Poplar Point DC
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Share your thoughts on Poplar Point
We want your ideas about the future of Poplar Point.
Poplar Point is a prominent, 110-acre site in the District of Columbia across the Anacostia River from Nationals Park. It is owned by the federal government and managed by the National Park Service. It has a rich history, but today is largely fenced off from the public, overgrown and underutilized.
A 2006 federal law requires the transfer of Poplar Point to the District of Columbia when certain conditions are met. The two most important of these are finalization of a plan to clean up historic pollution on the site, and the Secretary of Interior’s approval of a land use plan to be developed by the DC government in consultation with the National Park Service.
The Citizen’s Poplar Point Working Group is a voluntary project to solicit public input and develop a citizen-driven plan for the site, particularly the 70-plus acres that the federal law requires to be permanently reserved for “park uses.” We have no affiliation with the government, or with any development interest. We are just citizens soliciting ideas for what should happen there in the public interest. Our hope is to influence Poplar Point’s future whenever the DC government decides to begin planning.
About Poplar Point
Find out about the history, characteristics, and previous proposals for Poplar Point.
Cleaning up the Pollution
Learn about the contamination issues at the site and efforts to clean the site up for future use.
Imagine Poplar Point Park Community Survey
Response to Jack Evans on Poplar Point
From the Washington Post:
I’m all for keeping the FBI headquarters in D.C. But Jack Evans was wrong to suggest in his Nov. 6 Local Opinions essay, “The FBI headquarters belongs in D.C.,” Poplar Point as a possible location.
Poplar Point is an approximately 100-acre parcel of land on the east side of the Anacostia River managed by the National Park Service as part of Anacostia Park. A federal law was passed nearly 16 years ago to transfer the land to D.C. as soon as the interior secretary approved a land-use plan with no fewer than 70 acres set aside for permanent park use. The land-use plan has never been completed because the Navy and the Architect of the Capitol left toxic messes when they used the land decades ago. Development of a cleanup plan has been moving at a frozen snail’s pace since 2008.
The Navy and the Architect of the Capitol need to clean up their mess, and Poplar Point needs to be transferred to D.C. for the benefit of D.C. residents, particularly those east of the Anacostia River. The FBI needs to look elsewhere.
I am a Ward 8 resident who has been attending community meetings on Poplar Point for the past 30 years. It is critical that residents of Ward 8 have a voice in this matter.
Brenda Lee Richardson, Citizens Poplar Point Working Group