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Residents will be able to learn more about Mayor Muriel Bowser‘s controversial plan to close the D.C. General family homeless shelter during a second wave of community meetings that will begin next week.
At a recent D.C. Council hearing about the plan, District administrators testified that they were planning ward-based meetings in early April so residents could weigh in on design and zoning elements related to the proposed shelters in seven of the city’s wards. (An all-women’s shelter in Ward 2 already exists and is being packaged as part of the mayor’s plan.) Now, the executive has announced the dates for the meetings.
“Last month, we hosted community meetings in all eight wards to discuss the short-term housing facilities in each ward and provided an update on the District’s plan to end homelessness in our city,” the mayor’s office says. “As committed, we are ready to share with residents concept designs for the Short-Term Family Housing sites and to solicit your feedback on the exterior of the building and other exterior options.”
The meetings will take place at the following times and locations:
Ward 1: Monday, April 11 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Reeves Center Community Room, 2000 14th St. NW
Ward 3: Tuesday, April 5 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Stoddert Elementary School, 4001 Calvert St. NW
Ward 4: Monday, April 4 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Hattie Wellness Center, 324 Kennedy St. NW
Ward 5: Thursday, April 7 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.,.; Mount Horeb Baptist Church, 2914 Bladensburg Road NE
Ward 6: Wednesday, April 6 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Metropolitan Police Department First District Headquarters; 101 M St. SW
Ward 7: Wednesday, April 6 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.; H.D. Woodson Senior High School, 540 55th St. NE
Ward 8: Thursday, April 7 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Hendley Elementary School, 425 Chesapeake St. SE
Some of the proposed shelter sites have stirred more consternation than others. For example, the Ward 5 site, located at 2266 25th Place NE, has caused concern among residents and advocates with respect to its environmental appropriateness: It’s situated close to a Metrobus depot, a trash-transfer facility, and clubs. When the plan was announced, Bowser’s office released the following map of proposed shelter locations:
The D.C. Council has yet to vote on letters of intent involving the site leases, which vary by length and cost.
In other closely watched development news, Events DC—the District’s sports authority—will hold a community meeting about the future of the RFK Stadium on Monday April 4, at the Convention Center:
Events DC hosts RFK Redevelopment Study Citywide Meeting on Apr. 4th! RSVP now: https://t.co/qaKvv6kYkspic.twitter.com/0m02clJf9D
— Events DC (@ConventionsDC) March 22, 2016
Photo by Darrow Montgomery
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