like Dupont Circle, Foggy Bottom and Golden Triangle have their fair share of open spaces.
Out of 45 areas in the district, East End is the ninth-most populous, but has the fourth-lowest provision of open space, according to the CID. Its growing population has made its resident-per-playground ratio three times the District average.
Cobb Park, a park and green space proposed by the MVT CID, could provide a solution to these public concerns. The open space is currently being used as a construction staging area for the Capitol Crossing project. The designated area stretches 52K SF, and there is currently $500K in D.C.’s budget for improvement and beautification of the park.
Other spaces in East End could also be repurposed as parks and green space. The CID’s study identified additional plots of land that could become parks and public spaces. The National Park Service controls several small triangles of space in Mount Vernon, Greater Greater Washington reported. The Mount Vernon Triangle CID suggests that these small areas be turned into spaces where people can sit and eat lunch or enjoy public art. There is also space available between K Street and New York Avenue, which the Mount Vernon Triangle CID suggests could become a dog park, playground or community garden.
The problem is, more open space in East End could mean fewer opportunities for development. Vacant plots of land, like the site of Cobb Park, are prime spots for real estate. City planners are thinking about how they can create more parks in the neighborhood while still allowing space for further commercial and economic growth.
