DCist: NoMa Aquires Land, Once Slated For Condos, To Build Its First Park

A piece of land originally intended for condos will become NoMa’s first park, according to the NoMa Parks Foundation. The lot at 3rd and L St. NE will serve residents “and their 4-legged friends,” says Robin Eve-Jasper of the NoMa Business Improvement District. Read more.

The NoMa Parks Foundation, recently acquired a parcel at Third and L Streets, NE that will be developed into NoMa’s first park. The acquisition adds to the great community amenities in NoMa and makes good on the promise of beautiful public spaces for the neighborhood. The lot is the first acquisition for the NoMa Parks Foundation and will enable the creation of a roughly 8,000 square foot park. The land is titled to the District of Columbia government.

The acquisition coincides with the launch of NoMa’s City. Smarter. campaign which illustrates the great changes and unique benefits of living and working in NoMa. The park acquisition is one of several parks and public space projects highlighted in the campaign. Other projects include the NoMa Meander, a four block long pedestrian promenade unique in the District; Underpass Art Parks to beautify and create delightful connections between the areas east and west of the train tracks; and NoMa Green, a two acre space intended to serve as the “backyard” for the neighborhood.

Residents, workers and visitors to NoMa will all be able to enjoy a thoughtfully designed system of parks and public spaces as envisioned based on input from residents and stakeholders. NoMa, with its free outdoor Wi-Fi, beautiful streets, incredible transit assets, great retail and pop-ups and parks underway provides the experiences and environment that people want in a 21st century mixed-use neighborhood.

“We’re excited to have the first of several acquisitions under our belt,” said Robin-Eve Jasper, president of the NoMa Business Improvement District. “The addition of public park space is an integral component in our efforts to transform the neighborhood and buying this land for the neighborhood is another milestone in creating this smart urban environment for people in NoMa.”

The NoMa Parks Foundation invites community members and park enthusiasts to the second NoMa Parks Community Conversation to discuss plans for NoMa Parks and public spaces. This community meeting will take place on November 19, 2015 at 6:30 pm at the Hilton Garden Inn located at 1225 First Street, NE. Representatives from D.C.’s Department of Parks and Recreation and other government partners will attend. A community meeting to discuss the Third and L Street, NE lot will be held soon thereafter. For more information and to RSVP for the November 19th Community Conversation, please visit nomaparks.org.

About The NoMa Parks Foundation

The NoMa Parks Foundation was formed in 2012 to establish welcoming, sustainable, beautiful spaces where people can play, refresh and connect in NoMa, now and for generations to come.

The rapid transformation of NoMa into a true mixed-use, urban neighborhood has highlighted the importance of creating great parks and public spaces. More than 36,000 people live within 4/5 of a mile of First and M Streets, NE, and the population is projected to double in the next 10 years. However, publicly accessible parks, playgrounds, and plazas in the area are severely limited. Parks are urgently needed and undeveloped land is becoming scarcer each year. The creation of refreshing, inviting parks and public spaces — before it is too late — will improve the lives of people in NoMa today and in the future. More about the NoMa Parks Foundation and its current activities and initiatives can be found at nomaparks.org.  You can sign up for the NoMa Parks Foundation newsletter as well. Follow us on Twitter @NoMaParksDC and like us on Facebook. 

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Media Contact:
Sarah Mars Bowie
(202) 974-5081
[email protected]

Washington, D.C., July 9, 2014 – Join your neighbors this Saturday to give feedback on the type of artistic playgrounds you’d like to see in NoMa! An initial community meeting will be held Saturday, July 12 at 10 AM at Flats 130 apartments at 130 M Street, NE. The meeting will be about a new playable art sculpture in the neighborhood along the Metropolitan Branch Trail between L & M Streets, NE. The NoMa neighborhood has been selected for the Playable Arts DC project (playableartdc.co) to receive an art sculpture that will double as children’s play equipment, and the DC Office of Planning, NoMa BID, and the ANC are collaborating on the project.

An international design competition will take place later this year, with installation in 2016. The process kicks off with this Saturday’s community workshop to allow neighbors, kids, and parents to provide feedback on what kinds of art & play structures they’d like to see here.

Please help spread the word!  Coffee and pastries will be provided. Whether you can make it or not, please also participate in the related online survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/PlayableArtDC.

About Playable Art DC

Playable Art DC is a play and place-making initiative of the DC Office of Planning (OP) in partnership with the District Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) to bring innovative art-based play spaces to neighborhoods with underserved park space in the District though an international design competition. Playable Art DC promotes the use of art as a means of creating new types of play spaces in areas that are constrained by space, topography, or other barriers like busy streets. Playable Art DC also seeks to engage the whole community in play as a way to promote fitness and exercise and create community landmarks and neighborhood gathering spots. The initiative is made possible by a grant from ArtPlace America.

Playable Art DC builds on Mayor Gray’s playground improvement initiative—a multi-year citywide play space project to evaluate and improve DPR playgrounds—by providing access to play for neighborhoods identified in the Play DC Vision Framework as not well served by traditional parks and open spaces. For more information about Playable Art DC, please visit: http://playableartdc.org

About NoMa
NoMa is a vibrant, growing neighborhood nestled among Union Station, the U.S. Capitol, Shaw, and the H Street, NE corridor in Washington, D.C. Over the last several years, private developers have invested more than $5 billion in the 35-block area within the NoMa BID boundary, and have plans to develop more than 16 million square feet of additional office, residential, hotel, and retail space. With a capital investment of $50 million from the District government, NoMa will soon have great new parks and public spaces as well. NoMa is home to more than 3,900 terrific new apartments, and more than 40,000 people work here each day. NoMa is the most connected neighborhood in Washington, D.C.  With unparalleled transportation access on Amtrak, VRE, MARC, two Red Line Metro stops, and vehicular access to Interstate 395, visitors, workers and residents can easily travel throughout the region as well as get to New York or anywhere on the East Coast. NoMa has a WalkScore of 92 and offers great biking facilities, including three free outdoor air pumps, the East Coast’s only Bikestation, the 8-mile Metropolitan Branch Trail, and seven Capital Bikeshare stations. The NoMa BID organizes more than 50 free award-winning community events each year, connecting more than 20,000 friends and neighbors. For more information about NoMa, visit www.nomabid.org and sign up for our bimonthly newsletter. Follow us on Twitter @NoMaBID and like us on Facebook.

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For immediate release
News media contact:
Rachel Davis
202-997-3846
[email protected]