Worried About a Local Landmark? Nominate it as an Endangered Place

The DC Preservation League--the organization that seeks to raise awareness of threatened historically significant structures--is accepting petitions for buildings to include in its 2010 list. A few structures in the Shaw/Logan area could probably qualify for the list (I'm looking at you, Vermont Baptist Church-owned house at 12th and Q streets), but it's questionable as to whether they are "significant" enough to warrant inclusion.

The full press release is included below.

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DC PRESERVATION LEAGUE ACCEPTING NOMINATIONS FOR 2010 LIST OF MOST ENDANGERED PLACES

November 13, 2009: The DC Preservation League (DCPL), the District of Columbia’s only citywide nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving and protecting the historic and built environment, is accepting nominations for its annual list of Most Endangered Places in Washington for 2010. Nomination form can be found at www.dcpreservation.org and must be postmarked no later than Friday, February 5, 2010. Selections will be announced in May 2010.

This list, issued annually since 1996, has included historic buildings and places such as the west campus of St. Elizabeths Hospital, McMillan Reservoir, Martin Luther King Jr., Memorial Library and the Joseph Taylor Arms Mansion (Chancery of the Democratic Republic of the Congo). The list of Most Endangered Places in Washington is chosen by the DCPL Board of Trustees based on nominations submitted by concerned individuals, communities and organizations. Nominations are assessed based on the severity of the threat to the resource in question, whether through demolition, neglect, or inappropriate alteration. The list can include buildings, parks or other landscaped areas, or even vistas and other aspects of the city's unique planned history. All Most Endangered Places selected are located in the District of Columbia.

Detailed descriptions of each site listed in past years including information about the threats motivating their inclusion on these lists can be found at www.dcpreservation.org.

DCPL invites volunteers, civic associations, District government, and other groups to partner with us in preserving and protecting these endangered places. For more information, contact DCPL at 202.783.5144 or info@dcpreservation.org. For more information on DCPL, visit www.dcpreservation.org.

Protest to Save Historic Mansion From Demolition Tonight

I know it's short notice, but an ad-hoc group of DC area preservationists and Dupont residents are getting together this evening at 7PM in front of the mansion at 1841 16th Street to protest the pending demolition of the structure. The mansion has been declared structurally unsound by the city and could be torn down within weeks.

Borderstan has more details.

The current issue of the Dupont Current has the full story about the house, which is owned by a George Washington University professor. The building has been very poorly maintained, to the point that an inspection by DCRA found the building to be at imminent risk of collapse. The mansion, constructed during the late 19th century, is a stunning piece of architecture and would be a great loss for the neighborhood. Unfortunately, the building's condition is so dire that the cost to stabilize and renovate the structure could exceed half a million dollars.

Pre-Gentrification Local History

I was walking along U Street during Howard homecoming when I overheard an interesting conversation. A Howard alumnus who appeared to be well under 30 commented to his friend that gentrification had overtaken U Street since his student days. So without digging into current gentrification debates about race and income, I became curious about the history of the neighborhood. I found that there was a lot about 14^th and U that contributed to its current state, much of it I didn’t know about previously. What follows is a little lengthy but worth knowing if you live here.

I'll follow up not long from now with more recent events; there was just too much material for one post.

How U Street became a center for the black community
The history of African Americans in the neighborhood dates back to the Civil War when war refugees flowed into military encampments north of DC. Immediately after the war Howard University was founded in 1866 and helped to draw the black community’s intellectuals and artists to the neighborhood. In fact, until the 1920s, the 14th and U Street area it was the largest black community in America.

A lot of the residences in Logan/U Street were built during the Civil War and post-war population boom. In fact, the 1400 block of S Street, the 1400 block of Swann Street, the 1200 block of T Street, and the 1800 block of 12^th Street all have homes dating back to this era. Driving at least part of the late 19^th century boom was the installation of a major horse-drawn cross-town streetcar line on U Street.

Flight
As early as 1948, professional African American families began to leave the U Street corridor. The oft-mentioned “white flight” started around 1950, and the 1980 census showed the lowest reported number of white residents. Though the number of black residents to leave the city was fewer than white residents, the black population still fell by 88,000 between the 1950 and 1980 census. During the same period the city’s overall population fell by almost 164,000 and continued to decline another 66,000 between 1980 and 2000. By basic rule of supply and demand, housing prices sunk as people left the city.

Riots
Of course, we all know of the 1968 riots following the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. Stokely Carmichael, a black activist, led crowds gathering at 14^th and U to demand that local businesses close out of respect for King. Before long the mood of the crowd turned violent and looting had broken out. The following day, Carmichael addressed a rally at Howard after which rioting spread to 7^th Street NW and H Street NE. An article in the Howard Hilltop states $24 million of damages were sustained in the five days of rioting, and a Wikipedia article estimates that the damages totaled $27 million is 1968 dollars.

Veranda Issued "Stop Work Order"

As reported on Leslumhistorique, Veranda, the new Mediterranean/Italian restaurant set to open at the corner of 11th and P, was unfortunately tagged with a "Stop Work Order" last week due to some non-permitted work on its outdoor patio. I'm not certain what, specifically, the SWO pertains to, but seeing as how the restaurant will be located in the Shaw Historic District, it likely has something to do with that. Here's hoping the Duni brothers are able to quickly resolve whatever issue led to the SWO, and can get the opening of Veranda back on track, as we're both anxiously awaiting its opening.

You can visit Veranda's website here: http://www.verandaonp.com/ . Make certain that you suggest a beer!